Crystal Tokyo Anime Blog

     This episode begins with the ship getting ready to receive a new sonic diver model based on the prototype piloted by Aisha, the project manager has not chosen the pilot yet, Togo is very suspicious over this move. A little while later all the pilots are in the mess hall and they find out that Aisha’s never enjoyed a Christmas party, so Elise and Otoha decided to organize a Christmas party for Aisha. The girls get permission from Togo for the party but he wishes them luck getting permission from everyone else, and then the girls go about the ship trying to get everyone’s permission. The girls finally get permission from the Captain on the condition that the mission still comes first, and the girls readily agree.

     Then we see the Sunia’s (the new sonic diver model) manager talking to someone on the phone about the new model, and in the background we see a computer screen showing data that relates the new sonic diver to Otoha’s encounter with the worms and the disappearance of her brother many years ago, it seems that she (Kiriko) and Hizuki are plotting something involving Otoha. The night of the party the doctor makes some Santa costumes for her and the girls to wear, and they run the buffet line for the ship’s crew. Everyone has a good time at the Christmas party, and later on the ship’s deck Kiriko (Aisha guardian and the new sonic diver’s manager) tells Togo that Otoha will be the pilot for the new unit, she also tells Togo about Otoha’s incident with the worms all those years ago. A little while later a worm approaches the ship, and the ship’s instruments are unable to determine the worm’s level and classification. Togo send the girls in for a closer look and to relay the information back to the ship. As the girls approach the worm, it appears as a glowing sphere that opens like a flower’s bud, and inside the glowing bud Otoha’s missing brother appears and even says hello to his sister. Well that’s all for this episode, below are some screen shots.

And now a picture of my current favorite tsundere anime girl, Eika.

     Well, as the entire crew become more like a family, and as the ship draws closer to the worm’s nest, a feeling of foreboding and impending loss seems to slowly approach the ship like gathering storm clouds. The girls in their attempt to teach Aisha about the Christmas spirit bring a lot of happiness to the ship’s crew, a feeling of melancholy grows among the more seasoned military personal, call it sixth sense or call it experience, I think that people like Togo and the Captain can sense the calm before the storm. So in this episode we finally gets some of Otoha’s loose ends tied up, her brother is either controlled by the worms or is now a human worm, and since the sonic diver technology is based on worm biology/technology we now see why she has a special connection to her sonic diver unit. I just don’t like how Hizuki and Kiriko scheme in secret, and behind everyone’s back, and I think it’s very dishonorable for them to keep their plans secret from the other military personal. Most military people will pretty much accept any mission unless it’s a suicide mission (and maybe even a suicide mission if it’s that important, just don’t lie to them), I really dislike their lack of trust in Togo and the others. I kind of wish this series was just a standard bug hunt, no secret DNA stuff, no complex personal links, just find the bugs and kill them.

     This episode starts off with a flashback to the previous battle with the worm where Aisha exhausted herself aiding the girls, she synchronized herself with the worm causing it to freeze in battle. The doctor tells her not to do it again, but she says exhausting herself in battle is the least she can do. Later we learn that the Vic Viper team (led by Togo’s old combat buddy Zen Hizaki) is being deployed to destroy the worm’s nest, but first they must battle a class A+ worm (the strongest worm seen so far in the series). Eika is angry about the situation, and Otoha says that Hizaki creeps her out (she’s angry about him calling them children, and she refers to him as a old man).

     At the beginning of the battle, the worm stops the initial attacks by the viper team, then it looks like the Viper unit gets the upper hand on the worm, as the Viper unit is about to deliver a death blow the worms separates into two pieces escaping destruction. After a hard fought battle two out of the three planes are damaged battling the worm, Hizaki orders the two damaged planes back to base and stays behind to fight the worm. He deals a heavy blow to the worm, but the worm also severely damages his plane, and he is forced to land on the sonic divers’ base ship. Eika listens in on Togo and Hizaki talking about old times, she learns that Togo can no longer fly because he was injured saving Hizaki during a battle with the worms, and Togo’s happy leading the sonic diver’s pilots. Later Togo comes up with a battle plan for fighting the worm, the sonic divers will attack the worm’s main body while Hizaki and the ship attack the other part,  and if they don’t succeed the worm will destroy the sonic diver’s base ship. When the battle starts the worms splits into three pieces instead of two, and at the last minute the other two viper units show up to take out the third piece, working together the worm is destroyed. Well that’s all of now, below are some screen shots. 

     Well 21 episodes down and five to go and were getting down to the nitty gritty of the series, in this episode we get a lot of information on Togo and Hizaki’s history. The only plot-line that still needs to be fleshed out is Otoha’s missing/kidnapped friend/brother story, then we can get to the final battle with the worms. This episode included a lot of talk about dreams and trusting the future to the young. This device is very common in anime today, many recent anime including Eureka 7, and Stellvia have large elements of older adults guiding younger characters, and entrusting the future to them. What I find kind of amusing is that Togo and Hizaki are both under 30 years old and they feel that they are old and the future is no longer meant for them. In the real world it would be nice if the old timers really felt this way, instead we get really old geezers holding on to power till they drop dead, just look at our congressmen and senators, they make policies about modern issues knowing nothing about how the younger generation really lives, works, and uses things like music and the Internet.