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Last edited by Redcrimson on Fri Sep 26, 2014 3:44 pm; edited 1 time in total

It really surprises me how negative the overall response to this show has been. It’s definitely not a perfect show, not even close, but I thought that it definitely said all that it wanted to say pretty ardently. I guess I am somewhat predisposed to message-driven detective thrillers, but I didn’t really have any significant problems with TiR outside of Five’s somewhat mishandled character arc. Even that I don’t think “ruined” the show. The fact that it was was able to tie its messages back to its individual threads was pretty impressive. Echoing the Oedipus mythos by way of youthful rebellion against the state, personifying Japan’s post-WWII nationalism as an aging old authoritarian parental figure, paralleling the cycle of abuse with Japan’s resentment of mean ol’ Grandpa America, the way both Lisa’s parents and Shibazaki’s dead-end career parallel Nine and Twelve’s backstory. I thought that stuff worked really well! I never felt like the show was repeating itself or going off-message. I felt like it articulated itself quite well in how all its individual moving parts reflected off each other.

I also see a lot of people complaining that TiR didn’t make any significant or profound statements on terrorism, but I guess I don’t see why it should have to. Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t really see why bombs and crumbling buildings deserve more reverence and austerity than guns or ninja swords. Gunfire results in magnitudes more deaths per year than terrorism in the US, but nobody accuses Psycho-Pass of not “earning” it’s gun-violence. I remember 9/11, hell I even remember the Oklahoma City bombing and the ’96 Olympic Bombing. Terrorism is a horrific thing, but I don’t think it’s innately more horrific than “conventional” violence. Maybe that makes me a terrible person, I don’t know.

I just feel like putting terrorism on this pedestal where it's not okay to fictionalize or use for allegory unless you solemnly address it directly is a weird place for us to be in, culturally. It feels akin to downplaying other, statistically much more common, types of violence. Like we're inadvertently telling victims of gun-violence or domestic abuse that their issues aren't as sensitive because they didn't get beheaded by extremists.

Redcrimson wrote:

I just feel like putting terrorism on this pedestal where it's not okay to fictionalize or use for allegory unless you solemnly address it directly is a weird place for us to be in, culturally. It feels akin to downplaying other, statistically much more common, types of violence. Like we're inadvertently telling victims of gun-violence or domestic abuse that their issues aren't as sensitive because they didn't get beheaded by extremists.

Psycho-pass is not about gun violence, its effect on society and the people who perpetrate it.

Terror in Resonance is about terrorism and terrorists.

Last edited by Doodleboy on Fri Sep 26, 2014 2:00 pm; edited 3 times in total

I didn't see the playing scene as unearned...

For one thing the big reason why Twelve was so cold to Lisa was because he did not want to get Lisa involved with the dangerous things they were doing. Now that everything he planned is pretty much finished, there wasn't any more need to try to keep his distance. He doesn't have to be the terrorist mastermind anymore. Twelve's whole conflict was whether he should stick with his plan or allow others to come into his life and interfere with it. spoiler[The plan is now finished, now he can be a normal kid.]

For ignoring the fact that spoiler[they blew up a Atomic bomb above Tokyo.] Well they're kids. I know as a teenager or at least in middle-school I was pretty insular. The adult world was something separate from my own existence. Add to the fact that these people have very little connection with society at large... and I found the scene believable enough. Just think about it, the only meaningful interaction these kids have had for the past month is with each other and Five. Other people are more... abstract to them. spoiler[The gravity of blowing up the atomic bomb doesn't feel real. Tokyo is just an empty playground, the world around them has been destroyed.]

Or maybe I'm filling in the gaps too much. And the writing does blow, who knows. Not sure how much of my last paragraph makes sense.

Zac wrote:

Psycho-pass is not about gun violence, its effect on society and the people who perpetrate it.

Terror in Resonance is about terrorism and terrorists.

Is it? To me Terror in Resonance is about the disenfranchised and the abandoned reclaiming their voice from an innately predatory system that marginalizes them, and terrorism is just the specific device the story chooses to utilize in expressing that voice.

I don't think TiR is strictly about terrorism anymore than I think Penguindrum is strictly about terrorism. It's just a rhetorical device to articulate the shows' larger ideas. Maybe you don't like the way the device was used, but it seems like you're attaching very specific expectations to this one particular subject.

