Forum - View topicEP. REVIEW: Zombie Land Saga Revenge [2021-04-24]
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Sakagami Tomoyo
 Posts: 940 Location: Melbourne, VIC, Australia |
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While I am also curious as to her background, some characters work because they're a mystery, and revealing too much about them ruins that. If we do actually learn anything about her, I'd expect it to be in a dramatic finale. |
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Hiroki not Takuya
 Posts: 2512 |
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^Same! BTW, fun fact, a friend I have in Japan says Tae Yamada is one of their versions of "Jane Doe" but it is also a very common family name. Just that grave might or might not be her family's but if so, then eating the apple would be ironically appropriate. Someone mentioned Tae's VA not having lines but in the Op I think you hear her singing when Tae is featured as the VAs for Sakura and Yugiri I'm fairly sure are also singing when they are featured. I loved this Ep to DEATH...
@RenRen94-Great catch! Kotaro-san being such a nerdy guy in reality I could totally see that being the case, hence Tae being Zombie 0. Sakura was always going to be Zombie #1... |
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Panino Manino
 Posts: 734 |
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This episode #7 had another suggestion that Kotaro went to the same school as Sakura, and just like the bathroom accident he also mighty be involve in her death.
In the end of the episode we see the results of that reporter's investigation. I didn't saved the translations from those newspapers archives, but I remember the one about Sakura's death mentioning that the truck driver hit her after some shiny light suddenly obscured his vision. Maybe the flash of a camera? Maybe Kotaro was there taking photos of Sakura in secret and accidentally caused the accident? Anyway, fantastic episode indeed. Even after so much praise and recommendations that I give I'm sometimes surprised by how good ZLS is! I really liked Maimai, she left a strong impression and in the end they referenced Momoe Yamaguchi. Fair, her time with Franchouchou was legendary. |
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DuskyPredator
 Posts: 15457 Location: Brisbane, Australia |
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You know, we have had it referenced before along the lines of stand ins for marginalised people and queer readings for the members of Franchouchou, but I was just thinking if we can put direct groups onto the members? Maybe none of these are intended, but I might give a try for where metaphors might intercept.
Lily: An easy reading under this, she is a trans girls. Tae: with most readings of what she has represented, someone with a disability. Some people might be uncomfortable with her. Saki: Maybe that she is an ex-hooligan, perhaps along the theme of difficulty in a bath might be someone who got a tattoo as an act of rebellion and in the context of Japanese culture is. I am a little unsure what the last four might be. Sakura: was being more directly compared to normal high school girl Maimai, so she might represent someone more normal that went through something. Or maybe something more mental health relevant, since one of the main contrasts put between them was that Sakura was not an as happy person as Maimai in highschool, her stories had her overcome self doubt. Yugiri: is defined by two things, a woman out of time and a courtesan. I could probably more directly tie her to the courtesan thing, along the lines of how some might question her "purity" especially with regard to idols. Whether she might be called something like a prostitute. What I like about some of these readings is how the assumptions are in ways reversed. Like regardless of whether Lily has a penis (that should be no one's business, she is one of the most effortlessly girly of the group, and most certainly a girl. Tae might not be all cognitively there, but she has a heart of humanity in showing her emotions on her sleave when Sakura became secluded. Saki might be an ex-hooligan, but is most moved by what she thinks of as good causes and is childishly enthusiastic on things like her favourite restaurant or silly celebrity. Sakura even if as someone who has struggled with her own sense of self worth, maybe similar to depression, she is actually the most important for things like mental health of the other members, keeping them motivated, perhaps because she understands self doubt so well. And Yugiri, irrespective of certain senses of purity, is also very pure from her old style sense, and how she applies her people skills to not to help others, although maybe something will be more obvious next episode. I am not sure what marginalised groups Ai and Junko might represent. One of the defining traits of Junko seems to have been that she has some levels of social anxiety, which came to a head in things like how she was uncomfortable with getting right up in front of fans/strangers that idols might be expected to do. This is all despite the fact that Junko seems to be the most comfortable and confident at being able to perform by herself even in front of large crowds, that interacting with people can be hard, but can be the most confident in her "performance". But also along the lines of queer theory, I have also heard Junko being the most likely considered a lesbian, at least with some considerations to Ai, and the most flustered by certain topics like marriage even brought up, and Lily's situation. And I can't think of a direct marginalised group for Ai. her defining traits I can kind of think of are that she is kind of expected the most of high expectations, and that she both has to live up to them and maybe fears that she can't live up to them. Like how she overworked herself in season one, and it was one of the reasons that stopped her from joining in the group at first. Not sure how that can be spin though. As I said, I do fear that some of this is just be able to create a reading by looking for one. As a contrast, Maimai's thing kind of seemed that she is just clumsy, which you maybe be could read into not really being something marginalised, and why does not entirely fit. Last edited by DuskyPredator on Fri May 21, 2021 6:56 pm; edited 2 times in total |
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Covnam
 Posts: 3644 |
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Agreed. I thought they would have gone in a more interesting route if she couldn't keep up with the dance routine etc. |
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DuskyPredator
Posts: 15457 Location: Brisbane, Australia |
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Kind of just talking about myself right now, but thinking about Junko just made me think of a strange parallel I maybe share with her. I do have social anxiety, and as a weird quirk I have experienced before in comparison to others is that I have had less fear of doing something like a public speech than with some people who don't have such social anxieties. Which putting into words has had me think before along the lines that I can be so used to terrified talking to other people in general, that it is almost easier to talk to a group and consider the ordeal something like a performance, because I am so used to that anxiety of something going wrong.
