Lets Watch: Skyland

[LaZodiac]

On memories: Yeah, that annoyed me too. She wasn't even there for those memories she shared. My only explanation is that maybe her mother shared them in that telepathic message.

On episodes, continuity, and graphical differences: This episode, and the three episodes before it, are listed as having an original US airdate of "Unknown" or "Unaired". The next episode has an actual airdate listed. Wonder if this means anything.

So basically the last couple of episodes are the really confused ones, where they likely should of gone in other episode slots but we just don't know because no one paid attention when they where actually aired on TV. Welp, that'd explain a lot!

I'm really not in the business of organizing where each of these episodes SHOULD be placed, though it'd be interesting to find out where they're supposed to go. Glad to hear we'll be back to normal episodes Monday though.

[Rawhide]

So basically the last couple of episodes are the really confused ones, where they likely should of gone in other episode slots but we just don't know because no one paid attention when they where actually aired on TV. Welp, that'd explain a lot!

I'm really not in the business of organizing where each of these episodes SHOULD be placed, though it'd be interesting to find out where they're supposed to go. Glad to hear we'll be back to normal episodes Monday though.

I really have no idea. I just googled again then and found the following:

• Wikipedia lists the four as "unknown".
• Two sites list two of them as "unaired" and two as "unknown".
• One site lists all of them with dates, including the four otherwise missing ones.
• One forum thread is discussing how the US was broadcasting the episodes (as they were brand new) "out of order", and in a different order to the Canadian broadcast.
• The broadcast order was different to the production number order, but this is pretty normal. Episodes of many shows are sometimes made out of sequence for various reasons including time to create the episode, scheduling issues (e.g. actors), and delays (e.g. script rewrites).
• I don't know the initial order they were broadcast in Australia, but I know they have been broadcast in several different orders at different times.

[LaZodiac]

Man, Skyland really is a chaotic production it looks like. Really tempted to look for names that I can try to contact to ASK QUESTIONS. But uh...they probably speak French more then English so that would be an issue

[Durkoala]

Okay, a little late today since I had some stuff to do, so here's Skyland!

Episode 19: Alice

Spoiler

Show

Que the shuttle flying in for a landing in their hidden dock for the Saint Naziere. This will be awkward...

It's spelled 'cue'. 'Que?' is spanish for 'what?'

Meanwhile with the girl that is obviously our episodic title character, Mahad comes into her prison cell to give her some food, as well a talk her up. He reveals she's Alice (her computer logs said as much) and that she won't be escaping any time soon. She orders Mahad to let her go...which doesn't work, obviously. Also a note, she sounds less like Diwan now that I've refreshed myself on what she sounds like. Alice sounds like someone trying to sound like Diwan, though.

Maybe there's a Guardian accent? It'd be a bit like learning RP if you go to drama school in Britain. That actually sounds like the sort of thing you would expect from a dictorial organisation. You belong to us; your origins are irrelavent.

They get into a bit of an argument over who is or isn't the bad guy. She says that since the rebellion is destroyed, they should learn not to be pirates, wrecking up the place! Sphere is about keeping the peace, nothing much. Mahad gives a brief summery of the plot and says that they fight for freedom, and Alice just contests those as lies. She swishes her hands around and says "You say you fight for freedom. Amazing how free I suddenly feel right now" which is actually a pretty good sarcastic line. She says that this is like his own "little Kharzem" because they said they'll never let her go since she's seen too much. Holy crap...she's rough, but also right.

I like the fact that we have a follower of the sphere who is a decent person and gives good reasons for why she's following them. Of course, she doesn't know the full story, but the sphere wouldn't give out the evil things they do so it still works.

...Mahad runs after her and steps on the bouncy ball he was throwing around, tripping onto his back. Okay this is just schadenfrueda right now. Hahahahahaha.

Is this sarcastic laughter or not? I'm geniunely confused.

Mahad asks why she saved him...and Alice says she doesn't actually know. So she WASN'T doing it to make him trust her more...it was just a reaction. Interesting...maybe Mahad's suddenly become attractive again for whatever reason. Or maybe he just becomes more attractive the closer to death he becomes? It would explain why Hanako was okay with him having those near death races.

It's probably a Draco Malfoy thing: after lots of preparation/training, she's found that she can't actually kill somebody who isn't trying to kill her, and may be a bit shocked by that.
The idea that Mahad becomes more attractive when he's in danger is really funny though. I might steal it and use it at a later date...

Back with Mahad, they're just leaving his and Lena's house when Patrucie shows up! He taunts Cheng a bit for getting such a crappy part from him, and then says he's been ordered to search everyone's houses for the escaped prisoner. Mahad says that didn't mean their house, but Patrucie says that naw, this is the FIRST place he'd look, because he's a jerk as has been established in other episodes.

Consistent characterisation. Yay!

I'm sad this loser gets to come back but Celia doesn't.

Me too, me too...

This entire section of the episode was weird.

Certainly sounds like it.

...oh, no, they weren't almost about to fight each other, they're doing a Seijun memory share thing. Apparently, Alice is exceptionally good at that, allowing it to be done far more easily. I like this big of information, helping show that Seijun's have different levels of masteries in their powers. I like it!

I thought that something like this should be a thing. Hah! I don't know why they went from fighting for freedom, to swapping memories, though.

We get to see some of Lena's memories, being shown to Alice. Some of them are from scenes Lena was never part of. All....alright. Maybe it's a psion thing. Blargh, kind of stupid. But it works, and Alice realizes how evil Sphere actually is. According to Lena she'll even help them find Kharzam prison! Hooray!

Is this some plot I see before me, a device clumsily pointed toward my hands?

Sadly, Alice is going to stay on board. Someone needs to try and convince the other Guardians of the evil of the Sphere. Mahad insists it won't work, but Alice repeats that she has to try.

I would really like to watch the story of Alice working away at the empire from the inside, chipping at the support of its warriors and infrastructure. Ah, well.

So...this episode happened, I guess. It was good, had some alright action, a decently put together plot, and some good comedic bits...but over all it was just average. And once again we get another side character that'll never show up again, sadly. Another Seijun, too! Sadness incarnate!


Seriously though, the episodic nature of the series is starting to wear thin now. It's still good, but give us something meaty for a change.

Yes, episodes where nothing happens gets wearing when you know that big things should be happening. The titles of the last few episodes make things happening look likely, though.

This sounded like it was going to be a great episode to get the plot rolling: we have a reformed guardian, a lead on Karzam prison, a big loss for Diwan that doesn't break the dynamic of the villains. It sounded like Alice was going to stay around for a bit and we could get on with rescuing Mila and finding out what the deal with the prophecy was, but then she was shipped off to the monster pen behind the credits other side of the world.

By the way, I've started watching Skylands myself. It's quite pretty and the animation is a lot better than RWBY (ok, faint praise, but I don't know many CG animations), but the slow-mo powers in the first few episodes is a bit annoying. Apparently Vector's name is actually The Vector.

I'm not sure about Mahad. Sometimes he's OK, if not the easiest person to get along with, but sometimes I think that your perception of him is pretty accurate. He switches between starstruck at awesome things and constantly boasting, and half the time he can live up to those boasts. If he can't, it's arrogant and annoying, if he can it's either a redeeming feature or really annoying.

[LaZodiac]

Yes, episodes where nothing happens gets wearing when you know that big things should be happening. The titles of the last few episodes make things happening look likely, though.

Here's hoping! I've tried to avoid hearing what the episode titles are until I get to the episode proper.

This sounded like it was going to be a great episode to get the plot rolling: we have a reformed guardian, a lead on Karzam prison, a big loss for Diwan that doesn't break the dynamic of the villains. It sounded like Alice was going to stay around for a bit and we could get on with rescuing Mila and finding out what the deal with the prophecy was, but then she was shipped off to the monster pen behind the credits other side of the world.

Yeaaaaah, basically that. Sour.

By the way, I've started watching Skylands myself. It's quite pretty and the animation is a lot better than RWBY (ok, faint praise, but I don't know many CG animations), but the slow-mo powers in the first few episodes is a bit annoying. Apparently Vector's name is actually The Vector.

Awesome, hope you like it. And yes, the way Seijun powers work early on are really lame except for the one instance of Oslo reflecting the shot at Mahad instead of Lena. Also, yes, I have basically entirely ignored that. He is just Vector to me.

I'm not sure about Mahad. Sometimes he's OK, if not the easiest person to get along with, but sometimes I think that your perception of him is pretty accurate. He switches between starstruck at awesome things and constantly boasting, and half the time he can live up to those boasts. If he can't, it's arrogant and annoying, if he can it's either a redeeming feature or really annoying.

That's basically 100% my thoughts on Mahad. Really wish he'd get a good character arc and evolve.

[Mono Vertigo]

Okay, can't take it anymore.
In case you haven't yet realized where the St Nazire's name come from, it's related to this French commune.
I remember watching this cartoon in French (living in France and all), but it was long enough ago that I don't remember any difference between the French and the English version, hence why I'm just lurking so far.

[LaZodiac]

Okay, can't take it anymore.
In case you haven't yet realized where the St Nazire's name come from, it's related to this French commune.
I remember watching this cartoon in French (living in France and all), but it was long enough ago that I don't remember any difference between the French and the English version, hence why I'm just lurking so far.

Thank you! That is not a thing I knew, and I asked before where the name of the ship came from. Again, thank you

But yeah, Saint Nazaire. Nice and symbolic. Actually a good choice for a name for a group of good guy pirates.

[LaZodiac]

We're almost there, at the final stretch. On the precipice of completing this series, lets go ever onward!

