Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans Season 2 Episode 03 – Yo-Ho-Hum

After two episodes of build up, we have our first full on space battle with Tekkadan facing off against the Dawn Horizon Corps. True to Gundam form, things are not what they appear, and Tekkadan has to fight at a disadvantage.

Yeah, that’s pretty much it.

Not gonna lie, I am REALLY hard pressed to talk about anything this week. It is not that there is anything TOO bad about this episode, but there’s nothing new to discuss. After my gush over Hush last week, he is summarily sidelined for plot purposes as the old boys of Tekkadan sally forth. Understandable, but it is still disappointing. The big non-mecha highlight is the conversation between Orga and Maccy’s subordinate, Isurugi. It provides a nice set up to the battle, never mind the various machinations each side (or at least Maccy-nations for one) has in store, but other than that nothing much can be said. Heck to even say the battles are nice is to state the obvious, and Tekkadan as always is doing the best it can given the circumstances.

This is when I’m hit on why I’m so hard pressed to talk about anything this week. One, I’m not in the slightest bit pleasantly surprised with anything. Tekkadan is always going to be scrappers, pirates are gonna pirate, and Gjallarhorn is gonna conspire. Alright, fine. However at this juncture in the last season, this was a new world where we did not know how it operated, and how the characters would interact with one another, never mind what made them tick. Here? The world still functions as it was with no GREAT tectonic shifts in political order, and we already know the characters too darn well to at all be surprised at their actions and interactions with one another. Second, there’s really no tension at all. We already know Tekkadan for the most part gets out by the skin of its teeth, and it seems everybody is at peace that they’re gonna do what they’re gonna do. Even Merribit, who was always looking after Orga the best she can in the last series shrugs whenever he’s stubborn now.

Give me drama! Give me intrigue! I’ll reserve judgment but maybe it wasn’t a good idea to leave on a high note the last season if this episode is any indication.

I guess if there’s any consolation, there’s the nice touch at the mid battle repair and resupply thing they did for Mika, how Mika tries to grow other crops in his spare time, the new Gusion, and of course a Space Mexican standoff between Tekkadan/Maccy, Dawn Horizon Corps, and the WDoJ/Arianrhod on deck. So I guess it isn’t TOO much a loss.

Yet.

Iron-Blooded Notes:

  • Yup, that’s Galli-Galli as the masked man. Glad they just made it obvious and didn’t force the mystery upon us.
  • Man they’ve come a long way with First Person cockpit shots in Gundam.

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