There’s so much I have to dance around with this episode of Kanata no Astra.  That’s always a risk when covering mystery series where you know the source material, and while I don’t consider this show primarily a mystery, that component is certainly important.  This episode especially made no bones about its intentions – clues were dropping like hailstones during a severe thunderstorm.  Which were real, which were diversionary – and what about the ones that didn’t seem like clues at all unless you were paying close attention?  Of course I can’t talk about any of that.

What I can safely talk about, fortunately (for me) is how much affection I have for these goofy kids (especially Luca).  The subject matter of Kanata no Astra is deadly serious but if it ever started to take itself too seriously, it would cease to really work as a series.  That’s a delicate balance but Shinohara-sensei almost always manages to maintain it.  And the affection I have for the kids only grew when we were given our first general introduction to their parents.

As the Astra lands on the planet Arispade (Paradise) Aries’ mom Emma (Nakahara Mai) keeps checking in vain for new emails from her daughter.  It’s been 40 days since the kids disappeared without a trace, and the principal at Caird High School announces to the gathered parents that he’s going to have their children declared legally dead (effectively).  It’s no spoiler to say something seems off in this room (and I don’t mean the presence of big-name actors like Koyama Rikiya, Inoue Kikuko,  and Sugita Tomokazu as parents).  “Which of these is not like the others” surely seems to apply to Spring-san, who appears to be the only parent unwilling to go along with this idea (Charce’s mom is undeclared, for the moment, but at least seems sympathetic).

The one child whose parent is not present is Luca, as his father – Senator Marco Esposito (Terasoma Masaki) – is off giving a legally-mandated DNA sample (a program he apparently opposed).  Meanwhile, on Paradise, Luca and Ulgar are sort of bonding – which upsets Charce, who wants to be liked by everyone but who Kanata declares “just a little annoying”.  Luca has skills which go beyond craft and design (and hairdressing) – he’s artful where people are concerned, too.  As he notes to Ulgar he remembers everyones names, first and last (befitting the child of a politician) whereas Ulgar has no idea what Luca’s last name is.  But when Luca tells him, Ulgar’s reaction is unexpected to say the least.

The structure of this episode – the kids enjoying a literal stay in Paradise with swimsuits, shipping and dining al fresco, even as profoundly unsettling things are happening in the background – is classic Kanata no Astra.  The one can’t exist without the other – they’re hopelessly intertwined and make the series what it is.  As they go through this “uninhabited planet survive” experience, they deal with it like the kids they are – they flirt, they sometimes bully each other, they make up, they turn survival into a game.  And who can blame them for wanting to stay a while on Paradise, where they can not only fill the ship’s larders but forget the Sword of Damacles hanging over their heads (until Kanata reminds them) and just act like kids on a field trip (which is exactly what they’re supposed to be)?