Co-founder of Gainax and director of its first feature film, Hiroyuki Yamaga built an artistic vision based on technical verisimilitude on top of anime tropes. His debut work, Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honneamise, rejects easy heroism to focus on social and political mediocrity as the driving force of a space adventure.
Technical verisimilitude and paper rockets 🚀
Yamaga prioritized physical realism over empty spectacle. Every control panel and every stage of the launch in Honneamise was designed with aerospace consultants, avoiding magical flashes. The result is a launch sequence where sweat and bureaucracy weigh more than superpowers. There are no narrative shortcuts: the protagonist is an incompetent who stumbles into space. This technical ambition, far from seeking awe, portrays the real effort of a society that barely understands what it is building.
The hero who couldn't even tie his own shoelaces 👟
Shirotsugh, the pilot of Honneamise, is neither a chosen one nor a genius. He is a loser who joins the Space Force because he has no other option. Yamaga shows him failing exams, arguing with bureaucrats, and falling in love with a religious girl who ignores him. In the end, when he takes off, you don't know whether to cheer or pray that he doesn't explode. Such is Yamaga's realism: a rocket that works despite its crew, not because of them.