Mecha Talk

So the second episode has aired now, and I have yet to see it mentioned on here, which sort of surprised me. It seems to have generally flown under the radar this season though, so perhaps it's understandable. Though not a mech show, it does have a lot of neat technology, mostly ships, that I had figured would have sparked a few peoples' interests.

Is anyone else keeping up with it (or, perhaps, watching through the precursor series, Last Exile, first?), or am I actually alone in this? I hope not, with the miniscule amount of mention of it that I've found online, I'm starting to feel quite alone with it haha.

For those who have, I much prefer the ships that make up the new baddie fleet as compared to the Disith of the original series. Theirs were too...organic, where these are much more interesting looking to me, I think. Though I honestly really like all the new ships (aside from Fam and Giselle's Vespa, that thing looks stunted), particularly the flagship of the Turan fleet, the Lasas. It's so sad what happens to its wings though. *Sniffle* It looked so much better when they were still attached.

A new Last Exile show? Now, that's a surprise!

Excuse me while I check this out...

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"This is the truth! This is my belief. At least for now."

I know, right!? I stumbled on it entirely by accident when I was searching for something else. I absolutely loved the first series, and was just completely shocked to find that a whole new series had been cleared, started up, and begun airing, and I'd had no idea!

It doesn't help that it seems to have started a little behind some of the other shows this season. I hope it doesn't hurt its reception too badly, I'd hate for it to do poorly and for the franchise to crash and burn.

Saw the first episode at Manifest, and really liked it. I'm looking forward to seeing more (although Madman's stream doesn't seem to work on my regular computer for some reason).

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Vent Noir

@AJDynon on Twitter

April 7, 1979: The first episode of Mobile Suit Gundam premieres. Fanboys declare Gundam "Ruined FOREVER".

I haven't seen the second episode yet, but I rather enjoyed the first episode. The whole strategy Fam used against the Ades Federation ships was very fun to watch, with the aerial action flowing along quite nicely. I've seen a bit of Last Exile, so I know what I'll be in for and it looks to be a fun ride. And of course, it's always nice to have another steampunk anime available.

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Warning: When using Minovsky Particles, please do not drive or operate heavy machinery. If you have a Newtype Flash lasting longer than 6 hours, please call 911 as this may be a sign of a serious and life threatening side-effect. Ask your doctor if taking Minovsky Particles are right for you.

Personally, I thought that what happened to Dio at the end of the show was one of the worst parts of the final. It was incredably unstisfying and, to be honest, it made almost his entire character and arc pointless. It was sad yes...but that didn't make it good or any less stupid.

I loved last Exile...but I hated the final episodes. It seemed very rushed and rather cosi cosi for a show that started out so strong. I can only hope Ginyoku no Fam will do a better job. Right now, I am impressed.

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"I am the bone of my sword, steel is my body and fire is my blood. I have created over a thousand blades. Unknown to death, nor known to life. Many times I have withstood enormous pain to create thousands of weapons and yet those hands that have braved so much will never hold anything.
So I pray and call forth UNLIMITED BLADE WORKS!"

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The proof of our might will forever be etched in your minds.

-- Haman Karn

I just want the soundtrack

Regardless of whether was a good idea or not, his presence in this series is completely disorienting. As of the first episode, I have absolutely no sense of time or place, largely because of him.



Fam's a cutie and all, but she looks like a female Claus.

Maybe Gonzo can finish this one without their plot imploding? Likely, I know.

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"This is the truth! This is my belief. At least for now."

I tried my darndest to ignore it for as long as I could but since it's discussed here I guess I'll have to face facts and get my fix again. I had known about this but wanted to wait for more eps to get more context going before jubilating/despairing over the new season. Yes, I am looking forward to getting to it.

I tried to avoid spoilers too, but judging by Soma's comment that thing I had accidentally stumbled upon about Dio was right. Huh. A disappointment. It's not as bad as Mwu, but still. Bad Gonzo, bad! But, as said, I haven't actually seen anything yet so I can't really bemoan the fact. Let's try to keep the spoilers tagged in this thread, k?

Deacon: Is the OST by Dolce Triade, like the original series? If so, it will definitely be worth getting.

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-We will not be caught by surprise!
*Almost everyone I've killed uttered similar last words.
-Then I am glad once again that you are on my side.
*They've often said that too.

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The proof of our might will forever be etched in your minds.

-- Haman Karn

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"This is the truth! This is my belief. At least for now."

