Unbreakable Machine-Doll Episode 11
What They Say:
Cedric and his butler are playing a game with no clear winners, and time is running out for Charlotte and Henriette.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Unbreakable Machine Doll has certainly provided for some good looking episodes in terms of style and design to date and one of the areas it does tend to shine more is with the action itself. Such is the case at the start here as we get Raishin and Henri doing their best to fend off attack, a rather tough one that’s done with a good bit of style of course with a suit and tie, and it al gets interrupted as Loki steps in to save the day. Not that he’s really trying to save Raishin after all that’s happened, but he’s intent still on being the one to actually defeat Raishin and that means nobody else can really do that. Or at least, that’s his cover story and he’s sticking with it, which works well enough since most everyone can suss out the truth.
Not unexpectedly, events sort of just peter out here as Cedric draws back his attack butler and spends some time with him talking about their real goals of getting things settled with the higher-ups of the academy. It’s a kind of awkward transition overall, especially with how Loki just stalks off afterwards with his familiar clanging along behind him, and that just leaves us back in a recovery period once again. Raishin has been knocked left and right for a number of episodes now and is pretty banged up, but this time he gets Henri helping him through his recovery. And like any sequence like this, she gets to share some of her fears about things since so much of it revolves around her relationship with Charl and the way her jealousy could be interpreted as hate, but really isn’t. Raishin’s the good guy in everything though and he does what he can to try and realign Henri’s thinking about her sister.
While this makes for some decent material, the show does finally come back around to Charl herself as everyone gets their opportunity to confront her, to try and get her to stop doing what she’s doing since it’s going to cut short her plans for the future in a big way. But Charl is so focused on doing what she needs to and can’t possibly ask for help that she’ll even fight against those that do want to help, which means we get a pretty good sequence as she and her familiar power up and attack Raishin and Yaya. Of course, it has to slide in a little awkward material as well, and a reminder that Raishin is pushing himself hard beyond his limits, but it’s the kind of reminder for her that he will be the type that will fight with and for her no matter what.
In Summary:
The series does some decent things this time around with what it’s trying to accomplish, though the larger story itself just feels like it’s not all that engaging or clear in some ways. With an opening fight that works well as it reinforces the way Loki will help at times and an end fight that segues from Raishin trying to convince Charl he wants to help to having the butler step in and dominate it, we get some very fun action sequences that definitely makes for some enjoyment, even in the low quality streams we get here. The story and the characters themselves continue to feel very superficial which is the most damaging part of the series and this episode is no exception. While the show started strong for me, it continues to struggle episode after episode.
Grade: C
Streamed By: FUNimation
Review Equipment:
Sony KDL70R550A 70″ LED 1080P HDTV, Apple TV via HDMI set to 1080p, Onkyo TX-SR605 Receiver and Panasonic SB-TP20S Multi-Channel Speaker System With 100-Watt Subwoofer.