Posted by  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
「卒業」 (Sotsugyō )
“Graduation”
In more than one way, this episode was a reward for the excellent character build-up of its first five and the emotional intensity experienced here was a direct consequence of all that heavy-lifting. It was perhaps a bit of a breather – something that I was anticipating last week – and one that is absolutely essential before the action picks up again for its second arc. This is a good time to reflect on what an incredible job the show has done with its characters and how every one of the Zannen 5 is profoundly alone, despite their world-famous repute and closeness to each other. The revelation that Team Rabbit will be graduating early doesn’t fundamentally change anything – such a concoction is further evidence that the higher-ups are desperate and the JURIA-AHSMB combo are their best chance against the Wulgaru. Interestingly enough, the Zannen 5 was not blindsided by what their superiors were up to – in fact, they realized almost right away that the MJP soldiers are merely experimental subjects and their advanced promotion signified more dangerous missions ahead. This raises the very troubling question of just who is on their side and if there’s any adult in this universe whom the kids can rely on – especially when their lives are on the line.
To my great relief, Instructor Suzukaze is that certain adult who stands out in this respect and the fact that she will become the Captain of the Godinion indicates a higher survival probability for the Zannen 5. I don’t think there’s any question that Rin Rin does genuinely care for the well-being of Team Rabbit – she was the only one who showed concerns for their state of readiness and the lone wolf who spoke up to her superiors when questionable judgments are made. On the other hand, Commander Simon’s intention is not nearly as transparent and he is certainly an individual who is shrouded in enigma. While I have no doubt he has the best interest of human race in mind, his shady dealings with the silver-hair maiden and some of the more radical ideas that he has brought forth are controvertible, to say the least. Then there’s Lieutenant Amane (Asano Masumi), whose thoughts and discussions have shed some light on the global scene of Earth’s politics. The great irony is that personal ambition will always stand at odds with a win-win solution and indeed, the inner disputes over the AHSMB-JURIA technologies only underscores the chronic tension that exists among the humans themselves.
Setting aside the complex matters at hand, what has also become indisputably clear to me is that Majestic Prince is an unabashedly sentimental show – and at the heart of all that is the Zannen 5 who, needless to say, has grown on me in a big way. Whether it’s the packing scenes, the graduation ceremony or the sight of fellow students paying their tributes to Team Rabbit, there was certainly an honest display of emotion that was particularly gratifying in this episode. I felt a real tug to the heartstrings seeing all five of them received the well-earned recognition from their peers, and it’s such unapologetic decency and innate humbleness that make shows such as this so special. We got our first glimpse of the Wulgaru’s inner workings at the end of this episode, and it seems like their side of the story will be the focus next week. The appearance of the alien race does look pretty human, but actual details of the mysterious life-form remained scarce – why did the prince retreat when he clearly had the upper hand and what is their relationship with the silver-hair maiden? Those are some of the questions that I hope the series will answer in the next few episodes and I have no doubt their part of the story will be center to the larger picture of Majestic Prince.
Random tidbits:
- It looks like Team Doberman survived for another day!
- Poor Toshikazu can’t seem to catch a break!
- Manga, cooking book and a lifestyle magazine! I’m surprised they didn’t find any porn stash.
- It seems like Kei has successfully conquered her stage fright. A job well done!
- Now that Rin Rin is permanently stationed as the captain of Godinion, does that mean there’ll be more Reika x Rin Rin moments?
- The mysterious girl from the last episode remained covert in this one.
- The brilliant insert song this week is the B-side track of its first OP – 「ココロ」 (Kokoro) by Kon Natsumi
tl;dr: @SeishunRC – #MajesticPrince 06: A sentimental take of graduation day! Team Doberman survived for another day. #Anime
Full-length images: 01, 05, 06, 09, 12, 14, 25, 33, 35, 36.
Preview
 |
 |
 |
Hoepfully now that the prologue is over, the characters can be more lively. I’m enjoying the show but the characters are pretty wooden so far. They need more life and energy.
Hmm… they seem pretty lively to me 😡
I think the show has done a great job with its characters, making us sympathize with their struggles. Izuru and Kei are still my favorites, but Suruga and Toshikazu are slowly growing on me 😉
Well, ultimately if they want to survive they’re going to have to learn to put their trust in each other completely. Because in combat situations they won’t have anyone to depend on besides themselves. Their isolation from the rest of the world is central to the plot. It is one of those team camaraderie shows after all…
They’re just kids though, it’s impossible for them to shoulder such heavy burden all by themselves. I still think there’s a role for the adults to play – Team Doberman were great as their mentors, Rin Rin will probably provide some strategic guidance as the captain, maybe Reika will offer some moral support too!
