So, this ep, Kagura is shown sitting on Amata's bed in Amata's old room. At this point I think it's dead certain that Kagura is strongly related to Amata in some way, and not just via reincarnation shenanigans. They're probably the same person. If not, they would need to be siblings, or Kagura would need to have had some sort of interesting Amata imprintation done.
- Amata felt he knew Kagura from somewhere
- Kagura said Amata didn't smell of anything
- Mykage described Alicia's child as having flaxen hair (like Amata) and gold eyes (like Kagura)
- The first ending sequence shows Amata and Kagura posed on opposite sides, both caught in thorns (the larger version of the pic shows Amata's leg wrapped in thorns), with the same circles by them.
- The first opening shows Amata and Kagura looking opposite ways, then having their faces move to the opposite side of the frame where the other was before, overlapping along the way.
- The second opening shows half of Amata's face and half of Kagura's together.
- And now Kagura is at Amata's old home on Vega, sitting on his bed. If the reason turns out to be "Mykage told me to sit here to confuse the audience", I will be very disappointed.
We do know now for certain that Altair has top-notch brainwashing facilities. Mykage seemed to have so many abilities that I would have betted he could do it himself anyway, but this is still proof, and could be foreshadowing about Kagura. (Hell, for all we know,
Amata's been brainwashed.)
Anyway, about the rest of the ep: I thought it was good. Crea has amazing Fudo-interpretation skills, wow. Andy was okay this ep (perhaps a little annoying...), and I adored Mikono, although I wish she'd just told Amata what she wanted to rather than saying she'll wait until she gets back. It would've fitted much better if she'd said it then, but of course she wouldn't, because then the writers wouldn't be able to continue to drag out the plot. Anyway, Mikono was pretty damn cool this ep for finding the guts to leave to find Fudo. I'm not sure what good it'll do: Fudo seems very well informed about everything that's going on. Eh, I suppose that means he's planning for Mikono to go with him, then. He'll need her to help pilot the original Aquarion.
The MIX-Y thing had to happen after that episode title got revealed, because it explains perfectly why MIX's name was spelt weirdly in all-caps. A little odd that male MIX (whatever name s/he was given by Altair) looks and sounds so feminine, but maybe if a few years passed like that, MIX-Y would grow more manly? I'm sort of relieved that she got brainwashed, since it means she didn't have to suffer through knowing what was happening to her at the time. Turning into a guy would be a nightmare for her. But she'll definitely get her memory back in the end.
I'm really sorry to see what a hash the writers are making of Zessica. They've turned her entire existence into feeling that there's nothing left for her if Amata doesn't want her. Even her angst session this ep was mostly about that, rather than feeling guilty about MIX. And now Mykage has her in his clutches in some way.
I hope she'll get the chance to shine again before the show is over. If only the writers had spent a little of her angst-time on backstory for her instead.
Speaking of Zessica, if what the staff said about the first ending sequence showing some characters as they once were/as they are now/as they will be in the future, I think this ep makes it far more likely that she's being portrayed in the ending as she is now, because it shows a mirror and mirrors have featured so largely for her in the plot.
The Yunoha ending sequence is gorgeous visually, but since the singing is being done in-character, it leaves something to be desired. And it seems a waste to be dedicating the ending to just two side characters and a plot that's already been resolved. It can only have been done because of the unexpected Jin/Yunoha popularity. I suppose it's better than nothing to give to fans whose favourite character/ship got cut off so quickly. It does seem a bit silly sometimes, though. This ep the scene where an image of Jin appears on Altair for Yunoha, it just seemed like a matter of "We must appease the Jin fanbase. Quick, make a static image of him smiling appear!"
The big reveal about women captured on Vega turning into men on Altair is fun. It means that any of the guys on Altair could have originally been women. I was worried when Zessica started coughing and saying her throat hurt that perhaps she was going to get ill (that is, the sort of ill that would mean she'd eventually die if she stayed on Altair). But then, after that she started holding her lower abdomen...so maybe she was only going to turn into a guy. It's going to be weird if we see male versions of Zessica and Yunoha, that's for certain. But it would be a lot better than them getting ill and incapacitated.
