It's occurred to me that maybe I should warn folks about my feelings around spoilers and what kind of details they might see in my ramblings...
So, short answer - yes, I'm going to post spoilers.
The longer answer is that I don't personally care about spoilers.
I'm of the opinion that stories are more than the sum of their parts. It's about the journey, not the destination (or any particular signposts along the way). There's a lot of context and nuance you pick up along the way.
I'm old enough to remember when M. Night Shyamalan was a big deal. Everyone was all about his "twist" endings. There was always tons of speculation about what the surprise was going to be... And a lot of anger towards anyone spoiling the surprise. And I've always felt that if the only thing that made a movie worthwhile is that surprise ending - it wasn't very good in the first place.
There's lots of stories out there that I enjoyed well-enough the first time around, but I've got absolutely no desire to revisit them. They've got no lasting-power. They don't linger. And that's fine - not everything needs to be amazing. Potato chips and cotton candy are great snacks.
But there's also lots of stories out there that I revisit over and over again. Things that stay with me for years after the first reading. Stories that I come back to, fully aware of how things are going to end, and still enjoy the ride once again. These are the good stories. The fine-dining of story-telling.
So, while I'm not going to intentionally put "so-and-so dies" right at the top of a post and ruin everyone's day... I'm also not really giving much thought to what constitutes a spoiler and whether I should or shouldn't post it.
Especially since I'm usually talking about decades-old anime and manga... Or, even when it's something new, I'm usually slow to actually post about it.
Since we're halfway through the first season of Iron-Blooded Orphans we've now got a new ending sequence too. Again, I don't love it. I guess I don't know if that's just because it's new? But it's got more of a generic ballad-y feel to it. None of the jazzy vibes of the first.
Episode 14 of Iron-Blooded Orphans sees our crew heading towards Earth and the Colonies. We've got the Hammerhead and the Isaribi here, as well as the new ship they took from the Brewers.
We get some scenes around the ships as they travel... Kudelia, for example, couldn't sleep last night. She just kept thinking about her kiss with Mikazuki. What does it mean? Is he into her? Was it some stupid, impulsive thing? Both?
In one of the hangars we see them trying to add an Alaya-Vijnana System, taken from the Brewers, into a Graze. It's not going well so far.
Elsewhere, work begins on the Gundam Gusion. Azee and Lafter express surprise that Akihiro wants to keep and pilot this thing... He reiterates that he's OK with it. That it makes sense to him.
We also get to see the hints of an actual Gundam frame hiding under all that armor. The Gusion that we've seen so far looks absolutely nothing like Barbatos... But as the head gets disassembled we can see a very familiar-looking head hiding underneath.
Fumitan has some sort of message or orders. She's supposed to take Kudelia to the Dort 2 colony. We don't know what's up, but she's clearly not happy about it. She's looking at the necklace Kudelia gave her and looking very troubled.
And then Kudelia arrives, wanting to talk to Fumitan about her kiss with Mikazuki. Well, about a "hypothetical" kiss anyway. It's downright charming. Kudelia is clearly inexperienced and flustered. This was probably her first kiss. Fumitan is trying to be helpful and supportive, but she can't help laughing at the situation.
Our crew arrives at the Dort colonies and we can see Earth off in the distance.
We're given a bit of an info-dump about the colonies... They're all owned/operated by Earth. There's lots of economic exploitation going on. Some people working for poor wages while another colony is devoted to rich people living in luxury.
The colonies themselves look a little different than what we've seen in the Universal Century, but the story is the same. The same conflict between Earth and space. The same inequalities.
The Tekkadan crew gets a stern warning before they arrive at the Dort colonies. This is the Earth Sphere and Gjallarhorn is in control. They need to be on their best behavior. Don't start any trouble.
We cut away to one of Gjallarhorn's stations in orbit around Earth. We see Gaelio and Ein talking... They've heard that Tekkadan is at the colonies and they want to make a move.
We find out that "the moustache man" has been feeding Gjallarhorn information about Tekkadan. I don't know if we're ever explicitly told who this is, but I assume it's Todoh. He's definitely the right kind of slimy and manipulative to have the connections to keep tabs on Tekkadan wherever they go. And he certainly didn't leave their employ on good terms.
Ein voices some concern about launching ships without orders... But Gaelio says it's just going to be a "training exercise". Besides which, they're not going to be getting any other orders while McGillis is on vacation. He's down on Earth spending time with his fiancee.
So now we're going to kind of split the party, so to speak...
Kudelia, Atra, Fumitan, Biscuit, and Mika are going to Dort 3. This is the nicer colony with lots of stores and expensive houses. Kudelia and Atra want to do some shopping. Mika is along for security. And Biscuit apparently had family here once upon a time.
