Locke's 'exogenic' (psychic) powers may make him nearly omnipotent, but he still couldn't save this film. I almost decided to reveal the whole story to save our readers from the risk of having to watch this show. But someone liked it enough to produce it, so there might be two or three more fans out there and I don't want to spoil it for them. Besides, this story wasn't worth telling the first time around...
The concept of powerful psychics beating up everybody in sight has worked before. It's a solid genre of science fiction. Throw in a revenge plot and it's even better! So what happened to SPACE WARRIORS? Well, the concept of sword swinging immortals chopping up everybody in sight has also worked before. But most people (this side of the Atlantic) who saw the second HIGHLANDER movie can tell you that sometimes the arrow just misses.
This story did have potential and it followed through with its generic plot, so at least it went somewhere. But it was so predictable and boring that it wasn't worth the trip. Cheap, sentimental melodrama ran rampant, crushing everything suspenseful and exotic about the story. This film also has my vote for cheesiest ending of the year. I hesitate to mention that because I can't give it away but I don't want to inadvertently pique anyone's curiosity.
Part of the blame for this might rest with the voice acting. While not the worst I've heard, overacting and clumsy lines abound. I say "might" because I doubt the Japanese script could've been much better. I'm not sure that even Hollywood's best could've saved this one. I must point out, however, that one voice stood out as very good. Most accents used in dubbed anime come across as awkward, but the Scottish voice of the Doctor sounded totally natural. Unfortunately, since just about everyone else spoke generic American English, this was a very distracting trait for a secondary character.
The animation was unremarkable. It wasn't bad, considering its age, but it was not pretty. The backgrounds were drab, the character movements stiff, the action scenes bland. The music score was typical of such melodrama; totally uninspired.
I cannot in good conscience recommend this tape. Here's another clue: although this movie is based on the original screenplay by Hirota Takeshi, neither the final screenplay nor any of the voice actors are credited. I can't blame them for wanting to remain anonymous.

SPACE WARRIORS
Original comics by Hijiri Yuki
Original Japanese version copyright 1989 Hijiri Yuki / S.G. / Emotion / Nippon Animation
English dubbed version © 1994 L.A. Media Group / Emotion / Nippon Animation
Dubbed catalog #: USM 1531
75 minutes
$14.95