I might have watched a bit more this week, but I have been absolutely addicted to Bill Simmons' Book of Basketball. 700 pages of basketball goodness~ This book is my dream come true. At least it didn't stop me from finally moving forward with rewatching Eureka Seven again ...
Anime discussed: Aoi Bungaku, Axis Powers Hetalia, The Book of Bantorra, Darker than Black: Ryuusei no Gemini, Eureka Seven, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Genshiken 2, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei, Kaiji, Kampfer, Kimi ni Todoke, Letter Bee, Shugo Chara! Dokki Doki, Slayers Try, To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, Trapeze, Zan Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei
Aoi Bungaku ep2
Another good episode, especially the opening portion, which shows Youzo in his younger days, trying to reduce the fear he feels when around other people by clowning around and trying to be of use to everyone. And then one of Youzo's classmates, after Youzo shields the guy from the rain in an attempt to appeal to him so that the guy won't reveal his fakeness to the other kids, says that Youzo is a monster. Seems a little harsh, but he is apparently better than everyone in seeing through to the core of Youzo's personality, the darkness lurking beneath the smile. The identification of Youzo with Vincent van Gogh is interesting, particularly Van Gogh being identified as a fellow monster. With Youzo seeing the monster in his reflection, this identification as a "monster" definitely strikes me as seeing the troubles within a person, whether they are just self-destructive, or others are also involved in the destruction. Youzo wants to be human, but the monster inside him causes him to be both self-destructive and destructive toward others; he despises himself, and he despises people who try to help him. That poor woman isn't going to last with Youzo in the house, even if he wants to make an effort to be human once again. Though like Mayumi she also has her demons, seen when she tries to commit suicide even though she has a kid at home ...
Axis Powers Hetalia ep40
I like that decades of warring among England, France and other for control of America is boiled down to England and France having a goofy fight about who gets to be America's big brother. Sometimes it is just that simple.
The Book of Bantorra ep4
Decided to drop it this week. Weirdly enough, this episode actually isn't bad -- it is just that I am having trouble really connecting to the series. I don't feel like I am really involved or actually care about what is happening onscreen, even though the series is taking some twists and turns. Maybe I'll pick it up again if I hear it is really good, but for now, I'll put it off to the side.
Darker than Black: Ryuusei no Gemini ep3
OK, I am pretty sure the disappeared star signifies that Hei's contractor powers have disappeared, or are at least suppressed for the moment (no doubt due to the shock he received at the end of the last episode). There are a couple of situations where under normal circumstances Hei would have used his powers in a second, but this time he does not: When he wraps up one of the Russian guards with his signature weapon (he usually follows that up with a shock), and when he grabs Tanya's face (could be interpreted as Hei listening to Suou's plea for him to not kill Tanya, but the lack of power also has something to do with it, I bet). This puts Hei at a pretty big disadvantage for the time being, although I guess Suou developing contractor powers helps out a bit. (Interesting to think about: Is Suou a true contractor now? Or is it simply due to the influence of her necklace? Is her necklace the meteor core? Or is it something completely different? Also, after reading a couple of posts, I'm glad I am not the only one who thought of Utena when the gun came out of Suou's necklace, haha.)
Also read another interesting thought about the contractor group that is after Hei: Could they be from the Syndicate? Hei, Mao and Yin are in exile, after all, and we don't know for sure yet why these three are after Hei. But that would explain it for sure. Also, the flashbacks and Hei promising to kill Yin (although Omni says it is ambiguous about whether Hei wants to kill Yin, or a woman who did harm to Yin) have me really interested in what happened with them between the first season and this season. Hmm. And with Suou's contractor powers revealing themselves, it seems as if all the interested parties -- the CIA, the Russian military, possibly the Syndicate and whoever else -- are finally going to make their moves. Good stuff. (And more great action, please! These first three episodes have not disappointed me at all on the action front, and I hope it stays that way. This series is such a treat to watch each week.)
