First Impressions / Gundam

Summary:

As the Ptolemaios approaches the Trinity siblings’ ship, Sumeragi comments to herself on how the new Gundams aren’t like the first or second-generation types, nor were they listed in Veda’s data. The Gundam Meisters are similarly suspicious of these three new Gundam-like mobile suits that emit what appear to be GN Particles even though they don’t have the same GN Drives. They also wonder what the Trinity siblings’ goals are, and Sumeragi thinks that they’ll find out once they meet. As the two ships approach each other, everyone on the Ptolemaios is surprised to see that the Trinity siblings’ ship is emitting GN particles too. The hatch on the ship then opens, and the Gundam Throne Eins carries the siblings over to the Ptolemaios. They are greeted by Sumeragi and the Gundam Meisters, and when the Trinity siblings introduce themselves, Sumeragi notices how young they are. Nena really wants to meet the pilot of the Exia, and after Setsuna reveals that it’s him, she goes over and kisses him on the lips. Setsuna quickly pushes her away, telling Nena not to touch him, but that only serves to get her brother Michael angry.

Michael pulls out a knife and seems ready to fight, but the situation is diffused when Lockon’s Haro comes out to greet the purple Haro, referring to it as its older brother. Sumeragi then directs the group to a meeting room, and as the Trinity siblings float pass him, Setsuna isn’t too happy that these are the new Gundam Meisters. To Setsuna’s surprise, Tieria says that this is the first time that they’ve agreed on something, and when Setsuna isn’t sure what he’s talking about, Tieria notes that he should understand without it needing to be said. Once in the meeting room, Sumeragi and Tieria question why the Trinity siblings have Gundams that aren’t in Veda’s databanks. Johann, however, declines to answer and cites a confidentiality obligation. He also refuses to answer the question of where they got their GN Drives from, and it doesn’t help that Michael goes on to mock and insult the Meisters. Having heard enough, Tieria excuses himself from the meeting. Nena, on the other hand, is bored from all this talk and wants to go explore the ship, though she first asks Setsuna if he’ll come with her. When Setsuna refuses to acknowledge her, she warns him not to make her angry before heading off by herself.

One of the things Johann does end up revealing is that their goal is the eradication of war, but this doesn’t mean that they’ll be joining up with Lockon and the others. After stopping Michael from picking a fight with Allelujah, Johann explains that they have doubts about the current group’s intervention methods. And so, although they want Sumeragi and company to continue what they’ve been doing, the Trinity siblings will be using their own judgment to act. Sumeragi then questions if the Trinity siblings are necessary for Aeolia Schenberg’s plan, and Johann replies that that’s something that their actions from now on will show. Meanwhile, Tieria wonders who gave Gundams to those siblings is headed as he heads towards Veda’s room. To his shock, he finds Nena already there, having somehow gotten in, and when he questions who the siblings really are, she just winks at him and claims that it’s a secret. Shortly after, the siblings leave, and Ian reveals that he was able to examine the Throne Eins while the meeting was going on. Sumeragi, however, tells him not to input his report to Veda and instead to use a different computer terminal.

Over on the Trinity siblings’ ship, Nena claims that she fell in love with Setsuna at first sight and that doesn’t make Michael too happy. Their Haro then announces a new mission, and Johann feels that it’s necessary for them to show the world how serious Celestial Being is. Back down on Earth, Alejandro thanks Ribbons for some valuable information and says that he’s grateful to god for having met him. As for what he’s going to do, Alejandro says that he won’t be doing anything because he’s merely an observer who’s watching the transformation of the world. In Japan, Louise and Saji’s exams are finally over, and Louise is planning on returning to Spain to attend her cousin’s wedding. At JNN, Saji’s sister Kinue hears about the new Gundams from her coworker, and the first thing she wants is to hear from the soldiers who had originally divulged this information. Meanwhile, on a Union ship traveling over the Pacific Ocean, Graham is feeling unqualified to be a commander after failing his mission and losing three Flag pilots in the process, but Howard thinks that it can’t be helped due to how they couldn’t predict the appearance of new Gundams. Graham then gets a call informing him of how some mobile suits have entered the atmosphere, and he’s shocked to find out where those are headed.

At that very moment, at an MSWAD base in America, Professor Eifman has figured out that the Gundam’s energy generation engine uses topological defects and attributes this to why there are so few Gundams. The environment in which they can build such an energy generation engine is Jupiter, and Eifman remembers that there was a manned Jupiter probe project 120 years ago. He wonders if that project was connected to the development of the Gundam, and he realizes that if this is the case, then Aeolia Schenberg’s true goal isn’t actually the eradication of war. Before Eifman can get any further though, his computer screen suddenly displays a message saying, “You have witnessed too much…” A second later, the base’s alarms go off because three Gundams are approaching, and Eifman realizes that they’re after him. These Gundams are the Thrones, and Johann has Nena dock the Drei to the Eins so that they can finish this in one blow. The docking allows them to fire the Throne Eins’ massive cannon at the base, and it carves a swath of destruction that culminates in the destruction of the tower where Eifman’s office is, killing him.