Again, maybe I'm the insensitive jerk here, but to me it seems like a very weird and specific hang-up in regards to the show.

Doodleboy wrote:

For ignoring the fact that they blew up a Atomic bomb above Tokyo. Well they're kids. I know as a teenager or at least in middle-school I was pretty insular. The adult world was something separate from my own existence. Add to the fact that these people have very little connection with society at large... and I found the scene believable enough. Just think about it, the only meaningful interaction these kids have had for the past month is with each other and Five. Other people are more... abstract to them. The gravity of blowing up the atomic bomb doesn't feel real. Tokyo is just an empty playground, the world around them has been destroyed.

I would have been fine if the writing had portrayed them as that. Instead, the show really went out of its way to cleanse the two of any guilt. No one died, no one was seriously injured, they spoiler[set off an atomic bomb and no one was hurt...]

They aren't portrayed as teenage husks of humans, but liberators who get the job done without taking a single soul. I find this problematic. They aren't able to make their protagonists truly dangerous. They carry no dark baggage. It falls into the "I want to make a controversial show about a controversial topic where the characters are innocent" category of writing. It winds up saying little about the topic at hand because it is unwilling to jump into the fray. The show builds a wall between them and "real" terrorists, when really there isn't (or shouldn't be) much of a difference.

It's unfortunate that I have to say it, but TiR was by far the biggest letdown of this season and probably any season for a good while, given the pedigrees behind it.

The final episode was just bad... So many lose ends were left open spoiler[(Shibazaki's job, the aftermath of the nuclear explosion, the whole mess involving 5, and how exactly did they meet Shibazaki at that "hometown" in the first place? Is that supposed to be the grounds of the former Athena institute? It wasn't clear at all).]

Also, the scenes wherespoiler[ the two boys are playing with Lisa were just terrible reminders of how bad a character she is. Even to the final episode, she is still playing the role of the useless clown. They kick a ball around expertly like they are on varsity soccer. She can't even kick the ball straight, and bumbles around trying to chase after it when she messes up even that simple task.] Worst character EVER.

I think this show just never had a specific, cohesive story that it wanted to tell. The writers worked hard to bring certain themes to the forefront - (some of which Zac mentioned, like WW 2, nuclear armaments, U.S. imperialism, corruption of Japanese government, terrorism as a means to highlight the issues of voiceless people, etc...), however the themes were not grounded in complete narratives. Instead, we got bits and pieces of narratives. 5's story is a good example - she's clearly tied to both the themes of Japanese corruption and U.S. imperialism, but her story was completely inadequate. However, even the story of the two main protagonists, 9 and 12 was terribly under-developed. We never got any kind of real grasp of what their struggle was like and what made them into the people they are today. Again, all we got were bits and pieces... Today, they are terrorist masterminds. What were they yesterday? Who cares? (We should...)

About the only character who seemed to have a recognizable story arc was Shibazaki, so this series felt more like it was his story, even though he was essentially a side character. As a result, the build up and conclusion of 9 and 12's roles in this series fell completely flat (and I still find Lisa to be a useless sideshow).

It will be interesting to see if the show's apparently cutting social commentary resonates with the Japanese public. I think the show's portrayal of Americans was almost offensive in its crudeness, and I have a hard time seeing how most U.S. viewers will come away feeling good vibes about TiR.

@ Redcrimson: I wasn't particularly chuffed by TiR's reticence to really engage with thematic/moral/etc issue of terrorism, but I do feel it was a missed opportunity. Also, I think a show where the two leads are sympathetic teenage boys engaging in terrorism has a bit of an obligation to take a hard look at the issue lest it glamorizes the idea.

I couldn't take the show seriously one bit because it's always ever been "WE'RE GONNA BLOW STUFF UP FOR REALS AND PUT PEOPLE IN HARM'S WAY, BUT WE CAN'T HAVE A SINGLE PERSON ACTUALLY DIE, THAT WOULD UNDERMINE OUR MESSAGE AND MAKE US NOT-PROTAGONISTS TO CHEER FOR". It's complete rubbish.

