Face To Face

So I finally got the season 2 of Mysterious Cities of Gold on DVD, English that is so I have to get used to the new voices again. I only watched the last DVD so I throw myself right into it and the only voice that is problematic for me is Esteban's, as someone put it, sounds more like a women than a boy. Well, did I miss anything by watching it in French? First of that the people in the Himalayan village is of on a pilgrimage, the kids are afraid of Ambrosius since red hair is the sign of a demon (FORESHADOWING), the Olmecian map showed the location of three cities of gold pointing us to Japan, the monks prophecy told us about someone betraying the kids at the mountain, the holograms was of the elders of Mu and Atlantis and awakening all cities of gold would restore all of them... somehow and finally the reason Mendoza stole the Pyramid of Mu was so that Esteban's father could find a cure for his radioactive poisoning from the solar reactor. Small details I missed the first time was that Ambrosius seemed to have swallowed some Orichalcum when escaping the city of gold explaining his coughing and such.

So the final episode? The kids reunite with Ambrosius at the village together with the monk and dog while Mendoza and his companions are walking the outskirts. Mendoza pulls Esteban out from the crowds and tell him about his father and how he have arranged a meeting. Ambrosius overhears and heads for his balloon while the monk follows him, distrusting him since he tried to kill him. They have a fight while Ambrosius is in his exoskeleton and the monk has the upper hand until Ambrosius flings a cocktail of sleep gas or such at him and then throws him out, flying of to spring his evil plan. The others reunite over a waterfall as Esteban's father appear on the Olmecian flying machine that he repaired himself. Tearful reunion ensues, although some of the dialog didn't make any sense. Esteban's father ask if it's true that he can summon the sun? Well, yes, you asked him to do the very same thing to activate the first city of gold? What is this, some bad translation? Anyway, Zares/Ambrosius appears, crash the party, kidnaps Esteban's father and forces our heroes to go to Japan. Said and done, the next day the team together with Ambrosius fly away with the monk stumbling around the forest seeing them, saying that he has done what he can (really? You are just gonna leave them to this maniac?) and then we flash towards Ambrosius airship and his secret compartment where Esteban's father is trapped in some healing chamber (since he is sick), banging on the glass while end credits follow. Cliffhanger... YAY!!!

Overall... decent. It at least capture some parts of the original and the story isn't that bad. The decision to introduce a season spanning villain as Zares is rather good, compared to the first season when it mixes between Spaniards, different native American tribes and then finishing with the Olmecs who becomes enemy mine for most time. He's also rather evil as well and ruthless. He was probably made to match the magnificent bastard that is Mendoza. Animation is better than the original, but I still think it looks wonky at times. The music isn't any surprise was better and more prominent in the original, but when they at least try it comes close to the feel of the original. Now I have to wait until next season comes out... 2015 or 2016 I believe. Will they find out about the treacherous Ambrosius? Actually, everything points towards him, but they still don't get it so they seemed a bit more stupid this time around. Betrayal near the mountain, he even confesses he threw the light that blew the monk down the mountain and they still don't get it, but will he be the final antagonist of the series? At the moment all he does is working for Charles the fifth so no. He's just a more competent Gomez from season 1 (or is he a more prominent Pizaro?). He need some devious goals to pull that of, otherwise I might suspect a resurrection of the Olmecs since they were hinted here and they might have tried finding the other cities. Also, with the revelation of all cities connected, what would awakening all of them mean? Being inspired by Japanese anime I would suspect that either the seventh city is either in space or launching all seven will call down an eight city from space that either will trigger the destruction of earth or that Ambrosius or the Olmecs will cause it to react that way. It's an animated cartoon after all. We just have to wait and see.