First Impressions / Mouretsu Pirates

「閃光の彷徨者(ワンダラー)」 (Senkou no Houkou-sha (Wandaraa))
“Wanderer of Light”

The depths of space haven’t looked this breathtakingly beautiful or this dangerous in a long time. Nebulae that look as if painted by a divine hand bring a certain measure of beauty in an otherwise unforgiving place – one that is continually beset by cosmic storms, black lightning, and space-time continuum quakes. Space, in the Mouretsu Pirates universe, is equal parts splendor and danger. Hundreds of planets may be colonized and interstellar travel may be a commonplace occurrence, but there are also areas where space is still a wild frontier – a place where the best and most talented people are needed for a space vessel to safely travel between the stars and avoid a silent and cold grave.

The Bentenmaru crew is full of these people, and it’s been a joy each week to discover all the crewmembers’ individual talents. After all, with the Maracot-class flagship of the Serenity Defense Forces, its six Corback-class escorts breathing down their neck, and all these interstellar hazards threatening to tear the ship in half, the responsibility of keeping the Bentenmaru and its crew safe may be Marika’s to bear, but she must also depend on her crew to turn her decisions into successful ones. And in this episode, much of the job fell into the capable hands of one Kane MacDougall.

We’ve already seen that he is a consummate professional, but it was definitely refreshing to finally see the full extent of his abilities when the situation calls for it (and when the limiters are deactivated too). Needless to say, he did not disappoint. It was a sheer blast watching his steely determination as he expertly wielded the ship’s wheel to safely navigate through all manner of deadly space phenomena like the aforementioned space-time quakes and tricky FTL jumps, and nowhere was his skill more evident than when he sped backwards toward the ghost ship in order to dock with it while the enemy was in hot pursuit. Kane isn’t perfect though; I cringed a little while watching his terrible parking job inside the golden ghost ship, and I’m not sure I’d trust him at the driver’s seat of my car just yet.

Even Princess Gruier, Bentenmaru’s newest (unofficial) crewmember, was able to show why she belonged with the rest of the crew as the arrival of the golden ghost ship Queen Serendipity forced a confrontation with the Serenity flagship that shares its name. (I know it’s tradition and all, but talk about a non-intimidating name.) Seeing Gruier face off with her younger sister Grunhilde (Kanemoto Hisako), the 8th Princess and supposed ruler of Serenity, had its share of surprises such as the significance of Grunhilde’s military outfit and the appearance of Gruier’s unexpected new demeanor. I wasn’t expecting to see this new side of hers, but it was wonderful to finally see her act more like a mature and regal princess than a lost and confused child who struggled to comprehend Marika’s actions, and it is a side of her that will be needed as she enters the ghost ship.

With its golden glow a sight to behold even amidst the grandeur of the nebula, we finally know the actual appearance of the ghost ship, but unfortunately we’ll have to wait until next week to see what secrets await inside. Its arrival, as well as Grunhilde’s, spawned more questions than it answers, but I don’t mind one bit because I am hoping this series will take time unraveling the plot and its mysteries in the same detailed manner it has explained all the intricacies of interstellar travel and combat. Finally discovering what Grunhilde is after would be a welcome development this far into the series, but personally, I’d be happy with some more piracy action. More specifically, I want to see the skills and talents of another Bentenmaru crewmember, the cyborg Schnitzer at long last getting the chance to gun someone down. After all, isn’t that half the fun of being a pirate?

 

  • Interesting to think about how their FTL drives might work, specifically whether it is a warp drive or a hyperspace drive? The mention of a rift implies that their drives are of the hyperspace variety, which could explain their use in a triangular prism on the source of the space-time quake to create a large tear in a concentrated location in the fabric of space-time, and draw the enormous ghost ship out of subspace.
  • Full-length images: 01.5, 06, 26, 26.5, 27

 

Preview

28 Comments

  2. Now this: This is how a space opera anime is done: plenty of techno-babble, plenty of suspense. Had me on the edge of my bed when they just flew through the gravitational rings(or space-time quakes, whatever is usually used.)

