This stretching post holder in the backroom makes it frighteningly apparent how long these posts are before I publish them. Yikes.
Anime discussed: Aoi Bungaku, Baka to Test to Shokanju, Dance in the Vampire Bund, Hanamaru Kindergarten, Mouryou no Hako, Now and Then, Here and There, Planetes, Shugo Chara! Party, Simoun, Sora no Woto, To Aru Kagaku no Railgun
UNMEI KAIHEN: Durarara!!, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Kimi ni Todoke, Ookami Kakushi
EDIT: Good lord, I totally forgot to provide links. I suck.
Aoi Bungaku eps 7-8
This time around the adaptation is "Kokoro", a story in which two men, known only as Sensei and K, see their lives change drastically as a result of their interactions with a young women, Ojousan, who lives in the house in which Sensei is currently staying and to which he invites K to stay. I haven't read the novel, myself, but Madhouse's adaptation is similar to Rashomon, in that ep7 is told from Sensei's point of view, and ep8 is told from K's point of view, and while both versions of the tale have similarities, they also radically differ in various places, and thus it is difficult to tell what really happens and how it happens. The viewer can't even be certain Ojousan and her mother are viewed in an accurate way because both stories are colored so heavily by the biases of the central character -- Sensei's is marked by rigid, logical confusion and assumptions, because so much of K and Ojousan's behavior is hidden from him both literally and figuratively, and so he struggles to understand everything, while K's story features several emotional highs and lows to go along with stylistic shifts in the visual presentation, because he has a difficult time reconciling the swiftly changing emotions inside of him. (He aspires to live an ascetic -- presumably Buddhist -- life, and has cut himself off from emotion for most of his life.)
What these episodes show most to me is the immense gulf that exists between these two so-called friends, and how isolated they feel even in the throes of love. Sensei never really understands K throughout his story; he assumes that K is like a feral, masculine beast, and Ojousan should be protected from him. He casts himself as the hero while being perpetually afraid that the cool, rational K, who can see through his every weakness, will swipe Ojousan from him, so he commits the worst betrayal possible and leaves K to kill himself. However, this death haunts Sensei for the rest of his life. In K's story, Ojousan is cast as a more independent person who wishes to be free from everything that binds her, including her role as a "good woman". She initiates a physical relationship with K, who, contrary to his portrayal in Sensei's story, reacts like a wimpy harem lead when a girl hits on him. K's loneliness comes from the fact that he cannot completely understand the emotions swelling inside of him, because he has gone so long stoically disconnecting himself from people. (His room is basically a visual metaphor of his heart -- a door that swiftly closes with a bang, closing K off from the world.) K confides in Sensei (who has taken on a K-like role, minus the masculine sexuality) throughout the story, and Sensei's cold, steely eyes seem to burn through K's emotional weakness. K resolves to run away with Ojousan, but he finds out she is to be married to Sensei, and thus kills himself -- but, curiously, after deciding not to go through with a plan to kill Sensei.
He discovers a yuntapo (basically a hot water bottle that warms people at night) under Sensei's covers similar to the one given to him by Ojousan earlier in the episode. It's difficult to know K's exact intentions, but I presume he believes Ojousan truly loves Sensei, and vice versa, and that without him around, they will be happy together. But the ending to K's story shows Sensei standing in shock outside the room where K killed himself, while the window closes, framing the snow-covered glass around Sensei, and the camera pulls back to show off the winter landscape, suggesting that K's death has left Sensei's heart frozen. The tragedy is that both of these men were so consumed with being unable to understand their own feelings that they had no hope of understanding each other, and they ended up making decisions that destroyed each other's lives and left them truly alone.
