| Homeless watches Unicorn | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Dec 6 2011, 07:25 PM (945 Views) | |
| HomelessOne | Dec 6 2011, 07:25 PM Post #1 |
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Veda Terminal
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Honestly, I never had any great interest in watching the Gundam Unicorn OVA series. A number of my friends can tell you I've said I never had any intention of ever watching them, in fact. I really just wasn't interested in the goofy lead Gundam design, Yet Another Zeon Uprising, or Laplace's Box. For better or worse though, on a whim last month I watched OVA 4 with Ideon when /m/ was streaming it the night of release. Frankly, I felt largely vindicated in my decision to avoid Unicorn up until that point. But the box had been opened (dohoho), and people seem to enjoy my acerbic commentary for some reason so I figured I'd just throw in the towel and finish the rest. At least this won't be as big a time sink as sitting through 50 episodes of Zeta again. I assume most of you have watched Unicorn by this point, so I won't be narrating step by step through each episode. Instead I'm going to pick scenes that stand out and commentate in that loving manner that only I can provide. If you wish to challenge my observations, feel free. If you want to offer your thoughts on an episode, first viewing or otherwise, feel free. For a few quick thoughts before we begin, I find that what Unicorn excels at is music and animation. The soundtrack is superb, and for the most part the art and choreography is fantastic. What Unicorn doesn't do so well with is characters and pacing. Each episode is struggling to compress a tremendous amount of material in a short period of time, so character interaction and development suffers. Some more than others. Am I wrong? Let me know. |
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| HomelessOne | Dec 6 2011, 07:25 PM Post #2 |
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Veda Terminal
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Episode 1: Day of the Unicorn![]() Funny how important this one frame is. ...Anyway, I think the whole sequence is pretty symbolic of my experience with the Unicorn OVA so far; a lack of time for elaboration. Adaptation decay is an unavoidable problem when you're trying to cram ten novels into six episodes, and so far I think the staff may have bitten off more than they can chew in doing so. This whole prologue scene gives you just enough to get the idea of what's going on, but I think it loses a lot of impact due to the lack of context and most people probably not knowing who the Hell Syam is or why he did what he did. ![]() ![]() ![]() This whole scuffle was pretty cool; I liked that they provided the illusion of nameless grunts putting up a fight against a major character. Even the D-types made an effort to shoot down funnels before they themselves were shot to pieces. I don't think I need to sell anyone on the Stark Jegan. I really liked his anti-funnel tactics, with the scattershot rounds and then just engaging the Kshatriya in melee. ![]() ...This though. What the Hell? So the Kshatriya fires its thrusters so hard that it deflects a beam saber and completely halts the Stark Jegan's forward momentum, but the Kshatriya itself remains perfectly still? Those are its main thrusters; there aren't any on its back, and I don't think the feet are enough to counteract the binders'. ![]() Is that supposed to be Denim's Zaku? Really, Unicorn? Even if it is only a brief snippet, I do like seeing the history lesson regarding Zeon and whatnot. It is nice to see every now and then that there's more to the greater UC than just "the time between wars". The students are remarkably cavalier about warfare being long over though, given Char was threatening all life on Earth with giant rocks just three years ago. ![]() Audrey is pretty cool for a lead Gundam female. She knows what (she feels like) she must do, and is willing to call Zeon out as really stupid. How could I not like her? Not sure what else to really say at this point, besides the fact I feel they didn't do a great job of pointing out where she got the inspiration for her alias. ![]() And then there's our hapless protagonist. I suppose Banagher really isn't all that bad (yet?). I can certainly relate with his struggle to find his place in life and his strong desire to be needed by someone. He goes a tad overboard and sounds like a certifiable stalker sometimes, but what's a Gundam protagonist that doesn't occasionally come off as an anti-social misfit with some degree of mental illness? If you answered Judau, then you are correct. Are Haros actually socially acceptable in high school though? ![]() ![]() I like how Marida took the time to return his glasses, before pursuing Audrey. Speaking of Audrey, her expression pretty accurately reflects mine during this entire sequence. Did a scrawny teenager like Banagher seriously get the better of two grown men and a genetically-enhanced Cyber-Newtype in hand-to-hand? Goes to show you how low Zeon's hiring standards are. Then again they've always been low, considering they gave command responsibilities to someone dressed like this. ![]() ![]() I'd call the unicorn and lion cute foreshadowing, if the Banshee actually invoked the image of a lion. At all. I also like how any degree of observational skill at this point in the UC is apparently cause for comparison to a Newtype. Banagher notes that the people who employed physical violence while attempting to abduct Audrey seemed like scary people? Must be a Newtype! This casts Cardeas' upcoming speech in an amusingly different light. ![]() ![]() ![]() Given what I've heard about this character's depiction in the novel, I like how the OVA made him a raving zealot who gets picked apart by the ReZELs. Besides my schadenfreude at watching a Geara Zulu get hacked to pieces; I liked seeing the pilot killing time by listening to music in the cockpit, and the commander ReZEL trying to stop his subordinate from using his rifle for the kill shot. |
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| HomelessOne | Dec 6 2011, 07:26 PM Post #3 |
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Veda Terminal
