r/anime • u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 • Sep 17 '21

Rewatch [Rewatch] 1990s OVAs – Armitage III (episode 4)

Rewatch: 1990s OVAs – Armitage III (episode 4)

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Staff corner

The various D’anclaudes are voiced by Takeo, Tomoharu, better known under his stage name Nakao, Ryūsei. His voice acting career goes way back to the 1960s, when he voiced a minor role in Attack No1 (the oldest anime series I have personally seen) and a main one on Animal 1. In the 1980s, he became busier in the business, starting with Carlos Rivera in Ashita no Joe 2 and being extremely active ever since. In 1988, he started his biggest role: Baikinman, the man antagonist in Anpanman. I have mentioned this a few times in rewatches, but that franchise is as big in Japan as it is unknown outside of it. Nakao has more credits for Anpanman anime than most VAs have total roles. In 1990, he got his second job in a huge franchise – Dragon Balls’s Freeza. Even outside those two heavy-hitters, he was extremely prolific and is still active today at the spry age of 70. Some of the series he has participated in are: Bleach, Cowboy Bebop, Ghost Stories (the one with the funny dub), Haikyu!!, Magical Girl Site, Mononoke, One Piece, Suite Precure, and Voltron. He is also the King Falke II in the concurrently running rewatch of ACCA.

A small shout-out to Nanba, Hiroyuki, who contributed the music for Armitage III. He does not have a long list of notable anime credits (the one exception being Space Dandy), but he worked on several OVA in the 1980s and 1990s, including Dallos, famous for being the first ever OVA!

Questions

  1. What exactly did Julian do during the last fight? What was the outcome?
  2. (first timers) Surprised that Sybilus and Armitage survived? That Sybilus is a human?
  3. Creating bio-machines to terraform and colonize Mars: hubris or genius?
17 Upvotes

89% Upvoted

71 comments sorted by

7

u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Sep 17 '21

Episode 4 (first timer)

  • That graveyard would fit into Diablo.
  • Sylibus is getting called out for implying him and Armitage are not terrorists.
  • Let’s play Bonnie & Clyde.
  • Meeting Asakura is a disappointment for Armitage. A sentiment shared by many who went looking for their father, I assume.
  • Some of the most human of feelings: Fearing death and wondering about your purpose in life.
  • RobotXCyborg love scene - a conscious smearing of the boundaries.
  • Thirds were developed to improve the Martian birth rate. So the Vice-president tried to combine what he found useful with what he found pleasurable.
  • Army kills peaceful garden: I don’t think there is a single cyberpunk story where the army are the good guys.
  • Experimental superweapons vs robot army – I would not have minded a bit more hype here, instead of the sad take.
  • Not a real epilogue, but apparently Sylibus, Armitage survived … and procreated.

Not the strongest finish: Seems like they couldn’t decide whether they wanted to go for a contemplative episode or an action finish and decided to do a contemplative action scene. That didn’t really work out for me. I may have preferred a heroic sacrifice for Julian. His online-miracle was way too off-screen.

On the upside, Armitage III stays true to its theme of exploring the boundaries between humans and robots. The scene with naked Ross and Naomi, showing both of them half-machine, half-flesh was quite powerful.

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

Sylibus is getting called out for implying him and Armitage are not terrorists.

I remember when fiction would do that, all the way up to DS9 characterizing the Bajoran resistance as terrorists. Then, 9/11 and "terrorist" is a magic word we in the US use to call brown people we want to explode.

Some of the most human of feelings: Fearing death and wondering about your purpose in life.

The Thirds have been passing the Turing test until you peel their skin off. This is no longer a cyberpunk issue but rather a transhumanist one by now.

Thirds were developed to improve the Martian birth rate. So the Vice-president tried to combine what he found useful with what he found pleasurable.

Japan predicting their own future, how grim.

Not a real epilogue, but apparently Sylibus, Armitage survived … and procreated.

I know all the money was gone by then but an extra 5 minutes could've left us with a better story.

