hontou ni sou omou?

I actually was going to just wait and see how The Second Raid season of Full Metal Panic! shaped up first, partly out of my intense dislike for Chidori Kaname. But with the promise of regular doses of yuri from the second episode onwards, I dived in faster than you can whisper “Kiyohime…”

Overall, a good episode with enough screentime for all of the returning cast especially the Mithril Arm Slave pilots and the senior crew of the Tuatha de Danaan. Small quibble about Anime Keep’s sub which had Mardukas as “Lieutenant Commander” when I think “fuchou” means “Vice Captain” and demoting Andrei Kalinin to “Lieutenant” from Major (shousa). If you want a real review I suggest Omni’s entry. I’m just going to talk a bit about my two favourite anime ladies in this series, Teletha “Tessa” Testarossa and Melissa Mao. :)

My favourite anime females tend to be independent, strong-willed and very good at whatever they do with Motoko Kusanagi (Ghost in the Shell) and Faye Valentine (Cowboy Bebop) at the top and second spots respectively.

Mao definitely fits into that mould though her violent reactions to Kruz Weber’s cheekiness is a tad overdone. Hope she gets more screentime and character development this season. I really liked her defiant and competitive spirit when going up against her own ship’s captain in that Tessa vs Mao AS competition episode last season (not Fumoffu).

Tessa is physically weak but has the intellectual and mental capabilities that comes from being a Whispered. I’m not very keen on her girly voice as rendered by seiyuu Yukana but it’s not too bad as it’s a useful reminder that she’s a young girl despite her high rank and that x-factor of “command presence” when leading the crew of the Tuatha de Danaan. She does the cute jealousy thing quite well too. :)

Aaah, big robots and pretty girls. Looking forward to a good season.