Episode 20: Secret Power

Spoiler

Show

This episode title intrigues me. I hope to assume it'll be about Seijuns.

We open on a night sky, over Port Angel. The music is soft and piano'd. Lena is sleeping (in her overalls) restlessly. We cut to what must be the China block because this is literally a floating Great Wall of China, and it actually looks really cool. We also see blocks in the distance with temples on them, but they seem unaligned Like, one seems almost upside down. It looks neat. We pan around to see a child, playing basketball much like Lena did at the beginning of the series. He starts levitating his basketball...causing Lena to start levitating in bed along with all the small items in her room...or maybe it's the other way around, she's levitating the ball with her restless power as she tries to sleep? Judging by his reaction...it may be the later.

We get this...really creepy shot of directly above Lena as she starts arcing back, due to floating up higher and higher. The ball flies into the hoop. Lena's eyes open for a second and we cut to the boy again, and...SOMETHING happens, because she screams NO, causing Mahad to bolt awake and rush to her room.

We cut to later on, and Lena, Dahlia, and Mahad are flying around in the Hyperion. Mahad says that they should get back, because they've searched over this place a dozen times and found nothing. A dream is just a dream. "Except when I dream about Dahlia of course". Oh Mahad, ever the...Mahad.

Dahlia throws in a "dreaming about you'd be a nightmare" comment, then says that though she hates to admit it, Mahad is probably right. Seijun or not, dreams ARE just dreams, usually. Then they find the village block she was seeing in her dream. Uh oh...wonder what happened here, then. After some exploring they find the boy she dreamed about, along with a caretaker watching over him since he seems to be around Cheng's age.

The boy asks if they wanna play, and Lena said no. He understands this to mean they want the court, to which he claims FIRST. Before Lena can explain...giant sky tendrils star screeching through a parting in the cloud with a strange eldritch noise that sounds like the Seijun power noise but only sorta. We learn the kids name (Spencer) as his caretaker shouts for him, but Lena is quicker and goes to protect him from the tentacles, saying that this is the thing from her dream! However...Spencer appears to have not been the target, as his caretaker/mom gets tentacled. Also, the force of the tentacles is enough to SHAKE THE ENTIRE BLOCK THEY ARE ON. Holy crap.

After a brief period of darkness, everyone gets up from being knocked over, Mahad asking what happened. Spencer goes over to where his Mom was, shouting "mommie" but...she's gone. Mahad makes a note that only the Sphere could make something as powerful as this...to which Dahlia counters she's NEVER seen something like this before, which is really disconcerting. Even the lightning canons on the Monolith didn't MOVE THE BLOCK. Holy crap...

Lena assures the kid they'll find his Mom, but also notes that the dream was different. The kid was in danger, not his Mom. The kid, perking up a bit by this girl saying they'll find his Mom, notes that Siso's Father vanished too, just a few weeks ago, and he asks if he had a dream about her too. Interesting...so Moms are being kidnapped from this village. That's...interesting.

Nice little touch, Spencer's Mom was reading a book before this happened, and before they leave he tells them to wait so he can get it. This also gives Lena enough time to remember ****, she had a dream like this two weeks ago, and that was when SISO'S Dad got captured! And then Spencer tells us something...he thinks it's his fault since he asked his Mom to show him how to use Seijun powers to make his ball fly. Lena asked if Siso's (probably Cecil actually) had Seijun powers too...and he does.

Uh oh. Giant shadowy tentacle beast able to move blocks, hunting Seijuns. This can only end well.

Lena says she knows how to find Spencer's Mother. Mahad shows some intelligence by saying that you don't have to be a Seijun to know what she's planning and the answer is NO. But Lena insists, she's going to use her powers to attract...whatever the **** that is, and they're gonna engage pursuit in the Hyperion.

Lena's response to being told no is to do a back flip like 40 feet into the air, landing squarely on the bench in a relaxing pose, and as Dahlia and Mahad try to follow her, hand waving them into a Stasis field, stopping them in place except for eyes and mouth. Holy **** that's far more awesome then it should be. Someone GIF this, please, because I don't know how.

And then make a version with flashing subtitles going "Swag".

Lena then starts calling out to whatever it is that was kidnapping people, and instead of tentacles the bench she's on just breaks off from the rest of the block and flies off. Lena for her part is totally chill about it and says "Follow me Mahad!". She then frees them from her paralyze and they chase after in the Hyperion, Spencer sneaking aboard (and getting sky sick from Mahad's bumpy flying since he's kind of panicked right now).

And I do mean sky sick, he throws up off screen. Mahad is sour as hell. However, they detect Lena's block, and start flying after her at full speed! Meanwhile with Lena, herself (and a bunch of floating rubble) are floating through more fields of rubble, towards a large tower on a large block. It actually looks really cool. The tower has a sort of...evil buddha face on it, and that's where Lena's block chunk flies into. Thankfully, Dahlia spots it and the Hyperion follows.

Back with Lena, she's wandering through the strange tower. I wonder what she'll find...a naked Brig with a softer voice then the other Brig's, that says "Lena, how nice to meet you" in a sort of C3P0 style way.

Not what I expected but alright. And by naked I mean all it's armour is destroyed so you can see it's innards and stuff. It's actually really cool and reminds me of like, a robo skeleton. Before Lena can enter a fighting stance a female voice speaks up and tells her not to worry. Theodore is harmless. She then orders Theodore to be a good boy and show her the way, which it does so. It even does a fancy courtsy/gesture towards the stairs she needs to take while wishing her a good day and thanks for joining them. Lena is understandably shocked that a Brig could be this polite.

Lena takes the stairs, and they lead to...a balcony looking over a round room with a bunch of pods in it. Oh dear...I think I know what they could be. Something about capturing Seijuns makes me worried something bad is going to happen. My fears are at least partially confirmed since...the Hyperion cannot actually pursue. Every time they try to get closer, large blocks move to get in their way. So...clearly, as we saw with the block Lena was on, SOMETHING, possible Seijun powered, is behind this. Damned Mindflayers *shakes fist*

Mahad blames it on a "weird gravitational force" which actually DOES sound like a Seijun power, so simply adds more fuel to the fire. Also, to Mahad's credit, he's able to outsmart whatever is doing this and gets through. Meanwhile Lena is exploring the large room with pods! And inside one of them...is Spencer's Mom. Uh oh. And it's clear there are others inside the other pods. Lena asks who's imprisoning them, but Spencer's Mom simply begs her to get out before "She" comes. And then "She" comes, saying that they're not imprisoned, just guests.

The She in question has an interesting, sort of flow-y but also short black hair and a bright red suit that looks sort of like Diwan's. She says she's heard a lot about Lena, and was waiting for the day she'd come here. Lena demands to know who she is, and we finally get to see this mysterious woman's face. She's a little pale, and with deep red eyeshadow over her eyes. Her eyebrows are...kind of in an eternal face, one eyebrow always raised interestingly. Her hair is rough and mangled like say, a generic Anime Hero. Her collar is the same as Diwan's, only the little white stripes that denote rank are torn up looking. She introduces herself as Shinseiki, which is probably pronounced wrong...but with the weird look, the weird name (Shin and Seiki make up the words Neon Genesis...so her name is literally "The New Genesis) and the dutch angle they're employing to show her face to us...she's not someone I would try to correct the pronouncement of her name on. She's...kind of disturbed looking.

Lena asks what Shinseiki wants and...she immediately leans forward and goes "SHUUUUUUUH" before...actually answering her. She starts skulking about, making super exaggerated and long winded up steps and such, explaining that she had a dream. She circles around Lena while doing this, like some sort of weird mental case. This would be laughable if she couldn't probably blow up heads with her mind.

"I had a dream, Lena. A dream of Shadow, and Light" she gets around to Lena's behind and starts...feeling up her back as she stands up, to speak into her ear "A dream where a Seijun girl accomplished an impossible, unimaginable FEAT!" she then starts doing an interpretive martial arts esque dance thing, and reveals that this impossible feat is the REUNIFICATION of all the Blocks of Skyland. Returning Skyland back to Earth. Shinseiki then says that the one to fulfill this prophecy is, of course, herself.

She then adds that once she fulfills this prophecy, "Oslo and his minions" will come begging her for forgiveness. So we have some hints onto what her story is. She is clearly a Guardian and...I don't really need to say this but it's ABUNDANTLY clear that she is not sane. So it's likely that she was ditched here for being too dangerous due to her being crazy. Or possibly she just made too many mistakes and was left to die here...and all she did was survive.

Shinseiki reveals why she was exiled here (after doing a three punch combo on the air). She believed in the Prophecy of Shadow and Light, and thus was exiled here. So...crazy before hand then. She then adds because "because I DARED to do what they only dreampt about!".

At this point a large machine that has glowy bits starts descending onto them and if I was Lena I'd start killing Shinseiki IMMEDIATELY...but I must admit it makes sense for her not to. She's a young adult, and here is this like 21 year old psychopath with powers able to reach out and kidnap people from apparently across the world! She's...kind of scary.

Lena says that no Seijun is powerful enough to reunite all the blocks. It's impossible! I'd like to note Shinseiki said that. She shushes Lena again, then starts glowing with Seijun power, flecks of it flying around. She says the Blocks are talking to her...warning of the "uninvited guests". She LOATHES unexpected things! She then uses her power to throw Lena into one of the tubes. Lena repeats that her plan is hopeless, but Shinseiki simply flies upward as the machine starts to spin around. Lena starts to glow with Seijun power, as do the other Seijuns in the pods here. Seijun power starts flying from the top of the pods into the machine, and...seemingly into Shinseiki.

