Contrary to earlier predictions, there is no loss of human life in this episode. There is a close call, but with an episode title like “The Price of Life”, one would think there’d be another casualty. No, it’s just Okada being smart and instead focusing on making all plot and character elements endure a slow burn before Tekkadan heads off into the stars. This is fine. This is absolutely fine.

While Orga is busy discussing logistics and dealing with Martian bureaucracy for Tekkadan’s Earth venture, the show shifts its focus toward Gjallarhorn and Martian civilian life. It is high time the audience had longer moments with Fareed and Bauduin, and it doesn’t disappoint. There’s still an ominous feeling that emanates from them (especially since we haven’t seen them in battle or pushed to their limit), but their demeanour and disposition is so… unique so to speak. They don’t seem to be much for ideology but they’re very dedicated to their job. They won’t take a bribe, and will personally go down planet-side to investigate even further. Then there’s how they treat Biscuit’s sisters when that ‘close call’ mentioned earlier occurs. Normally at this juncture some hoity-toity high class type would probably treat them as something below his contempt. However, the entire scene is dealt tastefully. One can see and sense the divide between them, but it spares us from some humdrum verbal expressions of snobbery and resentment from either side. What is this? Get this shit out of my robot cartoon I want Gjallarhorn to gas an entire city and all the Martians to be like… “nooo we will fight and defeat you!” read more