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Rating: 8.8/10, 9.2/10, 9.5/10, 9.3/10

Overall Series Rating: 9/10

Impressions:

I can’t exactly say the ending is unique, and that is the main reason why I think it somewhat let the rest of the series down. I was expecting war on a grander scale, more deaths, and I wasn’t expecting Sara to survive either. I guess the overall flaw is the over-focus on Sara and her emotions, rather than on the plot, which had a lot of potential. Just one ship doesn’t cut it in my opinion. However, the ending is still very enjoyable, so I can’t complain too much. All in all, this is a series I would recommend, even for those who dislike mecha. It begins powerfully with all the deaths and angst, and rides along until the end with more emotional development and drama.

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Popularity: 12% [?]

Rating: 9.3/10 & 8.6/10

Impressions:

Wow, those were two smokin’ hot episodes that completely returned my love for this series! Episode 8 was such a shocking reminder of how serious and fantastic this should used to be before a brief period of complete shit. It is full of drama, emotion and engaging plot twists. And the producers even managed to throw in some romance and fun in the first half. Unfortunately for Sara, another potential lover is killed by her brother. However, fortunately for me though, it is one of the things that make me come back for more. The drama and plot are so juicy you simply cannot wait to see it. The action is nice too, though we didn’t exactly see much in either episode. That will be reserved for the final few episodes I believe. It’s also about time Sara’s true identity is revealed. Episode 9 isn’t as gripping as episode 8, though entertaining nonetheless. Sara finally comes to terms with her feelings towards her brother, and makes a temporary truce with Lottie as it seems (and perhaps the higher ups as well).

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Popularity: 8% [?]

Rating: 7.5/10

Impressions:

Wow, what an unexpected episode. The fanservice meter increased from 0 to 100% in the first five seconds. o_O And the nude scene was uncalled for. I mean, why the hell would the producers decide to do something like this? The show was doing great before, it didn’t need any redeeming points. All they had to do was cut to the chase and have Sara lose her mimic. They didn’t have to go so far to set up its misplacement. I am very disappointed. Soukou no Strain started wonderfully with a solid foundation for a captivating plot to blossom, and in fact that plot is still there, though cleverly disguised by the fanservice and filler-like material. The sudden change in Sara’s life when her friends were killed provided the drama, torment and bleakness that the show lives off. And the problem is, I doubt that will ever come back. Next episode, Sara appears to be on a date with Carris. Sure, her relationship with him needs to develop, but if it gets dragged out unnecessarily; filler!!!

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Popularity: 9% [?]

Rating: 8.5/10

Impressions:

I’m slightly disappointed with this episode, since the drama and emotional build-up have just disintegrated with the tone change. Not to mention the plot just crashed into a brick wall too, and it slowly started seeping through again by the last third of the episode. It’s kind of sad how now it looks like Sara’s back to her old self again, which means there will less likely be many more deaths, betrayals and serious confrontations (within Sara’s ship I mean, not against the enemy). The battles should remain and only get more significant, though it looks like the series might be taking a break from everything and focusing on character development. The storyline might be picked up again after a few episodes and cruise along to the dramatic climax, then for a grand finale at episode 13…or was it 12? Hopefully, that is. Still, there hasn’t been nearly enough focus on the Deague, Ralph or Emily – the real Emily. She and her mimic are bound to cross paths sooner or later, and I hope the drama can be spread out evenly through the course of the series.

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Popularity: 8% [?]

Rating: 9.2/10

Impressions:

I just love this show now. After the big battle that was last episode, the show retreats back into character development mode and deals with some serious relational issues with Sara and her coworkers. It kinda pissed me off seeing Sara just take the beating by Mariette and not even saying anything. I was really hoping she’d express her reason for not retaliating, which is obviously because she’s been through the same situation and knows how it feels. But I would have really liked to see Sara go agro on Mariette and say straight to her face that she’s not the only one who’s suffered. Anyway though, the moment is incredible serious and provides potential for the show to evolve this particular branch of the story. Sara’s new possible love interest is also getting more screen time along with the other Reisners, though I hope the Gambee pilots aren’t thrown out in terms of their roles as characters. Mariette will probably return later on and hinder Sara during some important activity, causing all sorts of trouble to make people hate her more. I do hope that she actually dies a painful and pitiful death, and not ‘learn her lesson and become a good person’.

