RJ Writing Ink

Edens Zero Chapter 206 Review/Recap

Okay, Mashima, I have to ask: are you just trying to use a bunch of cliches now? Because coming up with this kind of twist out of left field feels like a cliche. It turns out that there is a traitor amongst the Crew of Edens…except it’s not really betrayal if the person doing it isn’t aware of it. There is, however, a real traitor amongst the Oracion Seis Interstellar, it seems. It’s just…someone that we have almost no memory of.

Review

With Kleene now out of the fight, the mission to destroy Crow takes a turn for the worse, both inside and out. Crow manages to tear off an entire wing of the Edens Zero in a single blast. Meanwhile, inside, Holy, Laguna, and Jinn continue to be overwhelmed by Crow’s machine’s. Despite this, though, Jinn manages to stay in the fight thanks to his cybernetics. Despite Holy saying he should rescue his sister, Jinn made a promise to her. Kleene learned about Holy’s horrorific past, and she wants to help. Anyone who steps aboard the Edens Zero is family to her and Jinn, and the latter intends to follow through with that.

Elsewhere, Rebecca’s group retrieves their mother’s and sends Homura topside with them. However, Pino then shocks everyone by outing herself as a traitor.

Sort of. She found out that Ziggy hacked her processing and used it to spy on all of them, much to her remorse. However, this also led her to uncover an important record, one that she thinks might be the key to stopping Ziggy, who’s currently beating the tar out of Shiki. 

Back in the depths of Crow, Holy makes it to his CPU, only to be met by Cure, one of her comrades from Oracion Seis Interstellar.

Review

I’m sorry, what, Mashima? No, seriously, what is going on? Why add a traitor at this point in the game? That’s not necessarily a bad thing when done right. Kanjuro’s betrayal of the Scabbards threw me for a loop. However, this comes out of nowhere and with no foreshadowing whatsoever. That’s not good storytelling, from my perspective.

Firstly, regarding Pino, she is not a traitor. A traitor is someone who would intentionally betray their comrades. Pino would never do that, and thus she’s not a traitor. If anything, she’s an unwitting mole who had no clue what Ziggy was using her for.

As for the apparent real traitor, Cure of Oracion Seis Interstelar, it would be more of a bombshell if we knew who Cure was. I actually had to ask on Reddit to remind me who Cure was, because we’ve barely seen him in the story until now. If he’s the one behind Deadend Crow, and this is supposed to shock us, then Mashima failed in regards to me.

Storytelling flaws aside, one interesting thing did come out of this chapter. If Pino’s right, then maybe the record she found will give us the answers we want regarding how Ziggy ended up this way. I need to know, and I need to know it soon! Do better, Mashima, because you’re losing me again!

I Give “Traitor” a 2/5

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Edens Zero Chapter 178 Review/Recap

Rebecca and Labillia have had quite the complicated history, haven’t they? Ever since we’ve known her, Labilia’s looked down and bullied Rebecca for being a nobody while she was a top-ranked B-Cuber. Now the tables have turned, with Rebecca being popular while Labilia is a forgotten has-been. Having lost much of her arrogance, Labilia wants to talk to Rebecca before she dies. As it turns out, she’s not exaggerating, either. The story behind the bond of Rebecca and Labilia comes to light at last!

Recap

Despite Happy’s obvious concerns, Rebecca decides to hear Labilia out in private, with the two girls heading somewhere else. Now alone, Labilia explains that, due to how her channel’s stalled, she’s decided to retire. First, though, she wants to settle things with Rebecca…by staging a cat fight between them on B-Cube.

Despite Rebecca not wanting to fight her, Labilia provokes the other girl by reminding her of all the crap she’s put Rebecca through. As this continues, Rebecca finally demands to know why Labilia’s been so mean to her, prompting Labilia to admit the truth: it was Rebecca’s videos that inspired her to become a B-Cuber.

