**Rewatcher, First Time Sub**

Oh Gundam Beach Episode

Some good Lockon stuff this episode. He’s been so far the most laid back of the Meisters but we saw some good stuff relating to him such as the shots of his backstory and why he heads to confront the new organization.

In the meantime Setsuna gets detained after trying to detain someone in broad daylight but gets saved by Marina Ismail who has serious eagle eyesight. Their conversation which almost feels like Setsuna’s best attempts at a Heero impression but It gives a good view of their respective positions as of now. Marina is idealistic and a pacifist and criticizes CB for their contradictions, But Setsuna responds with simply that People Die even when there is “peace talks” or any else. It makes sense from Setsuna to take this stance considering his last and as he points out that Marina’s country had fought against his, and of course it leads to his rather angry revelation of his identity to her as a sort of a threat to get her country in order. I guess you could say that Marina comes off a bit naive while Setsuna comes off as angry or forceful.

in the meantime Wang Liu Mei and the others gain the aid of other intelligence agencies to track down this new organization and bring it down. Successful as they are, the rest of them muse that much like in Episode 4 they were used again though they both gained something out of it. Politics am I right?

**First-Timer**

**On today’s episode of Gundam:** Be careful of the edge, Setsuna. We wouldn’t want you to get hurt, after all.

– Looks like the speculation people had in the previous thread was correct. Lockon did experience a pretty nasty terrorist attack in the past.

– Normally Lockon doesn’t seem to enjoy targeting people. When it comes to terrorists, he feels none of that usual hesitation. He very much wants to kill them. [](#terminate)

– Yup, those swimsuits are for [“disguise”](#aliens) and nothing else.[](#vacationcup)

– I figured this was the case, but Sumeragi and Co. are just the combat team in Celestial Being. So how much larger is the rest of Celestial Being? Who are all the intelligence and supply people, for example? And is the leadership of the organization really just that computer program? [](#rengethink)

– Does Feldt have a past with that Haro? Or with Lockon? They’re exchanging many meaningful looks. [](#schemingsaten)

– Brawls between legislators are usually not a good sign. As fun as it may be to watch politicians fistfight, mixing violence with everyday politics is not a good idea.

– I know how you feel, Saji, because I’ve been there. It’s blissful imagining that it’s all someone else’s problem and harsh learning how it isn’t. [](#tiredaoi)

– Oh, needing to interview the families of the terrorist attack victims. That is rough. [](#sadholo)

– Jeez, Ali really is an absolute scumbag. He indoctrinates his child soldiers and then assures them that their deaths are okay because they’ll be with god afterwards.

– Setsuna looks like he’s driving one of the Tron motorcycles.

– Does that count as an Akira Slide? It was the same maneuver, but the camera angle was wrong. [](#hardthink)

– Do Marina and Setsuna know each other? [](#harukathink)

– Oh, they don’t. Marina just assumed he was also from Azadistan.

– Setsuna really has no time for even the most rudimentary of polite small talk. [](#azusalaugh)

– “Nature Revival Group?” Are they ecoterrorists? [](#harukathonk)

– That is an interesting dilemma that Marina and Setsuna bring up. Marina complains that Celestial Being never tries to resolve things peacefully, while Setsuna argues that people still die even as the peace talks get nowhere. What good are peace talks if people are dying while nothing gets done? But what long-term good are interventions that kill people and don’t solve the underlying causes that started the fighting?

– “Were you fighting?” “I’m still fighting. I’m fighting now.” [There it is!](#binoculars) This is another one of the meme scenes I know from Gundam 00! [](#laughter)

– Wow, Setsuna blew his cover just like that. What a good agent he is. [](#yousaidsomethingdumb)

– The intelligence agencies of the countries were able to leak information to Celestial Being? Do they even have a way of contacting Celestial Being? Having backdoor communication networks like this is an intriguing wrinkle.

– Sumeragi is really going to hang out on the beach while the Gundams go to war. [](#vacationcup)

– The countries really do know how to make use of Celestial Being. Leaking info about the terrorists means the countries can let Celestial Being take care of the problem without getting their own hands dirty by operating outside their jurisdiction.

