Heavy Object

Episode 21

For one reason or another, heavily armed maids are remarkably common in the world of anime. We've seen professional housekeepers brandish firearms, magical powers, and a wide variety of melee weapons more times than anyone can count. If you want your combat maids to stand out from the crowd, then you'll need to follow Heavy Object's lead and take the “go big or go home” approach. I could be wrong, but I think this is the first time an anime series has featured a squad of mercenary maids with their own armored personnel carrier. I'd normally be tempted to make a joke about the sheer absurdity of it all, but the Battlefield Cleaning Service somehow seems right at home in this storyline. You win this round, Heavy Object.

With the Legitimate Kingdom forces in disarray, Prizewell City Slicker uses his swarm of Objects to obliterate the Baby Magnum's supply base. Frolaytia is able to evacuate the crew before the attack, but the destruction of the hangar slows down the process of repairing the Baby Magnum. Qwenthur and Havia investigate the amphibious landing equipment used by Slicker's new objects, and it doesn't take Qwenthur long to realize that the enemy reinforcements can't possibly be fully operational. The arrival of mercenaries from the Battlefield Cleaning Service leads to a tense standoff, but Qwenthur manages to make a deal with the strangely dressed soldiers. The unusual group of allies rushes to stop the Indigo Plasma while Granny tries to evacuate her family from the city before Slicker can begin his attack.

If last week's episode was a little light on Heavy Object's signature technical lectures, this episode goes a long way towards bringing back the long-winded explanations. Prizewell City Slicker's strategy of using cheap, unfinished Objects to make his forces look more powerful is an interesting one, as is the trick of bringing along ground troops to mask the knock-off Objects' poor mobility. It's the kind of strategy that might have succeeded if the main characters hadn't figured out what was going on, and that makes it a perfect fit for Heavy Object's “nerds save the day” appeal. The return of AI-controlled Objects is also noteworthy for its reference to the battle between Milinda and Ohoho, which suggests that some of the lessons learned in that fight might apply here. Given the unusual weaknesses of Slicker's group of Objects, I expect we'll see some clever ideas from Qwenthur and company next week.

The other missing link in last week's episode was a tangible motivation for our heroes besides surviving and beating the enemy; simply put, the fight hadn't gotten personal yet. Granny's frantic trip into the city gives the story that much-needed emotional foundation by showing us a different side of a recurring character's personality. While Granny clearly takes pride in her work with the Baby Magnum crew, we hadn't really seen her display an emotional attachment to anyone until now. We learn a lot from the way she abandons her post without a second thought in order to help her family, and the importance she places on helping them makes it easier for the audience to care about what happens. It's a simple but effective way of raising the stakes before the final showdown.

Of course, it's hard to get too wrapped up in the technical details or dramatic developments when there are maids with missile launchers on the field. Since the girls of the Battlefield Cleaning Service have been present in the opening credit sequence for a while now, their existence doesn't come as a huge surprise. What did catch me off guard was how well the show uses them. Sure, the whole thing is a joke, but that doesn't stop Heavy Object from treating the maids as actual characters. They seem perfectly capable of taking care of themselves in a fight, and the contrast between their ruthless pragmatism and the cutesy maid café act they put on is a lot of fun. Apart from the outfits, they're essentially just a competent group of hired guns looking out for their own interests. Because their existence isn't played exclusively for laughs, it's actually easier to enjoy them as a vaguely plausible part of the show's world.

Despite a downturn in the number of gunfights and explosions, this episode is a lot of fun. Everything about it feels well-balanced for the kind of show Heavy Object is supposed to be: the geeky mecha stuff is clever without being overly complex, the mercenary maids are an entertaining surprise, and there's just enough personal drama to hold the viewer's attention. As comfort food for the show's core audience, it works remarkably well.

Rating: B+

Heavy Object is currently streaming on Funimation.

Paul Jensen is a freelance writer and editor. You can follow more of his anime-related ramblings on Twitter.