Ominous Like O

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“Ominous Like O”
Ōban Star-Racers episode
Episode no.	Season 1 Episode 21
Guest stars	None
Written by	Savin Yeatman-Eiffel
Directed by	Thomas Romain Savin Yeatman-Eiffel
Production no.	121
Original airdate	20 November 2006
Episode chronology
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"Secret Like Sul"	"Revelations"
Episode chronology

"Ominous Like O" is an episode of the series Ōban Star-Racers.

With the end of the grand finals approaching, Don Wei reveals that he knows Molly's true identity, and finally reveals why he left her behind ten years ago. With this powerful confession told, father and daughter finally begin to repair their broken bonds. However, the reunion must be put on hold for the next race. A vicious attack by another racer results in a terrifying crash that may finally spell the end of the Earth Team's pursuit of the Ultimate Prize.

[edit] Plot

“

I have been entrusted with nothing less than the future of mankind. Winning the Ultimate Prize may be our only chance of surviving the Crog invasion. But the grand finals are exposing the team to even greater risks. That includes...my daughter, Eva, known to all of us here as Molly. Even the powerful Sul fell victim to some diabolical trap. How will this all end? ~ Don Wei

”

The temple floats through a clear night sky framed by several of Oban's orbiting planets. On the upper level of the Earth Team module, Molly and Jordan sit watching the sky. Molly comments that she can't believe Sul is gone. Jordan comments that Stan and Koji said Sul was lost in a magnetic storm; that it could have happened to anyone. Molly retorts that Sul was no friend of hers as light begins to spread out over the horizon. Molly confesses that Sul was the strongest pilot on Oban, far stronger than anyone else. She thinks they haven't heard the last of him.

As Jordan begins to answer, Molly suddenly dozes off and leans against his shoulder. Caught off-guard, Jordan makes a musing remark that he thinks she's fallen asleep, but Molly doesn't respond and continues to sleep against his shoulder. Smiling down at her, Jordan quietly remarks that she can sleep all she wants; it was a tough night. Jordan looks outside and slowly drifts off to sleep as well. The floating temple flies over an area of maze-like crevasses covered in red foliage. Don Wei climbs the stair to the upper level and notices Jordan and Molly sleeping near the balcony entrance. However, when he sees that Molly has her arms around Jordan and his hand on her shoulder, he becomes annoyed. Walking over to them, he issues a terse 'Good Morning', and Jordan slowly opens his eyes to see Don standing in front of him, hands on his hips, with an unpleasant scowl on his face.

Coming to, Jordan responds 'Good Morning' and suddenly realizing that Molly has her arms around his neck and he pushes her away, laughing nervously. Before he can say anything, Molly, still asleep, leans back in and wraps her arms around his waist and snuggles against his chest, weakly responding, 'Don't go, keep me warm'. Don gives Jordan another harsh stare and Jordan lifts his arms in the air and in a panicky voice says that they were just talking. He pulls Molly away again as she continues to reach out for him but then starts to wake. Don Wei tells Jordan that he would like to have a word with Molly...alone. As Molly sits up and rubs the sleep from her eyes, Jordan 'agrees' with Don and says that he'll go polish the guns on the Arrow; he quickly crawls away on his hands and knees. Watching him go, Don turns back to Molly causing her to become fully alert.

Turning away, Don says that the competition is no longer about the race. He says that there are dark forces as work, forces that are greater than all of them. Molly asks if this is about Sul. Don confesses that he has no proof, but that whoever or whatever took Sul away was a power far greater than anything they can comprehend. Molly asks him explain. Turning to face her, he tells her that he can't allow her to risk her life anymore, not even for the Ultimate Prize. When she attempts to protest, Don calls her Eva, and reveals that he knows who she is. Molly is shocked by the revelation but her look suddenly turns hard and she turns and runs away. Below she runs by Jordan who asks what's wrong. She pushes past Stan and Koji and runs through a doorway causing them to look at each other in confusion. They look to the upper level and see Don at the edge staring down with a look of concern. Koji comments to Stan that it looks like Don Wei's giving Molly another lecture. Stan responds that he's always said Don was heartless.

Don descends the staircase into the hanger and stares around. He calls out Eva's name and he looks under the racer, but there is no response. Molly calls down to him saying that she's up inside the racer. Climbing the ladder, he sees her sitting near the control seat with her arms around her legs. Don sits down nearby but doesn't say anything. After a few tense moments, Molly speaks and comments that she’s been dreaming of this moment for a long time. She comments that she dreamed of running into his embrace and that all the bad memories of the last ten years would be forgotten. However, now that that moment is there, she bitterly remarks that she doesn't feel anything. Don, his head down, responds that there is so much he has to explain to her and so many reasons why she must hate him. Looking up, she sternly retorts that he should try.