Graham’s Flag squadron arrives too late to prevent this, and when Graham finds out that Eifman is dead, he attacks. On the Gundam side, Johann orders a withdrawal, but Michael wants to have some fun and sends out the Throne Zwei’s GN Fangs. Graham avoids them and has his squadron concentrate fire on the Throne Zwei, but Howard then breaks away from the group to make a direct assault. His Flag and Michael’s Gundam lock blades, however Michael quickly breaks the stalemate by plunging all six GN Fangs into the Flag. This disables the Flag, and Howard dies in the subsequent explosion. Afterwards, Michael is forced to withdraw from the battle because Johann says that they have another mission. Graham feels that they can’t give chase and, with both Howard and Eifman now dead, he’s frustrated by how many times the Gundams have disgraced him. Word of this attack soon reaches the Ptolemaios, but Sumeragi doesn’t know what the siblings’ goal was because even Veda hasn’t revealed anything, and Setsuna questions if those three are really Gundam Meisters.

In Japan, Saji says goodbye to Louise in the airport, though he shies away from kissing her like she wants him to. Louise thinks that he worries too much, however she admits that that’s what’s good about him.

Preview:

Well that kiss was rather unexpected, but it’s only one part of what makes the Trinity siblings very unsettling. Nena is playful, but she appears to be the kind of girl who takes what she wants, and she showed the dark side of herself when Setsuna didn’t acknowledge her. Johann meanwhile has that cold demeanor that makes you think he’d kill anyone without a second thought if he were ordered to, and Michael is clearly itching for a fight wherever he goes. Combine this with the sinister message that Eifman got before they killed him, and you’ve got the development of some major antagonists. It’s only a matter of time now before Setsuna’s group is fighting them.

In any case, I really like the direction the story is going in now and how they’re developing it – all of my earlier complaints about this show aren’t really valid anymore. The question now is who’s really behind all this, and what Aeolia Schenberg’s true goal actually is, but it looks like those won’t get answered immediately. Next week will probably continue to build the case against the Trinity siblings’ way of doing things, and it appears that Louise is going to go through some tragedy (probably the loss of her mother).

83 Comments

  8. If this episode doesn’t make you start to hate the Trinity siblings (or at least suspect they’re up to no good.

    Oh! I am hating one of them specifically Nena, but for an entirely different reason and I think all Setsuna fangirls will agree. I definitely don’t trust them at all, they’re dangerous.

    Phoenix
    Reply

  9. My reaction was:
    #refreshes page# Is it here yet?Is it here yet?Is it here yet??
    #Gundam00 17 3 comments# YES!!!!!
    #first picture (the kiss) appears# OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!O_O!!!!!!THEY KISSED!!!???@?@?@?!!WTF!!?!

    Looks like a greeting type of kiss. She’s obviously teasing Setsuna.
    I hope Setsuna will kick her butt as payback later for stealing his first kiss.
    EVIL!

    I think I disliked the Trinity since the last episode…
    And I kinda knew they would be up to no good.

    Yukiruchan
    Reply

  16. Episode was awesome… thrones do kick ass! the preview of next weeks gundam (18) isn’t neena’s eyes electrifying like when tieria either goes into that sphere or when he turned virtue into nadleeh? whats that about? i think that the elctric eye thing is a direct link to veda? any thoughts?

    Lakey
    Reply

  21. Ah…The highly anticipated ‘Stolen First Kiss’ scene. I can imagine fanfiction spawning out of that. XD

    This is VERY interesting, and while I’m pretty convinced I might actually start to dislike a few characters from this series for the first time, the Trinity siblings are certainly an interesting bunch. What got my attention was the screenshot with Dr. Eifman and his blue screen with that cryptic message.

    Owaranai Destiny
    Reply

  25. The Trinities is better off death. Wanna bet who’ll kill who? I’ll go for “Lockon or Graham kills Johann”, “Allelujah + Tieria go for Micheal” and save Nina for Setsuna. The last one is the least possible, though.

    DB
    Reply

  26. I hate them! They are suckers! At first, I think Nena is different, but after I see this episode, I really hate her most! Especially at the time she tells Setsuna not to make her angry. But I like the way Trieria agrees with Setsuna for the first time.

