World Trigger

“Power Elite, Yuichi Jin”

One thing I’ll give series director Mitsuru Hongo credit for is that World Trigger doesn’t shove all the main characters at us in the first episode. From the jump, we see our main four protagonists featured in the OP; however, their introductions have been thus far spread apart. This is probably due to the vast number of episodes in this series, but I venture it's also a way for the viewer to form bonds with the supporting cast.

When we left Kitora in episode four, things were just heating up. A Trion soldier known as an IIgar had just entered the airspace of Mikado City and was attempting to bomb the city. Seeing the threat, Kitora springs into action, leaving Mikumo to save the civilians and Yuma to watch from the sidelines. As he watches, Yuma is concerned, not because Kitora will upstage Mikuma, but despite her tactical prowess, Kitora may find that she’s bitten off more than she can chew. The year which resembles a flying fish, must be brought down while minimizing casualties. A task that is not easy as it sounds.

As arrogant as Kitora appears, give her some credit; she’s not a complete egomaniac. She doesn’t take credit for what she doesn’t accomplish, and when unbeknownst to her, the IIgar is brought down with a bit of help from you know who she is disappointed. Regardless it is a teachable moment for her, and she even gets to see Osamu in a new light.

I’ll say this about “Border” battle or no battle that the show goes on, and the business of punishing Osamu goes on without a hitch. Episode five introduces us to the charming and somewhat flirtatious nineteen-year-old Yuichi Jin. We meet Jin in episode one when he saves Osamu, referring to him as “four eyes.” Jin has been brought in due to the abnormal gate activity, but while he is there, Jin sits in the discussion surrounding Osamu.

The grilling is comedic and exciting as we meet the various branch heads within Border. There is a mixture of tell me you’re sneaky without telling me you’re sneaky and the opposite. In other words, there are a lot of politics at play that could make this a seinen anime with a few changes.

Despite his age, Jin is very influential. This is partly due to his ranking. As stated in my last review, Border Agents are ranked A, B, or C, with A being the highest. Well, we thought A-class was the top of the food chain. Above the A-Class exists the S-Class. The S-Class is known as the Power Elite, and yes, Jin has that cockiness that comes with being the it guy! Despite his cocksure persona, he is aloof in many ways reminding me of Maximilian Jenius from the Macross series.

Being S-Rank has its perks, and Jin’s comes with a unique ability; the ability known as a “Side Effect” allows Jin a certain measure of prophecy which may enable him to discover the nature of the abnormal gate activity. That's the reason he was present at the meeting. He offers his aid, but at a cost; he wishes to take Mikumo with him. When questioned by Commander Kido, Jin informs him that he believes Osamu is involved.

I mentioned before that a lot of politics and competition exists among department heads. Well, competition exists amongst the agents themselves. Side effect or not, Jin is not the only person who suspects Osamu is somehow involved. An unknown A-Ranked agent also suspects something and will be closely watching Osamu. Suppose they are watching Mikumo, then they are probably watching Kuga as well. All roads are starting to converge, and I wonder whether the cat will jump out of the bag before we meet our fourth protagonist.