Redcrimson wrote:

Is it? To me Terror in Resonance is about the disenfranchised and the abandoned reclaiming their voice from an innately predatory system that marginalizes them, and terrorism is just the specific device the story chooses to utilize in expressing that voice.

The problem is that if you strip away the context like this, it's essentially a story about a temper tantrum, where the screaming baby gets what he wants and we're supposed to see that in a positive way.

It got a C? I thought this episode was a lot better than last episode. I guess it's just an opinion.

Overall, I very much enjoyed this show, with it's flaws and all. I have to give it a 9/10, and will definitely add it to my collection, when ever it comes out in Blu-Ray.

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The problem is that if you strip away the context like this, it's essentially a story about a temper tantrum, where the screaming baby gets what he wants and we're supposed to see that in a positive way.

Not really, the sheer quantity of movies from Japan that deal with lack of communication between youngsters and adults makes me think that this is a an actual issue in Japan.

I agree with RedCrimson. I loved the series and it kind of shows the peril of harming the young, of treating them as dogs you can train or if you demand from them to be perfect because that is not possible and kids are vulnerable and whatever happens to them at that age reflects in their complexes forever. The future is theirs. Whatever we do to our children we do to our future, to the future of this world.

I have realised of something though about this past two episodes. It looks as if the end had to be hurried. I believe maybe this show was waiting to see if they could get a second season. It seems they didn't get it so they had to rush the end. That is my impression, at least. And when twelve sais they have more bombs, I think it was a decoy. That's my opinion. But, who knows? Maybe Mr Watanabe. Very Happy

I was hoping that Shibazaki would adopt Lisa until she graduated and do a spin-off story.

It was interesting how different/mature she looked in their final conversation on that bridge. Supposedly just one year older. If we could have had at least a few scenes where it was shown that he had grown out of being such a dolt it might have seemed all worth it just for that. And let's how Shibazaki was reinstated in full to the department. We didn't get to see that but at least the Americans didn't shoot him just because that's how they solve things.

It is quite understandable how TiR would be getting such mixed reviews. My observation is that most audiences can tolerate flaws and can respond well to ambiguities, but the combination of both is toxic. TiR had more than a little of this toxin but not enough to kill it.

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I get what they were doing with that scene - showing children who were denied a childhood enjoy pastoral serenity for the first and last time - but it could have come at a better moment.

I am not sure if this is about earning something. This playday is not a reward for Sphinx but a statemant of how their lifes should have been. It feels so out of place, because it contrasts how their lifes actually were. And its quite the oposite of cold, its a warm, or at least i felt it as such.

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In particular, the growing warmth between Nine and Lisa was poorly articulated. Last thing I remember, their feelings towards each other were "liability who I tolerate because of Twelve" and "Twelve's intimidating friend."

Twelfe said on multiple occasions that he didn't want to involve lisa, because there is either no point to (because they will die soon anyway) or because it would be dangerous for her. This is the oposite of not careing... Again, this Playday is imho not linear storytelling, but an alternate picture of how their life should and could have been, if their society wasn`t so troubled. They would have become friends and would have had a normal childhood. Insteat they get shot and die.

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(teenage super terrorists take down Japan! their attacks don't kill anyone! only Shibazaki knows enough about rudimentary Greek mythology to know who Oedipus is!)

Ofcourse you are right, but this critique is not fair. First of all, you voice it here for the first time. Second of all, the teenager save the world topos is quite common in anime, so you would have to make this critique for 90% of every anime season ^^ Moreover, TiR uses this Topos better than most, so i think its not fair to mention it here at all.

The same goes for Shibasaki. He is not the only one who knows about "rudimentary Greek mythology". Kurahashi is shown to know about the myth, too. The only thing that Shibasaki did, was to think out of the box and recognize, that there are more than one versions of the myth. I am a classic historian and know very well, that there are quite a few versions of the myth (and different translations) but i was quite surprised, that they referred to an alternate version. So its not about Shibasaki beeing the only one knowing about greek myth, but about Shibasaki being the only one able to understand Sphinx...because they are so much alike and have made similar experiences.

