Passing the Baton
Our 10th week into this series
ties its ends into the 3rd arc of Index. The complete reversal of
roles in attack and defence between the two Level 5 espers appeared to me as if
it was portraying their mental states; Mikoto attacks the facility out of
desperation, doing whatever it takes to avoid her clones being killed like lab
rats, whereas Mugino defends for money, and treated it like one of her many
jobs, in which she is likely to have killed her opponents in battle. Also, Mikoto
chose clothes which give her the mobility she needs, however Muginowears some
casual, fashionable clothes, which also shows the plans both had prior to
encountering her enemy. Just as I felt last week from Frenda’s line on all of
her victim’s life becomes void as soon as she kills him or her, what you fight
for does not contribute to the outcome of the struggles faced to achieve the
goal. In the end, winner takes all.
The battle continues, and Misaka decides to
take advantage of the explosive dolls Frenda carelessly left behind by placing
metal pieces in them and using her electrical powers to manipulate them in the
air. Mugino responds by showing she has the tools to cover the weakness of her
skill, that is, the fact she cannot shoot many rays at once. She shows off her ‘Silicon
Burn’ plates by turning a single one of her beams into a spray of green,
exploding most of the dolls in mid-air. Mugino’s speech becomes slightly ruder,
and she refers to Mikoto as a ‘shitty brat’ (くそガキ Kusogaki) and a 'scuttling cockroach'.
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| How ironic. She uses many copies of a man-made item in a fight to save her artificial clones |
On a side note, the amount of space the
dolls and igniting lines cover in the facility are quite amazing. There seemed
to be at least 100 of the dolls, and no matter where Mikoto runs, they don’t
seem to be out of her view. This brings me to believe that Frenda, despite the
way she acts and speaks (Burikko), is actually very intelligent, as she is
probably able to effectively and efficiently lay out and memorise the positions
of these traps. I have no clue why she found the need to put some near ceiling
height, though.
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| 'I hope Mugino isn't angry about those leftover traps...' |
The result of the conflict was rather anti
climatic. It ends with Mikoto simply smashing her last hidden doll into Mugino’s
unsuspecting head. However, after the destruction of the data storage, Mugino
delivers a full force kick to Mikoto’s stomach. The speed of her recovery is quite
amazing, considering she just had a lump of metal practically thrown at her
temple. Thankfully, we don’t have to see anything other than some saliva come
out of our heroine’s mouth, due to her not eating properly in the middle of her
guerrilla attack period. Now Mugino sounds like a street gangster, shouting inelegant
words like ‘slut’ (売女 Baita) at the top of her voice. She takes
the time to tell convey to Frenda she needs to be taught a lesson in how to
clean up.
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| I hope I don't look like that if I'm ever knocked out |
After the high school girls display their
flashy abilities and absurd agility, the battle (I could call it a war, seeing
that Level 5 espers are meant to be on par with armies as military strength)
comes to an end when one of Frenda’s lines are ignited, pulling apart the battleground.
Mikoto sticks to a wall, and offers help to Mugino, but she rejects and falls
down, cursing her untidy comrade. She is somehow still in one piece, and in the
mood to blast another few rays up at her enemy. She later reads the Radio Noise
project data and laughs a vulgar laugh.
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| Still can't get over how good Mikoto is at combat. She knows how to apply her ability in all situations |
The following day, Mikoto confirms the
final laboratory she was unable to destroy was abandoned, and thinks the plan
is stopped, but is still unable to fell relief when she thinks of the aftermath
that is to follow. She then remembers she has friends that await her, and walks
to her dormitory, to encounter an unlucky boy who just lost ￥2000 to a dysfunctional vending machine…
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| Always blame the right hand |
The fact that it had only been one night
between Mikoto’s meeting with the breaker of delusions that day was only one
night after her battle with Mugino brought a whole new level to what I thought
of her struggles to stop the project. The episode was very satisfying, with its
fluent transition from serious action to a comical first world problem, that is,
from the life threatening unordinary to the safe, warm place we call life. I
hope that the second half of this arc is still kept as Mikoto’s side of the
story, and not the exact same as Index.
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