Episode
                  13: Catherine's Tears 
                  Airing Date
                  2000-03-22

            "Catherine's Tears" was a strange episode for several reasons. One, 
            because there's very little going on with our five Gundam pilots. 
            Supposedly the stars of the show (and the only truly heroic figures 
            on the horizon) only Trowa has anything to do in this curious 
            installment. What he does -- plan and execute a surprise attack on 
            OZ -- is merely the beginning to his suicide plan. 
            You've got to admit, Trowa acts a bit out of control here. Seemingly 
            inspired by his new pal Heero, Trowa intends to self-destruct 
            Heavyarms once he's completed his attack. Now maybe I'm jaded but, 
            c'mon people, the guy's one of the five stars of the show. We just 
            know he's not going to off himself, right? When Catherine Bloom 
            sheds some saline (and gives this episode its title) it's not really 
            a shock that she succeeds in talking Trowa out of his plan. Besides 
            a quick shot of Heero, who looks a little lost without his Gundam 
            Wing, the other Gundam boys are nowhere to be seen. 
            Next, there's a tremendous amount of interplay between two junior OZ 
            officers we've never seen before. When these two smarmy dudes play 
            their scenes, we wonder if we're witnessing some alternate universe 
            of this already alternate universe show. Is that possible? Could 
            this be Gundam Wing's version of "Lower Decks," the groundbreaking 
            episode of Star Trek: TNG which followed four junior officers around 
            the Enterprise as they wondered what their senior officers were up 
            to? 
            Unfortunately, not. Instead, we're privy to the bitter hatred of 
            Alex and Mueller, two former students of Lucrezia Noin's, who 
            interpret their assignments through their own twisted moral logic. 
            It's easy to assume that the storyline which Alex and Mueller 
            introduce -- a rift between those who follow Zechs and those who 
            follow Treize -- is just a seed of some future conflict in the After 
            Colony years. The fact that neither dude survives to the next 
            episode probably won't affect that. Time will tell but it's clear 
            that OZ is not the happy family they first appeared to be. Maybe 
            staging bloody coups and rebellions isn't the best way to guarantee 
            good karma, huh? 

                  Cover your eyes -- it's the crotch-cam! 
            Finally, "Catherine's Tears" is strange because of the circus 
            owner's reaction to Trowa shooting the hell out of the show attended 
            by members of OZ. After Trowa surprises everyone by unveiling his 
            Gundam Heavyarms and then attacking several OZ shuttles and supply 
            posts, the circus owner laments to Catherine, "With a little 
            training, that kid could be the best circus performer ever" or 
            something to that effect. Excuse me? Your employee just shot up the 
            big top, scared your paying clients off into a terrorized 
            free-for-all and probably placed you under suspicion of OZ... but 
            you're complimenting his potential as a circus star? Somebody get 
            this guy a pillow because he must be dreaming. 
            I like the idea of focusing on heretofore unknown characters but not 
            at the expense of our stars. Regardless of the adage that, according 
            to an actor with a supporting role in "Romeo And Juliet," the play 
            is about a nurse attending to a young girl, Gundam Wing IS about 
            five heroic pilots. Let's hope the next episode regains its focus 
            and follows their adventures. 

            --Ross Brooks performs at the circus as the barb-tossing critic.