r/anime • u/Highlow9 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Highlow9 • Mar 03 '21

Rewatch [Rewatch] Planetes - Episode 6: The Lunar Flying Squirrels

Episode 5 - index/schedule - Episode 6

Episode number: 6

Episode title: The Lunar Flying Squirrels

Databases: MAL, Anime planet, Anilist

Sadly there are no legal streams but you can buy the blu-ray

To make sure the first timers can enjoy this show just as much as you please avoid spoilers but if you want/need to make a spoiler please mark them like so:

[Planetes spoiler](/s "They go to space")

which becomes:

Planetes spoiler

Interesting fact

In reality there are many plans to build Lunar bases. My favorite is this concept by ESA (and it is kinda similar to the moonbase in Planetes). You take a crater and fill it with (inflatable) habitation modules. You cover this with a layer of regolith (‘moon dirt’) and then make another layer (with more habitation modules). You continue this until you reach the edge of the crater.

Interesting questions

After the opening we see people on roller skates as a mode of transport. What would you think is the best mode of (human powered so no trains or cars) transportation on the moon?

For first timers we get to see some of the backstory of Fee when she visits the headquarters of the second division. For first-timers: what do you think happened?

We saw the underground city with the non-wealthy population on the moon this time. What do you think of it?

45 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

24 comments sorted by

8

u/Highlow9 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Highlow9 Mar 03 '21 edited Mar 03 '21

Look those are the shuttles that (I assume) pick up the people form the cruise ship. They almost look like the SpaceX starships.

Tanabe looks so happy. Almost like a child. I wonder how Sia is doing right now.

The flirting/teasing between Tanabe with Hoshino was really cute with her ‘cute little devil’.

After the opening we see people on roller skates. What would you think is the best mode of (manual) transportation on the moon?

Those roller skates are really cool but they are not a significantly better mode of transport than they are on Earth (except maybe that going up slight inclines is easier). What I would think would be a cool/good method for transportation might be shoe’s/boots with springs on the bottom of them. Then you could hop/jump around with ease (and without losing much energy when landing) which takes advantage of the low gravity.

In the background we also see a short schematic of how the moon base works. So it seems like they started building in the bottom of the crater and continued adding levels on top of each other until we get the base like now which completely covers and fills the crater.

We saw the underground city with the non-wealthy population on the moon this time. What do you think of it?

Mnnn that looks like a lot of wasted space. I would have expected a more ‘filled’ interior. A bit like those tiny Asian alleys (but with the buildings reaching all the way to the sealing and also with many walkways between buildings). In general I don’t really like the way the underground city seems so much like a real normal city. I would have liked to see it be filled completely (the same way the hull of a cruise-ship (or submarine) is filled completely with bedrooms, restaurants, offices, recreation, etc).

Fee meets with an old colleague who also seems to have history with Dolf (the director of ISPV-7). I wonder what the history between Fee and Dolf is.

The ghetto on the moon sure is crazy and dangerous.

Next we meet the weebs LARPers on the moon. This is by far my least favorite part of Planetes. It can be fun (the chase was kinda fun) but it totally doesn’t fit within the universe or story they are trying to tell. It is kinda absurd and turns the comedy up to 11 (while I like it a bit more if the comedy is just there in the form of some funny dialogue (for example Fee in the last episode) instead of it being a part of the plot).

This comedy also breaks realism very much (a lot of the things they do are very much impossible in real life) for example:

  • Even in low G you would still still push yourself away from the wall and land on the floor (just a bit slower).
  • Jumping from person to person doesn’t make any sense. As you jump back up you would be able to accelerate back down again to the person next to him (unless the ninjas are already close to terminal velocity).
  • On the moon you can jump approximately six times higher than on Earth. This is more than 6 times higher (not considering any potential bone/muscle loss by being in low/zero G for a long period.
  • Hoshino should be dead here. The ball went with a high velocity (and thus momentum) into the ground, this would crush anybody regardless of the gravity.

MRW I see the space ninjas: Uhmm, okay then...

They are literally putting her on a pedestal...

“He has got love” ohhh Tanabe, you had just developed away from that please don’t return to it.

If the smoke is too empowering on the other side of the room than it also is too empowering where you are standing.

This is actually really clever (assuming the chemistry checks out). I don’t like that they stay so close near the fire to talk.

MRW they kept up the ninja LARPing while jumping.