Eureka Seven eps 11-14
Man, this is a sneaky great arc that really pushes forward the theme of immaturity and the need to grow up for a lot of characters. Lots of really tiny characters moments and bigger development highlights this. You have Matthieu's bravado before the mission, the whole Gekkostate crew refusing to clue Renton in on what they are doing, Holland making decisions on his own without consulting Talho, etc. Dominic is back onstage as a much bigger character, too, accompanying Anenome, who is portrayed at first as very childish. (The first image of her the viewer sees is Anenome dipping her fingers into some jam, letting it drip into her mouth and rubbing away the excess jam that has accumulated on her face.) But, ironically, in this relationship it is Dominic who needs to grow up more than Anenome (although she clearly has some maturing to do, to say the least). At least with Anenome's circumstances, you can understand why she is such a spoiled brat -- she's handed everything without question, and at the same time she is forced to put her life on the line in extraordinarily dangerous situations against her will. I'd be kind of an asshole, too, in that situation.
Dominic sort of has the excuse that he has to monitor the girl he loves being put through this mess, which would drive any guy out of whack, but frankly, the guy is a big ol' doucheprick in this arc. He struts onto the military ship like he owns the place, brags about his title and connections and screws with any semblance of chemistry the crew had developed. Then he interferes in the military operation even though the commander -- although he is eventually defeated -- is clearly OVER 9000 times more competent in this situation than Dominic, who doesn't even know where north and west are. WTF. That would be like me telling Gen. Patton how to kill the Nazis, except, unlike Dominic, I might be able to actually find the Nazis. At least he gets guilty enough later to realize he should have shut his damn mouth and let someone who actually knew what he was doing do his job. When everything goes batcrap crazy in ep12 (one of those classic "OH SHIT CRAZY DREAM AHHHHHH" mecha episodes) and he meets up with Renton on the ground in ep13, it is pretty funny and kind of ridiculous how much Renton and Dominic are alike (although I would say Renton is slightly more grown up than Dominic at this point, though that swings in a few episodes).
What the hell does Dominic do in the military, again? It is kind of insane that someone in his position does not know how to place directions. Even if the world of Eureka Seven does not function the same as our world, there at least has to be some simple rule to determine orientation, right? I don't know shit about surviving outdoors, and even I could figure out the directions in a few seconds. Ah well. Dominic gets to prove himself soon enough; for now, though, he is a silly wanker.
Ep14 is one of those episodes people kind of like on first watch, if only because it unleashes so much valuable information, but upon rewatch the feeling is, "Man, this episode kind of sucks." I guess it is valuable as a rest episode, but man, the info dumping is so lazy. A rare bad episode for Eureka Seven. BONES gets the rest episode correct later in the series when the crew convenes for an awesome soccer game of EPICNESS before the grand finale.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood ep29
Good episode despite putting on the brakes a bit with the action and also showing off some bizarre character design. (WTF @ Winry's man hands.) GreedLing is quickly becoming one of the most interesting characters in the series to me, now that I can completely concentrate on that stuff, since I know what is going to happen, haha. What I love most about Greed is his ambiguity regarding how he relates to humanity. All the Homunculi we have seen so far either despise/look down upon humanity (Lust, Wrath, Envy) or are just apathetic about 'em (Gluttony). Greed, meanwhile, almost identifies with humans in a way -- at least, he is drawn toward directly using humans to achieve his goals (unlike Father, who prefers to hide in the shadows, and Wrath, who hides behind an assumed human identity). Greed is also, I believe, genuinely impressed with the depth of Ling's greed -- that a human would actually have the balls to sit back and plot the best way to take the reins from a monster many times more powerful than Ling is. I think, deep down, Greed actually feels something for humanity; not just now, but ever since he first appeared in the story, and even before then.
Think about it: Who does he choose for subordinates? Chimera -- people who have been warped and stripped of their humanity. He helps them. Sure, they are strong and are of obvious benefit to Greed's plans, but they are also representative of Greed's affinity for humans. Greed protects them not only because he is greed incarnate, but also because he actually cares for them.
Genshiken 2 eps 11-12
Oh god. Sasahara's job hunt is so, so, so painful to watch. I actually have a job now and was still cringing during the moments where Sasahara would coast through an interview, or where he would overcompensate, or where he would go all Shinji Ikari around his friends because the lack of results was just too damn frustrating. Things never got quite that bad for me, but it isn't too hard to imagine a scenario where it would. That moment where Sasahara is able to break through and finally get a decent job -- and open up to Ogiue afterward! -- is such a great moment of release. All that pent-up frustration and having to swallow bad feelings, gone in an instant. I want to get up and give Sasahara a high five after all that. He's earned it.
