Dorohedoro OVA
Presumably these were bonus chapters from the manga, but it's good to see they've covered them anyway - it's nice to get some more screentime with these characters.
Patlabor TV ep2-3
I'm not sure how it would play to an audience who were completely unfamiliar with these characters, but having the team fight it out in a little tournament to see who gets to do which job, feels like a strangely perfect introduction to their different personalties. You get a real sense of who they are in the space of just a few moments. Kanuka Clancy's arrival is also a lot more dramatic than I remembered, with her helicopter emerging from the sun like something from Apocalypse Now.
Honestly, I think the strength of the characterisation just shines through in general. It had never really occurred to me before, but as the ostensible male lead, Asuma occupies a rather strange position in the narrative. While it's not unusual to get a male main character who will reluctantly become the pilot in mecha anime, I think it must be almost unheard of to see the man offered a chance to pilot the robot, refuse it, and have the show stick to that. By contrast, Noa's journey to being the mecha-loving hero of the show feels natural and unhurried - you can see her growing affinity for the task, but there's no sense that she's been born with god-given talent that will see her through every situation. She's working on it.
