Fans of old-school 80s and 90s anime definitely have some iconic space-opera titles in their all-time favorite list, reasonably so given how series like Legend of Galactic Heroes, Space Pirate Captain Harlock, and Super Dimension Fortress Macross revolutionized the medium itself. Netflix’s latest release, Moonrise, an anime adaptation of Tow Ubukata’s novel of the same name, had everything it should have taken to respect the legacy of the classics of a bygone era. With an ensemble of unique characters designed by the legendary Hiromu Arakawa of Fullmetal Alchemist fame, Wit Studio bringing their A-game in animating some of the most breathtaking sci-fi battle sequences, handling of topical issues like the aggressive, expansive control of artificial intelligence, neocolonialism, and societal disparity, and a sweeping, memorable score fitting for the space opera genre, the anime was definitely gearing up for something special. Unfortunately, after all is said and done, there...