Hoezo in KINO

Time has largely forgotten Rintaro’s sequel to Galaxy Express 999, overshadowed by the original’s cult success. Yet this is a leaner, grittier anime that opens on the battlefront and plunges headfirst into war and death. It’s an underrated conclusion to Tetsuro’s life-changing journey that the internet has re-evaluated as the what The Empire Strikes Back is to Star Wars: A New Hope – you can even hear shades of John Williams in the score. Whatever your relationship with the original, the sequel undeniably is a high-speed bullet train of emotions and brutal battles. It’s a fitting and epic requiem for Tetsuro’s dreams spun from stardust and steam. An adieu at full throttle.