The interior of Dort 3 looks very similar to what we've seen in the Universal Century. Brightly-lit and expansive with both urban and green spaces. Somewhat surprisingly, we're shopping at a massive superstore that reminds me of a Costco or Sam's Club. Kudelia isn't buying clothes or luxury-goods, she's buying cleaning products.
It seems that the Tekkadan kids haven't been great about keeping clean and the ship is smelling pretty ripe.
On the one hand, I can't help feeling vaguely offended that the girls have to tell the boys to wash-up... It feels a little stereotypical and reductive. But, on the other hand... Yeah. It checks out. Boys can be pretty disgusting.
After a bit of encouragement, Biscuit calls his brother - Savarin Canele.
In case it isn't obvious, their family had some kind of pastry-based naming scheme going on. And the only reason Buscuit, Cookie, and Cracker have the surname "Griffon" is because they were adopted by their Grandmother on Mars.
Savarin didn't get adopted when their parents died because he was the eldest and already off on his own. He's working at the Dort Company HQ and wearing a nice suit, so he's probably not super-sympathetic to the whole Mars Liberation thing. I mean, maybe on some basic, theoretical level? But I doubt if the idea of upsetting the status quo sounds too good to somebody with a steady job and a mortgage.
Regardless - Savarin wants to meet with Biscuit and now we're going to split the party even further. Atra is going to go along with Biscuit to help him deal with some anxiety around seeing his brother for the first time in years. Mika is going to continue shopping with Kudelia and Fumitan. But that's all going to play out in another episode.
The Isaribi docks at Dort 2 and begins unloading. The folks taking delivery of this shipment are oddly starstruck meeting the Tekkadan crew. They're big fans of Kudelia (the Maiden of Revolution) and Tekkadan (her valiant knights). There's some real surprise that anyone has even heard of them. Clearly somebody has been doing some PR.
Then the crates are opened and we discover that Tekkadan just delivered arms to these guys. Mobile workers and guns. Seems these guys are a bunch of angry workers who are going to demand better treatment. They're starting a revolution.
They're surprised that Tekkadan wasn't in on the plan. It seems that Kudelia's "proxy" has been working with them to get the weapons. We're not told who this "proxy" is... But I'm going to assume it's Nobliss Gordon. He's the only other person I've noticed calling Kudelia the "Maiden of Revolution". Seems like he's intentionally trying to cause some kind of unrest or riot.
Gjallarhorn arrives almost as soon as the crates are opened. Clearly they were tipped-off. Clearly this is some kind of setup.
These guys aren't going down without a fight though. They manage to drive off Gjallarhorn after a brief firefight. It doesn't seem like Gjallarhorn was too intent on suppressing these particular guys. Almost like they want the opportunity to escalate.
Seeing trouble brewing, Orga contacts the Isaribi and orders the ship to leave port. Hopefully they can get clear before the hammer really comes down.
It looks like we're getting a new Gundam series in 2027 - Mobile Suit Gundam RG XARX-ZERO.
Obviously we don't know much at this time. It looks like it'll be sharing a new AU with the Rogue Orbit game we saw earlier this year. The setting revolves around a conflict with an alien, silicone-based lifeform. Kind of reminds me of A Wakening of the Trailblazer maybe?
It's still early days and I know everyone's sick of hearing people say they don't like the new designs... But, yeah, I'm not immediately thrilled. The head, specifically, looks weird to me. Although I will say that the HG gunpla we saw teased looked pretty good.
We're halfway through the first season of Iron-Blooded Orphans which means it's time for a new opening. It's fine... But definitely not as catchy as the first.
Episode 13 of Iron-Blooded Orphans picks up immediately where we left off. Masahiro has just been crushed by Kudal's giant hammer. Kudal doesn't hang around long though - Mika is still trying to kill him. The two of them speed off into space leaving Akihiro and Masahiro behind.
Akihiro peers inside the wreckage of Masahiro's mobile suit. He's not dead yet, but there's clearly no way he's going to survive this. And Masahiro is still full of nihilism. He recounts the story of rebirth after death, but insists that's not something that happens to "human debris". Akihiro refuses to accept that. Insists that he'll be reborn. Masahiro assents that he'll find out soon enough, and then dies.
Kudal and Mika continue to battle. Kudal is being pushed to the limit. Mika is starting to figure out how to use his sword by attacking the weak points of a mobile suit - targeting the joints and the gaps in its armor.
Kudal accuses Mika of enjoying himself. Of enjoying the "killing of men". This is a common trope we see throughout the Gundam franchise. We commonly see our protagonists wrestling with having to kill people. Insisting that they don't enjoy it. That they're just doing it because they have to. That seems to be a very important distinction - they're not enjoying it. They don't want to.
Mika is a bit more pragmatic about it though. He does pause for a moment to consider whether he's enjoying himself or not... But he ultimately decides that it doesn't much matter since Kudal deserves to die.