Back with Mahad, he's still unable to approach completely! The blocks continue to move, moving better and more accurately to block his path. Back to Shinseiki, who...delivers an actually SUPER dry "Yes! Oh yes!" as if she's done this a thousand times and has gotten bored of it, but does it because she has to.

The Seijun inside the tubes are clearly in pain, and Mahad continues to try and outfly he Blocks. But then entire skyscrapers fly at the Hyperion, as Shinseiki says "Watch this!". Thankfully, before Mahad can get crushed, the machine powers off and she falls from it, burning up with power like Oslo was after he absorbed all the Seijun power from his brother.

So, Shinseiki is apparently on the level of Oslo, but not able to handle it was well since she's clearly very groggy from this. She mumbles about there being "too much light" and having to get some rest, and she stumbles off, still on fire from the Seijun powers.

...haha, Spencer says Mahad is awesome, and Mahad says that this was nothing. He then makes a reference to one of the worst episodes in the series by recalling the time he "narrowly evaded four shuttles" by docking on an Ice Block. Dahlia points out that this was in fact when he stalled and got them trapped there. Regardless, the Hyperion is currently idling on a block and is being sucked towards the tower, which is a clever move! Spencer says he can sort of sense his Mom inside, and Mahad says they need a plan. While this is going on, Shinseiki is practicing kung fu with a pair of nunchucks. Shinseiki shouldn't be as threatening as she is. Emphasis on SHOULDN'T .

...since the thing the Hyperion is on is floating towards the tower, Mahad's plan is to just let it fly them to the tower. "Good a plan as any". Though I'll cut him some slack, DAHLIA is the one that said hey, we don't really need a plan to get in when this is just taking us straight for the tower in the first place. She has a point...but it's still kind of stupid.

Also there is no chance of stealth. Shinseiki knows they are still alive. She orders Theodore to get the others and to welcome their new guests. Which he does, after suiting up into his armour. It's actually kind of cute in a silly way, seeing these armed and presumably dangerous robots doing C3P0 style movements with fully battle armour on. Dahlia says this is a trap and they run off...though nothing happens. Then they ACTUALLY run into Theodore, who is still just as naked as ever. Turns out they are legitimately welcoming them to the tower. Huh.

Meanwhile with the Seijun Podpeople, Cecil and Spencer's parents are teaching Lena how to resist the draining that she's doing to them. If they don't try to resist they'll be sucked dry...and die. This...is pretty grim. Mahad and the others show up, including Shinseiki, who explains her plan. Today is the day the sun will hit it's zenith (presumably the equinox). With the increased power from the sun, including the power she syphons off, she'll rise up into the heavens to rebuild the world! Mahad repeats what Lena said so many minutes ago, that this is impossible.

But Shinseiki says that now, it's quite possible. Sure, there will be sacrifices. Some blocks will be blown right the hell up, but Skyland will be reformed! Lena points out that THOUSANDS will die if that happens, but Shinseiki doesn't care. It will be a new world, a paradise, with her as it's ruler! Mahad decides play time is over and tries to grab her...and since she's a Seijun she just flies out from his attempt to grab her. Shinseiki then reveals something interesting.

Lena has a unique property to her power, or just a unique power in general. That's why Shinseiki wants Lena's power so badly. She'll ever let her go. This does...a LOT to expand things. It shows that Oslo might actually be right about Lena being the person the true Prophecy is about. It also shows that Lena has a lot more to learn if she's so powerful inside that this crazy lady who can move Blocks wants what she's got.

Lena comes to a conclusion even I didn't think of. Shinseiki was causing the nightmares, which would lead her to the Block where the kidnapping was happening, which would lead to Lena being an hero to try and save them, which would lead to her getting captured. Clever. INSANE, but clever.

...Dahlia, bless her heart, steps up and says that sure, Shinseiki has a few powers, but can she FIGHT? Lady you've seen Lena, who is not really trained at fighting at all, use her "few powers" to throw a grown women fifty feet into the air. This one can MOVE BLOCKS LARGER THEN THE HYPERION. Don't antagonize the psion!

Shinseiki is like "Yes I can, noble knight" which Dahlia IMMEDIATELY grasps the opportunity for, saying "Yes, NOBLE. Which means no Seijun powers. Just you and me, clean fighting." Shinseiki, due to being insane, accepts! Que kung fu fight!

The fight is actually pretty decent, but Shinseiki cheats by using her powers to blow Dahlia back after it looks like she might WIN. She then does an awesome kung fu pose, her Seijun powers glowing from her hands like afterimages. Dahlia is about to rush head long into this, but Lena tells her no...she's far too powerful. Lena says Dahlia has to clear her head, and focus solely on Shinseiki. Then Lena will be able to help! Presumably she's gonna Seijun Puppet Dahlia around to beat the crap out of her.

Oh, no, Lena's just buffing her up with Seijun power. So now Dahlia is glowing with an awesome power! She rushes forward, dodging energy blasts as Shinseiki does her martial arts exorcise! She gets close for a killing blow, but Shinseiki blocks it and blasts Dahlia like, 50 feet into the air onto the second floor and into a wall. Yes, she was hit so hard she went UP FROM FLOOR ONE TO FLOOR TWO. Holy crap.

Mahad isn't too happy about this, and NOW calls her a cheater for using her powers. Um...the time for that is long past, Mahad. He takes out his boomerang and says she's going to pay...I'm sure your boomerang will do ANYTHING, Mahad.

UNSURPRISINGLY, the boomerang is deflected away without even any special effects. Shinseiki calls it a toy, and Mahad says that HEY, it's a present from his Mom...which doesn't do anything to make me think it's not a toy. Also it landed next to Spencer, so I imagine he's gonna do something with it. At any rate, Shinseiki places Mahad in a Seijun Bubble that floats him in the air, and she goes away to finish Dahlia off. Unfortunately Dahlia made her toughness check and she's okay, hiding to ambush her.

...SHINSEIKI PULLS A DIO, and starts WALKING ALONG THE WALL LIKE SHE'S HAVING A PLEASANT STROLL, down to where Dahlia is. Oh my god. She then grabs Dahlia with some Seijun power tentacles and goes to slam her into the ground floor, but Lena uses her powers to save Dahlia from going splat. She is, however, unable to do jack all. She's beat and collapses. Shinseiki goes to deliver the final blow, but Lena says that NO, Shinseiki! The Sun is at it's zenith! Go become the ruler of Earth! Mahad tells Lena to stop doing this, expressing surprise at her apparent turncoatness.

This is like the fifth time someone has done a fake defection and Mahad believed in it.

Shinseiki, since she's insane, believes Lena and flies off to the machine to being her Ascension. Lena then reveals her plan! She taught the others a better way to control their energies, so they could overload her system...and her. The forcefields on the tubes keeping them inside drop and they run off with Mahad, Spencer, and Dahlia, while Shinseiki panics at the fact that she's now stuck within a storm of Seijun energy that is starting to set her on fire. And this time actually hurty fire.

...hehehe. We get a scene where Mahad says that no, he has to stay to get his boomerang, and SPENCER goes up to him and says "don't worry, I got your toy" to which Mahad repeats that no, it's not a toy. Spencer then throws it so Mahad can delay himself just a little longer so we can see Shinseiki start to burn up. Then, as the Hyperion finally flies away, the entire tower is incinerated in an explosion of Seijun power. Holy crap I think Shinseiki just died from that.

We end with Spencer saying that he wants a boomerang like Mahad's, and his Mom saying maybe. Well, sort of. After that we get a...completely and utterly pointless scene of Shinseiki doing her martial arts dance routine while flying a Block through the sky, saying this is just a minor setback on her journey to destiny.

Since she'll NEVER show up again and that coda is not only worthless but also ruins the ending, I'm calling it non canon.

And that's the episode! My thoughts? Holy crap this is a good episode! IT still has some flaws, that's to be sure. The episode could of seriously used a bit more fighting of the Seijun variety, maybe a little exposition. We had a nice action sequence, but I wouldn't of minded more of that happening in exchange for less explanation on what Shinseiki's deal is (though knowing what her deal is was good too, so it's a double edged sword here). Overall, it's a pretty good episode, and again makes really wish this show WASN'T an "episode of the day" type series, and instead had an overarching plot with plot arcs and development and THINGS HAPPENING. However, this episode is still quite good those complaints aside.

Except the ending. The ending reveal that Shinseiki is alive is...so horrendous that I've decided it's non canon. She'll NEVER show up again anyway, despite their apparent desire for her to do so (beyond all the other NPC characters even!) and it ruins what is actually a really good ending, Shinseiki trying to fulfill the prophecy she believes in...and failing as the true "destined one" uses her unique understanding of the powers they have to overload her system and cause her to explode. It was even sort of foreshadowed that this was a thing in Shadows of the Past! So having Shinseiki live, completely unharmed, is a complete destruction of what is good of this episode. I like this show enough to just decide it's non canon.

So, we're in the final stretch. Five episodes left. Your thoughts, friends?

[Rawhide]

I dunno. I don't think her survival cheapens it too much. She's clearly very powerful, and she was the centre of the explosion, but she wasn't exploded herself.

Also, Mahad didn't say that he "narrowly escaped", he said that he "ambushed" the four sphere fighters.

Also also, it wasn't a new way of resisting. Lena was just getting everyone to resist as much as possible so that she would be trying her hardest to draw everyone's powers, then just let everything out at once before she can adjust her pulling efforts down. Sort of like playing tug of war and then everyone on your team letting go so that the other team falls on their backsides.

