The super-elite A-Law mecha pilot who is the bane of the Gundam Meisters.
It has been a few months since my last entry in this blog (blame it on my Left 4 Dead addiction), but I can somewhat wean myself off my addiction to that game just like I did with flyff to wrote the review for .hack//Roots way back then in 1997. I do not really watch the secret anime title I have mentioned in my previous post because my HDD that contains that anime (and a couple of others) gone bad and I cannot recover the data in it. I may redownload the anime in the future. Nevertheless the random anime I have chosen from my huge anime back-log is the second season of Mobile Suit Gundam 00. While it is a 2008 anime, current holder Wolf and Spice will still retain the Anime of the Year 2008 title because of some issues I will explain below.
Story:-
4 years after the events in the last episode in the first season, the New World Order united Federation government is establishing the independent elite army called A-Team A-Law. This new organization happens to be trigger-happy a little too much, so the bunch of Gundam Meisters has to reappear again to do their jobs. With new mechas (thus, more miniature replica toys to be sold – what else this series is created for) but with not many new characters (no new gashapon toys?), the sequel may become the prequel of the upcoming movie.
The first season actually has done very well in my book, earning a score of 9 out of 10, but I have a feeling that the second season has regressed. The story in this sequel are just natural continuations of the first season, and they started well for the first half of the series. It was in the second half of this anime where negatives that wasn’t in the first season such as awful cliché-laden dialogues started to appear, accompanying the tired cliché-laden plots about justice and stuff. Not only that, about 7 or 8 episodes from the end, I can already see how the anime will end (read: predictable, safe ending that will not offend anyone). There is also a time where I feared that Princess Marina Ismail is going to become a Lynn Minmay (or god forbid, Nekki Basara), but thankfully, she doesn’t. Well, as a whole, Gundam 00 series is still better than the Gundam SEED series though.
The pacing of the story is excellent, and it flows very well. Character developments are also done very well, continuing from where the first season ends. From the two characters that interests me in the first season, which is Saji Crossroad and Princess Maria Ismail, only the latter has exceeded my expectations. For Saji Crossroad, he embodies what went wrong with the story in the second season. The ending did not tie up some loose ends, but I guess that’s what the movie is for.
Character Design:-
No change from what I have said in the review for the first season.
Voice acting:-
Also no change from what I have said in the review for the first season.
Music:-
Ridiculously, the same comment from me for the first season still applies. Only the 2nd ED theme is of any good, while the OST and other themes are of no importance. Nice insert by Princess Maria Ismail though.
Animation/Direction:-
Just like the first season, the second season, shown in high definition, has great animation quality even in fast-paced scenes. Choreography in this anime, especially in mecha battles has improved a lot compared from the first season. The directing has taken a hit from Momento Mori though, from the looks of this season.
Conclusion:-
7 out of 10. A great opportunity to create a great series is lost. If only Saji Crossroad are used as well as Princess Maria Ismail is. There are no worthy successor for the venerable Gundam Wing yet. Now, when will the next review come?
A horny soldier is eavesdropping at a couple making hot steam love in their barrack.