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![]() Pretty much my expression during Cardeas' speech. Don't get me wrong; there are some interesting points about the perception of Newtypes (which ring true about the fanbase, as well) and the power of "time", but I find it very difficult to take Laplace's Box seriously. F91 and Victory demonstrate that the Box doesn't bring any particularly great change to the UC or topple the Federation, so outside of kickstarting Unicorn's plot the contents of the Box could be Syam's favorite waffle recipe for all their actual significance. ![]() ![]() ![]() I didn't really like the battle inside Industrial 7 as much as the Jegan fight in the beginning. Objectively, it is more important and maybe even better choreographed. I guess it just felt so much more like a typical major character romp through nameless extras. There were some neat sequences, like Daguza's awesome bazooka shot and some stylish moves on Marida's part, but I just didn't find it quite as entertaining. What was cool though was that it actually felt like a battle inside a colony. Stray shots and debris have considerably more significant consequences than they do in an empty void, and the bulky Kshatriya certainly starts feeling the effects of gravity as it progresses. I particularly enjoyed the funnels struggling against gravity to stay aloft when they drop to street level, resulting in the unintentional reactor hit on the ReZEL. ![]() ![]() ![]() Exactly! You tried to give terrorists the supposed means to topple the Federation, after your family's been blackmailing it for nearly 100 years. You stabbed the Federation in the back first, so don't try and act like the offended party here. I can't say I'm all that fond of Cardeas. Maybe I'm just interpreting him wrong, but he comes off as a self-righteous hypocrite. Especially for someone from a family with that much stock in goddamn Anaheim Electronics. ![]() BECAUSE YOU- You know what, nevermind. You'll be dead soon anyway, idiot. Hell, it was even Marida that brought the fight inside. ![]() ![]() Bullshit! ![]() ![]() Thankfully ECOAS appeared vaguely competent at least once during this operation. Or am I not supposed to know they aren't Londo Bell yet? I don't recall the episode making any effort to explain who these guys actually are. On that topic, there sure are a lot of characters they throw in your face without bothering to tell you who they are. Some don't even appear to get dialogue; Daguza, Riddhe, the Nahel Argama folks, and Alberto, off the top of my head. ![]() ![]() Call me strange, but I think this is the scene that suffers the most from episode 1's omission of detail and breakneck pacing. The meeting between father and son in the Unicorn's cockpit is a climatic, vital scene to the story...and I just couldn't get into it. It isn't as if I've read the novels, but something just felt absent from the build up to this confrontation. Maybe we just didn't get into the heads of either enough to understand their parallel ideologies and hopes for the future. ![]() Not much to nitpick about the Unicorn's debut. It was suitably dramatic, no doubt helped by the OVA's stellar soundtrack. I rather enjoyed the Unicorn just crushing the Kshatriya's goddamn hand to neutralize the beam saber. I don't really care for Destroy Mode's design, but I suppose it did its job. All in all, it was a fairly strong beginning episode I suppose. As I've alluded to I think it gives you the gist but not the substance in a lot of ways. Characters are rushed and practically fight one another for screentime. A number of things occur without, in my opinion, sufficient explanation. We'll see if that gets any better, but I'm not holding my breath. |
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| balofo | Dec 6 2011, 07:43 PM Post #4 |
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OVA 1 was the best, quality has been declining very fast. |
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| Anonguy | Dec 6 2011, 10:36 PM Post #5 |
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Just an abomination of SCIENCE enjoying my tea
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UC Gundam, outside of a moment or two in time, never ceases to be a large cesspool of stupid hypocrisy that just makes you shake your head. Ah well, I suppose there are still that moment or two you wind up cheering something other than the brutal deaths of everyone involved. It's better than nothing I suppose |
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| EXE | Dec 6 2011, 10:49 PM Post #6 |
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Heroic Peon
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I wish more of Unicorn, and UC Gundam as a whole, played out like the opening sequence. That mostly speechless interaction between two pilots displaying the human aspect of combat. I find it infinitely preferable to having the two combatants yell at each other over their philosophical differences on some universal comm channel while dueling to the death. But that would be nice things and if I have learned anything from the UC I actually have watched, we aren't allowed to have those. |
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| Random_GM_Pilot | Dec 6 2011, 11:38 PM Post #7 |
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That'd be great, wouldn't it? But no, if both pilots have names, we're stuck with our combatants shouting pseudo-philosophical babble at each other. Unicorn ep 1 started off with everyone competent getting their mechs torn up, introducing our protagonist who is socially retarded at best, and some severe jobbing from our antagonists against Bana-G. And as balofo said, it only goes careening downhill after this. The soundtrack is phenomenal and the Stark Jegan and colony interior battles are very well-done, but that's all the credit I'm willing to give it. I don't think I need to elaborate on the stupidity/inanity of the story at this point, since Homeless presents the ludicrousness of the box pretty well, and that's the catalyst for everything that follows. |
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| Kyosuke Nanbu | Dec 7 2011, 12:44 AM Post #8 |
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The world needs only one Small Boss!
