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amitakartok Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
#22526: Jun 22nd 2020 at 7:05:44 AM

The UE Vagan backstory is hilariously dumb — apparently radiation from magnetic storms caused a communicable disease, which is wrong on so many levels that I don't even know where to start.

I brought this one up on... Spacebattles, I think?... a few years ago, but I think the sickness being blamed on radiation is just a case of Viewers Are Morons. I think it'd make much more sense if, say, an otherwise completely harmless bacteria turned lethal due to DNA damage caused by long-term exposure to cosmic radiation caused by whatever corporation having built the colony ships skimping out on the radiation shielding to save money, prompting the Federation to cut the colony loose in a desperate attempt to avoid bringing the contagion back to Earth.

Larkmarn Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: Hello, I love you
#22527: Jun 22nd 2020 at 7:17:55 AM

Hey, if COVID-19 is caused by 5G, then space radiation can cause communicable diseases.

Found a Youtube Channel with political stances you want to share? Hop on over to this page and add them.
MightyKombat I am he as you are he as you are me and we are a from in mai mouffff (Ten years in the joint)
I am he as you are he as you are me and we are a
#22528: Jun 22nd 2020 at 7:20:58 AM

Also, MBON is now available for preorder in the UK and EU PS Stores! £44.99

Are explosions science?
amitakartok Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
#22529: Jun 22nd 2020 at 7:38:20 AM

[up][up]I was being serious there. DNA damage usually causes cell death, but sometimes it causes something nasty instead, like cancer. Sounds improbable, yes, but it's not impossible statistically speaking. Plus due to their rapid reproduction, natural selection is very rapid for single-celled organisms, so beneficial mutations like antibiotic resistance (or increased virulence at the host's expense) proliferate very quickly if even one of the tiny bastards survive.

Hell, even COVID-19 has multiple mutations running around already, including some that are even worse than the original strain.

Edited by amitakartok on Jun 22nd 2020 at 4:44:54 PM

G2BattleConvoy The Hope, The Hero from Installation 07 Since: Mar, 2017 Relationship Status: What is this thing you call love?
The Hope, The Hero
#22530: Jun 22nd 2020 at 7:52:29 AM

[up][up] IT IS?!

HOLY FUDGE, IT'S ABOUT TIME!

"We all fail. We all make mistakes. That is what makes us human."
RangerJackWalker Since: Sep, 2010
#22531: Jun 22nd 2020 at 1:57:46 PM

AGE is okay but Memory of Eden is where the good stuff is (nothing truly great but I enjoy it a whole lot). Even if it's completely incomprehensible if you haven't watched AGE itself.

NativeJovian Jupiterian Local from Orlando, FL Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: Maxing my social links
Jupiterian Local
#22532: Jun 22nd 2020 at 10:09:47 PM

The "radiation mutated a pathogen that lays dormant for years and then suddenly flares up and devastates the colony that's just recovering from the last flare up" is probably the most coherent version of the basic "Mars rays oooooo spooky" Vagan backstory, but I think ascribing it to Viewers Are Morons is overselling Age's writing. Age's script is entirely willing to roll with shit that makes absolutely no sense as long as it gets them the outcome they want.

For example, after Desil kills Yurin, Flit absolutely loses his shit and completely demolishes Desil's mech in a few strokes. Then, one episode and like 15 minutes of in-universe time later, he wants to kill Boss Vagan so hard that he abandons the attack plan to fight him, abandons his mecha to chase him through people-sized hallways, and was about half a second from ventilating his forehead in cold blood before Grodek beat him to the punch. Why was he content to leave Desil, the guy who actually killed Yurin, defeated but alive, but then was so singlemindedly hellbent on killing Vagan Boss? There's really no good answer besides "because the script needed Desil alive to return later, while Vagan Boss was a write off". There's also two or three times in the first generation where the UE attack for no apparent reason and with no apparently objective, just so that the protagonists have someone to fight for the episode.

And I don't even really mean that as a condemnation? I could deal with it if the end result was better. Age's script being heavy on narrative convenience is a flaw, but it's not Age's original sin.