– Lockon really is fighting far more mercilessly than usual.

– An underwater mobile armor fight! It’s been a while since I watched one of those. [](#concealedexcitement)

Setsuna is so delightfully edgy in his conversation with Marina. While the points are interesting, the conversation is so silly to watch when Setsuna will say all those edgy things with absolute conviction. The Gundam MC I keep comparing Setsuna to is Heero Yuy, who was also silly for similar reasons. They both say the craziest and edgiest things with the most deadpan expressions.

Setsuna and Marina do bring up an interesting dilemma in their discussion. Is it better to hold peace talks while the fighting continues or simply attack both sides and force them apart through violence? Either way, people will die. The peace talks may result in a peace agreement, but think about how many ongoing conflicts have had peace talks that have lasted for years. As those talks drag on, people die and the conflict continues. Setsuna brings up the good point that it might simply be better to intervene and force the two sides apart. But that doesn’t solve the underlying causes of the conflict. All it does is use the threat of force to keep things quiet for the time being. It isn’t a permanent solution if the fighting will start up again as soon as the intervening troops leave. Which is preferable? A short-term solution with no long-term plans for peace? Or a potential long-term solution that does nothing to help in the short-term?

Sumeragi said that it was good progress that the countries of the world leaked information to Celestial Being in this episode. I think I have an idea about what she’s getting at. This is a sign that the countries of the world have recognized Celestial Being as an organization with the power to intervene anywhere in the world. That is a power that goes beyond the legal jurisdiction of any country. In some ways, it places Celestial Being above the international order of countries. This action did confer some level of legitimacy upon Celestial Being in the wider world.

**QOTD**

1) Celestial Being must just be the first step. Their interventions are too haphazard and too short-term to be a long-term solution. They are setting something else up. Maybe they are trying to form a new power bloc, gathering together allies who would assist in interventions and occupations to begin setting up long-term governance. That seems a bit too conventional, though, so I’m not sure about that. I really have no other ideas, though.

2) I was wondering how Marina would fit into the plot exactly, so her being someone to clash ideologically with Setsuna (and by extension Celestial Being) makes sense. Looking at it through that lens, it makes sense she learned.

**Rewatcher, Sub-dam Meister**

[Plus, doing things would use valuable energy.](https://i.imgur.com/M0e0eW3.jpeg)

[Lotta information in that line.](https://i.imgur.com/EzLGOmp.jpeg)

[I was about to snark about that very thing.](https://i.imgur.com/0cIuiJb.jpeg)

[All in one day.](https://i.imgur.com/6mhMOMw.jpeg)

[What, you think Aeolia Schenberg would just come onto the television and *lie?*](https://i.imgur.com/uECER71.jpeg)

[I’m sure that outfit will be much less conspicuous.](https://i.imgur.com/7Nqrumr.jpeg)

[Huh, I forgot that Setsuna gave a fake name.](https://i.imgur.com/dkH8n75.jpeg)

[Something something, committee meetings until the boots are in the hall.](https://i.imgur.com/i0YvMDP.jpeg)

[“And I don’t care about the masquerade.”](https://i.imgur.com/cfsKQF7.jpeg)

[Setsuna isn’t big on humor.](https://i.imgur.com/DvLwbf2.jpeg)

[I would hope so.](https://i.imgur.com/WUOFZu3.jpeg) La Edenra had like thirty dudes, max.

[Gundam 00]>!I wonder if any eagle-eyed First-Timers will notice that [Virtue is label GN 005.](https://i.imgur.com/WUOFZu3.jpeg)!<

*A Gundam Fan Rewatches Gundam 00 Episode 8:*

– Well, that certainly explains why Lockon is so vehemently against terrorism, to the point of needing to hold back his fury: he was caught up in a similar attack when he was a kid. Yeah, it’s not hard to see how that would lead him down the pipeline towards joining Celestial Being. Like with Setsuna, he encounter with the cruelty of the world at a young age made him want to change it somehow, even through Celestial Being’s overwhelming force. It’s probably safe to say by now that it’s a fairly common thing among a majority of the Gundam Meisters so far: trauma and a desire to change the way the world works.

