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Blood-
Bargain Hunter
Joined: 07 Mar 2009
Posts: 24034
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Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 2:05 pm
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I think your reasoning is completely plausible, Tuor. Again, the only thing stopping me from accepting it completely is that most anime tends not to be quite that subtle - in most shows, if Kyouhei was responsible, we'd probably see some reaction shot of him indicating he was doing something. Now, I consider Kamisama Dolls to be a cut above the run-of-the-mill, so maybe they'd forgo doing something as obvious as providing a "meaningful" reaction shot. I hope so. I think your theory is cool and would enrich the story.
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Beltane70
Joined: 07 May 2007
Posts: 3945
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Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 4:27 pm
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I wonder, then, if Kyouhei could have subconsciously caused Kukuki to react to the last attack.
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Tuor_of_Gondolin
Joined: 20 Apr 2009
Posts: 3524
Location: Bellevue, WA
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Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 5:30 pm
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Maybe, Beltane, but I think he did it intentionally. We'll find out one way or another before long, I think. Kyouhei didn't seem all frantic the way his sister did. He looked pretty calm throughout the whole thing, except maybe being annoyed with the way his sister was freaking out.
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tribulations
Joined: 03 Jul 2011
Posts: 11
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Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 5:45 pm
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I think I love this show. The only thing I truly dislike about it is that the episodes don't come out fast enough. Kuuko is rapidly becoming my favorite character of the season. There needs to be more of her. Also, agreed on that she and Aki would make a cute couple.
I dunno, my theory for Kukuri's awesome beam of Kakeshi-shattering proportions is that the Dolls don't just have a physical bond with their Seki, but a mental one as well. Maybe when Utao fell into despair about almost losing the fight, Kukuri switched over to having Kyouhei as its master instead. Maybe it can't operate without its masters confidence, and can switch to its past handler if it deems the fizzled-out Seki unworthy. All right, I'm probably over thinking this...
Anyone else think that Aki and Kyouhei tried to control Amaterasu, which led to Aki's insanity and Kyouhei's apparent denial of the disaster that happened?
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EmbraceMe
Joined: 17 Dec 2010
Posts: 2017
Location: Growing old and jaded.
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Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 6:19 pm
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That big breast girl still has me distract... I can't remember her name... Ugh. I think it'd be best if the animators shrunk her breast size so I wouldn't be distracted...
I'm actually enjoying this show quite a bit, not too much being revealed at once but little hints of events that are occurring. I can't really speculate with subtle hints but it's still interesting to have various ideas.
Gah, had to catch up to many episodes of anime. I've been too lazy to watch simulcasts and saved them for later.
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Tuor_of_Gondolin
Joined: 20 Apr 2009
Posts: 3524
Location: Bellevue, WA
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Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 9:01 pm
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I also noticed that Kyouhei, in an internal monologue, asked Aki what he should do. Something like, "Aki, what should I do now?"
tribulations, you might be right about what Aki and Kyouhei did together. I'm pretty sure that whatever it was they did, they did it together and not in opposition to one another. The anger they have for one another now is, I think, a result of whatever it was that they did together.
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HaruhiToy
Joined: 15 Apr 2008
Posts: 4118
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2011 8:21 pm
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Having watched Episode 6, I can't put my finger on any one thing but it seems to me this anime is steadily improving. Earlier I had serious doubts but I have come around and am looking forward to seeing more.
One thing, they seem to have hit the right mix of serious and silly. I loved how Shiba nearly got stripped in mid-air. Even better is how she never actually gets exposed -- the animators know that just the predicament is enough and don't overdo it. Much more edgy -- but it still worked -- is when Utao gets her crotch grabbed by that tsundere girl. She sure draws a lot of unwanted attention no wonder she wants to get out of the village.
As for Utao's brother (at least we know the gender now) it seems there is quite a story there -- as much as Aki which is still pending. So there's plenty to keep watching for.
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Yttrbio
Joined: 09 Jun 2011
Posts: 3665
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Posted: Tue Aug 16, 2011 1:06 pm
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Flashback episode!
Quick sidenote: Is it just me or do the lyrics to Chiaki Ishikawa songs get more inane every year?
Judging from the songs, we get confirmation that Kyohei took over the doll from Utao at the end of the fight in episode 5.
I feel the "bad stuff happened in the past" card is being played in an incredibly heavy-handed manner, with people being horrible for no apparent reason but to elicit sympathy from the viewer.
And unfortunately, we don't get to see why Aki sees Kyohei as a comrade, which apparently involves events from before Aki lost his doll.
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter
Joined: 07 Mar 2009
Posts: 24034
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Posted: Wed Aug 17, 2011 6:54 am
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Yttrbio wrote: | I feel the "bad stuff happened in the past" card is being played in an incredibly heavy-handed manner, with people being horrible for no apparent reason but to elicit sympathy from the viewer. |
I disagree. The show has been consistently portraying the village as an effed up place where Seki are revered and the two main Seki families exert absolute power. All the so-called "heavy-handed" stuff that happened falls within that context. Main Bad Dude had been thwarted in his desire to be a Seki and was exactly the kind of a-hole likely to abuse that power once he got it. I also thought the sensei was portrayed in a more complex way then we normally get in anime.
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Tuor_of_Gondolin
Joined: 20 Apr 2009
Posts: 3524
Location: Bellevue, WA
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Posted: Wed Aug 17, 2011 9:41 am
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I thought it was a very good episode.
