Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz Ep. 2: Operation Meteor

Quatre tells the Maganacs that it’ll take them five more days to catch up with the satellite, but they could cut their time 80 hours by taking another course. That new course would use up their propulsion, so Quatre thinks they could detonate the satellite’s power generator and use the force of the explosion as propulsion to help sling the interplanetary spacecraft around Venus’ orbit. Rashid decides that he, Quatre and Abdul will form the team to board the satellite, although the rest of the Maganacs want to help too. Quatre recalls talking to Instructor H about the self-destruct device in the Gundam Sandrock. Quatre asked if it was for confidentiality, and Instructor H told him those with power must be prepared to lose their lives. Orders arrived from the Barton Foundation, but Instructor H smashed the computer and told Quatre to fight as his heart told him to. He added that Quatre should only use the self-destruct if he felt he had to. Heero tries to hold off the Altron Gundam‘s attacks and tells Wufei to use the self-detonation device. Wufei slices off one of the Leo‘s arms, and Heero repeats his demand. Duo’s Leo is damaged, and he asks why Trowa has betrayed them, but Trowa says he’s got the wrong guy. As Trowa’s Serpent fires missiles, Duo recalls planting explosives on the Gundam Deathscythe. His explosives failed to go off, and Professor G told him to think of a better way of using the Gundam than destroying it. Duo said he didn’t want to see the Gundam used for destruction, and Professor G suggested that Duo steal the Gundam and ignore Operation Meteor. He told Duo to rely on a man named Howard in the Pacific Ocean. Trowa recalls Doktor S arguing with the real Barton about limiting their attacks to only OZ targets. Doktor S explained that as planned, Operation Meteor would kill two billion people, which he felt was too much to get revenge for slain colonial leader Heero Yuy. Barton said the purpose of Operation Meteor was conquest, and he’d carry it out alone if necessary. A technician then shot and killed him, and “no name” asked to take his name. He said he had no interest in conquest, and Doktor S decided to start calling him Trowa Barton. The missiles miss Duo, and Heero escapes in the confusion created by their explosion. Trowa disappears, and Duo abandons the Leo to escape through the hole that Trowa created. Sally tells Noin that a Preventer cruiser will launch from the Lunar Base to take care of the Tauruses they’re tracking. Noin scans them for heat signatures and realizes they’re just mobile dolls, so the real troops are elsewhere. On Earth, Une watches the snow and wonders what Treize would do in their situation. Quatre’s ship approaches the satellite, and Dekim prepares his forces on the asteroid MO-III. Mariemaia and Relena fly through Colony X18999 in a helicopter, and Mariemaia explains to Relena that her goal is simply victory. Heero and Duo watch the helicopter, and Duo guesses they’re headed for the spaceport. Heero says he’s concerned about Dekim, and Duo wonders if they plan to carry out the real Operation Meteor.

Quatre prepares for a space walk and fires a grappling line to swing over to the satellite. Dekim is informed that the Preventer cruiser has changed course, but he declares that it’s too late. MO-III opens its Earth side gate and begins to launch its atmosphere re-entry ships. The Tallgeese III then appears and begins to destroy the mobile suit carriers. Dekim wonders if the pilot is Treize, but he concludes it must be Zechs. Zechs uses the name “Preventer Wind” and calls Dekim, ordering him to surrender. Dekim refuses and says that even if Zechs destroys the Serpents, he has other means of fighting. He then explains that he was the one who originally created Operation Meteor, and Zechs realizes that Dekim intends to drop Colony X18999 on Earth. Dekim threatens to drop the colony if Zechs continues to interfere, and he offers to let Zechs serve as a soldier under Mariemaia. The rest of the mobile suit carriers are able to launch, and Wufei escorts Mariemaia and Relena’s shuttle. Relena is shocked to hear about the colony drop, but Mariemaia says it won’t be necessary if humanity bows to her. Mariemaia then explains that Relena is trusted by the colonies and has more influence than she realizes, and Relena sees that’s why she was kidnapped. Quatre activates the satellite’s engines and sets off a detonation to change its course and propel it back to Earth. Heero and Duo set off explosions at Colony X18999’s spaceport and find Trowa waiting for them in a computer room. He asks for their help in breaking into the colony’s computer to re-establish its stability control. Trowa explains that when he realized Dekim wanted to try the original Operation Meteor, he infiltrated to get close. Under that plan, a space colony would be dropped on Earth to cause massive damage, and the Gundams would be sent in afterward to seize control of the government. Duo asks if Wufei is doing the same thing, but Heero says that Wufei doesn’t like roundabout approaches. They call Sally to report that they’ve stopped the colony, and Zechs fires his mega cannon to destroy MO-III. However, Dekim manages to escape in a shuttle and head for Earth. Soldiers order Heero and the others to surrender, and Duo plays for them a message from Quatre stating that the Gundams will be in Earth orbit in 24 hours. Heero asks Duo to send a message back because he wants to pick up Wing Zero in space and save time. Heero then asks Duo to hit him, and when Duo does, Heero punches him back to knock him out. Heero then lies down to fool the soldiers, and he runs away after the enter the room. Dekim arrives on Earth as dozens of Serpents parachute onto the planet’s surface. Relena’s shuttle enters the atmosphere, and Quatre launches Wing Zero’s capsule to Heero’s coordinates. Heero takes off in a shuttle, and Zechs returns to Earth. Duo is locked up as a prisoner, and Wufei waits in Earth orbit.