Episode 14 - HS
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Episode 14 - HS
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Well, it was obvious the yacht club would be the bentenmaru's interim crew the second Marika was told she needed to do at least one pirating mission to keep the license.
I guess having her in the red outfit was the only purpose of those scenes, and maybe showing us Chika-chan's father and ship
All the things I really like to do are either illegal, immoral, or fattening. And then: Golf.
Extremely obvious.
But it was a good chance for Chiaki's father to mess with his counterpart/rival rookie captain, while teaching her a good less for the inevitability when she will have to replace the crew for real, not just a temporary event. Like Marika told Gruier about the drinks, you can't trust something you've never seen for yourself. And picking up crewmen up out of bars skill/personality/demeanor unseen, there's a good chance that a double-agent or similar might try to sneak on board.
Not everyone in the galaxy is trustworthy, and those similar to the cowardly half-assed pirates who tried to attack the Odette II would certainly try something cheap like that. Maybe that's why Licensed Pirates have to inherit captaincy through hereditary means. If a ship is seized, the license would be immediately revoked.
A fun episode, with a good lesson for Marika on the recruiting/business side. Fortunately a safe one too, since it was Chiaki and her father that set her up to fail aboard the relay station. It does make me wonder if Marika's sensors diviner did an ominous reading for what we just saw, or what is still yet to happen.
Last edited by Ryllharu; Sat, 04-07-2012 at 02:26 PM.
I thought Gruir looked better in her grey outfit than Marika in her red one.Originally Posted by David
The look of dread in the PV when the crew finds out was gold.
If it's not Isuzu-chan Mii~
I deemed it terrible script writing Marika looked like she hadn't even considered the yacht club members as opposed to the cliched but believable reason of not wanting to drag them into piracy (to bother them, like the Japanese put it). That was certainly the reason I expected to hear when the real crew was isolated and it was revealed she tried to get a temporary replament from the free market instead of from the obvious people closeby.
What comes to replacing the crew eventually, it would make sense to do it gradually, not all at once. That would be the only way to pass on the accumulated experience and traditions plus ensure you don't hire a bunch of hijackers or otherwise mutinous scumbags.
Nevertheless, Chiaki's old man got a pretty nice introduction. The theory why Chiaki is such a straight-laced perfectionist was also confirmed for good, seeing how her dad really looks like an informal ruffian.
If it's not Isuzu-chan Mii~
A nice episode. While in the back of my mind it's worrying me nothing big seems to happen in this show to make it more meaningful - because in the end even the Serenity incident didn't turn out to be that significant - it's still quite strong writing. Heavily simple character development and growing up for Marika, but nevertheless interesting.
Leaving the cannons fully online and without any safety mechanisms was pretty risky, though, even if it's a cyborg normally in charge of them.
I any case, this is a most excellent chance for Marika to show her quality as a captain.
I enjoy the FTL effect in this series. They pierce into subspace, and then slowly squeeze through the barrier until they flash through.
The Yacht Club Academy girls (even the 1st years) are pretty competent to quickly grasp all the intricacies of the Bentenmaru through the manual. I was particularly impressed with the new girl monitoring the engines. Even with a beginners' manual, it takes some knowhow to figure out how two finicky reactors operate.
We can't forget that while they are high school girls, they're also some of the most well versed girls on the planet in how starships operate.
I wonder who is conspiring to have the regular crew held until the Bentenmaru's license is revoked.
HorribleSubs - Episode 16
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A bit goofy, but understandable considering the new crew she's dealing with. It was good that the Yacht Club Surrogate Crew's first mission was an easy one with a well-known, trusted client. It allowed the girls to get their bearings in safe circumstances. I will say that I'm a bit disappointed that the luxury passengers were "more excited" than usual given the club's cheesy outfits. That part was stupid. It was hard to take any of them seriously aside from Lynn. She was the only one of the girls who actually threatened the passengers throughout the raid. Marika didn't, but of course that's been her character since she took over, she's meant to be the refined and classy captain, polite, while controlling her rowdy crew for thugs.
