(CR) 86 TV anime

[Random14]

Even hearing that its a tradition, its still bizarre seeing Frederica on the battlefield like that. Well, her other reasons (special powers and how someone she knows is part of the Legion now) make a little bit of sense and are top secret but a tradition like mascot still doesn't look good.

Of course they had to kill off Eugene while we're stuck with more Marcel. He acts like Shin was taking a break rather than keeping the killer machines from killing the rest of them. With how nice Eugene was I was almost afraid it was just a facade that would crumble at the end but he really was that nice. The Federacy officers are taking the war seriously but things still look bad. They're laying it on heavily with that memorial, but at least they're competent, so still a huge improvement on the Republic.

Nice to see that new Reginleif in action, though Shin is still up to his old tricks. Officer school sure passed fast, but yeah, I'd rather see how the rest of the war is going.

[Quyenbezt]

Fido return was a surprise!!! But that made me kind of uneasy too. Cant help but thinking it's the " mobs characters dont matter " again. I'll leave my guess here, that at least until the last arc, the main 5 squad and " light novel volumn cover girls " will breeze through any hardship, albeit traumatize from 5-lines comrade's death.
Aside from that, i feel like if i just turn off my logic brain and fully embrace the rule of cool, god damn this anime is so enjoyable, not a single episode is boring, really appreciate that, i will tell anyone complaining that lol nope, this is the badass doing badass anime, even the melodrama, sure but anything from this anime is going the extreme route right from the start, the world, the characters, their ideals, it was described as extreme as possible, to the point of simpleness, there are no gray area, you just gotta love the people the author wants you to love and hate the ones that are bad. Mobs were there to push the main squad, no excuse. Shin is cool, Lena is cool, and they are only this cool because we saw a bunch of death, call me a degen whatever you want but my edgy side just screaming inside when the main character had to kill their comrades " out of mercy, with a facepalm and no background music, under the rain or sunset or whatever ". They did a good job with their target audience, that all that matters, sure i remember Obelisk had some debates before and he did made me a little bit uncomfortable with the anime, but after learning to turn off my brain, this is honestly very enjoyable, high production value is already good, and i think he should ease himself and more or less just accept that this is a dumb but freaking badass dumb, yea in a sense you can say it has thought provoking elements but those elements happened in such an extreme environment that it's already dumb enough for just its existence, it existed because it lead to badassery, melodrama and waifu, and whatever you gotta complain, they did what make this anime sell excellently.

[frubam]

Originally Posted by Kanon

The explanation for Frederica joining the squad was frankly rather iffy. They enlist little girls as "mascots" in order to motivate the soldiers. No pedo though, they just want to nurture their protective instinct. Still feels totally wrong, but hey, they're still the good guys because that one guy said no one likes that old custom anymore! So it's totally okay!
It feels like the author just wanted to introduce a loli as a main character and he didn't think too hard about it.

The rest of the episode was very good though. It was obvious Eugene was going to die so I'm glad they didn't drag this out. On the other hand, it'd be nice if the show actually gave us time to get attached to the characters before killing them off.

Makes me think about how those girls dealt with the death of their comrades when they didnt' make it off of the battlefield. Frederica is more mature for her age(bc powers, position, or for whatever reasons), but I can imagine some mascot girls getting really attached to their protectors and them breaking down in tears when they didn't come back. Can't imagine that was any level of pleasure to see.

I could see they were going for the Rei/Shin reflection in Eugene, on top of all of the bajillion death flags he was setting, it was a given that he'd be killed off, from the moment you met him and said he was going to join the army. Honestly, I don't think he'd be a character who could garner further interest than he already has. There doesnt' seem to be more to him outside the Rei/Shin aspect, so it might have been just a waste of time. Ofc I could[and have been] proven wrong, but I guess we'll never know at this point =0v.

And even though they had a new mascot, the previous one, Fido, still comes back. He had by far the best death in the first cour, bringing him back shits all over that.

This is a feeling I always have contentions with myself about, as my thoughts tend to sway between a death getting "s**ted" on, or if it still had any meaning, depending on the situation. In this case, I'd say that Fido's death had the proper build-up and end. It definitely had an impact with me, and I don't feel its rebirth cheapens its death in any way. The way it was shown, it remembering its life in its last moments, probably combined with how many of the other chars die off, perhaps even because it was a split cour, allowing the death to 'sink in', gave it a lasting impact. The rebirth(and death) isn't used for some deus ex machina last minute save from the battlefield or anything out of the ordinary. I was more surprised(due to the fact I thought it'd be a new weapon they were going to test) and a bit happy that it made it through its death. Now any subsequent deaths, yeah, it'll definitely cheapen those, but it doesn't squander the feelings I had when it died initially.