The final Comifes episode is fun, too, hinting at a bunch of story elements that appear down the road in the manga, including all the terrible things that make Ogiue an otaku-hating machine. But for now she is just embarrassed and clumsy because she has a cute crush on Sasahara~ <3 And, oh, the things Sasahara is not seeing by avoiding that doujinshi ...
Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei eps 2-5
The middle portion of the OVA -- the Dice Killing chapter -- is actually kind of disappointing. The mystery is interesting at the start, and the lesson Rika learns is OK, but the resolution to the story is blah. There are good individual moments, but the whole is not nearly as interesting as any of the main stories from Higurashi. The best parts are ep1 (which I wrote about a good while ago) and ep5, which are basically comedy episodes. Ep5 has a ton of fun playing off Rena's personality and messing with all sorts of different scenarios when Rena comes into possession of a relic that forces her to fall in love with anyone who possesses the relic's partner. My favorite joke is this Marimite reference (Rena is Yumi, and Miyo is Sachiko, which is a joke in and of itself because Miyo is voiced by Miki Itou, who voices Sachiko). Good times all around.
There is something very interesting at the end of the Dice Killing chapter, though. At the end, Rika reflects on how she, a mere human, briefly stepped into the role of a god by judging different worlds instead of simply sticking with her world. Then she says something quite odd -- "It's time for me to give up being a witch. I must return to being Rika Furude, rather than the witch, Bernkastel." As I am sure Umineko no Naku Koro ni watchers will note, Bernkastel is the witch who shows up around the end of the first arc, I believe, and who seems to have a grudge against Beatrice. Bernkastel also bears a striking resemblance to a teenage Rika. Mere coincidence? Or is there something more to this?
Kaiji eps 16-23
Oh wow. Although I enjoyed the second arc, I wondered if anything in the series would ever again approach the intensity of the first arc ... and the third arc pummels the crap out of it. The whole thing is a drawn out, heavily psychological card game between Kaiji and Tonegawa, the figurehead for Chairman Kazutaka, the wealthy man who puts together these vicious gambles for his own amusement. From the beginning, the tension is ratcheted to ridiculous levels, because not only can Kaiji play for huge amounts of money, but something else is on the line for him -- his sense of hearing. There is a device attached to Kaiji's ear that inserts a drill into his ear canal; there are 12 matches, and in each match, Kaiji bets a certain number of millimeters. The more millimeters Kaiji bets, the more money he can win. However, if he loses, the drill gets closer to his ear drum (the drill starts 30 millimeters away). It is like watching the scene in Monster where Wolfgang Grimmer gets his fingernails torn out one at a time, except it is stretched across seven episodes. Totally horrifying and squicky, and yet I could not look away, which is a terrifying realization in and of itself. (Kaiji is pretty brilliant in how it subtly suggests the viewers are like Kazutaka, in that they take pleasure in watching Kaiji suffer and win.)
With such high stakes, there is a huge amount of gravity with each play, and Kaiji feels an enormous amount of pressure most of the time, which makes the tension spiral to insane heights. It doesn't help that Tonegawa is a seemingly omniscient player, able to read Kaiji like a book, but there is a trick to it that I will not reveal here. All I'll say is that it is interesting how in this arc Tonegawa is revealed to be completely full of shit when he talks about real people fighting to get what they need in life, and at the same time, he is not, because he is actually a pretty tough guy. (And the Chairman also reveals the depths of his cruelty.) But, wow, I don't know if he is as tough as Kaiji, who goes to absurd lengths to win this game. I mean, he cuts off his ear in a life-or-death gambit to fool Tonegawa!! Kaiji has balls the size of the moon. The way his plan comes together is just beautiful. And that in and of itself is also interesting -- throughout the series, Kaiji skirts the fine line between being a person who is virtuous and moral (there are several instances where he refuses to do things because they conflict with his personal code, even though he readily admits doing these things would help him win), and being a person who will do anything to win. I mean, it is either his ear or his life, but Kaiji does not hesitate for a second to mutilate himself to achieve victory.
It's the emperor and the slave come to life. (The emperor and the slave are two cards in the game Kaiji and Tonegawa play, E-Card. There are three types, including the citizen. The emperor can beat the citizen. The citizen can beat the slave. But the slave can beat the emperor, because the slave has nothing to lose and can launch a desperate attack against his oppressor. Obvious symbolism, but it is executed well.)