[LaZodiac]

I dunno. I don't think her survival cheapens it too much. She's clearly very powerful, and she was the centre of the explosion, but she wasn't exploded herself.

Also, Mahad didn't say that he "narrowly escaped", he said that he "ambushed" the four sphere fighters.

Also also, it wasn't a new way of resisting. Lena was just getting everyone to resist as much as possible so that she would be trying her hardest to draw everyone's powers, then just let everything out at once before she can adjust her pulling efforts down. Sort of like playing tug of war and then everyone on your team letting go so that the other team falls on their backsides.

True, but since she's never going to show up again it still feels kind of cheap.

Yes, my mistake, sorry

Aaah, okay.

[Rawhide]

True, but since she's never going to show up again it still feels kind of cheap.

Yes, my mistake, sorry

What makes you so sure? It was only a "minor setback", after all.

I only mentioned it because it showed that Mahad was exaggerating even more than you let on.

[LaZodiac]

What makes you so sure? It was only a "minor setback", after all.

I only mentioned it because it showed that Mahad was exaggerating even more than you let on.

Because we have five episodes left

Aaah, right. Good call

[LaZodiac]

Sorry for the late parts recently guys, I've just been distracted with a lot of stuff going on.

Episode 21: Book of Worlds

Spoiler

Show

Well then. This episode title could mean something veeery interesting.

We open in a thunder storm, the Hyperion flying through it! Action! Lena says she knows that Mahad probably thinks she's crazy, forcing him out in this weather, but she KNOWS something is here, she can feel it! The last time she said this they had to get into a fight with a Super Seijun, so maybe we shouldn't be trusting her visions this time...although on the other hand it's a good thing we did fight that psychopath, so I can see why Mahad would.

Mahad does express some concern/annoyance over how he keeps getting talked into doing these things, but Lena just notes that she just told him it was a VERY strong feeling. Speaking of, she starts getting another! Weird, fragmented visions of a city in the clouds, a woman in hologram form, and a book. Presumably of Worlds.

Mahad is exceedingly annoyed by the revelation that they are risking their lives to find "a book" but hey, maybe it's an important book. Maybe a blind Eli Roth will be protecting the book. Maybe I'm just stretching to make a bad joke. Point is, Mahad doesn't like this. Then their radar starts going crazy. Uh oh.

Meanwhile with the Saint Nazaire, Wayan is trying to contact the Hyperion to warn of them of a giant ship that is right on top of them! Guess that explains the radar, then. Oddly, it appears the storm is moving along with the ship...as are the blocks in the storm. I...wonder what this could be. Another person like Shinseiki?

Suddenly, back with Mahad, a storm of Blocks go flying at them, and they have to engage in some evasive actions! After doing so, Mahad has basically decided that they're done with this, and should leave. But Lena insists, so Mahad stays the course like a good brother. And they are rewarded, as the clouds part and we see the ship that's been causing all this. It's not that impressive. They go to board, which cuts off their radio contact with the Sainte Nazaire.

Cortez is obviously angry about this, but Vector reassures him that it'll be fine. Her Seijun senses are powerful, so whatever this is must be important. We then cut to a squadron of Sphere shuttles, one of which even has Oslo on it (and presumably one has Diwan since they're communicating). They where tracking the Hyperion, and are going to read off to their last recorded location. I've gotta ask, are they always so easily able to track them? I have to assume they still haven't fixed the hack that the Sphere put on their database back in the Child King episode.

Oslo confirms how important this situation by saying that this is worth more then just Lena. He can feel a phenomenon building up. This is quite interesting, knowing that whatever is in this ship is something that makes OSLO put his priorities in place.

Meanwhile on the ship, Lena instructs Mahad to be quiet and respectful, and to follow his lead. His response is to shout out for everyone to come get them. Mahad never changes. Or does he, because he then brings up that this ship creeps him out, and that they should wait for Cortez. See, this is one of those weird moments where he shows he's evolving, but not really.

Lena tells him to stop being a baby, and stats getting another vision, this one flaring up the Seijun powers in her arms! Mahad takes offense at the baby comment, saying that he's got feelings about this place too and they aren't good ones! Lena just continues to insist that they explore this broken down storm ship.

Back with Oslo, they found the ship the Hyperion went into. He orders Diwan to take a small squad of shuttles into the ship to investigate it. I wonder what Oslo intends to find...presumably not what our heroes find! They found the pilot room, and there is what genuinely appears to be a corpse in a fully body flight suit, just sorta sitting in the chair limply. Spooky... especially considering the entire area reminds me of something from Alien.

No seriously the cockpit looks almost identical to the thing they find the Skyjocky in.

Anyway, Wayan is finally within com range again so they warn Mahad about the Sphere ships coming, so he tells Lena it's no or never. Get what we're looking for and then skidaddle!

...turns out all they where looking for was a "Navigation device" from the cockpit. Alright.

Oh hey Diwan is onboard now. Our heroes run off, Lena using her powers to blast a security down which is actually kind of clever. I approve. They're easily able to escape Diwan's grasp.

So yeah, long story short the navigation device is encrypted and needs some technobabble to solve it. Thankfully, Vector is able to do this, in part because he apparently recognizes the person who made this! Lena asks who, and we cut to the Sphere because Skyland is infuriating like that sometimes.

Diwan makes an excuse for failing, and says that the ship was...weird. She felt a presence. Oslo says this confirms his suspicions. We cut to Vector and he reveals that the person who encrypted that navigation device is Kondrotti, which I presume is some kind of powerful Seijun.

...okay, so. IMMEDIATELY after the Earth was shattered into pieces, the Countessa of Kondrotti (Who is apparently also called Kondrotti) had her dudes make a book called The Book of Worlds, which documented the location of every single old country in Skyland. I...cannot even begin to hazard a guess at how she succeeded at making this book.

Oslo is giving this exact same discussion to Diwan, which is actually kind of clever. The Book of Worlds was so extensive even Blocks that the Sphere have never so much as touched are in it. That's some impressive foresight, lady. This book is also lost on the Kondrotti block, and Kondrotti has vanished. So yea,that's unfortunate. I bet the navigation device has locations to where Kondrotti is!

Vector more or less confirms this assumption of mine. So yeah, if we find the Book of Ends, we'll be able to save a lot of people in the long run, and that's good.

For...SOME reason, Lena thinks that it will tell them where Kharzam Prison is. This...doesn't work, on many levels. The first times we've seen it, it's a perfectly solid cube in space, no land for them to actually document. Also it was likely made after the Earth was blown apart, so how did she know to mark it? At any rate, they've decided this is a good enough reason as any to go to where the Kondrotti block apparently is. Oslo's group is shadowing them, however. I'm expecting an ambush.

After awhile they reach Kondrotti...and then are suddenly hit by a magnetic field storm that messes up the Saint Nazaire! Oh noes! Luckily for our heroes, it utterly destroys some of the shuttles following them without their knowledge. No one of them had Diwan on it, thankfully for our villains.

Suddenly they all notice that Lena is gone. she's outside on the deck, getting into the Hyperion. Mahad rushes off, and manages to get inside before it lifts off. Cortez just sort of scowls and tells Vector to not pull any of that "don't take her Seijun powers for granted" crap.

...oh my GOD. Mahad isn't actually inside the Hyperion. He is holding onto the cockpit bubble for dear life, shouting for Lena to open it up so he can get in and avoid dying. Holy crap, this is kind of ridiculous. Lena just doesn't react, and flies at a steady pace towards the floating city.

The Hyperion lands, and Oslo orders all the Shuttles to attack the Saint Nazaire. He then tells Diwan to meet him on the surface because "my time has come". I can't wait to see the super charged Oslo fight. The shuttles open fire, and Cortez orders a retreat because that magnetic storm disabled their weapons. So like...that's bad. Vector is against this because it'll be leaving Mahad and Lena on the block alone!

Back with Mahad, they're investigating a library. Mahad says he's spooked out by it being so empty, and Lena says that it's okay, she's just here to greet us. Mahad, understandably, asks who "she" is, but then the door closes behind them! I'm calling Seijun power ghost!

Mahad is terrified by this and that makes me happy. He asks for clarification on who is here, but Lena just sorta...shrugs it off. It should be obvious! One pan across the room later and we see that a ghostly blue lady has appeared! Countessa Kondrotti. She tells them that she sent for Lena, must be what caused all those visions she's been having (this time).

...Kondrotti says that she's decided it's time for her to pass on, so she's gonna give the book to the chosen one. I guess this confirms that yes, Lena is the Lady of the Light, and whatever this could mean. Kondrotti also mentions this book is vital to civilization! If it where lost, so would be the world. I think someone's just got an inflated ego. In all seriousness though this is a really important artifact.

Back on the Saint Nazaire, the power came back on for weapons! I bet Kondrotti helped with that, to ensure that no more shuttles can land on Kondrotti block and cause trouble. So they launch the Mosquito's while Wayan uses the turret to try and take out some shuttles. It's actually a pretty cool space battle.

Back in the ghost library, Lena is swearing an oath to protect the book with all her power. However, Kondrotti is being a ghost jerk (as to be expected of ghosts) and tells them that of the thousands of books in this library, only one is the one they want. Go get it guys : D

Ghosts are such jerks, you know that?

...our heroes are literally just browsing the library in an attempt to find it. I've helped libraries set out books and stuff, even when you know where things are it's hard to find **** in a library. Good luck guys! After awhile of searching the Countessa gives them a clue. They have to let the book find THEM. Uh...alright.