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Definitely an amusing read. can't wait for the other episode watchings. And Unicorn soundtrack is love. Probably the best part about it. |
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| Thrawnma | Dec 7 2011, 01:06 AM Post #9 |
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You know you guys level a lot of complaints against UC Gundam at large when I feel like the original UC Gundam, Mobile Suit Gundam, for all its flaws and problems, didn't make the mistakes its successors did. And actually, given my fondness for series like 0080, 0083, ZZ and F91 I'd say UC does fairly well for itself at least up until the 2000's. It's in the wake of SEED that a lot of things have felt... yeah. Can I blame them? No, I suppose. SEED made a ton of money, and I doubt the SEED influences have hurt the pocketbooks of Sunrise/Bandai. It's still silly. |
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| Random_GM_Pilot | Dec 7 2011, 01:35 AM Post #10 |
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So...it's somehow Seed's fault that Unicorn is a laughable piece of official Zeon fanwank that rivals 0083? And let's not kid ourselves. UC, especially Tomino's UC has a laundry list of plot holes, inconsistencies, and issues in general. What shows are good despite them is obviously subjective, but to pretend that Seed somehow has crashed Universal Century and is why Unicorn is the sad joke that it is is just delusional. Next thing you'll tell me that Alex could beat Freedom. |
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| Thrawnma | Dec 7 2011, 02:06 AM Post #11 |
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Fault implies there's something wrong. At the heart, business is business. I don't think it's illogical to say that in the wake of a huge cash cow that Sunrise/Bandai didn't take anything from SEED to apply to its other long-standing moneymaker. The Zeta movies sorta reinforce the point -- there's no reason they couldn't afford a completely reanimated quadrilogy, but they capitalized on longstanding fans buying it anyways to get away with a half-done job. SEED isn't at fault, there's no conspiracy here to make UC bad. It had its own share of poor entries, and most of what is seen as being UC at large has more to do with fan focus than the amount of content there. I'd allegedly say Zeta is the most at fault for creating UC's defects and I'd even go further to say that was Tomino being irritated at Sunrise for canceling his first show only to come back and beg him to make another after the first one took off in popularity. But again, they're a business. They are in the business of making money. SEED made HUGE money. Still does, and happens to get getting an HD reshowing in the upcoming future. SEED worked, so why wouldn't they take what worked for that and apply it to other shows made now? Most of what people fixate on has so much less to do with the idea that production staff are conspiring to anger us than us not realizing... that we are NOT the core market. And not us being Americans, I mean US who share these tastes. We are minorities in Gundam fandoms, the people who want normal grunt pilots to succeed and do well and show their mettle. They couldn't even do that in 08th MS Team -- the units had to be Gundams, and there had to be a terrible romance across the battlefield. The opening minutes of that series reinforce what I'm saying as the lead character flies a Ball straight into a hail of fire and barely gets it dinged up. But it's popular, lots of people love it and cite it as a great example of "real" Gundam, so even in our own minority we are a minority. To summate, Gundam isn't going down in quality, it's simply being marketed to people different from us. If you'd like I can recommend some fantastic shows that make you feel good about robot anime again though. PS: Glad someone let you in on the in-joke. If I weren't trying to respond to you politely here I'd feign outrage and take you on a debate ride using many assumptions and the fact Amuro's probably my number one Gundam pilot to reinforce my "side". |
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| Random_GM_Pilot | Dec 7 2011, 02:15 AM Post #12 |
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AGE makes me more hopeful about the future of Gundam specifically, but mech anime in general...I'm not sure what could reinforce hope in that. Anyway, what you're saying makes sense. I suppose I misinterpreted what you were saying as some kind of hatred of Gundam Seed, poisoning the well as it were. I've heard such complaints very often, and they have become tiresome. You're certainly right in that we're not the core demographic anymore. Tangentally (or back on topic? I'm not sure), something that bothers me about Unicorn is that it's frequently touted by fans as a treat for older UC fans when it's more silly and poorly thought-out than 00, at least in parts of it. As for the "debate", just as well we avoid that. It'd be rather short and boring since I try to avoid "what-if" versus speculations. To be frank, I was just curious to see the response. |