– Wang does have a point, with how much the terrorist network is coordinating their attacks across the world, it does seem like at least some nation is backing them. It’s the one possibility that makes the most sense there. It does make me wonder if Ali Al-Saachez was involved somehow too, since he did seem to know about the terror attacks before his bosses in the PMC Trust did in the last episode.

– Terrorism in one part of the world has knock-on effects elsewhere too. Marina had to deal with a delay to a meeting in England’s foreign ministry due to the national crisis they’re under due to terror attacks, and since there’s still nothing being done to improve Azadistan’s situation, things are getting way worse in the capital. Although if a member of the conservative faction was attacked by reformists in the middle of the assembly, I think something like that goes beyond just internal schisms and probably into a low-scale civil war that nobody is acknowledging to be the case yet. It really does suck to live in Azadistan.

– Well, at least now Saji can see that all this stuff happening in the world affects him too, even if it took nearly being caught in a terror attack to realize it. So far, Saji has been embodying the bystander effect: distant or apathetic to the world outside of their bubble until it affects them directly. Although he still does think that it’s impossible for things to change, so I guess he still does have apathy within him even though he’s considering his place in the world more. It’s a hard mindset to grow out of, I suppose.

– You can’t be too surprised that all of this is triggering Setsuna’s memories of his time as a child soldier. That one kid he talked to thought he was fighting for god, but he ultimately got killed. His innocence was taken advantage of, just like how the terrorists are taking advantage of the innocent people living peacefully for the sake of their own ends. The terrorists said earlier that they were fighting for the sake of the people, to stop those who oppress others by force. But I think we can all agree that it rings hollow. For people like them and people like Ali, innocence isn’t something to be spared, it’s something to take advantage of.

– Krugis and Azadistan have a rough shared history. A few years ago, Azadistan launched an invasion on the independent Krugis Republic and they razed it to the ground while taking it over. And even though Marina tries to defend her country by saying that they tried to negotiate a peace settlement, that doesn’t change anything that Azadistan ultimately did to Setsuna’s home country. That’s why he fights for Celestial Being: to do work where words and waiting fail. Even if Marina and others can see their interventions as arbitrary, to Setsuna this is what he does to try and prevent a similar level of destruction from happening again. And if Azadistan doesn’t stabilize soon, then he and Celestial Being *will* be paying it a visit in the future, to continue the work they’ve started.

– You do have to admit, it was clever of the AEU’s intelligence services to leak the information they had on La Edenra like that. The whole world is on the hunt for them, and they figured that Celestial Being would be too. So why not help someone who is willing to go into places where they can’t? This is honestly one of the more positive attempts from the power blocs to use Celestial Being, although it’s a shame that it had to happen this way at all.

– Man, this is a weird beach episode. The ladies of the Ptolemaios plus Ian are just enjoying the sea and the sand while the Gundam Meisters are gunning down terrorists. I guess they felt the need to add in a beach episode somewhere, even if it was really only like 3 minutes tops of seeing the ladies in their beach wear. Congratulations everyone, we hit our beach episode quota for this series.

– Naturally, once Celestial Being has a bead on them, it doesn’t take much time for La Edenra to fall. Their strongest attack was harming innocent people, so of course they wouldn’t have much else to use once they got sniffed out. Even that large aquatic MA, the Shuichai, barely even stood a chance against Gundam Exia. That’s one less enemy to peace in the world, and I don’t think anyone is going to complain about Celestial Being destroying a terror organization.

– Marina: “He had to be joking earlier, right?” Setsuna: “You wish! Byeeeeeeee.” *flies off*

**First Timer**

[I’d love it if we start one episode *without* the indiscriminate murder of civilians thanks](https://imgur.com/a/UEiCVni).

[](#dead)

Lockon has in fact been heavily effected by terrorists in the past, I’d assume his family or people close to him ended up dying because of it, and either way [he clearly saw some awful sights as a child](https://imgur.com/a/Nv9c8Np) that could easily instill a passionate hatred of terrorism.

[Haro is not being helpful here](https://imgur.com/a/TOgbZ6q)

[](#bruh)

Ah yes “[camouflage](https://imgur.com/a/LyoqqCa)” of course! [Love him in the back](https://imgur.com/a/cvrvWvn) lol

[](#mangaka)

[Wonder if Feldt has some bigger connection to Haro](https://imgur.com/a/Qx9IFdQ), they definielty seems more acquainted at least.

