Episode 8, "Be Born! Baron Ashura!" 
*****SPOILERS*****
Synopsis: Kouji teams up with Tsubasa and her crew to take on Baron Ashura, who is holding Sayaka and Aphrodai A captive in a giant Mechanical Beast. Dr. Hell recounts' Tsubasa's hand in creating Ashura. Viscount Pygman, one of Dr. Hell's other subordinates appears to rescue Ashura. Tsubasa tells her subordinates to take Kouji and his brother into the Kurogane House.
Comments:
Tsubasa and her group continue to be the most (see: only) interesting characters in the series. New ones keep popping out of the woodwork, but they're always colorful. This time we got introduced to the guy who made Boss and his two friends shut up in the previous episode (or was it the episode before?), the man with the crack shot. We even got a little background on Tsubasa. I'd be more inclined to enjoy the program if were simply about this group, but unfortunately, it's about Kouji Kabuto.
Yeah. Uh, Kouji isn't really doing much. I mean, I guess I should give him a break, he's still learning. Still, when you have all these awesome characters doing all sorts of things around him while he's sort of sitting back waiting for instruction, it makes it hard to concentrate on the main character. Sayaka is another extremely dull character. I really couldn't have cared less if she had died in this episode (even though I know she survives at least until the final battle). Really, she's entirely devoid of personality, whereas Tsubasa is made of FUCK YEAH.
Dr. Hell sure has some interesting minions, though. A half-man, half-woman, a guy with a disembodied head he carries around, and now a guy who... I guess... blinds himself to prevent himself from being controlled? What the hell? Now that's hardcore. Also, what exactly did Tsubasa put in these characters that made them easy to disable? I mean, if she so much lays a hand on Ashura, he/she gets a jolt of electricity.
Speaking of which, that flashback had the courtesy to show us how Ashura was made, but of course, without establishing where Tsubasa is from, what Dr. Kabuto thought of all this, how Bardos Island was destroyed, or how Dr. Hell came to his current position. But I guess we have time for that later. It does sort of bring to mind the question of what the hell could have been going through the mind of Dr. Kabuto and Tsubasa
"This man named Dr. Hell asked me to sew half a man and half a woman together and ressurect them so we can get information about world-conquering giant robots that were referred to as gods. Sure, why not? He seems trustworthy enough."
Their idiocy amazes me. But I guess science marches on. 
Overall Score:
3.5 out of 5 (again, because of Tsubasa)
