Arknights’ premiere had promise, but it didn’t quite go above and beyond to offer a climax or plot hook that felt particularly strong. However, its artwork and direction were just striking enough to pique curiosity and instill some hope that it could get better, and that bet seems to be paying off so far.
Last week, Doctor woke up with no memory of who he was, being escorted to safety in a city overrun by terrorist rioters, before remembering enough tactical wherewithal to coordinate a defense. When we left the members of Rhodes Island, they were attempting to leave Chernobog to avoid the impending catastrophe.
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Ambush
Prelude to Dawn continues to find clever ways to turn what would traditionally be a tower defense battle segment into a narratively legible sequence that pushes the story along. Doctor’s drones being temporarily taken out makes it clear that the tower defense conceit of the source material isn’t so rigid within this series that it can’t be subverted.
Rhodes Island is cornered by a unit of Reunion led by Crownslayer, a mysterious Arts user who appears to not get along with other generals such as the insane Mephisto. Crownslayer’s interest in Doctor gives the impression that she might have ulterior motives distinct from the major factions.
Mephisto’s attitude and attire immediately make an impression, and it’s mostly a positive one, even if his brand of crazy can feel a little overdone in anime. The action in this episode had its moments, though the choreography and direction weren’t spectacular. Once the heroes’ backup arrived, they seemed to just appear as a comically huge group as if no one had noticed their approach. They weren’t even sneaking up on anyone.
However, even with somewhat underwhelming choreography, the art design remains fairly consistent. Characters’ expressions posing are full of emotion and prime what could otherwise be very boring, and this makes up for many of the downsides. Plus, the grounded military tactics, like the use of grenades, really spice up the battles, and It will be fun to see these elements at play with magic.
A Brief Respite
As the characters travel through a mostly abandoned and war-torn city, there’s a lot of poignant imagery meant to evoke emotion as the story expands on the sociopolitical landscape. They take refuge in a clinic meant to help people with Oripathy in secret, so they aren’t sent to quarantine. It’s abandoned, as Reunion destroyed their clinic in retaliation for them not helping.
One of the Rhodes Island soldiers angrily expresses that the clinic got what was coming to it, as they had refused to help Rhodes Island as well. What followed was an interesting monologue by Amiya, who expresses that even if they have a commonality, it doesn’t make it easy to trust people. She expresses how humans build walls to feel safe because they want some degree of normalcy.
In these quieter moments, when the artwork brings the scenery to life, there’s this palpable sense of empathy among the characters, who find themselves caught between dogmatic narratives. Amiya especially has this kindness to her that at first marks her as somewhat standard and perhaps uninteresting. After this episode though, she seems a lot cooler and the heart behind Rhodes Island’s efforts to help people, no matter who.
This episode was an improvement, not in a huge monumental way, but for how it started to dip into more compelling parts of its dark and politically divided world. It also gave some much-appreciated explanations about magic. Magic isn’t just cast by those with Oripathy, but also by people who use a material called Originium.
Originium is a conduit for energy, but it can also give people Oripathy, meaning that those with the infection can use Arts because of the Originium in their bodies. However, the powers also use life force as fuel, hence Rhodes Island’s quest to cure it. It’s a fascinating power system with some tangible drawbacks that add drama.
Arknights isn’t going to be a long series, but after this second episode, it’s hard not to be excited about the remaining six. Every new gorgeous background shot or character introduction makes the investment more worth it, but what elevates the series as of now is the world itself, how it operates, and how it has molded these characters.
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