...holy **** Mahad actually found it. Only the pages are all blank. Lena says she knows, Kondrotti already told her that. Okay, what is going on, exactly? I'm WITH MAHAD on this one, can we please get some strait answers?

Lena then says that she thinks she's got it figured out. This book is just an empty shell, the entire LIBRARY is the Book of Worlds. I'm not going to lie, this is IMMEDIATELY what popped into my head when she said that the Sphere would never be able to find it.

Kondrotti says that coming to this realization means she's the chosen one. Does...does that mean I'M the chosen one too? Oh no I don't want psionic powers powered by sunlight, I HATE THE SUN

Kondrotti tells Lena to concentrate on the book, on Skyland, and so on, and suddenly all the books start flying off the shelves slowly towards the enter of the library. Then...OH! Okay, see, that's clever! All the books have a page or two removed from them and then assembled into the true book. See, that's pretty cool, I like it. Lena then passes out. Uh oh.

...then Oslo shows up. He says what may be the creepiest ****ing line he's ever said.

"You DO so love bringing me to interesting treasures...like your mother"

There are so many ways this line could be taken. Oh my god.

Oslo effortlessly defeats Mahad's boomerang, and orders Diwan to deal with him while HE deals with Lena.

Kondrotti then shows up and beats the **** out of Oslo. I...I don't even. I guess his power up isn't THAT impressive if a ghost lady can defeat him. But then she's supposed to be this super big deal, so maybe it's not that unbelievable?

...Mahad's reaction to this is "ectoplasm girls rule!" which...I...I don't...I SUPPOSE THEY DO, BUT STILL.

Oh, okay, Oslo isn't down for the count, he was just blind sided. He's up and they start clashing, Kondrotti's ghost seijun powers vs Oslo's living seijun powers. It's actually kind of cool looking. Kondrotti says the book isn't meant for him, someone with evil intentions would never understand it. Oslo responds by pushing the energy blast into her, causing her to explode into a million little light fragments.

Meanwhile, Mahad distracts Diwan with his boomerang while he...he sneaks up on Diwan with a book in his hand. Is he...is he going to...Diwan says "I know all your little tricks boy" but then Mahad says "No you don't. Now for a little CULTURE!" and he bashes Diwan over the head with a book and she TUMBLES OVER THE RAILING and into the floor with a thud. This is hilarious.

Mahad continues by saying "great book, dontcha think? Looove the ending". While he's saying that we can hear Diwan moan in pain because she just faceplanted one story after getting a hard cover book slammed up against her face. Oslo just sighs and fires off a Seijun blast to kill him, but Kondrotti's ghost appears directly infront of him and rebounds the blast into him! That's it for the fight. Kondrotti gives them the book and says she'll take care of them while they escape.

Oslo gets up and demands the book. Kondrotti asks which one, and then uses her powers to literally throw every book in the library at him. This should probably kill him, if not for the fact that he's a Seijun.

...HOLY **** GUYS! They ACTUALLY have an idea of where Kharzam is! It's a matter of statistical probabilities based on lots and obtuse math, but they now have an idea on where it could be. ACTUAL PROGRESS!

...holy **** Mahad actually had a good job that wasn't related to him browbeating Diwan with a book. Vector asks if they know what Kondrotti means, and Mahad guesses "ghost librarian lady?". This is actually decently funny, especially with the delivery. Vector says no, it means UNITY! I don't know if this is true or not. Vector says that with this book, there may even be a chance to reform all of Skyland into Earth again!

...we then end with a kind of creepy scene where Kondrotti's ghost puts away the last of the books she used to bludgeon Oslo and Diwan half to death. She gives us a creepy "shuuush" as we fade to black.

And that's the episode! My thoughts? It was pretty good. The plot was alright, though a little...weird and rough in places. They do kind of basically entirely ignore Oslo's super powerup, but the strengths of these characters have always been a little wierd. Diwan can survive being thrown like 50 feet into the ground by Lena, but Mahad suckerpunches her with a dictionary and she goes head over heels off a railing, face first into the hard stone floor of the library. Which was something this episode actually had going for it, it was actually kind of funny at times. And on purpose, too! Maybe it's just me but book based jokes while beating someone over the head with a book are just really funny to me.

Most importantly, this book PROGRESSES the STORY! We now have a general idea of where Kharzam could be. This is one step forward to saving Mom! I'm excited to see what the next (and last) few episodes will bring us! However, the truely most important thing is what this episode has taught us.

Ghosts are jerks. Except when they're ectoplasm girls.

[Rawhide]

Cortez is obviously angry about this, but Vector reassures him that it'll be fine. Her Seijun senses are powerful, so whatever this is must be important. We then cut to a squadron of Sphere shuttles, one of which even has Oslo on it (and presumably one has Diwan since they're communicating). They where tracking the Hyperion, and are going to read off to their last recorded location. I've gotta ask, are they always so easily able to track them? I have to assume they still haven't fixed the hack that the Sphere put on their database back in the Child King episode.

Oslo confirms how important this situation by saying that this is worth more then just Lena. He can feel a phenomenon building up. This is quite interesting, knowing that whatever is in this ship is something that makes OSLO put his priorities in place.

I thought that too, but no, I think it was that Oslo sensed something which drew him here, then tracked them by their constant chatter once in the vicinity.

Meanwhile, Mahad distracts Diwan with his boomerang while he...he sneaks up on Diwan with a book in his hand. Is he...is he going to...Diwan says "I know all your little tricks boy" but then Mahad says "No you don't. Now for a little CULTURE!" and he bashes Diwan over the head with a book and she TUMBLES OVER THE RAILING and into the floor with a thud. This is hilarious.

Closure. He said: "And now, some closure."

...we then end with a kind of creepy scene where Kondrotti's ghost puts away the last of the books she used to bludgeon Oslo and Diwan half to death. She gives us a creepy "shuuush" as we fade to black.

She put the book on the shelf backwards! Can't believe you didn't notice this.

And that's the episode! My thoughts? It was pretty good. The plot was alright, though a little...weird and rough in places. They do kind of basically entirely ignore Oslo's super powerup, but the strengths of these characters have always been a little wierd. Diwan can survive being thrown like 50 feet into the ground by Lena, but Mahad suckerpunches her with a dictionary and she goes head over heels off a railing, face first into the hard stone floor of the library. Which was something this episode actually had going for it, it was actually kind of funny at times. And on purpose, too! Maybe it's just me but book based jokes while beating someone over the head with a book are just really funny to me.

To be fair, in the first two cases when Oslo and Diwan went down, they were blindsided, while Oslo's second time was also a blindsiding which reflected his own powers against him. Also, there wasn't exactly much of an opportunity to show the use of a power upgrade here other than by how casually he fought.

[LaZodiac]

I thought that too, but no, I think it was that Oslo sensed something which drew him here, then tracked them by their constant chatter once in the vicinity.

Closure. He said: "And now, some closure."

She put the book on the shelf backwards! Can't believe you didn't notice this.

To be fair, in the first two cases when Oslo and Diwan went down, they were blindsided, while Oslo's second time was also a blindsiding which reflected his own powers against him. Also, there wasn't exactly much of an opportunity to show the use of a power upgrade here other than by how casually he fought.

Hmm, that's a good point.

Full disclosure for the culture/closure thing, and not noticing her putting the book on the shelf wrong: I was tired as hell when doing this. Had to rewrite a few lines because I start writing about land destruction in Magic the Gathering instead of...you know, the show. Sleepy Zodi is a weird, weird beast.

Yeah, Oslo wasn't really trying in this fight, so no real need to show off his overwhelming power. Though I have a feeling he's regretting that decision

[Mono Vertigo]

I REMEMBER THAT EPISODE.
I liked it.
Then again I only watched a few episodes, and now I'm starting to realize that they were all from season 2 (except the pilot).
Maybe I should give it a try and watch them in the proper order.

[LaZodiac]

I REMEMBER THAT EPISODE.
I liked it.
Then again I only watched a few episodes, and now I'm starting to realize that they were all from season 2 (except the pilot).
Maybe I should give it a try and watch them in the proper order.

Hah, proper order. Good luck with that

[Mono Vertigo]

Hah, proper order. Good luck with that

Whenever a cartoon is aired over here, I should never expect being able to catch it in the right order, in its entirety, let alone both.
Don't know if it's just my luck or it's somebody else's fault. For this one, I'm going to blame everyone but me.

[Rawhide]

Whenever a cartoon is aired over here, I should never expect being able to catch it in the right order, in its entirety, let alone both.
Don't know if it's just my luck or it's somebody else's fault. For this one, I'm going to blame everyone but me.

We can't even work out what the proper order is. All we can work out is that the official order is wrong.

[Mono Vertigo]

We can't even work out what the proper order is. All we can work out is that the official order is wrong.

At least, that's a hint.
I've solved harder riddles than that. First, let's calculate the number of possible arrangements of episodes. I remember those math lessons. *cracks knuckles*




I'll probably come back very soon, whimpering something about the plot being non-euclidean and making no damn sense, but I'll sure as heck try!

[LaZodiac]

I'll probably come back very soon, whimpering something about the plot being non-euclidean and making no damn sense, but I'll sure as heck try!

You have no idea

[Durkoala]

Sorry for the late parts recently guys, I've just been distracted with a lot of stuff going on.

Episode 21: Book of Worlds

Spoiler

Show

Meanwhile with the Saint Nazaire, Wayan is trying to contact the Hyperion to warn of them of a giant ship that is right on top of them! Guess that explains the radar, then. Oddly, it appears the storm is moving along with the ship...as are the blocks in the storm. I...wonder what this could be. Another person like Shinseiki?

