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EP. REVIEW: So I'm a Spider, So What?


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Suldrun45



Joined: 26 Nov 2017
Posts: 5
PostPosted: Sat May 08, 2021 2:34 am Reply with quote
Yuvelir wrote:
And I just realized that the Japanese name for the Nightmare is Akumo, because of course it is.

Cryten wrote:

Nice spot on the Akumo but I thought It was Akuma? At least thats what I've heard in other anime talking about demons and monsers.

It's actually 悪夢 (Akumu) which literaly means "nightmare"
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Hiroki not Takuya



Joined: 17 Apr 2012
Posts: 2501
PostPosted: Sat May 08, 2021 8:54 pm Reply with quote
MagicianMan wrote:
Surprised to see that not many people are talking about the reveal of the system voice being an actual person, seemingly imprisoned somewhere....
Plus other juicy tidbits, but when you 're focused on showing how much of the novels you know and debating how the anime will adapt future plot points...

Anyway, I just re-watched Ep12 and missed how the sequence of Ariel reminiscing about what seemed like the Arabba fight while the figure of "white" was being pointed out by camera movements which parallels some shots of Ariel and "white" in Ep17, it seems the staff is hinting some big-time plot points relative to the parallel minds. One of my "proofs" relative to those is that Ariel has always had the mannerisms, seemingly the memories and thought patterns of kumoko...And about that spider in the classroom, Wikipedia spoils that spoiler[but at least I'm happy that the show may have other reasons than introversion for being "ideally suited" to being a spider or vampire]. Reminds me of a Star Trek TNG episode where the resident nerd Barkley is revealed to be evolved from spiders Mad

One further thought, the plot seems intent on showing how members of the class have been challenged to grow in character from their Earthly beginnings or how they are failing at that and nobody seems to be talking about that either...


Last edited by Hiroki not Takuya on Sat May 08, 2021 9:12 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Yuvelir



Joined: 06 Jan 2015
Posts: 1529
PostPosted: Sat May 08, 2021 9:06 pm Reply with quote
MagicianMan wrote:
Surprised to see that not many people are talking about the reveal of the system voice being an actual person, seemingly imprisoned somewhere.

That was one of the most memorable moments of early worldbuilding that stayed in my head. I think Vol 4 in general is where I started to fully appreciate how much of the story structure I had taken for granted as "this is just how isekai with RPG mechanics are".

I didn't see it coming but it didn't surprise me either, we already saw a goddess being murdered to sustain the world.

Suldrun45 wrote:
It's actually 悪夢 (Akumu) which literaly means "nightmare"

Ah... well, I spent some time trying to hear it right since his voice is so hoarse. Guess I can't tell my O's from my U's
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Cryten



Joined: 19 Jan 2019
Posts: 978
PostPosted: Sat May 08, 2021 9:23 pm Reply with quote
Hiroki not Takuya wrote:
but when you 're focused on showing how much of the novels you know and debating how the anime will adapt future plot points...

Since I try and avoid confirming opinions or denying opinions on speculations about the plot of the show for first timers I can only really relate my impressions of the adaptation. And throw in some tidbits of skipped content for context. Its a difficult tightrope of avoiding spoiler foresight while relating my own experiences with the show. Which is, I guess, why discussion tends to focus on what we have learned from the anime.

But that is why some topics brought up by others can seem to go unaddressed by a large group of people with source knowledge. Because we want to leave that speculation to those experiencing it. Instead talking about what we can.

And sometimes debate with others with light novel knowledge inevitably breaks out.
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MagicianMan



Joined: 28 Jun 2020
Posts: 120
PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2021 6:06 am Reply with quote
Hiroki not Takuya wrote:

One further thought, the plot seems intent on showing how members of the class have been challenged to grow in character from their Earthly beginnings or how they are failing at that and nobody seems to be talking about that either...