And now Kaiji believes he has constructed the perfect gamble with which to challenge the Chairman, although with three episodes remaining, there is no way at least one thing does not go severely wrong with Kaiji's plan.
eps 24-26
Agh, I should have seen the Downer Ending coming. I knew something would go wrong with Kaiji's plan, but deep down, I really hoped he would be able to pull off the gamble in the end. However, as depressing as this ending is (Kaiji is minus four fingers, an ear and all his winnings, not to mention his friends are gone), it certainly does not run counter to the themes of the series, whereas a happy ending probably would have been contrived and against everything Kaiji stands for. It shows the dangerous game Kaiji plays. Kaiji rails against the inhumanity of the Chairman's gambles -- how they strip people of their pride and dignity and actively encourage them to engage in heinous acts, simply for the pleasure of seeing people suffer. Throughout the games, Kaiji stands above these indignities and fights for what is truly right -- until the very end, when his tragic flaw takes over and dooms Kaiji.
The Chairman spells it out just before he and Kaiji partake in that final gamble: Kaiji is addicted, not just to gambling but also to the rush that putting one's life on the line can bring. Kaiji defeats Tonegawa and is up $20 million. He can leave any time he wants ... but there is this itch that is just begging to be scratched. Kaiji absolutely has to go one step further and destroy the Chairman. The amount of money he could potentially receive is of no consequence to Kaiji; part of his plan is to bet a low amount of money if his specific conditions for victory are not meant. However, while Kaiji denies the Chairman's hypothesis about Kaiji's gambling addiction, it nonetheless exists, although perhaps not to the extent the Chairman believes it exists. The desire to gamble is destructive -- it involves taking something and betting it against a likely probability that this item will be lost, in the hopes that more of this item will be gained.
This destructive quality is represented with Kaiji's ultimate goal: The absolute defeat of the Chairman. To humiliate Tonegawa is not enough for Kaiji, because Kaiji realizes that, tough as he is, Tonegawa is simply a puppet. The Chairman is the real prize. Kaiji wants to avenge all those who were harmed and killed during the course of the gambles, of course, but would he have participated in cheap gambles week in and week out if he were not enthralled by it in some way? Would he have gone along with the high stakes gambles if, in the darkest parts of himself, he did not enjoy it in some manner? Kaiji, like many gamblers, believes he has an edge. He figures out strategies and works all the angles to ensure himself the best chance of victory. But, in the end, his edge is as dull as a butter knife. He simply cannot win -- and yet, in the car, on the way back home after his miserable defeat, all Kaiji can think about is how he could have won if he noticed one slight detail, and how he will defeat the Chairman should they meet again.
I've read that Madhouse plans to make a second season of Kaiji, which needs to happen, like, yesterday. I loved this series from start to finish and, like a true addict, I desperately need more. Bring it on, Madhouse!!
Kampfer ep4
I am simultaneously enthralled and repulsed by how shameless this series is. Bra shopping, cat fighting about beauty contests and karaoke -- all of that in one special episode. This is the kind of series you watch in the dark where nobody can see you. And yet I normally watch it in complete daylight. My shame level is at the level of Kampfer: Nonexistent.
Kimi ni Todoke ep4
Half a good episode but half a frustrating episode, too. I just don't like how Yano and Yoshida abandon the logic with which they approached the problem of the rumors spread about them throughout the school. It is understandable that they would become more upset and therefore more apt to leap to conclusions as it appeared more likely that Sawako started the rumors, but the use of misunderstandings to propel that feels pretty lazy and convenient, I think. No wonder manga fans dislike this portion of the story. In Sawako's case, her failure to make herself known to Yano and Yoshida is a bit more forgivable, because she is such a social 'tard. It's a lot to ask of a person who has been alone most of her life to suddenly be able to interpret the subtle nuances of people with perfect accuracy. That would be like dropping me at EAD and telling me to develop Nintendo's next hit game from scratch. What the hell am I supposed to do if I have fuck all experience with it?
That said, I hope the series scoots past this portion of the story quickly lol. I suppose it is a necessary trial of sorts for Sawako so that she can better understand the feelings of her friends, both good and bad.