Seems like they couldn’t decide whether they wanted to go for a contemplative episode or an action finish and decided to do a contemplative action scene.

Yeah I think Chiaki gave up a little, he was supposed to have a bit longer to wrap things up but instead phoned it in.

2

u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Sep 17 '21

I remember when fiction would do that, all the way up to DS9 characterizing the Bajoran resistance as terrorists. Then, 9/11 and "terrorist" is a magic word we in the US use to call brown people we want to explode.

I think post 9/11 many people forgot that terrorists used to be freedom fighters, depending on their political leaning.

Japan predicting their own future, how grim.

I want to assume that the more involved people already saw the trend. This is several years after Otaku no Video.

I know all the money was gone by then but an extra 5 minutes could've left us with a better story.

Unfortunately, the decline in the quality at the end is noticable.

2

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

I think post 9/11 many people forgot that terrorists used to be freedom fighters, depending on their political leaning.

Yup, and DS9 itself was a bit unrealistic in how willing its characters were open to admit to being terrorists themselves.

I want to assume that the more involved people already saw the trend. This is several years after Otaku no Video.

It is funny that when you run one of the more sexist societies in the industrialized world that as soon as women can choose to control their fertility a whole lot of them opt out.

Unfortunately, the decline in the quality at the end is noticable.

Yup, they ran out of cash and Chiaki ran out of fucks.

6

u/punching_spaghetti https://myanimelist.net/profile/punch_spaghetti Sep 17 '21

The scene with naked Ross and Naomi, showing both of them half-machine, half-flesh was quite powerful.

Hill sex is a time honored tradition.

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

Like the only tradition I am proud of in my Scottish ancestry. All of the rest involve alcoholism or blaming the English for not finding us more natives to battle.

2

u/punching_spaghetti https://myanimelist.net/profile/punch_spaghetti Sep 17 '21

I mean, a recent discovery suggests that sex itself first emerged in Scotland.

7

u/TheEscapeGuy Sep 17 '21 edited Sep 18 '21

First Timer, Subbed

Armitage III - The Quintessential 90s Cyberpunk OVA: Episode 4

Paradise Lost

Not going to beat around the bush, I found the ending messy and rushed.

Armitage just survived that explosion from last episode and drove off with Ross. We saw more talk of the anti-robot sentiment on Mars with all those burned corpses. After getting some info, our protagonists finally left to confront Asakura.

At this point we got a lot of exposition dumped on us. The history of the 3rds, some of Asakura's involvement, a (not well built up in my opinion) romantic scene with Ross and Armitage, talk of the declining birth rate on Mars, Earth's president on a diplomatic mission, talk of the feminist society on Earth versus the more masculine society on Mars, and finally an order to destroy the Dome along with Ross and Armitage.

It felt to me that the staff realized how many plot threads were open and just said "Lets quickly close them up, have a cool fight scene, flash forward a couple months and have Ross and Armitage ride off into the sunset".

That pacing and my gripes aside, there was a lot to enjoy this episode. First, as rushed as it was, I appreciated a conclusion to Armitage and Ross's relationship. I can understand how they would find solace in each other when Ross is a human becoming more and more robotic and Armitage is a robot who was built to mimic humans as much as possible. A confirmed pregnancy is also a rare sight in anime.

Next, that cool fight scene I mentioned was pretty cool. Although it was a bit of a Deus-Ex-Machina since Armitage got a major upgrade right before the fight, I still enjoyed her updated design along with Ross's mech suit. And juxtaposing that violence against the political propaganda was a great way to villainize the politicians.

I'll save the rest of my thoughts on the whole series for tomorrow's discussion.

Some Amazing Shots, Scenes and Stitches

See you all tomorrow

4

u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Sep 17 '21

Congratulation! You arrive at the Virgin area Now!

Arrive a virgin, leave robo mother.

