「廃棄物処理のための戦争」 (Haikibutsushori no tame no sensou)
“A War For Waste Disposal”

What’s this, Plunderer—on time? Damn right boys and girls, and arguably not a moment too soon, because after all that beating around the bush we are finally getting somewhere. Surgeries; killing; taste of futures to come; everything is now out in the open, and you can guess what comes next.

After the transformation of Rihito into Licht the second leading question of Plunderer was the initiation of the Waste War, and for both we at last have some answers. As fully expected, Althing is (more or less) the trigger for the war, using those mystical magical alien powers to limit state-controlled to agreed upon times, but fully at the behest of its voting base. What’s that, war is meant for March? Too bad, the majority says September. I really feel we’re still missing some important details regarding Althing, the Ballots, and the who/why of Ballot possession, but at least what we have starts giving a good idea of what to expect next. Our new military villains for example are obviously after Licht and/or Schmerman for their Althing-driven Ace abilities, and if they are it’s not much of a leap to assume the war will be decided over who goes Super Saiyan first. Take your guess how Alcia then factors into that little detail.

On the other side of things are the more personal matters and I’m not too certain on them just yet. While pretty easy getting behind Pelle making a play for Lynn (because who doesn’t want to see that happily ever after?), Sonohara rubbed me the wrong way for being a little too damsel in distress. While understandable that the girl is weak and reliant on Licht, the combination of Doan bullying and military shenanigans felt like too much on that front, particularly when paired with the equally fragile Hina doing her part. Mind you, I might be biased in getting a kick out of Firenda go full sadistic mad scientist (pink hair never lies), but hey, there’s always room for improvement.

Now we just have to see how Hina and friends successfully keep a newly transformed Licht from developing that mask fetish next week, because oh boy is that going to be a challenge.

 

Preview

10 Comments

  1. This is the fastest review you’ve ever put up here, Pancakes. Well that escalated into sudden frenzy…

    I know I should be impressed with this kind of situation given it’s still a shonen manga, but I can see why many blind viewers are giving up this series.

    Even after that plot twist involving Red-Eye Sonohara doing the massacre until Licht had enough of it, it’s like the audience wants more character development and LESS ON emphasizing more angst and gender stereotyping roles.

    I even have to admit that I’m disappointed with the author writing the main heroine like she’s needed to be rescued at all times. I get that she’s a non-combatant and just a normal girl, but many viewers are being put off by Hina’s actions when we all know she’s just a pillar for the McGuffin (the Ballot) even if she’s pure hearted and the scene not running away from the enemy’s gun…it gives the viewers predictability that she’ll be saved. Again…by Licht…😕 Even if she becomes an emotionally-strong character, Hina is gonna rub more viewers the wrong way as they believe she’s NOT REALLY NEEDED for anything else and just being Licht’s MORAL COMPASS in this story.

    Sometimes I even wonder the reason I’m still here watching it… though my main goal is the world building and its concepts that create dilemmas for our present-day/current characters. Well as long as Jail is still there, alive and well, I’ll be sticking to this series as long as I can.

    RK
    1. Hina’s character is largely deliberate and should be seen in the vein of shounen tropes where the goal is giving Licht room to show his skills off. It can be problematic, but IMO it’s not as bad as Sunohara right now because at least Hina tries and is willing to stand up for what she believes in, whereas Sunohara immediately goes for “save me Rihito! You’re my only hope!”

  2. That certainly escalated quickly.

    What I find interesting is that there is a high chance in the original time line that all of the members of the army that doesn’t kill with the exception of Sonohara and possibly Tokikaze got killed. Tokikaze being the one to restore power and Sonohara getting rescued by Doan. Ichinose (featured JK) and Genji (stubled redhead) are most certainly dead. Hina being the medic presumably has an effect here.

    Also fun looking at the tactics of the class A members in combat. Aiming for joints and concussion attacks. Never really noticed Licht using the same tactic. Maybe he gave up after seeing his whole class killed?

    theirs
    1. I suspect Licht’s original rampage was caused by a greater number of deaths than already present. It’s not just Hina but also the presence of Jail which arguably will help ensure Licht stays on the right side of crazy next week, but we’ll know soon enough. I fully expect Licht will calm down when both Hina and Lynn tag team him 😛

  3. It’s been a while that I have seen the “teehee~ embararrassed anime girl pose”. Featured by Lynn. Worth a screenshot just to show that it still exists. The stereotypical bad guy enemies that enjoy tomenting their victims were a perfect fit.
    Does all that mean that I didn’t like this episode? No, it was quite enjoyable. Just have to accept not to take it too seriously.

    boingman
  4. Pingback: Plunderer – 16 – Random Curiosity | Steamedworld News

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