Girls' Frontline: The Message 01

As we head into episode six, it's safe to assume that Girls’ Frontline will be taking a multipart approach to its arcs. This approach began following the “Echo,” with “Silence” split into two parts ending on an exceptionally high note. It's safe to assume that “The Message” will also follow two or more parts before moving on.

I’ve stated in previous reviews that AR-15 is and remains one of my favorites in the series, and it has been pleasing to see the growth allowed her. As we move into episode six, a few questions still require answering. The first is how AR-15 escaped so quickly, and the second is how she obtained Sangvis command privileges?

Episode six opens in S09, an area controlled by Sangvis. It is an area that the Griffin Team has been involved in throughout the series. The Message takes off, and though the sun is rising and this operation has been successful, there is an eeriness in the distance. Gentiane can sense something is missing.

It is a return to loss and desperation as the Griffin Team receives their new orders. A place and a time seen in episode one of Girls’ Frontline. It is a memory that makes M4 uneasy and a mission she’d instead not undertake. A reminder of the mission Team AR launched two months ago to retrieve a secret piece of data.

Their actions were being monitored by Agent, one of the high-level Dolls of Sangvis. She and her “dummies” sought to pin the girls down in an attempt to acquire the digital prize.

At the same time, an abandoned Griffin Echelon Team was in the area. M4 utilized them to assist in confronting Agent, resulting in the Echelon Team’s decimation. This event hits home when the remains of G43 are found in an abandoned room.

The remains of a fallen soldier dutifully resting her oil made to appear like blood remind the viewer of the severity of war for humans and how, in this fictional universe, humans are far removed from it. Machines fight the battles. Devices made to look like humans.

This event resonates well enough that M4, upon seeing her body, asks if her remains should be returned to base. She is reminded; however, the G43 has been backed up, and a new body has already been ordered.

For viewers still watching Dolls’ Frontline, the question remains where M16 is, and when will the AR Team get back together? You are asking that question, Right? Right? Well, it is answered in this episode, and it's done in such a way that left me wondering if this scene was a cut and paste.

Eleven hours before the mission started, we met Squad 404. Squad 404 was also in the exact location when Team AR was attacked by “Agent” two months ago. They appear to be tasked with data retrieval of a different sort and perhaps the retrieval of a particular missing member of Team AR if possible.

Made up of “9”, 416, and UMP45, the trio discovers a conversation between various Sangvis ringleaders. A discussion regarding an unknown “Plan Parapluie” or information about the remains is discussed amongst the Ringleaders.

At the same time, the camera pans a room with shelves of figurines and posters of various women. There’s your fan service, boys; good job!!

The retrieved information is passed on to Shi Jun, who sends the information forward to Griffen Command. As a side note, it's safe to assume the figurines and posters belong to Shi Jun. Coincidentally as the data has been received, Sangvis has increased in the area.

They are under the command of a new Ringleader known as Intruder. That bit of information should come as no surprise because, like a game, each level has a boss at the end.

But before we can get to the boss, we have to tie up loose ends and get our Big Sis back home. How do we do that? Have M16 make contact and conflict! A conflict between T-Dolls that will not be explained in this episode. But hey, how else can we move this story forward?

I considered going into the final few minutes of this episode, but they are irrelevant at this point and only help to drive home the story's central theme.

What is more important is the theme that weighs heavy in this episode. Girls’ Frontline has begun to dip its feet in cyberpunk nostalgia and ask what it means to be human and what consciousness is.

Initially, that question was viewed through the lens of Gentiane, but now it is viewed through the lens of M4. M4 begins to look upon the other Griffin Dolls in the same manner that Gentiane did, not wanting them to get killed. She has struggled with loss, and perhaps she thinks of her own mortality.

With AR15’s return and her grounded personality, she reminds M4 that they are simply weapons. This statement is in stark contrast to the one that she made to “Hunter.”

Perhaps this was merely to keep M4 focused, but it is a reminder that they are not human despite their emotional content. Emotional content is not unique to the Griffin Dolls either, as The Sangvis Ringleaders possess a self-awareness on par with humans, including our flawed personalities.

Despite its pacing, which was rushed, this was an enjoyable episode. M4 struggles with her frailty, contrasted against M16 and AR15, who are the colder of the foursome, with the former being more pragmatic.

A considerable amount of screen time was given to M16, and it is hopeful though doubtful that viewers will find out her genuine relationship with Squad 404. Mainly since a 404 error often refers to a dead weblink.

Nevertheless, Squad 404’s UMP45 was given the task of delivering the phrase of mystery and closing out this episode with her reference to Pygmalion, a story written by George Bernard Shaw.

This reference and others relating to chess, Ovid’s Metamorphosis, etc., are littered throughout the episode and foreshadow things to some.