Fafner Exodus 2
The first half of this episode is easily the best action sequence the Fafner franchise has had up to this point. Orange's CG allows the camera freedom of movement, yet without being erratic or drunk as in current Berserk or Taboo Tattoo. The sequence is of fairly large scale, involving a large number of players: the Festum itself (which eventually splits into multiple copies), Mizoguchi and Maya in airplanes out at sea, three and eventually four Fafner from the island, three Fafner arriving from the Human Army transport craft, and the support staff on the island. The direction is logical and clear enough to be able to follow what's going on, thankfully, and still enough energy to make the battle exciting. The Festum are really scary now - its appearance when it had Mizoguchi's plane in its grasp impresses upon one the overwhelming fear it can induce in a person - which greatly helps sell the conflict.
It's really interesting to see the remaining younger main cast from the original series having moved up to new roles on the island, having mostly retired from Fafner piloting. The current Fafner pilots are a younger generation who gradually moved into their places across the course of the franchise, and are already worried about the even younger generation below them that are currently being prepared for pilot duty. That's an unusual narrative direction which opens up all kind of possibilities. Also unusual is that we have a middle-aged man, the commander of the arriving Human Army group, who is able to pilot the normally-reserved-for-teenagers mecha. When does that happen?