It’s been awhile since I’ve blogged, since nothing has really caught my eye recently. Thus, it’s time to dig into my backlogged queue and finish off one of my favorite series, Starship Operators!
After the miraculous escape of the Amaterasu in episode 8, we enter a short lull in the action, as both sides attempt to regroup and focus on what the future holds. The Kingdom is in turmoil because its Supreme Chairman has passed away, and a power struggle for succession is underway. The likely candidate looks to be the Supreme Chairman’s right hand woman, Isabelle, who has already usurped power from the military and strikes a deal with the captain of the Conquistador. Apparently in the past he was a guard ship captain of a conquered kingdom, and was separated from most of his original crew. Isabelle reunites his trusted former comrades under his command, in exchange for him leading a 5-ship strike force to eliminate the Amaterasu in her name (thus sealing her victory in the political arena). At the same time, the military spokesman attempts to sway the captain to his side, saying he will make the Conquistador the Kingdom flagship in return for his support. It looks like Isabelle is more persuasive though, and the strike force launches.
Meanwhile on the Amaterasu, the crew discovers they have warped out into neutral space, and head towards the orbital spaceport of Parmia for resupplies. Shinon is beginning to have doubts about the war effort and is losing hope since the Earth Federation did not intervene in the last battle as they predicted. The grim reality of their situation sets in, and Prime Minister Mamiya makes one last ditch effort to save rebellion – he plans to go to Earth and speak at the U.N. conference. Chief Engineer Kouki notices that Shinon has been rather glum recently, and after some prompting by his fellow engineers to confess his crush on the clueless Shinon, he goes to comfort her by the starview window. Atmosphere? Check! Scenery? Check! Emotionally vulnerable state? Check! Condition green, we have a go 
Lots of great moments stacked in between the drama; Shinon really needs to learn more tact, as she walks right into Ciska’s room while he and Rio were making out! Didn’t anyone ever teach you to knock?? Ciska’s sheepish conversation with Shinon immediately after must have been pretty awkward 
No action this time sadly enough, but lots more plot development, and the tension just keeps piling up. Shinon’s realization that the crew is running without a plan casts the rebellion’s future in doubt, forcing her to question whether the sacrifices so far have been worth it. What exactly are they trying to accomplish now? Is there any more reason to continue this charade now that their big gamble hasn’t paid off? Though Shinon is clearly disturbed by these tangents, I’m surprised that the enigmatic science officer Yuki hasn’t piped up yet. He seems waaaay too calm and perky, even though the Amaterasu is a flying death trap. He also seems to have an unhealthy obsession with the Aesop AI…do the writers plan to explain what’s up with that thing anytime in the future?
Next episode looks tense, as Peter from the Galaxy Network has something nasty planned for the crew…
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Ender – who has written 219 posts on Sea Slugs! Anime Blog.
One of the original founders, and the first to attempt a coups d'état.
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Even in the far future, those tactical games are still played on a hexagonal board. Where’s the innovation, people?!
They must follow the rule, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”.
Didn’t expect anyone to pick it up blogging, at least not before the last 2 eps are gonna be out (within the next 1-2 weeks, promised).
SSO is one of those rare gems who come over as fairly original. Too bad that it’s only one season of 13 eps.
Ahhh, I was about to ask if you had any info regarding those release times! Looks like you read my mind.
Man, I’ve forgotten all the characters and everything about this series. Deleted them all when the licensing news came out since the fansub never finished. But I totally forgot the fist R1 dvd came out already. Going to find it this afternoon methinks and just wait for the future volumes to come out to see the end of the story.
a little off-topic, but do you think there’ll be a chance of seeing this series thin-paked? I definitely want to pick up SSO eventually, but I’m in no rush. It’ll be a lot more convenient, and cheaper, for me if SSO does get a thin-pak version. Plus I could marathon the series if I wanted…
I know I’m waiting for the thinpack version.
I third the motion for a thinpak version! Hopefully thinpaking will become the norm once the companies realize how much people like them; as of now, it seems only certain series have gotten the diet treatment