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| I think this is pretty neat. |
As the title suggests, Ouroboros comes out publicly in this episode. I didn't expect them to show up so openly this early, but this may indicate that our final boss will be the person pulling the strings behind Ouroboros - or, perhaps, even someone else entirely. Since the episode focuses on one of the main plot lines, namely the death of Barnaby's parents, I found it very fun to watch.
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| A nine-year-old reciting the times table to her pops. |
This scene connects us back with the parent/child theme from the last episode. It just shows how little time Kotetsu actually spends with his daughter. When he is given a paid vacation, he buys a Mad Bear stuffed animal to go visit Kaede, but a crime happens at the the most inopportune time; the guy just can't catch a break! I really feel sorry for him when she says that he always breaks his promises and hangs up on him. I hope to see something touching when they finally get some direct interaction.
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| Kinda hot. |
It is also nice to see what the heroes do when they aren't fighting crime. During his free time, Barnaby is doing all he can to find any connections to his parents' murder, and suddenly stumbles upon this guy. Shown post-credits last episode, Barnaby finally remembers the face of the guy who killed his parents. I've always wondered who actually saved Barnaby from being killed by this Jake Martinez back then. Could it have been Albert Maverick? Mr. Legend or some other NEXT? Or maybe Jake was just tasked to kill the Brooks couple, and let Barnaby go for whatever reason. An old newspaper from Episode 6 tells us that his parents were famed robot engineers. Maybe that's what got them killed.
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| Mug shot complete with Blue Rose lipstick. |
Let's do a little timekeeping just to get our story straight. I'll assume that our present year is NC1977, which was shown as the year of Barnaby's debut, according to Lunatic's info in Episode 8. Barnaby is currently 24 years old and was orphaned at the age of 4, which means that his parents were killed 20 years ago, NC1957. It says here that Jake Martinez was apprehended by Mr. Legend in NC1962. This means that Jake was arrested 5 years after killing Barnaby's parents, on multiple other charges. He is currently serving 250 years in Abas Prison.
The attacks begin on the bridge on which Kotetsu's driving en route to see Kaede. It's nice to see the heroes get overwhelmed. It just gives a different feel from the villain-of-the-week format that we've seen a bit too much of. To add insult to injury, these robots are piloted by animated teddy bears with the help of puppeteer-like NEXT powers. I also like that the villains tactically close off all paths out of Sternbild, effectively holding the entire city hostage by threatening to destroy the pillars that support it. Bad urban planning can really come back to bite you in the ass in more ways than one.
It turns out that the one behind the attacks is none other than the group Ouroboros. They demand that Sternbild release their comrade, Jake Martinez. So, in the same episode that Barnaby finds out the identity of his parents' killer, said killer's comrades are trying to break him out. Coincidence? Maybe. I just think it's more dramatic this way. What's the fun in Barnaby going in to question Jake, only to be filled with angst all episode long? Though I doubt it will happen, I think it will be more interesting if Ouroboros is successful in taking Jake back.
I doubt Lunatic would just sit idly by while all of this is happening. I don't think he'll fight side-by-side with the heroes, but he might personally pay a visit to Abas Prison. As for some random thoughts on Albert Maverick, I think he's a rather suspicious character. He seems to be the guy that Barnaby trusts the most, and even phoned him when he found out the identity of his parent's killer. Coincidentally, the Ouroboros attacks start soon after. He even convinces the mayor to not bring in the army, and instead to let the heroes themselves handle it. Perhaps I'm just reading too much into it.
Judging by the preview for the next episode, I'm sure the most popular theory flying around is that Origami Cyclone will finally be of some use by shapeshifting into Jake Martinez. I can't wait to see what happens next week!
-Bern
