REVIEW: ‘EDENS ZERO’ Season 1B Delivers a Strong Conclusion

EDENS ZERO Season 1B, a Netflix original anime, was released earlier this week. The anime, which is an adaptation of the manga series by mangaka Hiro Mashima, is animated by J.C. Staff Studios. Season 1A introduced viewers to Shiki, the grandson of the Demon King who had been living alone on a planet with robots as his companions. Shiki has inherited his grandfather’s Gravity Ether Gear, which grants him powers related to gravity, and the interstellar warship, the EDENS ZERO. One day, he meets B-Cuber Rebecca and her friend Happy and departs with them when the batteries of his robots companions begin to die. The trio decides to search for Mother, a fabled goddess who has unimaginable power. Along the way, they meet several allies who will help them on their quest, including Weiz, the android E.M. Pino, Homura, and 2 of the Four Shining Stars members.

EDENS ZERO Season 1B picks up with the group searching for the remaining Four Shining Stars members, Hermit and Valkyrie. They find Hermit in the most unlikely of places, but are surprised to find out that Hermit rejects their invitation to join them. Since departing from the Demon King, Hermit has gone through traumatic experiences that have made her hate humans and any androids that support them. The EDENS ZERO crew is determined to do whatever it takes to change her mind and become friends with her. Also, the group’s search for Valkyrie, Homura’s former teacher, and maternal figure take an unexpected turn when the group runs into an unimaginable outcome. Meanwhile, the Oracion Seis Galactica, a sinister group, are finally making their move to find a way to reach Mother.

While the overarching story of the series is on the crew finding Mother, EDENS ZERO Season 1B puts a heavy focus on Homura, one of the crew members who didn’t get much attention during the first half of Season 1A. Upon her introduction, viewers are told of her close relationship with Valkyrie. Season 1B dives deeper into their relationship, making note of how strong their bond is. Their relationship emphasizes on the point that blood doesn’t necessarily make two people family, but rather it’s the deep connection people develop that makes them family. The way this is set up makes their bond feel genuine and explains Homura’s determination to reunite with her master. It quickly becomes one of the highlights of Season 1B with how everything about their bond is explained and how it will affect the future of Homura’s place as a member of the EDENS ZERO crew.

Another member who receives major development in EDENS ZERO Season 1B is Hermit. As with the previous 2 members of the Four Shining Stars, it’s no surprise that it would be difficult to have her join the EDENS ZERO crew. However, Hermit’s reason for not joining makes the most impact on the series as a whole. The main characters who are human have all show to have a deep appreciation for androids. With Hermit being an android, her character delves into the question of what happens when the relationships between androids and humans are tarnished by acts of hatred. The deep trauma that her experience with humans affected her deeply. The focus that all of this is given makes it much more believable while also not insinuating that it’s something that will be easily fixed.

As with Season 1A, EDENS ZERO Season 1B sees the return of Xiaomei, the series’ metafictional character. She has been revealing small but important details as the series progresses. One of the major revelations she makes is the much darker tone that Season 1B will have. There is certainly a darker tone, especially in regards to Hermit’s trauma and other surprises that the EDENS ZERO crew will go up against. However, it was surprising to see characters consistently swearing throughout Season 1B. This isn’t to say that the show shouldn’t include any swear words at all, but Season 1A had very few instances of swearing. To all of a sudden include consistent swearing caught me off guard. It doesn’t harm the overall season, but it was definitely distracting enough to notice. Whether or not the season decided to have a darker tone as it progresses doesn’t mean swearing should have a heavy presence. There was one particular scene where Pino and a new character swear at each other but it’s meant to be a more comedic moment. Scenes like these seem forced, which affects the flow of the overall plot of the episode.

Ultimately, EDENS ZERO Season 1B delivers an incredible conclusion to an already incredible start to the series. Season 1B definitely had a darker tone, which made it possible for some interesting developments in what themes the show could tackle. Even though a season 2 has yet to be announced, what the series has done so far with Mashima’s manga series has been incredible to watch.

EDENS ZERO Season 1B is streaming now on Netflix.