Knights of Sidonia

An alien race called Gauna has destroyed Earth. leaving humanity struggling to survive aboard the spaceship Sidonia. Even though it’s been a century since the last encounter with the Gauna, military service is mandatory. For Nagate Tanikaze, whose grandfather secretly hid him in the forgotten bowels of Sidonia, it’s a strange new world as he’s forced to come to the surface. Yet his recruitment comes just in time, for the Gauna have suddenly reappeared.

Knights of Sidonia (2014-2015) is a Japanese animated science fiction series produced by Polygon Pictures, a two-season anime with twenty-four episodes that adapts the manga of the same name. The story follows Nagate Tanikaze (voice by Ryota Osaka), a young man raised in the forgotten lower decks of a vast starship, who is suddenly conscripted into military service when the Gauna, an alien race that has already destroyed Earth, return after a century of quiet. Izana Shinatose (voice by Aki Toyosaki) and Captain Kobayashi (voice by Sayaka Ohara) are among the principal figures around him, with Killy (voice by Takahiro Sakurai) and Ichirou Seii (voice by Tomohiro Tsuboi) also central to the crew. Each episode is built from piloted mecha sorties, tense battles against the Gauna in space, and the slow grind of a society that has forgotten how to fight. The engine is a young outsider trying to find his place in a rigid military order while facing enemies that keep returning. Set aboard a generation ship in a post-apocalyptic future, the series carries a somber, contemplative register, with grim imagery and a grounded sense of survival. Fans of Neon Genesis Evangelion and Attack on Titan will find resonance in its alien-threat dread and sober military world-building.

Audiences rate the series positively, praising its ambitious mecha action and sci-fi world-building while some find the story uneven and the tone hard to settle on.

• Neon Genesis Evangelionshared space opera scale, mecha piloting, and post-apocalyptic humanity struggling against an alien threat
• Gundam Build Fightersshared shonen-adjacent mecha action aboard a besieged vessel with a reluctant young pilot
• Attack on Titanshared military sci-fi tone, alien invasion threat, and spaceship-bound survival
• Knights of Sidonia: Battle for Planetesshared CG-animated sci-fi world-building and humanity clinging to a last refuge

Release Date

2014-04-11

Episode runtime

24 min

Rating

7.7 / 10 (148)

What is Knights of Sidonia about?

A reclusive young man is dragged out of a hidden underground shelter of a generation starship to fight alien Gauna in mecha battles.

What is Knights of Sidonia like to watch?

Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Knights of Sidonia as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.

Is Knights of Sidonia violent?

Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Knights of Sidonia as moderate.

What did critics think of Knights of Sidonia?

Audiences rate the series positively, praising its ambitious mecha action and sci-fi world-building while some find the story uneven and the tone hard to settle on.

Which shows are like Knights of Sidonia?

Shows with a similar feel include Neon Genesis Evangelion, Gundam Build Fighters, Attack on Titan, and Knights of Sidonia: Battle for Planetes.

How long is Knights of Sidonia?

Knights of Sidonia: 2 seasons, 24 episodes.

Is Knights of Sidonia still running?

No, Knights of Sidonia has ended.

Where can I watch Knights of Sidonia?

In United States, Knights of Sidonia streams on Crunchyroll, Crunchyroll Amazon Channel.