We then move to Earth. To the massive, floating Gjallarhorn base. We see a fancy party is underway - the engagement party for McGillis and Almiria. It's all warm colors and opulence, a very stark contrast to the cold battlefield we've just left.
Almiria arrives at the top of the stairs, ready to make her appearance... But she overhears some people talking about her. They feel bad for McGillis having to marry a child. And she was already comparing herself to the grown women in the room, feeling insecure. She's not an idiot. She's not unaware. She knows how awkward this all is. She knows it's just political maneuvering. But she's still hurt.
She flees the room. Goes to hide out on a balcony alone.
McGillis follows her outside. He's again very kind to her. This isn't some kind of creepy Char/Quess situation. I don't get the sense that there's any actual attraction here. It's clearly politically-motivated. But he is at least being kind to her. Almost brotherly?
Back in space, the battle is concluded and they've rounded-up all the Brewers "human debris". Orga is going to send them all to Mars. They're going to get decent jobs and hot meals every day. They're part of the Tekkadan family now.
Orga confronts Brooke Kabayan. He's taking all of their mobile suits and one of their ships. Brooke initially complains... But Orga makes it very clear this isn't really a negotiation. The alternative is just that they kill Brooke. And, honestly, I guess I'm not sure why they're letting him live at all.
There's been a lot of death. Masahiro, obviously... As well as several more members of Tekkadan lost during the boarding action. And even the Brewers "human debris" that's just joined Tekkadan - they lost people they cared about too. Merribit suggests holding a funeral for everyone.
Orga is skeptical. He doesn't understand. There'll be plenty of time to worry about the dead when it's your turn to join them.
Merribit is again gently scolding towards Orga. It's not so much about the dead... A funeral gives the living a chance to mourn, process, and move on.
They load a coffin full of trinkets and tributes for the dead... Launch it off into space... And then fire off some "ice flowers" to mark their passing. It's beautiful and genuinely touching.
Later, we see Orga and Akihiro in one of the hangar bays looking at the Gundam Gusion. Orga intended to sell the thing, but Akihiro wants to keep it. Morbid as it may be - it's a connection to his brother.
Despite his stoicism, Mika is clearly affected by the things he's been through. We see his hands shaking a bit as he munches on an ever-present Mars-palm date.
Kudelia gives him a hug. It's awkward as all hell. Mika doesn't seem to know how to respond. Then a though occurs to him... And as the credits roll he gives Kudelia a kiss. She's shocked and reacts with comic offense.
We end this episode on a far lighter tone than the last one.
The tone of Ghost in the Shell continues to be all over the place, but it's not bothering me so much this episode. I guess I'm acclimating to it?
We open with a fantastic action scene where we see them take down the "Puppet Master". Very stylistic. Very kinetic. But right in that one scene we've got some real tonal whiplash.
We bounce from Kusanagi kind of comically wrestling with a bunch of innocent bystanders who are being puppeted into attacking her. Then one of them gets killed and everything immediately slows down and turns serious for a moment. We're reminded that lives are really at stake. It looks like Kusanagi herself might get seriously injured. And then after Togusa has apprehended the guy, we're immediately back to clowning around.
But, again, it's kind of working for me this episode.
We get some of my favorite GITS tropes in this episode. We get to see some of the nitty, gritty technical underpinnings as we see a cyberbody being built. And we get to see Kusanagi musing about identity, Ship of Theseus style. How do you know any of this is real? How do you know you're even you when AIs and ghost-hacking and cyberbodies are a thing?
It's nice to see Kusanagi's girlfriends are still in the picture - so that wasn't just a throwaway scene purely for fanservice. Nice to see that she's actually getting a life outside Section 9.
Batou is just so hilariously excited to storm the building. He's reminding of some big, excitable dog.
Good stuff. I'm definitely looking forward to next week's episode. They haven't lost me yet.
Twelfth episode of Iron-Blooded Orphans. We're about half-way through the first season and big things are happening. They've resolved to confront the Brewers head-on.
Naze and Orga chat about the situation. Naze apologizes... He talked a big game about how cool Teiwaz was. How great it would be for Tekkadan to join. How they'd have the resources and backing to get the job done. And now they're having to swat-down some stupid pirates.
We get a few scenes of folks preparing for the upcoming fight.
Mika hangs out in the mobile suit hangar, inscrutable as always.
Takaki is upset that he can't help out. That he's stuck in the medical unit.
We see a conversation between the Turbines and Tekkadan discussing how the Brewers even knew where they'd be. How can the Brewers be tracking them? Why can't they find the Brewers ships? There's speculation that somebody is leaking information. As Naze points out - Teiwaz is a big organization and it's hard to monitor everything.
So, they come up with a plan to attack the Brewers. Since they can't actually find and attack the Brewers directly they're going to bait them into an attack.
