Quarantine Control #162: Happy Destiny Summoner Party

DC Staff | May 11, 2023 | Animation, Features, Television, Videogames | No Comments

Now that the United States has successfully deluded itself into thinking that it’s beaten COVID-19 with the national Emergency Declaration ending today, the clock is ticking for vaccines funded by the government. They’ll remain free as long as clinics and drug stores around the country have them in stock, but will then only be available for those with health insurance thanks to perpetually-greedy Big Pharma companies. The same will apply to COVID-19 tests. Yet, the virus itself is still lingering with more transformations than Frieza even by Dragon Ball Super time, but it’s a damning indictment of the US healthcare system that it will merely be treated like the flu going forward.

Geoffrey Barnes

Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Destiny (2004)
Source: Crunchyroll
Episodes: 50

It’s been several years since I watched Mobile Suit Gundam Seed, a solid Gundam show that served as a good entry or reentry installment to the overall franchise despite it being a less impressive reimagining of the original Mobile Suit Gundam. I was warned against watching its sequel, Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Destiny, at the time upon hearing that it goes off the rails and betrays everything its predecessor stood for. I like to think I have a good brain on my shoulders, but I, like every other human being, can occasionally dip into foolishness. The combination of my insatiable curiosity and the long-planned movie sequel finally entering development pushed me into undertaking it. It is a heartbreakingly disappointing series, but a small part of me doesn’t regret venturing on through.

Seed Destiny is a direct sequel to its predecessor that focuses equally on brand-new central characters and surviving returning characters from the previous installment, just as Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam was to the original series. Protagonist Shinn Asuka is thrust right into a conflict that escalates into a new war between the Earth Alliance and the outer space colony-favoring ZAFT, because it wouldn’t be a Gundam series without one. Shinn loses his parents and little sister right at the start due to war casualties, which leads to him joining ZAFT to fight with a series of familiar and new characters. He becomes the pilot of the main Gundam introduced in this installment, in a series stuffed full of variants. This is a vague outline of the setup given the sheer number of characters and twists this series contains.

The earliest parts of the series are the most deceiving, because they initially convinced me that it might be good. The drama was well-written and well-paced enough, with the first ZAFT skirmish being against a series of pilots who are clearly unstable, all sent by the newest Char Aznable Clone Neo Roanoke. The animation is similarly solid for the character moments and especially the hand-drawn mech battles. Shinn himself is clearly more troubled and angsty compared to prior protagonist Kira Yamato, but it works as a good and distinguishable contrast when Shinn himself continues to make reasonable-enough points.

Seed Destiny isn’t subtle about aping from Zeta Gundam. Shinn has a lot in common with Kamille Bidan in terms of his personality, the unstable pilots are analogues to the Cyber Newtypes, and returning character Athrun Zala tries and hilariously fails to pull a Quattro Bajeena-like disguise when other characters see through “Alex Dino” within minutes. Sure, the character designs are on par with Hisashi Hirai’s usual work (you know — bad), flashbacks appear a bit too often, and the animations are sometimes too repetitive. But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t entertained, because it’s solidly-told story with fine-enough pacing.

Of course this wouldn’t last. The series tragically and epically collapses off a cliff in the last one-third. It takes the established character development for central characters and washes it down the drain, especially for protagonist Shinn Asuka, in favor of returning characters given little-to-no development. This is also the time when the reused animations and flashbacks become a little too apparent, and the plot developments become too similar to the prior series if they aren’t convoluted. The story’s ability to balance all sides of the war as extreme-though-equal is discarded for familiarity.

That’s not getting into the ridiculous twists and plot contrivances. It’s cool enough, for instance, when a character survives an attack that damn-well should have killed them the first time around and pulls off a daring rescue, which occurred with Kira in Seed. It’s worth an eyeroll when it happens a second time, and a loud groan when it happens a third time. Two characters develop a sudden arbitrary romantic relationship, one only redeemed by their voice actors eventually becoming a couple. Meer Campbell herself, by the end, was more interesting than the character she tried to be, Lacus Clyne, a likely-unintentional consequence given the latter’s standing in the series.

I do sympathize with the hell the production team dealt with, however. Lead writer Chiaki Morosawa suffered from a brutal combination of cancer and crippling depression, and turned scripts in late as a result. (She passed in 2016.) But it’s still worth criticizing given how the Special Edition movie compilation and HD Remaster offered the team the opportunity to provide several fixes, and largely passed on doing so.

I’ll say this about Seed Destiny overall: It was interesting. There are plenty of dumb twists packed into the last one-third of the series, and even though I was actively rolling my eyes at a bunch of them, I was entertained. It wasn’t the worst anime I’ve watched in recent memory (the Scarlet Nexus anime adaptation). Seed Destiny also includes incredible soundtrack work from Toshihiko Sahashi, the one element that universally can’t be knocked.