The conversation went over that a bit back during episode 14 with Sophia, Shun, and Katia. It's kind of hard for source readers to touch on the subject though. There are especially meaty spoilers to be had surrounding that topic because not all of the reincarnation's motivations and circumstances are fully known yet.
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Hiroki not Takuya



Joined: 17 Apr 2012
Posts: 2501
PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2021 6:05 pm Reply with quote
MagicianMan wrote:
Hiroki not Takuya wrote:

One further thought, the plot seems intent on showing how members of the class have been challenged to grow in character from their Earthly beginnings or how they are failing at that...
The conversation went over that a bit back during episode 14 with Sophia, Shun, and Katia....
Yeah, I missed some of that amidst the comparing/contrasting the novel and anime material banter but I would have thought it would get more continuing attention seeing it is a major undercurrent in the story. Sorry. Like how Fei was progressing from being a narcissistic insecure bully but spoiler[reverting a bit when she got her new "human" form]. Why?

@Cryten- Though I am not a "reader", I understand it is hard to separate what one knows from "reading ahead" from the current story and really appreciate avoiding spoilers! Not sure what to think of skipped/missing content info but I see a hidden pitfall arising when one is no longer responding to just the material presented to date and instead responding to how it relates to what was presented in the manga/LN and future developments. This tends to cut off discourse with "anime onlies".
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Nordhmmer



Joined: 11 Feb 2017
Posts: 1028
PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2021 6:54 pm Reply with quote
Hiroki not Takuya wrote:
-Like how Fei was progressing from being a narcissistic insecure bully but reverting a bit when she got her new "human" form. Why?


Alright ....
Fei is not reverting back to how she acted as the human Shinohara- quite the opposite.
"Why?" as in why those who've read the WN and or the LN are not talking- Because,like so many other plot lines, a full answer touches upon the first few big twists/reveals that these early volumes are building to.

So here's a short answer-
The anime has only just touched upon Fei's growth as a character. Should the anime adapt her scenes,you'll see her go through periods of reflection on how badly she treated her classmates and how she resolves to be a better person.
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MagicianMan



Joined: 28 Jun 2020
Posts: 120
PostPosted: Mon May 10, 2021 12:27 am Reply with quote
I don't think Fei's core as a person is really that different to her old life. She just realized how shallow and unempathetic "Mirei Shinohara" was and strives to be better as Fei.

Shun's core character flaw is his inability to detach himself from his old life. He is still "Shun Yamada" at heart while everyone else has moved on from the classroom, and life in the modern world, to varying degrees. I think everyone is on the same page on that.

Oka is better off than Shun, but still suffers from being tied down to her old identity by her obsession with protecting her students. We don't know anymore that that yet.

Katia has made peace with her feelings for Shun and her lingering attachments to being a man. Now she's struggling with trying to support Shun even though she thinks his current actions are foolish.

Sophia has actively severed her connection to her old life to the point where she gets angry at the mention of her old name. How she grew up to be a servant of the demon lord and why she sided against humans is unknown.

Hugo devolved into his worst self due to being born into power and Yuri became a fanatical worshiper of the system voice partly because it was the only thing that talked to her in Japanese as a child.

I think that's the gist of what we currently know about the human story reincarnations and their relationships with their old lives.
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JaffaOrange



Joined: 01 Apr 2011
Posts: 250
PostPosted: Mon May 10, 2021 2:50 am Reply with quote
I think the anime covered Fei's regrets over bullying Wakaba and her belief that being reborn as a dragon is somewhat karmic justice. That being said, the anime skips out a bit when it comes to the internal monologues of any of the human characters other than Shun. I can't recall if the anime ever covers how Fei actually felt about Wakaba.
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trilaan



Joined: 17 Jan 2009
Posts: 1053
Location: Texas
PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 7:46 pm Reply with quote
The part with the Nightmare's Vestiges was super well-done and genuinely creepy. I loved it.
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Hiroki not Takuya



Joined: 17 Apr 2012
Posts: 2501
PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 9:37 pm Reply with quote
Nordhmmer wrote:
Hiroki not Takuya wrote:
-Like how Fei was progressing from being a narcissistic insecure bully but reverting a bit when she got her new "human" form. Why?
Alright ....Fei is not reverting back to how she acted as the human Shinohara- quite the opposite. "Why?" as in why those who've read the WN and or the LN are not talking-...
Interesting misinterpretation as the "why" was to the question of Fei reverting to old behaviors. Didn't happen? Well, the characters themselves noted this Ep how she started exhibiting old behaviors. I wouldn't ask the bolded question as the answers are mostly obvious and spoiler related, but thanks for letting me/us know that Fei should continue to grow and not resume her disdainful ways to boost her ego. I still wonder why she would change just because her appearance changed if she really has had a change internally. Old habits die hard? Or can you shed insight into her reasons for behaving as she did?