eps 9-10
Holy shit, these stories keep getting better! This pair of episodes is an adaptation of Run, Melos!, directed by Ryosuke Nakamura, who directed the excellent Mouryou no Hako from last fall. The style of that series is all over these episodes, from the character designs to the surrealism to the odd lighting and camera angles and even the music (although it has been so long since I have watched an episode of Mouryou no Hako that I got that detail from reading other bloggers -- never would have noticed that on my own). Anyway, "Run, Melos!" weaves two narratives -- a legend set in ancient Greece about a man, Melos, who is set to be executed and who wishes to attend his sister's wedding; he strikes a deal with the tyrant emperor to let a friend sub in for him for three days, and if Melos does not return by the end of the third day, the friend shall die in Melos' place. The main story concerns a playwright, Takada, who is adapting this legend into a play, and who struggles with the memories conjured by the adaptation process. His memories, about a betrayal by his best friend, mirror the central action of the Greek legend, and are mixed wonderfully to illustrate Takada's struggles with trust, forgiveness and understanding not only the pain inflicted upon him but also the pain his friend has endured for so long. (At the beginning of ep9, Takada asks, "Is it more painful to be the one who waits, or the one who makes others wait?")
An interesting element that adds an extra kick of emotion to the whole thing is the possibility of a romantic relationship between Takada and his friend, Joushima. They perform the famous balcony scene from "Romeo and Juliet", and while the performance could be Joushima ribbing Takada a bit, there is undeniable heat and passion between the two. Plus, the nature of the betrayal is actually rather minor, and it is sort of confusing why Joushima would not have gone with Takada eventually (because his heart condition really is not a strong enough explanation) ... that is, unless there is the added wrinkle of a socially unacceptable homosexual relationship to consider. This post, among other points it makes in an excellent write-up of these two episodes, notes that Joushima's father is an influential figure in their community, and a scandal in the family would likely ruin him. He and Joushima fight about Joushima leaving for Japan instead of taking over the family business; I probably agree with the poster's assertion that at that point in Joushima's life, he simply lacks the courage to join Takada in a completely unknown life, even though Joushima is a person who constantly tells Takada to look forward and reach as far as he can.
Aside from all the food for thought, I think this adaptation does the best job yet of mixing a good story, big ideas and hard-hitting emotion into a fantastic fictional package. I swear I was a little choked up at the end of the story; I don't think that has ever happened to me after two episodes of anything. Friggin' remarkable. The way the climactic scene of the play is intercut with the climactic moments of Takada's story is just brilliant. Loved it, loved it, loved it. If one (or both!) of the final stories can somehow top "Run, Melos!" then I really have no idea what I will do.
eps 11-12
Put together because Madhouse strongly implied that these two stories take place in the same world, although they don't have much of a relation to each other (except that the same guy is king in both stories). I haven't read the original short stories, so I'm not sure if Ryunosuke Akutagawa intended for these to be in the same setting. I'm guessing not. "The Spider's Thread" is a sort of interesting parable with a simple message: If you have a chance to redeem yourself, and you don't take it, then you are pretty much fucked. I like Mamoru Miyano as the cold-hearted criminal, and the depiction of what Hell is like to the criminal is visually interesting, but the story itself is just OK. "Hell Screen" is solid, but apparently the original story is much more complex -- wouldn't really surprise me, since the king is kind of a typical egomaniac ruler, and the outrage at his acts of cruelty are basic. The one hint of complexity of character is when the artist wants to finish his portrayal of Hell in the king's tomb, and he asks if he can see a person burn to death so that he may know the kind of suffering a person knows in Hell. He seems almost giddy at the prospect actually feeling the sort of suffering that will allow him to complete his work, which is the type of characterization the artist receives in the original story from what I understand. There are interesting visuals, again, but the story isn't quite as interesting and exciting as "Run, Melos!" was before it, so that is slightly disappointing.
Even with that disappointing end, though, Aoi Bungaku was a hell of a show -- the best of the fall season by a good distance, I'd say. Even if it were just "Run, Melos!" and nothing else, Aoi Bungaku would have been better than anything in the fall, which is a testament to the show's quality and also to how shitty the fall season was lol. But ah well. Everyone should watch Aoi Bungaku. More shows like this, Madhouse!
