[DreamSword]

Episode 10: Divide

"None of us have slept in days; We're not thinking straight!"

That single line put alot of things into perspective, and made me overall okay with the episode despite how often I was thinking "No, you fools!"

So lo and behold, being smack dab in the middle of the territory owned by an evil death cult isn't so hot of a situation. The Kaiju Sisters want Boy, and the argument continues over how to handle everything.

Hayley wants to go the idealistic route of fighting their way out, Taylor wants to just give up and hope for the best, and Mei has the most pragmatic route; Use Boy as a bargaining chip for their own safety. Mei ends up being the one ultimately proven "correct" in the end.

Gotta say though, great twist and hook at the end, with Mob Boss being the one to save the day and the reveal on who one of the Kaiju Sisters are. But, with what should be the biggest aspect of the episode, it wasn't the main draw for me? Maybe not surprising given what I've said before but, again, the thing I was into most was the internal conflict our main trip was going through.

I think it's rather telling how much these characters have grown on me when I am legit interested in hearing what each side has to say, and the fact that them talking/arguing is the thing to keep my engaged. I also gotta give props to whoever writes the dialogue for these sorts of scenes, and it always feels very true to character and never forced. And while I personally wish that Taylor hadn't been the one to win everyone over, I am still interested in seeing where the story is gonna go from here.

[DreamSword]

Episode 11: Sisters of the Kaiju

Anyone is capable of great good or great evil.

When it came to Mob Boss offering to help save the mind of Taylor and Hayley's' mother, it'd be understandable for anyone to be incredibly skeptical of it.

However, if there has been one thing that's been consistent about Shane's' character, it's that he is a good judge of character. You sort of have to be in order to be an effective leader.

Yes, he's ruthless. Yes, he's manipulative. And yes, he's incredibly selfish and self-serving. But he also knows how important family is to alot of people, him included. What sealed it all off what him outright admitting to the duo's' mom that he wasn't doing anything for her, but himself and Mei.

So, does this episode redeem Shane? Make him instantly likeable? Justify all of his actions up to this point? Certainly not, and to the episode's' credit, I never once got the sense that it was trying to do any of that. Merely showing how love for others can drive us to do things no one else would expect of us, and to that I end, I felt it was effective.

Outside of that, there's also the subplot of the Kaiju Sisters getting ready to craft Boy into Kaiju Jesus, and from the moment I saw him on the altar I knew that Apex was going to be a giant player in all of this, given how it Drifted with Boy a few episodes back. Makes me wonder if Boy will get rescued in time, for if he'll end up turning into Aku, considering the cult is pretty much the Daughters of Aku from Samurai Jack.

Combine all of this with some really cool imagery during the dive into the hivemind of the Kaiju Sisters and you have an episode that, while I wouldn't say is perfect, is very interesting to watch.

[Daikaijuman54]

So goes Shane the Main. Something I can gather from him here is his ability to be able to enter anyone's minds, likely because he's been in the harshest of conditions, understanding of his lackeys/comrades, probably using Mei as a sort of device to help him learn what it means to raise a "family" allowing him to explore just about anyone's thoughts, to understand them, which is how he used drifting tech to interrogate people and keep his group together in The Black. Maybe I'm completely wrong, but that's how I think they're getting at.

I do admit, restoring the kids' mom does in some ways feel a bit "deus ex machina" for lack of a better term, in the way it works, but at the same token, it's not a bad deus ex machina, supposing they pull something like that at the end or something. Something that can certainly be said about this series is how it utilizes the drifting element in a way unlike the films, making for some visually interesting scenes.

I assume the sisters are under the influence of the predecessors (I forgot their official name, the guys that made the Kaiju) as likely experiments for this invasion, given how I'm fairly certain they use some form of drifting technology to control people, much like Newton in Uprising, though the question remains, why women? Easier to break minds? Something, something, women pretty? I don't know, maybe I shouldn't worry about that, but sometimes you've got to question how aliens think.