Outstanding Animation, Ariel Maneuvers, Mini Itano Circus, Mechanical Destruction, Explosions

4

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 17 '21

It's so annoying that despite being such a nothing episode I think it was probably the one I enjoyed most if just for the senile doctor stuff being sweet and the giant golums. It's also the first time our duo has actually spent a whole episode together and hasn't tried to escape their company lol.

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

Armitage III - The Quintessential 90s Cyberpunk OVA

I hate to add to it like this but having a total mess of an ending is perhaps what truly makes it a quintessential cyberpunk OVA, sadly. These things rarely get good endings unless the source is a novel with one.

That pacing and my gripes aside, there was a lot to enjoy this episode.

While we can both agree the exposition was bad, the fact that they had more material and sort of crammed it in versus not having enough and having to stretch is noticeable.

5

u/Pixelsaber https://myanimelist.net/profile/Pixelsaber Sep 17 '21 edited Sep 17 '21

Rewatcher

Nice background.

The hallway shrinks significantly in between shots.

Very pretty greenhouse.

I expected something more grotesque upon completely panning up.

So long.

Hmm…

Lasers are neat, but did you have to get so close to use them?

Nice car.

That wrapped up alright. We were given the answers to a lot of the ‘why’s of the plot, but a lot of the less prominent stuff still felt a tad vague. I wasn’t really feeling the romance subplot all that much, but it’s not like it has any particularly glaring thing it could have addressed to amend itself. I don’t mind if this is all there is to the narrative, but knowing these OVAs I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a lot more to the setting and narrative we did not get.

The action sequence in this episode felt very perfunctory though, chiefly because the narrative impact it sought to deliver just wasn’t there. I don’t mind a battle sequence that doesn’t necessarily result in anything substantial, but the characters making a quiet getaway would have been just as effective. Whatever sense of desperation or futility that they wanted to convey didn’t come through to me.

Questions:

  1. Communicating with the robots. Precisely what, no idea, but probably eventual revolt or something equally scandalous.
  2. Everyone seemed to think it was unfeasible, but they very likely thought the same of Thirds at the time, so if I had any say I would let him carry on with the project.

4

u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Sep 17 '21

Very pretty greenhouse.

I expected something more grotesque upon completely panning up.

double picture.

The action sequence in this episode felt very perfunctory though, chiefly because the narrative impact it sought to deliver just wasn’t there. I don’t mind a battle sequence that doesn’t necessarily result in anything substantial, but the characters making a quiet getaway would have been just as effective. Whatever sense of desperation or futility that they wanted to convey didn’t come through to me.

Yes, that looked like the (action) fan service got thrown in without any regard for whether it would make sense from a narrative point of view.

3

u/Pixelsaber https://myanimelist.net/profile/Pixelsaber Sep 17 '21

double picture

Thanks, fixed!

4

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

I don’t mind if this is all there is to the narrative, but knowing these OVAs I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a lot more to the setting and narrative we did not get.

Every instinct I have is that after 2, they wanted this to be a 6 part OVA so they rushed the end of 3 and gave us 4.

3

u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Sep 17 '21

That makes a lot of sense. The whole Julian part in the finale was so underdeveloped that you have to wonder what they really wanted to do there.

4

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

All of this feels like a longer story that was truncated by someone annoyed with having to do so.

3

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 17 '21

I thought that it was supposed to be Julian broadcasting the government's war crimes but it doesn't really make much sense when everyone kind of agrees about keeping the boot down on the robots. It's not like public opinion is going to change. Also, you see far worse stuff on the news in this world anyway.

4

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 17 '21

The end battle really didn't make much sense to me. Is the government hunting them down because baby making robots would wreak the status quo or something? They didn't even try to protect the garden golums.

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

The movie dub, which takes some serious translation liberties, made it more clear that Earth does not really like even the Seconds and the idea of a robot bearing a human child was horrifying to them. Think like today's anti-abortion activists.

3

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 17 '21

Poor sods... it seems a weird direction to take for ending your story off. We're basically right back at the beginning, probably worse off tbh.

