Apologies about the delay but here is a special double review of Iron Man 06 and 07 which will be followed shortly with another one  for episode 08 and 09.

Iron Man 06

Plot outline

The episode begins with a mysterious silhouette within a darkened room with the only lighting provided from the tri computer screens in front of him and in his hands rests a peculiar origami figure which is a cross between a fish and a bird. As we previously learnt, Tony has finally been able to put a face to the mysterious Zodiac organization with his old prison mate Yinsin as the pilot in the ‘Dio’ suit. Having no luck in his investigation so far, Tony deliberates with Pepper, via video call, on what could have possibly happened to the man responsible for saving Tony’s life. Unfortunately, the transmission is cut off in between as the arc reactor facility goes into lock down. With Tony and Dr. Tanaka both puzzled, our lead cast are met with opposition from the cleaning droids. Battling their way through, the pair encounters further problems with the air conditioning temperature dropping below zero. They soon learn of the virus, which bypassed all the security measures Tony built and infecting the main computer system of the lab.

While Tony and Tanaka try to find a way to counter the situation, we are shown a glimpse in to the past of the culprit, the mysterious silhouette in the beginning, Sho. Sho who due to his frail body has been unable to experience the outside world properly, home tutored by his mother has a strong sense of justice. And it is due to his naive understanding that Zodiac exploits in their quest to destabilize Tony. With the virus spreading all across the country and causing havoc everywhere, Tony decides to draw and isolate the virus into his Iron Man suit as it specifically targets the arc reactor causing him and the suit to run rampant.  Adrift in space, Sho becomes aware of Tony’s promise to make the world a better place and of his personal naivety. With that the virus vanishes and as Tony is returning he is assaulted by the androids from Zodiac only to receive a helping hand from a similar although a more Japanese Samurai oriented suit piloted by Sakurai.

Rating: C/A+

The Good

The only thing that I really enjoyed in this episode is how Tony is able to save the day while jeopardizing his own life in the process just so that he does not see his dream the arc reactor be destroyed. Also the new found ally in Sakurai shows that the Japanese government have their eye and are watching Tony very closely as they have been able to develop a suit similar to his.

The Ugly

This episode was quite monotonous to watch in my personal opinion. The villain was nothing impressive and only made you feel sorry for at the end due to his poor luck and poor choices. And his immediate withdrawal and not putting up more resistance for what he believed in was quite disappointing.

Bottom-line

It was a shame though that while it could have been an interesting episode with more opportunities to develop with Sho character the episode is an abrupt finish which can be classified more in to a filler type episode and not one which would be the highlight of this show.

Iron Man 07

Plot outline

We find Tony and his new found ally where we left them, battling against the androids from Zodiac. The new suit piloted by Sakurai makes short work of them and leaves without introducing himself to Tony as it would appear that the Japanese government still wants to keep this project under the wraps. Later at night, while Tony is in the process of relaxing after an eventful day, he receives a surprise visit from Dr. Tanaka. The surprise visit turns out to be a planned abduction as Tony is shot with a tranquilizer and kidnapped as soon as he goes out to greet Tanaka. And as always while this attempt is taking place, the nosy reporter Nanami happens to be on the spot. She gives chase in her dingy little car but her attempt is foiled by a Zodiac droid, but not before her photographer manages to snap a few pictures.  Waking up, Tony and Tanaka find themselves on a deserted island where waste is disposed of at and are also confronted with Yinsin. Although at first Tony refuses to believe it was the same man who saved and pretty much gave him a new role in life to save the word is now asking him to produce weapons of mass destruction, he is left with little choice on that matter as Yinsin has removed the arc reactor and replaced it with a shabby pacemaker that would only function for a few hours.

Instead of giving in to Zodiac’s demand Tony utilizes his creative imagination and skills in order to find a way off the island. Yet he finds that to be a challenging task in itself as Yinsin had predicted what actions Tony might take. Meanwhile, Nanami is approached by Sakurai in his investigation on Tony’s disappearance, which is helped thanks to the photos taken before. Tony and Tanaka are finally able to best Yinsin thanks to a clever ploy and use of the resources at hand to send out a flare just in time to catch the eye of Sakurai piloting the new suit and arrive to save the day. Yinsin admits his defeat and returns the arc reactor essential for Tony’s survival, but not before stating that Tony has changed and that running off with the ‘Dio’ suit.

Rating: A/A+

The Good

Again, this episode revealed Tony’s brilliant mind and the character development was good considering that the whole episode was only based on Tony being stuck on an island. The plot thickens as now the Japanese government have their personal toy which will be able to fight on equal terms with the Iron Man suit. We are also given a better look into the agenda of Zodiac and that Tony is one of the major hurdles in their quest for world domination.

The Ugly

This episode was a bit reminiscent to the episode a few weeks back and I could not help but a few similarities with the whole Tony being held as a hostage. In a way repetitive but the animators saved it with a decent progression of plot. Also one other major thing that bugs me is I was left wondering how Zodiac managed to get Tanaka involved in the first place in Tony’s abduction, which I personally am finding really suspicious even though I enjoy her character.

Bottom-line

A much better episode that the previous one with Tony’s character being the focal point and the other characters still managing to play a minor but vital role in this episode. And Tony finally managed to get to see the beautiful sunset skies while lazing about on the beach and kiss the girl by the end of this adventure.