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| Thrawnma | Dec 7 2011, 02:45 AM Post #13 |
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Well to reply from bottom to top, my first response was "Do I know this guy?" and then "Okay, who told him?" I know who told by the way and I'll make sure to nag them later on. I had no intention on starting debate like that here for clarification, I'm just not interested in that like I used to be. To be fair, I really, really do not like SEED. I don't like it on its own. That said, I don't treat it like Wing used to be treated (how I used to treat Wing, and how some old holdouts still do). There's no Gundam "ruined forever!" for me. I just don't like it, on a whole. The setting is very hard for me to respect. But I'll save that for another thread, maybe comprise an article of my opinions and analyses. And I suppose we ought to ask ourselves, were we EVER the core demographic? Amuro was pretty awesome, and it's great to see that the old original still gets respect. And really, besides Kamille (opinions differ here), I don't think we've had a truly horrible UC protagonist besides Shiroh (I really don't like him either). And on some level, it IS a treat... but similarly it seems to miss the point. We get beautifully animated machines, but they hand pick a lot of really horrible MSV stuff and showcase them by mowing down better machines with handwaved explanations. At the same time though, we do get that sexy new Byalant. And the wonderful irony that a Titans machine and a Titans pilot do what the Titans were supposed to have done all along. |
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| Random_GM_Pilot | Dec 7 2011, 03:05 AM Post #14 |
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I don't think Seed is a horrible show, and I've always enjoyed it. It's not amazing, or even as good as what I'd call my favorites (ZZ, X, and Turn-A) but I like it and the first few Astrays. Dislike I can live with. Like I said, what shows succeed despite flaws is purely subjective. Trying to "prove" it and shouting "ruined forever" is what irks me, but that wasn't what you were doing after all, so I don't have a problem with you even hating the show on its own. After all, someone hates my favorite Gundam, but it's just something I can accept. As far as the demographic thing...maybe not. We might just be periphery in general. As far as the mains, Kamille easily earns #1 slot for worst MC in the franchise, but I'd give Shinn an honorable mention. I'm not sure I could but Shiro up there after reading the LWC manga though. Healy makes him look like Yazan. Not that it makes Shiro great, but it gives me a greater appreciation. I think a bigger problem with Unicorn is that it presents every annoying, tired cliche Gundam has to offer and plays them all completely, unironically straight. Not that I have any love at all for stupid shit like the Juagg getting any kills for any reason in freaking 0096. Believe me when I say that you don't need to sell me on the Byalant, though. The Byalant Custom ripping those ugly zeek suits to shreds was wonderful. I'm glad it overcame "the stigma of its evil origins" so it could fight a band of terrorists supporting mass killing of civilians. |
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| HomelessOne | Dec 7 2011, 11:42 PM Post #15 |
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Veda Terminal
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Episode 2: The Second Coming of Char![]() I forgot to comment on this last time, but why is Banagher screaming when the Unicorn transforms? The shoulder braces seem to attach to his pilot suit later, but it's not like they're drilling into his flesh here. Is the NT-D activating, and the shenanigans thus involved, just freaking him out? ![]() ![]() I'm fully aware of what the NT-D is, and what it does. I understand the necessity in showing off the title's flagship machine, for storytelling and merchandising purposes. None of that stops me from disliking the Unicorn/Kshatriya battle, particularly in the wake of Marida having just wrecked something in the neighborhood of 8 MS. It actually felt like the bad old days of 00's Gundam Invincibility, best demonstrated by the Unicorn casually floating backwards through massed mega particle cannon fire without a scratch. ![]() ![]() Maybe I'm jaded by the sheer proliferation of Gundams in the UC, but why is the Unicorn being a Gundam such a big deal to the Federation people? There were, like, ten billion of them in the OYW alone. And Micott is an industrial student! For Anaheim Electronics, no less! How the Hell does she not know what a Gundam is?! Should've paid more attention to her textbooks than Banagher's pants. ![]() What the Hell was this? Did the Kshatriya's Psycoframe just...conjure up an anti-Beam Saber field? ![]() ![]() I'm a big fan of the Nahel Argama, so it is pretty awesome to see it return from that void it fell into after the end of ZZ. I quickly became fond of the crew, as well; even with the OVA's truncated