    KGFJ
    Reply

  28. Note 1: Although I understand why he did it, Setsuna fails for reacting to a random kiss with a punch.

    Note 2: The Trinity siblings are all batshit loco. Michael is ultimate siscon, Neena’s got some of them yandere vibes about her, and I don’t get Johann at all.

    Note 3: Tieria and Setsuna agree on something. Bad sign.

    DJ_Rmx
    Reply

  31. @kaplan: I’m pretty sure that’s Tieria in the first preview screen, not Nena. If you look closely you can make out his glasses.

    This episode looks epic~. I can’t wait for the subs. 😀

    Galatea
    Reply

  35. The chance of Marina dieing just went up again (after it was lowered due to the new OP containing no hints about her death)… Nena kills (or at least tries to kill) Marina, Setsuna gets driven over the edge for plot development and general emoness, and the 4 vs. 3 fight begins…

    Gloranor
    Reply

  38. Let’s see: The ship they found in Jupiter’s orbit looks like George Glenn’s original PLANT on CE.
    Setsuna was more idiotic (like that was new…) than before, and the Trinity Meisters had a tag that says “We’re the bad guys”, that and a little evil Haro. Strange enough, Nena’s reaction was normal from my POV. Who wouldn’t get angry when a collegue ignores you? Even if that collegue is an antisocial twerp. By the way, Rie Kugimiya evil? That’s new. DO WANT!
    So, new arc, first real casualties. Rushing things, isn’t it? The Thrones’ weaponry makes Wing Zero’s Twin Buster Rifle look like a water gun. Way, way too overkill.

    The fact that Shigofumi and True Tears got licenced in the US instead of 00 tells you that the series is not well apreciated even within Bandai Visual-Sunrise.

    SeedStriker
    Reply

  41. I love how this series inserts some random funny moments i.e. the two Haros meeting lol.

    Still, I like where this show is going now. It’s the part where people start dropping like flies left and right >D

    Kazuhide Aeiji
    Reply

  42. Can’t stand the Trinity siblings….well, Johann is the most tolerable but I agree about what you said about him. He’s cold and the type to kill without a second thought. Michael and Nena are just obnoxious. Hope someone beats the crap out of them.

    But it was an excellent episode.

    zalem
    Reply

  44. oh nevermind there’s freckles, wkwkwk I just didn’t see it,

    anyway I am waiting for the trinity siblings to fight setsuna and co.

    I hope exia got some funnels upgrade too like nu gundam

    kamui
    Reply

  45. LOL, the 1st few screenshots look like an arrange marriage meeting, Johann and Michael introducing the bride(Nena) and Lockon,Alellujah,Tiera and Sumeragi introducing the groom (Setsuna), Nena prolly went head over heels wen she saw Setsuna and tried skipping the marriage ceremony. 😀

    BlaH
    Reply

  53. Well looks like someone hijacked the plans from Haro 2.0 about x amount of years ago. Likely Evil Haro had the plans for the Celestial Being project just like Good Haro has all kinds of info on mobile suits (probably more) on it. Wonder where they got the resources for it.

    Louise in a hospital, who got hurt, died?

    Let the Thrones suck up the action for now, when our four favorites get their upgrades we’ll see if they’re still feeling hot. A couple episodes ago one of the CB crew members mentioned it was too bad they couldn’t use the Gundam Arms, for the three world powers’ “military exercise,” probably a code name for their upgrades/equipment.

    White Star
    Reply

  55. The Nena x Setsuna ‘Kimikiss ‘scene is excellent!! The original 4 must turn against the Throne Gundam to enable the hallmark episode where Setsuna and Nena will be stranded on an island 😛

    Ronin8317
    Reply

  57. I hate throne and their gundam meisters. They are prolly some well trained soldiers/elit people who even haven’t known the pain setsuna, lockon, allelujah and (erde?) had during wars

    legno
    Reply

  60. I wonder what would be Sumeragi’s reaction when she learns from Katagiri or finds out from Veda that the Prof is dead…… 2nd point of conflict for her as CB’s tactical forecaster?

    I’m even more curious about CB’s REAL goal now, now tt Eifman proposed something new before he disappeared. It’s kinda creepy how he was found out, though. Does it mean CB’s spy network is good, or wat?

    Michael’s rude and rash, Nena’s cute and self centered – but kawaiiii! I wonder if Michael will REALLY attack Exia the next time [actually i think Exia will try to stop them – particularly if they attack anywhere that resembles Setsuna’s hometown.]

    Michael’s comment about Allejulah as a incomplete soldier makes me wonder if he himself is another Super soldier, and a complete one, at that. But he doesn’t seem to exhibit any telepathic connections, though he looks pretty damn deranged at times.

