Impression:

There are things that I really like about this series. The comedy, action, and plot are pretty interesting. I don’t even think that the CGI is all that bad. I don’t mind it when everything is CGI and we avoid that horrible contrast that we get in series like Infinite Stratos. Then, we have this episode. They went out of their way to make me want to stop watching this episode. We need to focus on things like the war and Takao, not Makie.

Mental models are pretty tough.

The bulk of this episode was spent on the mission to eliminate Makie. The military wants to kill the little girl because she is in contact with two mental models. The military fears that the Fog will get its hands on the vibration warhead specs and take out the trump card before it is even used. Makie’s dad dies and the mental models decide to take on the military in order to save the little girl. What ends up happening is a very cliché situation. Both parties fight their own battles as both Haruna and Makie believe that the other hates them. This is because Makie was made in order to kill the Fog. They are supposed to be enemies. Luckily, things work out as everyone obviously wants to be friends. Well, things almost didn’t work out. The military was really laying into Haruna and some very special help was necessary. Iona and company came to the rescue. I guess that the submarine has a few new sailors on board. They are headed to Iwoto and Takao is waiting for them. I am looking forward to the next episode.

Mental models are pretty strong.

Current Opinion of the Show:

I was pretty put off by this episode. I don’t mind getting that “becoming more human” story that we see in all sorts of media. The mental models never truly understood what it meant to be human, but a little girl who isn’t technically human has taken a big step in bringing the two sides together. I don’t mind this, but I would like to see it done in a better way. The very predictable battle and cliché emotional stuff started to get to me. It was just too sappy and I felt like turning off the player a few times. Even the oddly nice action scenes were barely enough to keep me around. Honestly though, the mental models are pretty damn strong. Haruna was messing up those soldiers and Kirishima kicked a lot of ass while she was still a teddy bear. Even Iona brought the pain at the end. The mental models don’t need ships in order to defeat humans.

How did they capture Takao?

I may not have enjoyed this episode, but the end was pretty promising. Why is that? Well, they essentially promised to be at Iwoto in the next episode. That would be great for several reasons. The first is the fact that the crew will get to check out the stronghold. We can see how Iona and company restock on that crazy Fog gear. I assume that Gunzou’s dad didn’t just leave him a submarine. Also, Takao is at the stronghold. How did the automated system capture the mental model? I have no idea, but I can’t wait to see the look on Gunzou’s face when the mental model tries to leap into his arms. I hope that we get that kind of reaction out of Takao, but they may have her play it a bit more cool than that. Regardless, I have waited far too long to see this reunion and I am growing impatient. I will not be satisfied if Gunzou and company spend the next episode attempting to get past the rescue party that showed up for Haruna and Kirishima. Also, the military needs to calm down. I love military fights as much as the next guy, but I want to see the damn romantic comedy already.

It is a protagonist’s job.