characterization, Otto and Liam have great chemistry. Riddhe's failed attempt to hit on Audrey and then misidentifying her were actually kind of amusing. Heck, even seeing Dr. Hasan again was kind of neat. ![]() ![]() Then there's the bad. At this point not only is the OVA not explaining things, it seems to be operating under the assumption that you're already informed about them. Kind of like they expect you to have preemptively read up on the official site before watching, since I don't think they explain who Aaron is or how he got there anywhere else. I mean, I already knew a lot going into this mess so I wasn't too confused, but it's just symptomatic of Unicorn's largest problem. ![]() ![]() Really, Unicorn? I'm sure a significant portion of the Japanese fanbase wets themselves just with the mention of Char, but they really ram it down your throat here. I thought the Char Kick was sufficient; it is a clear visual homage, but appropriately subtle. The "three times faster" bullshit and reworded Char quotes, not so much. The crew spending a whole scene talking about how badass Full and the Sinanju are didn't help the perception of pandering. ![]() ![]() Audrey dragging Banagher into a closet and asking him to run away with her? I'm actually kind of impressed with his control over his hormones; he makes a number of good points, and even calls her out on trying to manipulate him. Not bad, honestly. ![]() ![]() Not much to say about the Sinanju advertisement battle. I'm sure it sold a lot of toys. The over-exaggeration of the Sinanju's speed got pretty ridiculous though. ![]() The hostage situation on the bridge was all pretty cool though, principally due to Daguza and Audrey both being pretty interesting characters. I thought their dialogue throughout was pretty engaging. Of course, the scene sports a black eye as a result of the contrived level of detail Alberto goes into when he unintentionally ruins ECOAS' ploy. ![]() ![]() ![]() Finally, someone speaks reason. Seriously though, I liked the entire exchange between Banagher and Daguza. Honestly, Daguza alone almost makes me want to read the novels in hopes of their going much deeper into his character. This whole chain of scenes, from his using Mineva as a hostage to his reacting to Alberto sending Banagher out to fight make him the most interesting Unicorn character to me, at least as far as the OVAs go. |
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| HomelessOne | Dec 7 2011, 11:42 PM Post #16 |
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Veda Terminal
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![]() ![]() Unicorn vs Sinanju didn't really interest me much more than the previous fight; it boils down mostly to Banagher firing and Full dodging. Then after the NT-D activates, there's a whole lot of colored lines flying against the black background. There were a number of things I liked though, such as the details on Banagher's pilot suit, Full faking him out by ejecting the fuel tanks, and the Banagher/Riddhe coordinated attacks. ![]() ![]() The Beam Magnum doesn't really impress me. Ejecting an E-Pac every shot seems stupidly inefficient when compared to just having a single e-pac that is replaced when expended like everyone else. It fragging a Geara Zulu with a near-miss was pretty hilarious though. ![]() ![]() Is there a version of Unicorn without Angelo? I'd really like to know. ![]() I'm going to assume this is one of those scenes that makes much more sense in the novels. Riddhe is way too quick to second-guess the Federation over a few comments from Audrey, after having just denounced her and Zeon as the most treacherous sort of evil. ![]() ![]() Even the characters can't take the Box seriously as a plot device! Setting my intense dislike of Full Frontal aside, I suppose the scene is interesting enough. Besides Angelo's annoying interruptions, it makes for a decent exchange of politics and morals. Plus it was nice to see Banagher call the leader of Neo Zeon out on being a crazy terrorist. ![]() AN IRISH-CLASS?! YEAH! ...Erm. I actually rather enjoyed this whole scene about the Palau attack mission briefing, and the repair/restock of the Nahel Argama. I'm sure you guys know I'm all for the technical details, and seeing the (relatively) common soldier's opinion on the crazy things HQ asks of them was neat. My favorite bits were Otto and Daguza's perspectives on the matter. ![]() ![]() You know, at least somebody's enjoying himself. ![]() I'm pretty sure the point of this scene was to give "the enemy" a human face, but honestly I found it pretty unsettling. Gilboa's kid sounds thoroughly indoctrinated and ready to fight for the glorious Zeon cause in the future. At least Banagher didn't let the rhetoric go unchallenged, even if only because he was in the middle of a moral crisis anyway. ![]() ![]() Religion is unfortunately a very rare topic in Gundam, so it was actually kinda cool to see Marida and Banagher discuss the nature of God. I call shenanigans on her claims about Zeon's near-religious importance to Spacenoids though. That is either the biased