Edited by NativeJovian on Jun 22nd 2020 at 1:23:47 PM

Really from Jupiter, but not an alien.
DarkHunter from New Mexico Since: Jan, 2001
#22533: Jun 24th 2020 at 10:49:41 AM

I believe interviews with the writing staff have said that the director was directing the show more like a video game than a TV show.

Like he'd say "Let's have the Vagan attack here" and they'd be like "Why would the Vagan attack them here?" and he'd just say "It'd be cool!"

It's clear he had zero idea how to tell a coherent story. More than half the plot developments seem to be "Gundam did this before, so let's do it again!" rather than being things that actually fit how the narrative is developing. That and how it hilariously undermines its own themes and messages at every turn...

Edited by DarkHunter on Jun 24th 2020 at 11:51:09 AM

Mega_zxa Since: Mar, 2015
#22534: Jun 24th 2020 at 9:27:55 PM

You know one of the things I feel that Age squandered with its whole generational idea was a changing Federation. For example in the first generation we have the usual Federation with a dark secret that are jerks. In the second generation we get more positive example of the Federation, while still having a bunch of corrupt monsters at the top we see more and more people who wish to do the right thing getting involved and slowly but surely cleaning out the corruption. With the third generation having the Federation be the clear cut good guys having gotten rid of the corruption, to contrast this you could have the UE/Vegan start out as sympathetic and continuously go down darker and more evil paths.

OmegaRadiance Since: Jun, 2011
#22535: Jun 24th 2020 at 11:51:18 PM

The Vegans suffer from the fact their leader is a lunatic who grooms an entire culture if fanatics because he can't into human nature cause he's insane.

The fact that thr colony could leave Mars at anytime reinforces how this deluded madman and his insane ramblings he called an ideal just made everyone miserable or insane, and yet he was somehow intelligent enough to not inform all the Vegans of his true goals!

The staff has also worked on Inazuma Eleven including its sequel GO and OH BOY does it show the same level of writing in GO. I literally stopped watching after GO Chrono Stone because it infuriated me.

Edited by OmegaRadiance on Jun 25th 2020 at 12:39:20 PM

Every accusation by the GOP is ALWAYS a confession.
G2BattleConvoy The Hope, The Hero from Installation 07 Since: Mar, 2017 Relationship Status: What is this thing you call love?
The Hope, The Hero
#22536: Jun 25th 2020 at 2:53:24 AM

[up][up] Wait, hold on, if the Federation are the clear-cut good guys by the third generation, how does that explain the guy who was overseeing the Thieleva and G-Bouncer Deos tests?

Because that woman who was piloting that suit seemed to think that he screwed her and her lover over for whatever reason.

...Unless what you're saying was how they could have handled it better. Oops, my bad.

Edited by G2BattleConvoy on Jun 25th 2020 at 10:56:13 AM

"We all fail. We all make mistakes. That is what makes us human."
NativeJovian Jupiterian Local from Orlando, FL Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: Maxing my social links
Jupiterian Local
#22537: Jun 25th 2020 at 9:22:16 PM