This sounds really cool and I wish I wasn't stuck at the start of the series.

Back with Oslo, they found the ship the Hyperion went into. He orders Diwan to take a small squad of shuttles into the ship to investigate it. I wonder what Oslo intends to find...presumably not what our heroes find! They found the pilot room, and there is what genuinely appears to be a corpse in a fully body flight suit, just sorta sitting in the chair limply. Spooky... especially considering the entire area reminds me of something from Alien.

I love abandoned ships for horror, when I'm in the mood for horror. Is this the first corpse we've seen so far? The robots don't count.

Oh hey Diwan is onboard now. Our heroes run off, Lena using her powers to blast a security down which is actually kind of clever. I approve. They're easily able to escape Diwan's grasp.

Sorry, I don't understand what's clever here. What's a security down?

So yeah, long story short the navigation device is encrypted and needs some technobabble to solve it. Thankfully, Vector is able to do this, in part because he apparently recognizes the person who made this! Lena asks who, and we cut to the Sphere because Skyland is infuriating like that sometimes.

Scientists are natural technobabble sources. If you're in a sci-fi setting filled with nonsensical devices, remember to pack your own scientist!

...okay, so. IMMEDIATELY after the Earth was shattered into pieces, the Countessa of Kondrotti (Who is apparently also called Kondrotti) had her dudes make a book called The Book of Worlds, which documented the location of every single old country in Skyland. I...cannot even begin to hazard a guess at how she succeeded at making this book.

Well, she was psychic... actually I don't know how that works either, as the Blocks move a lot and she wouldn't be able to document that. How close to the shattering was it when the Seijuns emerged, anyway?

Oslo is giving this exact same discussion to Diwan, which is actually kind of clever. The Book of Worlds was so extensive even Blocks that the Sphere have never so much as touched are in it. That's some impressive foresight, lady. This book is also lost on the Kondrotti block, and Kondrotti has vanished. So yea,that's unfortunate. I bet the navigation device has locations to where Kondrotti is!

This explains so much. Oslo priotises this assignment because this is a way to help fulfill the prophecy which also has a huge tactical advantage. It will let him make his way through all free blocks while he searches for Lena.
I like those sort of double explanations, and this one even has a bit of history thrown in

For...SOME reason, Lena thinks that it will tell them where Kharzam Prison is. This...doesn't work, on many levels. The first times we've seen it, it's a perfectly solid cube in space, no land for them to actually document. Also it was likely made after the Earth was blown apart, so how did she know to mark it? At any rate, they've decided this is a good enough reason as any to go to where the Kondrotti block apparently is. Oslo's group is shadowing them, however. I'm expecting an ambush.

Karzam was probably built around a Block as otherwise it would need constant engine power to stay afloat. Well, it makes more sense than using a lot of fuel

...oh my GOD. Mahad isn't actually inside the Hyperion. He is holding onto the cockpit bubble for dear life, shouting for Lena to open it up so he can get in and avoid dying. Holy crap, this is kind of ridiculous. Lena just doesn't react, and flies at a steady pace towards the floating city.

She's possessed by Kondrotti, isn't she?

...Kondrotti says that she's decided it's time for her to pass on, so she's gonna give the book to the chosen one. I guess this confirms that yes, Lena is the Lady of the Light, and whatever this could mean. Kondrotti also mentions this book is vital to civilization! If it where lost, so would be the world. I think someone's just got an inflated ego. In all seriousness though this is a really important artifact.

So is Kondrotti still alive, just bedridden or hiding somewhere, or has she died and is just hanging around as a blue ghost? If she's dead, where does she get her sunlight from?
I suppose she means that the old world would be lost, but that is still very egotistical.
I'm annoyed that we don't know where the prophecy came from, or why it's given so much attention.

Lena then says that she thinks she's got it figured out. This book is just an empty shell, the entire LIBRARY is the Book of Worlds. I'm not going to lie, this is IMMEDIATELY what popped into my head when she said that the Sphere would never be able to find it.

So why is the blank book 'just a shell'? Is it just the title page or the index? If it's just a book of blank pages, what's the point of having it?

Kondrotti says that coming to this realization means she's the chosen one. Does...does that mean I'M the chosen one too? Oh no I don't want psionic powers powered by sunlight, I HATE THE SUN

Oh, really?

Kondrotti tells Lena to concentrate on the book, on Skyland, and so on, and suddenly all the books start flying off the shelves slowly towards the enter of the library. Then...OH! Okay, see, that's clever! All the books have a page or two removed from them and then assembled into the true book. See, that's pretty cool, I like it. Lena then passes out. Uh oh.

Forget I said anything about that book.
If Lena's a really powerful Seijun and she barely assembled the book, how's anyone else supposed to do it? Oh, well, Chosen Ones are usually really powerful.

...then Oslo shows up. He says what may be the creepiest ****ing line he's ever said.

"You DO so love bringing me to interesting treasures...like your mother"

There are so many ways this line could be taken. Oh my god.

I have to agree.

Oslo effortlessly defeats Mahad's boomerang, and orders Diwan to deal with him while HE deals with Lena.

No, boomerang! He won't have any relevence until Lena is depowered fighting Oslo and has to pick up the art of the boomerang to fight a new villain, who is also a depowered seijun and has a squad other boomerangs ready to steal Lena's returning Seijun powers for themselves. Then he'll be dropped by the wayside again.

Meanwhile, Mahad distracts Diwan with his boomerang while he...he sneaks up on Diwan with a book in his hand. Is he...is he going to...Diwan says "I know all your little tricks boy" but then Mahad says "No you don't. Now for a little CULTURE!" and he bashes Diwan over the head with a book and she TUMBLES OVER THE RAILING and into the floor with a thud. This is hilarious.

Sometimes I can't believe that Mahad wasn't copied off Sokka. I mean, really?

Oslo gets up and demands the book. Kondrotti asks which one, and then uses her powers to literally throw every book in the library at him. This should probably kill him, if not for the fact that he's a Seijun.

I have to say, I'm a bit disappointed that Seijuns have super-toughness even though the rest of their powers have nothing to do with Super strength and things. I have fond memeroies of a book series that showed to having huge amounts of psychic power (whether telekinetic, clairvoyant, telepathic, illusionary) did nothing about being punched, hit with a spade, hit with a cricket ball, stabbed, shot or going into hypothermic shock. But somehow Seijuns can be shot with a laser or thrown onto flagstones and be OK because they're psychic.

...holy **** Mahad actually had a good job that wasn't related to him browbeating Diwan with a book. Vector asks if they know what Kondrotti means, and Mahad guesses "ghost librarian lady?". This is actually decently funny, especially with the delivery. Vector says no, it means UNITY! I don't know if this is true or not. Vector says that with this book, there may even be a chance to reform all of Skyland into Earth again!

So they still have the book? I thought it may have been lost in the epic book attack.
Does the bit about the delivery mean that the voicing has improved?

Most importantly, this book PROGRESSES the STORY! We now have a general idea of where Kharzam could be. This is one step forward to saving Mom! I'm excited to see what the next (and last) few episodes will bring us! However, the truely most important thing is what this episode has taught us.

Ghosts are jerks. Except when they're ectoplasm girls.

Well, it only took them 18 episodes. Here's hoping we get a huge raid on the prison with all the missing characters returning to form an army. It probably won't happen, but I can dream.

This sounds like a good episode and I look forward to watching it myself. Ghost ships, ghost libraries and Ghost Seijuns, sounds great!

Well, I'm working through my corner of Skyland. Bland characters, no plot, cool setting is the menu so far. It's a lot easier to believe when you see the Saint Neziere docking, or the rebels' refugee plan in the storms. That was the only good part in that episode, except for the writers having no idea how to get Mahad back from dangling over the abyss and just pretending it never happened.

Strangely enough, Mahad has a lot of character, but not much characterisation. Being a pilot brat is always consistent, but there is no agreement on his good qualities. Sometimes he's secretly caring, sometimes he's cunning, sometimes he's brave, but they never stick to a charaterisation. It also doesn't help that his voice actor can manage the jerk lines fine, but can't put much emotion into his nice words, so they come off as insincere.

The best thing so far has been the spider robot, because it's a giant robot spider. Only five episodes until the symbiont... Lightning monster excluded, when do the episodes start to pick up?

[LaZodiac]

The best thing so far has been the spider robot, because it's a giant robot spider. Only five episodes until the symbiont... Lightning monster excluded, when do the episodes start to pick up?

Hmm...I don't recall, but honestly around that episode is when it starts to get better.

Also wow so many typos nearing the end of that episode run through. Remind me not to do this stuff at 11 at night.

[Durkoala]

Also wow so many typos nearing the end of that episode run through. Remind me not to do this stuff at 11 at night.

I think that applies to me as well. I just checked my post and saw how many broken quotes it has.

What was Lena's clever plan? I still don't understand it.

[LaZodiac]

I think that applies to me as well. I just checked my post and saw how many broken quotes it has.

What was Lena's clever plan? I still don't understand it.

I...I can't even begin to remember. If you mean this episode, it was something along the lines of figuring out that the Book of Worlds is made out of a bunch of pages from every other book in the library, but beyond that I genuinely do not recall.

[LaZodiac]

Hey you know how I said I wouldn't be doing this at a late time period?

I lied.

Episode 22: Infiltration

Spoiler

Show

This can only mean what I think it means. I hope.

We open on a rather peaceful looking jungle block. The peace is soon parted (technically, the music is still very serene) by the fact that there is something clearly on fire inside this jungle. It...sort of looks like a Mosquito, but only sort of. Weird.

