Gundam 00 — Episode 6
I have EJU tomorrow morning so I’m going to make this quick, hopefully. Gah, curse man’s need to sleep.
Gundam 00 episode 6 introduces the European nation of Moralia, new equipments for Gundam Dynames and Exia and a new foe.
Summary
Moralia is a nation founded just 23 years ago in AD 2284. It’s located at modern day France’s Mediterranean coast (around Marseille) and surprisingly it is not part of the Advanced European Union. Although it has just 180 thousand citizens, over four million foreign workers live in the country. This is because the country’s economy is highly dependent on the private military industrial complex. It attracts foreign investments by giving tax breaks to private military companies.
Of the 4000 plus companies in Moralia, a giant conglomerate called PMC Trust owns over 20 percent of them. PMC Trust is a private military contractor which has its own mercenary army and weapons development programmes. Although they are not part of AEU, Moralia and PMC appear to be heavily involved in AEU’s weapons and space elevator development.
Presumably due to the lack of large-scale conflicts fuelling its military industry, Moralia’s economy is in recession and the country itself is in a bad state. AEU’s big shots are worried about Moralia collapsing and decide to send in troops under the pretext of a joint military exercise with the Moralian forces and PMC Trust. Celestial Being sees this as a challenge and launches an intervention.
We are introduced to Ali Al-Serges (I’m just guessing the name from the katakana), a mercenary working for PMC who was apparently part of Setsuna’s past in Kurdistan.
“Hi, I’m Ali.”
PMC, being a private company, is very interested in obtaining the Gundam for its own nefarious purpose (i.e. making money). The people in-charge decide to modify AEU’s latest prototype mobile suit (which they are contracted to develop) and assign Ali to pilot it and bring back a Gundam.
Thoughts
This episode is much better than the last one. Oh sure, everyone loved episode 5’s laughable “character development” and whatever. I prefer the politics and the nitty gritty details instead.
Interestingly, this guy is apparently the German Chancellor. During the discussion of AEU’s plan to send troops to Moralia, he mentions something along the lines of, “public opinions will prevent my country from sending troops” to which the Angela-lookalike replied, “stop dwelling on something that happened over three centuries ago.” I’m quite sure that she’s referring to World War II. (Or perhaps the guy is British and we’re talking about Operation Iraqi Freedom?)
Human Enhancement Agency Research Lab
We also learn that Soma has enhancements made to the glial cells in her brain. This allows her to utilize some new form of brain wave (脳量子波) in a manner which is not explained, but probably referring to some sort of extrasensory ability (i.e. Newtype sixth sense).
PMC Trust’s private army
On another note, I won’t be surprised if PMC Trust is some kind of allusion to the military contractors that are practically running Iraq today. We use words like “private security contractors” as euphemisms for what they really are: mercenaries. With Haliburton’s power and influence, I don’t doubt its potential to one day break off a chunk of territory from somewhere and form its own sovereign nation…
Screenshots
“Pwease forgive me?”
“Pwease give me solar energy?”
“Pwease accept my feelings?”
“Pwease give me more airtime?”
New hairstyle!
Dynames puts on weight
Exia’s GN Blades (the swords, not the box)
Billy x Sumeragi!
You can hear a million yaoi fangirls cry out in anguish
Military mission or summer vacation?
Batman!
Dual wield!
Over-compensating for something?
Everyone wants a piece of Exia
I really have to go to sleep now. *Drops dead*
November 11th, 2007 at 2:37 am
Dual wield! :D
Plate Armor :D
November 11th, 2007 at 2:40 am
good luck with EJU… although demographics have eased demand for J university places overall, foreign demand is still a highly self-selecting group, and depending on country of origin you may qualify for subsidies or some kind of funded exchange
November 11th, 2007 at 4:23 am
Zero Revenge is right, it’s Blackwater, not Halliburton (Halliburton is oil)
This episode looks a lot better than the last one. Where’s my fifth Gundam…? It has to show up eventually, or Bandai won’t have enough toys to make
November 11th, 2007 at 4:42 am
I can’t be the only one who, after watching the last week’s preview, thought that Patrick grew a beard and decided to go hardcore. Instead, we get a whole new character Ali, and Patrick remains the Team Rocket of Gundam 00. -,.-
Anyway, this episode was almost painful to watch due to the horrid art during people scenes. Mech scenes were fine, but people scenes were…. *shudder*
November 11th, 2007 at 4:47 am
Ooh now Dynames can wield a beam sniper rifle singlehandedly. Exia’s GN swords kinda remind me of the anti-ship swords in GS/D, with the exception that it is smaller sized now.
