「衝突」 (Shototsu)
“Collision”

What do you do when a Gauna-powered, planet size object is about to collide with you? Well, I guess it’d depend on who you are. If you’re Kunato, I guess you can just sit there and wait for what you believe to be inevitable. If you’re the Immortal Council, I guess it doesn’t matter cause either way you seem to have escape options of your own. But if you’re a normal person, chances are you’re going to want to fight to the bitter end for whatever slim hopes you might have, and that’s exactly what we’re getting. With only one episode left in the season, it’s now
up to two platoons with 48 experimental weapons, an exterminatus, and all the Hyggs Particles from the Sidonia to prevent them from meeting a devastating end, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

The problem? Well, considering Benisuzume single-handedly wiped out a whole platoon by herself—strategically taking out the commander first while she was at it—and the remaining squadron’s down to their last shots, things don’t look good at all. But that’s how things have always been and it’s times like this where legends are born. In this case, it’d be the re-birth of the Knights of Sidonia, and it looks like the path is set for Tanikaze and Co. to claim that title—by literally going into a Gauna and taking out its Master Gauna—if they want to survive.

All things considered, this is the kind of penultimate episode that I wish every mecha Sci-Fi would be able to execute. It’s fast-paced, there’s huge stakes (You’re six hours away from annihilation!), a great soundtrack, thumb-biting moments, twists and turns every step of the way (surprise, it’s Benisuzume!), epic reveals/usages of last ditch attempts to ensure survival, and there are just few ways to make things more exciting for viewers of a series such as this. Of course, that’s not to say those are the only tactics to ensure success, but that’s what I mean by execution. There’s a difference between utilizing the aforementioned story-elements and successfully executing them in such a way that viewers are actually invested in what’s happening and what will happen, and Sidonia just does a great job ensuring that the latter ends up the case.

Indeed, it’s especially great how this series approaches things from the physics point of view, and it’s clear that there was a lot of effort put in here to ensure that the physics here is somewhat correct. Granted, I’m not a physicist myself, so it’s not like I’ve run simulations or calculations of my own, but even I know the basics and it’s great to see things like inertia, momentum, acceleration, deceleration, attraction of gravity, recoil (and everything in between) being used to give things a more realistic and believable touch. This week’s episode in particular highlights this, and it shows that a little effort in the gritty details does go a long way.

Looking forward, there really isn’t much to say. There might be a lot of questions left surrounding the Sidonia and Gauna, but there’s a time and a place to address those—how about that second season?—and it’s clear that this is not the time. With life and limb on the line, the questions and answers can come when the time is right, and this is truly one of those cases where you can sit back and enjoy the ride, because that’s essentially what the last few episodes of this season are meant to be. Here’s just hoping that things don’t leave on some epic cliffhanger next week though…

Author’s Note: As usual, please refrain from spoilers, especially if they’re not in response to a query of some sort. If you must, please remember to use spoiler tags.

 

Preview

35 Comments

  1. https://randomc.net/image/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi%20-%2011%20-%20Large%2024.jpg
    IT’S A TRAP!

    https://randomc.net/image/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi%20-%2011%20-%20Large%2018.jpg
    Just looking at this still makes me think that they would try and poke it to death or something.

    Not much else to say this week. Setup for the finale and what a setup it is. This might rank second for my favorite space show, depending how the finale ends up being.

    Catsrofl
  2. Shouldn’t have removed Pluto’s planet classification, it wouldn’t have joined up with the Gauna to act as a missile then 😛

    It goes without saying that Sidonia is both the dark horse and best mecha show this season.

    Pancakes
    1. Apparently they skipped several events of the manga to ensure that the anime ends on a high note with a great battle, but that same events must appear on an eventual second season, as they’re important to the progress of the manga’s story.

      Exukvera
      1. They mostly skipped Tanikaze beating random Gauna and gaining recognition from his squad and peers. Generally speaking i am glad they skipped those 3 Gauna. They were nothing special, nothing interesting happened either and those Gauna were there just for Tanikaze to regain his confidence after that time Kunato made him fuck up.

        The best is yet to come though…can’t wait for Season 2 if there is one…

        Shadow
    2. The parts about Kunato aside, I really like the changes introduced in Animated Adaptation. However, I still think the battle that would’ve been in the anime if it don’t skip battles, is great enough for Season’s final battle

      kittyraider
  3. This needs a second season. As a reader of the manga, there’s a lot to cover up! Though I’m kind of wondering how they’ll do this since SPOILER… sort of: they’ve missed out some major plot lines before this event. END OF SPOILER. The studio animation is doing a fantastic job and I think the visuals really improves as episodes go on. Definitely one of the best shows this season.

    xeven
    1. Yes, please. Give Sidona the chance to get big. Then they can line up with Gundam and Macross. But Sidona is a fresh new Kaze.. The successor of these old Merchandises?