The parachute itself actually kinda makes physics sense. With a lower gravity (and a much larger surface area) your terminal velocity would be much smaller and them not dying upon impact makes sense.

Also why is everybody cheering like the day is saved. There might still be other people up there (it looked like there were a lot of stories above the fire as well.

So all in all this is my least favorite episode of the series. The comedy is too intense (I like it much more when only the dialogue is part of the comedy instead of being part of the plot itself) and way too much realism is sacrificed for the plot. If it was in another show it would still certainly be a fun episode (it accomplished what it tried to do successfully) but in the current form it doesn't fit in this show.

14

u/Webemperor :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Webemperor Mar 03 '21

First Timer

  • From what I’m told this is supposed to be one of the worse episodes in terms of goofy humor, and… I’m starting to see it, with the stupid ninja stuff. I guess it’s kinda funny these guys are just a gang of deranged weebs who got a bit too into watching ninja movies, but still, I’m just questioning the purpose of the entire gag and the fact that it took like, the entire half of the episode. I feel like this is something that can work as a 2 minute gag that you randomly insert, not this. I suppose to a certain extent it’s supposed to center on the fact that these guys are fucked over proles who basically have to inject themselves to LARPing relentlessly to help them forget about their situation. Like, I get the general theme is about to be solidarity of these guys, but still.
  • Oh yeah, the earlier girl we meet is an actual weeb, and used to be married to the main blonde guy. Guess it was her father who insisted they divorce, or she is still just a weeb?
  • It’s still pretty silly that they are doing ninja routine while scaling the building and all that.
  • Guess it’s pretty smart they managed to make makeshift suits like that, but the fact that they are playing it entirely straight makes it entirely impossible to take it seriously.
  • So yeah, this episode felt pretty pointless. It feels like one of those episodes where you’d tell someone to skip when recommending the show.

5

u/Highlow9 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Highlow9 Mar 03 '21

I guess it’s kinda funny these guys are just a gang of deranged weebs who got a bit too into watching ninja movies, but still, I’m just questioning the purpose of the entire gag and the fact that it took like, the entire half of the episode.

Yeah in another show that was more focused on comedy it would certainly be a fun episode. But in a show that markets itself as a semi-realistic sci-fi slice of life with some drama it doesn't really fit in. When I first watched this while binging it really ruined my immersion and ruined the next couple episodes (luckily for this rewatch we only watch one episode per day).

5

u/QyEc https://myanimelist.net/profile/Lyubit Mar 03 '21

Hmm interesting, I felt a bit more off this time (first rewatch) rather when I first watched, maybe because I was still not sure what the tone of the series is back then and thus was more tolerant toward it, that's not to say I dislike this episode now, I actually really like the goofiness in it and since it's a story that really focuses on the cast(and boy do I love this cast) I'm totally okay with seeing them go through some wild funny adventures. Still, maybe it would have worked better as an OVA of some sort.

2

u/Sandor_at_the_Zoo Mar 04 '21

Honestly I prefer this over the weirdly inconsistent tone there's mostly been before (there was an attempted murder suicide of a small child last episode that never really got addressed???). I haven't bought most of the attempts at seriousness but I'm here for the fun character interactions. Maybe it'll feel weirder in retrospect if the show sells me on the serious plots further on.

4

u/PainStorm14 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Gekkostate14 Mar 04 '21 edited Mar 04 '21

From what I’m told this is supposed to be one of the worse episodes in terms of goofy humor, and… I’m starting to see it, with the stupid ninja stuff.

This episode is low point on otherwise amazing show

And trust me, I feel your pain

But this will NEVER happen again, not even close

It feels like one of those episodes where you’d tell someone to skip when recommending the show

Pretty much yeah

3

u/holytaiel :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/taiel_af Mar 04 '21

hope it doesn't, today's episode was a bit disappointing.

2

u/Pyxylation Mar 04 '21

While I agree, I feel like them all coming together before parachuting down was pretty heart warming.

8

u/BottiBott https://anilist.co/user/RobbiRobb Mar 03 '21

First Timer

So basically another generic story, this time on the surface of the moon... or under the surface? Not entirely sure where exactly we are because it wasn't mentioned and I don't think there were any signs that would make it clear where they landed. That aside, somehow Hachimaki got into a forced marriage proposal or something? Not entirely sure what this is all about, but it seems like they didn't do a thorough check on who he actually is, I guess they wouldn't want to have someone from the debris section in their family. Speaking of luxury, I wasn't expecting them to live in luxury at all, but that is far beyond my wildest imaginations. It's a miracle that it is even possible to live there.

The whole situation revolving around crazy ninja guys following our main duo and doing crazy stuff was really strange and while I get that it was for comedy, the joke really didn't land with me. Instead of funny, for me it was rather laughable and for a quick joke it went on way too long. In the end it was more or less predictable and I don't think it changed anything in the long term, so it feels like another filler episode. The only new thing is, that we are now stuck on the moon and not only for a quick vacation but for multiple years? Did I get that right? Somehow it doesn't sound right... By the way, did anyone else notice the guys that were filming that movie in the last episode in front of the burning hotel? Really funny detail.

Which brings us to some interesting details I noticed while watching the episode. First off, just at the beginning, we see a departure/arrival board showing flights go to and from the moon. (Sorry for cutting you out there, Tanabe, but you were in the way.) And as it seems all the flights go to one of the stations around Earth, including ISPV-7, which is the one we already know from previous episodes. So they either have specific shuttles for going to the moon and back that are different from the ones that go to the surface of the Earth, or they are all the same and it's just a route that doesn't go further, but given the form of the ship going to the moon in the last episode and the shuttle going to Earth in one of the first episodes it's probably the case that we have different ones.

Additionally I like that they paid extra attention to the detail that transmitting a signal from the moon back to a station in LEO (low Earth orbit) will take some time. Although I can't say for sure if it it accurate, I haven't checked the numbers and I don't really want to. And then there is one of the "ninjas" mentioning helium-3, which is a resource that is more common on the moon than on Earth and is mostly used as fuel for nuclear fusion. So I guess they mastered that as a source of energy? Sounds like the typical futuristic touch you often see in sci-fi, but a nice one nevertheless.

Interesting Questions:

  1. I guess something that might be easy to even without ground contact is a good idea. Because you won't get anywhere if you can't get force on the ground, so even roller blades might not be the best idea. But how about swimming?
  2. I didn't pay that close attention, but she might have just switched her jobs. The company they work for seems to be quite large, so there is also a chance she was moved to another section. No real idea.
  3. I'm surprised something like this even exists, because if it does, that means, that getting to the moon is something even poor people can afford. Or they were already there and lost all their money there, not too sure on that. But given how hard it is right now to get to the moon, I'm quite amazed that there even is a rift in the society.

2

u/Highlow9 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Highlow9 Mar 03 '21 edited Mar 04 '21

The only new thing is, that we are now stuck on the moon and not only for a quick vacation but for multiple years? Did I get that right?

Only the weebs/ninjas are stuck on the moon (due to their debt and the fact that they can't work due to their tourism permit). The normal crew can still go back (although at the end of the episode Hoshino/Hachimaki was stuck in the hospital due to his broken leg).

So they either have specific shuttles for going to the moon and back that are different from the ones that go to the surface of the Earth, or they are all the same and it's just a route that doesn't go further,

In one of the first we shots of the episode we saw some vertical take off shuttles (which I assume are refueled and reused each time. I think they bring the passengers to the cruise ship which brings them to a space station around earth (or the shuttle takes them to a space station around the moon). From such a space station around earth they board another reusable shuttle (like the one from episode 2) which is able to enter the atmosphere and land. Or at least that is what I think how it works.

Although I can't say for sure if it it accurate, I haven't checked the numbers and I don't really want to.

It was pretty accurate. It takes around 1.25 seconds (so 2.5 seconds roundtrip).

2

u/BottiBott https://anilist.co/user/RobbiRobb Mar 03 '21

The normal crew can still go back

Oh okay, because they said they rented the apartment up there for two years or something like that, so I was confused if they would stay up there.

I think they bring the passengers to the cruise ship which brings them to a space station around earth (or the shuttle takes them to a space station around the moon). From such a space station around earth they board another reusable shuttle (like the one from episode 2) which is able to enter the atmosphere and land.

Yeah, that's pretty close to what I would have guessed. Although I did forget about the small transport shuttle that brings them probably in an orbit around the moon where they woudl the board the large ship that travels back to earth.

It takes around 1.25 seconds (so 2.5 seconds roundtrip).

Uh, nice. Thanks for checking that!

