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Digital Downloads
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Written by maehara
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Monday, 28 July 2008 16:00 |
 After two episodes of history, we're back in the present - where an organisation with roots very far in the past is taking the lead in the fight against the Amalgams, who some see as humanity's future. With the battle to come having huge consequences for those involved, you'd expect people not to worry too much about the methods - but that's just what Amanda and Joseph are doing...
Back to the present, where Joseph and Amanda have been caught and taken to the headquarters of Zwölf, a mysterious institution descended from the Knights Templar that has been meddling in forbidden science. Among its members, called Apocalypse Knights, are people whom Amanda knows well - this doesn't stop her from beginning the training necessary to join their ranks, but the more she learns about Zwölf's aims and setup, the more disturbed she becomes. Joseph, meanwhile, has submitted to testing designed to determine his true potential, while Zwölf has been called into action by the government, who are desperate for any method of containing the spreading Amalgam outbreak...
Another new opening sequence, and a definite feeling of a new start for the main story - with most of XAT removed from the scene (although Wolf's still around and working on some plans of his own) and Joseph's origin story having filled in a lot of the blanks, the introduction of Zwölf feels like the writers are making a belated attempt to get the show's story right - and the first battle showing Zwölf in action makes you wonder why they've sat on the sidelines for so long.
Not so sure about the miraculous and as-yet unexplained reappearance of Sasha, though (I'm guessing she's been revived by her own nanomachine creations), which seemed a little convenient. The character's not quite who she was, either - while she's still clearly struggling with herself over the use that her creations are being put too, that doesn't stop her from standing by while Joseph is subjected to some pretty nasty testing. Zwölf's methods in general are fairly questionable - as Amanda soon finds out - but the general theme seems to be that the ends justify the means. Not my personal philosophy by any means, but not unexpected under the circumstances.
There's still a lot of explaining going on, too, along with the introduction of a few new characters to replace those killed when XAT fell apart. The series now has a much more settled feel, that it now knows where it's going after the opening half meandered all over the place, and it's a lot more enjoyable for that. I can't remember the last time a series managed to turn around so well from rubbish to worthwhile - although I also can't think of any other series that I gave that chance to - but the series is now beginning to look quite impressive. Roll on the next episode...
Watch this episode
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