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The series' climax depends on the reveal that SPHINX has more atomic bombs ready to detonate throughout Japan - information that's only given right before the minute or so that it's relevant and incongruous with their established resources

I would go for the bluff theory, too. Or maybe the show needed to make one thing clear. Nine is forced to make a decision in this scene. Take revange for his friend and become a real terrorist or not pull the trigger and prove that his actions were only about the message, only about shaking ab society and not about violance.

Ofc i agree that it is unfortunate that the show never clearly states, what terroris is and if Sphinx are actually terorists. Shibasaki relfects this only in Episode 8 (i think) where he tells, that in a different time Sphinx might have been heros and not terrorists. But one important detail is also that Sphinx gets a lot of admiration from the younger population. I get it that this might look to most viewer (especially from the US) like the topic of terrorism is poorly handled. But then again, I think that this show might reffer with "Terror" to something else than terrorism but then again, it never gives clear evidence for that. So this critique is justifiable.

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It also indulges in a lot of "let's explain the already obvious symbolism." Nine straight up tells Shibazaki that he was their Oedipus. That hasn't been relevant since around episode 5, and it was hammered in so much by the cinematography that anyone who didn't get it should be sent back to remedial anime watching school.

I agreed for most of your episodic reviews, even with your critique for TiR. But thats the reason why I dont understand, why you try to make a rant about the last episode. This scene isn`t about explaining the obvious. First of all I am not sure that Shibasaki really is the only Oedipus. Depending on how you interpret the Oedipus myth Sphinx, Five or even Lisa can be seen as an Oedipus figure. I think this scene should not be understood as explaining symbolism to the audience, but as a conversation between the characters only. Shibasaki isn`t surprised that he is the Oedipus, he knew it himself. But this conversation is all about showing, that they understood each other. If TiR would try to explain symbolism, there would be a dozen other places to start ^^

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Other than that, Terror in Resonance dulled its thematic impact by building the climactic moment around a United States assassination attempt. This show's strongest thematic thread was about getting over World War II, and yet they still pull out Japanese cinema's classic international war-paranoia baddies - The Americans - for this.

I get it why americans might be offended with this scene and yes, most of the time this is a topos in japanese cinema. But I don`t think its about pulling out americans as the bad guys. Moreover the Show acknowledges the voices of some japanese that america might not be the most reliable ally, which isn`t that far of if we consider that the USA tapped phones of Leaders of allied countrys....But in Japan there are a lot of peaople who are discontent with the miliatary presence of america. If you see this scene like that, its not about an old klischee but it makes sense in the context of the overall plot and even in the context of contemporary political discourse in Japan.

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the latter attached to the former like a decrepit extra limb on the back of a malformed infant

Even though I dont quite agree, I have to admit: This is an awesome metaphore! I need to write this one down ^^

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(most notable in Five's storyline, which didn't even quite work for me)

I think with this you are spont on and you should focus your critique on the character of five, which really did feel somewhat strange. But its not only her. I would love to hear your thoughts on the role of Lisas character. I first thought she would be the antigone of Sphinx (if you see Sphinx as Oedipus, which sounds weird but can be possible) or Shibasaki. But this don`t fit. I just can`t get my head around her function as character besides beeing somewhat of a story teller.

Last edited by gedata on Fri Sep 26, 2014 6:15 pm; edited 1 time in total

spoiler[This series was a pretty big flop. Five's arc should've been cut entirely since for the most part all she did was ruin the show's plausibility with her insane antics that ought to have gotten her arrested much sooner. Not to mention she further ruins the moral ambiguity the show was trying to go for with her psychotic attitude that makes 9 and 12 look like saints The whole

As overstated as this might be, Lisa didn't add nearly enough to the show as she should have, for the most part all she did was force new unnecessary conflicts by being put in harms way.

The actual terrorism also didn't feel very weighty at all, it was just some buildings getting blown up and some innocent people scurrying around sometimes. Where's the portrayal of the fear? No one cares! The riddles themselves were stupid time wasters as well that anyone with internet access could deal with.

Their's just too many elements here that felt unnecessary, stupid or both. Not to mention this easily could've been the length of a movie.

One last thing, an EMP nuke would probably kill plenty of people, like those that depend on pacers, or people at hospitals all over Japan, etc, you can't assume that frying the energy grid is a "safe" act of terrorism. The nuke itself alerted everyone]

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