Ad Astra per Aspera chapter 05
アド アストラ ペル アスペラ ch 05

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis:

With Satella hesitating on killing him, and Shinobu getting communication from Versailles, Shinobu leaps backward off the roof of the apartment tower. Versailles swoops in, but fails to catch Shinobu. Versailles excuse is that it is clumsy as Shinobu continues to fall.

Shinobu silently apologies to Patty and to his robot mom, but remembering something his robot mom says, he turns himself to be falling face first, then throws the special grenade Versailles had previously given him. The explosion causes Shinobu to rocket upward, where he’s caught by Versailles, who apologies to Patty for causing her distress. With Shinobu secured, Versailles rockets off the moon’s surface.

Patty is not happy at having failed, recalling what happened to her mother. She heads to her military office where her captain comes up, having learned of her contact with Shinobu. She laments having let him escape, but he’s OK with it since she’s only 15, even if she’s an elite. As such, he thinks it would have been odd if she had been able to execute the boy standing in front of her.

He has a solution for Satella — don’t look Shinobu in the eye. As such, he takes her to secured room, where a giant, samurai mecha (type F-22) named Rose stands. With this, the captain is able to instill confidence and determination with Satella to use the mecha to dispose of Shinobu.

Inside Versailles, Patty takes the pain medicine. Since it takes a while to take effect, she’s still in pain, but knows they need to get away from the moon. Versailles issues a warning about an energy reading from above them as they suddenly come under massive attack.

Thoughts/Review:

Ad Astra Per Astra is proof that Hata-sensei can write an interesting, plot-driven manga with a side of gag comedy and not need to keep everything in the realm of gags, only occasionally dipping back into the plot.

The gag part of the chapter came from Versailles not catching Shinobu after he leapt of the building. I have to admit that this made me laugh. It also provided a reason for Shinobu to use that “worthless” grenade. I suspect Versailles did this on purpose.

I suspect the Empire, specifically that captain, is using Satella for some deeper purpose than killing Shinobu. I already think Patty is a very important person in the Empire, otherwise she wouldn’t have such a powerful mecha like Versailles. I think Patty will end up being someone important in the Empire, possibly the daughter of the Emperor, or the ruler of the Empire, who’s just out having some fun.

To that end, it might explain why the captain has another samurai mecha at the ready to go against Versailles, especially if they are aware that Patty (as a royal) is out here roaming, and they want to depose the person on the throne.

As to Satella, it is highly probable that her Rose is the one attacking Versailles at the end of the chapter. I’m guessing Hata-sensei will have a cool mecha battle, some sort of gag during the fight, then Satella will discover Patty is with Shinobu at the end of the chapter.

(Of course, this is Hata-sensei we are talking about, so I will likely be miles off target. 😛 )

In the end, although there wasn’t much to say, I really did like this chapter a lot, and I’m liking this manga a lot. It isn’t anything deep, but it is entertaining for plot and humor.