Oh and BTW, I did notice the "instant body" addition to the stats and makes me wonder if that is how the "vestiges" come about. But why she isn't using that to regenerate faster?

@Magicman- Actually I think Shun's flaw is deeper than that as we have seen that he is used to "going with the flow" and striving not to "make waves". Also, he reacts rather than initiates and fell into that habit when he could just sit back and admire his brother rather than preparing to be more of a "hero". I think it interesting that the story is forcing him to move away from those behaviors and if he doesn't, he will sabotage his position and friends.

Other thoughts- Why would Fei gravitate to Shun when she had little to do with him before? I would have thought she would hang around Hugo because "hot" girl goes with "hot" guy and I can tell you that is what happens IRL. I agree with your analysis of Hugo though, he was an assh*le waiting to happen and he most certainly did what those personality types do IRL by not learning a lesson.
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Key
Moderator


Joined: 03 Nov 2003
Posts: 18135
Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)
PostPosted: Wed May 12, 2021 10:50 pm Reply with quote
Hiroki not Takuya wrote:
Oh and BTW, I did notice the "instant body" addition to the stats and makes me wonder if that is how the "vestiges" come about. But why she isn't using that to regenerate faster?

That's a new ability for her, isn't it? That she hasn't figured out how to take advantage of it yet in her timeline makes sense.

Quote:
Other thoughts- Why would Fei gravitate to Shun when she had little to do with him before? I would have thought she would hang around Hugo because "hot" girl goes with "hot" guy and I can tell you that is what happens IRL. I agree with your analysis of Hugo though, he was an assh*le waiting to happen and he most certainly did what those personality types do IRL by not learning a lesson.

She did literally hang around on Shun when she was smaller, has been his pet for the duration of her time in this setting, and (more recently) made an official familiar-type pact with him. (And Hugo did laugh at her on their first meeting in this world.) It would be more surprising if she didn't gravitate towards Shun.
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JaffaOrange



Joined: 01 Apr 2011
Posts: 250
PostPosted: Fri May 14, 2021 1:30 am Reply with quote
I think Shum's deepest flaw is that he's actually an idiot. Whenever the LN shifted to other characters' perspectives in a mini chapter, you'd see moments of observation and introspection that Shun never has. It's hard to know if Shun is incapable of reading between the lines or if he is wilfully trying not to. The biggest examples are refusing to accept that Katia is a woman, not suspecting Oka at all and not suspecting the System their new world has.
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LastPage 3



Joined: 13 Jun 2010
Posts: 190
PostPosted: Fri May 14, 2021 10:55 am Reply with quote
JaffaOrange wrote:
I think Shum's deepest flaw is that he's actually an idiot. Whenever the LN shifted to other characters' perspectives in a mini chapter, you'd see moments of observation and introspection that Shun never has.


That's a bit of an unfair statement. When that incident with Fei's parent happened, Shun was so shocked by the violence of it that he reconsidered his life plan to help his brother in battle. Shun's main problem is that, not only is he still clinging to his identity as Yamada, he's had an idea of how his new life will go, so he's not really thinking much about it.
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Yuvelir



Joined: 06 Jan 2015
Posts: 1529
PostPosted: Fri May 14, 2021 5:24 pm Reply with quote
Geez, the really laid those info-dumps thick. BTW, did you know that the guys who want to gain skills to hear the goddess consider the guys who sacrifice skills to the goddess heretics and vice-versa?
Potimas really could have used some more diplomatic methods to secure the isekai kids.

But kind of a sudden turn, isn't it? Ariel hadn't been mentioned by name even once, and suddenly she has always been one of the few major players in this world! So much so that any spider is assumed to be under her control! How did anyone even dare antagonize spiders at Elroe at any point in time? Julius was even bragging about that scraf and went down to fight that Nightmare Vestige... And while we're at it, it's heavily implied she was the goddess' pet.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't it stated that the Demon Lord is kinda of young/new/unknown when she was first presented as leading an army against humans? But if she does have an active role in the world's machinations (from the depth of her labyrinth...) this Demon Lord Ariel business should have been a constant element since forever.
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