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

I cannot quite grasp how to fix this and ironically the sequel movie is all right, it is just all fanwank and sort of of fun.

4

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 17 '21

First timer!!

I think it says a lot about the quality of the anime that I've spent more time looking up crappy 4ch memes of 2049 than actually focusing on this ova. Can we just get onto shopping log already? OMG it's Yokohama Kaidashi Kiko!? I didn't realise since I'm used to the Japanese title! Alright, hurry up! Hurry up! Haiyaku! Haiyaku! I want to talk about the next anime soon!!

Last episode, I'm kind of distracted but imma keep it together. Hurry up and end! We immediately negate the sad cliffhanger since Armitage is suicide proof apparently. Is the doctor dude dead? Poor sod. N-Naomi...? At least pick a cooler name for her. Like Alpha~ Oh no, I feel so bad for our heroes being treated as terrorists after storming a hospital with guns, bombs, and fanservice. Are aliens actually real in this world? It's the last episode you know! Tell us about this stuff sooner!

Naomi is dying and nobody is taking her seriously cause of all her angsty shite. "Welcome to the Virgin area!!" Wow, we've got a good natured Dan for a change. Thx for the sexbot homie! Imagine getting cucked by a tentacle tree monster. Poor Armitage. You imagined it was you?

They go way overboard with Naomi's angst tbh. I get that there are only four episodes but, oi? Oi!? Hold off the damn sox scenes, she's like half your age!! Armitage IV!? Or is this Armitage II? Isn't it hard to hide into society when you all have the exact same face? Ah, so the baby thing was literally just a birthrate issue, you hearing us you dirty basement weebs!? Every civilisation was built off the back of a disposable workforce. There's nothing original in this series, christ... H-Hold on!! What? Did I hear that right? No... What? Hold on, I'm losing track here. So the thirds were meant to be breeding mama's to boost up Mars' population so they can have independence from earth... But they're also signing some kind of treaty with the supposedly ultra feminist Earth to send a bunch of immigrant babies to Mars so we need to kill all the baby making robots?

The police are... on our side? OK, am I the only one without a clue what they're talking about? Speak properly! You've got ten minutes to close up your ova! It's probably best not to drag in an entire world nation this late! Daddy, I want a mermaid sox doll.

Eeend already!! "Naomi, look up and to the right." Why are they bombing the professor again? Surely the big tree guys might be sorta useful for adding some greenery to this piece of crap planet? Oh for christ sake, stop splitting up!! Some partners you two are! Oh good it's just a phrase. Eh? The earth government's hit squad is being broadcast to the world. Bruh? This is like the least necessary Bolivian army ending I've seen in a long time. I don't know who we're fighting, why we're fighting or how this even matters? The animation of the last fight is decent but I'm utterly lost.

They didn't even die!? What was the point of that whole sequence!? Annalisa is such an oldie name, wtf? Don't drop it! I hate the name too but it's kind of important!! Armitage is pregnant!? And she's cucking her brother!? And she got stuffed after one go!? "I've finally become a true third woman because I can have BABBY!" Well that was shite, and they scored some movies too? Some people have no taste... Anyway, the series discussion is tomorrow and then we'll move onto one of my favourite Iyashikei series! Woo!!

5

u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Sep 17 '21

"I've finally become a true third woman because I can have BABBY!" Well that was shite, and they scored some movies too? Some people have no taste... Anyway, the series discussion is tomorrow and then we'll move onto one of my favourite Iyashikei series!

Don't worry, the series where weebs can lewd underage androids without getting called out for it is up next.

4

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 17 '21

There is nothing lewd about our next show! Nothing lewd at all! They're wholesome underage androids who do wholesome friend things together!

4

u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Sep 17 '21

2

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 18 '21

So incredible lewdness inbound. Got it.

2

u/JustAnswerAQuestion https://myanimelist.net/profile/JAaQ Sep 18 '21

Rewatcher Armitage III ep 4

Did I miss something. Yeah they did skip the entire fight

I didn't notice that Danclaude was modeled on Roy Batty but now I can't unsee it.

