What They Say:
Mutta has completed his NEEMO training and now waits to learn if he will be heading to the moon. Back in Houston, Hibito also completes his rehabilitation training. All that remains is to demonstrate to NASA that he has made a full recovery.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Space Brothers brought us some interesting bits in the previous episode as we saw some of the ways that what Mutta had did during the NEEMO training is being analyzed and the kind of reveals from it that helps to explore it. It worked nicely to show that his approach had its merits and it changed some opinions about him, which has basically happened since the start of the series as everyone sees him in just any way outside of that as an astronaut. We also got some decent material showing us how Hibito has been coping with his safety supervisor position and some of the things being said about him, but also his continued viewing of the young Olga recordings with how she worked through her struggles on camera for her father.
While we do get Mutta and Kenji arriving back in Houston and having a good little family cookout event that’s the norm to acclimate and be friendly with everyone, we also get a good bit of time spent in the first half dealing with the Olga material. With it starting off as the recordings and then simply showing it in full, we see how Ivan was with her when she was hurt badly, recovering and more. It leads us to seeing the way she was so invested in her own way to what her father was doing and seeing his mission launch when she was younger, going into space. While she had her issues with him, seeing the reality of what he does and understanding it as she got older definitely made a huge impact on her and the expression of it in her eyes is really great. Even more so as we see the TV broadcasts on it and more and she sees him in such a fascinating environment.
This allows us to dip back into the present more as we see some of the joking that comes Hibito’s way with what he’s been doing since more people are aware of it, but that kind of ribbing is what gets him to finally be proactive and to request the chance again. Something that Chief Butler has been waiting for, to see if Hibito would simply give up or really have it in him to make the effort to return. He’s been doing his part with the costume training, but he’s needed more than that and watching what Olga went through gave him the courage that he needed to do it. Hibito really does come across well here as we see the kinds of things he does as he starts to get back on track mentally and that definitely pays the proper respects. Of course, the show has to give us a taste of what’s to come from there, but it focuses more on Mutta and his group as they return to the facility and get quite the dressing down. Which is hilariously fun.
In Summary:
Space Brothers brings two stories to a close here and gets ready to move on to the next chapter of events, which is quite welcome. I’ve enjoyed the NEEMO adventure and what we’ve seen so far of how the management side of NASA is approaching what they’ve learned, which we’ll see more of in the next episode. Having some down time for Mutta and the others works nicely and has an ease about it that’s definitely appealing. Similarly, we see Hibito going through his realization of what he has to do, having followed Olga’s story quite a bit now, and is reenergized and ready to face the challenges ahead to grab hold of his dream in a strong way. It’s a bit circuitous overall, but it’s gotten us where we need to be and I’m looking forward to seeing his achievements paralleling more of what Mutta is doing going foward.
Grade: B
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
Review Equipment:
Sony KDL70R550A 70″ LED 1080P HDTV, Apple TV via HDMI set to 1080p, Onkyo TX-SR605 Receiver and Panasonic SB-TP20S Multi-Channel Speaker System With 100-Watt Subwoofer.