Don tells her that he completely fell to pieces after her mother’s death. A flashback is shown of a disheveled Don, in his pajamas, sitting on the floor of his home holding the photograph of his family. He confesses that Maya had been the love of his life and an amazing pilot. Another flashback shows the beginning of the first Interplanetary Competition, with several groups of human and alien pilots walking down a red carpet thronged by photographers. Maya and Don appear and Maya waves to the crowd before receiving some flowers from a little girl. Don reveals that he had 'pushed' Maya to compete in the competition. They walk up a flight of stairs and Maya turns around and again acknowledges the cheering crowd with a wave as Don watches. Don tells Molly that in only a few short years Maya had become a 'legend', becoming the first pilot to win all three league championships. Returning to the present, Don muses that winning the Interplanetary Competition would have been Maya’s crowning achievement, that she was quite simply the best. A sad smile crosses Don's face as Molly sits entranced by his words.

Another flashback is shown of Maya winning a race against another pilot. Don reminisces that Maya made it to the finals with ease and that she was totally oblivious to the danger around her. Don comments that that's what was most charming about her, but that he could feel that the race was taking its toll. Returning again to the present, Don tells Molly that the other finalist was a polymorphic alien belonging to a race of beings called the Fihls. Molly looks up and realizes that Don is talking about Spirit. Don comments that Spirit had a reputation for being an aggressive pilot. A flashback shows Spirit, in his bird form, flying over the finish line. Don watches several ambulances move up the track towards flaming wreckage. He turns to look at Spirit, again in his humanoid form, walk off the track. Don confesses to Molly that he had misgivings about the final race; that something bad was going to happen. A flashback is shown of Don trying to convince Maya not to race. Maya places her finger over his mouth and says that as long as they can still fly there is a chance. Don can only stare at the ground and give a weak nod as Maya walks away. Don admits that he failed to stop her. The flashback is shown of little Eva called to Don that she can't see over the crowd of people. Don lifts her onto his shoulders where they then witness Maya's tragic crash.

Once again in the present, Don tells Molly that he was and continues to be a danger to those he loves. As Molly begins to break down in tears, Don confesses that he couldn't risk harming her too. Another flashback shows a disheveled Don in his pajamas staggering down a hallway and then standing in a doorway looking at little Eva as she sleeps. Gripping his hand into a fist, he quietly slams it into the doorframe as tears well into his eyes and he collapses to his knees. Don tells Molly that she just reminded him too much of Maya. Don remarks that there was only one thing he could do. A flashback is shown of Don and Eva driving down a tree-lined road in the rain towards the foreboding gates of the Stern Boarding School. As they pull up to the gates, the Headmistress and her assistant walk outside to see Don and Eva standing in the rain. The Headmistress welcomes Eva to the school and Eva looks up at Don with a scared look. As Don turns to leave, the Headmistress reaches out and grabs Eva's arm. She breaks free and runs up to the car and looks through the window as she calls out for Don, but he just drives away. Eva, with tears streaming down her face, watches the car disappear and begs him not to leave her.

In the present, Molly gets more choked up. Don tells her that it was the hardest thing he ever did, but that he did it for her. A single tear runs down Molly's cheek. She asks him why he never called her...why he never wrote to her...why he never visited. Molly suddenly stands up and angrily demands to know why. Unable to look at her, he says it was impossible, that he was not himself anymore. A brief flashback is shown of Don, with a shaggy beard and long hair, wrapped in dirty clothes walking down a dirt road. Don confesses that he was a man with no name, a shadow of his former self. Molly, a look of contempt on her face, retorts that that 'shadow' managed a racing team a few years later. She asks him if he thought she wouldn't know. A flashback is shown of Eva, a few years older, sitting in a classroom with other students watching television as reporters ask Don about his most recent victory. Don comments that his team respects each other. Eva watches in silence as Don, with a smile, looks into the camera and says that his team is a ‘family’. Back to the present, Molly yells at him that everyone knew and demands to know why he didn't contact her then.

Don apologizes and says that he couldn't face her. Molly tells Don that she convinced herself that he was too busy to contact her. A flashback is shown of Eva tacking newspaper articles and pictures of Don over her bed. Another shows her sneaking into the shed behind the school with a bundle of tools where she works on her rocket sled. Molly tells Don that she got the idea of becoming a pilot and waited for the day when he would appear and take her way from there. A flashback is shown of Eva standing at the school entrance while other students meet their parent. Looking around, Eva sees a car pull up and a man get out that looks like Don, but is not him. Eventually all the cars leave and Eva is left alone on the steps of the school. Molly furiously remarks that the other students thought she was an orphan...and she now realizes that she is. Don again tries to apologize, but is stopped as Molly continues to talk. She reveals that even after she escaped from the school and found him, Don didn't even recognize her. Don has a flashback of their 'first' meeting at his hanger back on Earth. In the flashback he sees himself asking who she is. Finally, Eva responds that her name is Molly. Coming out of the flashback, Don puts his hands over his face asking himself why he didn't realize it was her.

