Forum - View topicEpisode Review: Sword Art Online II
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Plasmaeclipse
 Posts: 153 |
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I'm sorry but why would you write a line explicitly drawing attention to something for the purpose of trying to avoid drawing attention to it. Again it sounds like the writer doesn't trust us or himself to not implicate rape. From the way you describe it I do genuinely believe the scene was framed in a way that wouldn't imply sexual assault in any fashion. Like he just pinned her pulled the syringe and she was just buying time. It just begs the question why did you explicitly have the character first assume rape if your just going to immediately deny it. If he wanted to make it clear rape wasn't happening DON'T MENTION RAPE. As it stands it draws needless attention to itself.
Agreed |
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Pipoko
Posts: 165 |
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You know what, believe what you want. If a guy groping a girl against her will doesn't scream sexual assault, I really don't understand it. Like, what would you call him reaching under her shirt while saying "you're mine"?
What exactly is it to you? I've said the same point for way too many times now and this is the final time: it's the fact that rape was brought up in the first place for no reason whatsoever that makes it so bad. Doesn't matter if he actually did it. Doesn't matter what he actually wanted to do. The fact that it's even brought up makes it clear that it's used as a device to increase tension. |
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TUSF
Posts: 191 |
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"Is he going to rape me?" is a pretty valid thought to think, when a guy looks like he's not done after you push him away because he obsessively hugged you. It was likely brought up, because there WAS a scene previously where there was an attempted rape, and he wanted to establish that this wasn't that scene.
I would call it sexual assault, if it weren't for the fact that he said he was going to kill her, and hardly actually did any groping, and most of the physical contact was just for restraint. There was a point in the book where Shinkawa stopped talking, and was about ready to just inject the drug into her, but Sinon interrupted him and got him talking again.
There was ONE, I repeat, ONE line mentioning rape, where she naturally assumed something that anyone in that situation would think. And the line was there just set up the next couple lines, to show that he intended to KILL her. |
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Chiibi
 Posts: 4829 |
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But.........they don't need to fantasize about it because rape happens all the time in real life. I don't have any proof of this but.......could it be possible that there is a deeper meaning to this whole theme like: spoiler[Reki himself or someone he knew was unable to save a girl in the past from being attacked so he's writing scenarios like this and changing the outcome into what he wished for instead? Like he's trying to fufill his regrets through a character's (Kirito's) actions.] Writers and artists absolutely do this (sad but it can make us feel better) . Even if SAO's author isn't one of them; I don't think it's a farfetched idea to think he could be. It's not like he would talk about something so personal anyway. It wouldn't even have to have physically occured; he could have just had nightmares about it...or it's a huge phobia of his or something. |
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Zhou-BR
Posts: 1427 |
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Whether it was meant to be a rape attempt or not, I'd be OK with that scene as long as Sinon managed to save herself, but instead what we got was Kirito having yet another knight-in-shining-armor moment. It's like Kawahara can't help being sexist even when he's able to create a strong, independent female character.
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ChibiKangaroo
 Posts: 2941 |
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It's not a question of whether rapes occur in real life. It is the fact that the author keeps focusing the climax of these stories on Kirito barging in at the very last second to stop a girl from being raped. It absolutely does make it seem like Kawahara has some special fantasy related to that. I don't know if it is a fantasy that is borne out of regret as you speculate, but it is some kind of fantasy he is indulging through these stories. Like I said, i'm not going to knock people for having that fantasy. That's not my point. My point is just that it does not work in an action/adventure themed story like this without coming across as crude and disrespectful. |
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TUSF
Posts: 191 |
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About that... Wait till next week. |
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Plasmaeclipse
Posts: 153 |
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I guess that comes down to personal opinions on how to handle past controversy. I personally feel like if you want to show some level of reform you should either A) tackle it in a complete serious manner that clearly demonstrates your new enlightened views or B) just admit to yourself you can't do it and avoid talking about it, thinking about it or trying to show something that can be misconstrued as it. I haven't read the LNs obviously but as it stands I can't help but think it was superfluous information that could have been conveyed differently without alluding to rape (which I think this author should just flat out avoid at the rate he's going). It reminds me of a scene in a different anime I watched. There were 2 students taking a combat test and they were told beforehand not to hit civilian targets which were clearly shown to the audience. Then throughout the training they were hitting those targets and I thought they would fail. They didn't they rushed to the end and nearly crashed. They were chewed out for almost crashing but passed the test. So the whole civilian target thing was just superfluous and opened a minor plot hole. I feel the same way with that line. Like if it wasn't the intention and didn't play into the climax why bother? She couldn't have just thought "He's being creepy what is he planning" and then he pulls the syringe and it becomes "oh crap he's gonna kill me". Sure you can still interpret the thought of rape from that but it's less explicit and given the author's track record less is more. The way it's written it just leaves the author's intent and beliefs in question and leads to discussions like what we're having. |
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Chiibi
Posts: 4829 |
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Oh oh what's this!? Now you've got me excited. 