They're going to send out Mika and Lafter. Lafter's Hyakuri already has a very long range, and they'll send Barbatos out in the Kutan so it's capable of extended flight too. The Brewers will see these two mobile suits, not realize their long-range capabilities, and think that the ships are near-by.
When the Brewers attack Mika and Lafter, giving away their position, the Isaribi and Hammerhead will sweep in to attack.
Akihiro and Mika talk about the upcoming battle... Mika will try to go easy on Masahiro, try to give Akihiro a chance to rescue him... But if it gets bad enough there's no guarantees.
Atra and Kudelia deliver a hand-packed lunch for Mikazuki before he leaves. It's clear that there's some sort of relationship budding here and it's very cute.
We visit the Brewers ship briefly... We see the mobile suit pilots eating a meal, and they're clearly not well-fed. They're all very thin. Their ribs are clearly visible. Their clothing hangs off of them. It's a stark contrast to Brooke Kabayan and Kudal Cadel. There's clearly food available - just not for these space rats.
There's an extra ration bar for the deceased Pedro. They get to musing about death. There's talk of being reborn into better circumstances. Masahiro says that's just for humans though - not for "human debris". They're not going to get reborn. They're just going to die.
To contrast that stark hopelessness we see Mika and Lafter flying through the debris. Mika is enjoying his lunch and studying. He's clearly planning a future for himself - rebirth or no.
In order to take the Brewers by surprise the Isaribi and Hammerhead are going to need to fly through the debris field instead of following a clear channel. Eugene uses his Alaya-Vijnana System to pilot the ship again, and the Hammerhead's navigation is connected to the Isaribi.
We see a few scenes as the Isaribi gets ready for battle. Mobile workers being prepped. Akihiro waiting in his Graze. This is clearly going to be the biggest fight they've faced so far.
Mika and Lafter are detected and the Brewers launch their attack.
Moments later the Isaribi charges out of the debris field and the battle is joined.
The Hammerhead demonstrates how it earned that name - ramming into one of the Brewers ships, crushing it against a piece of debris.
The Isaribi launches anchors into another Brewers ship and sends a boarding party over.
Battles rage in space as well as aboard the ship. We see carnage throughout. Akihiro finds his brother in the midst of all the bloodshed...
Akihiro is painting a picture of promise and hope. He's found a new family in Tekkadan and they're eager to welcome Masahiro. They can be together again. They can have a family again. They can be happy again.
Masahiro has been absolutely crushed by despair. He's stopped hoping because that just leads to more pain. He feels abandoned by Akihiro. He had a family once, it was taken from him. He ominously says that now Akihiro is going to learn what that's like... But we never learn exactly what he was planning.
Kudal has been out here battling Mika in his Gusion. The battle isn't going well. Desperate - Kudal looks for a hostage to turn the tides. He sees Masahiro and Akahiro grappled together and seizes his opportunity. He tells Masahiro not to move, to hold Akahiro in place, and he charges in for the kill.
Masahiro, in some kind of moment of clarity, shoves Akihiro out of the way. Saving his life.
Masahiro is crushed by Kudal's attack. The scene fades to black and the credits roll, cutting off Akahiro's screams.
The eleventh episode of Iron-Blooded Orphans again rewinds just a little bit. We see Mika and the Barbatos arrive in a Kutan long-distance transport to save the day.
That Kutan transport is being piloted by Nadi and he is not having a good time. It's very clear that he's far more comfortable on the ground. He's not a pilot, he's a mechanic.
Mika quickly dispatches one of the mobile suits but the battle continues. These grunt suits, Rodi frames, are very heavily-armored for operations around the asteroids. And it's quickly apparent that they're being piloted by "space rats" with Alaya-Vijnana Systems, so they're able to keep up with Mika and Akahiro pretty well.
The larger mobile suit is a Gundam frame - the Gusion, piloted by Kudal Cadel. He's very bloodthirsty. Almost unhinged.
Mikazuki is using a new sword that seems to be giving him some trouble. It requires more finesse than his giant mace did and it's not doing too well against this heavy armor.
Takaki is taken as a hostage during the fighting... And Akahiro discovers that the Rodi he's fighting is being piloted by his brother Masahiro.
The Turbines finally arrive to help out, but they don't have to do much. The pirates flee the battlefield almost immediately.
Takaki's mobile worker is recovered, but it's not looking good.
Back aboard the Isaribi we see that Takaki is in critical condition. It's a horrifying scene. Merribit immediately leaps into action. She seizes control, shouting orders, grabs the medical kit and gets to work.
Takaki is saved. He's going to be in recovery for a while, but he'll live. Merribit has some harsh words for Orga - operating in space without a doctor is clearly a bad idea. He's doing a pretty poor job of leading these folks. He needs to do better.
We get a call from the leader of the pirates... This is Brooke Kaabayan, leader of the Brewers. They're demanding the surrender of Kudelia. The Brewers shouldn't be big-enough or powerful-enough to challenge Teiwaz... And they shouldn't really know anything about Kudelia... So, clearly, these guys are working with Gjallarhorn.
