Before I begin, I want to preface this review with two things. The first is that I will admit that I did not necessarily 'enjoy' this manga too much, though I do have a deep appreciation for it and recognize how well written it is. I just wouldn't want to read it again. The second is that the review of YonNyan will probably do a better job of summing up the series as a whole than this one. I really just wanted to focus one one aspect of the story.

I originally wasn't going to write a review on Planetes for the reasons I stated above, but recently I had a discussion with my friend, who coincidentally was part of the team that imaged the first black hole, about what is the most important thing for us in this universe: is it the consistency of the universe that will never change irregardless of whether people are here or not, or is it merely focused on humans and the life we live here in our little pocket of the universe? This is, in essence, the very question that Planetes strives to ask. It's setting is very key to this point. Space represents a whole lot of things to mankind, but the biggest one is the that of infinite possibilities. For as long as humans have been here on Earth, they have been confined here, knowing nothing of, yet dreaming about what it would be like to be more than just human. And space opens that possibility up. Freed from the constraints of Earth, humans have the possibility to leave and explore, to find new life and new opportunities, to be something more than just human. But space is also completely terrifying for that very same reason. To leave the Earth and humanity is to leave all of the joys and comforts of it that we are so used to behind. That is the very problem that Hachirota Honisho finds himself facing: to leave behind all family and relations to chase after the vast possibilities and opportunities of space was his dream, until he realized that he couldn't do it.

For a manga that takes place in the most future facing setting possible, Planetes takes its time to deal with the most human problems possible. It's like it's saying that no matter how far into the future or how far away from Earth we go, we can't run from the fact that we are, at the end of the day, just human. We may be freed from the confines of the Earth, free to pursue the endless reaches of space, but we'll still find ourselves going on in mundane lives, doing our work and bantering with friends. No matter how technologically advanced we become we will still be shacked by the same greed and irrational behavior we have today. No matter how far away we try to go we still find ourselves scared to be alone, scared of death and scared of leaving things unfinished before we're gone. Planetes reminds us that no matter how much we advance as a people, some things will always stay the same. We'll always find ourselves coming back to family, no matter how dysfunctional, we'll always be reminded that growing up is never what we expect it to be, that the past will always be a part of us but need not control us, and that even the smallest things like a glimpse at the star filled night sky can be enough to inspire us to move forward.

We humans are a race that never ceases to strive forward, to move on towards the next discovery, the next landscape or frontier. Our desire to know and to experience the unknown is part of what makes us human. Yet in all of that, despite how far we may travel from our homes we can never run away from the fact that we are, at the end of the day, just human, and everything that title gives to us, both the good and the bad, make us who we are. We are beings who will work dull and mundane jobs for the goals we have planned in the future, who love spending with friends or family, who are profoundly touched by the smallest of things, who love, lose and move forward despite it all. Planetes was a treasure to read and think through and fully deserves the praise it gets.