Category: Eureka Seven Series Blog
Theory, Speculation and Plot Development; Episode 31 of Eureka Seven (A-Part)
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Note: This article is also available at Super Fanicom HERE
There is an ongoing tension by this point in Eureka Seven between the desire for normality – and the concessions that must be made to make this happen – and the repercussions of the traumas that the cast have encountered. Too much has changed for there to be any hope of the life that anyone initially wanted; Holland cannot have the life with Talho and Eureka he desired now Renton has entered the scene, Renton will not get his naïve dream of a fun life spent with sportsmen and rebels. How this has manifested is in an increased sense of responsibility, shown perhaps most clearly in Talho’s change of image. Her more modest outfit and short hair is a simple visual cue of “seriousness” – she is not the casual, figure that she was before but instead a mature adult.
Change and Growth: Episode 30 of Eureka Seven
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Note: This Article is Also Available at Super Fanicom HERE
Episode 30 of Eureka Seven seems to be, after so much seriousness and trauma, a return to the endearing oddness and youthful exuberance of the now long-distant first arc. It begins – as, in fact, several such early episodes did – with Renton and other members of the Gekko’s crew on some unspecified mission, completing it in a charmingly amateurish way as they struggle with a large bag of some sort. Indeed, this quite now uncommon style of episode is highlighted as unusual by Renton himself, who talks about how life has returned to normal in a way that he has not seen for some time.
Keep On Moving – Progression and Development in Episode 29 of Eureka Seven
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Note: This article is also available at Super Fanicom HERE
With the death of Ray Beams in episode 28, presented unglamorously and graphically, the second arc of Eureka Seven is over. The allusions to Mobile Suit Gundam that have become increasingly apparent in this section come to a head would appear to have established Holland’s behaviour as driven by a desire for closure with the past; not a perfect act of acceptance of his wrongdoing but instead a desire to drive forwards and move on.
Closure – Episode 28 of Eureka Seven
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Note: This article is also available at Super Fanicom HERE
Episode 27 of Eureka Seven was divided into two sections; the tense buildup to the battle which provided the exposition that will become key in the series’ latter half, and the battle between Holland and Charles itself, resulting in the latter’s death and his wife’s escape. Episode 28 seems to continue this story right from the start, but moving backwards in the narrative to contextualise what has happened. It begins with Ray in hospital, telling Charles she is infertile because of “that phenomenon” – yet this becomes the moment at which he proposes to her.
Battle of Wits – Episode 27 of Eureka Seven (B-Part)
Ray and Charles’ battle with Holland is a fight of equals, quite unlike Amuro fighting Ramba Ral.
Note: This article is also available at Super Fanicom HERE
The “A-Part” of episode 27 of Eureka Seven was dense with worldbuilding, using the moments of peace immediately prior to Ray and Charles’ apparent suicide attack to build tension while also – through snatched conversations – lay down the groundwork for the conflicts that will define the second half of the series. As Holland continually moved to shut himself off from distractions and turn the Gekko into a battlefield, the other characters looked forwards to the future – calling into question the Gekkostate’s future relevance.
Looking Forwards and Backwards in Episode 27 of Eureka Seven (A-Part)
Holland physically resurrects the past for his fight with Charles; old military equipment is brought out of storage.
Note: This article is also available at Super Fanicom HERE
Episode 26 of Eureka Seven should have been the moment of catharsis that was needed after 13 episodes of mounting tension; the crew of the Gekko are reunited, Holland has realised his errors (if still reluctant to do anything about them) and the trap of Ray and Charles is escaped. But it is not; the episode does not end with the Seventh Swell resolving everything even though it wins the battle. With the Federation’s fleet incapacitated, all that remains are Holland and Charles, and their rivalry spills over into the opening of this next arc. It is worth noting how this is a parallel to the epilogue episode to the first major arc, where Renton and Dominic were forced into co-operation. It is a recurring theme in Eureka Seven – picking up on its influences from the Gundam franchise – that only the younger generation have the potential for circumspection and optimism to avoid repeating mistakes and so perhaps it is apt that when children from each faction meet they meet as peers, while when adults meet it is as enemies.
“I’m Back” – A Long-Awaited Reunion in Episode 26 of Eureka Seven
Note: This article is also available at Super Fanicom HERE
As happened around the battle for the Coralian earlier in Eureka Seven at the quarter-mark of the series, the halfway point has the Gekko beset by enemies and out of control; this time, Renton is missing (and has sprung the trap with his trusting nature and need for a parent figure), Holland has realised what is happening and the society that has been a constant companion for 25 episodes now is collapsing in recriminations and nostalgia.
The Destruction of a Setting in Episode 25 of Eureka Seven
Note: This article is also available at Super Fanicom HERE
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For the first time in several episodes, Eureka Seven devotes a scene to allowing Eureka to speak and receive narrative attention alone, rather than as an object pushed around by the others – and in so doing highlights how rare this has been. It provides a proper conclusion to what began in the previous episode with her apparent reconciliation with Holland, and sets in perspective how she has been used as a character beforehand.
“He’s Gone” – Hard Truths in Episode 24 of Eureka Seven
Note: This article is also available at Super Fanicom HERE
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The defining image of this episode, established right at the start, is Eureka trying to fill in for Renton; wearing the clothes he wore in the memorable episode where he underwent his initiation on the Gekko, doing the duties around the ship that he was forced to do. This seems to support the conversations back in episode 22 about how he was seen as a “useful” figure; that the crew are finding it inconvenient to have to cover his duties yet still not used to seeing someone else doing them once again firmly places the Gekko as a warship with a crew, not a community or family.
A New Cycle of Conflict – Episode 22 of Eureka Seven
NOTE: This article is also available at Super Fanicom HERE
If Episode 21 marked the release of tension that Eureka Seven so badly needed, episode 22 should be a fresh start. The manner in which the plot continues is going to be defined by what has gone before in that both sides have reacted rashly to a conflict and now must face the consequences, but now there are two distinct stories that may come to intersect again in the future and until they do the focus can be more tightly kept on each in turn. From the ending of the previous episode, the focal story is going to continue to be the Gekko and Eureka’s story; it ends with the recurring antagonist and foil to Holland, Dewey meeting with the mysterious Ray and Charles; two ex-soldiers who have a history with the two men and are tempted back into action with the chance for some payback.