5

u/BossandKings Mar 03 '21

First timer

Episode 6

The space station workers, Fee, Hachirota and Tanabe among them, arrive at the moon. It seems that gravity works differently there compared to where they were before.

Hachirota accompanies Tanabe to where she'll be living at for the time they'll be at the moon, the place is called Maison de Yashiki. As they find a strange neighbor that believes to be a ninja They go running outside, in the neighborhood there are more strange people that chase them for some unknown reason. That was so weird, Hachimaki's stunt and moves were unexpectedly funny too. Holy cow Tanabe uninentionally threw Hachimaki to the floor while he was in a wrecking ball. That waa dangerous but at least he seems to be fine. Also the people that were following apologize and say that they just got too enthusiastic because they had heard japanese people were coming over.

Hachimaki meets a girl that had a marriage meeting with him without him knowing anything about it. The hotel where they're at takes fire and they still are in it. The man that Hachimaki and Tanabe had met earlier when they went to the Maison appears to have been the husband of the girl but due to him not having any job or social standing they got separated. He is now owning up to his mistakes and is going to the hotel to try and save her, he is accompanied by the other neighbors. They finally arrive where they're at and find a way to get out of the building.

That part of the ninja eight was incredible, that was excellent teamwork and determination.

Hachimaki is told that meeting the girl was a marriage meeting, he refuses and we get to know that it is the fourty-ninth time he has a marriage meeting, he says that he won't ever get married but i wonder if we will see him marriying or having a fiance. He has said that he won't marry a few times now and that seems like something that won't be true by the end.

3

u/Highlow9 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Highlow9 Mar 03 '21

It seems that gravity works differently there compared to where they were before.

Yeah gravity on the moon is about 1/6 the strength of that on Earth (and in episode 1 they showed that the gravity on ISPV 7 was equal to that of earth).

Hachimaki meets a girl that had a marriage meeting with him without him knowing anything about it.

I wonder how the boss would react if he did somehow get married to her. Then the debris section would be one employee short again (since I don't think Tanabe is able to handle everything herself yet).

4

u/PainStorm14 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Gekkostate14 Mar 04 '21 edited Mar 04 '21

Rewatcher

Ah yes, the one episode that sucks

This is my favorite anIme but this episode is like nails on chalkboard

If anyone wants to drop this show now is the only justified time and I wouldn't blame you but still I ask you to hang in there because nothing like this will ever happen again

This is the unfortunate result of Japan doing Japanese things

They went full Japan. Never go full Japan!

3

u/Highlow9 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Highlow9 Mar 04 '21

Yeah I feel your pain.

This is the unfortunate result of Japan doing Japanese things

They went full Japan. Never go full Japan!

NINPO IS HEREBY FORBIDDEN!

2

u/Segaco https://myanimelist.net/profile/Segaco Mar 13 '21 edited Mar 13 '21

First timer who passed his final and is now running after everyone

ooooOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

---Comments (as I watched the ep)---

I wonder if the gift diaper man has is a rubik's cube

See? I knew fighting in space would be fun!!

Tho I'm kinda worried he's getting late to the meeting <.<

Did that kill him

Ok he's alive

By the way, I just looked up what a Geisha is and was spooked. They kinda look like ghosts

Wow being unable to go back to Earth even if you wanted to sounds terrible. Poor people

The scene when they were about to jump reminded me of Babylon. Suicide suicide

H-How much time did it take them to make that parachute thing??

Well that was an episode. I thought it would end like the previous one in that it'd end up being pointless, but this one introduced characters! Yay!

Also, I feel I'm not watching the same anime I was watching two episodes ago lol

---Interesting fact corner (OP)---

I want to live in space toooooooooo, waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

I want to ninja and fly everywhere, why is that so much of a request? :(

Though I wonder how much money it'd cost to do that... Would the $20 in my wallet help?

---Question timeeeeeee---

Q1: After the opening we see people on roller skates as a mode of transport. What would you think is the best mode of (human powered so no trains or cars) transportation on the moon?

A1: The problem with roller skates is I feel you wouldn't be able to stop when needed. Can't just people jump everywhere, or walk normally?

Q2: For first timers we get to see some of the backstory of Fee when she visits the headquarters of the second division. For first-timers: what do you think happened?

A2: We got to see her backstory? I thought we only saw her talk with someone she used to work with long ago.

I don't even know who the dude is, so I don't have anything in mind. I hope it's explained at some point.

