It was also the directorial debut of Mamoru Oshii who was currently working on the Urusei Yatsura TV series at the time and would later go on to direct Angel's Egg in 1985 and even the Ghost in the Shell film in 1995, so the OVA looked promising enough but unfortunately this OVA, outside of its historical significance, offers very little in the way of substance.
Set in the future, Dallos tells the story of an ongoing conflict between the people of Earth and the people of the moon who were sent to said place as a means of using the moons resources in order to prolong life on Earth. However, feeling that they're under the tyrannical rule of the earthlings, the people of the Moon fight back leading to an all out war on both sides. And that's where my main piece of criticism stems from; I simply do not care what is going on.
Neither side of the conflict has any characters to feel a damn for so its hard to care for anyone who is fighting on screen. Never do any of the main characters on both sides of the conflict project any kind of goal or type of mentality into winning this war and instead feel like lifeless robots, especially Shun who joins the rebellion just because. Its hard to feel the narrative weight of this struggle for independence when none of the characters are interesting to watch. The only kind of interesting character was Alex whose ideology and personality were a bit more fleshed out then the rest of the cast but still felt way too underdeveloped.
Another problem is the really bad pacing and lack of any flow between any of its scenes. The show moves at break neck speeds throughout its duration making it hard to keep track of or care for whatever is going on. Shun joins the rebellion for hardly any reason and not enough time is given to fleshing out his character or his ideals leaving him feeling like a bland robot. There is so much going on in this show that it's hard to keep track of without feeling like a mess
The main problem I have is with the show is how the themes and ideas are presented and how they all seem to clash awkwardly with one another. Nothing really feels all that developed or plays out in a satisfying way since none of the ideas presented are given any time or room to breathe. One idea that was never explained was in regards to a machine-like thing called Dallos that can apparently control the moon and even has its own type of consciousness. All we get are really vague speeches about how its a symbol for peace and nothing else beyond that. It could have been great if more time could have been spent on it, which is a shame too considering how well directed it is.
One great thing about this OVA however is the animation and the music. The general look and design for its characters and world are all great and there is no shortage of highly detailed mecha suits throughout the show. The action is very well done and entertaining to watch, even if I don't really care much for what is going on. The action scenes themselves were enough to keep me entertained throughout the show. Similarly, the music was great too with lots of tracks to keep you pumped for that 80S STYLE!
In conclusion, Dallos was a noble attempt at creating a action space show with lots of voilence along with some underlying themes of oppression but needed more time to work properly. As a spectacle alone I would recommend it if only the downtime wasn't so boring.
