Heavy Object ep 1 [ First Impression ]

Heavy Object is another anime that is trying to look into the future of warfare through the lens of its genre. I think the most accurate statement you can make is Heavy Object is concisely an alternate take on shows like Gundam: There is a NEW super weapon that can change the fate of the planet and THIS is it. Named ‘objects’ – they’re basically super weapons capable of surviving nuclear warfare. I think this is always a good idea to establish why nuclear holocausts simply cannot happen anymore: your opponent will still win even if you nuke the ‘objects’ so you must adapt. I appreciate taking our nuclear problem and subverting it a bit so we have a scarier weapon but almost a safer time, because the ‘objects’ don’t seem to cause immense radiation.

I think the main draw of the show for me is how pretty it can be. I like the art style, and I like the approach, but the show itself is very slow to start. I really liked the main characters by the midway point, so it did a very good job. I also like that they establish some weapons are better than others, yet I also hate it? I guess I am just tired of the trope of a magnificent perfect new weapon that then immediately gets outdated before the episode even continues. Despite that I’m interested in seeing the main characters struggle with a secondary type weapon and perhaps still win with it. [Except spoiler: They don’t.]

It took me a bit to overcome those biases, but I really enjoyed the show by the end. Namely seeing how easy it was to actually destroy the first gen Object- it was like there was no battle. This episode was one where we got to know a bunch of characters and yet there is a distinct possibility we might see some of them die in the next episode alone. I want to know where this show is going and I’d definitely consider covering it, especially if I can share it with someone. It has potential to be a great political statement as well as an interesting concept.

Did I mention I really love the designs? The main character (who has a stupid difficult name that I’ll learn next episode) has a different look than our typical anime protagonist. I’m lovin’ it! Hopefully this show will deliver on the massive potential it just showed. Let’s tun in and find out!

Oki

Eva’s First Impression

Ah~ I think I am in love! I was already hyped up for Heavy Object since it has been announced, but now that I finally got to watch the premiere, I am in love with the premise. First off, they immediately had me hooked solely with the narrative form. Speaking of which, before I had the chance to watch it, I saw Heavy Object trending on Twitter and noticed a lot of people were describing their experience of as if they were reading a light novel. And honestly, they were right. This of course may not appeal to some people. The lengthy descriptions and the amount of in depth information regarding how the culture of war has changed (“Clean Wars”), tackling how the Objects as they call them changed everything, the dramatic territorial changes around the world, etc… But better yet it wasn’t from a third person narrator who solely exists to share this information. It was reflecting out main character’s knowledge of the history, and as well how it reflects his surprise to the twist he never foresaw coming, nor expected to be involved in. This isn’t unique of course, but I found the execution of the narration was very well done, and that is why is stood out to me and of course, kept me engaged.

So what is this “The Clean War” phenomena? Ever since the intervention of the Objects, the nature of war as ‘we’ know it has changed. When one of the losing side’s Object breaks or is destroyed, the opponents who are losing will raise the white flags. By doing so, the make the choice to surrender and then the territory they were fighting over would be taken over by the conquer. The “Clean War” in a sense also applies to the lack of human casualties. With ground soldiers no longer sent onto the burnt of the battlefield and be part of the combat. Of course, by the end of the episode- we know that’s about to change.

The introductions to the characters were very straight-forward and to bluntly put it: Simple. I particularly liked the fact this isn’t starting out as some random “fated encounter” or main character and the female lead have their awkward or bad first impression of one or the other. (Though to be fair, they did end up having an awkward exchange at some point.) Our main, Qwenthur is an exchange mechanic student who has come to this particular base in Alaska to specifically study the first generation comprehensive multi-role Object. He wants to study it despite the fact it is now a “standard”, and is considered an outdated model. He values the importance of understanding the basic fundamentals by having faith it will come in handy later on in the future. He appears to be rather simple minded and ambitious to make money, but it seems he has the tendency to over-think when he is flustered.

The girl whom our characters identify as “Princess”, is the elite pilot of the Object otherwise known as the Baby Magnum. Very quickly we learn this Object may not be durable for this snowy terrain in comparison to the second generation models which are built specifically for designated terrains. We didn’t learn too much about her other than that fact she harbours a more experienced pilot mentality. She understands the risks involved with her outdated Object, and despite that is prepared to take it into battle if necessary simply because there is no other choice. Well, they were quick to show us just how much trouble they are about to be in with a new object that has annihilated everything in its path. And by the look of it, the death flag for Object Baby Magnum has been raised and sighted.

Then we have Navia, he is from a Noble family and is analyst of a sort on stand-by. He is doing absolutely nothing related to his job due to not being need- so he ends up assigned to shovel snow off the runway by hand.
He also has poor aim.

And finally we have the commander of this team is Frolaytia, who is supposedly only eighteen years old. She has already experienced many battles, including ones she had to make the choice of surrendering. She is the one who provides us a better explanation of how and why these wars involving the Objects are labelled as “Clean Wars”.

Despite the fact this was actually quite a simple and rather uneventful premiere, Heavy Object still managed to hook me in and make me excited to see what this story has in store for us. The setting of the story starting out in the snowy terrain of Alaska is also fun for a number of reasons. In most military anime, they either never start in such terrains or we never see them go into such environment. I also commend the staff for the gorgeous backgrounds. Who needs fanservice when you have gorgeous backgrounds? Of course since it is J.C. Staff who is animating this, it shouldn’t surprise anyone to see them provide fanservice scenes at any opportunity. And while I am on the topic of the animation: It is a bit of an understatement to say I have never been particularly a fan of J.C. Staff’s CGI animation. There were a couple of solid looking frames, particularly showcasing the bridge itself, but the combat scenes… their quality was far subpar in comparison other animation studios. The Object themselves aren’t bad, but the explosive SFX, and the navy ships, and- God help them- the water blowing up into the air- that was simply cringeworthy to watch.

Possibility of Blogging: High – via Joint Coverage with Oki
10/06/2015 Update: Low – Moderate > Since Oki is now taking hiatus for the Fall Season 2015 due to her RL schedule I am now lacking a partner. It will be extremely difficult to cover 5 Shows Solo in my present condition. The only compromise I can come up with is either this show or Noragami entry coming out a day late (or take turns) – but even that might not do me any favors.

*Quietly adds Heavy Object to Wishlist for Light Novels to be Licensed*