Crest of the Stars is a tale of futuristic fighting between two factions: the "alien" race of the Abh and mankind. The Abh aren't necessarily alien as they are enhanced humans - they have altered genes that give them prominent features such as longer youth and blue hair. They were originally intended to be "living machines" to mankind but soon found independence on a space voyage for new planets to inhabit. They follow a imperial system, with influential families having elaborate names and taking top positions in the economy or military. Humans are split into 4 differ factions that ultimately make the United Mankind. A majority of the ones shown in the anime carry a grudge against the Abh. This is due to the fact that the Abh have gone from rebels seeking independence to galaxy conquerors. The Abh have military and economic dominion over the United Mankind. Now, in an ironic move, mankind seeks freedom and independence from those that wanted their independence. Despite this seeming like a good start for a story, the anime does not focus on the huge war taking place. The effects and some small fighting moments are shown, but they are not the main story. Instead, it takes a more personal look at two characters caught up in this war: Jinto and Lafiel.

Jinto is a young boy who is the son of the Hyde star system's president. His father, Rock Lin, made a shady deal as their world was taken over by the Abh: rather than fight the invaders, he opted to become the territorial lord. This by effect made Jinto Abh nobility. Seven years after this event, he is on his way to a military college in the Abh's capital where he meets Lafiel. Lafiel also carries social influence - born in the Abriel family, she is a princess and the granddaughter of the Abh's empress. She currently works as a flying trainee trying to work her way up in the military. The anime follows the two trying to reach their destination only to be sidetracked by the war taking place - their tale turns from one of an escort mission to that of survival.

Their personalities, as you would expect, are quite different from another. Jinto is more relaxed and calm, while Lafiel is serious and straightforward. The two protagonists form an interesting dynamic with each other. Due to her military experience, Lafiel is sharp when it comes to controlling ships or coming up with a strategic plan. Jinto is more aware of social cues and is able to help them keep a low profile in enemy territory or ease a tense situation. With personality traits like these, they have good chemistry with each other (that also hints at a bit of romance). The moments where they are alone and discuss what to do next are some of the better moments in the series. The talk may be a bit more formal, but their conversations always have a friendly delivery with each other that feels natural for them. Had this show been a character study in a more low-key setting, it would make for a great series.

Unfortunately, this is not the case. Crest of the Stars still seeks to be a space opera full of grand bombast and wonder despite focusing mainly on two characters. Mixed between the relationship of Jinto and Lafiel are battle scenes and side characters that ultimately fall flat. This is due to not enough time being put on these elements. A show can't achieve a full complex environment in only 13 episodes and still spend a majority of its time on its two leads - some elements will have to be cut. This results in many of the dire circumstances feeling like "misadventures", such as when they are "held captive" by the Baron Klowal. Rather than fear for our heroes, I was ultimately watching as to when they will escape because of the lack of tension. The battles that Laimsairh and Spoor, two of the Abh ship leaders in the war, are involved in have no weight because we hardly know the opponent they're fighting. Additionally, because they interact so sparingly with the main two, it feels like episode fluff rather than seeing a smart or flashy military battle. Crest of the Stars wants to be a space opera but in reality is a romanticized adventure.

Character wise, Lafiel is fine due to her straight shooter attitude, but Jinto can be a bit questionable at times. I at first (and still mostly do) found him to be a breath of fresh air in terms of a lead. He's not the manliest guy, but he doesn't overreact or make a big deal of the scene around him, making him more human than cartoon. This goes a bit too far in situations where there IS something to worry about - in other words, he underreacts. In scenes where death should be lurking around his corner, he is strangely calm and makes lighthearted remarks. I can give him the benefit of the doubt and say he's near fearless, but his relaxed attitude makes it so any scene wanting to be intense feels deflated. The other characters are eclipsed by these two, so characters that could be interesting like the ones in Marca's group or Laimsairh are sadly sidelined.

In more general terms, the Abhs and mankind are also characters that can be faulted, but this is more of the way the show presents them instead of who they actually are. Some stories have very simple sides to choose (heroes vs. villains) while other stories like to show each side has mixed morals and ultimately either side is right in their means. Crest of the Stars wants to do both, trying to throw cries of independence and goodwill at both sides while making the humans have a more negative appearance (lying, violent propaganda) while the Abhs have a more positive appearance (graceful appearance, gentle yet firm speech). If this were a political piece, surely the audience would lambast this as strawmanning. Even the narrator's opening shifts sides, starting with an overview of the world before telling twisted tales of the Good Samaritan to bolster the Abhs. Though there's an argument for this show being imperial propaganda, I don't think it's as much imperial propaganda as much as it is bad directing/storytelling. It's much easier to write simple sides than to give each side its own reason for being good. Even shows like LoGH fall victim to this, albeit they do it in much less of a "kneejerk" way. Again, a lesser scope or more episodes can avoid this. Sadly, this is the end result.

These last two issues are not as dire as the first (to me, it's worse to be not invested in a show than anything else), but are still some faults of the show. Of course, all of these faults could ultimately be due to the adaptation. The novels the anime was based on won a Seiun Award, an honor given to the best Japanese science fiction works of the year. The novels may carry more detail than what the anime can show, so perhaps it needed 2 cours to fully show off its potential.

Visually, the animation is fine. It can come off as a bit on the budget side at times, but it looks decent in motion (especially in the faster paced-scenes). Adding to this is the good use of multi-tone shading, an older tradition that looks as great now as it did then. The character models can look a bit strange at times, with an odd curve in their skull (this is most apparent in Seelnay's appearance) but it stays consistent and there's really no off-models with the look. The soundtrack is very good, with big string sections and pleasant tracks giving the right mood to each scene. The ED, "Ushinawareta Aozora", is a catchy, nostalgic sounding sing-along and works great alongside the pictures of the two protagonists growing up. The voice acting is fine for what the show gives us - it's a formal setting, so formal voices are to be expected. A bit more passion from Jinto would and a slightly less annoying voice for Seelnay would be preferred, but they all do a good job playing their roles.

Overall, I give Crest of the Stars a 5.5 out of 10. The truth is that Crest of the Stars cannot do anything Legend of the Galactic Heroes does better in the space opera genre. A show like LoGH covers a wider and more detailed look at politics, tactics and human behavior than Crest of the Stars does, even within its first 13 episodes. A made-up language and fancy names can only distract a viewer so long. Crest of the Stars might be liked if you want something more romantic, but otherwise I would avoid unless you are an avid fan of the genre tags.

Do you like or dislike this anime? If you haven't watched it, are you encouraged to watch it or not? Leave a comment on my profile telling me what you think of the anime and/or my review.

Thanks for reading and have a blessed day!