OK, I really don't see why he is back, but he is back. Those of you who know, know. I kinda can't help wondering if his buddy might make a comeback too, or be revealed to be one of the existing cast.

But what's up with the tech design in this latest Last Exile rendition? The big ships look really good (especially the revolving bits on the Ades ships), but the new vanships are to the old ones exactly what Microcars are to real cars. And no, to me this wasn't a good thing, because it looks like kids are flying toys through flak. The tech for Claudia drives must've gone through a massive improvement if they can fit an engine that can travel the Stream into those little things. I would assume you would like some armor on those things, but then again the AA-capabilities of the big ships seems to be the usual stock of pilot-anime (i.e. non-existing, blind and misfiring). At least in the first Exile the little vanships couldn't fly around with quite that much impunity. Of course this can be attributed to the possibility that this is a different planet/time, so maybe different tech rules apply.

And "Kartoffel"? I actually laughed at that until I realized that their staple of food apparently was potatoes, but still, man, you gotta reach further than the dictionary when making up political entities.

The character art is really pretty, but that also is slightly annoying when the main part of the cast is basically little girls. One can't help wonder if the artwork hasn't been inspired by director Bullock from American Dad singing "I love little girls". Klaus and Lavie had to fight for their jobs but these kids seem to be just goofing around. Oh and at least put the goggles on when flying fast since you have them on your head.

I know I nitpick, but I feel like I've fallen out of the target audience for this new installment of Exile which I was quite interested in, while I could still revisit the previous one without any such concerns. Two episodes down, let's see if it improves.

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-We will not be caught by surprise!
*Almost everyone I've killed uttered similar last words.
-Then I am glad once again that you are on my side.
*They've often said that too.

I like Range Murata and his retro style, but the man only draws two kinds of characters: Nazi men and little girls in skintight pleather or woolen coats. And gods forbid any of his tech designs be put under anything resembling scrutiny: There's an extent to which it doesn't matter how big the vanship is, 'cuz it would never fly... but, gee, does it look cool.

Kinda makes me ponder how far the bar has fallen since the Japanese recession began, back in the late 80s...

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"This is the truth! This is my belief. At least for now."

Well put Kenji, on the character art.
At least the new star-shaped ship configuration was kind of cool. And they attempt to get some talk of "whose planet is this anyway" which might have some political depth to it.

Still, three eps down, I can't help but feel like utterly disconnected from the protagonists, and the acceptance that the ruling family of Turan was apparently the good kind of imperial rule. Life should be tough there but I get absolutely no sense of that, nor do the battles have any of frivolous loss of life that was so brilliantly done in the original Exile (ship-to-ship rifleman fights, stupid but inventive!). it still feels like a game, and the kids treat it as such. Of course it would be possible to have a Microvanship run into a flak, leaving nothing but a charred, blood-soaked lump of metal, but I don't think it'll happen in this show without a major change of tone. Also, I sincerely hope there will be a reason, plot-wise, for why was resurrected.

I suppose it would be inevitable that one day I would run into an anime that simply bracketed me out of its core audience. I just hadn't thought it would happen this soon. I'm old.

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-We will not be caught by surprise!
*Almost everyone I've killed uttered similar last words.
-Then I am glad once again that you are on my side.
*They've often said that too.

That's not Murata's department. Makoto Kobayashi (absent Mahiro Maeda, it seems) handles production design, including the Vanships.

And one thing Kobayashi has seldom given much of a fig about is aerodynamics.

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RINRIN NANO DA!!

Well with the most recent episode, it's wonderful to actually see Tatiana and Alister back in action and still together (<3). I'm curious what exactly Captain Wisla and the Sylvius are doing, particularly in requiring that Fam steal a fleet of 15 Ades ships to win her freedom.

I rather enjoyed Giselle working out what sort of ship the Sylvius was based on the blurry photo too, reminds me all too much of looking at promotional art of mobile suits or battleships and theorizing what everything is haha, I had fun watching her.

The dynamic between the three of them, Fam, Giselle, and Millia, is interesting too. I sort of expected Fam and Giselle to lean more towards being the series equivalent of main couple, but Millia seems to be scooting Giselle out of that pairing from what I've seen so far. Assuming there's any romantic option there at all (which I hope for very much, of course).

Just seen episode 4. This show's the pick of the new season, IMO.

Oh, and... "In Soviet Anatoray, ship steals YOU!"

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Vent Noir

@AJDynon on Twitter

April 7, 1979: The first episode of Mobile Suit Gundam premieres. Fanboys declare Gundam "Ruined FOREVER".