Baka to Test to Shokanju ep2
So, wow, Baka to Test is turning out to be way more enjoyable than I imagined it would be. It looks great with some fun visual tricks, the characters are fun (if not entirely original), there's a good amount of energy to the series and it's actually pretty funny. Plus, I am 99 percent sure there is a Princess Bride reference in this episode (the "I'm not left handed" line), although it doesn't quite work for Akihisa because he says he is left handed, and therefore he gets the shit pounded out of him. That's what you get for switching up the reference, buddy! Also, I think Kinoshita exists to take the crown of "trap most likely to make the most people uncomfortably question not just their sexuality but also their morals" award from Mako-chan. Anime creators are insidious beings indeed.
Dance in the Vampire Bund eps 1-2
Maybe it's because I've never read the manga, but I actually liked the first episode, even if the talk show segment goes on too long. Perfectly captures the feel of some shitty, low-rent TV show really reaching for some ratings. The action at the end is decent enough, too. Ep2 is kind of weird -- like Bakemonogatari if Senjougahara were the vampire instead of Araragi and there weren't any verbal battles between the two. Kind of weird too that Mina goes all gaga for Akira coming in to rescue her when Mina could pretty easily take everything thrown at her and deal in back in triplicate, aside from the hax the spider uses so that Mina's powers will not affect him. Apparently he forgot to werewolf-proof himself, too, because he doesn't last very long against Akira.
Durarara!! ep1
Words cannot express how excited I am to hear Hiroshi Kamiya play an (hopefully) evil son of a bitch. He always plays good guys or weirdos, but never any total bastards (at least not in the roles I've heard him in). Closest to a villain he's played is Tieria from the first two-thirds of Gundam 00 season one, and there he is mostly a prick rather than a straight up evil asshole.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood ep39
Assertive!Winry is pretty awesome. More of that please. Also, Kimblee has been dumped on left and right since he left prison, hasn't he? It's been like one long, terrible vacation for him. And now he's locked inside while the blizzard rages, likely pissed off an insane amount. I wouldn't want to be stuck in there with him.
Hanamaru Kindergarten ep1
This is actually pretty funny and has a bit more behind it than I expected. There has been a bit of a debate about the content, but I honestly think most of it is meant to be innocent, at least as it relates to the kids. I mean, they're freaking kindergartners. Anzu having a crush on her teacher is not a leaping point for crude sexual antics like in Kodomo no Jikan; she's just a kid who doesn't know what the hell she is talking about. She learned about crushes and people hitting on each other on TV, for crying out loud. As far as the mom goes, I think she's just teasing Tsuchida and acting serious about the whole thing just to get a rise out of him. She seems like that type of person (I should also mention that it doesn't seem as if she is needling Tsuchida to be mean-spirited either). The one thing that is kind of surprising is how blase the series is about the relationship between the mom and her husband, who taught her when she was in high school -- not only that, but apparently they had a relationship, and she got pregnant while she was in high school. Just bizarre how causal this first episode is about that.
My favorite character right now is Hiiragi. I love how adult and composed she is at school, and then when she gets home she's casually lounging around in tiger pajamas and reading a book, haha. That got a good laugh out of me.
Kimi ni Todoke ep14
Bishounen Pin is freaking hilarious. I love that he actually takes himself seriously as a Don Juan among high school girls.
Mouryou no Hako eps 6-9
Hey, remember this series? No? That's because it was criminally underwatched and undersubbed when it aired during the fall 2008 season. (And yet we needed 10 trillion groups subbing Gundam 00.) Mouryou no Hako's final episode was finally subbed and put out recently, so I decided to rewatch this series from the beginning. Not writing about up to ep5, though, because I covered that when I wrote about the series last year. Anyway, the mystery is progressing, and it's becoming more bizarre and mystical by the episode. Eps 7-8 are a mix of completely fascinating and utterly irritating because the subject matter (demons and the differences among fortune tellers, mediums, clairvoyants and so on) is interesting, but the episodes are basically three guys talking around a table. Having a ton of talking is a difficult balancing act because you don't want to overwhelm anyone with information, but you also want to keep the conversation lively and interesting. These episodes accomplish that for the most part; however, I'm not going to pretend there weren't points where I wanted to nod off for a few moments. (Watching this late at night might have contributed to that, though, haha.) I do really like Akihiko's calm confidence and how he deftly steers the conversation where he wants it to go, though.
