Sky Girls

[Kraco]

This episode didn't, in the end, reveal that much new, aside from the fact the nanomachine girl can form a connection with Worms and somehow disturb their movements (or something higher, who knows). But considering the toll, it might be too early to say that ability is their new superweapon, although if the sky girls hadn't just stood there like idiots for minutes when the Worm was stopped, the girl would have been spared a lot of effort. After all, considering the speed of the sonic divers, some 5 seconds of impaired enemy movement would make all the difference in the world.

The next episode should be more interesting with the Vic Vipers. I wonder if they are going to make the fighter jets fail or if they are really going to have a common front with both the Sonic divers and the Vics fighting side by side. I would personally prefer the latter because honestly it would be more realistic yet still less traditional.

[shinta|hikari]

Its only natural that they froze for a few seconds. Not knowing what the enemy is capable of and why it stopped in the first place is enough to make even the most experienced pilots hesitate, much more teenage girls.

[Kraco]

It's enough to make teenage girls froze, for sure, and that's indeed what I thought when it happened: They are teenage girls, not combat pilot, after all. Under normal circumstances, however, if you are having hard time hitting a fast moving enemy, and then the enemy suddenly stops for whatever reasons, you should just thank whatever god you serve and shoot. Unless it's your chivalry that hinders you...

[shinta|hikari]

Or it might be a trap and the previously fast-moving enemy suddenly stops to lure you into it. That may very well be the case, and if they suddenly jumped in and got screwed, it would end much worse. Caution rather than chivalry is the issue here.

[Kraco]

Correct, but only under different circumstances. If you think about it, that particular enemy was totally in control of the battlefield, so much so that it seemed to enjoy the situation and take its time in damaging the sky girls one by one. It had no need for a trap. And furthermore, it's not like it would have stopped a suitable distance away to lure them somewhere. It suddenly stopped at point-blank distance when it was about to attack and was shaking as if suffering from some seizure.

[David75]

The Letter and charge way of classifying worms is only taking size into account?

Because this C- was way more dangerous than the A+ a few eps back.

I guess the SkyGirls need more simulations with very quick worms.

Another strange point is that they were all fighting lined up when they understood it was too quick for them.
I wonder why they didn't try to disperse, in order to have more widespread shoot lines and hope for more shots to touch the target.

Oh and the background noise when Aisha fainted reminded me of vintage StarTrek, though it may be different

[shinta|hikari]

@Kraco - or it might have self destructed when they shot at it, taking them with it. Or it might have shot out an attack that is practically impossible to dodge at that range had they been shooting. It was shaking and stuff in their proximity after all. The fact that the thing was in control for the whole time was what made it suspicious. Even if it had the upperhand, it still wasnt able to hit the skygirls. It would be quite understandable to use a feint of some sort to finish off the enemy, like how a boxer gives a proper feint after a barrage to deliver a KO punch.

[Kraco]

Sorry, shinta|hikari, but I think you have lost already. Besides, keep in mind that every time those things explode, when they destroy them, the force seems to be equal to a small tactical nuclear weapon (fireball and the resulting mushroom cloud), with the exception of no radiation, I suppose. Furthermore, they only have one way of destroying the Worms in general, and thus it doesn't really matter what the situation is because there's only that one route to go: Otoha sticks her sword through the outer layer and they initiate that field system. Any chance that makes that procedure possible is their victory, and an enemy suddenly stopping its movement is the perfect chance. If it's a feint and doesn't work out, then it's a lost chance but it's not like they could do anything else or anything differently.

[shinta|hikari]

I wasnt planning on winning or anything, since it isnt an argument of that sort.

Anyway, all I am saying is that the situation was unpredictable, and such situations WILL make anyone hesitate. The method of defeating the enemy or how they explode is obviously irrelevant. Example: Had the enemy been preparing to stick out numerous stakes from its body in order to impale the skygirls, and Otoha immediately decides (without hesitation as you suppose) to stick her sword on the immobile enemy, that would have resulted in her certain death.

The point is, in any battle, if the enemy suddenly acts strangely for an inexplicable reason, any logical person will immediately side with caution, not just jump into it. Granted they only have one final attack, but as it has been since the beginning of the series, they themselves have created the openings/chances to employ it. This means that they know it is indeed a "chance to exploit" and not a trap or anything of the sort. The main difference in this case is, the enemy was immobilized by an unknown factor, and such an event surprised the skygirls themselves, and understandably, they stop for 5 seconds or so.

Even if the pilots were experienced aces, the result would have been the same. I think it would even be more amateurish to suddenly dive into something without knowing what might happen.

EDIT: falling for a feint and getting KOd is not simply a missed chance in this case, if you get what I mean.

[Kraco]

I didn't mean to post this metaphor, but I'll do now to make my point:

Let's say you are trying to take out a fast enemy APC with your LAW. However, the APC is some ways off, moving fast and not even moving linearly. You aim and aim but don't want to launch because you are pretty sure you would miss, and that would be it. Then, suddenly, the APC stops and smoke pours out of its exhaust. Your first thought: It's a feint or its an engine malfunction?

Now, the APC would win nothing but risk everything with such a feint. However, it can't help it if the engine broke. And honestly the Worm looked just like that, stopping suddenly in the middle of an attack and just hovering there in a seizure, shaking and shivering.

[shinta|hikari]

You have a point, but Im not sure an APC can be equated to a worm, since a worm is not nearly as predictable as an APC. An APC is a mechanical unit whose capabilities are quite well known. While a worm is, well, that. Its attacks arent exactly conventional.

