Knights of Sidonia

Mechas in Space is a theme used in many series across numerous decades. Yet time and time again, creators manage to develop enticing settings and colorful personalities alongside some familiar tropes. If the clashes of these giant robots of war and the emotional rollercoasters of those piloting them are your cup of tea, you won’t be running out of titles to check out anytime soon.

“Knights of Sidonia,” also known as “Sidonia no Kishi,” is a 12-episode TV anime series that aired from the 11th of April until the 27th of June in Spring 2014. It was produced by Starchild Records, Mainichi Broadcasting System, Kodansha, and KlockWorx, licensed by Funimation and Sentai Filmworks, and brought to life by Studio Polygon Pictures.

The central staff behind it includes Shizuno Koubun as Director, Andou Hiroaki as Episode Director and on Storyboard, Iwanami Yoshikazu as Sound Director, and Murai Sadayuki on Script and Series Composition. Featuring the genres of Action and Sci-Fi alongside the themes of Mecha and Space, the series was aimed at the Seinen demographic. It received a Rating of R - 17+ for its violence and profanity is best suited for adults and not for the faint of heart.

Knights of Sidonia is based on the source Manga of the same title, which spanned 15 Volumes from the 25th of April 2009 until the 25th of September 2015. This series featured the additional genre of Drama and a Military theme. Serialized in Afternoon, the tale was spawned from the great mind of Author and Artist Nihei Tsutomu. It proceeded to win the 39th Kodansha Manga Award within the general category and received publications in English, Italian, Polish, Brazilian Portuguese, and Russian.

A single Summary titled “Sidonia no Kishi Movie” was released on the 6th of March 2015, recapping the anime's first season with some additional scenes and re-edited sound effects. A sequel TV Anime series titled “Knights of Sidonia: Battle for Planet Nine” (Sidonia no Kishi: Daikyuu Wakusei Seneki) aired in Spring 2015 across 12 episodes.

This was followed by the “Knights of Sidonia: Love Woven in the Stars” (Sidonia no Kishi: Ai Tsumugu Hoshi) Movie in June 2021. It featured content diverging from the original manga and a new story under Nihei’s supervision. The Anime series was nominated for the Animation of the Year Award in the Television category at the Tokyo Anime Award Festival of 2015. The opening theme, "Sidonia" by Angela, won the 19th Animation Kobe Theme Song Award of 2014.

The alien race of Gauna had destroyed Earth years ago and is now in pursuit of humanity’s remnants who had barely escaped by fleeing across the galaxy in giant seed ships. In 3394, protagonist Nagate Tanikaze happens to surface from his lifelong seclusion deep beneath the seed ship of Sidonia. While simply searching for food on the upper levels, he gets dragged into a multitude of events unfolding without even his knowledge.

As the relentless Gauna initiate their assault on Sidonia, Tanikaze, his fellow soldiers, and friends Shizuka Hoshijiro, Izana Shinatose, and Yuhata Midorikawa are tasked with defending humanity's only hope for survival and defeating their alien nemesis in the process. Thus begins the story of Tanikaze, as he proceeds to discover the world that had been looming above him his entire life and rises to the task of becoming the true hero Sidonia always needed.

The Story is a total rollercoaster of exciting moments, thrilling scenes, and suspenseful action, each executed masterfully. In a universe where humanity is constantly on the brink of extinction, something as ordinary as the sun rising in the real world, it should not surprise that it is never a dull moment. This is not to say that there aren’t any calming and heart-warming scenes, but even these are handled well and keep viewers interested.

The Sci-fi aspect also does an excellent job of showing off its technological advancements, and this profound emphasis makes the whole series very intriguing and alluring. Almost no scenes are lacking in intensity, as the enticing plot constantly mesmerizes viewers with the occurrences and subtle comedy aspects. The momentary peace and calm set the mood for the upcoming action, and these jumps always feel welcome. While there are many other Anime set in similar settings, the tale of Sidonia no Kishi doesn’t fail to bring something unique to the genre.

The Characters are overall interesting and have distinct characteristics. They may not be completely original, but they stood apart from each other and fulfilled meaningful roles in the story. The character development is good, as each of them is shown to grow in ways original to themselves progressively.

This growth made specific interactions much more fruitful and noteworthy than they would've been without certain events transporting. The setting allows them much diversity, and while not all of them are lovable, it's difficult to ignore their importance to the plot. One’s environment is critical to defining oneself, and this series portrays that aspect to its core.

The Art and Animation of Sidonia no Kishi are mainly brought to life via CGI, and this is not a great sign early on for veteran Anime fans. As experienced viewers would expect, the CGI feels out-of-place and unsettling at first. But the bright side is that after getting a bit used to it, it becomes pretty easy to accept as one of the foundations of the series.

The CGI is good overall because it adds so much more to each scene; it feels refreshing after getting used to it, whether the characters are buckling up or flying straight into battle. The character designs are a bit bland and follow a cell-shaded style but remain distinct. The movements appear entirely artificial, and be prepared to digest some recycled footage now and then!

The Sounds and Music are good. The sound quality during the Gauna encounters and battle sequences is noteworthy and worth the hearing experience. The Soundtrack is easy to get immersed in, accompanied by the roar of the engines roaring, the firing of the weapons, etc. While it was muddled at times, the OSTs did an overall decent job throughout the series and included some nice detailing. The Opening theme is "Sidonia" by Angela, and the Ending theme is "show" by Eri Kitamura, with the prior being Award-winning standard and the latter being quite acceptable.

Sidonia no Kishi does an overall good job, especially when delivering an intriguing and entertaining series. Each episode holds a considerable significance and makes you want to watch the next. Every time the heroes fly off into battle, a rush of excitement and an odd sense of relaxation engulfs you.

But the series won’t let you rest easy either because an array of twists await you. While the Mechas do their thing, they contribute more to Character interactions and build up fantastic dynamics. Recommended, even more so if you're a Sci-fi Mecha fan! If you're an Action fan, you will not be let down in the least, while all the episodes remain eventful and run strong until the end.