RJ Writing Ink

Edens Zero Chapter 49 Review/Recap

In the last chapter of Edens Zero, Shiki and the gang learned that the last of the four Shining Stars, Valkyrie, is on the planet Sun Jewel. Thus, they set sail for the last crew member they need before leaving the Sakura Cosmos. But they run into an unexpected detour in the form someone called Captain Conner.

Recap

To reach Sun Jewel, the Edens Zero needs to take a detour around a vast debris field. They can’t use the fast travel to get there since the ship’s never been there before. As the crew’s talking things over, they notice they’ve gotten inside a group of space fish from the neighboring Aqua Cosmos. There’s also a man holding onto a steering wheel in the midst of all of it.

The man’s name is Captain Conner from the Aqua Cosmos; he got separated from his ship and has been drifting through space ever since. In gratitude for saving him, Conner offers to become the new Captain of the Edens Zero, which Shiki and Rebecca refuse since Shiki’s the Captain. They do give him a ride until he can find a place to stay, but he gets on several people’s nerves:

• Going into the baths while Rebecca and Homura are using them (he thought it was a mixed bath

• Using the dress factory

• Teaching Pino to swear words

When the crew has a meeting about Captain Conner, they find out he got onto the bridge… and used it to get the Edens Zero to Sun Jewel in less than a day. All through the debris field, no less. This man, Captain Conner, is none other than the Captain of the ship called Edens One.

Review

They need Captain Conner. On their crew. RIGHT. NOW. I don’t know who Conner is, but he would be a perfect addition for the Edens Zero. I was annoyed/amused at him helping himself to all the places on the ship (and teaching Pino swear words). Now, though, I’m with Shiki: he’s fantastic. While him asking to be Captain didn’t make much sense at first, I think that in the Aqua Cosmos, Captain may also mean “helmsman.” That would explain why he’s so good at flying the Edens Zero.

Then there’s the fact that he’s the Captain of the Edens One. I thought that the Edens Zero was the only ship of its kind, but that’s no longer the case. These two ships are connected somehow, and we’ll only learn how if Conner sticks around.

I think this chapter was a great way to get us in position for Sun Jewel, as it gave us a potentially new addition to the crew. I have a feeling that we’ll be seeing a lot more of Captain Conner in the future of the manga.

That reminds me! We are approaching the one year mark for Edens Zero! I can’t wait!

I give “Captain Conner” of 4.5/5. Funny scenes and a new major character in one episode.

Click here to see more animanga stuff

Disney’s committed to making sure Amphibia’s their big cartoon of the summer. Every Monday to Thursday from now until July, they’re airing a new episode of Amphibia. So far I am loving it, and I love watching Anne exploring her relationship with the Plantars in today’s episode.

Cane Crazy

After being insulted by Anne one too many times, Hop Pop threatens to throw Anne out of the house. While he goes to take a nap, Anne makes fun of him even more, only to break his favorite cane in the process. Determined not to go back to living in a cave, Anne drags Sprig and Polly to find a replacement cane.

Unfortunately, the only tree that has the wood needed is the extremely dangerous Doom Tree. It has earned its name, though, because it turns into a tree/bug monster and chases them all the way back to the wood shop. The resulting fight ends up wrecking the shop, and they have to give up their new cane as repayment. Even so, Hop Pop admits he wasn’t going to throw Anne out. She reminds him too much of himself as a kid. Still puts on dish duty for a month, though.

Flood, Sweat & Tears

The Plantars basement gets flooded after a leak springs in the ground, forcing Anne to bunk with Sprig in his room. Even though the two are best friends, Hop Pop’s afraid they can’t handle being roommates. As the nights drag on, we see that each of their habits rive each other nuts. The breaking point finally comes after two weeks when Anne breaks one of Sprig’s action figures.

Desperate to get their space back, they dive into the basement to find the leak, only to find the cause: river lampreys. With a little teamwork, though, they clobber the leaches and drive them out, fixing the leak. Even if they don’t work out as roommates, Hop Pop points out that the whole thing made their friendship even stronger. So, Anne sleeps on the couch until the basement’s dry.

Review

This episode wasn’t as much fun as the premiere was. It’s kind of hard to want to stick with episodic content when you consider the bigger plot going on. This is the first season, though, and that should be spent world-building and establishing character relationships. As far as I’m concerned, this episode helped to do that.

We got a good look at how Anne’s adjusting to life with the Plantars, and so far, she’s doing a good job. She’s best friends with Sprig, Polly Plantar’s started liking her, and even Hop Pop admits he’s fond of her. With the show already set for a second season, we can expect to be entertained for years to come. Plantars and Anne against the world!

I Give “Cane Crazy” and “Flood, Sweat & Tears” a 4/5

Click here to see my other animation stuff.

Least Favorite Comic To Screen Adaptation

Do you know the feeling you get when you learn your favorite comic book character is going to appear in the next MCU film? You get so excited, only to have your heart sink when it turns out, that character’s nothing like the comics. I’ve only had to deal with that on rare occasions because Marvel’s good at getting things right. There is one example, though, that I consider the worst comic to screen adaptation ever.

The Mandarin, MCU

One job, you had one job Marvel, and you messed it all up. Back in the original Iron Man film, Marvel looked like they were planting the seeds for the appearance of one of Iron Man’s greatest enemies, the Mandarin. In the comics, Mandarin is a powerful supervillain and Iron Man’s archenemy.

The fact that he’s a master martial artist and scientific genius makes him dangerous as it is. It’s the rings he wears on his fingers that make him a world-class threat. Salvaged from an alien ship that crashed in China centuries ago, they let the Mandarin control everything from ice to matter to dark matter. Despite his power, Iron Man has stopped him time and again.

The MCU made references to the Mandarin back in the first Iron Man, with the Ten Rings terrorist group being a direct reference to the character. I think it was implied that he was the leader of the group and that he would appear in a future film. Then we got Iron Man 3, and the man we thought was the Mandarin was a fraud.

Fake Mandarin

So, instead of giving us a superpowered terrorist leader, we got a washed-up actor hired. An actor hired by a businessman to cover up the screw-ups for whenever his illegal, genetic experiments blew up. The actor doesn’t even realize what he’s covering up.

As fun as the climax of Iron Man 3 was (Iron. Legion), the reveal that the Mandarin was a fake was a letdown. It’s one of the few mistakes that the MCU has made, and a waste of a good villain. Even the MCU’s real Mandarin was mad about his name being used.

There is hope, though. Kevin Feige has said that the real Mandarin may still appear in the MCU, even though Tony Stark is now dead.

Click here to see the rest of my comic book related writings, including the 30-Day Challenge