Coppelion -04 (That's no B-2 Stealth Heavy Bomber! That's a B-2 Stealth Cargo/Fighter/Bomber/Whatever we want it to be!)

コッペリオン Ep. 04 Review
Coppelion anime

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis:

Coppelion and Dr. Shiba chase the B-2, but Ibara's first shot from Hand Arrow doesn't work. So as they are being chased by the B-2, Ibara comes up with a plan and lands a hit. The plane goes down in a nearby deep water pool.  Dr. Shiba can't go there due to the high radiation, so the girls proceed alone, discovering the pilots of the plane are dead and likely mercenaries. In the water, they discover lots of nuclear waste barrels, meaning the B-2 was being used to smuggle nuclear waste into the country from a Japanese company called Yellow Cake. Ibara gets angry about this, so Dr. Shiba decides to make things right. This causes Ibara and the others to try to find him before he does something foolish.

After getting a report from the old lady they saved, Coppelion heads to the shrine where Dr. Shiba used to take the old woman. When they get there, Ibara finds that the scientist has removed his protective helmet and has only 10 minutes to live after she doses him with Aether. They get to the air base in plenty of time, but the helicopter is late, having to drop some Aether for Ibara to catch and shoot Dr. Shiba with as time runs out. Dr. Shiba will live and apologizes to Ibara and the girls as Mishima, who'd lost his family in the accident, welcomes him on board the Chinook. Shiba leaves a book of people remaining in Tokyo so they can save them. Night falls and the girls are alone. Takeo and Aoi remind Ibara that she doesn't have to cry alone.

Thoughts/Review:

This anime covers manga chapters 17 through 21, which puts it about half-way through volume 3 as I see it.  The next chapter starts a new numbering system and is like the second part of Coppelion's tale (I guess).

OK, this is just stupid. Clearly, manga-ka INOUE Tomonori-sensei has no clue what a B-2 Heavy Bomber is. Yes, I realize that there was a throw away moment in the last episode about there being a cargo bay, but the B-2 only carries bombs of all sorts and cruise missiles. It cannot carry nuclear waste and even if it did, it would have to be dropped like a free falling bomb with no guidance. It does not perform bombing at low altitudes. It does not have cannons or other guns with which it can fire. It is not a fighter jet.  It is a heavy bomber, meaning it stays WAY out of harms way, drops/fires its ordnance from a very safe distance, and gets away, hopefully without appearing on anyone's radar.

As for nuclear storage, I know that in the U.S., the problem with storage is mostly political. We could recycle a lot of nuclear waste, but we are barred from that because the process would create weapons grade plutonium, which would then violate treaties the U.S. has with Russia. However, in terms of the storage, the anime greatly over exaggerates everything because there's an anti-nuclear message to promote. In the U.S., while the main storage site is being blocked politically, our nuclear waste is being safely stored on site, though since the politicians are mucking with things, it costs the taxpayers more money due political shenanigans.  So the anime's claim that no nation can handle their nuclear waste is really a lie.

But hey, who cares about all them there facts. We now have our explanation (of sorts) for why there are massive hot zones in Tokyo that should not be there. Stealth B-2 heavy waste cargo carrier, heavy attack fighter, and heavy close support bomber at your service to do whatever you want, 'cause it is "stealth" y'all!

So basically, I pretty much disliked this episode except for the actual saving of Shiba, the old woman, and Shiba's assistant. Too much agenda preaching going on with no regard to actual facts ('cause facts that go against the agenda have to be ignored or discredited somehow).

I was able to read the manga for this section, which appears to be nearly it for the unofficial elements. Crunchyroll says they'll be simultaneously doing the current Coppelion chapters, but will they go back and do the previous 19 volumes of material as well?  If they do, then I might have a reason to pay.  The manga, while still preachy, is MUCH better in terms of story. For example, in the manga, the girls are attacked by a mutant leopard on their way to the air base, meaning they didn't get there with as much time to spare as they had in the anime.

I'll keep watching this to see where it all goes. Clearly, with nineteen plus volumes of manga in Japan, the series can be considered a success. I just wish the anime were better.