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REVIEW: Kill la Kill [Limited Edition] BD+DVD 4


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Jayhosh



Joined: 24 May 2013
Posts: 972
Location: Millmont, Pennsylvania
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2015 10:11 am Reply with quote
The episodes that these final two volumes cover are definitely my favorite of the series. It's shame I can't afford them at the moment, hopefully sometime in the summer though. And you perfectly explained why the show's tonal transition worked as well as it did. It even managed to somewhat competently explain the reasoning behind a lot of the shows --- *ahem* --- quirks. The episodes are also what boosted Satsuki into my list of all time favorite anime characters, and she was already so badass before that anyway. What can I say? I'm a sucker for the eyebrows.
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TarsTarkas



Joined: 20 Dec 2007
Posts: 5823
Location: Virginia, United States
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2015 10:58 am Reply with quote
Sometimes I just get tired of always hearing about how inappropriate anime is. Yes, it is understandable that some find such scenes as wrong. Nothing wrong with not liking something, everyone has their own personal feelings on the matter.

Perhaps I am just too old, having gotten into anime when I was young, when the appeal of anime was that it was everything western animation wasn't. Also that it delved more into SciFi and Fantasy than TV did at the time.

I have no problem with such scenes. The real world is far more horrible, and I don't need to be coddled or have my anime mainstreamed down to reflect western PC mores and sensitivities.

I did enjoy the review. Kill la Kill is one of my major favorite series and I liked what was said about the animation and how they handled the transition.
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Greed1914



Joined: 28 Oct 2007
Posts: 4420
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2015 11:03 am Reply with quote
I'm glad to see somebody else had the same reaction to the song "Blumenkranz" as I did. I found myself looking forward to Ragyo's appearances because of it.

The bathing scene definitely left me saying, "Uuuuh, what was that?" The cage scene didn't seem quite as off-putting for some reason.


I'll give the show credit in setting up Satsuki's motivations and why she acted as she did toward Ryuko. It did a great job of avoiding the cliche of spoiler["a worse villain appeared so now we have to team up."][/spoiler]
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Gasero



Joined: 24 Jul 2009
Posts: 939
Location: USA
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2015 11:24 am Reply with quote
The tonal shift was definitely jarring, but I can't say I shouldn't have expected it considered what Trigger did for Gurren Lagann. Luckily Kill La Kill bounced back after these "weird" episodes.

The extras in the disc sets sound great, but I think I am still gonna wait for a full collection.
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_Cyphon_



Joined: 16 Nov 2014
Posts: 996
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2015 11:24 am Reply with quote
Kill la Kill is probably one of the wackiest anime up to date. I mean, where else can you find an anime where humanity fights against clothing? Of course, it isn't for everyone, but I personally enjoyed it a lot.
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Angel M Cazares



Joined: 23 Sep 2010
Posts: 5420
Location: Iscandar
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2015 11:33 am Reply with quote
Gasero wrote:
but I think I am still gonna wait for a full collection.

I am not sure that is going to happen. Besides the Durarara!! BD box, Aniplex USA does not do rereleases of series previously released in singles/volumes.
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Hameyadea



Joined: 23 Jun 2014
Posts: 3679
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2015 12:20 pm Reply with quote
This show is one of the more recent animes that done the "over the top" element in an funny and interesting way, and not watered-down to a "oh, look. It's craaaaazy, imma right?" thing, IMO.
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residentgrigo



Joined: 23 Dec 2007
Posts: 2417
Location: Germany
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2015 2:18 pm Reply with quote
This is where the anime started to lose big time. The continuety and and mood became wildly uneven but Satsuki wasn´t raped even if the show made it look like incestuous porn i will add.
She had her chakra gates opened and pain by her new suit was releases but it of course looks like a fingering session. Ryuko has similar scene later and turning an empowerment fantasy into a disempowerment one is a bad idea.
Whatever and there have been enough discussion about that aspect. Grade: C
If you want to see real Hiroyuki Imaishi rape porn then read the abhorred Panty and Stocking manga specials which are hardcore yuri porn and drawn by him. Sigh.
How did the people make Gurren Lagann again? Ninja Slayer better bring it.


Last edited by residentgrigo on Fri Apr 03, 2015 6:45 pm; edited 1 time in total
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DangerMouse



Joined: 25 Mar 2009
Posts: 3982
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2015 5:17 pm Reply with quote
Jayhosh wrote:
The episodes that these final two volumes cover are definitely my favorite of the series. It's shame I can't afford them at the moment, hopefully sometime in the summer though. And you perfectly explained why the show's tonal transition worked as well as it did. It even managed to somewhat competently explain the reasoning behind a lot of the shows --- *ahem* --- quirks. The episodes are also what boosted Satsuki into my list of all time favorite anime characters, and she was already so badass before that anyway. What can I say? I'm a sucker for the eyebrows.