      Germanguy
  4. I really shouldn’t have read through the manga (I’d only previously read up to like chapter 11, since that’s all there was at the time) between episodes 10 and 11. While the action here was cool, I am reminded about how cool and epic the manga battles are.

    SerRompalot
  5. Gutted that they missed the scene when Samari was (ahem) fighting the gravitational pull of the planetoid (ahem).

    They changed a lot for this ep. We’re up to Vol 6, Chapter 26 but they missed out an important event so non-manga readers should avoid reading it. Which is a real shame because the manga version rocked.

    Oh, yeah, need more Sasaki.

    celebrinen
  6. https://randomc.net/image/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi%20-%2011%20-%20Large%2017.jpg
    “Tsugumori, I should have been your pilot.”

    SHUT THE HELL UP KUNATO.

    I love this kind of episode because you’re hoping that the last few precious moments won’t leave you wishing for a double episode. Especially when i see this,

    https://randomc.net/image/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi%20-%2011%20-%20Large%2026.jpg
    That’s a whole lotta red….

    All the while,

    https://randomc.net/image/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi%20-%2011%20-%20Large%2011.jpg
    she has death flags all over her Guarde. She doesn’t want to be there, she has little to no confidence, and i have a strong feeling the next episode will hinge on her. Nagate, it’s time to go to work….

    Synic
    1. Yes, you know this is what would happen. Tanikaze must fight his love Hoshijiro to save Izana.

      This shows the possible risks and pitfalls of having an harem if not managed properly. In a harem, there is always a possibility that one of the member is an Yandere or captured by aliens and transformed into tentacled monstergirl obsessed with tentacleraping your kind.

      kittyraider
      1. he knows that the real Hoshijiro is dead.

        or the Hoshijiro that he see as nearly real, is inside OSL

        They are about to get known if the Jailed Hoshijiro has contact with the hive. Thats why she should watch her in the middle of the battle

        Germanguy
  7. This has so much references to Death star attack!
    “Look at the size of that thing!”
    “Platoon 1, attack the exhaust port, Platoon 2, suppress the turrets!”
    Darth Benisuzume: “I will deal with them personally”
    “We WILL evacuate in this hour of defeat”

    ewok40k
  8. Amazing episode. I was at the edge of my seat the whole time. Reading the comments here, I’ll probably go blast through the manga after the finale, seeing as how commenters say the manga fights rocked.

    Xignal
  9. There is a reason why Kunato is sitting around in his room doing nothing. Not a real spoiler since it already happened, but the anime failed to explain it:
    Show Spoiler ▼

    Zannafar
  10. Well, Sidonia is fighting against an Enemy that know their Tactics. It is the same, as Capt- Picard got assimilated through the Borg, And Capt. Riker must fight him, in the beginning they had no change. Because Riker used the tactics he learned from Picard. But then after someone said, be yourself, he made his own tactics and won. So, Sidona need new Fighting Planes. because the enemy knows them all (Well, that ones that Benisuzume know)

    and here we see How Veterans are different from Newbies. Alone the Fire sequence. Tanekaze’s “DPS” and the New to it

    Germanguy
      1. No, what differentiates Tanikaze from the rest isnt the DPS. 1st Platoon can easily spam GCPDS Rounds and Particle Beams to erode nearly 90% the colossal Placental Thrusters. Its damn big one don’t really need to aim. In another hand, Tanikaze is able to snipe much smaller Particle Cannon Defence with well aimed shots while maintaining RoF and his own stability.

        kittyraider
  11. CAPTION TAIM
    https://randomc.net/image/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi%20-%2011%20-%20Large%2028.jpg
    Yuhata: Dammnit, Why Now…I just pulled an all-nighter finishing my Type 5 Guardian Kit complete with the prototype Particle Cannon…

    https://randomc.net/image/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi/Sidonia%20no%20Kishi%20-%2011%20-%20Large%2017.jpg
    Kunato to himself: Kunato, you’re such a genius to place your own harness hook between the legs…

    kittyraider
  12. Kunato you have earn a place in in the top ten of characters I despise and I want to see dead, just along side: Sephiroth, Griffith, Dio Brando, Joffrey and Chisato Ichijiku. I hope you join some of them hell soon enough.

    haseo0408
  13. This is straight-up sci-fi action done right. I got chills when Benisuzume wiped out that platoon, one Gardes at a time. The launching of Exterminatus, and the firing of the Super Hyggs Cannon (damn, they sure are confident about their system’s accuracy, firing that close to the missile).

    ShootPointBlank

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *