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The Unlimited - Hyōbu Kyōsuke (TV).


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tuxedocat



Joined: 14 Dec 2009
Posts: 2183
PostPosted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 8:21 pm Reply with quote
The Unlimited - Hyōbu Kyōsuke



Plot Summary:

Kyōsuke Hyōbu, an ESPer who was betrayed many years ago is now one of the most powerful ESPers, and also a fugitive. However, behind that glare lies a kind heart- His main mission is to save ESPers who are mistreated by humans, even if that be by force. Through his methods, he has saved many ESPer lives, and gained the loyalty of those he has saved. The name of his group: P.A.N.D.R.A.


Episode 1 & 2

Having familiarized myself with Zettai Karen Children, I am finding this show entertaining. However, I can see that it is not giving any background whatsoever on its source material. I think a little exposition is necessary since a lot of what is going on, and certain re-appearing characters, are dependent on this knowledge. I would recommend that viewers new to this franchise watch episodes 1-3 and 8 of the previous series Psychic Squad. That should provide enough information to help fill in the information gaps.

The idea of this show featuring the villain of the earlier show intrigued me. So far, however, the narrative seems to be from the point of view of a character introduced in the first episode, and not on the titular character. I am hoping this changes, as I thought the idea of getting inside the head of an ambiguously villainous character was a fascinating idea. In any case, anyone expecting a show similar to Psychic Squad/ZKC are not going to find it here. This one is more like a shonen actioner so far, and seems to be trying for a totally different audience.
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Gina Szanboti



Joined: 03 Aug 2008
Posts: 11339
PostPosted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 11:22 pm Reply with quote
I'm enjoying it a lot so far, and haven't seen its predecessors (and hope not to have to, since everything I can find on them seems to tell me I would not much enjoy those). I don't really feel lost or like I'm missing anything yet.

I did get a chuckle out of the end credits, where there are bits of dossiers and reports on Kyousuke and P.A.N.D.R.A., but one of them (which appears more than once) is nothing but lyrics from Beatles songs (Yellow Submarine, Michelle, Help, My Life, I'll Be Back). Smile
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HaruhiToy



Joined: 15 Apr 2008
Posts: 4118
PostPosted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 2:52 pm Reply with quote
I just caught up with the first three episodes and this is another one I will be following.

My first impression is that the story/plot's big weakness is that the central character Hyōbu seems pretty much invincible and omniscient. He barely gets out of breath no matter what the situation is, and there doesn't seem to be an entity that can threaten him in the slightest. He always is two steps ahead of everyone else. So how do you keep this from becoming boring?

It seems all pretty well done, so I'll stick with it to see if and how they develop it.
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bonbonsrus



Joined: 15 Oct 2003
Posts: 1537
Location: Michigan, USA
PostPosted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 4:01 pm Reply with quote
I am liking this show quite a bit and I am glad I am watching it while watching Zettai Karen Children, which I didn't think I would like much at first, but it has grown on me.

I think it's nice to see the "other side" of the equation, the bad guys, such as they are, where-as the other show focuses on the side of justice as it were.

Of course, this makes it thus far look as if it is hardly a clear cut case of good against bad, as does the first series give hints about this as well, but more of a misunderstanding between two different people group, and of course, those with the unusual powers will of course be suspect, ridiculed, and feared. Naturally they would be suspicious of Normals who have hurt and hunted them in the past.

I hear Hyobu make references to His Queen, which from watching the other series, I know what this refers to, and several of the characters are from both shows, so I am curious how much over lap there will be between the two. Over all, I am enjoying this and look forward to more!
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mad mac



Joined: 04 Jul 2009
Posts: 186
PostPosted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 6:06 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
My first impression is that the story/plot's big weakness is that the central character Hyōbu seems pretty much invincible and omniscient. He barely gets out of breath no matter what the situation is, and there doesn't seem to be an entity that can threaten him in the slightest. He always is two steps ahead of everyone else. So how do you keep this from becoming boring?

It seems all pretty well done, so I'll stick with it to see if and how they develop it.


Well he is the antagonist. Normally what keeps him in check are the good guys, who are no slouches themselves. Speaking of which, looks like the Children show up next week. Given the title, they might even have him running scared for a change. Smile

In the main show, there is one more group of even badder bad guys that give Kyousuke a lot of trouble, but I don't particularly expect them to show up in the spin-off.

Honestly, it's up in the air what Kyo will be up against primarily. So far he's just been beating up on regional chumps.
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mad mac



Joined: 04 Jul 2009
Posts: 186
PostPosted: Mon Jan 28, 2013 8:53 pm Reply with quote
I don't care what anyone says, episode 4 was awesome. Cool
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Rhyono



Joined: 03 Dec 2011
Posts: 1039
PostPosted: Mon Jan 28, 2013 11:48 pm Reply with quote
What happened to the original thread? I had posted in that one...

After having a brief encounter with The Children: I'm sure I wouldn't be a fan of the main series for this.
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Clarste



Joined: 06 Feb 2012
Posts: 426
PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2013 1:23 am Reply with quote
Rhyono wrote:
What happened to the original thread? I had posted in that one...


