FIF#128-Cosmo Warrior Zero

Mankinds war with the Machines is now over but the cost has left the Earth and its people devastated.  Captain Warius Zero knows the pain of this bitter victory all to well, having lost his wife and daughter to the war.  Yet he continues to serve as a member of the Earth Fleet, now working hand in hand with their former enemies.  But now, Zero has been given a mission most would deem impossible.  Determined to see it through, Zero commands his crew of both Man and Machine to venture into the galaxy to complete their task: the capture of the infamous Space Pirate Captain Harlock. 

Well now, this is an interesting spin on things.  I’ll admit, when I saw the initial promo image for this series, I wondered if it was going to be another randomized spin on the legend of Captain Harlock.  Turns out, I might be half right.  Not only does the Harlock character get a twinge of a new spin, we’re also looking at the crew sent to capture the legendary pirate himself.  That’s not a bad hook for a show.

Warius Zero really stands out himself in the first episode.  Haunted by the loss of not just his family but the millions of lives he couldn’t save during the war, he’s a man barely hanging on and barely doing that alone.  There’s a great desperation in his actions, his voice and mannerisms early on in the episode, as if he’s still trying to atone for crimes not his fault.  Getting to take on Harlock without realizing it’s Harlock was certainly a good fire to light under him.  What’s interesting is that the portrayal of Harlock here is pretty much what we always see: he’s arrogant, in control and calm in the presence of danger.  He has a code but will also be ruthless in his actions.  In the first episode of Cosmo Warrior Zero, there’s almost a sort of antagonistic menace to him this time.  Yeah he can take pleasure in the fact that his ship, here the ”Death Shadow” and not the “Arcadia” can pretty much mop the floor with anything without breaking a sweat.  But here it seemed like Harlock was being almost cruel in his battle with Zero just to prove the point that he is not to be f’ed with.  Of course, this show could always end with Harlock and Zero joining forces for various reasons, call it a gut feeling.

Cosmo Warrior Zero might be one to stick around with for a couple more episodes at least. Ignoring the teetering quality of this being from the Digi Paint era of Anime (a la Gundam Seed and Seed Destiny), the concept of following the man given the task of arresting Captain Harlock while dealing with his own inner demons is a solid pitch.  Harlock could lighten up on Zero but I think it’s much more fascinating to see him play the straight up villain for once.  Guy is a Pirate after all.