Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today I’m eager to return to the Gekkostate, as it seems Eureka Seven is about to transition into a new phase of its narrative. The show’s last two episodes each offered crucial revelations regarding Renton’s idols, as we learned Holland and his subordinates were once willing dogs of the military, while Talho was some kind of prisoner. Even the ships and robots that define Gekkostate are stolen military hardware; far from standing as ideals of courageous freedom, it seems like Gekkostate are more fleeing the world at large, distracting themselves from the moral obligations of this era by seeking the next big wave.
And personally? I love it. While many anime tend to sort their characters into audience-relatable children and inscrutable adults, Eureka Seven is reveling in the messiness of young, uncertain adulthood, through the ambiguity of characters like Holland and Talho. Their dynamic is something I’ve seen before, but rarely in anime – a young woman being rescued from her oppressive situation by a seemingly perfect prince, only for that prince to reveal himself as far less of a man than she’d hoped. Holland is selfish, cowardly, and seemingly disinterested in the grand struggle of his era, and all of that makes him far more fascinating to me than your traditional hero. He’s clinging to an ideal of freedom that’s swiftly becoming too childish even for Renton to believe in, and with an entire community relying on him, he simply can’t afford to keep entertaining this fantasy. I’m eager to see how his story turns, so let’s dive right back into Eureka Seven!