[](#rengethink)

[Such reassuring words of encouragement](https://imgur.com/a/ckEQFWm)…this does touch on how much effect CB really has gained on the world stage, a big point of urgency for Marina’s visits is the potential intervention of CB in her country, despite that her attempts moving towards a peaceful solution are being hurt by groups targeting CB, there’s a real self fulfilling nature to CB’s existence, even indirectly they are partly contributing to the conflicts they end up stopping, which connects very poignantly to her conversation with Setsuna later on.

Love Saji’s conversation with his sister, ultimately the real cost of war, be it conventional or otherwise, is the human tragedy, and that’s not something you truly realize until you see it for yourself, it’s a harrowing realization to think that at the end of the day even someone in a different country, completely unrelated to a conflict, just living their life, can end up being taken away for just being at the wrong place at the wrong time.

[I do wonder about her speculation though](https://imgur.com/a/sc3jdkM), the Gundam Meisters at the very least seem to believe that goal? but maybe there’s something deeper going on here.

[](#harukathink)

Great tension build up as the team wait around for info on the terrorists, it also gives Setsuna some time for self reflection and to reafiorm that Saachez is in fact, [the worst](https://imgur.com/a/5SnJxJf), again this show isn’t exactly hiding [how it was influenced](https://imgur.com/a/jrMqeyH) by the events of the time.

“I will apprehend the target”, [*proceeds to pull out gun and immediately starts shooting*](https://imgur.com/a/Wq7Ney0) , the guy really has no chill.

[](#deletethis)

Marina’s situation really just sucks, I already mentioned the CB problem she has above but even her fundamental energy problem is a self perpetuating downward spiral.

[](#therethere)

[Well that’s awkward](https://imgur.com/a/ZRZp9DO), this conversation gives us a really good look into Setsuna’s mind, [why he views CB’s goal and methods to be worthy of pursuing](https://imgur.com/a/3pJiMCb) and [how he really feels](https://imgur.com/a/7DyY8mR), I said it back in episode 4’s PTSD sequence but despite his stoic demeanor Setsuna is always on edge, the war in Krugis may have ended but *his war* never did.

Thankfully for him, despite immediately ignoring everything Tieria and Lockon told him last episode and just revealing his identity to someone, while also directly threatening her in CB’s name, she *somehow* [takes it as a joke](https://imgur.com/a/Bl6g1uG) (or just doesn’t want to believe him )..

[](#hanasakueurgh)

The episode ends with a really interesting development for CB’s situation, although they have been used before as tool in the political plans of others, this time around the world is [directly “asking them for help”](https://imgur.com/a/ApnCGPO) and actively cooperating with them to do things they couldn’t otherwise.

[It all seems to be part of the plan](https://imgur.com/a/t2bobSm) and it certainly gives them a legitimacy they didn’t have before, it also creates a possibly dangerous political situation where the politicians that once denounced CB are using them for help, something the populace which currently doesn’t like CB might not appreciate.

[](#schemingsaten)

**Rewatcher hyped for the BEACH EPISODE**

-—————————————————————————————

[Well, that sounds uncomfortably like Celestial Being itself.](https://imgur.com/a/j1yvEQt)

[And of course, Lockon’s got quite the traumatic past himself.](https://i.imgur.com/2mM5ZmC.png)

[that stretched cat tho](https://i.imgur.com/cTUYiRt.png)

[Also, I like how Ian keeps trying to get a better look](https://i.imgur.com/xEEfpe9.png) [when Allelujah blocks his view](https://i.imgur.com/jBi7gRc.png)

Sure, the combat team doesn’t need to know everything, but does anybody? I don’t think there’s any human who has the full picture of whatever Veda is scheming.

Things just keep hitting closer and closer to home. Saji is a reasonably well-off guy in a relatively stable area, and even he’s starting to be directly impacted by things. This isn’t just somebody else’s problem anymore. It’s everybody’s.