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Popularity: 7% [?]

Rating: 9/10

Impressions:

I’m pretty impressed with the sub-lightspeed battle this episode. The events are fairly predictable; Sara piloting the red Strain with Emily, the mimic, then going to fight her brother. I wasn’t sure about how the fight would turn out, and was expecting a lot more marvelling from other onlookers, though unfortunately that didn’t happen. I had also been hoping that blue haired pilot (the one who always picks on Sara) had either died, been severely injured or severely humiliated from Sara’s performance, though that didn’t exactly happen either. All in all though, it was a good episode and a wonderful first battle with the new taskforce. Soukou no Strain continues to maintain its heavy sense of realism with its deep sentimental characters and overflowing emotions. Death, like I hae said before, is not a problem in this show, and for that I am glad. I also have the feeling friends could become enemies at any second, with Sara’s and the ‘princess’s conflicting interests, though that probably won’t happen any time soon. Another thing I should mention is the fun little twist that has been set up: Sara and Emily, the mimic, have a powerful connection, proven by their ability to link, while Ralph is taking care of the real Emily, who seems to adore the traitorous brother. In the end, they are bound to meet and discover what the other possesses, and from their there will be an explosion of drama and tragedy (I hope).

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Popularity: 6% [?]

Rating: 8.3/10

Impressions:

Another enjoyable episode; a lead up to the first battle with Sara in her new red Strain. Of course, we all knew it was going to happen, but it still is nevertheless exciting to watch. Just the feeling you get when watching the characters get geared up is stirring. I have really fallen in love with this show, and the quality is improving as well. Regardless of the normal animation, the computer generated animation is fairly high quality and pleasant to look at. I was hoping that the sub-lightspeed battle would actually take place, having Sara own everyone of course, before being invaded. That way, she’d get much more awe than the way how this episode played out. However, her being a reisner would allow people to track down her past pretty easily I’d assume, which is why this would want to be kept a secret. There’s no doubt that Sara and the ‘princess’ will meet and both try to kill Ralph, and they’ll probably both be angry and desperate instead of friendly toward each other. Sara’s abilities will become revealed to her of course, though I wonder how she’ll react. I think the fact that they are both Reisners will allow them to be close friends, and Sara will probably not be picked on as much anymore. By the way, yes I am being very slack with only six screenshots this episode, but I promise I’ll start blogging normally again by the weekend and onwards, since then I will be on holidays!

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Popularity: 9% [?]

Rating: 8.5/10

Impressions:

I’m still waiting for Shinsen’s release of Soukou no Strain 3, but I have no idea when it will come since Shinsen has so many active projects at the moment. Anyway, Sara has lost her mimic, changed her last name to Cruise, joined a mobile infantry training battalion, practising in standard mechanical weapons in order to seek out her traitorous brother. Strain pilots, called Reisner(?), are highly regarded in this regiment, and it just so happens that a Reisner decides to become friends with Sara. Well, not really, since Sara is still pretty cold, refusing to talk with anyone. She puts 100% into her training and wishes to advance as fast as possible. I can already see where this is going. Sara probably uses the mimic she finds to pilot a Strain (or something like that) and shows all the poor losers that pressured her how awesome she is, including the midget Reisner. There of course will also be the clashing reunion of Sara and her brother, and the little girl (Emily was it?) that he took will become a major part of the story, probably after being rejoined with her mimic. If it is her mimic, that is. I’m looking forward to the next episode, as despite its mediocre animation, Soukou no Strain still remains as one of my more favoured ones this season (though it is still new and mysterious, and could diverge in many ways).

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Popularity: 9% [?]