Agreed, they did a great job making the transition work as well as it did (similarly to Gurren Lagann as well as the review also mentioned) and I too loved Satsuki, the reveals about what she was up to spoiler[both with Ryuko and overall] the whole time was also great and made me like her even more.

Greed1914 wrote:
I'm glad to see somebody else had the same reaction to the song "Blumenkranz" as I did. I found myself looking forward to Ragyo's appearances because of it.

I'll give the show credit in setting up Satsuki's motivations and why she acted as she did toward Ryuko. It did a great job of avoiding the cliche of spoiler["a worse villain appeared so now we have to team up."]


So much yes to both of these Smile

And even if it may have been used a bit often, I also still love "Before My Body is Dry", Ryuko's/the show's main theme for her big moments.
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jr240483



Joined: 24 Dec 2005
Posts: 4374
Location: New York City,New York,USA
PostPosted: Fri Apr 03, 2015 9:46 pm Reply with quote
i definitely wasnt impressed. sure ragyo is a seriously twisted villain and definitely no mother of the year. but for one thing i didn't see anything out of the ordinary with the so called bathing scene.

Sure its highly labeled in fanservied ,but nothing from what i saw can relate as mother/daughter incest, and even if there were something incestious,i highly doubt it will offend some.it will offend to be sure,but not a lot of fabs.especially hardcore otakus that have been watching a lot more offensive things in the 90's. though the last two eps definitely are degrading in some ways and i can definitely understand why people love to loathe ragyo.

though its as i said in the forum during Vol 3's review. there is no way she would ever outdo the BS parenting skils that Medusa and Gendo did to their kids. now those two are serious parents from hell.

and from the looks of thing it kinds feels like their making those two (Ryuko & Kryurin) similar to kamina "the shell bullet" and that holy douchbag from S-cry-ed.
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ThatGuyWhoLikesThings



Joined: 04 Jul 2013
Posts: 1005
PostPosted: Sat Apr 04, 2015 12:37 am Reply with quote
Never liked Ragyo at all.

She was gross, her motivations were bland, and she was completely ridiculous even by the usual KLK standards. She was hilariously campy, but that's about it. I'd like to say her theme is fantastic, but I read the lyrics and, despite the song being associated with Ragyo, it seems like it has much more to do with Satsuki.

I found Nui was way better. Even Lordgenome and the Anti-Spiral from Gurren Lagann were just all around better villains, and calling Lordgenome a villain is a stretch.

And she's one of my few major complaints with the series as well. I do honestly, generally really enjoy Kill la Kill, but character-wise, Ragyo is easily the weakest link. She's a poor man's (or woman's) Medusa.

Actually that's not really accurate because those 2 have very little in common, besides being awful mothers.

But yeah, besides her, this segment of the story was very well-done. I love how Satsuki's entire plan was essentially revealed to the audience in the first episode, and she even repeats those words in episode 19(?) just to hammer the point home. Only now, they take on an entirely new meaning.

Fun Fact: In the very first episode, as soon as Ryuko is shown wearing Senketsu, Blumenkranz is briefly heard.

I personally found it weird how spoiler[Mikisugi never ended up being a villain.] The guy can look pretty oddly sinister sometimes.
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leafy sea dragon



Joined: 27 Oct 2009
Posts: 7163
Location: Another Kingdom
PostPosted: Sat Apr 04, 2015 1:30 am Reply with quote
The cover for this volume will be quite the spoiler for anyone who hasn't followed the series up to this point.

I remember thinking, when I first went through the series, how they were going to top Satsuki and the Elite Four in very powerful characters. The moment I saw Ragyo open her closet and it was full of what seems to be Kamui, I could see her being on a whole different level. Hiroyuki Imaishi is really good at making me wonder how he'd outdo himself, as he did repeatedly in Gurren Lagann.
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residentgrigo



Joined: 23 Dec 2007
Posts: 2417
Location: Germany
PostPosted: Sat Apr 04, 2015 8:19 am Reply with quote
ThatGuyWhoLikesThings you make good point but this is also where the story starts to not link anymore to the first half and i hated how the show went serious for a moment moment and then went just kidding you guys to go dark again and then... so i stopped to care. I wonder if Dead Leaves and more importantly Panty & Stocking would have fallen apart if they were longer?
Probably yes so Trigger go 13 eps. next time for me to care again or don´t as you made all the money. I also disagree that the show was THAT crazy as it was just all of Gainax and 70/80s tropes rolled into one. 90s MTV toons were similar, FCLC is more insane/better, the avarage Nouvelle Manga is more experimental so look up a Grant Morrison (used to take drugs before writing) or Alejandro Jodorowsky comic/movie to see true madness.

