Familia.
What They Say:
Episode #09: SAKAZUKI
Accompanied by Naze, Tekkadan visits the Saisei, the stronghold of Teiwaz, in order to meet with Teiwaz’s representative McMurdo Barriston. Here, Orga receives a surprising proposal from Naze.
The Review
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Space Yakuza or space Mafia? The decor screams Yakuza, but the music and the cannoli would say Mafia. Either way, Tekkadan finds themselves making the acquaintance of McMurdo Barriston. It would appear that Orga didn’t know what the agreement Naze had formulated with his boss regarding the Tekkadan was. Orga had better step up his negotiating skills as to not be caught flatfooted in the future. This time it worked out for him, but Biscuit is right, they’ve been lucky.
Elsewhere the female cast is failing the Bechdel test left and right. Amida tries to give Atra some advice on men, which Atra misses the point of. Or rather, she latches on to a completely alternate opinion. One of the Tekkadan little boys has the audacity to call women weak in front of Azee, who sets him straight with her superior strength. (Speaking of relationships, poor Yamagi pining for Norba. Boy is he gonna keep getting his little heart broken.)
Thankfully Kudelia is left out of this nonsense as she has larger problems to worry about. She’s once again faced with a difficult decision. Barriston lets her know that however noble her cause, even if she succeeds, will likely lead to war. Kudelia struggles with the weight of lives on the line and looks to Mika only to be told it’s her decision alone. She can’t even turn to Fumitan, whom she presents with a thoughtful gift. Fumitan is most definitely working for someone, we just still don’t know who. I suspect Gjallarhornm and I suspect it’s only a matter of time before she shows her true colors.
With safety, and money, temporarily guaranteed, it’s time to relax. Orga showers the little ones with treats and takes his contemporaries out for a night on the town. The boys are a bit young to be drinking, and in fact it’s likely only Orga whose old enough to order a drink. Which he does, and surprise, he gets plastered. Although we do get to see Orga at his most unguarded and with all of his composure down.
Mika makes a good impression on Barriston, who offers to get the Barbatos back up to snuff. We get a crazy old man mechanic ranting about what a joy it is to work on a Gundam, which reminds me of Gundam series of old.
With Orga and Tekkadan committed to Kudelia’s cause, she realizes she’s come to far and put the group through too much to back down. She can’t let all of that bloodshed so far be for nothing. With her wearing that dark dress she has the look of a fierce force for change. Even if it means partnering with the mafia to get the job done.
Everything seems to be going well for Tekkadan now, but… All of this planning in order to get to earth safely might be for naught. The Gjallarhorn boys are already aware of what route the group will likely take to get to earth.
In Summary:
A flimsy first half gives way to a very strong second half of this episode. Tekkadan is now a part of the Teiwaz group, and are equals to the Turbines as far as position goes. That’s a heck of a shine Naze took with them to pull those strings. Now Tekkadan can get back to its mission, and Kudelia finally has the resolve to see it through. I expect after this week and last week’s slow episodes we will be plunged back into the action next week. However, the preview promises some backstory for Mika andAtra. Hopefully, they’ll show the events leading up to the moment of Mika’s past that we already saw.
There’s also the matter of that incidental woman who gave Orga her handkerchief, who is she going to end up working for?
Episode Grade: B +
Streamed by: Hulu, Daisuki, Crunchyroll, Funimation, and Youtube in select regions. Phew!
Review Equipment: 27” iMac running OS Yosemite, via Safari 9, FIOS connection. Your mileage may vary.
