Vanessa Piña has been writing as a journalist for over two years. As a senior writer, she focuses on timely coverage of the latest anime releases and popular comic franchises.
The science fiction genre is usually viewers’ go-to choice for escaping into other realities, whether by experiencing them on screen through dystopian futures or stories featuring characters who travel across space. However, while Netflix has become known for its extensive catalog of sci-fi series, such as 3 Body Problem or Love, Death and Robots, viewers sometimes look for an option that allows them to disconnect without requiring a significant time commitment.
For viewers seeking a fascinating world with a cyberpunk aesthetic, some of the best options on the streaming platform include series such as Cyberpunk: Edgerunners and Altered Carbon. While they are well worth watching, they do require setting aside time to view several episodes. Fortunately, the film Milky Subway: The Galactic Limited Express, which arrived on Netflix in 2026, features an unparalleled space adventure, all in less than 50 minutes.
Milky Subway: The Galactic Limited Express is a compilation film, which arrived on Netflix this past July, based on a series of independent short OVAs originally released on YouTube in 2025. The movie expands upon the series with additional scenes, resulting in a runtime of just 46 minutes, perfect for those in the mood for a short story that blends the style of The Amazing Digital Circus with elements of old-school space fiction.
Milky Subway: The Galactic Limited Express Is an Indie Sci-Fi Gem on Netflix
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Milky Subway: The Galactic Limited Express follows a group of young delinquents sentenced to community service who find themselves trapped on an interplanetary train that heads into space without any warning. The work serves as a parody of space epics in the vein of the anime Galaxy Express 999, infusing the chaotic energy of The Amazing Digital Circus, presenting an isolated setting teeming with eccentric characters and hilarious moments.
The thing that makes Milky Subway: The Galactic Limited Express an unmissable gem is that it doesn’t take itself too seriously, embracing its absurdity while unfolding a story that is both heartfelt and enjoyable. It shines through the characters’ interactions, presenting a charming ragtag group forced to collaborate to escape their predicament, with their clashing personalities and overlapping dialogue making them feel natural, creating a highly entertaining dynamic.
Furthermore, the film’s structure is notable for its ability to build tension, using a police officer as a connecting thread. Pieces of the plot are revealed through visual flashbacks, triggered by cuts back to an interrogation room, which introduce the main cast one by one, while simultaneously weaving together the central mystery: how the characters ended up in this situation in the first place.
Milky Subway: The Galactic Limited Express Celebrates Everything That Makes Sci-Fi Great
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Unlike most high-tech science fiction movies on Netflix, Milky Subway: The Galactic Limited Express stands out as a retro-futuristic work. Featuring characters with a cyberpunk-inspired design, complete with bionic parts, or individuals with alien-like features and cyborgs, the series creates a contrast between its neon-drenched spatial landscapes and vintage elements by incorporating analog technology, such as floppy disks. This retro feel is further reflected in the characters’ personalities and fashion, drawing inspiration from Japanese youth counterculture between the 1980s and 1990s, with nods to the “gyaru” subculture and biker gangs.
The film also includes references to classic franchises within the science fiction genre. One example is that “Yvaga” appears on the destination display of the runaway train, the name of a real-life planet that is also mentioned in the film Alien: Romulus. The climax of Milky Subway likewise contains elements that can easily be linked to the Alien film franchise.
Interestingly, Milky Subway: The Galactic Limited Express‘ story serves as a direct sequel to the short Milky Highway, which was Yōhei Kameyama’s graduation project, a work he created almost entirely on his own. He went on to produce the series in collaboration with Shin-Ei Animation, with Bandai Namco Filmworks facilitating its subsequent theatrical release in February 2026.
Milky Subway not only continues to demonstrate the potential of indie productions and animation but also offers a fascinatingly entertaining story that sci-fi fans might want to set aside a little time to check out. Both the original episodes and Milky Subway‘s prequel short animation are available on YouTube for viewers who would like to see more of the series.
Milky Subway: The Galactic Limited Express
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Momoka Terasawa
Chiharu (voice)
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Makoto Koichi
Kanata (voice)
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Anna Nagase
Makina (voice)
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Mikako Komatsu
Ryoko (voice)
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