God Eater Episode 4: Aegis

The loli did nothing wrong ;_;

Impression

I liked this episode. If this is what ufotable can produce after a week’s delay, then maybe God Eater should be released once every fortnight from now on. Or maybe it’s because this is the first time a fight scene hasn’t been the major attraction of the episode. We were treated to a whole lot of world-building instead, and I feel like I’m finally beginning to get invested in the setting in which this story takes place – beyond the ‘God Eaters are the last hope of humanity’ spiel, that is. And it’s surprisingly thought-provoking. I was initially surprised that they even had a town in what’s supposed to be a military base, until I realized it wasn’t the urban town I was thinking of but rather a series of poorly-constructed huts that have to be rebuilt each time a bunch of Aragami invade.

A problem we quickly learnt about was overpopulation – there are so many people seeking shelter that Fenrir have to turn away anyone who isn’t a potential God Eater recruit or a family member of someone who is. So there exist people who are forced to survive outside the walls like Lenka did before he was taken in – under constant threat of attack from the Aragami, with no way to defend themselves. And presumably they have no easy way to find food either, from the way Lenka reacted to seeing Fenrir distribute it for free. It was only at the very end that I realized just why Kota’s mother was so worried about him finally completing his God Eater training – before, I was thinking that surely she must have known all this time that he’d become one. But if they came to Fenrir under the same circumstances as that group of travellers, then they never really had a choice – Kota either had to become a God Eater as he had the potential, or he and his mother would be kicked out and forced to live outside again. I do understand why this sort of restriction is imposed, because their little settlement would eventually collapse if they took in everyone they saw, but it’s still harsh. And then there’s the loli who thought God Eaters were cool, but will now most likely die in a ditch because she failed the aptitude test to become one. Goddammit.

Also, is it just me, or does this Aegis Project sound suspicious? It’s supposedly a grand plan to make an entire island an impenetrable shelter for all of mankind. I see a few things wrong with this, not least because there’s no way it can fit everyone – there’s either hardly anyone left, or its just idealism. And will it really be safe? Even from that massive thing flying in the clouds at the end of the last episode? It’ll also take forever if they’re using Aragami cores to build it, sphere by sphere – presumably those are required to make a Jinki, too. An offensive weapon. So is it really a shelter? Instead of, say, a massive laser weapon designed to kill the huge Aragami?

As for the characters, they’ve pretty much stayed exactly where they were in terms of development. Alisa is still hot, but still unsocial. Soma is still emo. And Lenka… well, he got a little worse compared to last time, at least where his combat skills are concerned. Kota was okay, as he was a friendly newbie who livened up the place – but who am I kidding, he’ll probably die in a few weeks if not earlier. If there’s anything interesting, it’s that they all have different motivations, and it’s bringing the team dynamic to shit. Sakuya, for example, will stick to her orders down to the very letter – if she sees an Aragami that’s not the one they’ve been assigned to kill, she’ll ignore it. Lenka, on the other hand, wants to kill every titan just because it’s there for him to kill – his reason for becoming a God Eater was to kill the vampires. He wants to kill them all. Alisa, meanwhile, will only kill as many as she’s been asked to, then just ignore the others even if they’re right next to her. I suspect she might even ignore one if it’s even attacking a team-mate, but I have no idea how much she values them for now. Lindow is left to pick up the pieces, and to remind them that sharing is caring. So much for being an elite unit.