My estimates on Urdr Hunt's episode count would seem to have been off as @trafalgarlog has fansubbed what appears to be the finale for this little jaunt around the IBO solar system. Whether this is a just precursor to a second 'season' for the game or even an epilogue of some kind, everyone pitches in for the climactic battle, teen romance inexplicably wins the day, and a certain someone sticks one last oar into the mix.
Hajiroboshi (Part 1, Part 2)
Departure (Part 1, Part 2)
598 (Part 1, Part 2)
Corridor of Betrayal (Part 1, Part 2)
Holder of the Ring (Part 1, Part 2)
Unexpected Encounter (Part 1, Part 2)
Venus’ Worth (Part 1, Part 2)
Brothers’ Ship (Part 1, Part 2)
Horn and Flower’s Shadow (Part 1, Part 2)
Family Bonds (Part 1, Part 2)
Beyond Outstretched Hands (Part 1, Part 2)
Flashing Sky (Part 1, Part 2)
We get started with a repeat of the final scene from the last instalment: a gigantic mobile armour bursting out of confinement within one of the asteroids surrounding the Ratatoskr power station (Gundam wiki has a page calling this Mebahiah but I haven't seen where they've got that from).
This is obviously something of a shock for our assembled characters, save one Mr Mayer, who is eager to see what the mobile armour can do. And, like -- I'm with Tagging here in responding with a row of ellipses because: was there a part two to this plan, Cyclase, old pal? Your dad researched the War and I got the impression you were paying attention some of the time, so you must know what mobile armours tend to do to people. I assume? Was . . . was there a cheat code you were hoping to input?
Say what you will about McGillis but his 'dot dot dot profit' came with considerably less chance of getting nuked in the face by a beam weapon. Quite sensibly, Tagging and Batch take the opportunity to go collect the Urdr Hunt data for this waypoint, removing themselves from the area.
Anyway, speaking of people about to be nuked in the face with beam weapons, Range blabs to Wistario about Cyclase being responsible for their current predicament but there's not a lot they can do about him right now because, again, giant killer robot dead ahead. Demner warns Wiz to stay back in case Hajiroboshi starts acting up like it did facing down the imprisoned mobile armour on the Kujan Family colony.
However, Katya's launch is still stuck in the path of the monster! Determined to reach her, Wistario, Range and 598 start cutting through waves of the armour's drill-tastic plumas (who, I must remind you, are most little guys ever). But while they are not really a threat on their own, there are a hell of a lot of them.
[By the way, I would strongly recommend -- here more than any other episode -- to check out a version of this including gameplay footage as well as the cutscenes. That makes it a lot easier to follow what is happening, as watching without makes things quite choppy and you miss out on the part where -- due to the ongoing GIANT MICROWAVE BEAM -- everyone is randomly being struck by lightning mid-battle.]
Mendou tells our heroes to destroy the container bolted to the back of the mobile armour: that's where the plumas are being manufactured. Range is not thrilled at the prospect of fighting the big machine and Demner outright says it would be far too dangerous, but with Katya caught in the middle of everything, Wistario won't be dissuaded.
The crew of the launch can't contact their ship and the plumas are on the attack. (Small reminder: plumas might resemble mobile workers in some respects but they are nearly as big as mobile suits. Yeah.) With all this happening, Katya quietly implores Wistario once again to leave and forget about her.
Wistario 1) can't here her and 2) has decided to punch above his intimidation stat and says that if the mobile armour is in his way, he won't hesitate to fight it (kid, Mikazuki you are not). They WILL get Katya back. And since he has Range (dumb muscle) and 598 (dumber muscle) backing him up, that's precisely what they start to do. Cue phase one boss fight!
The armour attacks with yet more plumas and its chest-mounted beam weapon (the whole chest section opens up to reveal this, in case you were wondering), plus a rather large number of spikes on the ends of cables deployed from its wings.
And I think there is some variety of choose your own adventure for this part because in one version I've seen, the container is successfully destroyed at this point (thanks to one of the aforementioned lightning strikes) while in the fansubbed version, an overwhelming number of plumas prevents this and Korunaru shouts a warning about Katya's launch being swarmed.
At which point, out of nowhere, the Zan Brothers obliterate the plumas around the launch with their Geirails. Turns out they ran into an Issue Family checkpoints and became concerned about Wistario's situation. They tracked him all the way here to make sure their 'brother' was safe.
(By which I mean, Berose tracked him down because, obviously. *sigh*)
[In the other version, their entrance is swapped to later in the fight]
With the Zans keeping the plumas busy and also landing a hell of a blow on the container, the armour loses its entire manufacturing capability. But even as Range starts to celebrate, he realises it's not over. Indeed, the armour has only been freed from the extra mass and is itself intact and raring to go.