Originally Posted by Yazi88

Giad's military forces put up a stronger defense and have taken back quite some territory from the Legion, but they also still lose a lot of soldiers too.

The Vanagandr Feldreß are pretty strong, but their main weakness is the lack of speed and maneuverability due to being very heavy with its armor and weapons. They are pretty much a match for the Lowe but can still be overwhelmed with sheer numbers.

On the other hand, the new Reginleif is also very powerful but a double edged sword in that it is very difficult to use with its high speed and also lack of armor. It is still more armored than the Juggernaut it is based on and also much more stable too thanks to better joints and systems in place. 86 use it well because their bodies were forced to adapt to the speed of the poorly armed yet fast Juggernaut.

Shin's Reginleif has the same weapons as his custom Juggernaut with the blades and main cannon. The main Reginleif cannon is quite stronger than the Juggeranut. Also the blades are better too and longer. Reginleif is also faster than the Juggernaut too.

Just wanted to say I appreciate the extra, but non-spoilerish details you give. Definitely sounds like something that would be lost in transition from novel to anime, and I do like the particular details.

[Frontier]

Originally Posted by frubam

I could see they were going for the Rei/Shin reflection in Eugene, on top of all of the bajillion death flags he was setting, it was a given that he'd be killed off, from the moment you met him and said he was going to join the army. Honestly, I don't think he'd be a character who could garner further interest than he already has. There doesnt' seem to be more to him outside the Rei/Shin aspect, so it might have been just a waste of time. Ofc I could[and have been] proven wrong, but I guess we'll never know at this point =0v.

Not only Rei (because of the glasses and older brother feel), but the author also put some Lena in there as well. Like, that scene of him talking about how Frederica shouldn't be on the battlefield felt like something Lena would say.

[Nachtwandler]

I am not aware if similar tradition was ever present in Western front, but on Eastern front during WWII it was not that rare for regiments to take care of young war orphans (mainly boys). They were called "son of the regiment" and often helped their caretakers (as scouts, for example). So this whole concept with "regiment mascots" is not as wild as it sounds.

[Anh_Minh]

I don't want to say Eugene had it coming, but he kinda did. What kind of idiots raises that many death flags?

[Friday]

Originally Posted by EroKing

Welcome back.....

[Frontier]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

I don't want to say Eugene had it coming, but he kinda did. What kind of idiots raises that many death flags?

It's like he was a living death flag, especially with the younger sister .

[Nostxlgia]

Originally Posted by Frontier

It's like he was a living death flag, especially with the younger sister .

Tbh I feel like everyone on this show is a living death flag. The show is so depressing I'm considering dropping it. What really made me NOT drop it was the robot-doggo coming back..

[Jan-Poo]

Originally Posted by Nostxlgia

Tbh I feel like everyone on this show is a living death flag. The show is so depressing I'm considering dropping it. What really made me NOT drop it was the robot-doggo coming back..

Well there are characters in a story that are destined to die, but they have a proper role regardless of that.

Then there are characters in a story whose sole existence is to become the inevitable casualty to provide a tragic moment for the hero.

Eugene and Kaie (Kirschblute) fall on the second category.

[Yazi88]

Its a mecha anime. Death flags are the norm for this genre.

[carmolita]

Originally Posted by Frontier

Not only Rei (because of the glasses and older brother feel), but the author also put some Lena in there as well. Like, that scene of him talking about how Frederica shouldn't be on the battlefield felt like something Lena would say.

I think it's more of the Rei Shin connection than Lena. I think shin was speaking to Eugene more from a standpoint of experience his father helped the republic to keep him safe (he died), his mother did the same (she died) and so did his brother, all of them wanted to keep shin safe so he wouldn't have to fight/die and he still ended up fighting in the end with his goal being to kill the one person who was trying to save him, his brother. The anime doesn't show it and made a dream sequence of it instead with good reason but,

Spoiler for rei/shins brother:

Shin did not end up killing his brother Rei. He actually survived and followed Shin and the 86, when the legion was getting ready to kill shin in the cockpit, Rei killed that legion and then carried shins body and the bodies of his friends to Giad for safety. Once the Giad saw his brother they killed him because he was a legion.

That's why in the anime shin's brother says, this is the last thing I can do for you. Shin can see that Eugene doesn't have what it takes to be a soldier, but this is/ his death was necessary for Shin's growth as a character.
Right now shin does not know what to do next, he has no goal, no reason to keep going/living, no purpose, no reason to stay alive nor care. When Lena asked him about it in season 1 his goal was to kill his brother, bury the tags of his friends and he himself expected to die in battle, he never really thought about what he wanted because he had never been asked that before. But now his brother is dead, theirs a memorial for his friend's and he's just fighting without any direction. But Eugene said something in episode 13, ( *a thousand because the anime gods were listening.) In the next few episodes, most likely maybe toward the end, Shin is going to find his purpose or reason for living, that something that is going to push him forward, that goal and its going to be very dramatic and he'll become even more formidable in more ways than one.

