The obligatory beach episode did not disappoint; it delivered fun, fanservice, rampant sexual innuendos, a good fight, and shockingly enough for a beach episode character development! It was very good, but it wasn't as good as the last episode. Since I gave episode 11 a 9, I had to give this one a lower score. So, I ended up giving it a 8.
The show is returning to the feel of the earlier episodes, that of an adventure story with lots of humor.
The animation is still stellar. This alleviates many of my worries because the animation quality in many series starts to lower around this point. Maybe in a few episodes the animation quality may drop, but as of now I have no qualms. The series also seems to have a pretty big budget, so I'm not apprehensive about the future either.
The big issue in this episode is, of course, the development of the relationship between Nia and Yoko. Nia reached out to Yoko two times this episode: the first time by giving her a crab, and the second time by asking her to cut her hair. Nia apparently reached out to Yoko because Yoko was in a bad mood and was somewhat isolated from the main group. We discovered that Nia really trusts Yoko, or at the very least Yoko's skill with a rifle. When Yoko found out about Nia's trust in her, her demeanor towards Nia changed and she became closer to her.
Quote:
Originally Posted by orion
It makes you wonder why Gainax feels the need to degrade and demonize Yoko and edify Nia.
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I do agree that Gainax is making Nia seem much better in comparison, but I don't agree that they're demonizing and degrading Yoko. If they wanted to do that, they would have done much better. In fact, I didn't see Yoko as unlikable at all. I find her actions and attitudes to be perfectly understandable in this episode. She went through the trouble of putting on a bathing suit (which just happens to be much less revealing than her normal attire) and all the guys do is complain; hell, one of them even said that "if you cover up Yoko like that, she's nothing to look at". She was reasonably irritated. Then, Nia comes in and gives everyone nosebleeds even though her swimsuit was less revealing than Yoko's; remember that this happened after Kittan said "the more visible skin, the better". After this, Yoko tried competing with Nia(and failing every time) probably to regain a little piece of her pride. Well, the frustration piled up and eventually reached a breaking point; Yoko then took out some of her frustration on Nia. That I didn't agree with, but I don't think I makes Yoko any less likable. Of course, she also ends up saving Nia's life( even though she took out her hair in the process), and made her very likable.
Viral received character development as well. His motive for antagonizing Gurren-Lagann grew again. This further diminishes the possibility that he'll defect in favor of the Gurren brigade. Of course, this doesn't diminish the possiblity of him defecting at all; it just raises the likelihood that he'll be in his own faction if he defects (which many of us think he eventually will).
Random, Incoherent Thoughts
Yoko got dominated, a lot.
Seeing the guys comment on how Yoko's bathing suit is less revealing than her normal clothing made me laugh.
Yoko is the designated pervent policewoman of the series.
Man, the innuendos in this episode were pretty blatant. The external bridge gets damaged and every guy on the ship grabs his crotch in pain. Gurren-Lagann propels the Dai-Ganzan out of the water and Lerron grabs his butt.
Kiyoh looks great in a bathing suit.
Gimi is always amusing.
Seeing everyone get a nosebleed upon seeing Nia in a bathing suit, and then seeing them pose afterwards made me laugh a lot.
Gurren-Lagann gets a new attack! It's not nearly as badass as Giga Drill Breaker, but it's still pretty cool.
Adiane dies! We lost the only character on the show with an eyepatch!
Gurren-Lagann is getting pretty broken. It tore apart Adine's ship like it was cheese.
Simon got way less screentime this episode. He pretty much only showed up to kick some ass.
I love the short guy who always jumps the gun. He makes me laugh every time.
I'm beginning to think that old man can do anything. He could probably even see why kids love Cinnamon Toast Crunch.
Adiane slapped Gurren-Lagann with Sayrune's tail the same way she slapped Viral with her own tail.
Nia's hair! Nia's hair! Admittedly, she is still pretty cute with the new chop, but she was much cuter before the haircut. I will now be quietly mourning the loss of her hair.
Yoko apparently spells doom. She kisses Kamina, and he dies. She takes out Nia's hair. She takes out Adiane. Let's hope she doesn't get too close to Simon, or at least that his main character plot-shield can hold up against her.
Nina's cooking next episode? This will be glorious.
Graphic Designer
