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The second season of Sidonia makes a number of mistakes that a lot of second seasons do. That namely being that the anime slows down and introduces characters and conflicts that are often resolved in a undetermined to exist, third season. A new antagonist is introduced, whom does very little in the season and only foreshadows a future conflict. A war is started and the season ends when Sidonia takes a planet as a base of operations for future conflicts in the war. This season is really just a build up to a third season which may or may not come to be. So it can be said, undeniably, that this season is much weaker than it’s first. The biggest detractor to its enjoyment is the sudden increase of slice of life harem antics which strangely enough was started with the introduction of an inhuman character. A chimera called Tsumugi is introduced to the cast and with her introduction the plot of the series takes a massive backseat. The story puts her directly into the spotlight where more or less all events for a large amount of screentime have to do with her. Previously her role looked to be the start of a conflict with the use of Gauna based weapons and the people’s rejection of Tsumugi but this conflict is wrapped up very fast. Then she’s treated as another girl around Tanikaze despite being in no way human, in some ways it comes across as alien just how accepting these people are of a giant pink tentacle squid that talks with a cutesy girls voice.

Art for the series remains consistent and can look great but animation can take some time to get used to. There are still some uncanny valley moments with the stiffness of human characters that even went gotten used to can be distracting. It is a shame, as with just a small improvement in movement would make this a non issue. The mecha battles are fantastic and remain a highlight of the series but are more sparse in this season. Which brings me to what I consider to be the biggest failing here, that being the increase of harem antics. Sidonia’s first season also had these moments but they were broken up a lot more due to more action set pieces. The pace of the first season kept moving, never letting characters sit too long for the viewer to notice the lack of depth to them. But here the pacing comes down and when the story begins to focus on the characters it really comes to light that there isn’t much there. Tanikaze remains a typical anime protagonist, who has a huge talent for piloting and attracting female companionship despite having a lack of charisma. Izana has potential for grown but remains a role who is defined by her love for Tanikaze. Yahata has her role as a commander during action but out of that she serves the same role as Izana. Tsumugi you would think would have a much more defined role, but despite how disturbing it is, also plays mainly as love interest after her initial introduction. So it’s not hard to see that the story has veered off course when you are watching an episode dedicated to teasing a potential romantic relationship between Izana and Tanikaze. Almost as if the writer has been pushed out of his role and replaced with a shipper.

Despite now there being less of them, the action scenes are still a joy to watch and the series does have a great ending battle. Though predictably it ends with a tease for a another season and could leave viewers unsatisfied. Overall it’s a decent season held down by its slow moments. Provided you can put up with some age old harem scenarios it can be enjoyed and it never gets to the point of being insufferable to get through. What plot there is, is engaging and it does hold promise for a future season. If that comes to be. But I know this season will likely be a breaking point for some and I can see why. I just hold out hope that if there is another season, it’s doesn’t make the same mistakes this one did.

Tanikaze’s rendezvous with Benizumie looks to have been cut short as Izana interrupted with some hacker magic. The entire sequence being as uncomfortable and disturbing as you could imagine. I still wonder just what was her goal in doing all this to Tanikaze. Was it some method of killing him or just some really kinky reproduction? Probably both. I did really like that moment before Tanikaze dove the knife in for the killing blow, like he was breaking her heart. The Hayakaze bombardment was also a great highlight, being mesmerising in how each unit locked in together and blasted everything to kingdom come. From what I hear this was an anime original addition and if so it was a great way to conclude the final battle. After this was just a few call backs to the start of the series and a montage ending with the first opening theme. One thing that really proves this was a weaker season than the first was that in the montage there was an abundance of great action when montaging the first season but when it jumped to the second it suddenly was showing scenes such as Izana bursting out of her pilot suit and a bath scene. That really speaks for this season as a whole.

The ending scenes acted more as a makeshift live goes on ending for the series and there seems to be no sight of a third season so far. I think the probability of another season is actually quite high and I would be interested in seeing how things develop with the Benizumie placenta, the parasite controlling Kunato and the second Chimera. However I also dread the thought of having to go through another number of slice of life harem antics such as this season was.  My overall impression of the season is positive but I think the middle section of the cour did drag a bit. If this is the last of the Sidonia universe in animated form then as an ending to the series this is deeply unsatisfying. There are far too many loose threads and foreshadowing to a conclusion that viewers would need to read the manga to see. A filler ending would be a bad way to end things as they can never find a way to tie things up without seeming forced but to have it end this way is also a shame. I at least want to see them do something with Kunato as he does feel like a villain who was introduced only to dwell in the background, looking menacing.  I had fun watching this show and to see it reach a half baked conclusion is disheartening.

