Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans

... Are you basically saying that Mika could obliterate every single person in the SEED timeline by himself? Because that's what I got from that.

No, IBO mecha would probably get annihilated by beam weapons. Sorry.

Also, Coordinators with SEED mode don't have quite the same mecha-piloting superpowers as Mika, but they also have a much higher baseline. As in, Mika is an ordinary human with an unusual control interface. A Coordinator is either slightly or significantly superhuman in every regard. Their enhanced reflexes, senses, and brain processing power would probably help compensate quite well for their clumsier control systems even before their minds get overclocked by the SEED factor.

So would this make this an entire setting of normals? I mean, there are no super-humans or psychics of any sort. The best the AV does is allow for better piloting control, none of the cybernetics shown are outright augments.

Even the AV isn't far fetched from a basic neural interface or VR set in a more advanced setting.

There hasn't been any sign of a newtype analogue in the PD timeline, no.

Pretty much, although I wouldn't be surprised if there are people in the outer parts of the solar system who have crazy combat cybernetics or the like. Hell, given the change in leadership, we might even see a couple in Gjallarhorn.

That'd be interesting. I rather like this setting of normals. No need to bring up the "understanding" metaphor that seems to come with newtype analogues.

I think FrankenstEin might qualify as augmented, but we all know how that turned out.

edited 27th Jul '16 7:41:52 PM by TheAirman

Oxygen deprivation from being near death for a long time. I doubt getting turned into a Dread-Ein would have changed much.

I imagine the mental trauma he's been through is the biggest factor to why he was out-of-control by the end, but then, Tem Ray did kind of lose it after the Side 7 attack in MSG...

Could be both.

And I am rewatching IBO in preparation for season 2

Introducing Barbatos and Gusion's new designs, Sahelanthropus (what I'm calling it until we get a name), red shirt, and twin Mace-chans because you can never have enough best girl.◊

edited 30th Jul '16 10:09:21 AM by TheAirman

Will it be a weapon to surpass Metal Gear?

Ooh, I like the new looks. Yay, new 1/100 IBO kits! Do you think we've got a chance of them making versions of the Graze Ein or Ryusei-go in the 1/100 series?

"Barbatos Lupus"

Not sure what part of that is lupine, but the return of mace-chan is welcome.

Also new Gundam in the IBO manga, which brings us to 5 out of 72. No clue which demon this one is named after yet.

edited 30th Jul '16 2:44:59 PM by TheAirman

Hey, I just realized where I saw the eyes on Tekkadan's new MS before! They are the same as the Rodi frames'.

edited 30th Jul '16 3:26:08 PM by unlikelyauthor

Nope. They're similar-ish, but they're in a different pattern and they're yellow rather than pink. Which makes sense, since they're based on the Hyakuren frame instead.

Now, the antagonist machine with the two giant shotels? That's a Rodi.

Doh.

I did some reading up on the Astaroth. Apparently at some point all of its original armor and weapons were sold off untill it was just the frame and a reproduction of the head armor. I just keep imagining that somewhere there's a small group that has spent a fortune on armor and weapons from a Gundam suit and the only ms frame they have available to mount it on is salvaged from a Hyakuren, or a Graze, or some other mook suit. Does anyone else think that could be funny as hell?

In the "badass-looking suit suddenly tears itself apart because the frame wasn't designed for that kind of load" way, you mean?

Yes. Alternatively, it ends up crashing repeatedly because it handles like a brick.

edited 31st Jul '16 3:07:53 PM by unlikelyauthor

I've been rewatching IBO in English on Toonami. Some random thoughts on a second watch: the fight between Tekkadan and Turbine on their first meeting was a lot closer than I remembered. My initial impression was that Tekkadan was basically getting their ass kicked and the fight being called off saved them, but on rewatching it I don't think it was that clear-cut. Both Mika and Akihiro had taken damage, but it was mostly superficial and didn't really impact the performance of their mecha. The fight still could have gone either way — both sides were initially underestimating the other, but Akihiro, in particular, was getting better as the fight went on and he got more used to his mecha's controls. If the fight had continued, I'd bet on Mika beating Lafter, and I could see Akihiro beating one of his two opponents, or at least lasting long enough for Mika to show up and making it an even fight. On the other hand, I could also see Amida and Azee taking out Akihiro before Mika finished with Lafter, and then the two of them beating Mika as well. So it really could have gone either way.

In the next episode, when Mika and Akihiro are training with Azee and Lafter, they're training in Teiwaz mecha — meaning that they're not equipped with A-V systems, so they're training like mere mortals, without the benefit of their implants. A neat little detail that I missed the first time around.

Yeah, I noticed that too, and goddamn was Guts the MVP in that fight: Mika had Barbatos (which, admittedly, was sortied before completing maintenance) and was getting his ass kicked keeping Lafter away from the Isaribi and couldn't get a hit in or really keep up until he got the cable around her.

Akihiro, meanwhile, in the Graze Custom (which was slapped together from two wrecked Grazes and had no AV interface - he was flying manual the entire time) actually held the line against Azee and Amida for the entire fight, even if he was moments away from defeat when the ceasefire was called. No wonder he went full Guts once he got the Gusion Rebake.

edited 31st Jul '16 10:14:37 PM by TheAirman

Huh, I'm pretty sure Mika was about to murder Lafter before Orga called him off.

To me it seemed more like it would have been a toss up between Mika and Lafta. Barbatos probably would have had an edge over the Hyakuri in melee, however I'm not sure if that would amounted to much since it seemed like its mace was stuck and I didn't see any weapons on Hyakuri besides its rifles.

As for Akihiro, he was doing a damn impressive job holding on in the end considering his axe and cannon were both busted and he'd lost his rifle, but again, it seems he was pretty much delaying his defeat at that point.