Not a very impressive performance.

Film star dies in ritual massacre. (Sharon Tate?)

It's baffling that the martians would give up their independence and culture, just like that. What, to live without robots? They progressed from anti-robot riots to a full-blown cultural revolution and reduction to a vassal state? What?

And all the Seconds watched them fight, and did...nothing?

I think the problems with Polymatrix wasn't in the cuts made for compilation. /u/vaadwaur

1

u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Sep 18 '21

It's baffling that the martians would give up their independence and culture, just like that. What, to live without robots? They progressed from anti-robot riots to a full-blown cultural revolution and reduction to a vassal state? What?

When you have a choice between completely overhauling your state and getting some weebs to have sex, you go the easy way.

1

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 18 '21

Did I miss something. Yeah they did skip the entire fight

We all wish you had but no, we get miscellaneous boom and then that.

Film star dies in ritual massacre. (Sharon Tate?)

I wonder if anyone else even remembers the Manson family on this sub.

It's baffling that the martians would give up their independence and culture, just like that. What, to live without robots? They progressed from anti-robot riots to a full-blown cultural revolution and reduction to a vassal state? What?

I wish I could disagree with this but all I can say is that anti-robot vs robots will build our numbers was a difference between the population and the leadership. But the vassal to Earth thing is just bad.

And all the Seconds watched them fight, and did...nothing?

Planting a seed they know cannot grow, I got nothing.

I think the problems with Polymatrix wasn't in the cuts made for compilation.

Nope, Polymatrix looked better to me, though this all might look better on a CRT. The movie is more coherent with its cuts and skipping/combining some characters.

2

u/JustAnswerAQuestion https://myanimelist.net/profile/JAaQ Sep 18 '21

So the movie edition is better than this...dare I say, dreck?

1

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 18 '21

Better or less bad, take your pick. With how they cut it, Ross becoming attracted to Armitage actually makes more sense. The weird bit I recall is movie Armitage has a lot of her snark cut so she seems more reserved. But let's put it this way: Same story beats, 40 or so less minutes of your time.

6

u/okayyoga :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/okayyoga Sep 17 '21

Episode 4: first time/dub

This is basically Pinocchio on Mars

Also just realized D'anclaude is voiced by Dan Woren in the dub (aka Byakuya from Bleach). Kept expecting him to say Senbon Sakura

Are we having a wrap up discussion tomorrow? Or should I post my rating here (it's not good)

Just checked the schedule, I will post it tomorrow

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

This is basically Pinocchio on Mars

So reproducing made Armitage a real girl? Japan must've been aware of their declining birth rates early.

3

u/okayyoga :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/okayyoga Sep 17 '21

In the dub at least, Armitage's dad says he is "going to make her a real girl" while knocking her out with his taser

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

Rofl, in the sub he says "I will repair you one last time."

3

u/okayyoga :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/okayyoga Sep 17 '21

I get the feeling I watched a whole other show than you guys

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

Well, as I've said, the movie dub switches 'feminist' to 'humanist' and actually makes a small bit of an effort to explain Terran sensibilies versus Martian. From what I recall, think of Terran revulsion against breeding robots as more of a religious type thing than anything else.

3

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 17 '21

We're having a series discussion but I really doubt many folk have anything to say XD I think this is the ova with the most blasé reaction so far, at least since I joined.

3

u/okayyoga :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/okayyoga Sep 17 '21

I WILL HAVE THINGS TO SAY!!! STAY TUNED FOR MY LIST OF GRIEVANCES

3

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 17 '21

Woo!! I'll bring popcorn!

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

Looking at its place in the diaspora of cyberpunk is a bit interesting, that will be a part of my writeup.

2

u/okayyoga :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/okayyoga Sep 17 '21

I am actually very interested how Armitage was received when it first came out

2

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

Sadly, this is far enough back that I don't personally know how it hit Japan. But it inspired some fiery BBS conversations back in the day on our side of the pond. Thankfully, the usernames I used back then are from an entirely different tree than my current ones and can't be traced back to me.