The ship is ontop of a ruin (Ruins?) and a dude in brown with a backwards newsie cap is going around collecting scrap, demonishing himself for being stupid and having to get out of here. So presumably this guy crash landed or something. He see's a ship in the distance and panics, but we can tell it's the Hyperion.

Up with the Hyperion, Lena asks Mahad to slow down. Mahad says she can handle the speed, but Lena says that no that's not what she means, she means there's smoke over there! We should go investigate! Mahad agrees and politely tells Cortes that they're going for a detour, which Cortes is okay with. Now see Mahad, communicating makes everything GOOD happen.

The Hyperion lands near the brown shirt guy, who closes up the pod he's putting his salvage in, and he tries to hide one of the parts behind his back (they all look like tubes, sort of like the not even remotely working anti seijun stuff from a few episodes ago). I wonder what his deal is...

They introduce themselves, and ask what's up. He doesn't answer, but he does note he's not with the Sphere as well. Then a shuttle shows up, and he points out that if Mahad and Lena aren't with the Sphere why did this ship just show up...which is a good point, lets be fair.

The Brig inside announces they are not to move, as he's doing a scan to find out who they are. Lena and Mahad turn up as...unregistered, identity unable to confirm. Did they really not put in...like, a PICTURE, at least, of what Mahad and Lena look like? Wow, and I thought "getting beaten by children" was the worst thing to ever happen to the Brigs. They are not even outfitted with the information they need!

Before they can scan the other guy, something fires a shot at the shuttle, destroying it. Brown dude asks who did that, and as the Saint Naziare shows up, Lena says "your new best friend" which actually a really nice line. Then she and Mahad have a poorly animated high five fistbump combo, which made me laugh far more then I think it should of, or wanted to.

Later on the Nazaire, they're interrogating our new found NPC of the week, and he's clearly frustrated with the dressing down they've given him, to the point of considering them worse then the Sphere. They're REALLY insistent on probing people for information, our heroes. Turns out this guy is a security specialist, "hired" to work for the Sphere. Jona (as he reveals he's called) reveals that his job was to rig up a special prison on the Monolith itself, but he knew that once he'd finished it, that'd be the end of him, so he booked it as fast as he could.

...now that's interesting. Oslo apparently wanted Mom's cell moved to his ship. That's the only possible conclusion I can come to from his job being to make a special cell on the Monolith. Jona goes on to explain what his methods are. He uses exsolarium plus artificial solar energy packs to create a prison that "certain types of prisoners" can't escape. Exsolarium is the anti seijun stuff that doesn't work, so that all but confirms it.

Also, just realized what they're going for with "ex-sol-arium". Gotta admit, that's clever.

Lena quickly takes note of the fact that he means Seijuns. I'll admit, it's kind of awkward phrasing, everyone knows Seijun exist so why not mention it, but maybe he figures they're Seijun pirates and will kill him if they figure out he was working to imprison them.

...Mahad asks Lena what kind of special Seijun prisoner she thinks could escape from the Sphere. I CANNOT tell if he's asking this in a semi sarcastic "I totally know who it is but I want you to say it" style, or if he's genuinely asking this question. Point is Lena immediately points it out. There is only one person this could be. Mom. They now know for sure were she is.

Cutting to Diwan in a water transport that's being escorted by a bunch of Shuttles, we see Diwan. She's transporting Mom in the shuttle. Back with Mahad and friends, we learn Mahad's plan. They're going to reprogram the surviving Brigs, Mahad's gonna take Jona's ID chip, and he's going to infiltrate the Monolith and get Mom back. I'm actually kind of hype for this, this could be big!

Jona says it won't work, for numerous reasons. One, Diwan's SEEN him, Mahad would never be able to fool her. Second, he doesn't know what the base prison cell looks like, so he'd have no idea of where to even START with the bull****ting to help Mahad look legitimate. Those are two pretty sizeable problems, actually. Mahad says they can handle Diwan (apparently Lena will be there as well) and Vector says he'll set up a transceiver like in episode 13. Jona says that it's still impossible because if he DOES help them, if the Sphere ever finds out they'll kill him.

Taking a note here to say that he actually does say "They'll kill me" and I always appreciate when a kids show has the will to actually say the "K word" as it were.

Cortes brings up the very reasonable point of "What do you think they're gonna do with you anyway?" which convinces Jona to help out. He gives Mahad his ID chip. We then...get a view of a Brig's vision. And inside that Brig's vision, just because he's holding Jona's card, he LOOKS LIKE JONA to him. COMPLETE WITH HAT.

I'm pretty sure people in Robot Wars/Battle Bots have made more sophisticated AIs then the Brigs.

Oh, okay. Lena shows off that to this Brig, she's literally invisible. They reprogrammed the two Brigs they captured, and that will be enough to get them on board the Monolith...apparently. Okay, I'm...going to take offense to this plan. Lets assume for a second that The Monolith, a ship bigger then a CITY, doesn't have any Brigs other then these two, for no reason. There's still the human crew, and Diwan, and Oslo, and presumably security cameras and the like. How? How are they going to get through ALL OF THAT?

Jona is scared of this plan, but Lena insists that it's for their mother. I'd like to imagine Jona could care not even one ounce less, if not for the fact that he's dead even if he doesn't help them.

Anyway, our heroes fly off to the Monolith in a shuttle. Mahad notes that man...it really is just AMAZINGLY god damn huge. Lena says she see's it in her dreams all the time...and the way it's voice acted I almost feel like she's trying to conceal that their nightmares, but I can't be certain. Something feels a little off about it.

Okay, so...they dock with the Monolith, and there ARE other Brigs on board. For whatever reason they do see Mahad as Jonah, but I can...SORT OF handwave it that maybe the ID card is part of what really makes them think he literally looks like Jonah. I'll give them that much. Lena however is a different story, HOWEVER! She's not there, while they ARE dragging with them a large tube (the same tube that Jonah was putting stuff into). Clearly Lena is inside of that, so the plan was just described to us in a poor way, it wasn't awful at all. Just said weirdly.

Mahad then tells the two Brigs that they had with them to guard the door, and not to let ANYONE in. They say "yes sir" and get to it. Mahad likes being called sir, but Lena just complains that she wants to be let out now, he can self grandize later. Cortes tells them to keep a low profile, and Mahad notes that he will in fact try to do this, because he'd rather not have a city sized warship on the look out for him.

...meanwhile, Jonah sneaks off and steals the Hyperion! What a jerk!

Lena is talking about exsolarium as if it works. I can only think of one reason why this is the case...this episode takes place before the episode with Cortes' brother. I was able to hand wave SOME of this stuff, but yeah. There is no way what so ever, that THIS episode is in the right spot. So this is also in no way going to lead to our heroes saving her. Sadness incarnate.

Cortes, meanwhile, tries to communicate with Jonah, asking him to return. There are things worse then being afraid. Jonah disagrees completely! Cortes then orders Mahad to abort the mission because, and I am quoting here, "Jonah ran off like a scared rabbit."

That seems oddly specific, is what I'm saying.

Mahad says no, because they've never been this close to rescuing Mom before. They've...NEVER been close to saving her before, EVER, so yeah...not entirely accurate but at the same time kind of accurate, Mahad. Cortes, for what it's worth, tells him that this is okay...just don't get in trouble. Mahad says he'll try, and orders the Brigs to take him to the prisoner cell so he can access it before he gets to work.

Meanwhile with Diwan, a Brig radios in to say that Jonah is on board, and the new prison cell will be complete in time for the prisoner. Diwan then sees that the Hyperion is on her radar. Uh oh...something bad is gonna happen soon.

Speaking of, Jonah is talking to himself. All he has to do is find a nice, quiet, peaceful block, and stay hidden for the next few years. Then things'll be fine! Diwan's shuttle squad then show up. Then, somewhat comedically, she gets close enough to actually look into the cockpit...only to find Jonah there. So now Diwan mad.

Back on the Monolith, Mahad is transporting Lena in the tube so they can get to the prison cell...but a Brig stands in their way, wanting to inspect the pod. Uh oh. Mahad...tries really really hard to technobabble his way out of this, and for the most part he succeeds! The Brig says this is far beyond his parameters to understand, so Mahad tells him to phone Diwan to see for itself. It agrees and leaves to do so. This is bad.

Back with Diwan, she's got the Hyperion captured and Jonah with her. She's calls Oslo, telling him that Mahad and Lena are on board. Things are going to get disastrous reeeal quick. Oslo then says an actually really cool line. "You see Diwan, you see problems where I see possibilities."

He then explains his plan. They'll do everything they planned to do originally, but with foreknowledge of what they're up against. "What better way to set a trap then with the perfect bait *evil laugh*"

Jonah isn't looking to happy about this. Unsurprisingly.

Back with Mahad, they're at the cell...and no Mom there. Mahad then realizes that oh, crap, if she's not here that means she's being delivered. Which means Diwan or Oslo will be coming here. He's far more right then he realizes.

By now Diwan has boarded the Monolith. She orders some nearby Brigs to find the pirates, noting that if they don't she'll melt them down to slag herself. Problem with this: They can't see Mahad as a pirate at all...though presumably they'll just be told that anyone that registers as Jonah is to be captured.

Lena acts concerned about their chances, but Mahad says they've got a personal Brig on their side so they'll be fine. Back with the other Brig that they left to guard the door, it tries to stop Diwan from entering! She obliterates it with her mind. Welp. She orders Jonah to get to work on modifying the cell. We then cut back to Mahad who says "one covering us, one covering Mom's cel. What could go wrong."