Eps 8-9 are slightly confusing for me because they seem to be mixing reality with fiction much more overtly than before. The beginning spots before the OP usually appear to be excerpts from stories written by one of the main characters, an author named Sekiguchi, or an acquaintance of his, Kubo, who appears to be the man cutting up women and putting arms and legs into boxes. The ending of ep8 and beginning of ep9 suggest that Kubo killed Yoriko, but the beginning of ep9 is also one of those storytelling bits, so I am not sure whether I can believe it is reality or not. Sekiguchi and Reijiro (an apparent clairvoyant who was pulled into the mystery by Masuoka, the Yuzuki family lawyer) appear to have patched up things with Yoriko's mom, although again it might be too late. I'm curious about how the whole false medium storyline relates to the serial killer story. Is Kubo a direct relative of Onbaku, the box maker who went crazy during World War II? It's interesting how this series uses the war as a springboard for characterization and story -- we have Kiba's flashbacks to the war, Onbaku's life was affected by the war and so on.
The mystery is still developing, so I cannot comment on anything too deeply right now, but I'm really interested in how the story is developing (I'm not completely convinced that Kubo is the ultimate end here, especially considering his bizarre reaction to Kanako's picture), and I still adore the atmosphere. I'm not an expert on this by any means, but it really feels like it fits the period while at the same time the fluid nature of reality keeps me on my toes at all times, haha. This feels like the kind of story David Lynch would put out if he were an anime director. One thing that sticks out to me as being weird, though, is that it feels as if scenes are skipped sometimes, and characters know each other or are doing things, and it's like, "When the hell did that happen?" Haha.
eps 10-13
Holy freakin' mindscrew. It's kind of amazing how, episode to episode, this series ends up being about something completely different than the beginning. (And the beginnings with the book excerpts actually make sense to me now -- they release little details about the story, but they also come off to me as either Sekiguchi looking back on the story and putting himself into Kubo's shoes, or the mouryou's influence slowly making him go insane.) There's a ton of talking and info dumping here, but in this case I don't actually mind because what is revealed is so amazingly insane -- and, frankly, original -- that I don't even care. I won't go into any of that here, not even with spoilers, because I think people who watch this deserve to go into it completely cold. It's just so delightfully morbid.
I waited a good, long time for the final episode of Mouryou no Hako to be subbed (not that I'm complaining much -- this series is notoriously difficult to sub, because it's crammed to the gills with complex dialogue), and the wait was absolutely worth it. Mouryou no Hako deals with so many strange concepts (spirits, a bizarre sort of human evolution, screwed-up families, boxes and so on) and somehow weaves them into a coherent -- if completely mad -- tale. There's so much tragedy to it all, and somehow the show deals with it by underplaying certain moments and overplaying others, and I have no idea how it does this, but it works. I really don't know what else I can say other than watch Mouryou no Hako if you want a good mystery that will give your mind a rough shaking.
Now and Then, Here and There eps 11-13
Everything up until the end is really good and dramatic, but the ending itself really disappointed me. I don't mind that it isn't a big, epic battle, because to make it that would be glorifying war more than this series wants to, but at the same time it seems as if the victory against Hamdo comes a bit too easily. There are definitely many harsh losses, and I understand why Lala Ru attacks Hellywood now instead of doing it before, but still. Hellywood is built up as this ferocious war machine. They run roughshod over the village in which Shu is staying pretty easily. And then everything falls apart when Lala Ru is inspired to use her powers one last time to beat the crap out of Hamdo and Hellywood. It comes off to me like the ending of an entirely different series -- like the creators were going for something more harsh and realistic through the first 12 episodes but then decided to go with the typical anime ending for the finale. It's disappointing.
