English Dub Review: Legend of the Galactic Heroes: Die Neue These “Interlude”

The in-between if you will.

Overview (Spoilers Below)

This week’s episode revolves around a couple of military strategy sessions. On one side, the Free Planets Alliance is planning to invade the Galactic Empire with a massive army, however, the method of which to do so comes under debate with Yang sending a strong warning against the present course of action. On the other hand, Reinhold is expecting the full-on invasion and is planning a countermeasure that might be a bit more articulate than his fellow staff but could be more effective in not only dispelling the invasion but establishing a foothold in a counter-invasion. In either way, a lot of death and destruction is to be had.

Our Take

For the military fans out there, the types that buy magazines that still write about WWII, etc. etc., this is an episode that could interest you. Military strategy is the essence of the episode, however, I was much more interested in the internal struggle Yang is having in desperately wanting out of the military life but being obligated to hang in as a result of his military ingenuity. Moreso, the producers have done a great job of making sure we care about Yang and his future prospects. Reinhold, on the other hand, gets a cameo for the first time in a few episodes at the tail end, and as a result, I kinda don’t care about his end result. In a series that’s supposed to be about warring military geniuses set in a space opera, much more is impressed on the Free Planets Alliance and Yang’s struggle than it is having anything to do with Reinhold. Yes, we got some backstory about Reinhold and his upbringing, but the investment in character development has been by far and away more evident in Yang’s side of the equation, and as a result, the series tips in the favor of Yang in terms of the protagonist and antagonist labeling that comes at the expense of 99% of all entertainment, regardless of medium. Because of this, I don’t think the narrative of a 50/50 war is a successful one. Rather, it’s way more fun to have established the horse we’re going to pick and just go from there.