When Labilia was little, she was always sick and staying in the hospital. One day, she turned on a B-Cube, and saw Rebecca’s video. Despite it being so poor, it inspired Labilia to become a B-Cuber. Then she became a success, while Rebecca remained bottom-tier, and that admiration turned to bitterness. Thus, Labilia staged all this so she could apologize before she dies. To Rebecca’s horror, Labilia’s disease is incurable. Hearing this, Rebecca offers to let Sister look at her, saying she doesn’t want to lose Labilia, now that they’re becoming friends.

Review

Wow. I wasn’t expecting this kind of twist to come from Mashima, but I understand where Labilia’s coming from. People underestimate the impact that seeing someone perform in front of others can have. Heck, there are people out there who get inspired by the likes of PewDiePie and JackSepticEye to become YouTubers; I know I have. It also explains a lot of why Labilia was so mean to Rebecca: she hated that her inspiration couldn’t meet up to her ideals until now.

I’m genuinely happy to see that Rebecca and Labilia have finally made amends, but I don’t want to see Labilia die. My guess is that Sister can somehow find a way to slow the disease in Labilia, but it will take something greater than that to stop it. Perhaps a wish on Mother? If this means that Labilia will join the Crew of Edens now, then I’m all for it.

Speaking of which, Shiki also decided to accept Holy’s terms for an alliance, on one condition. Until the fight on Lendard is over, Holy has to stay aboard the Edens Zero, where they can watch her. That’s a smart move, Shiki. Looking forward to seeing what happens next.

Good, emotional chapter.

I Give “Rebecca and Labilia” a 4/5

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Edens Zero Chapter 177 Review/Recap

Last week, the Crew of Edens made a pitstop at a famous water park while their ship got repairs done. It was a fun, fanservice-y chapter…until Labilia showed up and got harassed by perverts. Then Shiki stepped in, and before things could get ugly, Holy of the Oracion Seis Interstelar showed up and sent the pervs packing. However, instead of arresting Shiki, Holy intends to join forces with him. That sent off a lot of red flags in my head, but I was willing to hear her out.

Well, we hear her out in this chapter, and after reviewing her case, I can say…that Holy is not to be trusted.

Recap

After Holy explains that she wants to join forces with Shiki and the others, she tells them to meet at her rooftop lounge in an hour. While Rebecca tries to chat with Labilia, the latter takes her leave, to which the former notes that something’s different about her. Once an hour passes, the group meets with Holy at her lounge, where she gets down to business. Firstly, she didn’t vote for or against Shiki being made a member of Oracion Seis Galactica. Secondly, she wants to join forces with him to take down another group member: Deadend Crow, a mass-murdering android responsible for the deaths of countless people. She claims that he has joined forces with Ziggy and is on Lendard right now.

Holy gives Shiki time to consider her alliance, and the group takes their leave. Unknown to them, the perverts who were harassing Labilia drunkenly suggest they try and kidnap Rebecca for their own “entertainment.” However, the men suddenly start to melt until they’re nothing but piles of goo. Meanwhile, Holy sadistically smiles, saying all the filth should “melt away.”

Review

Like I said: HOLY. IS NOT. TO BE TRUSTED. 

I won’t deny that I hated those perverts and thought they should go to jail for harassing Labilia and trying to do the same to Rebecca. I would’ve just been happy to see Shiki beat the shit out of them like he clearly meant to before Holy showed up. But Holy using whatever powers she has to melt them into goo? That’s messed up! 

That said, I don’t think that she was lying about Deadend Crow. My best guess is that she’s trying to use Shiki to weaken Crow and Ziggy so she can destroy them herself, then take down Shiki afterward. Whatever she’s planning, she’s not someone Shiki should let his guard down around.

On a lighter note, the chapter did end with Labilia coming back to speak with Rebecca. Given how humble she’s gotten post-timeskip, I think she’s telling the truth when she says she needs to speak to Rebecca. However, the last thing she says is a little concerning. Is something wrong with Labilia? Hopefully, the next chapter will shed some light on this.

I Give “Holy Judgement” a 4/5

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