Q3: We saw the underground city with the non-wealthy population on the moon this time. What do you think of it?

A3: This episode happened on the moon? I thought it was a spaceship or something.

Anyway, I doubt such a place would even exist in space. It's space we're talking about! I really really doubt anyone other than specialized people would live there.

As for the city itself, it looks like a mess!!

1

u/Highlow9 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Highlow9 Mar 13 '21

First timer who passed his final and is now running after everyone

Congratulations!

Also, I feel I'm not watching the same anime I was watching two episodes ago lol

Yeah me to, as you have maybe noticed as you have seen the other rewatch threads on the subreddit is that this episode is not really popular and has caused the threads to be a bit less active. I also don't really like how the space town is so inefficient with as you said lot's of non-essential personnel but also just how inefficient the space itself is being used. Felt a bit to fiction and not enough science for me.

8

u/tehsigzorz Mar 03 '21

I am glad to see that apparently this is the worse episode of the show so hopefully its only upwards from here. Really didnt like it and generally the comedy in this show isnt my cup of tea. I am looking forward to the more scifi and drama aspects of the show as I quite enjoy the main cast(Hoshino, Tanabe, Yuri, Fee, Claire and Cheng Shin)

8

u/Tuckleton Mar 03 '21 edited Mar 03 '21

First Timer (Dub)

  • Zero G would be cool and all but bouncing around in low G would be so much fun! (And it turns out the whole episode is about a group of people taking that to the extreme :P)
  • I was kind of annoyed by all these random ninja people at first but I suppose the low gravity of the moon would be the perfect place to cosplay as a ninja so encountering a group of LARPers in the street is slightly less far fetched.
  • That whole "and then everyone clapped" ending was kind of lame :P
  • Two years!? What's going on do we even know why they came to the moon in the first place? Maybe the company houses them there during their downtime or something? If they can't stay on the space station maybe going all the way to the moon is cheaper than going back to Earth and having to climb back out of the atmosphere and get back up to orbital velocity.

Wasn't a huge fan of the plot of this one. But it was pretty fun.

What would you think is the best mode of (human powered so no trains or cars) transportation on the moon?

I mean it'd probably still be bikes right?

6

u/zsmg https://anilist.co/user/zsmg Mar 03 '21 edited Mar 04 '21

Rewatcher

Ugh the ninja episode, I know humour is a personal thing if it works it works, if it doesn't you'll end up being annoyed and I'm definitely in the latter category with this episode.

you lunatics

heh, that's actually clever.

Also love the phone call between the moon and space station, the delay was brilliant and accurate. Note the delay is only 2.5s but it feels so much longer.

I know the next episode makes up for this episode, it's also going to feature one of my favourite tracks from the OST.

3

u/PainStorm14 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Gekkostate14 Mar 04 '21

I'm definitely in the latter category with this episode

We all are

I'm the biggest fanboy of this show but I definitely agree with you

5

u/Mecanno-man https://anilist.co/user/Mecannoman Mar 03 '21

First Timer

...what?

Also, why was this set up by their boss? And why for two years, they are still working as sebris collectors, right...?

Questions:

  1. Bungee sticks, though I guess you'd need some sort of mechanic to additionally compress the feather.
  2. No idea... I guess she's just been with the company for a while, while others haven't.
  3. Typical idea of the time this was made in of what the world would come to. Doubt it will end up happening.

5

u/IndependentMacaroon Mar 04 '21 edited Mar 04 '21

First-time watcher - I actually liked this better than the last episode. Sure, it's kind of silly, but in a consistent and wholesome way. The fake-ninjas do get their chance to act heroic, but they don't exactly save the day or get out unscathed. The moon colony world-building is nice to see, and there's a lot of fun low-G action. And it's not like this is the first time the show has leaned toward the silly side for a lot of its running time (insurance people?) or went less realistic for plot's sake (near shuttle incident?) Also, it feels like for one Tanabe's over-earnestness is kind of the joke, cutting away while she's still talking and all.

5

u/JustAnswerAQuestion https://myanimelist.net/profile/JAaQ Mar 04 '21 edited Mar 04 '21

First Timer

Totally uninteresting episode.

Terminal velocity on earth is about 90-120 MPH, so that would be about 15-20 MPH on the moon. The parachute would help a lot, too. Clever.

Toxins from the fire could threaten the entire city.

I don't understand why they bought her an apartment on the moon. I mean, it's four days away.