Zeta Gundam Volume 2

Disc 2 has the AEUG preparing to launch a major offensive, while the Titans try to uncover and upend their plans.  While certainly action packed, these episodes are more important for their relationship building. We see Kamille interact quite a bit with the AEUG crew, and while his reactions are often corrosive and angsty, you can tell that he now sees them as comrades, and to some extent, his surrogate family.  His concern for them results in some reckless actions, but ultimately he ends up keeping some of his new friends alive, and his performance on the field proves his worth as a full time pilot.

This time around, as I payed closer attention to the fights, I started to notice just how early Kamille demonstrates Newtype abilities.  Simply put, he is able to react and anticipate so quickly that he is able to go toe to toe with veteran pilots despite his lack of flight time.  I also began to understand why he jumped to save Reccoa and Emma Sheen - he was able to sense their danger from far away (which I guess makes Newtypes kind of like Jedi).

On the Titans side, these episodes did a lot to improve my opinion of Jerrid Messa.At this point,  Jerrid is still a bigmouth and a shitty pilot, but he demonstrates that he is willing to put his ego aside in order to become the leader he aspires to be.  His interactions with Federation pilot Lila are akin to Obi Wan and Luke with added sexual tension.  She teaches him quite a lot in a short period of time, and her death helps push Jerrid over the edge. By the end of the disc, he's starting to look like an actual pilot, rather than an adversary you hope to see shot down as soon as possible.  At this point, the core cast of Titans is nowhere near solidified, but that's because they have to fuck up a bunch on this disc, in order to justify bringing in some heavy hitters that will present the AEUG with a serious challenge. The pieces are put into place here, and Disc 3 will see the real beginning of what will be known as the Gryps conflict.

Oh, and Bright Noa joins the AEUG, immediately taking command of their flagship simply by being Bright fucking Noa.  The sooner the better I say.