Again, another long-format show, this one has managed to keep the interest high, as there is just so much that goes on behind the scenes that we do not know of.

Now, they are calling it Season Four, as each ‘season’ is 25 episodes, but I call it Year Two, as we are at 100 episodes.

The year opens up with two flashback/recap episodes, one for Mutta and one for Hibito and then we proceed. The two massive arcs are Hibito’s Panic Attacks (which take up right to the end of the year) and how Mutta overcomes all the obstacles placed before him in order to discourage him from being an astronaut. The stories were told with a great deal of involvement and there was hardly an off-note for the year, although the Olga side-story for Hibito went on a bit long.

Just before season’s end, Mutta is hooked up with a back-up crew of astronauts, but these are all losers and bozos and hard-to-work-with types. It makes you wonder that, in the future, can ANYONE be an astronaut. And one thing about the future: a butthead is always a butthead and this show has quite a few of them.

I realize that a challenge makes you decide whether you have the right stuff to push on or call it quits and we finally see Mutta acting like the older brother to help Hibito. Or perhaps he was finally given the chance to be so. But you still wonder if NASA and JAXA and RKA actually act this way. I know you want to make certain you can trust the person you are going to put into space, but there still has to be some kind of real filter to get truly dedicated people out there.

Now, the series still has some way to go, as Mutta’s main thrust (to get to the moon) has not been attained and to end it now would be a real let-down. There is still a lot of mileage left in the show and some surprise calls mean that at least another run of 25 is on the table for us. But that ain’t gonna happen, as the show just ended. I mean, IT’S OVER! I was just so blind-sided by this. Crfap! It really just…..ended. Can I have a do-over?

We are not any closer to seeing Mutta on the moon than we were two years ago. Now, whether we decide to take a rest and bring back more remains to be seen, but as it stands right now, even the coupler point is a downer.
On a scale of 1 to 10:

Artwork 7 (Everyone is too sweaty)
Plot 8 (Holding its own)
Pacing 7 (Moves along consistently)
Effectiveness 8 (Good use of flashbacks)
Conclusion 5 (It reaches a ‘coupler’, but doesn’t really end)
Fan Service 2 (A similar show would be “Okamisan”)

Overall 7 (Got a bit too soap opera for me)

And remember, it’s first run until you’ve seen it. Where’s the dog?