At the end of Vandreads First Season I had doubts, a lot of doubts. It wasn’t so much about the loose ends I knew would somehow be tied up in The Second Stage. My doubts concerned the poor world building around Taraak and Mejere and the mystery as to why they became so divided in the first place. My biggest fear was that it was over some really stupid squabble between the leaders known as GrandPA and GrandMA over one hundred years ago. As it turns out, it was something far more stupid than that and it really hampers an otherwise pretty solid series finale for Vandread: The Second Stage.
Yeah we actually don’t get a proper explanation between the division of the Sexes, only that it had something to do with Earth coming through for them or some nonsense. And in the end, the premise the show opened with turns out to be the most forgettable aspect of Vandread altogether. These two zealot like civilizations are so committed to their charade of war of the sexes that they’ll let the apocalypse come and go without a fuss, hence why they deleted the data sent to them by the Nirvana about the Harvest. How has this gone on for so long and yet so many of their respective forces join in on the final battle sequence? How has either society functioned and continued to grow, that was never properly explained? God the whole Taraak and Mejere war had potential but clearly it was just a setup that was simply set up and when it was time to return to it…the writers just said “F it, we care about other things now”. Oh and Hibiki is actually a First Generation kid left in cryostasis until about a decade prior and Magno knew him when she was a kid and he was just a baby and…ugh it really sucks and it upsets me because The Second Stage was actually really close to getting a near perfect rating from me.
Hibiki being some kind of prophesized “Chosen One” doesn’t shock me because it’s a pretty typical Anime trope to come across. And there have been signs that he was destined for this sort of role, hints splintered althroughout the series from his connection to the Pixis to snippets from Magno’s memories. My problem is that I always kind of wish reveals like this were more built up to in a clearer manner. Same goes for the shake up that BC is actually a Taraakean spy and got a sex change to pass as a woman plus a voice changing collar. It explains some of the little shiftier acts weve seen from her throughout the show but again, more build up was needed. Oh and that big Gascogne death we mourned heavily last week? She’s alive and brings the Mothership we thought was blown up along with her. Am I happy to see her? Yes. Am I glad she gets to take part in the final battle? Yes. Do I think this whole add on feels tacked on for the sake of the Happiest Ending? Yes. Luckily for the show, Gascogne’s return doesn’t undo all the stellar character work that’s gone into every cast member this season.
As problematic as it was, The Second Stage still went out with a huge bang in a couple of important departments. The best action was saved for last as we got to see a combined fleet consisting of the Nirvana, ships from Taraak and Mejere, and a host of other allies from throughout the show taking on the last of the Harvest fleet. At the heart of all the 3D spectacle were the crew weve come to love across 26 episodes and against all odds everyone and I mean EVERYONE got a proper send off. Paiway decided to drop being so pesky and selfish and grow up a little. Bart confessed his feelings for BC and while she didn’t return them (at least that we saw), Bart still accepted her after her big reveal as a man. Duelo and Parfait more or less hooked up or at least confessed their at their best being around one another. Misty made peace with Dita and was instrumental in helping the Pixis through it’s own traumas before the big showdown. Jura got to stand up to a Mejere tribunal and call them on all their societal BS. Barnette got to return her fighter roots after Goscogne came back. And Meia got to show off to her fellow Mejere Pirates just how much she’d grown. Everyone got at least one moment to stand out and show how far they’ve come since Episode One…it’s great.
What of our little Space Naruto? Well he is Hibiki Tokai. First Generation Savior or not, he reached his own satisfying ending to his series arc. While he’s kind of accepted this slowly, the finale saw HIbiki scream to the world and to the little kid controlling the Harvest Super Destroyer (figures) that he is no longer fighting for himself or for his pride, but for his friends and family, the crew of the Nirvana. Hibiki still had his snark but was mature enough to have heartfelt conversations with BC and several others. The BC one might have been my fav because it was a call back to a chat they had back in Season One that Hibiki cites as his starting point for his own journey. And yes, Hibiki finally called out Dita’s name (and she thankfully stopped calling him Mr. Alien) and allowed her to return to Taraak with him, Duelo, Bart, BC and Pyoro so they could start the big cohabitation experiment between Mejere and Taraak. God only know those two messed up governments don’t deserve their hopeful kindness.
Which brings us to the grand finale of Vandread: The Second Stage. What are my final thoughts? As much as I hate talking about the flaws of the return to Taraak and Mejere, ones I knew were unavoidable, The Second Stage actually stands above its predecessor in almost every way. Serious character growth took priority over forced slapstick comedy and the stakes kept getting raised more and more right until the very end. Characters that bugged me in Season One overwent massive overhauls and I genuinely care about everyone by the time we got to the last act. Even the romantic comedy was handled better and with the right mix of maturity and better crafted humor. Sure the final battle and the big revelations leave a bit to be desired (is Earth not coming for them anymore or is it still a threat?). But for the most part I really liked The Second Stage a lot. Few Anime can start out as roughly as the First Season did and somehow find a way to make things better. It wasn’t a perfect sequel but God was it ever close. Even so, I’m still willing to reward Vandread: The Second Stage with an 8/10 and had it not been for the Taraak and Mejere misteps…it might’ve been a 9. You know what…if those had been cleared up and the Earth matter closed for good…it would’ve been a 10. Vandread, you did good and I’m not gonna ignore that. Your second season impressed the hell out of me…way to go.
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