Forum - View topicEpisode Review: Akame ga KILL!
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Gina Szanboti
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He was supposed to use his invisibility to sneak in and kill the Minister, but then he just kicks the door in, which kinda shot that plan in the head... I guess it wouldn't have worked anyway, because of the personal barrier the Minister had? |
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ryanvamp
Posts: 416 |
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I think it was a good final episode; like I said in previous posts the biggest weakness the series has is indeed Akame, and her winning the battle with what it's basically a big plot-hole doesn't help her case. She was always my main gripe and the last episode only enhanced this. At least the fight was quite decent, and Esdeath final moments were a testament to the inner contradiction she could never figure out (even Akame points this out).
On the other hand, I disagree with those that have stated Tatsumi's and Leone's death were badly executed or made no sense: they both ilustrated night raid's determination and ultimate goals & specifically in Leone's case it mades a very strong point of "no matter the amount of injustice a goverment pours on an oppressed population, it will eventually all come back to them at full force". Once again like others said, I think her dying in her own terms was nice and her wounds really seemed fatal. If anything you could say it breaks your suspension of disbelief how she lasted that long but...it's Akame ga Kill, it was never realistic to begin with. I liked that there was never a single hint of chemistry between Akame & Tatsumi. Sometimes THIS is what creators shove down our throats just to justify the female character's existence in the plot. Whatever shortcomes Akame has, making her the last romantic pairing would have made things even worse. On the other hand, I do believe keeping Akame & the blond guy in Jaegers alive had no point whatsoever (except making the ending less of a downer). As a sidenote, expecting the staff to show how the new goverment will start to rebuild the institutional system is naive...it's not the kind of series to attempt that. As a final note, I wonder about Theron's final paragraph about the whole series. Indeed, the series isn't particularly smart nor it's trying to be anything but entertainment; but I also think the dramatic moments and the simple approach to its themes did work. The production values were quite decent and it had almost no filler. I'd call "dumb" a series that actually attempts to be intelligent and mature with a thick coat of pretentiousness only to fall apart by not being consistent at all about character development and lacks satisfying closure of the themes it was trying to get across. |
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18189 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Nah, when I use "dumb" in reference to series or episode content, I'm usually referring to content which entertains almost exclusively at a base level; it's not something that you ever need to think about to enjoy.
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HaruhiToy
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Have we had a resolution to a harem anime like this since School Days?
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itachi06103570
Posts: 200 |
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From what I seen lately past 2010 when school days had it's debut I should say not really |
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DRosencraft
Posts: 665 |
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I will first say that most series are only as smart as the thought viewers are willing to put into them. While all shows try to balance the information/education/theoretical side with the entertainment side, they often raise questions and present answers to them, leaving the viewer to determine the value and validity. I'll just leave that assertion at that.
Most series that deviate from their source material tend to fall flat on their face. There are countless examples of this. I remember Pandora Hearts particularly for this because it tracked a similar path to Akame ga Kill in terms of how it synced up with its manga source until about the same episode number when they deviate. I think AgK has done a much better job of it. There isn't a complete sync, but the pre and post breaks match up very well in terms of continuity of tone and content. I like the track the manga is taking better, but this isn't a bad way for the anime to go either. Criticism of the response to Tatsumi's death looks too much at his death, and not enough at those left to mourn him. There are only three Night Raid members left, one of whom was not exactly present to be seen mourning anyway (Leone). Of the last two, Najenda and Akame have not been exactly shown to be ones to start bawling or anything like that. It's not unreasonable that there wouldn't be a lot of fanfare about his death, seeing as the fanfare around