Letter Bee ep4
I can't stop thinking about the Broccoli Forest. What if an entire board game were crafted around the opposite of being a child's nightmare conception of Candy Land? Instead of the Peppermint Stick Forest, there would be carrot sticks. The Gumdrop Mountains would be replaced with lumps of oatmeal. The Gingerbread House would be whole wheat bread. And so on. These are the types of things I think about when an episode of a series is not as interesting as I would have hoped for.
Shugo Chara! Dokki Doki ep4
lol My favorite part of this episode is where the Charas show concern for a potentially awkward moment in conversation when Rikka mentions something her mom would do when Rikka was sick, and Hikaru reacts like, "... Whatever. How can we make this rabbit better?" Haha. Their sensitivity to his feelings is totally shot down.
Slayers Try eps 1-6
Pretty good start. Feels nice to get back into Slayers after finishing Next a few months back. Nothing too heavy going on right now -- Lina's craziness at the end of Next apparently opened a barrier that prevented travel to the outer parts of the world, where very little magic exists. This will continue to come into play, I know it. Meanwhile, Filia, a representative of the dragons (one of which the crew met in Try), who is trying to get Lina and co. to help her out with a problem, which is connected to some monsters wanting to MKD Lina and steal the Sword of Light from Gourry. So many shenanigans occurring right now!
The best part, obviously, is that Xellos is a bigger asshole than ever. He dicked around with everyone in Next, for sure, but he is taking it to another level in Try, especially when he is around Filia. Asshole!Xellos is the most entertaining character in the series, so obviously I am eating this up. Good show! Hopefully things start to really pick up soon, however. What I really like about Next is it is not only funny but the plot is also consistently gripping from start to finish, and Try is not really there yet.
To Aru Kagaku no Railgun ep4
A bit more plot is coming through, I see. This hawt scientist lady is more than likely the person who brought out the eyebrow chick's latent powers. Probably got in some good research with that work. I wonder if she has some sort of power herself; for instance, something to do with heat, since her body is apparently in permanent hot flash mode. Will Touma get more involved in the series from here, too? Honestly, I hope not. I run hot and cold on Touma, though I do not particularly hate the guy, but this is Mikoto's show. Let her take the reins and keep 'em. To be fair, however, their fight is kind of fun. I also like Kuroko completely overreacting to Mikoto hanging out with "The Undressing Woman".
Also, I had trouble figuring out exactly when this series is supposed to take place (there's always research, but, well, you know), but I'm glad this episode clears that up to an extent. This is the point where Mikoto and Touma barely know each other, though I am unsure if Touma has met Index by this time. I don't know much about Touma's food buying habits, so I really have no idea whether he could be buying more or fewer groceries than normal for him.
Trapeze ep2
I think I approached this show the wrong way last week -- again, the danger of shows with lots of crazy symbols and a zonked out visual style is to assume that there is much more to the show than there really is. However, I don't think that is what Trapeze is going for. Instead, it is more like a cracked out dark comedy with messed up people just trying to solve their personal problems. That is fine with me. This week's episode is about a passive man with a permanent erection. There are jokes about his, er, sensitive condition, of course, but the guy is portrayed more sympathetically than the dude from the first episode. He's just a guy who represses his feelings way too much and needs to take some command in his life; he is unable to do so with his ex-wife, because he would feel like a huge prick (lol) if he told her off after learning she is going to have a baby with her new husband, so instead he takes some control by telling an annoying, obsessive girl at work to go screw herself after she yet again nags him into doing every little job that she could probably do herself.
A simple episode, but it works. I like that even though the poor guy has some out there fantasies (more out of a desire to have some power in his life than to harm anyone), he is shown to be a guy who just needs some release instead of being, you know, a pervert.
Zan Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei ep12
This episode is all over the place. The first skit, riffing off the Schrödinger's Cat thought experiment, is funny at first but then beats the joke mercilessly into the ground before Kei appears and saves the sketch by being awesome. Second skit, silly as it is, makes me laugh a lot. There is just something about Nozomu and the kids completely failing to hide a giant rocket that is hilarious. Last skit is a tacked on ending to the whole "Rin develops a bunch of buildings in the city to get to a restaurant because she is not supposed to leave the Itoshiki grounds" story, which, frankly, kinda sucks. The "Naughty Ms. Kaere" video at the end is amusing, but the skit itself is awful. Yamato Nadeshiko!Kaere is annoying as hell. She's so much better when she's bitchy and suing the ass out of everyone.