It’s quite the coincidence that both shows I am covering have decided to use their last episodes to make up for the season’s shortcomings. This will be a short post as while action packed episodes are great to watch, they make it hard to bring up topics to talk about. Guana look to be imitating humans more and more with the appearance of a human shaped Gauna encountered by Izana and another pilot. Kunato remarked about superior organisms while watching Tsumugi and Benizumie fight so it could be possible that they are seeking a new path of evolution through human imitation. Though why is the Hoshijiro inside Benizumie is well made while the monster encountered by Izana malformed. Maybe its that they haven’t figured out Male anatomy yet.

I worried a little when Tsumugi was about to put an end to Benizumie making her to be the monster of the week but Benizumie came right back and destroyed Tsumugi. Also Benizumie using the same words that Tsumugi said to her as she was about to shoot the finishing blow, perfect. Menacing while remaining alien in action. There is also a certain level of cunning in letting Tsumugi see her human form and thus causing her to be put off guard but that could have been unintentional. The fight itself was excellent and I am still loving Benizumies design with the insect like wings and arm blades. I really could sit and watch Benizumie and Tsumugi jet around and clash all day.

One part of the episode that made me sigh was went Tanikaze set down his gun and managed to take out all the Gauna surrounding him. Mainly because this was followed by a number of people saying how amazing that was. This might not bother me so much if I was more invested in Tanikaze’s character but it really does feel as though he has leap frogged up in experience when the audience wasn’t looking. He was always a good pilot but I think I missed the point where he became an amazing one. It’s a minor detail though because after this he’s put in a tight spot so at least he isn’t overpowered. The end of the episode has Tanikaze in the tight fix and from the looks of things his love affairs are about to get a whole lot stranger.

Unfortunately this wasn’t the time for Izana to become an ace pilot though she did at least show some ingenuity in her escape from gauna. Instead the spotlight falls once again to Tsugumi and Tanikaze. A lot of the fight scenes before the challenger appeared was to shown that Tsugumi and Tanikaze have great teamwork which admittedly isn’t all that strange seeing as they go into battle often. While it is a shame that Izana didn’t get a moment to shine, I am glad that Sidonia has returned to the elements that make it good. Those harem antics went on for far too long and now that it’s back to the plot that matters, I am starting to see that spark that made the first season so good. A bit late into the game but as they say better late than never. The CGI animation really looks its best in the mecha battle scenes. While human characters tend to have levels of uncanny valley syndrome, the robot battles are fast and fluid with little awkward movement. Any stiffness in the animation can be just attributed to the robot’s mechanical movements and easily ignored. The battles are really a symbol of this shows strengths, it’s at it’s best at a fast pace and events are constantly happening. When the show takes the time to slow down it’s flaws become more apparent. In a way, it’s similar to attack on titan in this regard. Attack on titan was also at it’s best when everything was in chaos and the situation was dire. But when things slow down and it moves away from the main threat then that’s when the weaknesses in the characters and story become more visible. So the key to this kind of story is to keep things moving and never dwell too long on a cooling down period.

The big reveal of this episode was the return of Tanikazes ex-girlfriends robot turned psycho killing machine, Benisuzume. This reveal is what makes Gauna an effective threat as just as Sidonia is improving their forces with Gauna technology, Gauna in turn are improving their forces through Sidonia technology. Each side is becoming more and more dangerous thus insuring that nobody has the upper hand for long. With the addition of Tsumgi, it felt like Sidonia had drawn the winning card but with the re-appearance of Benisuzume, she now has worthy opposition. Her existence however has me wondering as to just where is the real hoshijero? Is Benisuzume the real Hoshijero or is she the floating body lying in Kunatos workshop or is she Tsumugi? There seems to be some level of cloning going on as all three clearly have a connection to Hoshijiro. I really like Benizumies design as a melded mecha chimira, especially the 101 left from the robot printed on her right forehead. It’s…cool. For lack of a more professional word. Actually if I can segway into another topic, I must ask a question if manga readers have an answer. What exactly is the role of Tsumugi’s pilot? I mean from what I have seen, it looks like Tsumugi has full control over her functions as Kunato couldn’t stop her from rampaging in an earlier episode. So is the pilot some kind of advisor or a fail safe? I also find it amusing that after Tsumugi nearly killed herself to save Sidonia, Kunato has stopped acting as pilot and left it up to his assistant instead.Too much of a close call for him I guess. As things look now, this could be a pretty good wrap up for what has been a weak season for Sidonia. Assuming of course that this is a twelve episode season like it’s predecessor.

Though the majority of the episode was of the same antics I have been complaining about in previous episodes, it’s nice to see Sidonia get back to what it does best. Dire situations and sci-fi mecha action. Izana being pushed into the role of scouting with a new weapon has to be the best path for her character right now. At the moment her existence is mainly to derail the plot with her crush on Tanikaze but now we finally see her being put to use. Her new mental controls are giving her more value on the battlefield and now has the potential to become more than just Tanikazes Harem member. The scene was tense and while we all knew something was going to go wrong, its still exciting just waiting to see exactly what will. With each fight Gauna are growing more and more dangerous. With Tanikaze and Tsumugi out of the battlefield, this could be Izana’s moment to shine and I am all for it.

