Most anime fans love a kick-ass first episode and don't like anime that takes two or three (in this anime's case, I think it was 5) episodes to develop and get a real story. Well, actually, anime that needs time to develop are the best of them all. And that's exactly how Outlaw Star is.
Characters, story, even weapons: they all take time to develop in this anime. It's always been one of my favorites and will ALWAYS be just that. I would recommend this to any fan of shows like Shamanic Princess (same production company) and even InuYasha or Fullmetal Alchemist. Give it time, though; if you don't wanna wait, however, skip to episode 5.
Anyways, an oldie but definitely a goodie. I hope whoever reads this enjoys Outlaw Star just as much as I did. (show less)

I first watched Outlaw Star back in the day on Toonami, and later saw a few episodes of the uncut version on DVD at a friend's house. I was very glad to find it here. While I've heard it wasn't very popular in Japan, and over here Cowboy Bebop was much more popular, I actually like it more than Cowboy Beebop, in terms of style of entertainment I'm looking for. Outlaw Star has surprising depth and design quality to the universe it takes place in, and while many of the characters have heavily used tropes in their designs, each has their own unique twists that make them highly memorable characters. If you like space combat, magic-guns, sci-fi, space pirates, shapeshifting cat-girls, cute android girls, awesome samurai girls, or the idea of grappling spaceships, or simply want an entertaining anime with a good mix of action, humor, and drama, and lots of badass characters, this show is for you! (show less)