Is violence the ultimate failure of communication, or merely its most direct and effective form?
What They Say
No episode summary provided.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The title of episode 7 is “Abjection”, in keeping with its focus on artistic themes, and abject art is that which is rejected by or attacks the social order. Fittingly, this is the episode when Berg Katze’s attack on the social order of Earth begins in proper, though he would surely argue it was a matter of self-defense. But this is also the episode where we truly see how cast off and despondent our main heroes are: Rui, certainly, but the G-Team as well. Having seen the face of a god in JJ, they have come to learn the breadth and weight of the universe. However, they are still mere beat cops, going after alien life forms they can’t hope to understand, taking orders from a capricious being that speaks only in riddles.
And it’s a harsh existence. Here, in subtle hints and turns of phrase we learn that Paiman surely has the same kind of post-traumatic stress disorder that haunts Rui. OD hides his crushed spirit behind of veneer of positivity almost certainly meant to shelter his adopted-daughter-of-sorts Utsutsu from the cruelty of the world. Utstsu herself is depressed by her very being, and is even less communicative than Hajime. Her Pokemon-like habit of only speaking her name is hardly cute: it merely masks existential grief. Sugane, we learn, admires Joe so much because Joe rescued him from the MESS. And Joe? Always so cool with his smoking and drinking and apparent disinterest in his attractive young co-workers? He’s actually suicidal. His self-destructive impulses were, somewhat surprisingly, self-destructive. And the man responsible for pulling the scabs off of all of the wounds? One Berg Katze, played with gusto by Mamoru Miyano. Whether he’s singing his transformation command to the guitar riffs of Gatchaman Crowds’ opener, or mocking the shouted super move names of our Gatchaman heroes, Katze captivates while he mutilates.
The episode begins with Utsutsu asking why Hajime didn’t take up LOAD’s offer to remove the information about her from the internet. Hajime responds that because she doesn’t know her internet haters in real life, she can merely turn off her phone to make the comments go away. Rui, however, has thinner skin, or a greater sense of responsibility, depending on how you look at it. He removes three of the Hundred from his numbers for making jokes about being a member of the CROWDS, and decides to go up against Berg Katze once and for all. Lucky day for those three.
When Katze brandishes a bloody knife, you know things are going to start getting unpleasant. The first six episodes appear to have been just setting up the chess board and getting all of the pieces in place. And then Katze upturns the table and scatters everything, slaying all but one of the Crowds with his chainlike tail, either rendering them comatose or dead, and there’s hardly any reason to think Katze would be merciful. Whether the one that appeared to escape was merely Rui’s, or perhaps a crafty individual, like number 26, is as yet unknown. Once Rui’s army is gone, however, he is defenseless, and Katze chains him up and flogs him in a display of savage, sadistic cruelty.
Sugane has been following Rui, as he had told Hajime at the end of episode 6. He is about to leap into action when Joe steps in, offering to fight, but surely meaning to commit suicide in heroic fashion against an invincible enemy. Sugane rescues Rui and calls for help from Paiman. Paiman, whose friend was surely killed due to a mistake on his own part, asks JJ’s guidance, but JJ is silent. Hajime presses Paiman to decide, and OD decides he will step forth. Paiman decides OD’s powers are far too much a risk, and decides to face Berg Katze. He transforms into a massive mecha with monster truck tires and a jet engine, and offers Hajime and Utsutsu a ride. As the confrontation approaches, however, Paiman panics and flees, leaving Hajime and Utsutsu alone to face the threat.
All the while, Berg Katze has made a mockery of Joe’s best efforts, and taps into his deepest thoughts to goad him into giving up. Joe is ultimately defeated, and his NOTE, his very soul is ripped from the wires and nerves that attach it to its spine in a gory mess. Berg Katze tosses it aside like garbage, and deep in JJ’s lair, the red origami phoenix that represents Joe’s vitality explodes. Utsutsu manages to heal him before his death, but it appears he may be in no shape to fight from now on.
With Joe down, Berg turns his attentions to Sugane, but is interrupted a swift kick from Hajime. Berg disappears from sight, but the two carry out a cryptic conversation in the way only two crazy people can. Berg appreciates that Hajime has given thought to his warnings, and offers her further clues. The destruction of the planet is already underway, he seems to say, and it is due to one of humanity’s most commonly held and deep desires for something sweet.
Perhaps out of interest in Hajime, or perhaps merely for plot convenience, Katze stops his offensive for the time being, allowing the heroes to regroup. Always out of sync with the proper order of things, Hajime decides to binge on sweets to try and determine the desire that Katze is going to use as his engine of destruction.
In Summary
Episode 6 felt like the end of a long setup, and this episode proves that feeling was correct. The action phase of the series is now upon us, and the change in animation quality is astounding. It’s clear they must have pulled animators off of the shoddily done episode 6 in order to make the action and chaos of this episode fluid and exciting. Even the CGI version of Paiman’s armor was exceptionally well animated as it raced through the streets. The dark tone that Gatchaman Crowds has always hinted at moves to the forefront, and we’re likely to see much worse from Berg Katze in the episodes to come. In my opinion, easily the best anime of Summer 2013.
Grade: A
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
Review Equipment: Sony VAIO 17″ HD screen