Boss battle, phase two!
Which is when Hajiroboshi begins to go on the fritz as its systems get caught in a feedback loop over detecting a mobile armour in need of killing.
As Wistario begs his Gundam to move, Range and 598 are left to fend for themselves. Luckily, their combined skills in reckless poncho-wearing and having the hardest skull in a three AU area get them through.
[Or, alternatively, Tamami shows up to save their arses]
Either way, the mobile armour takes a a right licking . . . and keeps right on ticking, all the way into phase three.
Just . . . just make the 'tis-but-a-flesh-wound jokes amongst yourselves, this is only going to get sillier.
The armour zeroes in on Wistario and, unfortunately, that's the point 598 runs out of ammo and Range discovers he's out of propellant.
But (of course) just as the armour is about to blast Hajiroboshi with its beam cannon, the underlying programming of Gundam Marchosias breaks through and resolves the system conflict. Wistario weaves around the beam, landing a good solid hit on the face.
Also, not to spam images, but you should probably appreciate the scale difference between the mobile suit and the mobile armour.
Wistario covers the other two as they retreat to resupply, though they are enamoured of the idea of him tackling the armour alone. Luckily, Rome and Aiko are more than happy to lend a hand.
[Here, it seems, is where they arrive if they didn't earlier]
As the fight goes on, Korunaru observes that Wistario seems to be moving differently than normal, prompting Mendou to pontificate about the true power of a Gundam frame, though he isn't sure Wistario will be able to control it without an Alaya-Vijnana system.
The conversation aboard the Erda II turns to the fact Asmoday hasn't displayed similar behaviour, which Mendou speculates might be due to its combat record or lack thereof. Since it wasn't used in the Calamity War, unlike Hajiroboshi/Marchosias, it doesn't 'recognise' its intended enemy.
(So not just because they ripped out the cockpit and put in Enzo's, then. Interesting. I like this version better.)
Yadda yadda, epic turn-based combat, big explosion, phase four.
Good grief.
You doing OK there, buddy?
With the armour *still* not down, Tamami swoops in to throw off its aim. 598 got her up to speed earlier and she's all for lending her support to a man putting his life on the line for the woman he loves!
I didn't think she was the type, but then again, she does hang around with Naze.
[It seems to be 598 who steps in here, if Tamami showed up sooner]
598 and Range are done resupplying, so it's everyone on deck for the final assault!
Ah, to hell with it, one more for the road.
Watching from the sidelines (and presumably behind a rock), Cyclase beholds this heart-warming coming-together with disbelief. It blows a fuse in his little brain to see a mobile armour knocked on to the ropes by an assortment of puny humans. Does this mean the armour isn't a higher form of life after all?
Sheesh. Someone get this man . . . something. I don't know what would help but he definitely needs something.
Where was I? Oh yes. Biff, zap, pow, super-moves, lightning, etc, etc, the mobile armour blows up for real this time and everyone is absolutely exhausted by the effort, doing whatever the mobile suit equivalent of flopping on their backs and twitching is. Mendou notes that all the plumas have stopped moving too, signalling that the battle is well and truly over.
While Wistario is having his obligatory 'no, we all won' moment, Cyclase faces up to the reality that the mobile armour has not brought him the freedom he sought (I ask again: WHAT THE FUCK WAS STEP TWO?!?!).
Tagging's Scharfrichter drops in beside him: she and Batch have successfully retrieved the latest set of data! Job done! Eh, boss?
Cyclase mumbles something about how they'll have to start again and flies off into the distance. With no other option, Tagging gives chase. Range spots them leaving and yells impotently after them.
However, as everyone but Korunaru has forgotten, Katya's launch is still stuck in an area of space riven with lightning and she urgently calls out that it's heading straight for an electrical discharge!
With the only functioning Gundam left (RIP Londo Bron, guess you really did get fried to a crisp), Wistario rockets off to rescue his fiance, urged on by all his friends. On the bridge of the Erda II, Korunaru starts praying.
Sadly, it really does seem that only divine intervention will get Hajiroboshi there in time as the launch is struck astern and then, as Wistario reaches helplessly towards it, full in the middle.
The launch explodes, leaving Wistario overcome with shock and grief. But wait! There's still a signal on the screen and there, tumbling through the clearing smoke, is Katya, safely encased in a normal-suit. Seems she . . . um . . . jumped overboard at the last minute and got clear?
Alas poor launch pilots. We knew you not at all. Anyhoo, Wistario opens his cockpit and leaps out to grab Katya, giving us the traditional bump-the-visors Gundam kiss and a happy ending!
(The sound you hear is the dispelling of all my concerns about it having been too much of a stretch to speculate that Shino survived Flauros' destruction for the sake of fanfic.)