Edit: I as a man found KLK very sexist later on (but it is an ecchi series to start with). The best aspect is the ending animation but these themes were never explored and finale where it is remade feels hollow as the biggest character growth was them accepted exhibitionism into their hearts:roll: . The ova was even more vapid with it´s plot important haircut.
Well some Cutey Honey manga which this one also apes have futanari rape so we could have gotten WAY worse. Eh.
I recommend Love in the Hell and Dr.Slumpis to see how ecchi is done without throwing characters under the bus. All-Rounder Meguru and Teppuu are about female MMA and you can´t get more emancipated then that. GitS Arise, his Panty & Stocking, Psycho Pass and the Woman Called Fujiko Mine are lastly modern examples that were way better towards women but like i said it´s the thrown together writing that drained me as was very much onboard for the first half. I wonder if Imaishi will do "real" porn one day as he has drawn pornographic manga.


Last edited by residentgrigo on Sat Apr 04, 2015 2:16 pm; edited 2 times in total
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Akane the Catgirl



Joined: 09 Oct 2013
Posts: 1091
Location: LA, Baby!
PostPosted: Sat Apr 04, 2015 9:36 am Reply with quote
As a female fan of Kill la Kill, I've noticed that when most people argue that the show is sexist, they tend to conveniently forget that there's actually plenty of equal opportunity fanservice. How many times have we seen Sanageyama's naked butt? How many shirtless scenes do we have of Gamagoori? Need we also forget Aikuro Mikisugi, personification of man-service?

The thing is, our society has conditioned us into believing that depictions of nudity- regardless of what context it's in or how it's framed- is automatically sexual. This is not always the case with KlK. Nudity is not only used for titillation, but for comedy, drama, and even symbolism in certain places. My point is, KlK likes naked bodies, regardless of what sex the character is.

Are there places where the fanservice is tonally inappropriate? Sometimes. Are there a few shots or scenes that could be taken the wrong way? The infamous "schoolgirl gets raped by uniform" meme can attest to that. For me, personally, the fantastic character writing for the leading ladies (Satsuki Kiryuuin in particular is a BAMF and don't you forget it) and overall positive messages about sexuality far outweigh any bad KlK may or may not have done.
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DangerMouse



Joined: 25 Mar 2009
Posts: 3982
PostPosted: Sat Apr 04, 2015 8:26 pm Reply with quote
ThatGuyWhoLikesThings wrote:
I personally found it weird how spoiler[Mikisugi never ended up being a villain.] The guy can look pretty oddly sinister sometimes.


He was good at that, lol Very Happy

ThatGuyWhoLikesThings wrote:
But yeah, besides her, this segment of the story was very well-done. I love how Satsuki's entire plan was essentially revealed to the audience in the first episode, and she even repeats those words in episode 19(?) just to hammer the point home. Only now, they take on an entirely new meaning.


This part was one of my favorites.

When you fully realize what she was upto the whole time and finally see it for yourself with her same words taking on whole new meaning spoiler[and her, to the audience, "change of sides"] it felt so satisfying, I still remember all of the theorizing with spoiler[how she interacted with Ryuko, the hints in her words after each battle to either Ryuko or her own men and of how far she'd take it or back off, how much the flashbacks emphasize how much loyalty she has for her elite four (and they to her) starting with the flashbacks to their previous school, the way Gamagori and later the others interactions with Ryuko and Mako began to change, like how in ep 8 you suddenly learn outside of the school Gamagori would backup anyone from Honnouji including even Mako and Ryuko and the theories that started leading to, etc.].

leafy sea dragon wrote:
The cover for this volume will be quite the spoiler for anyone who hasn't followed the series up to this point.

I remember thinking, when I first went through the series, how they were going to top Satsuki and the Elite Four in very powerful characters. The moment I saw Ragyo open her closet and it was full of what seems to be Kamui, I could see her being on a whole different level. Hiroyuki Imaishi is really good at making me wonder how he'd outdo himself, as he did repeatedly in Gurren Lagann.


Yeah, now that I think about it that's a great point, it seems like he's great at that, and also how he can do it in even the briefest intro scene, you immediately knew in both this and Gurren when a threat would be on the next level, despite the huge over-the-top displays of power already present prior in both shows which should potentially have made such a thing more difficult to get across.
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