Gundam 00 Season 2 Episode 06

[masamuneehs]

thought it was a good episode. lots of things going on, even if some are downright silly.

Wang Liu Mei continues to move from the shadows. She's got end-game trouble written all over her. The fact that she's not in bed with the Innovators was a little bit of a surprise for me (and Nena having the link-up with Ribbons and co).

Sumeragi's past came to light in this episode. I was a little bit confused, since Katie Mannequin was an AEU officer, and I thought it was stated a while back that Sumeragi was with the Union (which is how Billy Katagiri knows here), but I think they also once mentioned that some time ago the three former superpowers had a joint operation that didn't quite go the way they planned... I'm guessing it was that one...

I was a little disappointed that we didn't get to see more Ali. At least a minute or so of him torching shit while Marina cries, Setsuna resists the urge to suicide attack, and both of them angsting as they retreat with Ali laughing maniacly in there ears.

Saji kill Louise? Somehow it would be too deliciously cruel. And I think it would really bend Saji's path from what they've been setting him up for... Tieria's smackdown was the dialouge moment of the episode for me. That's the hardass femme I missed...

I actually like super vindictive Graham. There's almost always a pilot totally obsessed with defeating a Gundam, and it's not like he was ever going to respond to orders anyway. The fact that he can occupy CB's best close-quarters mech on his own gives A-LAWs a real nice boost. But, yeah, they should have some kind of orders to assist him if it looks bad...

You guys are complaining about the Gundams being underpowered and getting whooped by a larger, better trained group of pilots? I think it's fucking excellent. It actually adds some tension to the fights and makes you almost forget about all of the CB bishies fabulous plot armor, making it seem like they can actually lose.

Still very unsure why they don't have New Lockon sniping from the Ptolemy. Sending a long-range type out to the front lines, especially when he could help defend the ship, seems like such a poor move...

Andrei <3 Louise. What a bore.

Also, next episode. Christ almighty. I am so sick of Sunrise pulling the "former friends turned enemies getting trapped together on an island / in a cave and work through their differences to renew their love/friendship" stint.

[Kraco]

Also, next episode. Christ almighty. I am so sick of Sunrise pulling the "former friends turned enemies getting trapped together on an island / in a cave and work through their differences to renew their love/friendship" stint.

I'm looking forward to it. They would make such a nice couple. Soma needs some loving too, especially now when she's trying to force herself to forget about seeking happiness and become a killing machine.

[Ryllharu]

You guys are complaining about the Gundams being underpowered and getting whooped by a larger, better trained group of pilots? I think it's fucking excellent. It actually adds some tension to the fights and makes you almost forget about all of the CB bishies fabulous plot armor, making it seem like they can actually lose.

Still very unsure why they don't have New Lockon sniping from the Ptolemy. Sending a long-range type out to the front lines, especially when he could help defend the ship, seems like such a poor move...

Also, next episode. Christ almighty. I am so sick of Sunrise pulling the "former friends turned enemies getting trapped together on an island / in a cave and work through their differences to renew their love/friendship" stint.

I definitely have found the realism angle (that after the copy-GN drives are reverse engineered, CB only barely has a technological advantage) one of the best parts of this series. Overpowered mecha series have their place (Gurren Lagaan) but when it is global warfare, an even matchup makes for a better series.

I find it a little hard to believe that just because Sumeragi was unconscious and not giving the orders, that they wouldn't think of keeping Lockon where he can do the most damage...but that's the best excuse I can think of. Either way, he was shooting from the far edges of the battlefield, almost touching the ocean. There was also the possibility that he could dip under the waves as Setsuna has done frequently and pop up somewhere else to start sniping anew. I think it wasn't nearly as bad as it looked, though he could have afforded to be further out.

Then again, I'm a little surprised we haven't seen Lockon (either of them) use the Exospheric Bombarment version of the Gundam's sniper rifle since that one time last season when they saved Saji and Louise's collective asses on the orbital station. If they had popped Lockon on top of the Ptolomy here, Celestial Being might have been able to take out Kati's warship.

I'm going to go with Kraco on the Soma/Marie/Al/Hal situation coming up. When they were younger it gave off the impression that the two of them, sharing thoughts, may have been more than just simple friends. Al/Hal really didn't give a shit about any of the other Super Soldiers, he even killed a few as a kid before he joined CB, but Marie was different.

Now, Soma really seems to want to reach for her own happiness, there was quite a long scene about it this episode, but she keeps trying to make herself as much of a killer as possible. Like she doesn't really deserve it. It is very similar (intentionally so I'm sure) of the same things that Al/Hal went through in the latter half of last season.

Maybe it is a little overdone, but I'll forgive it because I'm a fan of Soma. The more screentime she gets the better.

[Kraco]

I find it a little hard to believe that just because Sumeragi was unconscious and not giving the orders, that they wouldn't think of keeping Lockon where he can do the most damage...but that's the best excuse I can think of.

While keeping him near the ship would have helped in the defense of the ship, it would have also meant drawing more fire and attention to the ship, in general terms and specifically. While the ship now got attacked anyway, it wasn't an altogether poor plan, because it might have worked, but apparently they couldn't take care of the enemy soon and efficiently enough to prevent that from happening. That is, the enemy had units to spare to throw against Ptolemy. Naturally this is also a gamble on A-LAWs part as this means two units less fighting the Gundams.

[kenren]

Colonel Smirnov trying to adopt Marie was suppose to make her feel more.. "human" right? Could it be that she thinks she doesn't deserve to be treated well? I don't get this part.

I sort of lol-ed at the "You have control , I have control" part.

[Buffalobiian]

Colonel Smirnov trying to adopt Marie was suppose to make her feel more.. "human" right? Could it be that she thinks she doesn't deserve to be treated well? I don't get this part.

Well, yeah. She's torn between her identities as someone's daughter (a person with emotions), and an obedient supersoldier (cold-hearted killer). When she tried to have both, it breaks her emotionally to carry out her tasks as a soldier, or rather, A-LAWS. She finds this internal conflict unbearable, and believes it means she'll have to choose a side. She's also feeling guilty that a killer like her doesn't deserve the warmth and comfort humans so desire. Unable to wipe away those feelings, she turns down Sergei.

Interesting thing about Soma's brain waves is that she hinted she ca read, or feel other people's minds, or just simply get a vague idea of their thoughts. With that, I don't think it's impossible to have Al/Hal X Soma/Marie doing some brainwave-synced, ultra-reflex tandem dogfighting. I sure hope that happens.

[Ryllharu]

Interesting thing about Soma's brain waves is that she hinted she ca read, or feel other people's minds, or just simply get a vague idea of their thoughts. With that, I don't think it's impossible to have Al/Hal X Soma/Marie doing some brainwave-synced, ultra-reflex tandem dogfighting. I sure hope that happens.

Of course, something like that will only happen if they able to remove the dissonance between their brainwaves that usually gives them migraines so bad they end up catatonic.
That will only happen if they fall in ~looooooooooove~ and achieve perfect harmony. Wait...this isn't Macross 7.
----------------------------------------------------------------
All kidding aside, we do know from flashbacks that Marie and Al used to communicate fully telepathically using the quantum brainwaves, and everything was peachy between the two.

Since they both developed alternate personalities, Allelujah would get the migraines from Soma and Soma would get them from Allelujah, but worse from Hallelujah. It doesn't seem like she uses the shielding anymore, and now that Allelujah has lost the quantum brainwaves, he doesn't have the problems either, though Soma can still sense that it is him. Something changed in her head when Marie became Soma.