We get a few stills of the gang departing Ratatoskr, palling around with the Zan brothers, Tamami, 598 -- and then Katya looking out of the window in joy as the Erda II hoves into view of Radonitsa Colony.
And then we make an unexpected(ish) switch to Glaðsheimr One in Earth orbit, where McGillis Fareed is busy receiving Lord Okina Uroka. The not-so-good retainer is over the moon that McGillis has ensured the Issue Family's survival by becoming their guardian. He says Rustal Elion was hoping to see the Issues disbanded (which tracks), but McGillis feigns ignorance of any such prospect. Surely Rustal wouldn't expect the Seven Stars structure to change quite so abruptly? (Hardy hah hah ha)
Isurugi remarks that the Baklazan and Falk Familes haven't lost their positions, and it follows that they wouldn't agree to the possibility of losing their power. The long and short of it is, their sense of self-preservation has allowed the Issues to live another day. McGillis asks Okina to continue acting as their head and working to rebuild.
Then, as the older gent is about to leave, our Macky (yes, godsdamnit, I have to switch spellings now, don't I?) inquires about the events at Ratatoskr. What was up with that?
Okina reminds him that since he's not an Issue, he's forbidden from going near the place and, grudgingly, explains that there was an accident. They lost some of their best men. No survivors. Very sad.
Once he's gone, McGillis reviews the situation with Isurugi. Katya Issue is apparently dead and the power of the Issue Family is in their hands. That's good enough for now. They'll pry into whatever Okina is hiding later.
The theme of 'all's well the ends well' continues as we return to Venus, where Range enters the Afam Equipment office to announce that the Erda II is repaired and ready to go. Demner thus asks him to arrange the next materials shipment, causing Range to call him a slave-driver.
This gets him a missou candy for his trouble. He complains he's not Wistario. Then eats the candy anyway and calls for Korunaru to make some tea. But she's out -- as is Wistario, who has gone to his 'usual place'.
Up on the Radonitsa observatory platform, Katya and Wistario enjoy the view over a peaceful colony, Katya remarking that his hometown really is beautiful. He reminds her that it's her hometown too, from now on.
Korunaru arrives, returning the Urdr Hunt ring to Wistario as promised. There hasn't been any further response since Ratatoskr but 'N' has told her to stand by as Wistario's guide. It seems the Urdr Hunt will continue.
And that, gentlefolk, is where we leave things, with our three intrepid teenagers holding the ring between them and swearing to win the Hunt and make their dreams come true.
Which by my count has only one waypoint left (for the Baklazan Family) so if this is setting up a sequel, it might be a tad short.
Cue credits/opening sequence reprise!
So. Yes. Um. That sure was a last episode.
I . . . have genuinely never felt like I was watching a plot simply run out as I did with this. Like, yes, it's a game so there's a whole dimension that I'm missing out on, but even so. Cyclase just buggers off. The mobile armour isn't in any way an interesting threat but rather a static target to be whaled on (the gameplay set-up does not do it any favours given that so much of Hashmal's impact in the show was from how it *moved*). The Issue forces sort of quietly evaporate in the background (Cyclase had two Halfbeaks with him and it's not like the beam weapon penetrated the hull on Londo's so, what, did they drive into an asteroid amidst the chaos?). Okina is merrily swept into the McGillis camp (I . . . did not get the impression from Season 2 that Macky had more than Carta's fleet at his command but OK). And that's it. Nothing about who N really is, no actual conclusion to the Hunt itself or explanation of what it was for, the Afam gang happily reunited and making their home on Venus, a hook for continuing that, well . . .
OK, I'm trying not to be overly mean here because, for goodness sake, it's a mobile game made on a budget and there are material limitations to this kind of media. But pulling the big 'with one bound, she was free' lever as the final move robs any tension out of this. I don't have any expectations now that any serious harm can befall these kids. Which would be fine, except I can't see much reason to be invested in their fate otherwise. There's no threat hanging over their heads now beyond the slow death of Radonitsa Colony and . . . yeah, sure, but genuinely, why should I care? We've barely seen the place and there's only so far that the three nominal leads can sustain investment when one of them has very little personality beyond 'makes tea' and another is Wistario. Katya lost all her agency around when Londo had her unlock Zagan (like, sod any chance of her taking charge of that situation, huh?) and I'm not sure there's a point to her character beyond the conflict with the Issues.
I really don't expect everything to be doom and gloom tragedy. I don't even expect that of every story set in the IBO universe (again, for those at the back, I love the manga and that is not remotely tragic). But this is very thin stuff.
Oh well. At least the doofy gremlin child survived. I'll probably do some sort of full 'analysis' later, if only to dig into the parts I liked.
For now - phew, is that the time? I should have been in bed half an hour ago!
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