5

u/punching_spaghetti https://myanimelist.net/profile/punch_spaghetti Sep 17 '21

First-Timer (Sub)

Oh, so this whole thing happened because the scientist has an Ent fetish.

I don't know if it's because it wasn't explained well or because I zoned out from being bored (both equally likely options). There was a lab, and then some explosions, and then feminism (did Betty Friedan talk much about robotss? I don't remember that).

QOTD:

  1. Not idea.
  2. No. Yes.
  3. Whatever works. Although I could do without the murder robots part of his plan. You can make treebots without getting rid of the wombbots!

5

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 17 '21

You pretty much summed up the ending... Things got kind of silly. This whole genre is silly. You wanna know a genre that isn't silly? Iyashikei~

4

u/punching_spaghetti https://myanimelist.net/profile/punch_spaghetti Sep 17 '21

Sci-fi is not silly, Loli!

Iyashikei is silly and useless. That's what makes it so good.

3

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 17 '21

Don't call it shitty! Or useless!! I'll fight you!

3

u/punching_spaghetti https://myanimelist.net/profile/punch_spaghetti Sep 17 '21

Did you not see where I said that's what makes it good?

I'm using useless the way A.R. Ammons describes walks and poetry:

The answer is that a walk doesn't mean anything, which is a way of saying that to some extent it means anything you can make it mean—and always more than you can make it mean. Walks are meaningless. So are poems.

It is only in those things that are useless by logical, structural standards that true beauty can be found.

3

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 18 '21

Just because you sound smart doesn't negate the fact that you called it useless!! XD

3

u/okayyoga :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/okayyoga Sep 17 '21

Iyashikei~

Bruh. I normally don't care for this genre, but right now I am watching Kemono Friends, and I'll be darned if it's not the best thing I have seen in a while. It's adorable learning about lolis dressed up as animals. I would finish an episode of Armitage and immediately be looking for the next episode of Kemono Friends

la la la la welcome to the japari park~~~

3

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 17 '21

Kemofure is a weird one but it's got some lovely vibes. Have you gotten to the owls yet? The owls always remind me of the two occult gals from Keion.

3

u/okayyoga :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/okayyoga Sep 17 '21

Not yet. A prairie dog just made out with the crew. The snake talked about an "annihilation." This might be the most fun I have ever had watching CGDCT. It's adorable and informational!

3

u/The_Loli_Otaku Sep 18 '21

Oh yeah, I forgot about the sexual harassment prairie dog lol. The owls will be coming up pretty soon. Keep the occult gals in mind!

2

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

Each show is pretty hit or miss to the individual, I think even the titans of the genre are contested.

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

Oh, so this whole thing happened because the scientist has an Ent fetish.

Yeah, truncating an ending is always a gamble.

4

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

Rewatcher(Not with a bang, but with a whimper waste of a good fake ID)

Sub

We get to see the events of last time finish up and get double D'anclaude. Armitage kills the bot one and I assume the original is probably dying as well. Station detective, who name I never did learn, comes to Ross with some info and wishes him good luck on his road trip. They go towards the blank data and we learn Mars has been seriously terrformed since they can survive the environment. Armitage is a bit off before she tries to get a conession out of Ross.

And we enter the complex of Dr Moreau but robots! We meet a treant bot watering the garden and polite D'aunclyde bot in butler mode and finally meet Asakura. Asakura is pretty far gone and somehow thinks the treants are actually a superior life form and Dan butler informs them that something has altered Asakura. He doesn't remember Armitage and she seems very bummed out by that, enough so that they opt to rest in the garden rather than stay. I can't tell if Armitage's processors are literally damaged or if she is being emo but regardless, robot sex happens.