I will patiently wait though. I hate spoilers. |
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ChibiKangaroo
Posts: 2941 |
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And as for the next week part, that doesn't really matter to me as far as trying to fix what happened in this episode (unless this episode was actually all just a dream and never happened. Then maybe i'd look at it differently). However, we've already had Kirito come in and stop the rape. That was the point of this climax. As people have mentioned, it would have been less bad if Sinon had stopped the bad guy without Kirito's intervention. If next episode sets a better example in some way then I think we can give that one an appropriate grade as well. This episode though stunk. |
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Kigosh
 Posts: 18 |
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I would make the emphasis on Kirito barging in and stoping a girl from being killed. Because death is the ultimate end...ofc the implied rape gives this scene more drama. But the fantasy is not primarily about stoping a rape, but stoping murder. But it is interesting to think that the rape scene is included because of some personal issue of the author (or fantasy...). |
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Chiibi
Posts: 4829 |
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And I'm guessing that spoiler[If Asuna was right behind him and started beating on Shinkawa too, that would solve everyone's issues.] >_>
NO. The first half was great. Admit it. :p
I will take that as a compliment. :3 Because it has been used more than once is what leads me to this theory. Last edited by Chiibi on Mon Sep 29, 2014 4:05 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Shippoyasha
Posts: 459 |
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I don't think the shock factor is in the 'rape' but that a trusted friend has basically gone full yandere. If they wanted to 'shock' with rape in an anime, they may as well animate the actual act. For what it's worth, the guy was trying to assault her but to what extent is anyone's guess. And while I do think the sudden emotional turns are the weakpoints in the author's writing style, I don't think it's fair to say he is on a fetish bent. If anything, the guys-turned-monsters in this show are very unfair against the male characters in actuality because they often fall into being unredeemable. They had a lot of that in the first 13 episodes where the bad guys didn't need to become as murderous as they did.
Also, I can actually understand why Sinon wasn't as powerful. She is not like Kirito and some other characters who are fit and able in the real world. Especially with the gun focus of this game's world, it wouldn't make sense for people to be that powerful (or at all) compared to sword users who may have something like a Kendo experience. I think it's just the case of superhero Kirito than necessarily aiming to take Sinon down a notch. She was a tragic character out of the gate, unlike most girl characters in the story. And like with most girl characters in SAO, I'm sure she will get her moments of glory in the future arcs. |
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ChibiKangaroo
Posts: 2941 |
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This, unfortunately, I am expecting... I see a future scene of Kirito and his harem of multi-colored girls relaxing in a beautiful fairy landscape where Sinon joins them, fidgeting and acting shy like she doesn't want to be a member of Kirito's harem, but ooooohh she does! Asuna grudgingly allows Kirito to have another maiden to undermine her status as the waifu, and Kirito just grins and takes in the added beauty to his female conquests. |
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Chiibi
Posts: 4829 |
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Though they would make a good couple, I insist that Kirito and Shino's relationship is strictly platonic with mutually platonic feelings.
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