© BONES, Fuji TV
In terms of writing, this is an illuminating episode about Metallic Rouge. Our encounter with the Alien Visitor is filled with explanations and context as to why things have been happening, and it will be a relief to any (perhaps most) out) any audience is confused by the anime’s scribbled storytelling. However, this episode was clarified in a broader and more analytical sense, which helped me more accurately assess my feelings towards it. In other words, I had an epiphany: Metallic Rouge has no unifying theme or narrative direction other than a “damn it, we balls” philosophy. That sounds bad, but I don’t think it has to be. In fact, I really enjoyed this episode!
Let me explain myself first, and I can’t think of a better example than how Ash handled Noid’s death…because he didn’t. As I wrote last week, the accidental murder of the Noid by human security forces is the perfect inflection point for Ash to begin to seriously reassess the basic tenets of Nean slavery. The literary canon is filled with stories about people who didn’t think twice about oppression until it affected them personally, which means going in that direction is a no-brainer. However, Metallic Rouge ignores that. Sure, there’s a scene where he looks sadly at Noid’s body, but it never delves into his reaction. The plot is more concerned with eliminating him and linking him to Eden so they can eventually fly to help Rouge and Naomi. The emotional parts of the story take precedence over emotional and political depth.
I don’t believe this is due to lazy writing; I bet it’s the result of writing too much. No one laments the lack of plot threads, twists, characters, setting, world-building, or weird names in Metallic Rouge. The show flows breathlessly from one part to the next with barely any time to linger. This echoes my complaint about Witch from Mercury, where I felt that an additional course or two (to match the length of most classic Gun anime) would have made for a rich program. richer with a more satisfying final confrontation. Metallic Rouge, not to be outdone, is aiming to complete at least two courses in a season. Instead of chopping the story down to a manageable size — for example, by cutting out characters, factions, or subplots — it used a hydraulic press to cram everything in. The plot moves along but moves too quickly to find its footing. The characters are all here, but they’re flattened. The themes and social commentary are clear but neutralized, simplified, and often contradictory. Its potential for influence is enormous, but it fails to synthesize them in a novel and compelling way.
That said, I think somehow Metallic Rouge mostly works thanks to its strong style, forward momentum, and devil-may-care attitude. It may not always be going somewhere, but it always feels like it’s going somewhere. And the characters are always happy, even when they shouldn’t be. Here’s why I loved this week’s episode: Naomi and Rouge are back together! Before focusing on that, though, I like the ridiculousness of the opening Alter melee. It quickly becomes meaningless, but entertaining nonsense. And I also liked the scene with Visitor/X Noah. Their design is neat: a strong blend of otherworldly marine elements with the human components they must use to communicate with us. Their appearance alone tells us they are unscrupulous weirdos trying to trick us off a planet. Anime is primarily a visual medium, so delivering compelling visuals is half the battle.
Most importantly, however, Naomi and Rouge actually reunited. While I’ve said this many times before, I have to reiterate how much the show shines when it focuses on them and their friendly (and not so friendly) banter. For example, Rouge’s first meeting with the Traveler would probably have been a tense and dull moment if it wasn’t for Naomi’s constant aloofness and Rouge’s superficial skepticism that defused the whole situation . Their riffs add character to an otherwise dry presentation of who created who and who is terraforming what. This is where the show’s chaos works in its favor. Amplifying this aspect is the return of animator Norimitsu Suzuki, whose exceptionally expressive acting (you may remember it from episode five) gives their reunion much-needed playfulness. It’s not all fun and games; Rouge gives Naomi a well-deserved punch. But overall, it’s nice to see them on the same team again.
I’m a bit more optimistic about the long story after confirming that Naomi is also Nean. That means both of our main characters are created beings, dangling from a string of strings pulled in opposite directions by humans and aliens, and that means is that Metallic Rouge might finally have something to say about humanity and freedom. Or it might not. As I said in the introduction, I accept the inherent shallowness of this anime—a consequence of its design. As long as individual episodes continue to air, I will continue to praise it on those terms. But I really wonder what Metallic Rouge would look like if it not only emulated the mood, music, and visuals from last year’s anime, but also their episode numbers.
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Metallic Rouge is now streaming on Crunchyroll.
Steve is on Twitter while it lasted. He is not a biomechanical android in disguise. You can also see him chatting about trash and treasure on This Week in Anime.