Maybe it's just because it's been so long, but I don't feel too attached to the show at this point. It's not bad or anything, it's still consistent from what I remember, maybe it's this plotline that's bugging me, I'm not sure, I hope to have a clear image when we get to the end.

[DreamSword]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Daikaijuman54

So goes Shane the Main. Something I can gather from him here is his ability to be able to enter anyone's minds, likely because he's been in the harshest of conditions, understanding of his lackeys/comrades, probably using Mei as a sort of device to help him learn what it means to raise a "family" allowing him to explore just about anyone's thoughts, to understand them, which is how he used drifting tech to interrogate people and keep his group together in The Black. Maybe I'm completely wrong, but that's how I think they're getting at.

I feel like that checks out for the most part. I suppose having a modified drift deck(likely made by Spider and/or Joel) really helps out in that department.

Quote:

I do admit, restoring the kids' mom does in some ways feel a bit "deus ex machina" for lack of a better term, in the way it works, but at the same token, it's not a bad deus ex machina, supposing they pull something like that at the end or something. Something that can certainly be said about this series is how it utilizes the drifting element in a way unlike the films, making for some visually interesting scenes.

Yeah, I definitely do appreciate how Drifting and the different ways it can be utilized is getting explored in this show. While the visual flare that it had in the movies is gone, this anime manages to replace it with a nice flavor of its own, and it's much appreciated.

Quote:

I assume the sisters are under the influence of the predecessors (I forgot their official name, the guys that made the Kaiju) as likely experiments for this invasion, given how I'm fairly certain they use some form of drifting technology to control people, much like Newton in Uprising, though the question remains, why women? Easier to break minds? Something, something, women pretty? I don't know, maybe I shouldn't worry about that, but sometimes you've got to question how aliens think.

I am very much convinced that they're being influenced by the Kaiju Hivemind like how Newt was. Though there is the possibility that their leader is "genuine" in their beliefs, given what little we see of them here. Maybe that's why it's a Sisterhood specifically? I guess it's just one of those things you kinda roll with.

Quote:

Maybe it's just because it's been so long, but I don't feel too attached to the show at this point. It's not bad or anything, it's still consistent from what I remember, maybe it's this plotline that's bugging me, I'm not sure, I hope to have a clear image when we get to the end.

That's a shame. I'm still engaged for the most part myself. I will definitely say though that despite every episode having a clear beginning, middle, and end, this definitely does seem like the kind of show that benefits alot from binging, like how I felt SSSS.Gridman did.

[Daikaijuman54]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreamSword

That's a shame. I'm still engaged for the most part myself. I will definitely say though that despite every episode having a clear beginning, middle, and end, this definitely does seem like the kind of show that benefits alot from binging, like how I felt SSSS.Gridman did.

To quote Taylor from a previous episode, I guess I am not thinking straight since I was tired when I watched the last batch of episodes. Now it's not to say I'm not enjoying the show, I am, but maybe most of my original fire for it has dimmed, I guess I could say. Again, I don't think it's the show's fault, I'm thinking it's more of a me problem.

Also, I'm going to finish it later today. So, I'll be chiming in every now and then, since I am interested in seeing how it all ends.

[DreamSword]

Episode 12: Mind, Body, Soul

This one was... okay.

The main crux of the episode is Hayley convincing everyone to go on a rescue mission to get Boy back, and it goes way smoother than I was expecting.

Like, after all the build up in regards to the Kaiju Sisters, the plan, despite some minor setbacks, goes overall really well? I get that they only have so much run time and need to keep the plot rolling, but this is a unique case in that the episode managed to have a twist by not having a twist.

There's some very obvious foreshadowing going on with Mei though, and my guess is that her past is connected to the Kaiju Sisters somehow. And with that I really, really hope that I don't end up having to eat my words when it came to Shane in the previous episode. If Spider is any indication, should the last two episodes turn around and go "Shane did nothing wrong?" Let's just say that'd sour alot of the mood for me.