other's deaths have mostly come from him in the first place. Esdeath's fight does stretch some bounds of thought, but it isn't all that improbable given her story. At one later point she shoots a blade of ice from her severed arm, so it's entirely plausible she avoided bleeding to death by freezing the end of the arm. Furthermore, it has been made clear almost from the start that Esdeath was obsessed with Tatsumi at an insane level. The only question going in to the episode was would she try to go to him at the start or the end of her fight with Akame. He's dead, she recognizes she's's dying, it fits with everything we know about her and her insane infatuation with Tatsumi to at least in her final moments have him. In a strange credulity, the manga's handling of the interactions between them, and in particular the whole capture/execution for Tatsumi, would have made a better case. The anime just didn't have enough time to get all this in, which leads to a question on the way the anime was compressed into a breadth of episodes it perhaps wasn't fully suited for. Akame's trump seems a little haphazard. It's not so much that it's a question of how she activated it - there are any number explanations that can be given. But as a trump, it doesn't seem to be particularly suited to her or Murasame. I suppose it is wishful thinking that they would have come up with something more original or fantastical than basically a limited power boost. Compared to it's normal ability to poison to death anything it cuts, a power boost to the user fits, but seems a bit simplistic. Leone's death is fitting of her, and of the story. Given the depravity and selfishness of the PM, it is entirely logical that he would save a trump like the ability to take away an Imperial Arms for himself. Furthermore, it makes sense that there would at least be some limitation on such a powerful tool. Being a single use, or having a dramatic cool-down time makes sense, otherwise it would be far too overpowered a weapon. He shot Leone with what basically looked like a flintlock pistol. There wasn't even a penetration of her body. Given her physical fitness, it isn't unreasonable that she could move around relatively normally for a while only to die later. She was bandaged, so she wasn't about to bleed to death, and bullets don't automatically kill. Given the era of the gun used, it's comparable to the American Civil war, where you had more people dying of the infections to their bullet wounds than the bullets themselves. That the last two Jaegers were in the new regime is not unusual. Often times members of the fallen government become parts of the transitional government. Given their personal leanings, it makes sense they would be rolled into the fold. That Akame leaves at the end is fitting. They make an important nod to the fact that the Revolutionary Army likely did some not-so righteous things, so Akame becomes the scapegoat (again, something common in revolutions). They played it rather cheesy though. They tried to force it too much with the wrap-up, making a note of showing her one last time fighting some unnamed enemies we can easily assume she slaughters. |
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Calsolum
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well after watching Ep 21 I prematurely decided that this show was going to be a train wreck considering how they previously introduced the PMs son only to immediately kill him, excluded Runs past and reading for joining the army, and my personal most hated scene was the anticlimactic and silly defeat of (say it with me in a dramatic voice) the "Great General Budo". Yeah i ragequit(ted?) at that point and told all my friends about how silly it became and they supported me But when i saw the last episode came out and saw i had nothing else to watch and id just watched Psycho Pass so i couldn't feel any worse right?
wrong i could feel worse, i felt like a complete idiot for abandoning AgK (well not so much after all ep21 did hit me hard). The conclusion has me eating my words and not with a fork either no i have to use my hands a messily shove the words down my throat. Well disgusting food metaphor aside, I must say this was perhaps the best "original" ending for a TV series that I’ve seen in like ... ever(nothing comes to mind). I was so elated about the ending that i was almost ready to give this series a 10/10 and i was gonna go mention it in the comments. Then i started reading and the little inconsistencies hit me, well i read them really. i only read the comments that started from Dec 14th and from what i gather leatherhead333, gedata and dtm42, You guys really didn't like this ending did you? Well you guys had alot to say and i have alot to respond to; but to prevent my post from becoming a short story (wonder if u can get banned for writing too much?) I'll only prod at the small things. The PMs Imperial Arms was definitely a one use only Imperial Arms so it makes sense that hed save it till the absolute last possible moment when he had nothing to rely on but his ridiculously flabby and probably high