But that disappointment isn't enough to overwhelm how I feel about the rest of the series. It's difficult to watch and shows a dark, ugly side of humanity with unflinching harshness, but I cannot help but admire it for daring to show that blackness for so long without (often) falling into violent parody or compromise (until the end). Fighting against the worst part's of man's nature takes a lot out of this world's people and out of the world itself. Even though I think Lala Ru's sacrifice comes across like a deus ex machina, it still cannot be overlooked that it takes the sacrifice of someone akin to a natural resource to bring some sort of peace to this world -- imagine if the price for a grudging peace for us would be to get rid of all the oil in the world. That's basically what this is. And many people die due to an endless fuel of hatred; now there's a resource that won't run out until we make it run out. Three major characters live through the series for significant reasons -- Shu, because he has preached against the violence of this world all along; Sara, because she is finally able to shelve her hatred despite the intense suffering she has endured from her first appearance in the series (I would say she has suffered to a greater degree than Shu, even); and Abelia, who gradually releases herself from the hold Hamdo has over her and decides to extricate herself from the madness of Hellywood by leaving Hamdo to drown after Lala Ru floods Hellywood.
This series can be very cruel. People die because they sacrifice their lives to help others or for vengeance, but after they are gone they leave behind the empty feeling that they just died. No glory. No happiness. Just blood and death. I could see the argument that the drama is manipulative, and I think to a certain degree it is manipulative. But at the same time, Now and Then, Here and There -- like, say, Saikano -- is at least manipulative for the purpose of smacking its viewers in the face instead of leaving them sugary and happy. This isn't a perfect show, but it's one that will stick with me.
Ookami Kakushi ep1
I swear if this series does a reset, I am going to this village myself and shooting all the wolves there. Once again, Ryukishi07: Resist!!!!!
Planetes eps 6-10
I'm really impressed with how Planetes continues to develop the big picture and building its world without really having a big overall plotline, although there have been hints of one along the way. In particular I really love the theme of space as a sort of romantic entity (i.e. Hachimaki's belief that there is no better place to be, and how he romanticizes it as this vast, beautiful place) versus the reality of space as a harsh, cruel place that also offers a lot of beauty if you can find it ... just like Earth. For instance, the ending of ep7 is very affecting to me -- this girl Hachimaki meets is a Lunarian (someone born on the moon who has also lived his or her entire life there), and as a result, she is taller than she should be at her age, and her bones and muscles are underdeveloped to the point where if she were to step foot on Earth, the gravity would kill her. And yet she's able to step foot on the moon and call it beautiful because it's her home. The same place that has essentially destroyed her physically is also a place of immense personal worth and beauty for her. I love how the ending also plays with perspectives -- Hachimaki says that to him the moon's surface is just a barren desert, but to this girl, it's like a beautiful beach.
The show is also doing a lot with the idea of ambition and how the ambitious have to be willing to pay a price so that they can for as far as they can. Hachimaki's teacher, Gigalt, is an experienced astronaut and has done many things in space, but the price he has paid for his career in space is cancer (he is one of the many victims of prolonged exposure to radiation). And space can even take away from the unambitious -- Yuri's wife is killed in a debris accident, which is the event that spurs Yuri into becoming a debris collector. In a way, the space of Planetes reminds me of the desert plains of many great westerns. It's a place of vast beauty and awe-inspiring nature when you're on the outside looking in ... but when you're on the inside, what was once beautiful can quickly turn terrifying. And oh so lonely. The loneliness in Planetes is crushing. Sure, the characters are together often and have good times with each other, but they harbor so many secrets they must keep to themselves in the vastness of space. Ai cannot tell Hachimaki about Gigalt's cancer at his request, but it's tough for her to keep such a secret from Hachimaki. There's dual loneliness going on there -- the alienation Ai feels by having to put up a wall between her and Hachimaki at points, and the alienation Hachimaki feels by Ai not being completely open with him (not to mention the inevitable horrible feelings that will spring up once Gigalt actually does die).
