Aldnoah.Zero

Episode 16

Well, well. Apparently the series hasn't forgotten about two of its most interesting side characters after all, for episode 16 focuses as much on Lt. Marito and Yuki as it does on Slaine, with Inaho getting shorted for a change.

One of Aldnoah.Zero's biggest ongoing flaws has been its limited character development, which makes pushing Marito so far into the background that he didn't appear for three episodes particularly egregious, as he was easily the series' best-developed character in the first season. His absence is explained away in this episode by him and Yuki being on assignment separate from the Deucalion, and the conversation Marito has with one of his superiors indicates that it may have been by his choice; the Deucalion stirs up too many bad memories for him, even though he has mostly conquered his PTSD. (Implicit here is that Yuki was away because she wanted to stay with Marito, although the interpretation that she could no longer bear to be around Inaho while he's fighting is also suggested.) That's changing, however, for the Deucalion is coming back to Earth for a while and Marito and Yuki's unit will be their new escort; presumably this means that the two will be back in the regular rotation for at least the near future. Before the Deucalion arrives, though, another Aldnoah-powered Kataphrakt touches down nearby, piloted by a Martian Knight who had apparently been taking a less aggressive approach to this point but had been egged into action by his fellows, who are concerned about Slaine's ambitions. (I'll get back to this.) Inaho, of course, partly comes to the rescue, although this time he just contributes by playing off of a weakness in the Kataphrakt's defense that Marito had already started to suspect. This time the Knight – who is the Cruhteo lookalike who has been appearing in the opener – may have been taken prisoner instead of killed, though, and that paired with his less bloodthirsty approach could make for some interesting developments in upcoming episodes.

Slaine, meanwhile, is pushing forward strongly with his ambitions. He impresses many with his successful solo attack on an Earth Forces base but is also clearly fostering enemies within the Vers Empire nobility, who find the timing of his ascent to power as Saazbaum's successor too convenient to believe that it is coincidence. Just as interesting is Slaine's loaded conversation with Lemrina about where his loyalties lie. That conversation reveals more about Lemrina's origin (she was, as I suspected, illegitimate, which explains why she wouldn't have been mentioned in the first season) and further suggests that she is no fool; she is quickly overtaking Marito as the most meaty side character despite her very limited screen time. Asseylum, meanwhile, is still tanking.

So, in essence, this is a make-up episode for all of the lax character development so far. The writing doesn't make big strides and continues to neglect some previously-worthy candidates (especially Rayet, whom the series's writers do not seem to know what to do with anymore) but at least it is actually making an effort now. Even Inaho shows a glimpse of actual emotion in the opening scene flashback where he wakes up after his injuries (from episode) and finds Yuki asleep at his bedside; the faint smile he gives when she wakes up is far less disturbing than his enigmatic one in episode 12 was. The overall plot advances apace and shows signs of further intrigue we can expect on the Vers Empire side. The episode also suggests a semi-plausible answer to the mystery of why the Empire might have backed off on its aggressive stance during that 19 month time lapse between seasons: that the loss of several of their elite Kataphrakts might have rendered them more cautious. Yeah, I don't buy that as being good enough, either, so hopefully we will see more signs in the future of internal intrigues on the Empire side which contribute to that hesitancy. At least the musical score is tossing some newer and effective themes into the mix and the prettiest cast member (yes, I'm talking about Yuki, not Marito!) is back in circulation.

So no major developments this time around, but the number of minor ones should tide viewers over for now.

Rating: B-

Aldnoah.Zero is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.