cholesterol body. As to how he knew how it worked, he was a key part of the empire and where did the Imperial Arms originate from? So it stands to reason that there might be some documentation on what the imperial arms could do without having to actually use it. The leones body thing was explained so i just wanna say i support what DRosencraft reasoned Esdeath x Tatsumi that is a really... complicated... subject I’d like to cover all my bases on this put I’ll just abridge it and say It was well done. Esdeath refused to compromise and continued to be a sadistic tormentor despite the many opportunities she her to take the 'right' path, even when the empire fell she stayed true to her established character (google "the scorpion and the frog"). As for akame's 'surprise' powerup it... didn't really seem surprising, many Imperial Arms had a trump (Bols, Run, Susanoo). My interpretation is that cutting yourself was a final gamble move cause if your conviction wasn't strong enough it'd kill you like any other victim at no point of the story was she ever as determined enough to actually risk it (the most crucial moment of Night raid's and the empire's existence, tatsumi just died, exdeath is gonna set the world... afreeze?) Although instead of demonic strength id have preferred if it was explained as when her body is exposed to the inevitable fate of death her body ignores all bodily limitations and she unlocks 100% of her strength (side effects include ripping your body to shreds in the process and almost immediate death). This does make me think that she should have died at the end instead of fighting nameless enemies but oh well cant win em all. now for my actual response to the review(yes all of that was just a looong prelude) gonna be quick(er) now loved the final fight the blood flicking was definitely one of the best battles in anime history her resourcefulness (FMA spoiler ahead) spoiler[ reminded me of wrath along with his tenacity ]I thought only direct hit to vital organs would be able to kill exdeath since she might freeze or expel the blood but that may be exploited in the manga The emperor died in the best way possible despite wanting to cry he held it in and accepted his sins knowing that while he acted with the best of intentions and was horribly fooled, though unintentional he had far too much innocent(this is the key part) blood on his hands to deserve any less. I only hope his manga counterpart will meet his demise as nobly as he did those 3 girls in the parade and seeing bol's wife and daughter actually made me tear up more than anything in the anime so far, their fates in the mangaspoiler[ hit me as pointlessly cruel and I'm glad to see that they made it to the capital safely. I could almost forgive the author for granting the Air's death wish(no. no I really can't) "when I'm reborn,... I hope that this world... would be a kinder place..."] and well said DRosencraft you beat to the punch on alot of points I’m glad for that finally if you’ll excuse me I’ve got to go back consuming the words I spat out weeks ago |
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leatherhead333
 Posts: 1187 Location: Kansas |
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I'm fairly certain I did pay attention. I know what your interpretation of Tatsumi x Esdeath is. She can't comprehend why she loves him. That's fine. But what exactly about that is interesting if you aren't going to go any further than that? Why would that alone make her a compelling character? I've already explained why their relationship has been FAR from subtle because of how over the top it is. The relationship would have been far more interesting if we spent more time with Esdeath watching her battle with this new conflict she was not used too. I'm sure someone is probably going to chime in and say "Love is an unexplainable thing" but when you actually explain the reasons a character loves someone it becomes much easier to root for them to be together despite their situation since you can relate to it. As is their relationship is about as compelling the couple in "Swan Princess" where the only reason the male lead loved the female lead was because of her looks. Despite what you may think I was semi routing for Esdeath x Tatsumi at the end of the deserted island. There were just so many possibilities that opened up from there. I never expected Esdeath to turn good but what I did want was for her mindset to be constantly challenged by the things Tatsumi says to her. Turns out she's only conflicted because she loves Tatsumi not because she might be wrong in how she sees the world. The fact they made her a stone cold "I will never change" villain sort of ruins the entire setup. |
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vladthetransilvanian
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I gotta say that this show was a ton of fun and I think some people are overreacting with their complaints(and yes, I am a manga reader). My favourite part was when Akame was attacking Esdeath at high speed. It reminded me of when Rock Lee took his weights of against Gaara.