Ep8 also continues the development ambition on the corporate side and dealing with the reality of being swallowed up by large companies. The price of ambition is not limited to space -- Fee, Dolph and others created their own company with initially ambitious goals, but eventually their ambition exceeded their grasp, and they could not avoid falling prey to the corporate machine. Ep8 perfectly illustrates the difference between Dolph and Fee. Dolph is still trying to do things, but he doesn't appear very happy at all, while Fee continues working in the field, living a rough, lowly life, but happy with the differences she is able to make every day. And she sure as hell does not want to be separated from her co-workers, who mean the world to her even though she is a pretty tough person and would never admit this to any of them.
The one episode in this bunch that feels out of place is ep6. The ninja antics are sort of funny, but those characters are just too goofy and dumb for me to care about, and while I can usually roll with Ai's self-righteousness, because she's not annoying about it that often, she's really annoying in this episode. Luckily 7-10 are all great. I'm also curious about this Hakim guy ... he's clearly going to be important to the series, or else the story wouldn't go through the trouble of not only introducing him by name but also making sure we know he is also a student of Gigalt.
Also have to say that Rivera might be my dark horse favorite character in the series. She is used a perfect amount and is always hilarious whenever the focus (briefly) shifts toward her. My biggest fear is that there will be an episode that focuses mainly on her, and that it will ruin her mystique. I don't want to know anything about her; she is perfect as is.
eps 11-14
I love the balance Planetes strikes by being episodic but also keeping a continuity by ensuring the events of previous episodes leave an impact on the characters. For instance, take ep11, about the El Tanikan engineer. (El Tanika is a fictional country probably based on a composite of Central and South American countries. El Salvador is a likely influence.) Claire, who is El Tanikan herself but grew up in America rather than her country of origin, is shown a new side of herself through her interactions with this engineer. She comes into this episode one way but leaves it completely different, although in more subtle than overstated ways. She's more conscious of herself as a person and more conscious of her background and how she relates to the world. That story also illustrates a theme that is fairly popular in stories about space: The elimination of artificial borders separating people from each other. It's a really beautiful moment when the engineer points out that from space, nobody can see any borders or wars; a moment like that can easily come off as heavy-handed and groan-worthy, but it works here.
I'm interested in the romance between Ai and Hachimaki, although judging from the preview to the next episode, I get the feeling the series might take a more realistic approach to relationship by not having it work out too well, which would be a pretty big blow to the life philosophies or both Ai and Hachimaki. Surprisingly enough, I would actually be on board with that storyline, because I don't think Hachimaki and Ai's flaws mesh well enough for them to work as a couple for very long. Ai is positive to the point of being self-righteous, and Hachimaki is a good guy but has a dark streak that makes itself apparent at the worst possible times. I mean, he's said some horribly ugly, sexist things to Ai that I just cannot forget. It would actually worry me a bit, frankly, if all that were just dropped and the two became completely lovey-dovey. I'm just glad that Planetes doesn't spend the entire series teasing a relationship between Ai and Hachimaki and make the two getting together the happily ever after ending.
That said, I did thoroughly enjoy ep13 and Hachimaki's awkward, almost subconscious courtship of Ai, along with Hachimaki's brother, Kyutaro, bonding with Yuri and accidentally setting Yuri free from all the emotional weight that had been tying him down. Kyutaro is kind of a douche, but he at least has ambition. And ep12 is just a blast -- it's thoroughly silly and over-the-top, but you have to love Fee foiling a terrorist operation because her smoking addiction has made her desperate to find a place where she can just sit back and enjoy that sweet nicotine rush, haha.
Shugo Chara! Party ep14
Rikka is too cute in this episode. She loves those X Eggs so much. ;_; Other than that, this follows the basic formula of every Shugo Chara! Party episode. Fun fun fun.