Kind of thought that might be possible insight of how Junko can both be the most anxious interacting with other people, but the most confident doing a performance. Under any assumption of there being any similarity. |
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JoelBurger
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So she'd fail to pick up anything and then nothing would happen in the second half of the episode. Sounds like a really compelling story. |
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meiam
Posts: 3442 |
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This episode felt a "make-a-wish" episode where some fan of the show won a contest or something and asked to be in included in the show. It felt like a pointless detour, throw some random character in, just to yank her out right away and nothing of value was accomplished... Weird it kinda broke the nice run they were having with the last few episodes being really solid.
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killjoy_the
 Posts: 2459 |
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^ I actually went to look if Kana Hanazawa was from Saga and had a personal interest in participating
Since she apparently isn't, I took this even more cynically. They wanted a big VA name to do a song with Franchouchou, and this is how we got it |
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John the Dark Lord
Posts: 232 |
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If they wanted that so badly, it would be much easier to just have Tae awaken and sing something with the other girls. There aren't many seiyuu who can beat Kotono Mitsuishi in being a Big Name. Another important detail in the episode: Remember Maimai's two friends? Those two nameless faces playing the classical role of being friends to a named character, showing up just so the character has someone to talk with? They were voiced by Yukari Tamura and Yui Horie. Two ultra-famous seiyuu, brought to this show just to read half a dozen of non-important lines. It's so irreverent, it's somehow a perfect fit for Zombieland Saga. |
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Covnam
Posts: 3644 |
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Not keeping up and not being able to do anything are two different things. Of course "nothing" wouldn't happen in the 2nd half, it would just be something different 
Mai could learn that it isn't so easy to be an idol or learn a whole routine in a week. As Steve said, she goes from fan to idol without much conflict or struggle. Her succeeding without much trouble (past the first day) is the easier route to go, and so a less compelling story to me
Yeah, I can agree with this. I suppose Mai could play a part in a future episode if they are exposed in order to help them, otherwise you could question this episodes inclusion in the season and if the time could have been better spent elsewhere. |
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Panino Manino
Posts: 734 |
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This episode was a Sakura's episode in disguise.
EDIT: oh, yes, Maimai having so many parallels with Sakura reinforces the suspicion that Kotaro was involved in Sakura's death. Like he almost did with Maimai he may have "killed" Sakura by accident, distracting the truck driver at the crucial moment. |
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Hiroki not Takuya
Posts: 2512 |
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Holy SAGA, was there a lot this Ep!! Cameos from the whole cast but I hope it was because of model re-use and not intended to mean everyone (other than Sakura, Tae, Saki and Mr Policeman) happened to have ancestors in Saga at the same time because that would be a little much...Now all that remains is how Grandpa Necromancer is connected to the current situation (I'm fairly sure the narrator is Mr Bartender, so another clue). Too hyped for next week...
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Panino Manino
Posts: 734 |
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I think it's pretty simple.
After Kiichi and Yuugiri helped realize his goal to revive Saga Prefecture (funny to think about this now, Saga is a "zombie" prefecture, die and was brought back to life) the Gramps, the Bartender, removed the dust from his necromancy and taught Kiichi how to be a necromancer. Kiichi must be Kotaro or at least an ancestor that kept passing his necromancy knowledge and will to "Make Saga Great Again!". Yuugiri being revived is an obvious choice, she die for helping Saga's cause, but the others? Maybe the reason for the cameos is that all the current girls had ancestors in Saga at that time that where hit in the incident that lead to Yuugiri's execution (Itou is clearly a government eye). If... if the cameos aren't really just cameos. There's that reporter making his investigation, and last we see from him he was saying that he wasn't able to find anything about Yuugiri. Maybe we are seeing these events from his eyes and the cameos are a way for him to rationalize how they are all connected. Oh, yes. Just like Maimai's episode was a Sakura episode in disguise, this is a Kotaro episode in disguise. At front it tells Yugiri's story, but in the end it reveals Kotaro's motivation. |
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dm
 Subscriber Posts: 1354 |
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I really think the cameos were just "because we can" fanservice. This fan was thrilled, anyway.
I love Yugiri's accent in this episode (it seems heavier than normal, though of course her dialogue is more central to this episode than to the others). |
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