Orb: On the Movements of the Earth 1x01 "Heliocentrism. How About That?" - reaction & review
Added 2025-04-11 13:00:27 +0000 UTCHey everyone! Here it is - my reaction to episode 1 of Orb!! WOW! I knew we would be exploring the transition from geocentrism to heliocentrism, but dang, seeing the pain and suffering surrounding anyone who dared step out of line with the status quo makes me very uneasy for all these characters! Hubert and Rafal both seem like they have a thirst for knowledge, regardless of the consequences. Can't wait to see what happens next! Enjoy! ~ MH
Comments
Ooooh no kidding! That's awesome! LOL that's actually an amazing practical use for astronomy though! That's the thing, this all came down to power in the end. I think power was more the culprit than the actual beliefs at this point. And once someone with power is threatened, they'll go awfully far to protect their place. Very dark!!! But also very intriguing!!!
Melissa Moore
2025-04-17 19:59:37 +0000 UTCHi Leonie! Of course, how could I not after all the time you devote to my channel! Also thanks for clearing that up about the historical perspective, I was wondering where Copernicus and Galileo would fit in, now I know lol. Oh you're so right about Madhouse! Also I appreciate that Rafal isn't your typical best boy protag too. It's really dangerous to do anything outside the norm during these times. Oooh that's how Hubert got the scars, ick! OMG I can't believe that scene is gonna come back around later! Sheesh!! Hope you love my future reactions!!
Melissa Moore
2025-04-17 19:58:23 +0000 UTCThis is perfect for me. I’m currently in an astronomy course. I chose it for my required lab because I wanted to learn how to read stars and find my why home. Turns out that’s more Boy Scout training 😅 But we learn about the stars and how they were used to navigate life. The figures who dared to question and gave us better understanding of the world and universe. Yeah religion ruled and once some started finding evidence that had validity of course they were shut down. Religious types would tell people that looking into the telescope would taint their eyes and they’d see evil and lies yada yada so the church could continue to have power. Interesting stuff. Very dark series but interesting.
Manny
2025-04-15 11:18:56 +0000 UTCHi Melissa, thank you so much for agreeing to watch Orb for me. I was really excited and couldn’t wait to watch the first episode with you. And your reaction definitely didn’t disappoint me.💞 First of all, here are a few historical facts to help put things into context and better understand what the anime is trying to convey. As I already mentioned—and as you also said in the video—Orb is loosely based on some historical events from the 15th and 16th centuries. It takes place in an alternate version of Poland, but not everything shown in the anime should be taken as 100% historically accurate. Much like Vinland Saga, it draws inspiration from certain historical facts and weaves its own story from them. In the case of Orb, the focus is on how the theory of heliocentrism was further developed and the challenges researchers had to overcome to bring it to public attention. In realife Copernicus (polish astronomer) developed the heliocentric model in 1543, and then Galileo was born 1564. Galileo later invents the telescope and an early microscope, so Orb featues a time about a century before these ideas are developed. Now, back to the actual anime. Orb is animated by Madhouse, which explains the high-quality animation. They also animated Frieren, for example. And I’m really glad Orb has such great animation, because it definitely deserves it. Rafal, our main protagonist, isn’t just your typical “best boy” that you often see in many shonen anime. He’s a much more complex character. As you rightly pointed out, he adapts himself to society in order to get what he wants—even if, deep down, he holds very different views. But that helps him navigate life. And that, in a way, makes him relatable, because don’t we all do that to some extent every day, just to avoid being rejected by society? Especially back then, as we’ve seen, it was incredibly dangerous to go against the norm. Potocki, Rafal’s adoptive father, is a very important supporting character whom you’ll get to know better later on. He’s a theologian and a professor of both theology and astrology, and he teaches these subjects at the school. He’s a very strict teacher, but at the same time, a kind and caring father. One character who still comes across as quite mysterious so far is Hubert. You can see that he has many scars on his face, which come from that device we saw in the very first scene—his cheeks were slashed open with it. That process was extremely painful, and in general, all the torture scenes in the anime are really hard to watch and very unsettling. Hubert is the first one to introduce Rafal to the idea that the Earth is not the center of the universe—or rather, not the center of the solar system—but that it’s actually the sun. And I think that’s a very dangerous thought for Hubert to have, especially in the context of that time period. One thing I definitely want to point out is that the very first scene—where we see Nowak torturing someone—is extremely important for the story later on. That’s why I want you to really keep that scene in mind, because it will come up again, and I think it’s going to break your heart once you understand the full context. It definitely hit me hard. I’m already looking forward to watching the second episode with you!
Leonie2003
2025-04-11 16:06:43 +0000 UTC