Oh good, I was afraid it was just my imagination.

Quote:
After having a brief encounter with The Children: I'm sure I wouldn't be a fan of the main series for this.


I think that's the correct choice. Although, to be fair, that's sort of the point. They're "The Children", emotionally immature brats who really shouldn't be doing this job except for the fact that they're ridiculously powerful. Andy's comments in this episode reflect a lot of the subtext of the original series, which is that spoiler[these are child soldiers being used as weapons by their government.]

Of course, that's all subtext, buried far beneath the text-text of them being whiny brats.
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Scytalle
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Joined: 03 May 2011
Posts: 52
PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2013 1:29 am Reply with quote
Can't say I'm surprised that the main characters from the original show finally made an appearance, and it was pretty much what I expected. I had thought about going back to watch it, but now I'm not too sure. Seems like its standard magical school girl fare, though if someone has seen it and wants to correct me, then by all means.

Regardless, I'm really liking this show. Hyobu is a really interesting character, though I can see myself tiring of his "unlimited" power.

As for our other main character, Andy. I'm a bit wary of him. He reminds me too much of Touma from To Aru Majutsu no Index. Negating other people's powers is a strong ability, don't get me wrong, but it doesn't make for very compelling fight choreography. I had hoped his eye had some really interesting abilities, but it doesn't really look like it.

All that said, this anime feels like a breath of fresh air. It's got attitude. Definitely looking forward to the next episode.
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Rhyono



Joined: 03 Dec 2011
Posts: 1039
PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2013 1:37 am Reply with quote
@Scytalle In the first episode, it looked like his eye was shifting between a crap ton of options. I bet he does have a lot more abilities than what he's even told his superiors about.

Hyobu definitely feels a lot like the Silver King from K, minus the complete irresponsibility.
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Divineking



Joined: 03 Jul 2010
Posts: 1293
PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2013 8:00 am Reply with quote
Scytalle wrote:
Can't say I'm surprised that the main characters from the original show finally made an appearance, and it was pretty much what I expected. I had thought about going back to watch it, but now I'm not too sure. Seems like its standard magical school girl fare, though if someone has seen it and wants to correct me, then by all means.



The original is more a parody of magical girl shows, though moreso the manga than the anime since the latter plays those aspects of it a bit more straight. It does have some pretty good material to it though, especially the whole theme of child soldiers that was briefly touched on this episode.
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mad mac



Joined: 04 Jul 2009
Posts: 186
PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2013 9:41 am Reply with quote
I liked that this episode showcased how powerful/effective The Children are, but it didn't get around to showing that they can be hilarious. More so in their middle school incarnations. Honestly everything skyrockets in quality after the timeskip and you won't get that from the original show. It's still good, though.

Quote:

Regardless, I'm really liking this show. Hyobu is a really interesting character, though I can see myself tiring of his "unlimited" power.


The odd thing is that his whole "Unlimited" thing is a gimmick exclusive to this anime. He doesn't have a super-boost mode at any point in the manga or original show.
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Scytalle
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Joined: 03 May 2011
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2013 4:41 pm Reply with quote
Rhyono wrote:
@Scytalle In the first episode, it looked like his eye was shifting between a crap ton of options. I bet he does have a lot more abilities than what he's even told his superiors about.


You're right. Since he also uses the eye to contact his boss, I would say it's fair to assume that he also has some other abilities.

I went back to the opening sequence and paused it when they showed his eye, and there are a total of six icons.

I took a screenshot of it

The purple one is the symbol for wifi, so that's probably the option he uses to communicate. I would guess the blue one is the ability he used in the newest episode that spoiler[negates all ESP powers in a person he touches for a brief period of time].

As for the other four, I'm not sure. There's a compass, the red one looks like a gear, the green one looks like a circuit, and the orange one, well that could also be what he uses to communicate, its got the wireless symbol.

I guess we're only a fourth of the way through the show, and we've already seen a third of the abilities (assuming that the six pictured here are the extent of what he can do). So I guess it's just a matter of waiting for next week.

Another interesting point I just thought of, is if he hasn't told his superiors about the rest of his abilities, then how much can he really trust them? It may seem obvious to us, as the viewer, that Hyobu's team is working for the good of all espers (or so they say), but Andy has presumably been preparing for this mission and working against them for a long time. If there is already some sort of indication of Andy being distrustful of them, then perhaps it won't be all that hard for him to start to take Hyobu's side (presuming that's the angle this show is going to take).
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tuxedocat



Joined: 14 Dec 2009
Posts: 2183
PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2013 4:55 pm Reply with quote
@ Scytalle - Wow, nice work and attention to detail! Thanks for the screencap.

I wonder if Andy's eye is an actual esper "ability"? It looks more like a cybernetic prosthesis, rather than something he was born with.
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HaruhiToy



Joined: 15 Apr 2008
Posts: 4118
PostPosted: Mon Feb 04, 2013 7:19 pm Reply with quote
Episode 5.

It looks like they are doing a pretty good job at setting up a moral quandary for Andy. My guess is that in the end spoiler[he is not going to betray the espers.]

This is a good example of an anime that improves after the 3rd episode.
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