The series draws to a close as Jinto and Lafiel reach Sufugnoff and attempt to evade capture on the planet’s surface at the hands of both the police and the military. Meanwhile the Abh and United Mankind line up to do battle following the destruction of the Gosroth.

As with the earlier episodes this outing expands the CotS universe, introducing more characters and the relationships between them. At times though it feels like a whistle-stop tour of a setting that is too large for the constraints of a thirteen episode television show, with a whole host of faces on both the Abh and human side who are crying for more screen time than is possible here. The charismatic Admiral Trife for instance and the delightfully fearless rear-admiral Spoor, the ‘Lady of Chaos’, provide an interesting insight into Abh military philosophy and Inspector Kyte’s background is important to understanding his motivations but could be explored more.

Such minor niggles are understandable in a story that, true to the blurb on the back of the DVD case, has depth by the bucket load. While our two heroes are undercover on a strange planet that is arresting Abh citizens, a war is breaking out over their heads and the political machinations are being portrayed to explain it all. All things considered it is no mean feat in taking these threads and holding them together long enough to deliver a coherent story with characters that viewers can relate to.

Therein lies the greatest strength of the CotS story: as much as I’d like to go on about the politics and combat in this thoroughly convincing universe (quite honestly there isn’t the space here to do it justice) it loses much of its impact if the characterisation fails to highlight the significance of the events. The supporting cast are a suitable cross-section of influential personalities in the Human/Abh conflict but Jinto and Lafiel are the perfect subjects for demonstrating how all this affects people on an individual and emotional level. The experience of following them on their journey is an absorbing one and ably demonstrates the racial tensions, political strategies and the way in which their adventures affect their relationship.

Although the visuals won’t win any awards these days, there are no obvious signs of corner-cutting or repeated footage, the combat scenes are filled with detail and the characters are lively and expressive. In shows such as this the characters and storyline allow you to become utterly absorbed, although those who are averse to ‘talky’ dialogue and plotlines that take their time in realising their potential may become impatient with what’s on offer here.

In Summary

The shortest way of summing up this volume is ‘the end of the beginning’. Even though the story arc that ran across the previous two volumes is resolved it is merely the first part of something much more far-reaching: the final scenes show the consequences of what has occurred by catching up with some of the characters a few years later but also sets up the sequel nicely. Anyone who enjoys what they find here will, like me, be eager to see the Banner of the Stars TV series which follows.

Final thoughts

Crest of the Stars has proved to be a hidden gem in this year’s release schedule so I cannot recommend it enough to fans who like their science fiction complex and ambitious yet believable and engaging. It never allows the enormity of the premise to swamp the significance of individuals’ situations yet delivers on its lofty intentions, albeit leaving you crying out for more. I sincerely hope that Banner of the Stars will hit UK shelves in the near future to continue this epic and outstanding tale.