Simoun eps 1-6
TC did a good enough job of explaining the basics behind Simoun in this post, so I won't waste time with that, because this post is ridiculously long as it is. I'm interested in the nature of the war going on in this world. The series has been careful to not paint "the other side" as a black and white evil enemy -- they seem to have been driven into attack based more on desperation than anything. They live in a sick, dying land, and in their mind, only learning about the technology behind the Simoun, which can fly above the clouds, will enable them to take their country out of the gutter. Simulacrum is the top dog in this world, possessing technology apparently mined from a fallen ancient civilization that only they know how to work (and they don't even know everything about this technology). They guard it with a religious fervor -- and, in fact, this kingdom is built entirely around a religion, and the Simoun pilots are supposed to function more as priestesses who spread their faith, but their skills now have to be used for battle.
A story such as Simoun's also lends itself naturally to explorations of gender roles. Throwing the option of choice into the mix is very interesting -- it's an agonizing decision for just about everyone who has to make that pilgrimage to the spring. Though they are officially sexless, everyone in the country has grown up as a woman, and so their choice is really to stick with the familiar or venture into the unknown. Interestingly, even though everyone in the kingdom starts out as a woman, gender bias has still crept into this society: One of the characters comments offhand that there are more job opportunities for men than women in this world. There's also the interesting wrinkle of romantic relationships -- several of the Simoun pilots develop romantic feelings for each other. What I find most interesting is that there are certain pilots who have decided to become men for the women they love. There's an element of pressure from above for half the population to be male so that the race will not die out, so I am thinking that the cultural element that women "need" men for protection and/or love is something perpetuated in this world so that enough women will take the plunge and keep up the numbers. A bit of romantic manipulation.
It cannot be an easy choice to make, though, because they get just the one shot at it -- frankly, I'm amazed that enough people actually change their sex to keep the population going. (To go off the idea of romantic manipulation some more, could it be possible that the entire social structure in this kingdom is manipulated to give men an advantage so that enough women will be tempted to switch their sex? This would not surprise me in the least. I would think there would have to be this type of artificial benefit in place, because how many of us would actually switch our sex after living 17 years as either a male or female? Putting the social ramifications aside, I don't think I would, especially if it is a permanent change.) One of the characters, Neviril, accompanies a Simoun pilot who has decided to go through with the ceremony after enduring a particularly rough battle. She frets until the very last moment about whether she should be a male or female, and in the end she decides to switch her sex, but she is devastated when she leaves the spring as a male. The change is gradual, so he'll have feminine traits for a good while (a 19-year-old character who presumably changed his sex two years prior still has some, er, ample assets, shall we say), but it's more the psychological aspect of being forced into this decision.
After this visit to the spring, where Neviril puts off choosing a permanent gender (which leaves her open to piloting a Simoun), she decides to remain grounded for a good while, still in mourning over the loss of her partner in a battle that opens the series (along with other problems she wrestles with). Simoun juggles varying views on the war while developing these gender issues with great subtlety (all these thoughts are not directly addressed in the series so much as the very existence of this system forces the viewer to ask these questions about it). There are Simoun pilots who believe everyone should do their duty regardless of their personal opinions on the war, pilots who are gung ho about it, pilots who are sort of indifferent about the whole thing and pilots like Neviril who are hesitating right now. It's not an easy thing to reconcile, and I'm looking forward to how things develop from here.
If I had to choose a favorite character right now it would be Paraietta, just because I am a sucker for her character type (the strong, gallant ass kicker), but I like Aeru's energy (even if she is kind of crazy) and I think Rimone's development is going to be really interesting now that Aeru has helped release her from the shackles of listening to every adult who comes her way.
Sora no Woto ep2
Another solid episode that moves the series a bit more into the "day in the life" department, but there are still hints (some strong, some vague) that something bad will go down pretty soon. The story is just OK, but I like the interaction between Kanata and Kureha, and the backgrounds continue to be wonderfully detailed and well drawn. Even when this series gets boring, I think I can at least be confident that it will be nice to look at. Damn.
To Aru Kagaku no Railgun ep14
Really boring episode. Like, REALLY boring.
