The Series (4/5)

    Section 23 has been doing quite a service to fans of Yoshiyoki Tomino with their recent releases of his anime series Aura Battler Dunbine, and now this Blu-ray release of Space Runaway Ideon. Tomino is most well known for his still-going creation Mobile Suit Gundam, but it would appear that after the initial series, we went off to challenge himself and create something new.   Of course, it was series like Space Runaway Ideon that also cast him as having a reputation of killing all his characters (or just loads of them).

    Space Runaway Ideon is a fantastic series that takes the "Super Robot" genre that was popular in Japan throughout the 70's, and cast it in a bleak light.   The series follows a group of colonists from Earth to the planet Solo. However, they are not alone in their endeavor, a group of humanoid space-faring aliens the "Buff Clan" are out in search for the power of "Ide", which they assume is based on Solo (spoiler, it is!). The two factions begin fighting with another brutally, and humanity eventually fines 3 mechas that combine to create a true intergalactic killing machine the Ideon.  This makes the conflict go from bad to awful with things becoming more brutal and violent as a result of the unlimited power of the mecha.

    I loved Space Runaway Ideon. The show takes a premise that could be sort of cliche, but spins it into one of the bleakest 80's anime experiences. The character and mecha design by Tomonori Kogawa truly reflect the more realistic and mature tone of the series. We are also treated to an excellent score by Dragon Quest' composer Koichi Sugiyama.  The series is one I'd never seen as it has never had an English friendly release, but Section 23 has done absolutely fantastic work bringing it to Blu-ray here, and hopefully this influential series will find new fans this  way.

Audio/Video (4/5)

    The Blu-ray is taken from a recent Japanese remaster, as such it looks aod sounds quite amazing. It does look very 80's, but that is a bonus for me, and it retains charms through the remastering. 

    Audio is Japanese only with English subtitles, and sounds quite great with no obvious issues.

Extras (2.5/5)

    There are 2 Ideon films, as well as promos on this set.

Overall

    Space Runaway Ideon is a bleak, brutal, but fascinating anime. It has never had a stateside release here, and this one looks absolutely fantastic. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.