The only thing that really compares to this show is the movie "Scream." Both incorporated the knowledge all fans of each genre (horror for 'Scream' and mecha for MSN) to make something original and funny.
"Funny" being the prime word here. This thing is a riot! The entire crew of the Nadesico is made up the the biggest bunch of weirdoes this side of Jupiter. You've got a super-perky, dim, but, for no apparent reason, capable captain, a pilot obsessed with a cheesy 70's mecha show, a engineer who joined up just to get away from his wife, another pilot who just want to be a cook and for the captain to not be in love with him, a genius little girl you thinks everyone around her is an idiot (she's right), a beancounter, a former secretary, and a voice actor. Think 'Hogan's Heroes' meets 'BattleStar Galatica.
While the show is great, the US version has some flaws. The subtitled version is hard to read. For some reason a light blue color is used at times that's almost impossible to see. The dubbed version has screens that have had the kanji glaringly replaced with English.
On the plus side the VA in both versions are all very good. You also get the song lyrics in English and phonetics. That's a rather nice bonus.
MSN is a great parody of the mecha genre and to a greater extent anime fandom as a whole. The story is funny, but with enough serious stuff to keep things from getting to silly.
Overall, this is a good series to invest your anime-buying money in.
