This one’s all Requiem’s fault. Usually, our beloved AniTAY podcast host has the most deplorable taste in quality-deficient, crap-replete anime trash. Every now and then, however, he surprises me by recommending something good. It’s these rare moments of sparkling insight from Req that keep me from consigning his every word to the refuse bin. Unfortunately, this Summer 2024 anime season’s Bye, Bye Earth was not one of Req’s more… uh… trustworthy recommendations.
Based on the debut novel(s) by Japanese SF author Tow Ubukata, first published in 2000, the show seems to reflect its source’s weakness — in that it’s completely incomprehensible. Ubukata’s work has a reputation for being obtuse, or difficult to follow. After all, he’s the author behind not only bizarre animated movie trilogy Mardock Scramble, but also the widely maligned second season of Psycho-pass, and the divisive Ghost in the Shell: Arise plus its concluding Ghost in the Shell: The New Movie. His most recent work in the Psycho-pass franchise has been excellent, however — including the entirety of season three and its conclusion First Inspector, and recent movie Providence. None of these things are what I’d describe as “accessible”, though his later work has certainly become more coherent with time.
I reviewed Bye Bye, Earth for Anime News Network, and from the comments so far, it seems everyone else agrees that the show completely fails to explain itself. Perhaps this will improve with the upcoming second season, set for broadcast next year? To be honest, I doubt it. Anyway, please read my confused attempts to make sense of this thing via the link above.
You can read some of my reviews of Tow Ubukata’s other anime below, too:
Ghost in the Shell: Arise
Psycho-pass season 3 and First Inspector
Psycho-Pass: Providence
Kevin Cormack is a Scottish medical doctor, husband, father, and lifelong anime obsessive. He writes as Doctorkev at https://medium.com/anitay-official and appears regularly on The Official AniTAY podcast. You can also find him on Twitter @Herrdoktorkev. His accent is real.