Spreading her arms, Molly reminds him that she broke her back for seventeen races before he finally caught on. Before Don can respond, a strange sound echoes through the hanger and both stand and look up. Outside, the symbols on the temple glow and shoot out light beams signaling the start of the next race. At the top of the staircase, Jordan, Stan and Koji talk among themselves, wondering if Don is giving Molly another lecture. Below, Molly jumps into the pilot seat and says the race is about to start. Don is surprised and asks her if she still intends to race after all that was said. She retorts that she wants to race more than ever now. Don saying he has no right to tell her she can't race but asks her to reconsider. He couldn't bear it if he lost her again. Molly stares at him in surprise, caught off guard by the comment.

The others, seeing Don Wei walking up the stairs, quickly disappear. Reaching the top of the stair he sees them standing around and yells at them to get to their stations. After they leave, all Don can do is turn and stare back down the staircase. Jordan emerges into the hanger and seeing Molly punching controls on her chair, smiles and steps inside the racer. Molly comments to herself that she has to win the Ultimate Prize, for Don, for Maya...for herself, so that they can be a family again; like they were before. The bottom of the module opens and the racers drop down into a shallow gorge and race towards the first gate. Furter's galleon starts shooting at the Arrow but Molly effortlessly dodges his shots. Jordan takes aim and destroys one of Furter's cannons with his guns. Revving her engines, Molly passes Furter and approaches Ondai. The racers pass through the first gate and drop down into a deeper gorge. A red warning light goes off inside the racer. Looking down, Molly sees that she and the other racers are continuing to drop further down and that she can't see the bottom.

Don asks what's going on and Stan and Koji remark that's a nearly bottomless canyon. Don has Molly engage the lift thrusters to slow the fall. After Molly does so, Koji comments that she's now perfectly set up for the next gate. Hearing this Molly engages the engines and passes Ondai and gets into third place. Jordan yells in excitement saying how great they are and Molly smiles. Further ahead, Kross, in second place, approaches O, who is in first place. The strange pilot's 'racer' flies up and over several support beams that span the canyon. Inside his ship, Kross tries to target O with his weapons and says that O can't escape his fate forever. Getting a target lock, Kross shoots his main energy weapon and laughs. However, O curls up just as the blast hits and is unfazed. O's racer begins to quiver, then suddenly the wings open up and a massive blast of energy flies back towards Kross. Kross stares in silent horror as his ship is engulfed by the blast. Further behind, Molly suddenly sees a blinding light racing down the canyon towards her, but is unable to move as the Arrow is also engulfed. Don stands and screams out Eva's name. As the light fades, the Arrow slams against one of the support beams spanning the canyon. Its engine damaged, the Arrow begins to spiral down into the darkness below as other racers fly by. Aikka, flying overhead, stops and yells out Molly's name.

The Arrow continues to plummet straight down as Molly vainly tries to pull the racer out of the dive. In the control room, Koji says they have lost contact. Still falling, the Arrow passes several large glowing outlines on the canyon walls that look like the strange lion-maned humanoids that Molly had encountered before. The Arrow's lift thrusters start to engage. Seeing the ground rushing up quickly, Molly has an image of her family in her head as she dejectedly remarks that it must have been a dream, that she will never see her family again. The Arrow glances off an outcropping and impacts onto the canyon floor, turning end over end in a cloud of dust and debris. In the control room, Koji comments that Molly and Jordan have survived a major crash before and that they'll make contact. Don, however, says that he feels that it won't be that way this time. On the verge of collapse, Don turns and stumbles out of the room and reaches out to steady himself against the doorway. He sorrowfully comments that he destroyed his wife, and now...he's destroyed his only child.

Later that night, Koji continues to radio the Arrow, but Stan tells him that it's useless as Molly and Jordan can't hear them anymore. Koji says that it's not true, but Stan turns away and begins to sob. Outside, on the module balcony, Don Wei stares out at the night sky in silence. At the bottom of the canyon, Aikka slowly flies along with a glowing orb in his hand searching for the Arrow. In another part of the canyon, a group of extremely large lion-maned humanoids, look at the wreckage of the Arrow III. Reaching into the twisted racer, they pull Molly and Jordan's lifeless bodies out and lay them on the floor of a nearby cave. They chant for a brief moment, and then one of the giants reaches out and places its index finger on both of their foreheads, leaving behind a bright glowing dot. The giants begin chanting again and their manes begin to glow along with swirling markings on their bodies. The group is then engulfed as a brilliant light fills the cave. Some time later, Molly and Jordan's bodies are lying alone in the cave as water drips nearby. Suddenly, Jordan's fingers begin to twitch and Molly gasps as her eyes slowly open.

[edit] Standings

Current points as of the eighth race "The Bottomless Gorge"

Note: There was no actual showing of what order the racers finished the race. However, the Earth Team was in third place behind O and Kross just before their crash. When the crash occurred, Aikka droped out to search for them and Muir passed him to take third place. These results are taken assuming that this was the final standing.

Pos	Racer	Points Awarded	Total Points	Points Behind	Note
1	Kross	6	33	0
2	O	9	15	-18
3	Ning & Skun	--	12	-21
4	Eva (Molly)	--	12	-21
5	Aikka	--	12	-21
6	Ondai	--	6	-27
7	Furter	--	3	-30
8	Muir	3	3	-30