Kanata no Astra

When Astra Lost in Space aired and I saw the character designs, I wasn't willing to pay a shred of attention to something that looked like an archetypal high school shōnen. I continued to give it a chance despite the indifferent recommendations, and honestly, the opening episodes validated that decision. A bunch of teenagers on a planned road trip for a holiday adventure suddenly find themselves in an unfamiliar universe and must learn to deal with this new crisis situation, a la Lost in Space: nothing original, especially when the trip still has a very lighthearted and pleasantly adventurous undertone of exploration and you suspect that no harm will come to more than a single hair of the characters’ rainbow locks. But if there's one place I’m always willing to give leeway, it's with series that get qualitatively better as they go along. There are plenty of those (I’m usually thinking of Gosick), and I'm happy to add Astra Lost in Space to that precious column. Even when it's clear to everyone that all is not as it seems, a friendly adventure turns into a drama at the exact moment and the audience starts getting hit with effective twists and turns. The 1st and 2nd could probably have been anticipated, but I could no longer do a Neo-style dodge of the 3rd, 4th, 5th, and above all despite the over-the-top number of them, I didn't find them over-the-top at all! The illustrated detective mosaic managed a meaningful portrayal in my eyes and mind and I was pleasantly amazed at the appealing ideas the authors were reaching for. For the mouthful of explaining that they had bitten off, and which could have benefited from far more episodes, the narrative was pulled together with grace and art (I commend the choice of 40 minute lengths for the first and last episodes). It feels like a given, but how many similarly difficult closing acts fall on their asses. Even if the ending is a bit too run-on (slightly cheesier would have packed more punch) and Astra Lost in Space is far from any kind of magnum opus, I would have dismissed similarly daring projects with the remaining left hand. Visually successful as usual by Lerche. A weaker 4 stars, but a pleasant surprise nonetheless. (28/11/2021)