This clip is from the finale of the classic series "GALAXY EXPRESS 999". After over 100 episodes and multiple seasons, it turns out that the hero of the series(Maetel) was actually the villain the whole time.
Galaxy Express 999 was created by the legendary artist and political activist Leija Matsumoto.
We all had fears as a child, and many of these fears either followed us to adulthood or they were forgotten in time. Matsumoto uses deep dark colors and surreal story-lines to locate our once forgotten childhood fears, bring them back to us, and exploit them so that all viewers can relive the terrors of their childhood. Recall that Japan in that time was mostly made up of people who had survived the war, and they lived in a society where death was always around the corner. Shows like this were easier for them to relate to on account of this. In America, Galaxy Express 999 never achieved much of a fanbase mainly on account of the fact that Americans never had to live through such difficult and deadly times, so they couldn't relate and understand the concepts of this series.
Galaxy Express 999 is made up of several non-canon timelines. All version of GE999 have a character named Tetsuro and a mysterious woman named Maetel who travel together on a train called the: Three-Nine.
Tetsuro- the main character of the story, and in every adaption his goal in life is to board the 999 in order to find a new world, a new life where he can live forever without discrimination, pain, and suffering. Tetsuro's character symbolizes "the beauty of living a short life"
Maetel- The mysterious woman who guides and protects Tetsuro during his trip on the 999. Every adaption of GE999 picks up during a period of her life where she is having problems dealing with the guilt of having tricked so many boys by leading them to the end of their physical lives. Maetel's character unlike Tetsuro symbolizes: "The horror of living forever".
Other characters that always appear in all the adaptions of the story are:
The Conductor-The hardworking sole employee of the 999 who has an off and odd personality, but is very honest and trust-able.
Queen Emeraldas- In some adaptions she is Maetel's twin sister, and in some versions she is just a Space Pirate who is Maetel's arch rival. She is usually portrayed as a woman who is dieing of an unknown terminal illness, but refuses to die until she finds out what happened to Tochiro. Her character symbolizes the stages of Death, while Maetel's character symbolizes Long Life.
Captain Harlock-The Space Pirate who flies an Airship(Note this concept was used by Final Fantasy many years later)
Claire- A woman who always dies in order for Tetsuro to live. In some adaptions she dies early in the story and in some adaptions she dies in the final scene, but the recurring theme is that she always sacrifices her own life so Tetsuro can live.
Queen Promethium- The main antagonist of the series. In all adaptions, she is Maetel's mother. But in some adaptions she has no physical form and lives in her planet's life stream(another concept that Final Fantasy would later steal). Some adaptions she is a real woman with blonde hair, and in some versions she is a mechanical cyborg.