I’ll also say that Seed Destiny is the worst Gundam show I’ve ever watched. It was one thing for me to keep the criticisms in mind as I started the series, but another to actually experience them in the face of the immense potential it boasted at the start. But again, it’s at least interesting, and it’s sometimes worth seeing the bad stuff so the good works can be appreciated. All hopes lie in how the movie will handle the themes and potential returning characters from here, which will sadly be lacking the series’ lead writer, if it doesn’t suffer production setbacks yet again. In the meantime, I’ll be checking out other, potentially better, Gundam shows.

Angela Moseley

I started the tradition of writing about what I’m streaming with Final Fantasy VIII for not one, but two Quarantine Controls. I haven’t exactly been consistent, but I’d like to change this random streak. What better time to start than with a game I’m currently livestreaming?

Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon (2008)
Source: PS2, PS2 Classics
Episodes: 1 video game

I’ve been playing Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon for 17 weeks as of this writing. If things go the way I think they will, I’ll wrap the game just shy of a half of year of starting. As I near the end of this game, I have numerous thoughts on the story and some on the gameplay. I may also do a postmortem on the game once the credits roll.

Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon takes place roughly two years after the events of Raidou Kuzunoha vs. The Soulless Army. Raidou Kuzunoha the 14th is called upon by the Yatagarasu organization to again protect the Capital (aka Tokyo). A devastating event will happen, but it is unclear how, and Raidou must be present to protect everyone. He once again works under Shouhei Narumi of the Narumi Detective Agency. Things are slow until a woman named Akane Narita strides through the door and asks for help locating a man named “Dahn.” Details about Dahn are scarce and all she has to go on is a picture of him.

At the same time, the people of the Capital seem to be obsessed with luck. It turns out the obsession is not a coincidence, as someone is forcibly taking the good luck of others via small bugs called Luck Locusts. Anyone who has their luck drained experiences supernatural levels of bad luck. Meanwhile, anyone in possession of a Luck Locust experiences ungodly levels of good luck. Raidou is sent by Narumi to investigate the Luck Locust phenomenon while looking for Dahn. The young detective gets a lead in a ward called Mannen-cho, and he learns that Dahn is somehow connected to the Luck Locusts. Worse yet, these small bugs are linked to the impending disaster in the Capital.

Story-wise, there is a lot unfolding here. The Capital is not only dealing with a supernatural luck-stealing force, but some villagers in rural Japan made a terrible deal with a race of gods. In exchange for power, the villagers condemned some of their daughters (including the village chief’s) to a fate worse than death. For intensely selfish and short-sighted reasons, Dahn has chosen to overturn this system. Normally, Dahn would be a heroic figure (and I’m sure he is in some people’s interpretations of the story), but his actions have the potential to be incredibly destructive.

It’s a fascinating dichotomy into the question of justifying one’s actions to benefit a handful of unfortunate people at the cost of many lives. Many of those people have no idea why they’re being made to suffer. I like how Devil Summoner 2 is raising these philosophical questions without explicitly favoring one view point over the other (at least where I am in the story). However, I have the feeling that one viewpoint is vastly preferred over the others. I can’t verify my hunch until I actually finish the game.

That said, I actually like this story less than the one presented in Raidou Kuzunoha vs. The Soulless Army. Not only because it implicitly roots for one particular type of worldview while trying to straddle a philosophical line, but near the end of the game things get incredibly weird. The start of an apocalypse happens and there’s chaos all around, but the main cast is strangely calm. Additionally, shops continue to function without any sense of urgency. Ease of play is the reason, but it feels like a bizarre disconnect from what’s happening plot-wise. To be fair, this is not uncommon in RPGs, but I wish more NPC dialogue reflected more of a sense of dread.

In the first game, the story was fairly straightforward and connected the games to the larger Megaten universe. It didn’t feel like things were padded out for the sake of creating a longer game. There’s nothing wrong with the occasional lean experience. Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon feels like it has a lot of fat added to satisfy those who complained the original game was too short. So we have more dialogue, more exposition, and the addition of side quests. Unfortunately, Atlus did not provide the development team with a larger budget and as a result the game looks worse, and cutscenes are now rare. Instead of a nice cutscene in the style of a 1920s silent movie, we have characters monologuing against a black background, telling the audience what happened instead of simply showing said events. The lack of a budget combined with the padding simply hurts.

I don’t want to be completely down on this sequel, as the gameplay is so much better now. The improvements in this entry can not be overstated. The ability to have two demons on the battlefield allows for more strategy during tougher fights. The option to make demons invulnerable to incoming attacks and negative statuses is a huge boon. Sure, keeping track of your two demons can be chaotic at first, but the overwhelming feeling quickly fades away. Fights where it is essential that demons are made invulnerable for long periods of time can become physically tiring. Or perhaps that’s an issue for just my fingers after spending over 20 years doing repetitive work in a warehouse.