And, speaking of Gjallarhorn, our group has finally gotten back to Earth. We see Ein looking out a window at the planet... And he's soon harassed by another soldier. There's clearly some classism going on. Ein is treated like scum just because he was born on Mars.
Gaelio and McGillis are down on Earth meeting with McGillis's father, Iznario Fareed. The meeting is very cold and business-like. There's none of the familial warmth we've been seeing with the Tekkadan crew. He praises their actions on Mars... But it's all very formal.
We then visit Gaelio Bauduin's home, which provides a very stark contrast. It's clearly not all Earth families or all Gjallarhorn families. The Fareeds are just very cold and distant.
We meet Almiria Bauduin, Gaelio's younger sister. Apparently she's McGillis's fiance? She seems awfully young for that and the show makes no excuses about it. Gaelio expresses some sympathy for McGillis being stuck with such a young bride. It's clearly some kind of political maneuvering.
McGillis, to his credit, is very kind to Almiria.
Gaelio and McGillis muse about the problems with Gjallarhorn over some tea. The current leadership is corrupt, decadent, and useless. They need to shake things up. They need a pawn that can be used to force action. To force change.
We pay a quick visit to the Brewers... We see Kudal violently chastising these children for failing to secure a hostage. For getting their mobile suits damaged. He says the mobile suits are more valuable than the "human debris" piloting them. There's a lot of anger to go around here.
Back aboard the Isaribi, Akihiro is blaming himself for all of this. It's his penance. He forgot about his brother. He was having too much fun forming a new family with Tekkadan. The universe is punishing him for his happiness.
The entire crew insists on shouldering some of the blame. If Akihiro is being punished they're clearly not doing their jobs. They should've been looking out for him better. Should've taken care of him better. They're not going to let him suffer alone. They're all in this together.
All of this discussion has been happening in the medical room with Takaki trying to rest... So, as the credits roll, he weakly complains about all of the noise. He's trying to sleep.
We're going to see some graffiti popping up throughout the interior of the Isaribi. It starts out as just a small Tekkadan logo here or there and slowly becomes more noticeable. More obvious.
It's a fun reminder that this isn't really a military ship. These aren't professionals. There's not a lot of real discipline going on. They're still just kids who like drawing on the walls.
It gives kind of disorganized "commune" kind of vibes. Makes Tekkadan feel like a grassroots organization. Like a family.
It provides a very obvious contrast to the cold, calculating, military precision of Gjallarhorn.
I've recently finished reading Witch Hat Atelier, Vol. 4 which is where the anime ends. They both end on the same, dramatic cliffhanger... And this is really what pushed me into reading the manga - I couldn't stand to wait to find out what happens next.
The art in these books continues to amaze. It's just beautiful. And I really like how often they're playing with the manga format. Using the borders of the panels as architectural elements... Or letting tendrils of some dramatic scene creep across the page like some kind of vine.
I guess I'm not going to say too much about the story here. The anime is still pretty recent and it hits all the major scenes. Obviously the manga has a little more room to breathe... But there isn't anything I felt was really missing from one version or the other. Actually, I think I'm a little surprised by how accurate the anime adaptation was.
I'm absolutely loving these books. Pretty much the whole thing. I love the artwork. The characters. The world-building. The intrigue. There's a pervasive sense of tenderness to the whole thing - and that makes the occasional danger and discord even more shocking.
I can't wait to see what happens next. And, thankfully, I'm not going to have to!
The tenth episode of Iron-Blooded Orphans begins with the Isaribi and Hammerhead leaving Saisei. This scene gives a great sense of scale. Those two tiny little blue lights? That's the Isaribi and Hammerhead. Yeah, Saesei is that big.
Mika and Nadi stay behind while the upgrades to Barbatos continue. Mika is a little forlorn to see the ships leave, and Nadi seems a little surprised by this. He reflects on how young Mika really is despite all he's been through.
Aboard the Isaribi we see them loading/securing some cargo. They've got a shipment from Teiwaz that's bound for one of the colonies. Takaki is taking the work very seriously. This is their first job from Teiwaz. Their first job besides escorting Kudelia.
We see Atra standing alone by one of the windows. She's missing Mika and pondering the budding relationship between Kudelia and Mika.
The Tekkadan crew get some messages from Mars. We hear from Dexter Culastor who tells us that they're doing well. The finances are in a good place.
Biscuit looks impatient. We learn that he's got a message from home and he doesn't want to watch it out in public. Lots of the Tekkadan crew don't have families and he doesn't want them to feel bad. So he goes and watches his message in the dining room.
Biscuit gets a message from Cookie and Cracker. They tell him that the harvest is already done. There were more sandstorms so the yield wasn't as good... Made the harvest faster... But they're doing OK.