perspective of a Zeonist or Unicorn revisionism, as ZZ made it pretty clear that Spacenoids weren't all that thrilled with Zeon. Hell, Zeon's killed more Spacenoids than the Federation ever has. ![]() ![]() Infiltrating your enemy's main stronghold by drifting in disguised with dummy asteroids? Love you, ECOAS~ Good to know the Judau Maneuver was adopted by SpecOps teams. ![]() I...seriously hope this made more sense in the novel, because his change of heart isn't believable in the OVA. ![]() Cute. This is how you do a reference, Unicorn staff. ![]() That is some seriously high-tech paper. I'm inclined to think that was a pretty weak ending. It doesn't really feel like a cliffhanger or natural ending point; it just...stopped, like they ran out of time. That's probably the case, actually. Unicorn's problems are really starting to show with this episode. The breakneck pace and lack of time for elaboration are starting to veer towards incoherency at times. Riddhe is a poster boy for this; he finally gets to be an actual character, but things rush so fast I'm not sure what sort of character he is or why he does the things he does. Music and animation quality, of course, remained high. |
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| balofo | Dec 8 2011, 12:13 AM Post #17 |
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Regarding the NZ-666 deflecting the beam saber, Mark said in the novel it actually used its I-Field |
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| Random_GM_Pilot | Dec 8 2011, 12:19 AM Post #18 |
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Indiscriminately gassing and nuking colonies in addition to using them as improvised weapons won't do wonders for public opinion. Unless, of course, you live in the magical bullshit land of Gundam Unicorn. For that matter, how the hell is Marida even qualified to say as much? She was an indoctrinated child soldier. The only Purus we ever saw aside from the original and II was a clip saying how one would gladly give her life for Glemmy in a lineup of MP Qubeleys. And after that war was over, she had a traumatic life that had no involvement with Zeon until Zinnerman rescued her. And until the events of Unicorn started, she had to live as a terrorist in hiding because, surprise, that's what Zeon is. So either she's simply talking out of her ass or she's just as indoctrinated as when she was first put at the helm of a Qubeley. Neither option makes her statements in the screencaps seem very credible. |
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| HomelessOne | Dec 8 2011, 12:24 AM Post #19 |
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Veda Terminal
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I believe she is still pretty indoctrinated actually; hence her latching onto Zinnerman as her "Master", and the rather crazed reaction to the Unicorn Gundam for being a Gundam. I believe this all becomes a plot point later, when Martha's team screws with her head and make her the Banshee's pilot. |
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| Random_GM_Pilot | Dec 8 2011, 12:27 AM Post #20 |
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Hm. Never knew the circumstances of her and Banshee. She does come off like she is, but it would've been nice to hear more objection on those grounds in that conversation. I don't imagine Bana-G has heard many "Oh, Zeon is so great, they're better than a real messiah" conversations in his life. |
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| EXE | Dec 8 2011, 01:37 AM Post #21 |
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Heroic Peon
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Episode 2 is right where I left off, so this thread has been a pretty good refresher. I should probably burn through the latest episodes now, as I no longer have an excuse not to. =1 |
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| Ideon | Dec 8 2011, 01:41 AM Post #22 |
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This is my Gundam face.
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Sure you do; you could be doing something you enjoy instead.
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| Kyosuke Nanbu | Dec 8 2011, 05:10 AM Post #23 |
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The world needs only one Small Boss!
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Overall ECHOAS was pretty awesome from the details the novel translators on /m/ gave. And also a lot on their/Daguza's past. Overall episode 2 definitely left more to be desired. What with the whole ending without doing anything. Even the soundtrack was pretty meh except maybe RX-0. At least Ep.3 introduces MAD-NUG. Edited by Kyosuke Nanbu, Dec 8 2011, 05:12 AM.
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| HomelessOne | Dec 8 2011, 03:00 PM Post #24 |
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Veda Terminal
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Honestly I want to argue about that, but then again even the Crossbone X-3 has done something similar. Thanks for the info.