    Fore!
    Reply

  62. Wow. What an episode. Well, if you need any real clues, the OP shows the Meisters fighting the Thrones at the end of it. With Setsuna taking on the Pink-haired girls Gundam. We’ll just have to wait for the reactions from the Meister Unit on how they feel about the Trinity Units way of doing things.

    Tri-Skeith
    Reply

  67. here’s a theory, maybe the trinity sibliings aren’t really gundam meisters but imposters that stole the new gundams? b/s when setsuna asked if they were really gundam meisters at the end i kinda wondered

    unknown
    Reply

  68. Remember the beginning of the episode were those two guys found the purple Haro. I thinking that they extracted information on Celestial Being and Gundam designs along with GN technology and created their own version of Celestial Being or joined Celestial Being as a different faction. Just a theory of course. Either way, the “good” half of Celestial Being better start developing new units for Setsuna and gang because soon they will be fighting two enemies at once: Trinity team and the rest of the world. And we all know that The world is going to keep on developing new suits and the current four Gundams can go so far.

    I believe that Exia, Dynames, Kyrios, and Virtue are on par with with Team Trinity… for the moment.

    Console65
    Reply

  70. I don’t see the Throne group being that much worse than our current Gundam guys. At least not as bad as Tieria or Hallelujah. Went in there and took care of things. Eifman was connected to the making of the OverFlags so they can use that as a reason. Though we know its because he was getting way too close to the secret of Celestial Being.

    They have their own issues as much as the regular guys do. Though having Neena messing around in Vader makes you wonder what orders they are getting. Clearly they will be enemies of the main gundams eventually.

    Amazing at the hate for Neena kissing Setsuna. Though maybe because Setsuna has been one of my least favourite characters I say she can do better :).

    FlareKnight
    Reply

  72. not sure if anyone bought this up yet, but after reviewing the “new” opening over again, near the end, Exia blocks a ‘red particle beam’ while charing towards a mystery target *hint*hint* ..

    Shinzon
    Reply

  73. The best thing is we don’t know yet what vader’s true plans are. As eifman said: “that means vaders true intentions aren’t eridicatin war but…” you can’t know what eifman knew at the end was it good or was it bad? Can we trust vaders intentions or not?

    But there’s someone who wants to avoid that people know about the true intentions of
    vader. What I’ve always found strange is the latest dialogues and the ones before: like alejandro meeting that boy as if it was fate, sestuna who doesn’t believe in god but he meets saji. I am starting to think saji could be a heir of vader (supposing vaders itentions are still good) or the heir of vaders atagonist (who prolly disagreed with vaders bad intentions) and he’ll play an important role later on. Maybe it’s very good setsuna was destined to meet saji like others have met each other

    We also can not forget that there’s some duality within celestial being. It’s no coincidence that the good ones have blue GN particles and the bad ones have red GN particles. Also the couple masterminds (a young girl and that chinese servant vs alejandro and a young boy servant). Haro reminded his brother but his brother didn’t remind haro (so we can assume he’s being messed up by someone).

    My guess is celestial being: one group existing of two filosofies, the eridicating war group vs it’s opponent. Observers are watching how the world is formed and re-formed and it will be decided by the filosofy ruling in celestial being OR there are two celestial beings with opposing ideas which occured 120 years ago and the rivalry between the two will settle the future of the world

    legno
    Reply

  74. I watch Gundam 00, but I cant stand the main characters at all. I mean those “Gundam Meisters” act all high and mighty with their Uber mobil suits, which cant even be defeated by an whole army…. But those new Trinity f*ckers are even worse …
    GOD! I hope they get raped in the end of the series and die a quick and painful death… thats the only reason Im still watching it >_

    Tower
    Reply

  75. Do the thrones have a GN number? If so, then GN-001 to GN-007 have their positions filled.

    Since it’s Gundam “00”, there could be two other Gundams hiding somewhere. It seems like they’ll do the whole Freedom and Justice thing again and have two more kickass Gundams after two of them blow up…

    yanipheonu
    Reply

  76. @ yanipheonu

    I think there is going to be a better Gundam coming along for Setsuna too. But not for while. We still haven’t seen all the secrets of the original four yet. Here is how I see Setsuna losing Exia…

    He fights against a Throne or two and pushes Exia to its limits. By “to its limits” I mean that he is maxing out the power output of Exia’s GN Drive and doing every fancy move (sword moves and Gundam hand to hand combat) he can think of to put the Thrones in the ground. We see Exia score a few hits but gets a little more damaged after each go he has with the Thrones until finally the Trinitys shut down Exia for good ( Exia highly damaged beyond repair or destroyed.) The End.

    Anyone else like to have go at this?

    Console65
    Reply

Leave a Reply

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