REVIEW: ‘NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a’ Episode 17 — “bad [J]udgement”

With YoRHa destroyed and 2B dead, Pod 042 (Hiroki Yasumoto, Metallic Rouge) has bonded to A2 (Ayaka Suwa) to continue his observations. While repairing the android from damage taken in the aftermath of the last episode, the support unit discovers that the android has deleted memories. As part of his repairs, he reconstructs the lost memories. NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 17 “bad [J]udgment” follows the Pod’s discoveries, returning the narrative to a familiar tragedy.

The first time viewers were taken back to the disastrous mission that first saw the android resistance meet the newly minted YoRHa models, the tale was told from Lilly’s (Atsumi Tanezaki, Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End) point of view. We learned about the failed attack on a machine server and the Number 2 android that Lilly had befriended, who apparently died in the climatic explosion that sealed the mission’s ending. NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 17 lays the pieces out for new viewers, revealing that the android didn’t die in that thunderous blast but continued fighting a separate battle against the machine lifeforms as A2.

With the shift in perspective to A2, this telling of the story begins before the two groups meet. We see the squad of twelve perform their descent into the atmosphere, fire trials blazing behind them. As the squad prepares for their mission, several units, including A2, chatter excitedly about seeing Earth for the first time. This excitement is quickly quelled when laser fire from machine bases begins to pepper the descending soldiers. The squad quickly begins taking losses and the hopefulness we saw momentarily is soon replaced with terror.

The results of this opening bear a striking resemblance to how 2B’s initial mission began back in the first episode. This mimicking of results between the two missions is another subtle reminder of the cyclical nature of the long-running battle between the androids and the machines. While the “never-ending cycle of life and death” 2B mused about in the pilot has felt largely personal, these similarities help the narrative expand beyond the starring duo in a way that doesn’t take time speaking about it, preferring to let the audience to see it on their own.

Another key element NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 17 brings from this new point of view is why A2 is leading the squad when they encounter the resistance fighters. Simply put, she was next in the numberertical sequence. Number One died, so she is now the boss. Not the best way to pick your unit commander. This explains why such a panicked and often indecisive android found itself in charge.

As the story approaches the midway point of the established narrative, Pod 042 discovers that many of A2’s memories have been deleted. This was done by A2 herself. This choice does great things for both the episode’s narrative structure and explaining A2’s personality.

It works narratively because it eliminates pointlessly rehashing the moments we already saw. The sequences of the two units bonding together are only eluded to in this telling. There is enough in what we see to remind viewers of the bonds that formed between them without needlessly retelling every moment.

For A2 herself, this speaks volumes to who she is. Her anger and focus on her existence are perfectly explained by her choice to omit the only good things that happened in that fateful mission while allowing the horrible ones to remain. It’s been said that “Your focus determines your reality.” It is clear what reality A2 has chosen.

Jumping forward in the mission, NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 17 catches up with A2, Lilly, Rose, and other androids as they ride the elevator into the heart of the machine server. While Lilly’s story ends shortly after the elevator arrives at its destination, here we see the final confrontation at the heart of the server.

Again mirroring current events in the plot, A2 is forced to confront her former YoRHa compatriots, now driven to madness by viral infection. The lighting and cinematography deliver the anguish and pain that the moment is overflowing with. All the emotion culminates with Rose saving A2 from a final brutal attack. Blocking the swords of the fallen YoRHa units with her body, Rose gives each of them and A2 their own flower names, declaring that they are now all family. The kindness and warmth that is present in Rose’s final words and smile feel like a flickering candle amidst an infinite darkness within the scene.

As the memories end, A2 regains consciousness. We see she is currently in the care of Pod 042 and Pascal (Aoi Yûki, The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic). While her moment of consciousness is brief, this fleeting scene allows the episode to lay out where viewers can expect A2’s story to pick up when they see her next.

NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 17 weaves a phenomenal story that delivers huge emotional payoffs while filling in the holes of previous events. Its use of narrative structuring to inform A2’s personality is a stroke of genuine genius that lets the story clip along without retreading already-known moments.

NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 17 is streaming now on Crunchyroll.