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Calsolum
Posts: 898 |
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@leatherhead333
Peraonally i thought she was a great character and there wasn't enough time in the anime to explore her thought process because they were working with a tight schedule. And she loved him because he was cute, thought she could bring out his full potential, liked watching him grow, found him to be an incredible fighter who could meet her expectations, she liked his innocent personality but indomitable will when it came to his beliefs, and finally someone she could respect as an equal and not a subordinate or dog. So theres my personal explanation as to why Exdeath loved tatsumi so much, coupled with the fact that there's probably no one else in the world let alone the empire that can fill this criteria I think even her obsessive nature over him becomes understandable. |
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HaruhiToy
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At the end her character was shortchanged and a bit of a disappointment. She pretty much died as she started -- a berserker brute that only sought fighting for the sake of it and that she was unable to comprehend anything else. Understandable but trite. Even Kenpachi from Bleach did better I think. As you say it was probably time constraints that kept them from writing anything better for her. Her dissolving with her Tatsumi really didn't do it for me but at least Akame's epitaph for her was reasonably well done. |
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ChibiKangaroo
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Thank you Theron for the well thought out and well articulated review.
So, what is my overall take on AgK? After watching the final episode, I felt completely satisfied in many, many ways. I was satisfied with the high-energy, action packed final duel between Akame and Esdeath. I was satisfied with how Esdeath's obsession with Tatsumi (and the way it was completely inconsistent with her world-view) was addressed and even highlighted by Akame spoiler[after Esdeath died]. I was satisfied with Leone being the one spoiler[to smash the PM's face into a bloody pulp, and with her dying on her own terms after watching the people in her slum celebrating their chance for a new future.] I was satisfied with the fact that Tatsumi's death was not put on some kind of pedestal. This show has never been one to over-dramatize anyone's death, and it was just so amazing and refreshing to me that EVEN the main character's death was played off just as simple as everyone else's deaths. I've never seen that in an anime before. They didn't go on and on and have some statue built in his image in the new capital. They even added the amazing touch toward the very end with the people in Tatsumi's village NOT EVEN KNOWING that he is dead. The staging of that scene was even artistically satisfying, with the snow falling all around them as they said Tatsumi and his friends are coming home. Of course, spoiler[Tatsumi's body had been vaporized into ice by Esdeath after they died], so the snow falling on his village was just this great symbolism and amazingly subtle! I was satisfied with the emperor spoiler[coming to terms with his failures and accepting his sentence after the revolution was over. The show could have easily forgotten about him and just left him as dead in his super mech imperial arms. Or they could have taken the easy way out and had the people forgive him and give him another chance. He is, in fact, a cute little kid and didn't understand the wrongs he was committing. It would be easy enough to make him sympathetic to us and let him turn things around. Instead, they actually wrapped up his arc with a dignified fait accompli. Again, it wasn't overly dramatized. He walks to the gallows, asks Najenda to build a better future, and the guillotine falls.] Done. It worked. Honestly, I think the complaints about Akame's power up are silly. I agree with those who have said that her earlier comment about not cutting herself could have easily been her protecting her secret from some guy she just met. She is, after all, a trained assassin who has been an assassin since she was a little girl. That is well established. Why would she reveal her most important trump card to the new guy, let alone ANYONE? No. It made sense for her to conceal that by pretending that her weapon was deadly to her as well. Before I finish, just another comment on that Akame x Esdeath battle. That was bad ass, and the staging of the battle was just amazingly well executed. You can tell that someone really thought through and plotted the exact manner of building that baby to a crescendo. They start off with just their swords, clashing, parrying, slicing, flipping, etc... You might think, "oh man this is just a normal sword fight, but still kind of nicely choreographed." But then Esdeath escalates things. She starts shooting ice shards at Akame. She starts using ice walls and ice swords to block and counterattack. Akame adjusts, using her superior agility and speed to dodge and strike. You're like, "okay, this is starting to get more intense. Cool." Then things escalate again - Esdeath starts shooting huge ice pillars at Akame from various angles and dropping ice meteors on her. Akame is starting to get overwhelmed. It's all she can do just to dodge the insane onslaught. That's when she finally pulls out her trump card, when she is barely still standing. Even then, both