Takaki shows up, looking for privacy so he can watch a message from home too. He's got a sister, Fuka, back on Mars. She's in an orphanage and he's hoping to save up enough money to put her through school. Biscuit and Takaki both resolve to work as hard as they can for their families.
Kudelia also gets a message from home, but it's not as cheerful. Her mother just talks about how much her actions are upsetting her father. Her mother wants her to stop. To come home.
Kudelia vents a bit to Fumitan... And, again, it's very clear that Fumitan is having some deep thoughts here. She's got something going on that she's not sharing.
Aboard the Hammerhead, Orga finds out that McMurdo wants a liaison of sorts aboard the Isaribi - Merribit Stapleton. He's not thrilled about it. He doesn't like being told what to do. He doesn't like the idea of somebody keeping tabs on him. And, worse, he remembers meeting her when he was horribly drunk back on Saisei.
For her part, Merribit keeps things pretty professional... But she's clearly not happy about how things are being run at Tekkadan.
Kudelia and Atra wind up chatting again... We learn more about Atra's past and how she met Mika. She used to work at something like a brothel. It wasn't a good fit, she kept making mistakes, and the women there were cruel. She eventually ran away.
She met Mika on the street and he found help for her. The shop-owner took Atra under her wing. Gave her a job. And she's been friends with Mika ever since.
Kudelia is sad and kind of envious? Despite the hardship that Atra has endured she actually has people who care for her. A family of sorts. Kudelia has a family, but they don't care for her.
Atra reassures Kudelia that she's part of the Tekkadan family now.
And with that reassurance we see the first inklings of an idea forming in Atra's mind. If they're all part of the Tekkadan family, maybe she doesn't need to compete with Kudelia for Mika's affections? Maybe they can share like the Turbines do?
Akihiro goes out on patrol ant Takaki tags along with him. Takaki has been doing a lot of practicing in the simulators and he wants to get some real experience... But, honestly, this seems like a terrible idea. That mobile worker is just dangling behind the Graze on a wire.
The two get to talking and we learn that Akihiro has a brother - Masahiro. The two grew up on some kind of merchant ship hauling freight from one place to another. Seems like it was a happy childhood... Until they were attacked by pirates. They killed all the adults and took the children as human debris. Akihiro and Masahiro were split up and sold to different people.
Akihiro promised to find Masahiro, but life got in the way. The day-to-day tasks of survival occupied his thoughts. Eventually Akihiro all but forgot about his brother.
As if summoned by the mere mention - pirates arrive. They're flying around in these chonky green mobile suits we haven't seen before. Akihiro flees back to the Isaribi... But he's hard-pressed. There's three pirate suits attacking him, and he's trying to keep Takaki alive too. It's really not looking good for them.
Mika arrives in the newly-upgraded Barbatos, saving the day as the credits roll.
Episode nine of Iron-Blooded Orphans sees our arrival at Saesei - the headquarters of Taiwaz. It's a huge ship. Maybe more like a space station? We'll see that it's got all sorts of shops and bars and open green areas. It definitely feels more like a traditional Gundam space colony than just a ship.
Naze brings the Tekkadan leadership group to meet "the Old Man" - McMurdo Barriston, the leader of Teiwaz. There's a lot of security. A lot of build-up. The Tekkadan crew is understandably nervous.
They arrive to find McMurdo pruning a bansai.
I guess I'm not sure what I was originally expecting from this character, but it's clear that the Tekkadan folks are surprised. They were anticipating somebody more frightening. This guy's got almost grandfatherly vibes. He's friendly. Avuncular. He orders a whole pile of cannoli for everyone.
So Teiwaz is kind of a semi-legitimate/semi-criminal organization. It's giving Yakuza and/or Mafia vibes. And McMurdo here is clearly the Godfather figure.
Naze explains that he wants to take a Sakazuki blood oath with Orga, which would make them brothers. He wants to bring Tekkadan on as a subsidiary of the Turbines. McMurdo agrees and the planning begins.
We'll spend a few days rattling around Saesei... Akihiro continues training as hard as he can, pushing Lafter to frustration.
We see Atra and Azee working in the kitchen.
Later, Amida stops by to chat with Atra about relationships.
We cut back to our Gjallarhorn crew on their way back to Earth. Ein has clearly been included on this mission. Gaelio has agreed to take Ein on as a subordinate... But complains a bit that Ein is so boring.
Kudelia meets with McMurdo privately to discuss the Mars Independence movemet. He explains that her efforts are going to result in bloodshed. That those in power will not willingly give it up. That this could end in outright war. He offers to place that burden on Teiwaz... And I guess I'm not quite sure what that offer entails.
It isn't clear if he's just offering to replace Tekkadan as her escort/security? Or if he wants Teiwaz to take control of Mars instead of Aubrau? The details aren't explained.