That info dump was pretty cool; shame most of it didn't make it to the OVA. |
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| Anonguy | Dec 8 2011, 03:55 PM Post #25 |
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Just an abomination of SCIENCE enjoying my tea
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Gundam is rife with ridiculous shit. It's just a matter of how you take said ridiculous shit aye? |
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| HomelessOne | Dec 10 2011, 01:52 AM Post #26 |
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Veda Terminal
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Episode 3: The Ghost of Laplace![]() Hell hath no fury, eh? Really, I don't even know what to say about this whole scene. Riddhe's far too quick to go AWOL over a five minute conversation, and Micott's desperate attempt to be relevant is...something. ![]() ![]() Not that Banagher's Great Escape would've been terribly interesting, but it is kind of amusing to see the OVA apparently acknowledge they cut stuff out. ![]() ![]() The battle of Palau was actually pretty cool. The Federation forces managed to pull off an effective, well thought out sneak attack which believably gave them an advantage. The ECOAS guys spawn camping was helpful too, and it was cool to see the Lotos kick some ass. Unicorn is clearly pressed for time, but I would've liked to have seen more of the battle up-close. ![]() ![]() As I have heard it explained, in the novel version Full's loyalists ditch Palau before the Nahel Argama even arrived, leaving the rest of the Zeonists to bear the brunt of Londo Bell's assault. Obviously Full's actions aren't quite as extreme in the OVA, but he seems to just as readily discard his allies when convenient. I suppose that shows how hollow his words were last episode when he talked about unity among thr Zeon factions. ![]() ![]() This was just hardcore. That Loto's cockpit and occupants had to be, like, paste at this point and they still made one last attempt. ![]() One of the rare times where Anaheim supplying everybody pays off for a pilot. I'm...not a fan of the more recent trend of faux-pacifist protagonists, so I had to wince when Banagher yells about stopping the fighting while firing at full-auto. Maybe it is the result of the OVA's...omissions, but he seems to pick and choose when it is ok to fight. ![]() ![]() Ha ha ha, their relationship will be in a hilariously different place by the time this is all said and done. ![]() ![]() Mixed feelings on Unicorn vs Kshatriya round 2. The funnel hijack was hilarious (I especially like when he kamikazes them into the Kshatriya), but for the most part it felt like a rehash of their battle from episode 2. Then again, maybe that's because it actually reused a lot of frames right from that fight. With an OVA's budget and Unicorn's production time, I'm not sure how to feel about that. ![]() And again, Full shamelessly demonstrates how he'll throw away allies when it suits him. He claimed last episode that he'd be "Char" if that was what was needed of him, but he makes for a pretty poor one. Char at his worst was a manipulative backstabber, but he cared about his subordinates. This certainly isn't the man that mourned for Crown as he burnt up in atmospheric re-entry. Props to Zinnerman though for clearly wanting to punch the bastard in the face. ![]() ![]() And there's the infamous Marida backstory. Really, Unicorn? I think the OVA actually did a good job of glossing over it while saying enough for the viewer to infer what occurred. I won't say any of it was in good taste, but it struck a decent balance between censorship and staying true to the source material. But seriously, I find the whole thing disgustingly vile and it makes me wonder if Frank Miller was a consultant for the novels. Of course, without getting into spoilers, Unicorn is just full of this kind of crap. ![]() ![]() Given his experiences, I wonder how eerie it was for Hasan to treat Marida. I'm pretty sure he knew the Ples, anyway. It was neat to hear an in-universe perspective on Cyber Newtypes, and I suppose what Marida had to say to Banagher was interesting enough. Kind of foolish of Mihiro to think she was getting screen time in this OVA series. ![]() Alberto's building sense of camaraderie with the Nahel Argama crew is an interesting development for the character, but it wasn't well-established by the OVA. Feels like another victim of the pacing. Oh, and I like how Martha just absolutely oozes evil. |
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| HomelessOne | Dec 10 2011, 01:52 AM Post #27 |
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Veda Terminal
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![]() I really liked Daguza's little motivational speech to Banagher here. Aside from making a good point it felt like he called Banagher on his somewhat hypocritical positions. I do wish that Otto's chat with Banagher, shown by flashback a bit later, had been more in-depth. ![]() ![]() Another interesting bit of character development undermined by the OVA. He and Banagher have barely even spoken to each other in this version, and what little interaction they have had has always been hostile. Just another little detail that interests me in how it played out in the novels. ![]() ![]() Daguza scenes all seem to be pretty great. His interaction with Banagher while catching a ride in the Unicorn was all pretty engaging, particularly in how it contrasted their very different mindsets. And finally, god damn do I love the song that plays during the first half of the sequence. ![]() ![]() Much like the Box, I can't take the La+ Program all that seriously. I get what it is trying to do thematically, but it really feels like an excuse to prolong Unicorn's story and take a referential tour of the UC. The OVA in particular heightens this feeling in episode 4, when it moves the next set of coordinates from a really significant locale in Dakar to close enough to Torrington to tie into the main attraction of the ep. ![]() ![]() Otto getting embarrassed after Liam looked impressed by his tactical analysis made me smile, I don't know why. ![]() You know, the OVA downplaying how much control the NT-D has over the Unicorn kind of makes Banagher look really hypocritical when it comes to killing. He tried to talk that Dreissen down, but would've killed a defenseless