AnimeVision

9 - To Lay Down the Bow
Lafiel's group manages to leave Lobnas II just in time to avoid a confrontation with the United Mankind fleet, but she's appalled by the damage that's been taken by Spoor's fleet - or what's left of it. Meanwhile, the rest of the Operation Hunter fleets are busy clearing up the last of the United Mankind's opposition & the current stage of the war is coming to an end, giving Lafiel an opportunity to take leave from the military & return to Lobnas II.

10 - An Abriel's Tears
Jinto's managed to escape his captors and is wandering aimlessly around Lobnas II, trying his best to survive but without any way off the planet. With nothing else to do, he's reduced to writing poetry on walls and reliving his memories of his time with Lafiel - but with no more food or water it appears to be the end of the line for him. What he doesn't know is that Lafiel and Samson are both on their way to search for him...

I vote the final scenes of this series as some of the most touching in anime, but then I'm a CotS/BotS fanboy, so I admit to some bias. :) Each episode focuses on a very different setting - very little of Lafiel or Jinto in the first 2 episodes - which means there's plenty of variety & little opportunity to ger bored. Spoor's word games & the combat scenes in episode 8 are the highlights of the non-Lafiel scenes. Episode 9 would be the weakest of the bunch (no criticism there, it's still damn good), with its focus on the wider events around Lobnas & the end of Operation Hunter, but the final episode is an all-time classic guaranteed to tug at your heartstrings.

Overall, I really can't recommend the Crest / Banner stories highly enough. I can only complain at the apparent lack of progress in getting the next installment animated...!

Passage of the Stars OVA: Birth Technically not part of Banner of the Stars II, this 1-episode OVA is included on the disc under Extras. You may also know of it as Sekai no Danshou or Lost Chapter of the Stars.

Going back into the past, this takes a snapshot from the lives of Lafiel's parents, showing the events leading up to their decision to have a child together. While on a trading mission, they discover an ancient colony transport. While they're investigating it, the ship's systems reactiviate & they're left stranded on board, searching for a way to get back to their own ship.

Birth is more of a treat for the fans than a serious sidestory, and consists mainly of Lafiel's parents talking to each other, while their predicament on board the colony ship is really just background. It's a must-see for fans of the show, though, particularly as it's a freebie. Kudos to Bandai for resisting the urge to release this on its own.