Dynames’ wings kind of remind me about Deathscythe’s from Wing. So I guess maybe some of us are right about 00 shifting in the direction of Wing’s kind of storyline.
Virtue is ridiculous looking, with that kind of weight, I am surprised that it can still fly. Anyway, is Kyrios the only one without an upgrade?
November 11th, 2007 at 7:11 am
Virtue didn’t get an upgrade either. The shoulder cannons were always there.
November 11th, 2007 at 7:43 am
Really? I thought they are just propulsion systems to help that big fat thing fly.
Btw the seven swords seem to be driving at one of Jin Yong’s novels (Swordsmen of Mt Tian), or is it just a coincidence?
I wish Virtue has got more weapons.
P.S At 7am in the morning on a Sunday, you are a pretty early riser.
November 11th, 2007 at 8:49 am
>I wish Virtue has got more weapons.
No, I think it is already too ridiculously armed (not to mention big).
November 11th, 2007 at 8:50 am
Exia went from fast über killing machine with shield to greater über killing machine without shield?
Boring, would have been more fun if somehow attached the swords to itself and kept the shield.
November 11th, 2007 at 9:41 am
Sumeragi’s cleavage made the eppisode worth watching. :)
November 11th, 2007 at 9:48 am
Seriously, a sniper that goes frontline…but it’s cool though. And this time Dynames is copying Wing Zero style, lol.
November 11th, 2007 at 10:06 am
the “pwease give me more airtime?” from Lockon really cracked me up. lol
November 11th, 2007 at 12:37 pm
“pwease give me more airtime?” is by AEU’s ace and not lockon lol.
this epi’s people scenes are horrid but the gundam scenes make up for it. hopes for more kyrios action!
November 11th, 2007 at 2:39 pm
hopes for more kyrios action!
I second that since the kyrios is my favorite gundam!
November 11th, 2007 at 3:00 pm
I like the mecha design in Gundam00 and all (though still needs to tone it down a bit in terms of firepower) but the meisters are still flat/1dimensional/robots. Give them more scenes without their suits and give them personalities.
That or give me a beach/onsen/public bath episode(s) with Sumeragi and friends.
November 11th, 2007 at 3:32 pm
You know since CB is a PMC itself albeit that one that generates no revenue, I kind of want to see two PMCs fight each other to annihilation.
As for PMCs one day breaking off some land and making their own country, running a country is hard, more so if you are embargoed and sanctioned. Eve more trouble some if your fellows are paid in worthless scraps of paper not backed by gold.
Still a PMC taking over a country is a bit of stretch, helping out a coup perhaps, but PMCs as a rule cannot afford to bank roll the day to day operations of heavy equipment. The start up costs for an armored battlion isn’t cheap.
I’d say something snarky about Blackwater running Iraq…aww what the hell,
Better them than me. ;)
November 11th, 2007 at 10:11 pm
LAWL! The summer vacation screenshot instantly gave me vibes of Haruhi leading her bunch of merry subordinates to Itsuki’s organization mansion at Lone Island Syndrome.
November 12th, 2007 at 1:15 am
Exia, show me your omni-slash!
Dynames looks like a mix between heavyarms, shenlong & deathscythe from gundam wing.
Anyways, it seems that C’estial Being has only 4 gundams to carry out its missions.
November 12th, 2007 at 12:01 pm
@Ryuko_Hikaru
It’s shown on the specs of the Virtue that it’s actually lighter than a Hellion. I can’t refer to you the site since I forgot, so if anyone can help me out…
Anyone notice that Kyrios’ bombing compartment had WAY TOO MUCH missles this time, during the Ceylon incident the amount launched was probably around a dozen.
Dynames was also disappointing in this episode since it went from sniper to assault unit. And why the hell use your scope “eye” when your enemy is smack dab in front of you?
November 12th, 2007 at 1:55 pm
Not enough Soma, to much Marina.
Other than that. This episode is just an excuse to show the how the Gundams are overkill. What’s with Virtue’s cannons?
Then again, a machine is as good as its pilot. As Ali promptly show us. But the, mentor turn enemy card is annoying.