Team Doberman…lol. Any senpai who shares his “treasure” is a “good mentor” in my books…XP
wow, that’s a rather big mood swerve. the humor is certainly close to none on this one and the few pieces of humor (including asagi falling down from the stairs) actually boosted the solemn mood of the episode more. it really felt like the first five episodes were an intentional false start, and the series seems to be gearing up for a more serious overall tone, though the humor will probably still be there.
like what another reviewer has said, the great thing about this series os that it does not attempt to have an air of grandeur (nor is it as eccentric as, say, valvrave), rather it chose to quietly follow the lives of its characters, who are themselves really just ordinary teenagers (bland and uninteresting to some viewers). and this actually makes th story have a deeper emotional feel to it. kinda sad though that the series is a bit underrated.
looks like the guys shown at the end are the wulgaru royal family (or something like that). so theoria (the silver haired girl) is a princess. just a guess, the wulgaru is probably not alien, but is a faction independent from the current world government.
MJP is indeed, extremely underrated, but I’m glad there’s a small group of fans within the RandomC community who appreciates this little gem 😉
So true, so true MJP and Crime Edge both…
Izuru literally took one for the team by getting punched instead of Ataru.Nice little slice of life moments, preparing for the action that may happen in the next episode.
I was applauding Tamaki too for that gust of wind allowing the viewers a sneak peak at Rin Rin.
So cute <3
Where’s the pic of that Species looking monster at the Wulgaru HQ? It had tentacles sprouting from its head.Makes me wonder if the Wulgaru evolved from that in a similar way to how Humans supposedly evolved from monkeys.
Izuru’s a real bro, he’s always ready to step to the fore and help his teammates. Love that guys 😉
Meh, I didn’t find those grotesque monsters that interesting 😡
Lovely little episode.
It’s actually pretty mellow, though one might consider this to be a ‘calm before the storm’ episode. Pretty straightforward too, with their classmates first being transparent in their disdain towards the Zannen Five (with even the kouhais catching it) and then their respect. While it was nowhere near sentimental drama levels, the scene with the salutes was heartwarming – To know that the Zannen Five are no longer despised and are given such a nice sending off from those who previously made fun of them. Supposed losers who work hard and get laughed at, then finally getting the respect they deserve – never fails to make me smile.
Rin-Rin though, steals the show. I get the feeling this isn’t the last we’ll see of innuendo jokes for her, not least from you Seishun :p
Now, the part that really stood out for me was when they played dramatic music with the brief introduction of the Wulgaru leadership. Just as some have mentioned, the series does give a retro feel and just that piece alone probably justified those comments.
Doesn’t look like the humor will let up all that soon though. Good stuff.
I’ve made it clear from day one that I’m shipping Rin Rin x Reika, no mystery there 😛
It was pretty nice to see Team Rabbit received the well-earned recognition from their peers – it’s not like they don’t try hard enough!
I laughted my head off when the Wulgaru HQ came into view. Everything just screames: “Hey, look! The villians are living here!”
They reminded me of the Zentradi from SDF Macross XD
It’s not entirely clear if they’re good or evil, and I suspect there won’t be a straightforward answer to that.
Have finished the introduction stage. Initiate the presentation of the enemies and the way to take our protagonists on the first body part of the story. Majestic Prince will start to get better and hopefully now begin the development and growth of the characters, now that we know its past and present. Now I’m dying in emotion by the next episode XD.
Thank you very much for the post Seishun, great job 🙂
Awww… Thanks for saying such nice things about me. I try my best :3
“Poor Toshikazu can’t seem to catch a break!”
Tell me about it. -_-
He’s my favorite character (I tend to have weird favorites), so I’m hoping he eventually does catch a break and gets some character development. I mean, can’t have your main (melee) frontliner out for the count half the time cause of stomach aches, right?
I’m sure Toshikazu and Tamaki will get their fair share of the spotlight soon enough We haven’t seen Blue1’s real capabilities yet and that’s definitely something that I’m looking forward to.
I’m personally in the mind that our heroes should never get rid of their moniker of “Fail Five” and wear it with pride. Its a name that has constantly haunted them to the point that it was an almost sentimental quality to it. Also I like the idea that the irony of their name that gives an impression but doesn’t define whatever accomplishments they will soon set out to do. It gives them a certain edge. Kind of like the TV series Band of Brother were our protagonists were the “Easy Company” when their sacrifices and accomplishments were anything but that.
On another point, I’m now even more worried about Doberman since they have even more death flags. They might as well have said that they’re Three Days from Retirement.
I still think Team Doberman can make it through the first cour. We’ll see!
I agree – I prefer “Zannen 5” to “Team Rabbit”. There’s a certain zing to it that makes “Zannen 5” stand out :3
Is Sunrise messing with us just raising all those death flag for Team Doberman and making us guess when they’ll die and then making the survive the whole anime?
Who knows, I still say they can make it through the fist cour, at the very least :3
Nice episode! After all the fights they are finally getting the respect they deserve from their peers!
And LOOK! XD Aliens! They remind me of the Bozanians from Voltes V: What’s with the throne and 17th century space clothes.
All in all 9/10.
LOL, good point, they do look kinda similar to the Bozanians XD
LOL, a lot of the students were cheering for Instructor Suzukaze’s accidental legs during the demonstration. XD
It’s a parting gift from Rin Rin before she departs for the Godinion and become Reika’s waifu full-time :3
The 5 of them packing up and remembering the time they had together struck hard.
Indeed, that was a beautiful moment, especially when the fellow students paid their tributes as they depart from the academy 😉