What They Say:
“Do We Head For The Stars”
Arrow and friends face their strongest opponent yet in God’s realm. Once the Guardian reveals the ultimate truth of their world, a peaceful resolution seems unlikely.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Rudolph could have been the ideal main villain but he had misguided loyalty to an unknown God. He was the mastermind behind the scenes who was plotting everything needed for this God to succeed. His actions were unintentionally serving as a motivator for most of the side cast to move forward from their hell. There were a couple of flaws in his plans that could have been avoided if he wasn’t so prideful. When he used the souls of the long-dead, he left the window open for the recently departed to make a grand comeback. Even though they have been gone, it’s like Zetsu and Finor never left the battlefield as they create an endless terror for Rudolph. He gracefully accepts his defeat as he joins the multitude of souls that he helped wipe out.
Saving God for the end turned out to be a critical mistake. God should have been this fierce opponent that was going to push the crew to the limits. But he wasn’t able to do any notable actions or anything that was expected of him. The God that was revealed last episode turned out to not be a god but another cog in the machine. Although he did provide one last fiery battle for the GranEdger crew to go all out and show all the progress that they made in this journey. God is supposed to be the end game but his appearance felt disappointing because he wasn’t God but another guardian similar to Rudolph.
Truth is stranger than fiction but this show takes it to a new level. The true God is a baby that has been sleeping for 2000 years. There was an epidemic that wiped out most of humanity and the baby was the last survivor. Lingalind is one of many worlds created to nourish this baby. If this baby is the only survivor, then how were Lingalind and the other worlds created. It’s hard to understand how these worlds were created if this baby was the only survivor. Are the people in Lingalind real beings? There are no answers to these questions and there is no clue as to how these answers can be found.
Open-ended endings are a double edge sword. It isn’t finite and lets the adventure continue endlessly. I’m not a fan of these endings as it doesn’t let the story end. Back Arrow and the cast should have gotten a chance to have some of the ends of their paths but unfortunately, that doesn’t happen. Back Arrow’s crisis over his role needed to be addressed. There is also Elsha and Atlee’s relationship that gets left hanging in the dust. The biggest question is how Shu Bi just leaves Kai, Ren, and the rest of Rekka without helping in the new era. He was deceitful but it was for the greater good and there was always a lingering connection to that place. Back Arrow and the GranEdger crew head off to deliver the God baby back to planet Earth in a shocking moment. The crew takes off on what seems to be an endless journey across the cosmos. Anyone can come in and take them on some wild adventures as they soar through the endless skies. It’s the perfect ending for people who want the series to be everlasting at the cost of having an ending worthy of everything that has come before it.
In Summary:
This series was heading towards the skies but ended up crashing down to the earth. It just could not stick to the landing. These characters deserve some resolution to their stories but they just take off immediately to their next journey. This show would hugely benefit from having a second season to have that needed step to set the universe straight. But heck it’s not always about the end but the journey to get there and what an incredible journey it has been. The reveal about God was disappointing and it just brought more questions than answers for a finale. One thing about this series is that it had wonderful mechas battles that were filled with a spark at every corner.
Streamed By: Funimation
Grade: C+