One thing (among many) I took away from it is that Kyouhei is a pretty immature guy, and that he hasn't really changed much since the tragedy with his sensei. He acted almost exactly the same way towards his sensei as he later did towards Hibino: like a little boy with a crush. He is prone to emotional outbursts, too, though not as much as his little sister. I suspect that what happened has emotionally scarred him and left him a bit emotionally stunted as well.
As an aside, I think that having strong emotions is *necessary* to be a Seki. In the previous episode, we are told that the wood is controlled by the Seki using their thoughts. Maybe people who are highly emotional have thoughts/desires that are more readily interpreted and processed by the wood -- that is, by the Kukuri. This would imply that the best Seki are the ones who have the fiercest emotions, which might also make them the most emotionally unstable. That might also explain why they are treated so carefully by the rest of the village: the people who protect the village are also the most emotionally unstable.
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HaruhiToy
Joined: 15 Apr 2008
Posts: 4118
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Posted: Wed Aug 17, 2011 10:44 am
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I need a bit of clarification on the body count. Did Aki end up slaughtering just the bullies that really deserved to be put down, or everyone who ran to witness at the commotion? It seemed pretty clear that some of the people who rushed to the scene realized that it was the bad guy who caused at least the initial murder. If Aki went and killed them, it changes how you think of the guy -- a berserker who really does need to be restrained. He is as dangerous to his allies as he is to his enemies.
As for this:
Quote: | we are told that the wood is controlled by the Seki using their thoughts. |
There are a lot of guys who control their wood that way. Sorry couldn't resist.
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Yttrbio
Joined: 09 Jun 2011
Posts: 3665
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Posted: Wed Aug 17, 2011 11:28 am
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HaruhiToy wrote: | I need a bit of clarification on the body count. Did Aki end up slaughtering just the bullies that really deserved to be put down, or everyone who ran to witness at the commotion? It seemed pretty clear that some of the people who rushed to the scene realized that it was the bad guy who caused at least the initial murder. If Aki went and killed them, it changes how you think of the guy -- a berserker who really does need to be restrained. He is as dangerous to his allies as he is to his enemies. |
I'm pretty sure he killed everyone there (though that would raise the question of how anyone found out that the bullies killed the sensei). He killed animals as a kid, and I think he killed the dude in the elevator in the first episode (if I recall correctly)... even if he's sympathetic, he's still murderously nuts.
Blood- wrote: | I disagree. The show has been consistently portraying the village as an effed up place where Seki are revered and the two main Seki families exert absolute power. All the so-called "heavy-handed" stuff that happened falls within that context. Main Bad Dude had been thwarted in his desire to be a Seki and was exactly the kind of a-hole likely to abuse that power once he got it. |
But it feels like the village is gratuitously effed up just so we can have scenes like this, which is what I mean by heavy-handed. How does a village like this tolerate a gang of punks growing up together and bullying folks? The dude became a Seki pretty recently, it seems. Wouldn't he have been smacked down by the evil controlling town, or his own family? Or do the Kuga have a hand-off method of raising kids, which leads to a surplus of psychos? I think I just have a natural aversion to that petty punk character, who shows up in all kinds of shows just to cheaply personify "adversity" for other young characters.
By the way, how has sensei "heard about" the dolls? Aren't they supposed to be some big secret to outsiders?
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter
Joined: 07 Mar 2009
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Posted: Wed Aug 17, 2011 11:47 am
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@ Yttrbio - again, I disagree with your assertion that the village is "gratuitously effed up." It is a village isolated from the rest of the world attempting to keep a big secret. Over the centuries, an artificial and stratified society has evolved in this insular little spot. To me, all the effed up stuff is entirely understandable and organic. There is nothing gratuitous about it. It's what the show is about. Having said all that, yes there is no doubt things like killing the dog or the implied rape of the teacher are designed to emotionally manipulate the viewer - as most story-telling does. This is not, and was never designed to be, a naturalistic, slice-of-life story. Sorry, I just find your contention that these elements are "gratuitous" or that, "people [are] being horrible for no apparent reason but to elicit sympathy from the viewer" misrepresents the show.
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Tuor_of_Gondolin
Joined: 20 Apr 2009
Posts: 3524
Location: Bellevue, WA
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Posted: Wed Aug 17, 2011 1:06 pm
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Yttrbio,
The sensei was hired by the village. I would assume that after the village decided to hire her, they informed her about what to expect (some of it) while working at the village. Since she was going to be living there, it would've been pointless to hide the existance of Kukuri from her.
The village doesn't seem unrealistic in its set up to me. It's old, insular, and "protected" by Kukuri. These things would lead to certain societal ramifications. The end result is that it is exactly like what Aki called it: a shithole.
As for Aki, I think he was treated pretty badly as a young child until they learned he had the ability to become a Seki. As a result, he grew up pretty warped. Then, apparently because the village elders felt he was *too* warped, they took away his Kukuri and gave it to someone else, and he was back being the (literal) bastard pariah we see in the opening scene of the episode.
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One-Eye
Joined: 08 Mar 2011
Posts: 2264
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Posted: Wed Aug 17, 2011 3:15 pm
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I have to say that I've been a bit surprised by this show. I wasn't too crazy about it after the first episode and didn't quite care for the design of the Doll (for some strange reason it made me think of Xam'd). Big boob girl is also a bit over enhanced and distracting. However, the show imho has managed to maintain an overall balance among all the elements (humor, cuteness, action, fan service, drama, etc.) it uses. I like that the last 2 episodes make it clear that everything might not be what it seems. I'm really starting to like this show and I'm really curious about that creepy village. Some people said that the village is "effed up", well that's only made me want to know why? Is it strictly because of the Seki's families and the power they have or is it something more?
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