Marida. He makes a point of only trying to disable the Garencieres team, but then goes on a rampage through Full's team. It comes off as really strange, especially with Banagher's inconsistent desire to pilot. ![]() ![]() I like how casually Marida breaks her restraints. Her saving Alberto is actually the impetus for significant character development on his part, but I suppose we'll have to wait and see how much time the last two OVAs actually have for him. ![]() ![]() Really enjoyed the last little pep talk, and how Daguza seems to have brought an armory with him for his ride in Unicorn's cockpit. I'm probably beating a dead horse at this point, but this is another scene that makes me want to read the novels. It is really significant that a cog in the system like Daguza could reach the point where he'd give Banagher advice like that. ![]() ![]() I knew about this long in advance, but it is still kinda sad to see him go. I don't quite understand his plan though; was he just trying to disable the Sinanju's main camera(s)? I can't imagine he was intentionally trying to get himself killed. I also like how pissed Unicorn seems when it transforms into Destroy Mode. ![]() ![]() ![]() I'll make an exception for my usual complaints and say I really enjoyed seeing the Unicorn brutalize the Sinanju and the Guards. I liked the bit with the Unicorn and Sinanju fighting upside-down (relative to our perspective). Full's lack of reaction to Gilboa's dying for him goes back to what I was saying earlier. A shame he did it, too; he could've spared us some painful 0079 homages later. ![]() Not much to say about the ending. While what's occurring is clear enough, I don't really like the decision to play the end theme over any dialogue or sound effects. Call me pessimistic, but I almost wonder if they ran out of run time and had to do it to fit the footage in. Well, what can I really say? At this point Unicorn is in a desperate battle with run time, and it is probably losing. We're rushing through the main points and the battles are mostly still pretty, but it felt like there was even less substance than last time. I'd like to say that with the Nahel Argama left behind that the next episode will have more time for its characters, but I already know that isn't the case. |
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| Kyosuke Nanbu | Dec 10 2011, 02:16 AM Post #28 |
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The world needs only one Small Boss!
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Lasse in S1, Hughes in Senki 0081, and Daguza. His VA keeps getting a lot of the older male/"words of wisdom" roles in Gundam recently. Grodek's still to be determined. For me as far as the episodes go, I thought they were 3>1=4>2. 4 gets ahead for that glorious grunt massacre and Zeon stupidity, but loses too much due to Banana-G just standing there the entire goddamn fight. Also randomly I'd like to point out the BS from 2 where that one suit was barely grazed and blew up yet Frontal seemed fine and dandy despite being shot at repeatedly. Come to think of it I still haven't gotten the subbed version of 4. |
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| Bazookafied | Jan 10 2012, 02:45 PM Post #29 |
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Gotta say I've really enjoyed reading your thoughts dicing up Unicorn. It kinda helped me come down from "Unicorn is great" to what it waters down to and why I probably make the whole thing seem better as a result. Homeless, you know how much of a sucker I am for Aesthetics, not to mention that I have a deep appreciation for Music (being a Music Major and all), and Unicorn does both of these VERY well. I still enjoy watching it, but when I disect it for it's story and content, you're right on the money as far as I'm concerned. I suppose I'm just fooled into enjoying it more with all the great cinematography and soundtrack. Thanks for writing these and going into depth without getting TOO nitpicky and detail-ridden about every scene. You've managed to keep all of your comments for these past 4 OVAs very insightful without feeling like you cut too much out. Ironically enough, Unicorn's OVA story doesn't do this very well ![]() Looking forward to more! |
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| HomelessOne | Jan 13 2012, 02:03 AM Post #30 |
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Veda Terminal
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Glad you were entertained. I've been dragging my feet on ep4, but I'll get to it eventually. I think what Unicorn probably does best is effectively using its music. It is very good at matching songs to scenes, and the OSTs are all the more memorable for it. I'm still blown away by how terrible the 00 Special Editions were at this, as the staff seemed to go out of their way to sabotage them musically. |
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| Hobbes | Jan 13 2012, 02:35 AM Post #31 |
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Stuffed Tiger / Philosopher
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Doggonit Homeless, you made me think about Wana. |
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| Kyosuke Nanbu | Jan 13 2012, 05:07 AM Post #32 |
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The world needs only one Small Boss!
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I do laugh at the OST though at how obviously evil Martha's theme sounds to the point where she probably kicks puppies in her spare time, much less that it's flat out called "Martha". Might as well replace it with the Cruella Deville song. |
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| HellCat | Jan 16 2012, 07:59 AM Post #33 |
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Regene Regetta
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You don't like shoving season two cues into season one, negating their link to the evolving themes of the story? |
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| HomelessOne | Jan 16 2012, 06:23 PM Post #34 |
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Veda Terminal
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I think my favorites were "Wana" playing while Nena attacks the wedding, and "Friends" playing for 00 Raiser vs Regnant/Tieria getting shot in the face. |
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