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R2 DVD Reviews
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Written by maehara
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Friday, 05 October 2007 17:00 |
 Giant robots, cute girls, and some horribly confusing parallel timelines - at least Jinki:Extend scores two out of three on desirable aspects. Aoba Tsuzaki's taken to Venezuela to fill a role in her estranged mother's scheming, while in another place and time Akao Hiiragi does her best to avoid becoming part of the same battle - a battle, of course, of good versus evil...
1 - The Battlefield the Girl Saw
When Aoba Tsuzaki's grandmother dies, leaving her with with no immediate family to look after her, she's left on her own - although not for long. Shortly afterwards, she's 'kidnapped' and taken to a place that she can tell certainly isn't Japan - but apart from that, she's got no idea where she is. When an opportunity to escape arises, she takes it, and on her way comes across a giant mech robot - and having been a fan of modelling robots since she was a kid, curiosity gets the better of her. It also makes a great place to hide - until it's called into battle with Aoba hiding behind a service hatch...
2 - After the Tears
With her first battle encounter out of the way, it's time for Aoba to get some explanations. The giant robots she's seen are Jinki - the one she rode on, Moribito, is controlled by Angel, a military organisation set up to fight against other, less friendly Ancient Jinki. The person responsible for having Aoba brought to Angel is the one person Aoba wants nothing to do with - her mother Shizuka, whose reasons for summoning her don't seem to have anything to do with maternal instincts. Instead, it seems Shizuka has plans for her daughter that Aoba's not going to like. For Aoba, meanwhile, the novelty value of working with a giant robot means she's happy enough to hang around the base - although stowing away on Moribito again when it's call into action turns out not to be one of her smarter ideas, when they fall victim to a sneak attack. With Genta seriously injured, it falls to Aoba to take over piloting duties...
3 - Quality and Quantity
Aoba's first battle in control of a Jinki doesn't start too well, but with a little on-the-spot tutoring and some help from Ryouhei they're able to make a clean getaway and get Genta back to the base for some medical attention. While his wounds don't prove fatal, they're enough to make sure he likely won't be piloting a Jinki again - meaning Aoba's in for a hard time as most folk on the base hold her responsible. Meanwhile, there are other Jinki pilots about to be introduced - Minami Kohsaki and her co-pilot Rui, who have heard all about Aoba and can't wait to meet her - a and in Rui's case, provide a little competition for the vacant seat in Moribato's cockpit. While Aoba puts up with Minami's unusual introductions, the maintenance crew back at the base have spotted some unsual damage on the Jinki that Aoba's been piloting...
4 - Face-to-Face
Aoba's ability to use Moribato's 'Phantom' power has given her a bit of an edge over Rui, although their rivalry's definitely not over yet - when it comes to physical stamina, Rui's well in the lead, and that's also going to play a major part in the race to be Moribato's co-pilot. Aoba's in bad enough shape that Genta's not convinced she'd be able to handle a Jinki in a pinch - and his opinion turns out to be the best possible incentive Aoba could have to work on the fitness. If only an ankle strain hadn't spoiled her efforts. Score one more for Rui. The tide begins to turn when the base maintenance crew arrange a Jinki simulator for Aoba to practice with...
5 - Of Enemies and Allies
Aoba's back in Moribato's hotseat, as an unidentified object is picked up approaching the base - but there's something strange about this mission. While the scanners have picked up something unusual, Genta's refusing to tell Aoba and Ryouhei about it, while Shizuka's scheming again. The big problem for Aoba comes when she realises that her opponent is an artificial Jinki like Moribato - meaning there's a pilot inside, and the last thing she wants to do is harm a person. The new Jinki is not entirely unknown, and Genta has some issues to settle with its controllers...
Alongside Aoba's story, there's also a parallel story featuring potential Jinki pilot Akao, who lives back in Japan and, despite being identified as having more piloting potential than just about anyone else, refuses point-blank to take the cockpit. Akao's side of the story is a little unusual - what's not made clear here is that it takes place a few years ahead of the main Aoba / Venezeula story, and while it doesn't seem to play much of a part here, it's going to become a major plank of the story later on, so pay attention! Having aspects from two separate manga - Jinki and Jinki:Extend - means that this series does some series flitting around the timelines, and if you're not able to follow along, it will serious ruin the show. For me, this is my second time through Jinki:Extend, and I have to say that having some knowledge of how the two timelines come together later in the series makes Akao's appearances now (and a few other characters, for that matter) a lot easier to understand.
Aoba's story is the main thrust of the story here, though. A true model otaku, the opportunity to get involved with real robots is easily enough to override any problems she has with having been forcibly hauled out to Venezuela or the prospect of having to spend anything more than a few fleeting moments with her mother. Shizuka's a strange one - clearly with her own agenda and only interested in her daughter insofar as she has a talent for piloting Jinki that she can make use of, she's not the nicest of people, but she does seem to command at least some respect from Genta and the others under her command. They're not aware that there's quite a bit she's not telling them, though.
The Ancient Jinki themselves also don't really play much of a role - cannon fodder for Aoba's introduction to piloting, before she meets what will be the real enemy: other artificial Jinki, piloted by real humans that she'll still be expected to fight against and, if necessary, kill - and just like Akao, that's something she's not exactly keen on. It's a truth that her mother tries to point out to her, without much success (although Shizuka actively wants her daughter to become a cold-hearted killer, for reasons that aren't explained yet) - it's only when she meets Kouse in episode 5, who's later revealed to be the pilot of an enemy Jinki, that things begin to sink in to Aoba's little head and piloting stops being a fun little game.
Even away from the mech battles, competition seems to be the name of the game, with the rivalry between Aoba and Rui taking up a lot of time. Rui's a strange one - she's cold and competitive, and yet there's something about the character that makes her easy to watch, in a way. As a motiviational foil for Aoba, she's also hard to beat.
This opening volume is quite enjoyable, up to a point. It's nearly all set-up, so there are plenty of questions asked but not answered, while the constant switching between the main Aoba story and Akao's timeline can be very confusing unless you already know what's going on - but despite its flaws, it is quite fun to watch. Unfortunately, from advance knowledge I can safely say the second volume will only confuse most people more, rather than start to explain things, but as long as you keep a good handle on what's going on, you should be able to follow it all okay. A promising start.
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