Nier: Automaton Ver 1.1a is an excellent anime adaptation of Nier: Automata video game. It is a series that addresses the themes of identity and purposecontext Nier: Automata characters in a dark world where the word ‘hope’ is almost forgotten. A2 is one of the first YorHA units produced by the YorHA Command. More than just a key character for plot reasons, his arc runs parallel Nier the story as a whole, as her struggle to discover who she is and why she exists are basically the main questions the series tries to ask.
The story of A2, like the rest NierIt’s dark. It’s filled with so many twists and turns that neither the viewer nor A2 herself can really be sure about what’s going on around her. A2 fights against his own destiny. She does not care that the Council of Humanity has armed her, nor will she allow the Machine Lifeforms to destroy her in battle. No matter how dark it gets, A2 will always move forward. His hopeful indignation at the obstacles that stand in his way is a central theme in Nier and the most important point the show tries to convey as a whole.
A2’s story reflects the themes of Nier as a whole
A2’s story is so deeply intertwined Nier: Automata Ver 1.1a that the series could also be about her. Surprisingly, it isn’t, as most of the show focuses on 2B and 9S. When A2 enters the series, it’s easy to see why. She knows a lot more than the other two YorHA units, and like the program itself, she’s not willing to give easy answers. If 2B and 9S want to discover more about the world they live in and their purpose in it, they will have to suffer just like A2 suffered.
When 9S meets A2, he is figuratively meeting a future version of himself. He is a skeptical YorHA unit who is more than willing to ask questions, but this gets him into trouble. A2 also asked questions of the High Command and, like 9S, was severely punished for this. Nier posits that a person cannot get answers for free, and if you want to look into the darker sides of life, they will look to you. A2 is the perfect example of this, as when she finally discovers the true intentions behind the YorHA Command, her entire squad is wiped out.
A2’s life is as dark as it seems
A2’s personal story is as dark as it getsand leads to some Nier Automatonbest moments. A2 was a prototype of the YorHA unit sent by the Humanity Council to Earth for a very important mission. Only later does she discover that it was a suicide mission, as the Council did not expect any of her friends to survive. While they’re supposed to be emotionless units, A2 and the rest of the YorHA prototype are so much more.
They develop real feelings for each other, the world around them and, ultimately, themselves.
When A2 and his fellow YorHA prototypes arrive on Earth, they encounter a resistance group who are also fighting the threat of the machine lifeform. Although the meeting gets off to a rocky start, both groups agree they have a common goal. They then work together to take down a major Machine Lifeform base, becoming increasingly closer during their mission. Unfortunately, A2 is forced to watch each of her old and new friends die horrible deaths on her mission. Worst of all, she discovers that this was the Council’s plansince they never wanted her to survive in the first place.
Nier is a story about destiny, identity and purpose. A2 was led to think that she had no identity and that her purpose was to die. She fights against her own destiny, surviving a suicide mission and living to defy the Council that sent her and her friends to ruin. She also decides to take her identity and purpose into her own hands, one of the central themes of the series that 2B and 9S also learn about later in the series.
While fate may have set A2 on a one-way collision course with death, she does not mind. She will do whatever it takes to achieve the future she seeks, something Nier communicates perfectly through its theme and its character.
Unlike other YorHA units, A2 struggles to find his own truth
While most other YorHA units working for the Council of Humanity listen to his orders steadfastly, A2 has other plans. She was designed to be another cog in their machine, but instead of accepting her fate, she actively fights it. She doesn’t die on her suicide mission and works against the Council whenever she can. When she first encounters questioners 9S and 2B, she gives them enough information to pique their curiosity, causing them both to further question their identity and purpose.
A2 is the first character in Nier go against the current. She charted the path that 9S and 2B will eventually take when they discover what the Council’s true intentions are. A2 is a symbol in More. She represents the inherent will within all YorHA units, as none of them are the mindless drones the Council wants them to be. She represents humanity’s struggle and desire to discover one’s true purpose, regardless of fate or fate.
Does A2’s life end brutally, or does it?
The end of Nier: Automata tells a few different stories in one, as well as the game’s multiple endings. Shows both the C ending, meaningless [C]ode, and Finishing E, the [E]and from YorHA. Both endings fit the themes of Nier, as the first conveys the thematic feeling of hopelessness Nier is known, while the second portrays the first to show a more hopeful version of the future.
The series’ biggest themes involve destiny and a person’s role in it. The first ending shows A2 succumbing to his fate, ending the Machine Lifeform threat but sacrificing his life in the process. A2 was designed to do two things: end the machine lifeform threat and die, and she did both in Ending C.
Although themes of hopelessness can be found throughout Nier, the series doesn’t stop there. The E ending reveals that even willless Pod Units actually have a will and use that desire to bring 9S, 2B, and even 2A back to life. It’s a much more positive ending that brings back the main cast of characters and cements Nier as a series that questions fate and shows that if a character tries hard enough, they can fight it.