[Of course he does the Akira slide](https://i.imgur.com/hc5pMpT.png)

Did Setsuna seriously not have a plan for the car having bulletproof glass? Or the police showing up? I guess this is what happens when you send a Gundam Meister to do an agent’s job.

Kamal Majirif? So you had a fake name prepared after all why did you not give that to Saji instead of your actual codename?

[Well, they don’t call themselves “Celestial Being” for nothing](https://i.imgur.com/VRMcJ1H.png)

Peace talks are nice and all, but if they worked so easily, the world’s problems would have been solved long ago. As far as Celestial Being is concerned, the diplomatic solution has failed, and in the end, force is the only universal language. There’s also the matter of perspective. From where Marina is, war is just an unfortunate statistic to be minimized. But Setsuna has seen the war firsthand. Hundreds of people die in even the most minor conflict, and they continue to fight and die, somewhere in the world.

[Oh that’s gonna give Tieria an aneurysm and a half](https://i.imgur.com/bIEmUxT.png)

[Don’t forget, this is the beach episode](https://i.imgur.com/POmrYCQ.png)

[Hey, where’s the Virtue’s GN Bazooka?](https://i.imgur.com/8m6VaXp.png) Yeah, the other guys didn’t bring their Gundams’ optional equipment, but Tieria just straight-up left his main weapon at home. Not that he’s lacking in firepower without it, but still.

[Mobile Armor Shuichai!](https://i.imgur.com/JRku8Pr.png) It’s rather outdated and I forgot this thing even existed.

[Another shield and two beam daggers lost.](https://i.imgur.com/Ig8m8X3.png) Come on, at least pull out the daggers and take them with you!

[I’m surprised they’re all gushing over the Gundam instead of shitting their pants at the sight of it.](https://i.imgur.com/FCVEOAB.png) Hey, if you wave, maybe he’ll see you and wave back!

-—————————————————————————————

Questions of the day:

* *laughs in rewatcher*

* I would have expected Ali to be first!

**First Timer**

[This looks like the type of bike you’d play children’s card games on](https://i.imgur.com/1XdJggd.png)

[Bro really started blasting with no disguise on or anything](https://i.imgur.com/zjXzrFL.png)

[Huh???](https://i.imgur.com/mnmo26L.png) Wasn’t he just getting yelled at last episode about how this is supposed to be top secret info?

[Well good thing she thinks he’s just a comedian](https://i.imgur.com/z1Ri1yv.png)

[Nice time to have a beach episode while the boys are fighting terrorists](https://i.imgur.com/gXT1iiw.png)

This terrorist plot was way shorter than I thought it would be

**Firsttimer** who still didn’t find time to read yesterdays thread, but could at least write something more coherent today

