I have a strong appreciation for anything animated. It doesn't necessarily matter where it's from or what genre it falls into; if it's good I'll watch it. When the first volume of Oban: Star Racers arrived I honestly didn't know what to think at first. Here was a show I had never heard of but upon investigating I discovered that it was a collaborative effort between French and Japanese production teams. Though the series prominently has Jetix plastered all over it there's no denying that this show carries a strong anime vibe. Naturally my interest peaked and after I watched a few episodes I loved it.

Originally released in 2006 the production for the series went on for quite some time. Created by Sav! The World Productions, Oban consists of 26 episodes spread across two volumes and four DVDs. The series takes place far into the future where humanity has colonized other worlds and we have met a mortal enemy known as the Crog. War erupted between us and the Crog but just when the outlook was its darkest the battle stopped. A being known as the Avatar arrived to initiate an era of peace in order to prepare for the Great Oban Race at the center of the galaxy. Humans were given time to get ready for the race but nobody knew when it was. That day has arrived.

It's the year 2082 and a young girl named Eva Wei breaks free from her boarding school to find her father, race legend Don Wei. What she finds it's quite what she expected and she's forced to take on the nickname Molly as she winds up working for her father. The catch here that's explored throughout the series is that Don doesn't know who "Molly" really is. Eva works with her father and the most she gets to know him, the more she wishes things were different. There's much more background between these two characters that is explored throughout the series and both characters get quite a lot of development as time passes.

At any rate, Eva, Don, a pair of mechanics, a hotheaded gunner named Jordan, and a star racer named Rick travel to the ends of the galaxy to participate in the race. The first volume of thirteen episodes presented the first leg of Eva's journey through the preliminary rounds. Only the top three racing teams were able to make it to final races on Oban and wouldn't you know it, Earth was one of them. Joining Eva and company are the Crog and Prince Aikka of Nourasia. Rick departed the crew at the end of the first cycle and with the second cycle underway there's just as much adventure left to be had.

Oban's race wouldn't be very interesting if it were just the three species that we've already met. Two other qualifiers were held in various parts of the universe and we're introduced to a set of new racers for Eva to compete against. There's a pair of leather-clad harlequin sisters, a telepathic crab, a pirate with a Napoleon complex, a robot, a master of time and space, and a giant eyeball. To say this group is diverse would be an understatement and considering the Oban races pit all nine teams against each other you can bet that there's a lot of competition and fighting.

Alliances are torn and the story takes some surprising twists in these episodes. A big bad villain is introduced during the course of these episodes and though his involvement feels a tad forced with regards to the plot he provides a nice break in continuity. Right up to the end of the show you're going to be left guessing. The outcome isn't at all what you'd expect and the road there will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat.

Oban: Star Racers is an impressive series for many reasons. For starters the story is entirely continuous. That means there isn't a single flashback episode or filler in the lot and all 26 episodes work towards telling one singular tale. Another plus is the fact that the animation and art style is striking and beautiful. Probably the biggest feather in Oban's cap is the character development which reaches some surprising depths for a Jetix series. You'll truly come to care for each of these characters throughout the course of the story and though we never fully learn the background of each person they'll grow on you just the same.

For what it is Oban: Star Racers is a very hip, fun show that will please science fiction fans young and old. It's not geared towards a specific age group and to be quite honest the material here has some darker elements. If you don't mind the Star Wars inspiration and some predictability in the plot (though the second volume offers some nice surprises) then you'll definitely find a place for this show in your collection. Given the popularity of this show in Europe I can only hope that a movie will be made to tie up some loose ends though I greatly doubt that. This series feels well contained as it is.

Oban: Star Racers is presented on DVD with a full frame aspect ratio and is quite attractive. Unfortunately the lack of an anamorphic widescreen output was disappointing as the 1.33:1 failed to capture the true brilliance of this show. With that being said there is very little to complain about as far as flaws go. The picture is very clean with little to no grain and there is no aliasing whatsoever. During some moments there is artifacting in darker colors which looks kind of funny but other than that this was a gorgeously produced and transferred show. Shout Factory did a nice job here but I question the overall compression rate by having so many episodes packed onto each disc.

Presented with English 5.1 and 2.0 as audio options this DVD once again features some nice quality. The surround sound goes a long way to crafting a sense of immersion and the rear channels get plenty of play during racing segments and the like. The dialogue driven bits feel a little muted when balanced against the sound effects but overall there's some decent sound design going on here. Going back to my complaint about the amount of episodes packed onto a disc, if more room were left we could have had the French or Japanese dub tracks available for the series. Unfortunately there's no love in that department and no subtitles either.

For the second volume of Oban: Star Racers we get some character profiles, an extended trailer for the show, concept art gallery, and an extended opening sequence. The second part of a "Making of" featurette is included here as well. Like the first this features a good look at the creation of the show but with this one being focused towards the post-production. All around there is a decent amount of bonus material here but a commentary or interview with the creators would have gone a long way to showing the labor and love that went into this show.

Oban: Star Racers is a unique little series that will shatter your preconceptions. If you come to the show thinking that it's just another kid-oriented Saturday morning affair you're going to be very surprised. What we have here is a French/Japanese anime with a fantastic story, seasoned English cast, and breathtaking design. If you're an otaku who generally doesn't venture into other waters then you definitely owe it to yourself to give this one a spin. This is an entertaining animated science fiction adventure that will entertain a multitude of audiences. The second volume wraps up the show and when the dust settles you'll be wanting more.

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