of them still have to go all-out just to keep pace. spoiler[Esdeath CUTS OFF HER OWN ARM to stop Akame's cut from killing her. Then she starts shooting ice pillars out of her arm stump!] That was some ridiculously crazy stuff right there!! Even at the end, spoiler[they are evenly matched and Akame only seems to win by tricking Esdeath into freezing one of her after-images. After striking the final blow, Akame sagely comments that Esdeath lost because her blood lust caused her to blindly focus on killing that frozen after image.] How anyone could be unsatisfied with that fantastic battle is beyond me. That was the best show-down I have seen in years. The stuff I've gone over so far would have been enough for me to feel fully pleased with how this show ended, but then the writers went even further. They wrapped up all remaining plot threads. spoiler[Night Raid is disbanded after the remaining members say their farewells. Akame offers to take the blame for all of the crimes committed by the revolutionary army, leaving her as a "wanted woman" and allowing Najenda to start reshaping the capital. Tatsumi's village is saved.] We even see random children in the capital looking on with hope in their eyes, like maybe there is now a future for them. (It was also such a nice touch that there were three girls in particular who seemed to resemble Sheele, Mine, and Leone, directly speaking to the hope that their futures won't be as dark as those three Night Raid members'). (One other thing! I didn't even realize at first that the other little girl and mother were Bols' family. That was a very nice touch by the writers to not forget them in the end. They really tried to think of everything here!) We even got final commentary on Night Raid via narration, reinforcing the thankless, vigilante nature of their exploits and reminding us that their efforts will go largely unknown and/or forgotten by the populace. They died nameless, faceless tools of the revolution, but their sacrifices were not in vain. It is a fantastic, bittersweet commentary in my opinion. The bonus scene after the credits with Akame being hunted and continuing to fight to stay alive was just icing on the cake for me. Is Akame ga Kill! a perfect series? No. Not by any means. There is SO much more they could have done if they had more episodes. But for a 24 episode series, this was a fantastic romp, and it was actually CONCLUDED in a satisfying way with actual careful thought put into how to achieve closure. I had a ton of fun watching this show, and will not soon forget it. |
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Wrangler
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Given the track record on things, I would image that there will be a film of some sort done with the franchise.
The ending was proprate, making the series being a rare bird of reasonable story telling with little less predictable surprises aside from the body count. |
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leatherhead333
Posts: 1187 Location: Kansas |
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Actually Wave could probably fill the criteria since he's a Tatsumi clone  .
While most of what your saying is probably true you are wrong about a couple things. Esdeath had a great deal of respect for all her subordinates. She always put them on even footing with her and it was only when they died that she deemed them weak. The fact she tells them to kill Tatsumi if it comes down to it shows this. I agree with the molding him into a capable fighter but I don't think Esdeath ever respected Tatsumi's beliefs since she blatantly brushed off his remarks most of the time. She deemed his ideals to be that of the "weak". Instead of listening to him she instead tries everything she can to simply bargain him to her side. One of the things that sadly never changed in their relationship.
.............. What? Did you forget how dramatized Sheele's was especially WHILE she was dying?
But that's merely an assumption. It's not like the manga can back up this statement either. There was really no subtle indication that this was possible. She's been in close near death fights before. And since unleashing it's power apparently has NO repercussions why wouldn't she use it sooner? If she can take on Esdeath in this form she could have easily destroyed any of her troublesome opponents. Plus hiding a powerup that gives you increased speed, power and durability isn't exactly something that you'd need to keep secret. Esdeath's freezing time makes sense to use as a trump card since it's indeed an ability that can be countered. But how exactly do you come up with a way to counter someone who simply increases their own natural power? That makes no sense. Akame didn't reveal a super secret move during their fight so there is literally NO REASON to not have used it before. DBZ would be pretty strange if the characters just hid their super saiyan powers every fight because they didn't want the enemy to counter...............a powerup? 
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Key
Moderator
Posts: 18189 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Not really a good example, since DBZ is notorious for either establishing or strongly promoting some of shonen action series' worst habits on this (like the unwritten rule that you don't interrupt someone's power-up, for instance). Besides, DBZ heroes and villains alike often had to be coaxed into revealing their ultimate powers. |
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