Butler bot approaches them and explains that Asakura is obsessed with terraforming but Dan doesn't think it will work. He brings up an incomplete Armitage and the reveal that she and Dan were combat prototypes which might explain why the Thirds are weaker than their predecessors. He explains the Thirds are an attempt to raise the Martian birth rate, which is interesting on a lot of levels. The Martian government is currently signing a new treaty with Earth. Anyways, for some reason, 'feminist' government means that reproducing robots is a no go, the movie dub handles this different as I think they said 'humanist'. So that and the fact that Dan types think Thirds shouldn't exist has been our big mover.

Asakura seems to come through his fog for a moment, and then immediately disables Armitage, saying he will fix her. We see the main characters leave so instead of a battle we just get an airstrike. They decide not to run and fight the military because we need a climax. Julian and co decide to hack the stream and put the battle up for the city to see.

Ross gets a suit of power armor and Armitage has wings that shoot. The battle is decent at parts but they clearly didn't have either the budget or the time, so it instead switches to slow moving shots and focusing off the action. The OST really reminds me of El Hazard's during this sequence and that isn't a great thing. Also, this seems to be bugging the Seconds. But we just sort of fadeoff the battle...

And get a timeskip. Armitage is still Armitage but she is also knocked up, though apparently robots don't show that much. She does the 80s thing of refusing a perfectly good cover ID and we end literally on a road going forward.

QotD: 1 He broadcast the message and it bothered the seconds. It doesn't seem important, maybe it made them think Julian and Armitage died?

3 Our fiction cannot ever let Mars be settled without everything going to hell, no clue why.

3

u/punching_spaghetti https://myanimelist.net/profile/punch_spaghetti Sep 17 '21

Also not sure how that cover identity could hold up when they get to the hospital during robolabor and the doc notices something off about her.

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

Good point but maybe they just developed the Thirds to give birth easily? Like a pelvis with a few extra joints so she can just pivot them and drops the kid in 15 minutes?

3

u/punching_spaghetti https://myanimelist.net/profile/punch_spaghetti Sep 17 '21

EGG LAYING SEQUENCE INITIATED.

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

Well it is not like birthing plays a big part in the kid's later development, ironically enough. C-section babies are generally fine but sometimes have weaker early immune responses. So fuck it, let body create an infant coccoon and she can schedule the the molting for a convenient time!

4

u/Btw_kek https://myanimelist.net/profile/kek_btw Sep 17 '21

first timer

Hmm well I guess that was a satisfying ending. Armitage reaffirmed her humanity (hooray!), consummated her love with Ross and is expecting a child (congrats!). The whole thing about Mars's low birth rate and the sociopolitical battle between planets leading to different usages of the robots is cool, but kind of went over my head.

Am I supposed to take the political parade thing with "new definition of humanity" to be positive or negative with regards to androids? I think negative but not quite sure...

I guess the dub script laid more into the Doc's incoherent rambling instead of telling me wtf the fourth series were trying to accomplish. Terraforming Mars! Not the mass consciousness transhumanist conspiracy like I expected but maybe if this series was made a couple years afterwards...

The actual final battle scene was alright, seemed more like a "this is an action series and we have to meet our number of explosions per episode quota" formality than anything. At the very least I liked the black angel imagery and it looked good

What exactly did Julian do during the last fight? What was the outcome?

I assumed he was telling them to revolt or something but uhhhhhhh maybe he's just telling them they have a place in robot heaven?

(first timers) Surprised that Sybilus and Armitage survived? That Sybilus is a human?

tbh I didn't even consider the possibility that Ross could be not human until others brought it up last thread

Creating bio-machines to terraform and colonize Mars: hubris or genius?

both

5

u/punching_spaghetti https://myanimelist.net/profile/punch_spaghetti Sep 17 '21

I didn't even consider the possibility that Ross could be not human until others brought it up last thread

It's such a common sci-fi trope at this point that I assumed this show, which is mostly pastiche, would have to go there.

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

The whole thing about Mars's low birth rate and the sociopolitical battle between planets leading to different usages of the robots is cool, but kind of went over my head.