With regards to Federica and her knight, there better be another season for that, it's going to be the best part lots of action.

[Tenzen12]

Eugene death was so obvious that when it happened, I actualy started chuckle and that despite I am trying to take it seriously!

[Twi]

Originally Posted by Frontier

Not only Rei (because of the glasses and older brother feel), but the author also put some Lena in there as well. Like, that scene of him talking about how Frederica shouldn't be on the battlefield felt like something Lena would say.

Shin notes that he reminded him of Lena, even though he didn't know what she looked like.

But the anime gave more time to Eugene if anything else to make it sink in. I covered it a bit in my review, but in the Light Novel this chapter focused on preparations elsewhere and gave a lot more time to Shin and the other's introduction into a new unit, including the structure of it. They streamlined it a lot more organically in the episode, which is a plus to me. But they also neglected to mention some other important things that will be relevant if they make a Season Three.

Originally Posted by Kanon

The explanation for Frederica joining the squad was frankly rather iffy. They enlist little girls as "mascots" in order to motivate the soldiers. No pedo though, they just want to nurture their protective instinct. Still feels totally wrong, but hey, they're still the good guys because that one guy said no one likes that old custom anymore! So it's totally okay!
It feels like the author just wanted to introduce a loli as a main character and he didn't think too hard about it.

And even though they had a new mascot, the previous one, Fido, still comes back. He had by far the best death in the first cour, bringing him back shits all over that.

The rest of the episode was very good though. It was obvious Eugene was going to die so I'm glad they didn't drag this out. On the other hand, it'd be nice if the show actually gave us time to get attached to the characters before killing them off.

While I won't deny you might be right about the Loli part, because she doesn't look 10 to me and the scene in the Light Novel leaves me questioning just how small the Japanese view 10-year olds, in-universe it's a holdover from their time as an Empire (as in the people who created the Legion in the first place) and isn't traditionally practiced. Her being there was a compromise from the guy who didn't want them to return to the battlefield at all because Frederica is the last living member of royalty. Even then, she's not supposed to be on the battlefield directly. But yeah, it's basically a glorified hostage situation.

[Gerard07]

I have some questions for those who read the novel:

Spoiler for :

I understand that Shin and Lena become boyfriends later in the novel, but what about Kurena?, the other, Lena ever fighting on the battlefield in person or is she just giving orders from behind? (Not that she criticizes her, I'm just curious).

[sierra117]

Originally Posted by Gerard07

I have some questions for those who read the novel:

Spoiler for :

I understand that Shin and Lena become boyfriends later in the novel, but what about Kurena, the other, Lena ever fighting on the battlefield in person or is she just giving orders from behind? (Not that she criticizes her, I'm just curious).

Spoiler for :

Kurena initially tried to interfere with them at first, but give up early on when she realized how hopeless her case is and then joined the the other to warmly watch them on the sidelines and occasionally give Shin/Lena a push
Lena did fight on the front during the Large-Scale Offensive but generally she just planning and giving command from the rear

[serenade_beta]

Uhh, why did Red Hair say Shin could have saved Male Friend A? Was Shin even deployed? Was he nearby?
Since the Male Friend A's death was so set up and sudden, it ended up being more comedic than anything else. Maybe Red Hair saying Shin could have saved him, despite being nowhere in sight, is part of the joke? That, and a machine pet has more plot armor than the guy.

[Frontier]

Originally Posted by serenade_beta

Uhh, why did Red Hair say Shin could have saved Male Friend A? Was Shin even deployed? Was he nearby?
Since the Male Friend A's death was so set up and sudden, it ended up being more comedic than anything else. Maybe Red Hair saying Shin could have saved him, despite being nowhere in sight, is part of the joke? That, and a machine pet has more plot armor than the guy.

I don't think it's supposed to come off rationally, Marcel was just blaming Shin for Eugene's death.

[Twi]

Basically, he's not being rational. The only reason Shin was even there was that Frederica told him.

[Anh_Minh]

Originally Posted by serenade_beta

Uhh, why did Red Hair say Shin could have saved Male Friend A? Was Shin even deployed? Was he nearby?
Since the Male Friend A's death was so set up and sudden, it ended up being more comedic than anything else. Maybe Red Hair saying Shin could have saved him, despite being nowhere in sight, is part of the joke? That, and a machine pet has more plot armor than the guy.

1. He's not being rational. I mean, he did just lose a friend.
2. He's under the impression Shin is basically omnipotent.