© TriF/“Mecha-Ude” Production Committee
By all rights, this should have been Aki's episode, but it's clear that Mecha-Ude can't seem to focus on one plot for longer than a few heavily edited scenes. That's not to say this isn't an enjoyable show, but I worry that they're trying to do too many things at once in a light action episode like this.
Last time, we stopped at the obvious reveal that Aki's presumed dead twin sister, Fubuki, was probably the mastermind behind the recent worm-shaped Mecha-Ude attacks- and possibly the murderer of their parents. Fubuki seems unwell and her evil Mecha-Ude Amaryllis begs Aki to listen to their story. It is unclear how much Aki believes that Fubuki and Amaryllis were just victims of circumstances and that the deaths of Aki and Fubuki's parents were an accident. The post-credits scene in particular confirms my suspicions that something is amiss with the dreaded Amaryllis, especially now that there appears to be a swarm of worm-like zombies controlled by Mecha-Ude erupting from within. ranks of both opposition factions, ARMS and the Kagami Group.
Most disturbing of all, Amaryllis tells Aki that to cure Fubuki (she is no longer able to create Arbitrium, which seems like a blatant lie), the only cure is for Hikaru to be sacrifice. I call bullshit and I hope Aki does too, but we're stuck in a difficult situation and resolving that will be left for next week's reply.
This all happened so fast – Aki barely had time to process that her sister was still alive, possibly the bad guy, apparently about to die too, and now she needed to kill her new friend. (which, by the way, both ARMS and Kagami Corporation are trying to control). If the entire episode was dedicated to her dilemma that would be one thing, but instead we get multiple scenes of Meru trying to organize a group study session with herself, Hikaru, Jun Kagami and Aki. While I loved Meru's crazy romantic comedy fantasies, they came across as a distraction in an episode that didn't quite come together thematically or in a coherent narrative manner.
At least we get to meet an interesting new character in the form of Kagemaru, a bat-shaped Mecha-Ude known as the blue-haired Oner, a former teammate of the blonde-haired sniper Twos. Oner, formerly affiliated with the Kagami Group, has now been forcibly recruited by ARMS and his Mecha-Ude has been freed from his chains. Kagemaru is obsessed with ninjas and samurais constantly saying things about samurai and excitedly dragging Oner behind him, against his will. I think that's poetic justice!
Along with the aforementioned random zombie outbreak, there's still a lot going on with Mecha-Ude, even in a seemingly less tense episode. Although I worry that the story's various threads risk getting muddled unless the writers exercise autonomy over their impulses in everything but their kitchen sink, hopefully in the next volume As time goes on, Amaryllis and Fubuki's roles in the plot will become clearer.
Evaluate:
Mechanical thinking:
Aljis, leader of ARMS, what's the deal? His mockery of normal human relationships could make him a future villain.
Why did Aki and Fubuki's parents experiment on their children? Are they bad guys too? Combining your twin daughters with alien robot things would seem to attract the interest of Child Protective Services in most civilized countries…
We finally know why Aki has two Mecha-Ude for her – one used to belong to her sister, and perhaps she joined it to keep it alive after Fubuki “die”.
Oner still sees Kagemaru as a “tool” even though he is no longer chained and can express his thoughts and personality. It seems Kagemaru has turned the tables, but will that make Oner reconsider his beliefs?
© For those struggling to keep the many characters in their minds, the official Mecha-Ude website has a Character Information Page, with English translations!
Mecha-Ude: Mechanical Arms is now streaming on Crunchyroll.
