REVIEW: ‘NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a’ Episode 20 — “deb[U]nked”

A2 (Ayaka Suwa) stands shoulder to shoulder with the residents of Pascal’s village, prepared to help defend it at all costs. But even if their resolve is unwavering, can the ramshackle defense hold against the mindless onslaught of their numerically superior foe? Meanwhile, NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 20 “deb[U]nked” also follows 9S (Natsuki Hanae) as his journey to access the tower brings surprising revelations.

The battle for Pascal’s village is a wholly new event for the anime. Originally, A2 arrives at the village to find everything already in ruins, due to the residents having been driven mad and attacking each other, with only Pascal (Aoi Yûki, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners) and a handful of the children managing to escape the abattoir the village is reduced to.

This version of events allows both A2 and the audience to deepen their bond with the peaceful community before it is razed to the ground. While the battle largely hinges on A2 and Pascal, many other characters that viewers have met in the village aid in the defense. This gives the success of the battle a communal element.

The only major problem that comes out of NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 20‘s portrayal of the battle is how it handles Pascal. A professed pacifist, the choice to take up arms is not lightly done. In the game, there is an air of tragedy to the very fact that this peaceful soul is forced to fight, let alone kill to preserve what he holds dear. This tragedy is lost in the explosions of the battle.

Once the battle is won, the celebrations are cut short when airborne machines drop explosives throughout the village, reducing it to ruins. Once again, Pascal and a small collection of children manage to escape the inferno, though this time Pascal takes the children to the Resistance Camp while A2 heads out to intercept an incoming Golaith-class machine.

The initial battle in NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 20 feels largely flashy. Sprinkled with a small emotional insert here and there, it feels predominantly positioned to excite the viewer. The post-battle bombardment is an entirely different creature. As A2 cries out for those around her to evacuate, the viewer is given a close-up view of the first wave of bombs as they plummet towards the unassuming machines.

The fireballs that erupt throughout the village capture the horror of the moment through their huge scale and powerful animation. When A2 awakens, we see the terrible consequences. Despite the completely alien look of the machines, the mangled remains of those characters is heartbreaking. A pain augmented through A2’s reaction to the scene.

Within all this burning carnage, it can be easy to overlook the momentous change that has occurred in A2. The pain and terror that is etched on her face over the loss of these individuals would have been unimaginable a few episodes ago. But while her time with them has been brief, it changed her.

The fight against the Goliath-class machine sees A2 break out some new battle tricks in her desperate attempt to take on the titanic foe. Damaged and worn out from her previous combat encounters, she is forced to activate her Berserker Mode. This mode gives her augmented physical abilities while threatening to damage her. The unstable mode allows A2 to hold out until the unexpected arrival of Pascal, piloting his own Goliath-class machine seems to even the odds. However, the episode’s time with the duo ends before an outcome can be decided.

The visual portrayal of A2’s Beserker Mode feels a little lackluster. Coloring her red and giving her a slight glow is fine, but underwhelming. The moment needed something more dynamic to make the transformation more memorable.

Meanwhile, 9S arrives at the second support unit, dubbed The Soul Box. Once inside, he hacks a machine terminal, where he makes some startling revelations. The most significant of these concerns the Black Box at the heart of all YoRHa units, which he learns is made from the cores of machine lifeforms. This would mean that, at their core, YoRHa androids and machines are the same creatures.

The ramifications of this reveal are obvious to the viewer. All the prejudices aimed toward machines throughout the entire series take a new twist now that the differences between the two groups are far more external in nature. While any fictional prejudice is easy to associate with real-world comparisons, NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 20‘s revelation makes the connection hit harder, as it brings the association into clear view in a surprising way. Though 9S rejects this discovery as misinformation.

Once 9s moves on from his discovery, he quickly finds himself being counter-hacked by the Soul Box. Once hacked, he is presented with a collection of his memories of 2B (Yui Ishikawa, Arknights: PRELUDE TO DAWN). But the hack quickly begins to erase 9S’s memories, sending the unstable android into a rage.

Being angered or distraught over someone attempting to deprive you of the memories of an important person is a valid response. However, as 9S spirals in his wrath, we see his feelings towards 2B take a darker tone than simple affection. As he repeatedly stabs what he initially sees as an enemy, he cries out “2B is mine… and mine alone!” Hanae’s voice work at this moment envelopes the viewer in 9S’s rage, as he imbues the lines with a bloodcurdling quality as 9S stabs again and again into the figure that has come to take 2B’s form.

9S’ possessive attitude towards 2B is the final snap that confirms his affection towards 2B has descended into obsession. That she has ceased to be a person that he admires and has been reduced to a thing to be possessed feels like the final fall for 9S.

NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 20 delivers plenty of emotion. Despite missing a beat in its early moments, what it delivers is powerful as the situation on both sides of the narrative continues to degrade.

NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 20 is streaming now on Crunchyroll.