* [Lockons](https://imgur.com/uMVILyG) [Backstory](https://imgur.com/fhBsvCy) explains his aversion towards Terrorists, I have to asume he lost [a few](https://imgur.com/RlZYJIO) people dear to him…
* In that regard, I recall him waiting for some small fries to just run away before, but [not today](https://imgur.com/EMzHF3F)
* Funny how the title and the first line [line up](https://imgur.com/wbuKE9Q)
* [Meido](https://imgur.com/NU2sIOP) [](#awe)
* Wonder what [Feldts](https://imgur.com/j4Zm9og) relationship to [Haro](https://imgur.com/mU0dNwX) is… did she maybe program him? Does this make her his mother?
* [Interesting](https://imgur.com/vFL1pZx)… would that be a country we haven’t met so far?
* Sounds like a [lively](https://imgur.com/OUvjP89) democracy
* [More Orphans](https://imgur.com/F2CzTOd)… But I do wonder what their role in the grand scheme of things is? Just a civilian contrast to deliver exposition from time to time?
* [Ali](https://imgur.com/sPZlZlr) quickly becoming worst guy
* The Idea of [Setsuna](https://imgur.com/onxHCGA) doing covert operations sounds cool, too bad it didn’t amount to much
* Similar to the Tokyo Orphans, I wonder about [Princess Amidalas](https://imgur.com/JjsWnPC) role beside [randomly](https://imgur.com/efGgkJq) being at important places, but she at least raises some philosophical questions… silly ones mind you, but still
* Like lets say [the conservatives](https://imgur.com/S1KJGW8) start a [civil war](https://imgur.com/Knlypah) in her country. Would she rather wait for that to take it’s [natural course](https://imgur.com/nfrBgyN) or have CB disarm them before innocents die and *force* them *back* to talks, because it looks like talking isn’t working for them
* Also, this is the [third](https://imgur.com/GtLc6rd) name Setsuna has given
* He must also wonder how his live must look like if CB had existed [earlier](https://imgur.com/gSkmlGL)
* I love this [sneaky](https://imgur.com/B3EX4Rf) [politics](https://imgur.com/Y5nP2CA) though
* Exia has a [cloak](https://imgur.com/IpiSUC1) [field](https://imgur.com/otQw2Y9) [](#maxshock) this better be coming back up again later
* Wait, [was](https://imgur.com/I25eH7T) [this](https://imgur.com/LsENZv6) [the](https://imgur.com/DUytyVl) [beach](https://imgur.com/RbmlGLl) [episode](https://imgur.com/0Vm90KY) [all along](https://imgur.com/htA4ER2) [](#vacationcup)
* What are you even [doing](https://imgur.com/T4xbXxN) [](#pointandlaugh) though I notice a difference in the grade of preparedness the [eco terrorist](https://imgur.com/3wAmdm0) show, one camp got completly wiped without warning, one at least pretended to deffend themself, and one had a [mean](https://imgur.com/18Y6XgX) [trick](https://imgur.com/jcbOyHZ) prepared… now I wonder if this was a trap from one of the major factions to capture a Gundam [](#rengethink)
* Also, Setsuna [sucks](https://imgur.com/58R4a2S) at staying [subtle](https://imgur.com/cKMYMI7)

QotD

* Wasn’t it already declared that they plan to unite the factions against *them*?
* Would have thought Ali to figure it out first

First timer. Dubbed (Kudos to the dub team for having that cop speak with an Irish accent).

I find it interesting that it’s only NOW that Saji feels like these events directly impact him after nearly being blown up in a terrorist attack, and not, yknow, after he & Rouise almost burned to death falling to earth. But that kind of shit is somewhat natural sadly, most people are like that. Greater events that are happening in the world don’t really affect them, not even the smallest ways they actually do like price hikes and other economic issues. It’s only until they end up in a situation where their lives are put in direct danger where they begin to change their tune.

And am I tripping or does that asshole assistant actually care about our Gundam Princess?

What I don’t get about Setsuna is that he fully acknowledges the fact that whilst bigger shit is happening, people are still fighting and dying regardless, so if he knows this then why the fuck is he contributing to that? He even says right here that he’s BEEN fighting and is STILL fighting, so all I can get from this is that he never really grew out of childhood indoctrination of carrying out missions, he’s just doing them on a much bigger scale. It would explain why he reacted the way he did to the guy who indoctrinated him, bro is feeling some kind of way about his abuser and it shows.

Khamal Mazerif is his favorite actual codename… right? Because he said Setsuna was his codename and now I’m confused and beginning to wonder if that’s why Meisters say both their name and surnames to each other.

**00th Timer Searching for the One**

* [I see why Lockon is taking this especially personally](https://i.imgur.com/Qoop00a.jpeg)
* [Beach episode?](https://i.imgur.com/D0dxmYw.jpeg) Shame it’s just the girls though.
* At the start of the series we assumed that CB are just reactive, they go wherever there is war to stop it, but the last few episodes especially have made it clear that [that’s not the case.](https://i.imgur.com/hnMqW7T.jpeg) They’re following a “Grand Plan” as it were, without fully understanding its purposes.
* [Noooo](https://i.imgur.com/TLJC20K.jpeg) why send the one with the stick up his ass here? Send Lockon, he’d be right at home.
* “Hey Setsuna, that thing you did against Ali where you almost revealed your identity? Never do it again, ok?” Setsuna: “Understood, [I won’t stop at “almost” next time](https://i.imgur.com/heyKv3l.jpeg)”.

***

>1) What do you think Celestial Being’s possible ulterior is that Kinue was theorizing about?

