Soukyuu no Fafner: Dead Aggressor - Exodus Part 2

I definitely have a soft spot for this series, so I can't vouch for the objectivity of my review, but it is definitely vastly underrated on MAL (it deserves at least an 8), and I just finished this series and need somewhere to vent all my feels right now. This review is for both the first and second season of Fafner Exodus. I'll try to be as vague as possible so as not to spoil anything, but some things I refer to will give you a sense of what happens in the anime.

Story: 10/10
Ok, so I should probably be giving this an 8 or a ... 9... but my bias won't allow me to give anything about this series lower than a 10 :'D The plot is definitely really complex, and you need to know very well what's happened in the previous season + movie (I watched the original series + movie again back in the spring and still had some trouble following along). Oh, and as an added bonus you should watch Right & Left as well, it definitely will help you understand certain dimensions of this show (although it's not necessary for the main plot). The story follows the pilots of Tatsumiyajima Island as they pull themselves out of isolation and join the larger scale war/peace negotiations with the Festum. There are definitely multiple storylines going on at once, mainly the Island arc and the "world" arc, and I really enjoyed the way they split up the time and episodes devoted to each arc. I only wish they had more episodes to develop what the outside world was: with 26 previous episodes and a movie devoted to the island, I really had a good sense of what it was but in terms of world-building I had to take a lot of what they presented at face value when concerned with the world outside of the island (there were points where things felt flimsy and on the verge of collapsing, but I put my trust in the creators). They do pull some lame stuff during the second half of the second season (as well as some really cool stuff though), but since it's Fafner I forgive it.... Towards the end thought it really returns to its roots and is reminiscent of the first series of Fafner, and it's amazing because you not only see how the characters have changed/matured over time, but how you yourself have changed/matured as well throughout the years, or throughout your time with this series. This series uses the power of "variation on a theme" to great effect, and I feel so full of appreciation just thinking about it.
With the time they had for the story they needed to tell, though, I thought it was well organized and structured and logically presented, to great emotional effect. So good story, but it would have been even better with a lot more episodes.

Art: 10/10
I for one love the art style of the original Fafner, and it is only enhanced here. The characters look great, but I think the art definitely shines with the mechs and the scenery, especially the island scenery and ocean waves. The integration of 3D and 2D is brilliant and seamless (the mechs and the island look amazing!!!!) Cinematography and storyboarding was absolutely stunning at times, and there were many instances, especially towards the middle of the series, where I was watching episodes while making an ((:O face the entire time. One thing I really love is how they utilize time of day to their advantage, with battles often taking place during sunset on the island, it really gives an eerie and foreboding atmosphere as if an apocalypse was coming (The orange of the sun, reflected on the ocean and the sky. as well as complementing the golden festum colors...) Basically, the art is original Fafner on steroids, and major majorly improved. You still feel like you're in the same world, but it just looks so much more beautiful now.
In terms of character design, I actually really like the new Festums (they look creepier and crazier than ever haha). Some human characters can get a bit hard to tell apart, and I always was really confused with what they did with Nishio Rina's character (it's like she did a full 180 between the first season and the movie, and then her haircut makes her look like a totally different person). The mech design are really cool though, and they look amazing doing all their fancy tricks and shot from all kinds of angles in Exodus.

Sound: 10/10
The soundtrack is absolutely brilliant and really helps to sweep you away with your feelings. We have classical music (I heard Chopin's Winter Wind Etude at one point, and some Baroque sounding pieces), and we have the addition of choral music at some points as well :D The opening and ending songs for both seasons are absolutely amazing and very fitting. Especially the second season, it's definitely on full throttle as we have some chanting/choral-esque music mixed in with the rock qualities of angela's songs, which makes for very epic sounding OP and ED indeed (which is somewhat reminiscent of Shingeki no Kyojin's OP hehe) On an aside, I just wish the series could have delivered on some of the epicness they showed in the last ending song (you never do get to see them wearing those coats :/)

Character: 11/10
The characters and character relationships are definitely the driving point of this series and they continue to deliver in Exodus. Unfortunately due to the complex plot there were times where there wasn't as much character development as I would've liked (not as much as in the previous series unfortunately), but everything there was was absolutely precious. The character development is where this series really shines so it's unfortunate that they weren't able to incorporate more. A lot of new characters were introduced, and while the new Island characters were introduced and developed magnificently (they seem to know just the right things you need to know about the characters in order to feel connected with them), I definitely would've loved to see more development with the Neo UN, Human Army, etc characters (Mitsuhiro Bartland especially). However, the series really continues to develop some of the old cast, endearing yourself to them (Canon, Seri, and Akira are notable mentions, and in terms of new characters I have to say I absolutely love Orihime and her precocious tsundere-ness!!) Unfortunately, Kazuki and Soushi don't get much development (I would even venture to say they don't get much air time), but given how much the series has focused on them for the past 26 episodes + movie I'd say that it's understandable haha...
I think what I really love about this series and find very progressive about it is the cast with pretty much an equal amount of female and male characters and the development of same-sex relationships between both female and male casts (I find them open to interpretation: platonic, romantic, or otherwise, whatever floats your boat!). Both females and males are presented as complex, multi-dimensional characters with their own strengths and weaknesses. Females can fight just as well as the males, and males have just as many emotional struggles as the females. We really get to see all characters as human beings (and some perhaps partial humans as human lol) (perhaps the non-islanders get less development and are a little less multi-dimensional, but the islanders are definitely very well fleshed out), and no one is one-dimensional or just there as a piece of meat fanservice. As for the relationships: wow. I can't comment enough about how endearing what they've presented is to me. The continued development of the somewhat circular relationship between Soushi-Kazuki-Maya, Seri-Orihime, Akira-Hiroto, Kaburagi and his family, Mimika-Reo, and Canon's inner conflict are what comes to mind at the moment. I think each one presented at least one tearful moment to me, or a moment where I really felt touched. I really love what they've done with Maya's character as well and only wish I could've seen more (I definitely think she could've used a lot more character development, but they seem to have chosen to focus more on others instead, probably since she's already received quite a bit as well, being third to Soushi and Kazuki in terms of importance). I think the creators have definitely improved a lot in terms of character development (or understanding of human inner conflicts?) and their ability to portray very relatable emotions to viewers. I should probably stop now since I can go on forever about this haha.

Enjoyment: 11/10
This series isn't just for entertainment, it's really a work of art which I feel extremely grateful to have encountered and experienced (thank you brother for introducing it to me!). It's something that, if you take it seriously, pay attention (they make every second count, so pay attention closely), and think about it, can change you for the better. Watching it I just feel so many feelings which a lot I don't understand and I feel will take me a long time to understand. I think most of all what comes through to me is the creators' love for what they've created, their love for the characters, story, and world of Fafner, and their message of love for the world. It makes me feel really appreciative of what I've experienced and what I have and inspires me to continuing spreading the love as well. And this love is what makes me able to forgive any flaws in story/character development, and certain parts they had to rush through and find all the good this series has to provide and gives me no choice but to give it a 10.

Overall: 10/10
Fafner is a sophisticated series with serious themes that any mature person can appreciate. Buckle up and let yourself be swept away by the tide.