Entering the Atmosphere is the eleventh episode of Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam.
Summary[]
Plot[]
Paptimus Scirocco, the pilot of the mobile armor that attacked the Temptation before, returns to the Earth Federation's ship, the Hario. The man orders the ship towards the Earth's orbit. The captain says that he first wants to discuss their strategy with Bask Om. The mysterious man decides to give the captain two hours for his answer and proceeds to oversee the reloading of his mobile armor, the Messala, as he waits.
On the Argama, Kamille is surprised to see that Fa Yuiry is trying to cooperate in the ship's activities as best as she can, bringing lunch to the tired crew. Henken and Bright arrive and inform everyone that Bright is to be appointed the ship's new captain. Fa tries to talk to Kamille about Bright's situation (his wife and kids are still on Earth, and she thinks that the Earth Federation Government might take them as hostages). Kamille coldly brushes her off, making her upset.
Kacricon and Jerid discuss the Titans' battle plan: they are to intercept the AEUG's fleet right before they enter the Earth's atmosphere. They are confident that they can pull it off. Meanwhile, Henken is helping Bright get used to the Argama's specifications. They talk about Bright's family. Bright has talked to his wife, Mirai Yashima, about the possibility of joining the AEUG. Henken then departs on a transport ship, back to the Moon, but not before tasking Emma with leading the unit that will storm Jaburo. Fa appears, and Emma tries to talk with her about Kamille, but she just asks her to leave her alone.
Back at the Hario, the Messala's pilot is giving the ship's crew a hard time, telling them that no other mobile-suit needs to be deployed, as the Messala that he helped to develop on Jupiter is far more advanced than the ship's outdated models.
Under Bright's command, the AEUG's fleet advances towards the Earth. Jerid and Kacricon are testing the ballute capsules that will help their mobile suit enter the Earth's atmosphere without being caught in reentry. Kamille and Astonaige are talking about the Gundam Mk-II's new flying armor. Bright approaches Quattro quietly and asks him to rescue his family if they're still in Jaburo by any chance.
Fa enters Kamille's room, and they have a fiery argument. Kamille is angry, feeling guilty about Fa's parents. She desperately tries to reach him, but to no avail. Sobbing, Fa runs away.
Kamille, Quatro, and Emma all launch on their respective mobile suits. One of the AEUG's ships, the Sicilia, is almost immediately destroyed by the Messala. Because Emma's position is crucial to their formation, and the Hyakku Shiki must remain until the formation is complete, Quattro tells Kamille to engage the Messala. Emma gives chase anyway: watching the Messala plow through many of their mobile-suits and ships, she acknowledges that the purpose of the Titan's organization isn't just to track down remnants of the Zabi Clan.
Having arranged for Apolly and Roberto's Rick Dias to lead their formation, Quattro gets clearance from Bright to pursue the Messala, which transforms right in front of Emma and Kamille from a mobile-armor into a mobile-suit, shocking the both them and taking them by surprise: Emma's Rick Dias loses an arm in the battle, and she is told by Quattro to return to the Argama.
To make matters worse, a different unit of mobile suits approaches the AEUG's fleet. Bright is confident that if they can get two-thirds of their forces into Jaburo, they can take over the base, so he orders them to advance. Both sides of the battle are reaching closer and closer to the Earth's atmosphere: Jerid and Kacricon, deeming this the perfect chance to finally take the Gundam Mk-II down for good, decide to keep attacking, but the Messala pilot leaves, not wanting to take any chances.
Emma, meanwhile, continues to ignore direct orders to come back to the Argama. Bright is forced to lower the ship's altitude so that they can retrieve her, and she finally gets back, but everyone's furious. Almost all forces from both sides have activated their ballute capsules, except Jerid and Kacricon in their Marasai mobile-suits, both of them still hellbent on destroying Kamille's Gundam Mk-II.
Jerid finally relents and activates his ballute, but Kacricon still moves forward, while the Gundam Mk-II's flying armor, the Wave Rider, allows Kamille to safely attack while still being protected from the heat. To Kacricon's surprise, though, the ballute capsule has an automatic activation system, leaving him completely vulnerable. Kamille destroys the ballute with a single shot, and Kacricon's Marasai is engulfed in flames: Amelia, Kacricon's significant one, is all he can think about in his final moments.
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