FINAL EP! And to be frank, it’s perfectly wrapped everything in one fell swoop of an episode. Wasn’t that extravagant, but hey, it works.
With the Warlock going berserk, Mio brings out her trump card: A hidden Striker Unit. She plans to fly and sortie with the enemy, only to be stopped by Miyafuji. Yoshika insists that she be permitted to confirm the Warlock’s affiliation via a dogfight. After being touched by the words “I’ll protect you!”, Mio gives her permission. Yoshika then tries to make contact with the Neuroi, with the Neuroi bringing out its core, just like Neuroi-tan (yes, everybody calls “her” that now) did. However, after confirming that it’s not the same as Neuroi-tan, (via a sneaky beam shot, the fucking sly bastard robot) Miyafuji herself brands the Warlock as an enemy. And so the dogfight ensues.
IT’S A TRAP!
While Yoshika is busy with the Warlock, some of the other Witches took liberty into taking care of the stupid guys behind the 1st Assault Unit, which was perfectly executed by Trude, Erica, and Minna. The others also made effort to go back to the base under their own accord (with Mio and Perinne getting nearly killed, if not for the timely intervention of Lucchini and Shirley). And the with 501st alive and kicking again, the Warlock tasted a nicely aimed anti-tank round that brought it to remission, thanks to Lynne.
It’s not your usual Moby Dick, folks.
After the Warlock sunk with the Akagi, everyone thought that it’s finally over. But then again, OH NO YOU DON’T! Bitch Warlock came back with the Akagi as it fused with the sunk carrier, turning it into a big battleship replete with the carrier’s full, beam-converted weaponry. Now, THAT is what I’m talking about! Big cloudsurfing ship capable of raining down beams in rapid succession! Too bad the team attacks of the Witches outdo most of what the Neurokagi can do. Mio and Minna serve as guides for while Yoshika, Perinne and Lynne do the inside job of destroying the core. The others provide cover, with Trude and Erica using raw power and Shirley using Lucchini as an ultra high-speed warhead. Now THAT is firepower!
Yoshika and the others find the core, and as if Yoshika knew what to do, sent her Striker Unit into a kamikaze run, ramming the precious piece of equipment with the core, sending Neurokagi literally sinking into the clouds while disappearing into dust. Quite an impressive way to bring down a ship, I say, You don’t see battleships literally sinking into the clouds.
CHECKMATE!
And so, with the “Neuroi Original” defeated, the rest of the Neuroi disappeared without a trace, leaving Gallia for reclamation. Once the elimination of the Neuroi was confirmed, the 501st squad was official disbanded. Everyone may have parted ways, but the staff roll showing the character bookmarks of each character show that they’re still tied with each other, specifically with letters. Trude, Minna and Erica go back to Karsland, while Sanya and Eila go back to North for Soumus and Orussia. Lynne and Perinne go back to Gallia to help on reconstructing the country from scratch. Shirley and Franchesca crisscross the world with Glamorous Shirley, while Mio settles down as a teacher on a Fuso school, while Yoshika goes back to the Minafuji residence to help on the family’s clinic. It seemed that all is well, until a Witch fell out of the sky, telling her name is Amaki Suwa, all while presenting a letter and stating it’s for Yoshika, from his dead man Hakase.
ANCESTRAL FANSERVICE!
Superb way to end the series. Lots of fights, and the dose of action is good enough for a climax. The pairings of the Witches are out in the open as they battled the Neurokagi, and I just loved how they made Eila and Sanya go mushy. The part where Perinne admits being the “bitter rival, closest friend” part is also good, and it kinda made me have some second thoughts about Lynne-Yoshika or Mio-Yoshika pairings (but hey, Mio’s taken by Minna already…).
There’s also the Neuroi. The extensive story of their origin and nature was quite well developed as well. If I were to compare this to a certain title or game, the exact spitting image would have to be Thunderforce V: Perfect System, a game that I loved dearly during the PSOne times. Who would’ve thought that the Neuroi were seeking to destroy their source, and that that source was seeking to destroy us humans for humans to act and destroy themselves? Their nature was erratic to understand that it’s as complex as being simply hell-bent to the purpose of destruction. Clearly something confusing, but if understood, it could also be deemed amazing.
Implications of a new season…?
I don’t get Amaki Suwa’s part, though. It’s as if GONZO is implying for a second season even though I don’t see any viable plotline for another. I mean, Yoshika trying to find clues on the whereabouts of her father is quite overrated. Moreover, Amaki Suwa is from AN EARLIER TIMELINE than Yoshika (specifically the first manga), which may even date to the time when Hakase is still alive. It may be possible that Amaki is capable of time travel. too, but that’s just me.
Prequels can be S2′s. So can reunions.
So can the numerous other hives in Karlsland, Ostmark, Siberia, Suomus, Egypt, etc etc.
From what I see, once the “Neuroi Original” is destroyed, all the other hives are terminated completely. Random Curiosity hinted something like a collective consciousness, but I see it only as being tied to a source of materialization and entity, which is the Warlock’s/Neuroi Original’s core, the very first core(probably) found before the war against them. Unless we have another Neuroi Original for each separate hive, then it’s a different story altogether. That dissipates your theory, selkirk.
C.I’s, however, is highly viable, provided that GONZO is really up to it.
Whoa, decided to recheck some of the previous blog entries, hence the late reply…
But anyway, if you’ve read the other Strike Witches material, then it’s stated a number of times the Neuroi went over Ostmark first, then Karlsland, before reaching Gallia. The original, if there really were just a single original, would most likely be around the Black Sea, where this invasion first started, and which is still Neuroi occupied. There was also another invasion origin point around Siberia.
The anime website, light novels, and various exposition columns have also stated that the Neuroi have been around much longer than just this invasion, dating back to Roman times and before. It’s pretty unlikely that there’s just the one original core, and that they would have just so conveniently brought it over to Gallia, when the war is still being fought all over the place.
The Britannia-Gallia front, and the 501st JFW are actually very very small and not exactly on the front lines, especially when you consider that the SW world setting designer, Suzuki Takaaki, estimated the number of mechanized air infantry (air Strike Witches) just from Fuso to be around 700 (source: column from official doujin manga/exposition, originally meant to be a DVD booklet). He also reconfirms that as a media mix project, all the setting info from the various media are canon “for the most part”, and mentions that due to time constraints in the anime “only the absolute minimum” was shown.
Which basically means that this series is not as canon as anybody thinks. I mean, from the start, nobody thought it was. The OVA gave that part away.
As for the timeline, like I said, it’s not explained that much on this end. I mean, to destroy a single original core to free Gallia ALONE? Then it wouldn’t even need help from other countries if that’s the case! Why does Fuso, a major Axis power, have involvement in such war? Why are different flying aces flying alongside potential enemies? Why are they few when they were depicted at hundreds in different material? And why only Gallia? If we’re talking about this series’ timeline, it’s screwed well enough. What more if they’re to have a prequel or sequel? Would that be even possible?
And yes, we’re not only hailing air infantry here. There are also a number of tank Strikers, if you were to include the manga.