On a totally unrelated note, I know that it's not exactly important in the grand scheme of things, Atlas Destroyer wasn't used at all in this episode, which made me think, wow, they aren't going any further with the mismatched limbs are they? Kinda surprising given the survival aspect of the show. I almost expected Atlas to have four totally different limbs by the show's' end.

But again, it's not like it's a big deal, and I have zero problem with the show instead focusing on its characters rather than its vehicle. Let's just hope these last two episodes do good on that front.

[DreamSword]

Episode 13: The Twilight Run

This episode hits hard right from the outset.

It starts with the perfect happy ending: Boy retaining his conscience, the group reaching Sydney, Taylor and Hayley's' father being alive, it's all too good to be true.

And that's because it is.

Like, way to emotionally pull me in right from the getgo. Ontop of that is the character drama with everyone else, including the detail that LOA was the first AI built with an emotion chip and a bit of her backstory, which makes me really curious as to how she ended up in Atlas Destroyer, and it makes me think that the Jaegar that she freaked out about in season 1 was the unit she originally belonged to.

But the main focus of this episode is Boy, and reawakening his former self as being converted by the Kaiju Sisters. While it is pretty predictable in how it's gone about, I still enjoyed watching it play out, and man, way to make me feel sad for Apex despite how little screen time it gets.

And that about does it, really. This episode was very straight-forward in all that it did, but that was in no way a bad thing.

The final episode is upon on us, and I think it's pretty clear at this point that they'll be gunning for a third season, which, if it happens, I'll definitely be checking out. But if not, then all I can hope for is that, similar to the season 1 finale, that all of the major aspects to the characters is wrapped up well enough.

[DreamSword]

Episode 14: Final Approach

If this really and truly is the final episode, then I have some rather mixed feelings.

Like, yes, there's definitely a feeling of finality here. Reaching Sydney, finishing off the Kaiju Sisters, Boy retaining his humanity, and Taylor and Hayley discovering what happened to their father.

But, at the same time, there's a handful of things left unresolved or unsaid. And unlike the first season's' finale wherein I felt that all of the major stuff was handled, now with season 2, alot more has happened, alot more has changed, and the things left out feel rather important(atleast to me).

The two main offenders being the backstories of Mei and LOA. While sure, you can make some solid headcanons out of what few context clues we're given, neither character arc gets any sort of definitive push or closure. Especially in the case of LOA who, by all accounts, can probably never get her arc resolved, even if a third season should emerge.

And maybe I'm just a sadistic jerk, but the ending almost felt too happy for me? Like, the scene of the crew reaching Sydney heavily mirrors the dream sequence from last episode, to the point that I was expecting it to suddenly cut to black and have it turn out that everyone actually died in the end. Now don't get me wrong, I'm overall happy that that isn't what happened, it the thought did cross my mind as I was watching.

The pacing also felt a bit rushed too, especially those final few minutes, but that's something I feel season 2 in general kinda has a problem with and I'll elaborate a bit more when it comes to the final thoughts post.

All that aside though, like I said, they definitely tried to insert an overall feeling of finality in all of the events that go down in this episode, and yeah, they succeeded for the most part. Atlas Destroyer getting a sendoff similar to Gypsy Danger and Gypsy Avenger, a Breacher being the final boss, Boy taking hold of his freedom, and Mei showing how she's changed as a person. That stuff was all handled pretty well, and in that regard, I really can't complain too badly. And in the end, I suppose that's what matters.

Final thoughts on the show as a whole coming in 12+ hours.

[GuardianAngel87]

I started watching Android Kikaider: The Animation and it already looks very interesting so far. Currently at its second episode.

[DreamSword]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GuardianAngel87

I started watching Android Kikaider: The Animation and it already looks very interesting so far. Currently at its second episode.

Hey, nice! I hope you enjoy it, because it's one of my favorites!