    So the Ghost Ship was actually in subspace(or hyperspace, are they the same?), and remains there for long periods of time. So this is why it’s so elusive in the first place. And because of the size of that thing, it, coming out of subspace, creates so much space-time quakes that travels at the speed of light, it’s hard not to miss it. I guess this is why even though it is elusive, there is much data recorded about it.

    The Moondoggie
    Reply

  3. Man I was kind of up set that this was about to end then I realized this has 26 episodes.
    I really wanted to know why she called her mom by her name, sure I guess we have that she respects her a lot. But I think there is also some tragic story behind it to.

    Seven
    Reply

  4. This is a fun series…

    …so far. I wonder, if like some other 2-cour series that I have watched, if things
    won’t turn more serious in the second half now that the characters have mostly been established.

    mac65
    Reply

  5. Wow, that was amazing. I was kept at the edge of my seat, enamored with joy and suspense.

    The standoff between the Serenity sisters only adds to the mystery. What is inside the ghost ship? What is inside that is so important that even members of the Serenity family are fighting one another over it?

    As for the FTL system, I’m going to say it’s a hyperspace drive, because the space vehicle seemingly slips into another dimension or space. Also, note that warp drive is a concept based on moving space, e.g. space behind the vehicle expanding and space in front of the vehicle contracting by “warping” it around a bubble enclosing the vehicle, so the vehicle doesn’t actually move, yet it does.

    kuroshi_nazo
    Reply

  6. “her younger sister Grunhilde, the […] supposed ruler of Serenity”

    I doubt that Grunhilde is the ruler (which would also be quite the overkill to send the ruler just to get back a stray princess), and I don’t think it was even implied.

    ckuri
    Reply

    1. I think Gruer said to her sister that Grunhilde should have been “manipulated” because she believed someone(highly likely some high-class political figure of Serenity) seduced her younger sister to act like a queen without proper legitimacy. And with Grunhilde’s reaction to Gruer’s words, you see her assumption should be a good one.

      U Doh
      Reply

  10. Actually, the FTL the Bentenmaru uses seems like a distortion drive; the old classic of folding two points of space together and leaping between them since the travel seems nearly instantaneous. This act causes spacetime quakes; as the fourth dimension doesn’t react kindly to the other three dimensions being abused. Notice also that you have to buckle everything down, and the ship seems to ‘lengthen’, as its local matter distorts.

    Hyperspace is taking a detour through an alternate dimension; which the golden ship seems to do periodically. It’s possible that this is power that everyone is after; controlled subspace usage or something.

    eharper256
    Reply

    1. i bet The Golden Ghost Ship Power Source is a Neutrino Star. Yes, that kind of Heavy Thing that nearly is a Black Hole.. I bet the Power Source is also the Main Engine to Travel Subspace.

      Germanguy
      Reply

  12. I was expecting the Ghost ship having a very intricate shape and not a giant pill size ship but the coloring, and curving lines made it look even better! Could not stop my mouth from falling everytime they show the ship

    shamaticgrl
    Reply

  14. I’m a bit confused. I thought they said the ghost ship didn’t have an FTL drive, so why is it in subspace and causing space-time quakes if it doesn’t have a way to get there? Did anyone catch that or did I read a bad translation?

    anon234
    Reply

  15. This was a great episode this week, but like classic Mouretsu Pirates it ended on another cliffhanger! Then again they are leading to the end of this “princess” arc with Gruier and the Golden Ghost Ship.

    So what is so damn important on the Golden Ghost Ship!? I think there might be someone on board that Gruier needs to find as in a ancestor or some huge family secret she is trying to hide from everyone? Either way I hope it is something amazing not just something small Gruier wanted to find…

    After this stuff with Gruier finishes I wonder if we will see her again? As much as I want her to join the Bentenmaru crew I don’t think it will happen.

    foshizzel
    Reply

    1. Well, we see in the Preview inside the Ship. DNA Sequences.. Perhaps Human DNA to Clone them? Natur DNA from the Nature of the Planet? Or a Giant “Planet Create Ship” like in Titan A.E.?

      But this DNA is part of its Secret

      Germanguy
      Reply

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