Space Brothers - Episode 70

Not only has Mutta made a major step closer to achieving his dream by becoming a fully-fledged astronaut, and no sooner as he done so than he finds himself offered a spot on a mission's backup crew.

Unfortunately, any excitement at this possibility is tempered by the announcement that this mission involves not the Moon but the International Space Station - a fantastic opportunity for sure, but one which might elongate any time-frame for Mutta reaching his real goal of walking upon the lunar surface.  It's time that he simply doesn't have considering his promise to Sharon, and just as importantly Mutta knows somebody who would be even better suited for this particular role, and so ultimately he chooses to turn down the role while recommending that Serika take his place instead.

With management seemingly in agreement, Serika takes her place on the ISS backup crew - so what of Mutta?  Our protagonist instead finds himself assigned to a department that seems to be a perfect fit for his abilities, that being the group that designs vehicles for NASA.  The team in question have been tasked with improving safety on the buggy which causes brother Hibito's accident, and despite his dismay at taking what seems to be a step further away from his goal, Mutta is quickly given the motivation he needs to redouble his efforts on this difficult task in the knowledge that it could be his path to the Moon.

Although designing buggies (and chairs!) is hardly the most glamorous aspect this series has promised so far I'm actually really looking forward to seeing Mutta in what should be his element, and what's more addressing challenges that directly relate to his brother's accident.  It seems like the perfect subject matter for another fascinating story arc, complete with motivation that Mutta's true goal could be not too far away - given the quality of this series as a whole, I feel pretty confident that it'll deliver more of what keeps us coming back to this series.