I already illustrated a scenario wherein it is severely dangerous to simply attack without caution, and obviously, there is no way for them to be certain immediately that it wasnt a trap of sorts. That is exactly why after only 5 seconds they realize that it is a chance to attack and do so.

Shaking and shivering may be tell tale signs of having a seizure of sorts, but does that still apply to worms? They arent exactly normal creatures. If it was indeed another plane or an animal that they were hunting and it suddenly stops or slows down, then even the most inexperienced teenage girl will shoot at it immediately. But a gigantic worm whose identity and details mostly remain a mystery (at least to the pilots) is a whole different thing. The fact that Otoha needs to get close enough to stab it should also be put into consideration, as it is much more dangerous than long range attacks.

[Kraco]

I might admit you have a point if not for the fact they reacted immediately after receiving the command from the ship, and consequently demolished the Worm with no problems. That's clearly a serious lack of personal judgement and initiative. The ship probably didn't even see them through all the clouds, yet they trusted the command without hesitation (note that they didn't know the ship knew Aisha had interfered with the Worm)? What's that? They were cautious and suspected it's a trap until outsiders with no knowledge told them they should attack? That tells me the only problem here is that they are still teenage girls and not combat pilots who could adapt to changing battlefield conditions.

More simulations. Better simulations. That's what they need.

Besides, even if it was a trap, their response still was utterly foolish: They didn't scatter or withdraw from the immediate vicinity; they just remained where they were, still and solid targets for whatever the trap might have caused. So, in either case their response was quite unforgivable as far as combat piloting goes.

[shinta|hikari]

I didnt say that the skygirls expected a trap and that is why they stopped. There was not enough time to deduce that. What I wanted to point out is that rushing in at that point is not something even veterans would do.

The skygirls probably stopped due to surprise at the sudden behavior of the enemy, and thus they didnt attack immediately out of caution. Even if it wasnt a conscious decision on their part, it was still an understandable and even correct reaction to the situation, even if they did do it out of instinct.

The reason why they immediately attacked the worm after the order is because they were ordered to do so. Any military unit is expected to follow orders immediately especially in combat situations, and the skygirls are no different. It was more of an obey now ask questions later action for them.

I do have to admit though that their response was foolish. Even if they didnt attack since they were wary of the enemy, simply hovering in front of it is not smart either.

Well, either way, its not really that big of a deal. I do agree with you that the girls are still not combat aces, but I still hold that not attacking at that point is a logical result considering the situation. Lets just leave it at that.

[Kraco]

Sun Tzu said: Hold out lolis to entice the enemy. Feign disorder, and crush him.

DVD Special 2 h264 - Ayako
DVD Special 2 mummified format - Ayako

[David75]

Loli under water, loli in winter, loli for ever

Ep21 H264

Quote from the ep:

It's the famous OPTIONS

Man, how many hours did I play to Nemesis from Konami on my
MSX from Philips...

OOOHHH GOD!
just downloaded an emulation for the MSX and found the nemesis ROM...
Back to the future! it's like I remembered it... geez!

[Kraco]

This was a good episode. The Vic Vipers certainly have quite a punch but they weren't omnipotent. The cooperation with Sonic Divers was more or less to be expected but it was executed well. I wonder how things will turn out in the future. Unless they have a whole fleet of Vics standing by, the Sky Girls probably aren't yet out of business (as if that could happen, but anyway). The next episode doesn't exactly look like it will advance the plot, though, so we will have to wait to see.

[David75]

This was a good episode. The Vic Vipers certainly have quite a punch but they weren't omnipotent. The cooperation with Sonic Divers was more or less to be expected but it was executed well. I wonder how things will turn out in the future. Unless they have a whole fleet of Vics standing by, the Sky Girls probably aren't yet out of business (as if that could happen, but anyway). The next episode doesn't exactly look like it will advance the plot, though, so we will have to wait to see.

Well Vic Vipers are very efficient it seems.
The only advantage I see with the Sonic Divers is the lock that ensures no cells can escape before the last explosion.
From how the vics were shown, you can say that for almost any worm, you only need one vic to destroy it. This A+ was one from the former war, very smart and evolved explaining why it was impossible for the vics to get rid of it alone. But Sonic Divers weren't able to do it alone too.

The problem now, with those vics being so efficient is that 1 vic is enough for 1 worm... when you need 3 and now 4 sonic divers for the same worm...

[Kraco]

Indeed. It kind of suggest a special work would be all that's basically left for Sonic Divers. But since the series is nearing the end, that makes more sense. I could have seen this series end with the humans winning the war after one nasty battle where the Sonic Divers play some role the Vics couldn't perform, and then the girls would leave to continue their own lives. However, after the little speech by Togo in the ep 21, I'm not too sure anymore. He said he wanted the girls to inherit his will to fly. Unless he was speaking figuratively, the Sky Girls might continue forever (not the series but the flying)...

Episode 22 h264 - Ayako
Episode 22 xvid - Ayako

[Kraco]

Sun Tzu said: Thus, though we have heard of stupid haste in war, loliness has never been seen associated with long delays.

Episode 23 h264 - Ayako
Episode 23 terracotta format - Ayako

[David75]

Ep24 and 25 right for Xmas and H264 format

http://www.mininova.org/get/1065600 for ep 24

http://www.mininova.org/get/1065605 for ep 25