Mahad.jpg

Oslo then orders one of the Guardians on board monitoring the Brigs to just do a full reboot on every Brig on board. Which he does so, causing the Brig following Mahad and Lena to turn on them. WELP! Lena just blasts it to bits, however, and they hide up in a ventilation shaft. Diwan walks by with her Brigs, and we learn that Oslo and the Prisoner will be here soon, so she redoubles the efforts to find Mahad and Lena.

Oslo then boards the Monolith, and he orders them to dim the lights to 10%. I...can't imagine why, unless he installs solar lights. We then see Meela, our heroes Mom, in the flesh, for the first time in like forever. He orders his personal Brig to escort her to her new home, as she is his guest of honour.

Diwan isn't too sure about keeping Mom here. After all, Mahad and Lena are still on board! They're going to cause problems! But Oslo simply repeats what he said earlier. She see's problems, not opportunities. He then explains that yes, they are going to try to save her. That will be the perfect time to strike. This kind of loses it's impact the second time, but it's still a good line. Say what you will of the series but I don't think Oslo's never been a bad villain. Oslo finishes by telling Diwan to call off her search.

Not in time to save this Brig though. We get a pretty cool shot of the boomerang flying into the Brig, decapitating it! Although the dialogue afterward shows that this poor stupid robot was put out as bait to lure them in. Mahad asks if Lena is ready, and she says she's been waiting for this day for a looong time. Making this SUPER bittersweet since we know this isn't where they'll save her, at all.

They go in, and Oslo springs his trap. Six Brigs surround them, and they're in a room with almost zero light. They're trapped. Lena then obliterates all six, uses her powers to launch Mom up through a...rather suspect hole in the roof, then launches Mahad up after her. Oslo rushes in after them, but Lena flies up as well, sending a blast of energy at Oslo as she does to keep him occupied!

Oooh, I see. The hole in the ceiling was where Jonah was working on the prison. Clever Lena, realizing this. She really is a far better protagonist then Mahad is. No offense, especially since Mahad's been a good character this episode.

Mahad's laying into Jonah for stealing his ship, and he's basically decided that they're gonna leave him here. But Mom says that no, his technology is too dangerous to leave him here. We know exsolarium doesn't work oh my god aaaah if they don't get Mom out of here because of Jonah I'm going to lose it.

Diwan is concerned for Oslo, but he says he's fine. He then says to...let them get to the docking area, as it'll be easier to capture them there. I...don't know how that works, but maybe it's because there will be more space for Brigs?

Back on the Saint Nazaire, they prepare to pick up everyone. They get close to the Monolith so Cheng can hack it and disable their defenses (this is why you password protect your routers, people). They also launch some Mosquito's to provide cover fire.

Meanwhile in the docking bay, Oslo encounters Lena's group. He says that he will NOT miss his chance to have the whole family, and he then somewhat evilly invites them for dinner. Considering what we know about Oslo's past with Meela, and his current...desires for Lena, I think this is at least partly some twisted idea of making an actual family. This was supposed to be his, but it was stolen from him. Even taking aside the prophecy, he has reasons to want this!

He blasts Meela, who can't really do anything since she's been sub deprived for so long. Lena and Oslo then start their Seijun fight, throwing blasts at each other. No tennis, but it's not that dynamic either. Unfortunately, Oslo is too powerful and Lena is defeated. Which is understandable, he's not Diwan. He flies over, and politely greets Jonah, saying he is quite a fan of his work. But Jonah...he's had a change of heart. Taking out the exsolarium device, he says that Oslo will have to be the guinea pig! He then charges Oslo, slamming him in the chest with it and causing them both to fall to certain death (for Jonah. We know exsolarium doesn't work so Oslo can just save himself).

Meela then...uses her powers, what little remains, to float Lena and Mahad up to where the Hyperion is docked, saying she'll stay behind to distract Oslo, cause she's still able to sense Seijun stuff and she can EASILY tell that exsloarium doesn't work. Oslo flies by, but it seems Jonah kept a tight grip since he's still on, though he lets go to fall onto the Hyperion, saving his life in the process. Oslo is non to pleased.

We get a...kind of unfortunate scene of the Hyperion flying in close so she can jump on (Oslo is currently incapacitated from a blast from Meela) but instead of quickly getting on she uses her powers to forcibly boost them out of there, much to everyone's annoyance...excepting Oslo, of course.

As they leave, Lena gets a vision...they need to go to the parking garage where they first found the Hyperion. For reasons. A reason that we likely won't get to hear about since...you know, this episode took place earlier in the season then it should.

The episode ends with Oslo saying that they're going to continue testing this stuff, just in Kharzam, where she'll never be able to leave. Meela says there's always a way to escape any box, end of episode.

And that's it! My thoughts? This is actually a REALLY good episode...undercut by the fact that since it's out of order we know quick easily that everyone is going to fail in this. However, ignoring that, we've got a pretty strong opening, the entire infiltration is actually done quite well (some handwaving on how the ID card works aside), and we get some nice fights. I'm not TOO keen on Meela opting to stay behind, but considering we've seen that the Monolith is faster then the Saint Nazaire in earlier/later episodes, and has a horrifically powerful lightning cannon, it's entirely possible Meela is opting to stay behind not just to ensure the Hyperion will get away, but to actually ensure they ALL get away, before Oslo orders them all to be killed with lightning bolts.

Hard to believe there are only four episodes left. Hope you'll all join me next time.

[Rawhide]

So, I just discovered that the voice actor of Ozpin could cosplay as Oslo, no problem.

Spoiler

Show

---

Sorry, I don't understand what's clever here. What's a security down?

She means: Lena blasted a control panel of a vertically closing security door, triggering it to come downward and close.

So is Kondrotti still alive, just bedridden or hiding somewhere, or has she died and is just hanging around as a blue ghost? If she's dead, where does she get her sunlight from?

Dead, as far as we know. No idea...

So why is the blank book 'just a shell'? Is it just the title page or the index? If it's just a book of blank pages, what's the point of having it?

Not even pages, a hollowed out book.

Forget I said anything about that book.

Ok.

So they still have the book? I thought it may have been lost in the epic book attack.

The book Mahad used on Diwan was different. The World Book had already been taken before the remaining books were flung at Oslo.

---

undercut by the fact that since it's out of order we know quick easily that everyone is going to fail in this.

Uhh, I'm really not so sure it is out of order, at least between these two particular episodes.

Earlier episode:
We had one guy who was selling exsolarium to the Sphere who was justifying it to himself by saying that "it doesn't work anyway". But, the Sphere keeps buying it because they believe they can get it to work (or have, without his knowledge).

This episode:
We have a technician who believes he's gotten it to work, which the Sphere has "contracted" to install and test.


So, I believe you're whole "we've seen the episode after this, so all the mystery is gone" was wrong...

---

Surprised that you didn't comment on the whole "how did you do that?" comment Oslo made when Lena used her powers inside.

[LaZodiac]

Uhh, I'm really not so sure it is out of order, at least between these two particular episodes.

Earlier episode:
We had one guy who was selling exsolarium to the Sphere who was justifying it to himself by saying that "it doesn't work anyway". But, the Sphere keeps buying it because they believe they can get it to work (or have, without his knowledge).

This episode:
We have a technician who believes he's gotten it to work, which the Sphere has "contracted" to install and test.


So, I believe you're whole "we've seen the episode after this, so all the mystery is gone" was wrong...

---

Surprised that you didn't comment on the whole "how did you do that?" comment Oslo made when Lena used her powers inside.

As a reminder, it's LENA who mentions that Exsolarium doesn't work, in the episode with Cortes' brother. She's the one who first mentions it doesn't work. But in this episode she's concerned it would work. Therefor I DO think that this episode is misplaced. However, you bring up something I forgot to mention. This episode could be SO EASILY ADJUSTED to be part of where it actually is. Just have someone MENTION that "doesn't exsolarium not work?" and have Jonah say that he has an idea that could MAKE it work! That would literally solve EVERYTHING.

Yeah, I don't know why I didn't make note of that either. I guess I was sort of confused because hey, the area is dark so I guess she might not have the energy to do her power, or like they're inside the cell that Jonah modified so her powers shouldn't work or something, and Lena has shown that as the Lady of the Light she's much stronger then that and also Jonah didn't fix the cell yet.

[Rawhide]

As a reminder, it's LENA who mentions that Exsolarium doesn't work, in the episode with Cortes' brother. She's the one who first mentions it doesn't work. But in this episode she's concerned it would work. Therefor I DO think that this episode is misplaced. However, you bring up something I forgot to mention. This episode could be SO EASILY ADJUSTED to be part of where it actually is. Just have someone MENTION that "doesn't exsolarium not work?" and have Jonah say that he has an idea that could MAKE it work! That would literally solve EVERYTHING.

Lena was upset by the exsolarium, which you might remember actually did interfere with her powers, she knows of its potential. Lena knows only that it hasn't worked yet, but that they keep getting it for their experiments because they believe they can get it to work.

You might recall that in this episode a technician who specialises in the technology said that he had succeeded and was thus "hired" to install it...

[LaZodiac]

Lena was upset by the exsolarium, which you might remember actually did interfere with her powers, she knows of its potential. Lena knows only that it hasn't worked yet, but that they keep getting it for their experiments because they believe they can get it to work.

You might recall that in this episode a technician who specialises in the technology said that he had succeeded and was thus "hired" to install it...

Hmm, true, but she SAYS it doesn't work, at all. She was just able to...sense it. Hrm, interesting. You bring up a good point.