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Amazingly fluid action set-pieces and an undercurrent of intrigue drive the story along at a solid pace, not feeling rushed or bloated. The runtime is the perfect amount of time in which to execute on all of its core ideas while still having some fun with it. Personally, I recommend grabbing an old VHS copy of this movie if you can, since it's pretty hard to find in any other way.

It's a visually stunning and well written affair with an intensely striking opening sequence and title track. While it might be a bit dated in presentation and simple by today's standards, it's a solid ... animation that flows incredibly well from shot to shot. Both the direction of scenes and the individual blocking of shots were cinematic and appealing. A minor flaw I would point out is that most of the characters feel very one-sided, a bit more like generalized archetypes: The Stalwart Hero, the Reluctant Lancer, the Innocent Sister, the Corrupt Official, etc. Though, in a way, this adds to the overall timeless feeling of the work for me personally. A story of a scientist's proudest invention, designed to help the ones he loves, twisted into a product of war; a product of war that must be dismantled and torn down for the safety of everyone around the heroes.

TL;DR, It's schlocky, its kitschy, and it's 80s as hell, but it wears it proudly on its sleeve. It's not reinventing the wheel or anything, but not everything has to, right?