Mika, there to act as her bodyguard, offers some advice... There's going to be bloodshed regardless of what she does. Nobody else can make this decision for her.
Kudelia says she'll need some time to consider.
And, as they leave, McMurdo asks Mika's name - apparently he's made an impression.
Meanwhile... We learn that Naze found buyers for all of the equipment that Tekkadan was looking to sell and they've made a tidy profit. The Graze reactor, specifically, sold very well since Gjallarhorn are the only folks who can build Ahab reactors.
Orga decides to splurge a bit with their profits. He buys a bunch of sweets and pastries for the younger kids of Tekkadan. The older guys are going out partying.
We get several scenes of the Tekkadan guys enjoying themselves around Saesei. They visit a bar and enjoy some beverages. Orga seems to overindulge a bit and Akihiro has to carry him home.
Kudelia buys a matching set of necklaces and gives one to Fumitan. She seems both touched and troubled by this gesture. She seems to have an awful lot on her mind for a simple maid-turned-communications-officer.
McMurdo has requested a complete overhaul of the Barbatos - spare no expense. Saesei's resident engineer is absolutely overjoyed to be working on one of the legendary Gundam frames.
The Sakazuki ceremony arrives. Naze and Orga swear their blood oath and the two families are joined. Tekkadan is now officially part of Teiwaz.
As the episode winds down we see Kudelia meeting with McMurdo again. She's made her decision. She's staying with Tekkadan. After everything they've been through together... All the blood that's been shed... They're in this together and she's not going to shirk that responsibility.
Mikazuki Augus is a fascinating Gundam protagonist.
I'm more used to seeing pilots like Amuro Ray or Kira Yamato... Crushed by their responsibilities. Traumatized by the lives they've had to take. Reluctant to pilot their mobile suit, but doing it because of the lives they need to protect.
Mika, on the other hand, is very stoic and unemotional about the whole thing. He doesn't mind fighting or killing at all.
Is this the result of childhood trauma? Fighting for every scrap from the moment he was born? Maybe it's training or abuse he suffered at CGS? Or is this flat affect something more pathological?
Episode eight of Iron-Blooded Orphans again rewinds time a little bit. We see the Tekkadan/Turbine fight from a different perspective. This time around we're spending a lot of time aboard the Turbines' ship - the Hammerhead.
We again see the Isaribi launching missiles to create a smokescreen. We again see the dramatic fly-by. But this time around we get to see several mobile workers dangling behind the Isaribi. We really get a feel for just how insanely dangerous this maneuver was. The only thing keeping these guys from hurtling off into space is a wire that's barely visible on screen.
The Tekkadan crew forces their way aboard the Hammerhead. We see Dante hacking into the Hammerhead's security systems and severely limiting the Turbines response to this boarding. They can't lock doors, air filtration isn't working right, even the cameras are misbehaving.
The Tekkadan crew makes their way through the ship, towards the bridge. They're spreading flammable gas throughout the ship - limiting both visibility and options. The Turbines don't dare fire their weapons for fear of starting fires.
As they make their way through the ship we notice that the entire crew of the Hammerhead appears to be women, but there's no time to linger on that right now.
Arriving on the bridge of the Hammerhead, Orga almost ignores Naze and heads straight for Maruba. He's enraged. It's not so much that Maruba was a greedy boss, it's that Maruba abandoned them to die. They followed his every order and he hung them out to dry. They were loyal to him. He treated them as disposable tools.
And we've seen the depths of his disregard for these kids as they fought their way through the ship. He was up here on the bridge yelling at Naze to just kill them off. Calling them useless and worthless. Making it abundantly clear that he forced them to undergo the Alaya-Vijnana surgery if they wanted a job.
By the time Orga is pointing his gun at Maruba's head it's very clear that Naze isn't on his side. He tells Orga not to waste the bullets when they can just toss him out of an airlock.
Battle concluded, Tekkadan and the Turbines sit down to negotiate.
On the Turbines side of things we've got Naze Turbine and Amida Arca. Naze calmly explains that the ship is staffed by his harem. Everyone aboard is either his wife or his child. The Tekkadan crew is surprised by this information... But Amida quickly gets the conversation back on track. She admonishes that Naze is talking about stupid things again. Despite the obvious eye-candy of her design it's clear that Amida is an equal partner in this relationship.
On the Tekkadan side of things we're seeing what's becoming the core of their leadership group. Orga, obviously, is kind of the head/boss/CEO of Tekkadan. Biscuit provides the voice of reason and caution. He's clearly done his research. Eugene seems to be there almost just to disagree with Orga. He's got very different opinions on how things should be run, but it doesn't seem to be pointless contrarianism. Then, of course, we've got Kudelia - the voice of Martian Independence and the reason they're all here in the first place.
