Relena returns home and is greeted by a swarm of reporters asking for a comment about her father’s assassination. They ask if his death is a declaration of war, and she says to herself that none of them knows the truth of what happened. Relena greets her mother and apologizes for not being able to save Darlian. Mrs. Darlian says it isn’t her fault, and that she knew something like this would happen some day. Relena recalls Darlian’s last words, and her mother asks if Darlian said anything before he died. Mrs. Darlian says she has something to tell Relena, but Relena cuts her off and hugs her, saying that Mrs. Darlian is her real mother. Une reports to Treize over radio that with Darlian dead, there are no more diplomats to act as a bridge between Earth and the colonies. Treize asks her if she’s returning, but she says she has something to take care of – Relena. She asks for permission to head to the J.A.P. point with some mobile suits, and Treize tells her to take five suits in case a Gundam shows up. Treize releases some birds from a cage and privately thinks that if a Gundam shows up, five suits might not be enough. At school Heero hacks into the computer system and deletes all files on him. He looks out the window at a party below and comments that he’s not involved. Relena returns to school, and her friends offer their condolences on Darlian’s death. Relena says that she can’t stay sad forever and that her father wouldn’t want her to feel sorry for herself. She overhears that Heero is transferring out of the school and confronts him in his dorm room. She asks if he’s off to fight again, and he responds by pulling a gun on her. She mentions that she met Doctor J and that it would create too much of a commotion if Heero were to kill her right now. Relena tells Heero he should enjoy the school party while it lasts. Elsewhere, a mobile suit carrier arriving in port is attacked by Wufei, who comments that they let him infiltrate too easily. The circus ringmaster complains to Trowa about arriving just before he’s set to go on. Catherine tells him to leave everything to her, and they go on stage. Catherine begins throwing knives at Trowa and is bothered by Trowa’s completely empty expression. She thinks he’s begging for death and throws the last two knives at his head, but he doesn’t move even after being cut. She asks him later why he didn’t dodge the knife, and he answers that he’s not paid to dodge. She tells him to smile more and apologizes for hitting him. Relena’s friends comment about how she’s dancing with Heero. Relena asks Heero if he’s still going to kill her, and he says he will. She says she understands how he feels now when he fights, and that she’s on his side now. Heero then runs off when he hears on OZ mobile suit carrier approaching. Une tells her pilots to not stop for anything because it’ll be reported as an anti-Alliance terrorist attack. Several Aries and Leos launch from the carrier, and an Aries is instantly shot down by the Wing Gundam.
Heero fires his vulcans, and only Relena stays as the students run away. The Aries and Leo open fire, and Heero knocks down the Leo. One of the pilots reports back to Une, and she orders the remaining Aries to launch and capture the Wing Gundam. In the desert, Quatre tracks attacks on OZ facilities and wonders if there are other Gundam pilots like him and Trowa, and if he could meet them. Howard asks Duo what’s going on, and Duo comments that the Moon looks beautiful when viewed from Earth. He thinks it looks like a graveyard from space and wonders how long he’ll be able to see it on Earth. He then comments that Heero probably doesn’t even look at the Moon and needs to enjoy life. Heero uses his beam saber to slice a Leo in half and comes under attack from three Aries. He then jumps into the air and destroys two of the Aries. On the ground Relena tells her two friends to escape. Heero is hit from behind, and when a round hits the school building, he dives forward to save Relena. He wonders what he’s thinking, because he knows he’d be better off if she were dead. The Aries pilot reports to Une that the Gundam stopped moving because it’s protecting Relena. Heero then pulls away and impales the Aries on his shield. Une wants to launch, but Treize calls and orders her to return. He says he’s decided to let Relena live because they met an unexpected enemy. On the other line, Noin thanks Treize for his help and says that Zechs will appreciate it. Treize comments to himself that the rumors were true about Zechs having a blood relative. Relena calls out to Heero and asks why he rescued her, but he has no answer. She demands an answer, so he approaches her and slams his shield into the ground next to her. Relena doesn’t flinch, and Heero wonders why he can’t kill her. He then takes off and transforms to Bird mode as he flies away. Relena calls out to him and says he shouldn’t run away.
Some threads from the last episode continue here, mainly Relena’s secret past and Une’s attempt to cleanup her mess. This episode shows that Une certainly has no compunction about attacking a school filled with defenseless civilians. For her, the moral dilemma is easily written off by just calling it a terrorist attack. Relena catches Heero by surprise when she mentions that she met Doctor J in space, and he’s confronted with the issue of why he can’t bring himself to kill her. It’d be better logically if she were dead, but he doesn’t see that his humanity is creeping in. While he does save Relena’s life, she’s also saved just as much by Noin pulling strings behind the scenes with Treize. It is impressive though that she doesn’t flinch when faced with almost certain death. With Darlian out of the way and Relena safe for the moment, Treize’s plans will move on to the next stage.
Original Review: November 24, 2000
Gundam Wing Info
Director(s):
Masashi Ikeda
Shinji Takamatsu
Writer(s):
Katsuyuki Sumisawa
Akemi Omode
Toshifumi Kawase
Masashi Ikeda
Katsuhiko Chiba
Mechanical Designer(s):
Kunio Okawara
Hajime Katoki
Junya Ishigaki
Character Designer:
Shukou Murase
Musical Composer:
Ko Otani
Format:
49 episodes
Airdates:
Japan 04.07.1995 – 03.29.1996
U.S. 03.06.2000 – 05.11.2000
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