Another positive change is the decision to do away with battles in the regular world. In Raidou Kuzunoha vs. The Soulless Army, the Capital was filled with demons and the random encounter rate was ridiculously high. Now, most random battles are relegated to the dark world and special areas. This means that investigations can be conducted without getting into a fight every other minute. Tasks as simple as returning to the office, buying goods, or gathering intel aren’t potentially filled with the chance to die in a random battle at worst, or just generally being annoyed at best. The only downside is that dark versions of certain areas aren’t readily available until late in the game.

The addition of demon negotiation and character alignments are highly subjective changes. On one hand, they bring Raidou Kuzunoha further inline with the mainline Shin Megami Tensei titles. On the other hand, I can’t say I missed these experiences in the original Raidou game– especially since I can just play a mainline Megaten for that experience. I do miss simply mashing a button to suck a demon into a tub when they’re low on health, a la Pokémon. Demon negotiation is hit or miss, and it sucks when a demon either runs off after a good faith negotiation, or forces itself into your party. Having demons in your party randomly start negotiations with other demons can be amusing at times. (Unless the demon in your party is actively hampering your negotiations.)

Character alignment only seems to have minimal impact on the story, at least where I am in this game. From what I’ve learned via walkthroughs, special cutscenes and dialogue can be missed because of a player’s alignment. There’s no way to actively determine Raidou’s alignment until late in the game, but again it’s unclear on the surface. Demons don’t seem to have an active alignment, and they’ll work with you regardless of your alignment. Not that I’m complaining, as it would be a pain to be alignment locked out of using certain demons– looking at you, Strange Journey. From what I’ve researched, my alignment will determine the final boss I face and what rewards (if any) I receive in a new game plus file.

Overall, I’m enjoying my time with Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon. The gameplay changes are generally for the better. The story isn’t as interesting as the first Raidou title, and the graphics look worse. Still, I’m holding my final judgment of this game until I actually finish.

Joseph Daniels

Happy Happy Clover (2007)
Source: No official source, try YouTube
Episodes: 13
Rabbits: Several in both lead and supporting roles

I’m going to go right into my television show of the week and say that despite the woodland setting and the diversity in the cast, Happy Happy Clover is basically Rabbits: The Anime, kind of like how Redwall is Mice: The Book. Many of the most important characters are rabbits, but if you think this is going to be the Japanese version of Watership Down, you’re going to be relieved to know that everything is peaceful (for the most part) in the Mikazuki Forest.

Happy Happy Clover seems to be aimed towards younger viewers, with more child-friendly storylines and simpler language, so I can’t help but draw comparisons between this show and another that’s been taking the world by storm of late, Bluey. Bluey is basically the next My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, except seasonal rot is definitely not setting in. Unfortunately, Friendship is Magic is what happens when the inmates start running the asylum, but on the plus side, Bluey is what happens when the people making it continue to care about the integrity of their product.

Coming in at only thirteen episodes and based on a manga that ran for only a couple years, Happy Happy Clover is a short and sweet series focusing mainly on Chima and her friends. In the official English translation of the manga, Chima is referred to as Clover and other characters are given similar botanic names that are a bit at odds with the original Japanese. Despite that his name means “spring”, Haru was renamed Shallot, for example. The only good thing about this is that they unintentionally prevented long time English manga readers from running into two rabbits of differing genders named Haru.

When it comes to slice of life shows, I’m a huge fan of them. Not a lot has to happen as long as the series is cute. There’s something about watching characters just living their best lives. Flying Witch is always going to be one of my go to examples for a cozy slice of life series that everyone should watch, but there are also shows like Shirokuma Cafe that present ongoing storylines in a bit of a subtle manner and which ran for long enough that I got incredibly emotionally invested in the characters, to the point where the series made me cry. I’m happy happy to say that Happy Happy Clover is another series I can recommend to anyone looking for something cozy and peaceful to watch.

I’ve noticed that the young characters find anything food or drink related that adults like to be “bitter”, as if growing up means that no one appreciates sweet things any more. Either that or it’s a question of health, for the adults all know that sugar is actually not good for you. The question of liking “bitter” things also makes me think of the comparison of beer vs. wine and other fruity drinks, oddly enough. Supposedly, “real men” prefer beer and women prefer the more fruity and girly drinks, but… why can’t men like things which taste good? Why are we expected to drink the strong, bitter stuff? Is it supposed to be male posturing? The stronger the beer, the more “manly” someone is? Whatever, you do you. Go and drink your terrible drinks and pretend that it makes you the alpha. I’ll be over here drinking things that actually taste good, thanks.

This philosophy also carries over into the stuff I watch. You stay over there watching all of your terrible and “popular” drama shows, I’ll be over here watching cute stuff with rabbits living their best lives.

This Week’s Short Film
Party (2023)

Spare a thought for the doctors and nurses who’ve been treating COVID-19 patients and researching it over the last few years. For all the praise they were given during the height of the pandemic, they ultimately never received the respect they deserved when they’re still fighting it now. This is a grim note to end on, but there isn’t much more to say here about the topic. Until next week.

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