Forum - View topicEP. REVIEW: Alderamin on the Sky
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CheezcakeMe
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Damn, is this really only going to be 13 episodes? It feels like the story only just barely begun, but we only have five episodes left.
Better get a second season, or at least toss us some translated light novels. |
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HeeroTX
Posts: 2046 Location: Austin, TX |
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But to me, DaVinci is a great example of the difference between "conceptual" science and "practical" application. HG Wells and the writers of Star Trek are great example of people that came up with clever ideas that someone ELSE later came and implemented. Likewise, Da Vinci had a large number of things that were not really applicable in the technology of his time. To me, it'd be one thing if we were clear that the scientist came up with many THEORIES and Ikta and his friends found ways of APPLYING them. But the show is pretty clear that he defected in order to share his WEALTH of information to make both sides "equal". Even Einstein has a number of aspects of relativity that scientists NOW are saying "Einstein was right about X". It's well and good to say many people are able to figure things out well ahead of their time in the abstract, but it really is an EXTENSIVE meshing of skills and knowledge to make practical APPLICATION of those things. Personally, I also really wonder about what exactly the spirit things... "do". Part of why scientific discovery advances in the way it does is because we don't have functional "magic". If you could make things explode with a magical spell, would we have bothered looking into the chemistry behind TNT and stronger explosives? We have zero indication that they can shoot magical "lasers" but if they could, then rifling is pointless. It seems like the little things replace gunpowder and can create water, what else do they do? |
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11378 |
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How about Ben Franklin or Michael Faraday then?  Those guys are a combination of both - working out/discovering things, and finding practical applications themselves or others doing so later on.
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18209 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Oh, I fully agree that the spirits may be the key to why science hasn't really been a "thing" before. Helociraptor: Yes, I have seen some references which indicate that German gunsmiths played a key role in making rifled guns practical on the American frontier, so it doesn't surprise me that the widespread military practice may have started in Germany. But those gunsmiths are documented to have been living in America (Pennsylvania, I think?) well before the Revolutionary War, so the war definitely didn't introduce such guns to the Americans; they had them to start. But yes, you are definitely correct about where the word "sharpshooter" is believed to have originated from. EDIT: The word "German" was missing in one key place. Last edited by Key on Sun Aug 28, 2016 9:34 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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yuna49
 Posts: 3804 |
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I wonder if Japanese history might play some role in the structure of Alderamin.
Japan certainly faced a period when the decision was between traditional cultural and political norms or acceptance of Western practices, particularly science. The Shogunate resisted foreign ideas, including foreign scientific ideas, for decades. Osamu Tezuka's Hidamari no Ki pays tribute to the manga-ka's grandfather who fought to expand awareness of "Dutch medicine" in the late Tokugawa period. The Shogunate's physicians feared that the acceptance of these foreign practices would erode their power and influence and opposed them. Around the same time the so-called "Tenpou Reforms" that are satirized in Oh! Edo Rocket were instituted. Many practices were banned by the Shogunate in an effort to cleanse Japan of dangerous influences, especially those from the West. This history seems to play out in the portrayal of "science" in Alderamin. It's a strange, dangerous, viral idea that needs to be kept under wraps to protect a political system based on religious belief. |
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Humble1ne
Posts: 6 |
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Def my top 5 of the year so far ... Ikta is a great main character. Just wish it was a little bit more romance in this series.
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Key
Moderator
Posts: 18209 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Interesting point, though I think it's stretching a little. Still, I'll watch to see if there is any further evidence of this in the remaining episodes. |
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yuna49
Posts: 3804 |
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I mentioned this in part because Western anime viewers including yours truly tend to analyze shows from Western perspectives rather than seeing them as examples of Japanese culture. Themes that matter to Japanese creators may not have obvious parallels in the West. While we, too, certainly had periods when scientific thought was repressed, they are historically further in our past than the late Tokugawa period. (Please let's avoid having a discussion about anti-science forces in modern politics and stay on topic.) |
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zrnzle500
 Posts: 3767 |
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Aw you're no fun |
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Hameyadea
 Posts: 3679 |
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Whenever I hear Ikta saying, "Waga tomo, Mashū," I know that a good, entertaining conversation is about to start.
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11378 |
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I wish we knew more about the spirits. Usually they represent some divine power that can aid the forces of good or evil (depending on their alignment), and if they're normally good they would suffer from being misused to do evil. But these little sprites seem to care only about their particular partner's wishes and welfare, displaying no judgement or feeling whatsoever about how they're used. So what exactly are they, and how do they bond with people and why? I really hope the series gets around to elaborating on this. I mean, I still don't know if Ikta ever fulfilled his promise to the spirits from the 2nd episode.
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AnimeFlyz
Posts: 366 |
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spoiler[Oh boy. If only you knew.] {Edit}: Use spoiler tags please. Yes this was not a direct spoiler but it was most certainly an implied one. You're implying something big will happen based on other material that could quite easily turn out to be a major spoiler for the anime. So please use spoiler tags on direct spoilers or, on references to manga material that could easily spoil a show as well. Thank you. ~ Psycho 101 |
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Cam0
 Posts: 4888 |
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It's surprising that it actually happened. If it went the way it usually does in these kind of scenes, Nana would have stopped Ikta before he managed to chop off his finger by saying something like: "You've already expressed your resolve, no need to cut off your finger." |
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Australian JRPG Gamer
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I can't believe he cut his own finger off like that, I had to look away quickly.
I'm looking forward to the next episode, a battle between 2 master tacticians. |
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FilthyCasual
Posts: 2204 |
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Count me in the group surprised that he actually lost a finger. I figured that Nanaku would stop him, so it was a (pleasant?) surprise to see him actually go through with it - multiple times even!
Now to see a tactician duel. |
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