Excelion
Since: Sep, 2010
Barano
Since: Jan, 2001
08/06/2011 00:00:00
I agree about Golden Wings falling short of expectations set by the series.
However, I think it's important to note that Golden Wings is unrelated to the rest of the anime. It's based on the manga adaptation of the corresponding novel side story (so it's the adaptation of an adaptation), which is why the character designs, the setting, the voice actors(!) and the overall "feel" of the show are different from the OVA series and the movies.
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Legend Of The Galactic Heroes: Golden Wings review
Following the first two OVA series, the film Golden Wings was released in the early '90s. The reasoning for this film is obvious: to make the Legend accessible to an audience who hadn't seen the novels or 4 years of OVAs, or to refresh the memories of current viewers before the next series. I think this film is passable, but not without flaws.
If you remember the first few episodes of the OVA, you'll immediately note that Reinhard and Kircheis's teenage character arc is completely mirrored with no substantive additions in the first half of the film; all the development-heavy scenes are practically the same. The second half follows them leading the defence of Iserlohn during one of the FPA's many attempted sieges, as well as a mysterious-bad-guy-from-Internal-Affairs subplot; both plots feel rather generic and lack the complexity and introspection of the series and the first film.
Visually, one couldn't be blamed for calling this low-rent Star Wars. The ostentatious uniforms are done away with, taking a bit of the Galactic Reich's classical German aesthetic with them. The mechanics are also changed to resemble more generic sci-fi designs; Fortress Iserlohn, whose silvery-black metal ocean made it resemble a pearl floating in space, now looks like a near-clone of the Death Star inside and out. The Spartanian fighters attacking it look like any other sci-fi plane. A young LCDR Wen-Li Yang even gets a small role, but he somewhat lacks the nonchalant attitude we're acquainted with...and also has been redrawn with really creepy-looking hazel eyes.
The emphasis on tactics is also less on display when the camera's on the Reich; we don't get to see much of Reinhard's tactical brain in action because a lot of time is wasted focusing on the conflict with Internal Affairs. And in some of those scenes, you've really got to wonder how that man turned from a young upstart who punched everybody for badmouthing his sister into a living god; unfortunately, a deeper exploration of his past would not come until Gaiden 5 years later.
As a recap of Reinhard's past, this film serves its purpose. As a piece to increase access, it's a valiant effort. But by discarding its predecessors' innovative narrative and stylistic touches, it unfortunately falls short of the standards set by those two series.