I will admit that I expected Jenny to be aboard the luxury liner, coordinating and assisting from the inside, as Kane did for Marika's first mission, not part of their next mission. But I'm extremely glad she will be the focus of the next episode or two. She's still my favorite character, and she looked stunning in the preview.
Either way, the Bentenmaru's letter of marque is safe, and hopefully whoever is scheming to keep the regular crew in isolation will realize that Marika is not to be underestimated. She gave a really good speech too, and knows how to handle her crew, no matter who it is. She recognized that the freshman girl really did know what she was doing in regards to the engines, and bolstered the girl's confidence enough that now they have got the ship running at full (or close enough) capacity. It has been nice watching Marika's leadership skills really blossom over the course of all these episodes.
On the other hand, I'm really not a fan of the glittery look. On both Guier and Jenny I prefer them in normal clothing/gettup. That said, Jenny pulled it off much better than Guier did. I'm guessing she's getting forced to marry someone and Lynn's rushing over to kidnap her without her actually knowing.
If it's not Isuzu-chan Mii~
Forced marriage and life all set for her... when she probably wants to experience something a little more hectic/thrilling.
She might have had some new desires from the fight they had with their first space flight...
All the things I really like to do are either illegal, immoral, or fattening. And then: Golf.
Quite risky to attack unannounced an armed fleet to kidnap the guest of honour. That sounds like it'd be a serious mission even for the regular crew, let alone these amateurs. Based on the preview Marika accepts the task nonetheless. I suppose that's fitting for her character, but I wonder how through she thought it all: risking both the ship and the students. But then again, it's also very pirate like to try to pull off crazy stunts (for maximum profit).
Horriblesubs - Episode 17
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edit:I take it all back. Jenny is awesome. Yuri is awesome.
ExpectationstotallyTWICE exceeded.
I don't see the reasoning behind letting the fleet close in then jumping, and a small jump at that.
Last edited by Buffalobiian; Sat, 04-28-2012 at 10:22 PM.
If it's not Isuzu-chan Mii~
I really expect Marika to have a splendid plan after that.
It's good to see Marika indeed isn't anymore satisfied by textbook pirating (or what goes for pirating in those parts) after the Serenity incident. She wants to feel like a real pirate. I'm now thinking Chiaki's old man sensed that and it's the reason Chiaki is now there: To learn how to act like a pirate, not like some honors student navy officer.
Indeed, I kept thinking that Chiaki would be a horrible pirate once she took over. Everything precisely by the book. She seemed to cut loose when she was taking over Marika's duties during the Serenity incident, but I guess she was just playing the part, because luxury liners work is about as safe and by the book as pirating gets.
Makes you wonder how many other legal pirates are so afraid of losing the Letter of Marque that they take no risks at all. Blatant criminal behavior is not tolerated, but what else are pirates for if they can't operate in legally gray territory? Which was their whole reason for existing in the first place.
Totally did not expect Jenny to be a lesbian. Neither did anyone else aboard. Very well played, but in retrospect, a lot of signs were there. The only key was knowing Jenny and Lynn were more than senpai/kouhai. But if they pull this all off, the Bentenmaru is in for a huge profit. They'll be one of the best funded pirates in the galaxy.
I got the impression the small ship offered as a part of the deal was very valuable as well, and not necessary available for everybody either. Actually it would be a big asset if it's suitable for atmospheric flight. It was small enough for that, at least.
True, the retainer fee is a billion credit military-grade stealth scoutship capable of faster-than-average FTL (the Bentenmaru is already notable for being fast for its size), extremely useful for a pirate crew.
But the full payment is a 10% take of the gross profits (for ten years) of a company that's already one of the fastest growing companies in the galaxy, with a projected gross of 50 trillion credits annually. Marika could buy her own space station.
Episode 18 - HS
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I won't be complaining too much, but it was too easy. The beginning was very promising, but unlike in the Serenity arc, this failed to retain believability till the end. Suddenly digging up both the uncle and the fiance's dirty secrets was too much out there.
Leaving the state of the art stealth fighter to the high school yacht club... Right. I guess with that Marika won't feel too indebted.
If it's not Isuzu-chan Mii~
The lesson of this highly exciting episode: Buy a zipper for your pocket.
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