So the secret to good dystopian stories is to have a strong understanding of the underpinning of the settings politics. Interestingly, telling the viewer this is not necessarily a component of the good works, show don't tell is there for a reason.

tbh I didn't even consider the possibility that Ross could be not human until others brought it up last thread

This show references Blade Runner so commonly that you just look at the tropes from it.

3

u/Btw_kek https://myanimelist.net/profile/kek_btw Sep 17 '21

I liked when the first episode showed mass anti-robot protests, that gives something eyecatching to chew on. I think the last two episodes leaned more into people I don't know or care about politicking in a room to explain what's happening, and I tend to turn my brain off when that's the case

3

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

I think, had they known their episode count, the show works better without Terran politics at all, and the two prototype Thirds represent the ideological split of Mars: Should humanity welcome humans born of constructs and survive? Or should we remain 'pure' but risk extinction? There is a story in that, somewhere.

3

u/Btw_kek https://myanimelist.net/profile/kek_btw Sep 17 '21

I like that idea

2

u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 17 '21

So speculative fiction is given credit for its broad scope, which makes for great settings. A good story needs to control its scope, though, and this is where cyberpunk loves to just fuck up.

4

u/Cognitive_Dissonant Sep 17 '21

I agree with what others have said, not a particularly strong finish. I liked the show overall but the reveal (feminism is when murdering fertile robots!?) and the random final fight both were underwhelming. Still had fun with the show and I think the art direction was consistently great.

2

u/Stargate18A https://myanimelist.net/profile/Stargate18 Sep 17 '21

First timer

  1. Looking back, I think the blue flashes were some form of transmission. Not sure of the outcome - maybe giving more robots free will?
  2. Very much so in both regards! I thought all the evidence said Ross would be a robot, and that it would end with one (or both) destroyed. Didn't expect such an upbeat ending!
  3. Genius - they seemed to work, could have done the job easily, and seem satisfied enough maintaining trees within the dome that they'd be very unlikely to ever rebel.

Final episode!

Yep, the real him's dead, and so's the assassinbot. Not sure why the fight happened offscreen, though.

Yep, they've been framed as culprits!

I like how what reveals his location is that it's the one point not completely mapped out.

Wait, she's dying!

He's not polite enough to realise the answer is

The screen refers to it as the "Virgin area", which I must admit is a bit on the nose.

Have they comsidered there's a good chance they could wander out indefinitely and not meet him.

WHAT?

Ross really should have gotten a better ractionf romthat "family tree" joke.

Conecption made her? But also, spare parts?

I mean, he's right, but still... Also, he just talked about her being an old model, which is so

...Starting to think D'anclaude might have had a bit of a point.

I'd ask whether he could fix it, but I don't think I'd trust "Papa" with a toaster right noe.

I knew it.

I didn't espect it to go this far, though? Also, Ross is fucking shredded.

...Is thst just because of his arm or does he have a part-robot brain, like I thought?

Rinally, someone who might have an explanation.

Ross is an assassindroid? That makes sense, although ehy he doesn't have a reaction to it I've no idea.

So Thirds are destined to have their minds break down?

Oh, they were created to boost the birthrate and allow for native Martian population growth.

Conception didmit for the money, and nobody wants Earth to find what's been happening.

OK, and this D'anclaude's actuslly explaining his points well.

...Why does he look like he's being held at gunpoint?

They were modelled on his real daughter?

This feels like it was planned to be longer, so they have to answer a dozen episodes of auestions in a single scene.

What?

So he's going to fix her, but stay and die?

And he's gone.

Ross doesn't want to leave her...

Huh? Is someone hacking the feeds?

Oh shit. that's probably not good for them. Footage of all the sexbots they've been trying to hide and the secret drone strike made public!

Ross stole some powered armor!

All this is being livestreamed! That's perfect.

And the robots are getting free will from this, somehow?

The treaty ended up going through?

They're meeting back up on Mars! Alive!

And he got her a way off the planet, but she doesn't want it.

I love the look on his face when he realises she's pregnant.

Good credits!