The obvious one would be they want the whole world to hate them, to unite the world against them. But I don’t think that’s the truth… there’s something more sinister in there, someone in CB is using them for their own motives (I’d bet on the suit guy).

>2) Marina is now the first person outside of Celestial Being to know one of the Gundam Meisters by name and face (even if she thinks it was a bad joke), were you expecting someone else to earn this honor?

I expected her to get along with CB eventually, so this is just the awkward start. If we’re talking about others who will learn the secret:

* Her secretary
* Ali
* Kintoki
* The whole world when we’re getting close to the ending.

**Kidou Senshi Rewatcher 00**

Before talking about the contents of the episode directly, I will first say there’s a couple details that get me thinking in terms of how they contextualize the previous one a bit.

– The first mostly comes from Lockon’s flashback at the start of the episode, mostly in how the fact that he was traumatized as a child by a terrorist attack adds a bit more explicit meaning to his argument with Tieria (as well as just being solid character-building for him in general, showing how, despite the smile he puts on & his laidback attitude, he’s concealing just as much pain as Setsuna & Allelujah).

– The second is in Saji’s conversation with Kinue, mostly in how his thoughts on how it feels like the conflicts going on around him matter so much more to him now plays interestingly with the framing of the Bus bombing scene. Just before it, there is a focus on the civilian-side negative aftereffects of Celestial Being, but it’s… distant. The choice to present it through the lens of the news was definitely really strong as an artistic choice, but doing so in combination with throwing in Saji & Louise’s POV going about some usual first world teenager shit right afterwards creates an interesting… dissonance. Like they exist in a secure bubble unaffected by Celestial Being or the wars raging in the world miles away from them. A bubble which bursts the moment they almost die in the bus bombing.

I could plug the thesis of the latter paragraph into my comment for Episode 7 comment, since I’m writing this before that thread goes up & it doesn’t necessarily need this episode’s details to make sense, but I’m frankly too lazy for that.^1
[](#teehee)

^(1: You can tell this line was written before I spent an hour on this comment lol)

Anyway, as for this episode, the main meat of it mostly comes in the form of Setsuna’s conversation with Marina, which provides some interesting perspective & characterization. So, right off the bat, Marina’s perspective is common sense stuff in theory. Peace negotiations & reaching out to the other side in any form are pretty much a necessity for any conflict to really end in any meaningful sense. At the same time, though, the fact that she’s clearly more than a little naive puts wrinkles to that idea in practice, where pretty words about reaching across the aisle can only get you far when you can back them up.

And on that note, Setsuna’s side is really compelling in how much it says about his own life experiences. He’s someone who feels let down by the system, by general platitudes about reaching out & forming dialogues that come across as little more than hollow platitudes to him. He never really got to see the fruits of diplomacy, especially when you consider how, even after the war in Krugis came to an end, the region is still unstable & about to slip into conflict again, given how Azadistan currently is. So the only thing he’s seen that’s been able to bring any semblance of salvation & peace to his own life was the Gundam which rescued him as a child, thus he sees its methods as the only thing able to bring real peace. This isn’t even mentioning how the fact that Setsuna has clearly never known anything except constant fighting for most of his life has also shaped his worldview.

It’s a flawed ideology which only thinks in the short-term, sure, but it’s also a genuinely fascinating portrait of someone too broken by the tragedies the world has inflicted on him to be able to believe in anything except the universal languages of power & force. It’s less about making you consider his ideology to be viable and more about how it informs who he is.

Put together, the clash in ideals between the two is also very much a microcosm of the greater ideological clash the series has been dealing with regarding how CB’s methods work in the short-term but don’t fix any real problems in the long-term.

The threat of an intervention in Azadistan is also a great plot hook. It has the potential to put both Marina & Setsuna’s viewpoints to the test, and the fact that a potential intervention is framed as a threat in the first place does continue to emphasize what the series has been getting at regarding the negative impacts CB’s interventions have.

On a slightly less serious note, between this & the Saachez incident last episode, Setsuna being much more impulsive & uncaring of CB’s rules when his childhood trauma is unearthed is now very much a consistent character trait of Setsuna’s, but thankfully he blabbed to one of the less likely people to spill the beans. What a silly goose.