Tekkadan still needs a guide to Earth... But that's not all they want. Orga wants to join Teiwaz. With their backing and connections Tekkadan could be a real player. Naze agrees to set up a meeting with the head of Teiwaz, McMurdo Barriston. Passing the interview will be up to Orga.
We get another bit of exposition in the form of a brief history of Gjallarhorn. They're a military organization founded in the wake of the Calamity War. They were originally tasked with keeping the peace... But lately it seems like they're the ones calling the shots. Throwing their weight around. Some of the major economic blocs are starting to feel like Gjallarhorn is more of a burden than anything else. This makes Kudelia's call for regional independence very dangerous to Gjallarhorn's continued power.
Back aboard the Isaribi we see Akihiro and Mikazuki shoveling food into their faces. They're hungry and tired after their grueling fight. Mika seems only disparaging of his own performance though. He insists that he needs to do better.
The trip to the Teiwaz headquarters takes a little while. We're not given a concrete timeframe, but somebody mentions that it's already been 10 days at one point. So we're probably looking at a couple weeks, at least. And we get a few vignettes of folks passing the time.
We meet a couple of the Turbines pilots. That's obviously Amida there on the left. In the middle, in the flight suit, is Azee Gurumin. She's one of the Hyakuren pilots that was fighting with Akihiro. She seems very calm, quiet, and experienced.
Over on the right is Lafter Frankland, the Hyakuri pilot that was fighting with Mikazuki. Lafter is very clearly an impressive pilot as she was able to hold her own against Mika... But she's got a very childish, playful personality. There's also a lot of fanservice going on here. She dresses very provocatively and seems to get almost a sexual thrill out of mobile suit combat.
We see Mika and Orga talking in the hangar while the mobile suits undergo repairs. Orga compliments Mika on his performance, but Mika won't hear it. He clearly didn't do well as evidenced by the damage Barbatos sustained. He needs to do better. Orga seems a little surprised by that response... And then Orga responds that he needs to do better too. Again we see these two egging each-other on. Demanding bigger and better things.
Akihiro and Mikazuki spend a lot of time over on the Hammerhead training in the mobile suit simulators. They're struggling because these mobile suits aren't equipped with Alaya-Vijnana Systems. Azee comments on just how dedicated Mika is to his training. Mika again responds that he has to be. That he has to get stronger.
We hear from the Tekkadan base on Mars and find out that they're not doing well financially. Orga and Biscuit meet with Naze to see if he can put them in contact with somebody who might want to buy some of the assets/salvage they've got. He agrees... But he wants to understand Tekkadan better. Why did Orga refuse Naze's offer of employment?
Orga explains that Tekkadan can't be broken-up. They're friends. They've shed blood together. They're tied together.
Naze says that's not "friendship" - that's family.
Kudelia and Atra spend some time over on the Hammerhead cooing at babies. Kudelia has been very stressed, very worried, and Atra thought a change of scenery might cheer her up. It seems to have worked. And they're both kind of fascinated by the Turbines' harem setup, but too embarrassed to ask for too many details.
As the episode winds-down we find Mika and Orga again chatting in front of a window. Mika expresses a fear that he'll be abandoned if he's not strong enough. Orga reassures him that you don't abandon family.
Well, damn. I certainly didn't expect them to animate that scene.
To be clear, I have absolutely nothing against fanservice. And I do think that scene - as fanservicey as it is - adds some depth and dimension to the character of Kusanagi. It makes her more human. Makes her more than just some crime-fighting machine.
But it really feels like that scene has been excised from Ghost in the Shell. I know it's been straight-up removed from a lot of editions of the manga. And even as toned-down as it was in the anime - that still feels awfully explicit.
This is again where I'm having some difficulty wrapping my head around this version/adaptation of the story. I know this is manga accurate... But I've got that '95 version of Kusanagi so firmly-lodged in my brain that this feels weird and wrong.
I'm definitely seeing where the adaptations overlap... We're seeing them going after the Puppet Master now, chasing down the garbage man. This is such an iconic sequence from the '95 movie and it makes for a familiar touchstone. But the tone just continues to feel weird to me.
I'm kind of just now discovering how foundational that '95 movie is to me. How the actual original manga almost feels supplemental to me. And I'm finding myself wondering what I'd think of some of the other GITS material that's out there. I know there's at least a couple other series... I'm thinking I need to check those out.
That last episode featured a lot of ship-to-ship combat and maneuvering, so now's as good a time as any to talk about the Tekkadan's flagship - the Isaribi.
This ship again feels like a direct response to the first Gundam.
We'll spend lots of time aboard this ship. We'll roam its halls. We'll see mobile suits being repaired in the hangar. We'll sit down to meals. We'll visit the bridge. It'll grow to feel like a genuine home.
But the Isaribi is stripped of the playful, toyetic feel of the Pegasus-class ships. Like most of the technology we see in Iron-Blooded Orphans, the Isaribi is lean and business-like.