One thing that bugged me however was the girl that Izana likely replaced. While Tanikaze was checking out the new weapon, a woman started mocking him. Saying how disposable they were compared to the hero of Sidonia. I had no problem with what the girl said to him as there is truth to it and considering that she was getting sent out on a mission with a high chance of death it’s perfectly understandable for her to lash out to golden boy Tanikaze. My issue with it was her walking away laughing like a witch. I wonder why they felt they needed to add that last detail to make her seem more in the wrong. What she said to Tanikaze wasn’t wrong, it’s true that he wasn’t being sent out to scout because he’s more valuable as a poster boy for the war effort and that they were being sent out because they are more disposable. All things considered, her anger was fairly justified. So why is she laughing like a saturday morning cartoon villain? If that laugh was removed she would be a more realistic and morally grey character. But it’s almost as if they went out of there way to make her obnoxious.

Other than that, it’s very much the same story. The show teases a pairing up of Izana and Tanikaze but honestly I see her chances to be slim. Have all the romantic getaways and fake confessions you like, it will not improve your chances. But Izana is not quite as hopeless as Yuhata. Honestly just for unpredictability I would like it if Tanikaze went for such an unconventional choice as Yuhata. The one who has the highest chances, despite my problems with it on many levels, is Tsumugi. Its crystal clear that she has feelings for him, what with taking a mecha pilot for a hellish joyride after him making fun of her missing her “boyfriend” and Tanikaze seems to harbor a certain fondness for her. Not to mention her connection to his first crush. But unless she gains a more human body I can’t help but look at their relationship with a raised eyebrow. I mean how would you even…I think I do not want to continue that trail of thought. My interest in Tsumugi’s future plot involvement has dissipated just as the conflicts I thought would have higher focus have. But Kunato looks to be creating a new Chimera and that could prove interesting. Next week I hope that Izana can have her moment of badass and finally become something more than Tanikaze’s secondary wife.

I think something is wrong when I consider a protagonist from a movie these characters are watching a more compelling lead than our current one. I was surprised when starting the episode to see a sudden rise in visual quality only for it to turn out to be a movie within an anime. Actually I am rather curious as to what happened later in that movie, as I am sure it’s bound to be more interesting than the episode itself. This isn’t a sci-fi show with harem elements anymore. This is a harem show with sci-fi elements. Only one thing related to the main plot happened in this episode and that was Izana’s mother letting the female engineer in on what’s going on. Seems that she’s had a hit of conscience and has decided to turn against Kobayashi. While that’s interesting, the show thinks of it as not that important as she then goes and sets up a romantic vacation for Izana and Tanikanze. It is true that this could just be a means of keeping her daughter out of harm’s way so that she can pull off a plan but I am sceptical. I do find it amusing though that the only way she could get Tanikanze to agree was to threaten him with a lie about a bomb in his neck. Dense as the plot demands him to be, Tanikanze still thinks this is a genuine mission. Can we for once have a protagonist who is aware of these girls affection? I have heard the line “What is she so mad about” so many times from so many protagonists that I could spend over a year chronicling every single one of them. I can understand that there are people who enjoy these segments of the show and that’s fine. I too don’t mind them as long as the main story continues. But when these aspects of the show begin to overshadow or even hinder the main plot that’s when I have a problem with them.

What’s even scarier is that Tsumugi has become a member of Tanikanze’s harem. Tsumugi being that nonhuman chimera. I find that immensely disturbing. Tsumugi may act and sound like a standard moe girl but she is not human and having her be a potential harem candidate is unsettling. What’s also odd is that no one seems to find something wrong with this, as a man watches them blast off together with a “Ahh young love” and Izana getting jealous at the two. Humans were pretty anti-chimera not too long ago but even taking away that I think we should be concerned about how messed up this relationship would be. Well the show doesn’t seem concerned with that and I watch Tanikaze sweet talk a blushing weaponized Chimera, all the while wondering why Kunato would outfit her weapon form with a blush function. I did like seeing Izana make use of a ten fingered controller for her mechanical hand as it at least promises that her character might have some use besides being a harem candidate. But then we have her going out in revealing clothing to make her mother happy because why not. Izana is now the harbinger of harem, with her every appearance being a signal of incoming harem hijinks. Should I consider it sexist that now that she is a woman, she is now being sexualized at every opportunity? Actually lets not go down that road, it never leads to anything good on the internet. This shift to slice of life ecchi antics is not reflected in the next episode previews which still have foreboding music to what looks to be more of the same. Guess that is a sign that this show is moving far away from what it was originally about.