Hello all, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’ll be returning to the spring production 86, a war drama about a world where the citizens of the eighty-five known districts are supported by the suffering of the eighty-six, an underclass that they don’t even really see as humans. So far, my feelings on the production are somewhat mixed. The direction is generally excellent, and seems far more ambitious in terms of its visual storytelling than most productions; unfortunately, the writing so far has been pretty simplistic, with both the worldbuilding and the individual line-to-line dialogue lacking in much nuance or voice.
The show’s vision of prejudice feels too abstracted into fantasy to really bite as human drama; but there’s obviously plenty of time to get to know these characters as people, such that their conditions might cut with the sharp edge of emotional investment. The finale of the first episode was able to evoke a sense of personal tragedy with a remarkable economy of scene-setting, so I’m hoping things continue to improve throughout the second episode. Let’s get to it!
Episode 2
“May 22nd, Stellar Year 2148.” Giving us such a specific temporal grounding makes me assume this story has an ambitious time frame – there’s not much need to establish the month and year if your story’s not going to extend beyond them
As Lena greets Undertaker, a petal falls from the lily in her window. Lilies represent innocence, so this is presumably intended to underline her first step away from the innocent ignorance of the country’s surface world, and into the world of the 86
The OP suffers from math rock’s frequent problem of failing to convey an emotion beyond “we like time signature shifts.” The imagery and melody just don’t line up at all
We jump back to the 86, where the team is being yelled at by “Old Man Aldrecht.” Presumably you don’t have to live all that long to become an elder within this relentlessly exploited community
Ah, he’s an engineer. Makes sense that he’d live longer, then
“Are you okay using parts from a mech someone died in?” In response, Undertaker taps his hull, implying someone already died in his own mech. Alright, excellent, the script is finally asking us to take the small leaps of understanding that characterize conversations between companions, instead of the first episode’s conversation-as-exposition
Kujo’s name is the latest added to a box stacked high with the tags of their former companions
We jump from the tags to a gorgeous low-angle shot of the pastures and sky, underlining the harsh contrast between their sunlit daily life and perpetual threat of death
“Rain” is coming – a rain of robots known as “Eintagsfliege,” as well as jammers
The beautiful background art is welcome in the abstract, and also serves as a persistent visual contradiction, with its dilapidated villages emphasizing how idyllic life must once have been here
Ooh, I like this sequence of the sky darkening as the soldiers complain about how lousy their gear is. Their small talk is clearly comforting for them, but it heightens the sense of horror for us, as light is literally drained out of the world
The Legion’s machines look far more advanced and well-maintained than the 86
We get an unfortunate splash of exposition-as-dialogue again, as the cast explain the powers of the different mechs they’re facing, rather than let that information become clear through the drama
As always, the direction is on point for this leadup, featuring lots of nice tension-building extreme closeups of the team warming up for battle
The pace of the battle is very clear; it’s obvious how ramshackle the 86’s mechs are, and how they can only survive through embracing hit-and-run guerilla tactics. Also some nice splashes of characterization across the crew – these little exchanges do a lot to establish their emotional dynamics
“Handler One, directional laser-based data transmissions can reveal our location. Please limit yourself to verbal communications during our operations.” What a telling detail. The assumed method of Handlers directing 86s inherently puts the 86s’ lives at risk for the convenience of the Handlers – only through adopting their own best safety practices have Undertaker’s crewmates been able to survive
Gorgeous shots as the sun rises after the battle. I really appreciate the ways this show visually and dramatically conveys the idea that battle is never glorious, and it’s only the end of battle that should be celebrated
Excellent transition from Lena’s control room to a classroom afterwards, as remembering the fight brings a smile to her face. Effectively conveying her growing confidence as a handler without a word
“War was declared on the Republic of San Magnolia by the neighboring Empire of Giad.” The classroom setting offers a natural excuse to provide some needed context
“We estimated that the Giad had been wiped out by their own out-of-control Legion four years ago.” So that’s why there’s a time limit on this war – the operational capacity of their autonomous enemy units
“The Republic’s Juggernauts are vastly superior mechanical units compared to the Legion.” Obviously untrue, but precisely the kind of chest-beating propaganda you’d expect from this fascist nation
“Not one fatality has taken place since their introduction.” At this point, Lena finally interrupts
Lena offers the actual story – nine years ago, their military was wiped out in a mere two weeks by the superior Legion forces
So the government stripped citizenship and all rights from anyone who “did not have silver hair and eyes like us Alba. They would no longer be considered humans, and would instead live in monitored areas outside the 85 districts.” This is the region of worldbuilding that always feels sketchy to me. “Everything was fine until nine years ago, when Prejudice struck” is such a wild, fantastical interpretation of prejudice that it’s hard to believe in the substance of this situation. The individual character moments are good, but this world still feels awkwardly contrived
The government frames the 86 as “humanoid pigs who failed to evolve.” I do appreciate that the distinction of the Alba adds a clear racial component to this discrimination, which is obviously one of history’s most enduring instigators of oppression. Language like this is endemic in racially segregated or class-based societies, where the upper class’s superior status is frequently justified by the “inherently superior” nature of their bloodline
The teacher’s also offering a fair example of how this inherent contradiction works – you can still say your society believes in ideals like justice and equality, so long as you classify your underclass as subhuman
“Even apart, we look at the same stars!” Lena’s passion and naivety are both believable; she’s idealistic enough to believe that a couple speeches might “clear up this misunderstanding,” and doesn’t really parse the structural forces at work, or the intentionality of this situation
“It’s not too late to change the Republic’s foolish mistake!” Yep. She still believes the Republic is a fundamentally laudable institution that simply made a mistake
Back at Lena’s room, the lilies have all died out
Well shit, that sure is an early credit drop. Time for a dramatic post-credits!
It does serve as a neat way to compartmentalize the 86 side again. We learn from Undertaker that Lena actually is a fine strategist
And we get another natural illustration of how little the Handlers generally care for the 86: Undertaker always sends in the same mission report, because his previous Handlers never read them anyway
“We can use this data to limit deaths all across the battlefield!” Lena is absolutely overflowing with naïve idealism. The 86s rightfully respond with “so young,” which she denies by saying she’s the same age as them, earning another rightful sigh from the 86s. She might be the same age, but she’s missing a lifetime of knowledge about the world she lives in
Her idealism might be essential, though – the 86 are resigned to being chewed through by the state, but she has the passion and potentially the position to help them
And Done
Alright, I really enjoyed that one! Lena’s characterization throughout this episode was excellent; the show tread a careful line of conveying her as competent, passionate, and righteous, but also in large part propelled by an intense naivety regarding the scale and nature of her society’s oppression. The material on the 86s’ side was at least as strong, lightly building up a variety of connections across the soldiers, and effectively conveying the guerilla desperation of their combat techniques. I still have some quibbles regarding the base setup of this world, but this episode largely avoided any clumsy narrative pitfalls, and successfully established a compelling bond between our two leads. A strong follow-up that leaves me eager for whatever’s next!
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