More Gundam Age. On to the second generation! Previous post here

    Gundam Age eps 16- 21 
  • Ep 16: Not gonna lie, Flit makes a pretty hot middle aged dude. Something about Asemu's character design bothers me, though. It feels like his hair should be shaded differently or something. I like Flit as a commander and an engineer rather than just a pilot, which is rare for Gundam protagonists. Pretty dick move about apparently knowing an attack is coming and not actually warning anybody, though. Forget how you're going to traumatize your son by forcing him into combat unexpectedly, you just got people killed by letting the Vagan run wild. That said, the fight sold the idea of the Gundam as powerful and Asemu as talented but inexperienced better than most "baby's first mobile suit combat" scenes do, so points for that.
  • Ep 17: Vagan's second attempt to destroy the Gundam. The fact that Asemu is able to travel across half the colony after the attack starts but before they wreck the Gundam is lulz. Zehart's hesitating to kill Asemu feels unearned; the only real time they've spent together was one montage where they worked on the mini-MS for the competition, there hasn't been anything to suggest that Zehart actually liked Asemu.
  • Ep 18: Well there's the development of their friendship that was lacking last episode. Zeheart sees Asemu being a genuinely noble, self-sacrificing person, and then they spend a long time just being friends. (The episode said half a year at one point and a year and a half at another, and I'm not sure which is correct.) Top tier stupid drama logic when the MPs march up to arrest Zeheart in the middle of the graduation ceremony... and then leave him behind to escape ten seconds later when his Vagan buddy provides a distraction. Later, after they fight, Zeheart pulls the "I am an honorable warrior with a noble cause, can you say the same?", but it doesn't work at all because the answer is "yeah, I'm fighting to keep you assholes from murdering everybody, which you've been doing for 40 years".
  • Ep 19: Zeheart is made commander of Vagan's entire Earth attack force because he... spent six (or 18) months failing to destroy the Gundam. Romary joins the military so she can still be in the show. Bunch of old characters reintroduced. Dique has a daughter who's just as silly as him, but actually gets to shoot things. Zeheart uses his newfound authority to get six of his men killed just to confirm that yes, there is a Gundam on the Diva.
  • Ep 20: Desil trying to dunk on Zeheart and then finding out Zeheart outranks him was pretty good. Zeheart called him "brother", which I'm not sure if it's supposed to be literal or it's a brothers-in-arms thing or it's a fellow-X-Rounder thing. Zeheart gets a Char mask because of course he does. Asemu is fighting like a standard stupid rookie Gundam pilot now, which is disappointing. Zeheart holds back from killing a defeated Asemu for the third time, which has officially lost its credibility as a plot device.
  • Ep 21: The Diva docks at the Federation's Big Ring command base and is told they're not going to Earth after all. Asemu takes an advance training course and gets told that he's a great pilot but a shitty newtype X-Rounder. Woolf takes him to Madorna's for some male bonding and a simulator training session, telling him that he can fight in his own way rather than copying his dad. Solid episode overall.

And with that, I'm officially past my previous high-water mark in Age. I think the farthest I ever got into it before was episode 19 or 20. I can't decide if Asemu starting as a genuinely nice kid and turning into kind of an asshole is deliberate and we're supposed to like him less for it, or if we're supposed to admire his drive and determination to win. They're building up toward either him becoming an ace pilot without X-Rounder powers, or him becoming a powerful X-Rounder against all odds because "we totally told you he couldn't become an X-Rounder and then he DID ANYWAY, we are good at writing", but I'm not sure which. I'm sort of hoping that he never gets any newtype powers because that'd be badass, but I'm afraid that if they do that he'll get the short end of the stick because only newtypes are allowed to be cool.

I can't figure out Romary's deal, either — she acted weird when Asemu told her he'd spoken to Zeheart, and I'm not sure if it's because she's holding a torch for Zeheart or if she just wants them all to be friends again. I'm leaning toward the former, but I hope I'm wrong, because that's dumb and bad. The show also occasionally throws in scenes with other various minor characters (Mook Pilot #2's one-sided rivalry with Asemu, Mook Pilot #3's crush on Cute Maintenance Girl), which is adorable because it's like they expect us to believe that these characters will ever be relevant or interesting.

Overall, I'm definitely liking gen 2 better than gen 1 so far, though that's not a super high bar. While not everything in gen 2 has clicked, nothing's been as aggressively stupid as gen 1's civil war arc or Yurin soullessly rehashing Lalah's character beats. There are still some potential pitfalls, but I'd be surprised if it goes completely off the rails at this point.

Edited by NativeJovian on Aug 17th 2020 at 3:26:15 PM

Really from Jupiter, but not an alien.
amitakartok Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
#22538: Jun 26th 2020 at 9:27:47 AM

If you ask me, Romary is Best Girl in AGE, hands down.

And one of your predictions regarding Asemu is correct. AGE's order of protag awesomeness is Asemu > Flit > Kio.

NativeJovian Jupiterian Local from Orlando, FL Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: Maxing my social links
Jupiterian Local
#22539: Jun 26th 2020 at 10:23:14 AM

Romary has at least made some decisions for herself (making friends with the Mobile Suit Club, joining the military) despite disapproval from her peers and family (respectively), which already puts her above Emily and Yurin. If her whole personality is "likes boy", though, then I'm going to preemptively declare Arisa best girl until a better candidate comes along.

