In 2075, space travel is no longer just a dream, but an everyday reality for mankind. Advancements in science and technology have led to the colonization of the moon, the commercialization of outer space, and the formation of large space corporations. Ai Tanabe, an upbeat woman whose interests lie in the cosmos, joins Technora Corporation as a member of their Debris Section, a department dedicated to the removal of dangerous space junk between the orbits of the Earth and Moon.
However, Ai soon discovers how unappreciated her job is. As the laughingstock of Technora, the Debris Section is severely understaffed, poorly funded, and is forced to use a dilapidated spaceship nicknamed the "Toy Box" for debris retrieval. Undeterred, Ai perseveres and gradually becomes acquainted with the strange personalities that make up the Debris Section's staff, such as the bumbling but good-natured chief clerk Philippe Myers; the mysterious and tight-lipped temp worker Edelgard Rivera; and the hotheaded and passionate Hachirota Hoshino, who longs for a spaceship to call his own.
Winner of the Seiun Award in 2005, Planetes is an unconventional sci-fi series that portrays the vastness of space as a backdrop for the personal lives of ordinary people—people who may have been born on Earth, but whose hopes and dreams lie amongst the stars.
Planetes has finished airing and it has 26 Episodes. It is also Known as: プラネテス, ΠΛΑΝΗΤΕΣ
Genres: Space Travel , Science Fiction , Angst , Shipboard , Future , Plot Continuity , Space , Romance
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Top 10 Anime Like Planetes [2024 List]
10. Eureka Seven
In the backwater town of Bellforest lives a 14-year-old boy named Renton Thurston. He desires to leave his home behind and join the mercenary group known as Gekkostate, hoping to find some adventure to brighten up his mundane life. However, stuck between his grandfather's insistence to become a mechanic like him and the pressure of his deceased father's legacy, the only excitement Renton finds is in his pastime of riding the Trapar wave particles that are dispersed throughout the air, an activity akin to surfing.
Everything changes when an unknown object crashes through Renton's garage, discovered to be a Light Finding Operation—a robot capable of riding the Trapar waves—specifically known as the Nirvash typeZERO. Its pilot is a young girl named Eureka, a member of the Gekkostate, who requests a tune-up for the Nirvash. Their meeting sparks the beginning of Renton's involvement with the Gekkostate as he takes off alongside Eureka as the co-pilot of the Nirvash.
Eureka Seven has finished airing and it has 50 Episodes. It is also Known as: 交響詩篇エウレカセブン, Koukyoushihen, Eureka 7, Eureka Seven Psalms of Planets, Koukyou Shihen Eureka Seven
9. Starship Operators
For the 73rd class of cadets of the Defense University of the small planet Kibi, a shakedown cruise on the fleet's new starship "Amaterasu" is a fitting lead-up to graduation. As they are returning to their home planet, however, they are shocked to hear news of a declaration of war by the aggressive Kingdom against Kibi. When their planetary government surrenders without a struggle, the cadets decide to launch their own war, aboard the "Amaterasu". To gain funding, they make a deal with a galactic news network - and find themselves the "stars" of their own "reality show". Unfortunately, this is the kind of reality show that can get you killed...
Starship Operators has finished airing and it has 13 Episodes. It is also Known as: スターシップ・オペレーターズ, Starship Operators
8. Kidou Keisatsu Patlabor: On Television
In the future, advanced robotics has created heavy robots ("labors") for use in a variety of functions: construction, fire-fighting, military, and more. However, though the robots are only machines, their operators are also only human—and humans sometimes turn to crime. Since a heavy labor unit can be a dangerous weapon, the police of the future are set to fight fire with fire, using advanced patrol labor units, "patlabors." This is the story of the Second Special Vehicles Division, a motley crew of patlabor policemen and women doing their best to fight crime and live a normal life.
Mobile Police Patlabor has finished airing and it has 47 Episodes. It is also Known as: 機動警察パトレイバー ON TELEVISION, Kido Keisatsu Patlabor, Mobile Police Patlabor ON TELEVISION
7. Ouritsu Uchuugun: Honneamise no Tsubasa
Shirotsugh "Shiro" Lhadatt may be a cadet in the Kingdom of Honneamise's Royal Space Force (RSF), but he has never been in space before—in fact, nobody has. The RSF is often regarded as a failure both by the country's citizens and a government more interested in precipitating a war with a neighboring country than scientific achievement. Following the funeral of a fellow cadet, an unmotivated Shiro is walking in the city one night, when he bumps into Riquinni Nonderaiko, a young, pious woman, genuinely enthusiastic about the significance of space exploration.
As the two gradually bond, Riquinni's encouragement inspires Shiro to volunteer as a pilot for a prospective rocket ship, potentially becoming Honneamise's first man in space. Shiro and the RSF are soon joined by a team of elderly but eager scientists and engineers, and together, they embark on a mission to mold their nation's space program into a success. However, their efforts soon catch the attention of the government, which seems to have a different plan for the RSF in mind. Even as the odds are stacked against them, these men and women continue to stubbornly look to the sky, because somewhere among the frontiers of space may lie humanity's last chance at redemption.
Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honneamise has finished airing and it has 1 Episodes. It is also Known as: 王立宇宙軍 オネアミスの翼, Wing of Royal Space Troop Honneamise, Star Quest
6. Shirobako
After making an animated film together in high school, Aoi and her friends Shizuka, Ema, Misa, and Midori made a promise to each other: to all get jobs in the anime industry and someday work together again. Two years later, Aoi is learning that working as a production assistant at a small animation studio is far more demanding than she ever imagined, and Shizuka's aspiring career as a voice actor involves more time waiting tables than recording. Meanwhile, Ema's slowly making a name for herself as a key animator, Misa's moved from 2D to 3D and now works in computer graphics, and screenwriting hopeful Midori is lagging furthest behind, still looking for her first big break. But are they ready to give up on their dreams just yet? No way! Because while anime may come from inspiration, in the end it's the ones who're willing to put in the perspiration that make their dreams real in SHIROBAKO!
Shirobako has finished airing and it has 24 Episodes. It is also Known as: SHIROBAKO, White Box
5. Freedom
In the year 2041, mankind created their first space colony on the moon. But after a freak cataclysm devastated human civilisation on Earth, the republic of the moon built a domed megalopolis known as Eden. Now in the year 2267, a boy called Takeru spends his time engaging in hover-craft races against rival street gangs, unaware that he is about to embark in the journey of unearthing Eden's origin.
Freedom has finished airing and it has 7 Episodes. It is also Known as: FREEDOM, Freedom
4. Toshokan Sensou
Toshokan Sensou tells the story of Kasahara Iku, the first woman to join the Library Task Force. In the near future in Japan, the Media Enhancement Law has been forced upon the population censoring all books and media. To counter this, the Library Defense Force was created. To protect themselves against the Media Enhancement Law Commission, all major libraries are fully equipped with a military Task Force, who take it upon themselves to protect the books and freedom of media of the people.
This anime follows Iku and her fellow soldiers as they protect various special books and artifacts from the oppression of the Media Enhancement Law Commission. A love story, war story, and comedy all rolled into one.
Library Wars has finished airing and it has 12 Episodes. It is also Known as: 図書館戦争, Library War, Toshokan Kakumei, Library Revolution, Library Rebellion, Library Crisis
3. Cowboy Bebop
In the year 2071, humanity has colonized several of the planets and moons of the solar system leaving the now uninhabitable surface of planet Earth behind. The Inter Solar System Police attempts to keep peace in the galaxy, aided in part by outlaw bounty hunters, referred to as "Cowboys". The ragtag team aboard the spaceship Bebop are two such individuals.
Mellow and carefree Spike Spiegel is balanced by his boisterous, pragmatic partner Jet Black as the pair makes a living chasing bounties and collecting rewards. Thrown off course by the addition of new members that they meet in their travels—Ein, a genetically engineered, highly intelligent Welsh Corgi; femme fatale Faye Valentine, an enigmatic trickster with memory loss; and the strange computer whiz kid Edward Wong—the crew embarks on thrilling adventures that unravel each member's dark and mysterious past little by little.
Well-balanced with high density action and light-hearted comedy, Cowboy Bebop is a space Western classic and an homage to the smooth and improvised music it is named after.
Cowboy Bebop has finished airing and it has 26 Episodes. It is also Known as: カウボーイビバップ, COWBOY BEBOP
2. Uchuu Kyoudai
On a fateful summer night in 2006, Mutta Nanba and his younger brother Hibito witness what they believe to be a UFO flying toward the Moon. This impressing and unusual phenomenon leads both siblings vowing to become astronauts, with Hibito aiming for the Moon and Mutta, convinced that the eldest brother has to be one step ahead, for Mars.
Now an adult, life hasn't turned out how Mutta had pictured it: he is diligently working in an automotive company, whereas Hibito is on his way to be the very first Japanese man to step on the Moon. However, after losing his job, Mutta is presented with an unexpected opportunity to catch up to his younger brother when the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency, commonly known as JAXA, accepts his application to participate in the next astronaut selection. Despite self-doubts about his prospects, Mutta is unwilling to waste this chance of a lifetime, and thus embarks on an ambitious journey to fulfill the promise made 19 years ago.
Space Brothers has finished airing and it has 99 Episodes. It is also Known as: 宇宙兄弟, Uchu Kyodai, Uchuu Kyodai
1. Welcome to the N.H.K.
Twenty-two-year-old college dropout Tatsuhiro Satou has been a hikikomori for almost four years now. In his isolation, he has come to believe in many obscure conspiracy theories, but there is one in particular which he holds unshakable faith in: the theory that the evil conspirator behind his shut-in NEET (Not in Employment, Education or Training) status is the Nihon Hikikomori Kyokai (NHK)—an evil and secret organization dedicated to fostering the spread of hikikomori culture.
NHK ni Youkoso! is a psychological dramedy that follows Tatsuhiro as he strives to escape from the NHK's wicked machinations and the disease of self-wrought isolation, while struggling to even just leave his apartment and find a job. His unexpected encounter with the mysterious Misaki Nakahara might signal a reversal of fortune for Tatsuhiro, but with this meeting comes the inevitable cost of having to face his greatest fear—society.
Welcome to the N.H.K. has finished airing and it has 24 Episodes. It is also Known as: NHK ni Youkoso!, N・H・Kにようこそ！, Welcome to the NHK
