REVIEW: ‘NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a’ Episode 21 — “[N]o man’s village”

Pascal (Aoi Yûki) and A2 (Ayaka Suwa) continue battling with a Goliath-Class Machine, desperate to protect the camp. Unfortunately, their efforts may be in vain as Lily (Atsumi Tanezaki) finds herself trapped in a nightmare as the situation at the Resistance Camp falls apart around her, introducing the series’ biggest divergence from the source material in NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 21 “[N]o mans village.”

NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 21 picks up right where the last episode left off. We see Pascal battling his enemy as he controls his own Goliath-Class Machine. As Pascal trades blows with his opponent, he cries out in rage, reaffirming his determination to protect the children.

The huge scale of the blows struck during this initial confrontation feels like an outward manifestation of Pascal’s rage. As the giant buzzsaw-like fists of the machine tear into each other, gorgeously animated explosions bathe the sequence in red, further washing the moment in an angry light.

This opening moment helped rectify my issues with how Pascal’s choice to fight was handled in the previous episode. Pascal’s decision to discard his closely held pacifism to protect what he had left felt ingrained in his rage. Not only was this machine threatening to take what was most precious from him, but it had already been a party to a dear loss. At least, that’s how it felt at first.

Once the fight is over and Pascal rejoins A2, we see the machine proudly bragging about his triumph. While his airboxing routine at this moment releases tension, it undercuts what Pascal just did. The lighthearted moment doesn’t last long, though, as the duo soon receives a call for help from Lily.

When NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 21 jumps to the resistance leader, we find her holed up in the radio room of the base with a few other androids. A virus is running rampant through the base, reducing the androids to shambling, zombie-like versions of their former selves. As Lily continues to desperately call out for help, one of the remaining androids with her cries out, succumbing to infection. With a jarring transition, the scene jumps to earlier, just as the outbreak occurs.

The moment begins with one of the machine children Pascal left at the camp having a minor interaction with a resistance member. This moment feels nice as we see the android helping the little guy herd the children to a containment space for safekeeping until Pascal can come to collect them. Shortly after this interaction, the virus breaks out, turning the quaint moment into the nightmare that is now raging through the camp.

Returning to the present, we see a brief fight that brings the infected android down, but even this limited exposure is already causing others in the room to show signs of infection. The excellently depicted terror that washes over Lily is interrupted as a ruckus outside heralds the arrival of Jackass (Kaori Kawabuchi) and other resistance members, most notably the twins Devola and Popala (both voiced by Ryôko Shiraishi, Tekken 8). After crashing their vehicle through a wall, the twins quickly treat everyone. Since the infection is still fresh, they can purge it from the androids’ systems.

While treating the androids, the twins can also determine how the virus was introduced into the camp. It was the machine children. Lily’s act of kindness has caused the downfall of her group. Shaking off this upsetting revelation, Lily quickly orders her remaining personnel to load up on the truck Jackass brought and escape the camp. Lily, however, plans to remain behind to cleanse the virus. If it escapes the camp, it could infect every android left.

Lily’s choice brings a beautiful moment as the other resistance members opt to disregard their orders and remain with the leader. The moment of camaraderie brings a heartfelt warmth to it, even though it also means all of them are likely to die. The only members Lily demands depart are Devola and Popala. Stating that their function as healers is too important, she orders them to take the truck and flee. As the duo prepare to protest, Lily thanks them for all they’ve done up to this point. The sincerity in Lily’s voice touches them deeply. They both look like they are moments from an emotional breakdown as they flee the camp.

This moment is powerful for the twins. As previously indicated, the pair desperately seek atonement for a past failing. Lily’s words bring a sense of relief to the eternally struggling androids, who can feel as if they may have found some measure of the atonement they sought. The visuals and music work wonders to play up this impactful moment.

As Lily and her team begin their final battle, NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 21 jumps away to catch up with 9S (Natsuki Hanae). Arriving at the last support structure, he is treated by a machine wearing the raiments of a clown who begins posing a riddle to 9S. Just as the machine finishes his riddle, 9S stabs him. However, as the answer to the riddle was “death,” the android is allowed access to the structure.

Once inside, all that is found is 2B’s flight unit, with the structure’s core graphed into the operator’s seat. As 9S moves to destroy the core, an unsent message from 2B begins to play. In it, she asks anyone who finds the message to let 9S know how much she treasured their time together. This reopens 9S’ emotional scars and sends him screaming into the core to destroy it.

This moment is a departure from the original story that is both surprising and skillfully executed. 2B’s final message was an element of the story that a player could completely miss in the game. Finding a way to work it into the story so 9S could find it without just stumbling across it is a great choice. Its placement here also feels right. There is a purposefulness to how 9S is being allowed to proceed through these structures. The presence of 2B’s flight unit only reinforces these situations are being tailored for 9S.

NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 21 then returns to the camp as A2 and Pascal return. Encountering Lily, the pair are quickly caught up on what has happened and Pascal speeds off to check on the status of the children. Left alone, Lily reveals to A2 that she has contracted the infection and asks her to kill her before she loses herself. As she takes up Lily’s signature gun, A2 tells her the name Rose gave her as she died. The silence that is allowed to linger in the moment is deafening.

This moment feels especially brutal after all the growth that A2 experienced at Pascal’s village, allowing herself to experience something other than rage and pain. Despite the violent nature of the scene, there is a closeness between the two. There is no malice in the shot that takes Lily, only kindness. The contradiction there makes the sentence itself hard to type, but that nevertheless is how it feels.

With A2’s shot still ringing out Pascal arrives at the container where the children were put. The machine is greeted with a terrifying picture as one of the children has attacked the others in a brutal scene of cannibalism. When asked why they’ve done this, the child responds that they were scared. Not wanting to be alone, the machine decided to devour its friends so they would always be with him. As Pascal tries to comfort the remaining child, it bites him as well, seemingly transferring a virus to the machine and prompting him to explode.

This moment is a huge departure from how Pascal’s reunion with the kids plays out in the game, and this version is categorically worse. While Pascal’s terror at finding the children dead brings a wave of pain in the game, here it wrestles with the shock elements of the child’s actions. While I understand why they felt they needed to change this moment due to the presence of the previous scene, this was not how they would do it. Between the mishandling of Pascal’s shift in beliefs and these final moments, the series utterly fails to handle one of its best side characters.

NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 21 has its fair share of misses as it wraps up Pascal’s story. Despite that, it still brings many potent moments as it draws its story closer to its conclusion. With nothing left for A2 or 9S to head towards but the looming tower, the series prepares to enter its final stretch.

NieR Automata Ver. 1.1a Episode 21 is streaming now on Crunchyroll.