Really from Jupiter, but not an alien.
TheAirman Brightness from The vicinity of an area adjacent to a location Since: Feb, 2011 Relationship Status: Historians will say we were good friends.
Brightness
#22540: Jun 26th 2020 at 12:28:50 PM

[up][up][up][up][up]I always knew there was something off about vegans, but I hadn't realized how sinister their dairy free ways really were until now.

PSN ID: FateSeraph | Switch friendcode: SW-0145-8835-0610 Congratulations! She/They
amitakartok Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
#22541: Jun 26th 2020 at 1:52:17 PM

[up][up]She's still the best protag love interest. Her Gen3 counterpart pretty much doesn't even exist as far as plot relevance is concerned.

Beatman1 Since: Feb, 2014 Relationship Status: Gone fishin'
#22542: Jun 27th 2020 at 8:39:33 AM

Japan is still diligently working on the 1:1 scale Gundam. Here are the most recent photos.

https://twitter.com/azreell6/status/1275787756103331843?s=21

OmegaRadiance Since: Jun, 2011
#22543: Jun 29th 2020 at 9:49:53 PM

[up]x3 And they had the audacity to have all these unique reptile and dragon mechas. The bastards.

Edited by OmegaRadiance on Jun 29th 2020 at 9:50:09 AM

Every accusation by the GOP is ALWAYS a confession.
DarkHunter from New Mexico Since: Jan, 2001
#22544: Jun 30th 2020 at 6:33:14 AM

For all the problems I have with AGE, I do love the design aesthetic of the Vagan mobile suits.

With... a couple of exceptions.

MightyKombat I am he as you are he as you are me and we are a from in mai mouffff (Ten years in the joint)
I am he as you are he as you are me and we are a
#22545: Jun 30th 2020 at 6:42:13 AM

I guess the Farsia looks nice

Are explosions science?
G2BattleConvoy The Hope, The Hero from Installation 07 Since: Mar, 2017 Relationship Status: What is this thing you call love?
The Hope, The Hero
#22546: Jun 30th 2020 at 8:06:51 AM

As many problems as AGE has, I have to give them credit for writing the original protagonist, Flit, going down a dark path in order to try and end the war.

Not many entries in Gundam I know have that happen, if at all.

"We all fail. We all make mistakes. That is what makes us human."
Beatman1 Since: Feb, 2014 Relationship Status: Gone fishin'
#22547: Jun 30th 2020 at 8:19:01 AM

Some rather enthusiastic Italian fans have put together a LA version of the Side 7 battle from the original series. Seeing as no one has seen hide or hair of the film since last year, I thought it might be fun to share.

Edited by Beatman1 on Jun 30th 2020 at 11:20:03 AM

MightyKombat I am he as you are he as you are me and we are a from in mai mouffff (Ten years in the joint)
I am he as you are he as you are me and we are a
#22548: Jun 30th 2020 at 8:29:40 AM

I appreciate AGE making Flit go down a dark path too and it'd be really good and tragic...if it weren't for how the Vagans are largely portrayed as borderline Saturday Morning cartoon moustache twirlers.

Are explosions science?
G2BattleConvoy The Hope, The Hero from Installation 07 Since: Mar, 2017 Relationship Status: What is this thing you call love?
The Hope, The Hero
#22549: Jul 3rd 2020 at 9:01:45 AM

Can I ask something: where in the hell is it mentioned that Vidar has a powered exoskeleton?

Or a "heavily armoured spacesuit," because it just looked like a pilot suit in just a different colour?

Edited by G2BattleConvoy on Jul 3rd 2020 at 6:28:04 PM

"We all fail. We all make mistakes. That is what makes us human."
Iaculus Pronounced YAK-you-luss from England Since: May, 2010
Pronounced YAK-you-luss
#22550: Jul 3rd 2020 at 10:58:49 AM

I believe it's All There in the Manual, but it's why he's in a wheelchair after getting his A-V implants removed - they were what let him walk around by hooking him up to an exoskeleton in his armour.

What's precedent ever done for us?

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