Okay, so with this episode it’s certain: C does not belong in the Noitamina slot. Its themes of course fit it nicely and all, but 11 episodes is just too little for this series. The proof came in this episode when suddenly from out of nowhere the entire world went to hell. I guess that the financial crisis of 2008 also came out of nowhere to most people and all, but a bit of a smoother build-up would have been nice here.
And yet, this episode rocked. The change with the previous episodes was… abrupt to say the least, but heck: I’ll buy it. After all, this is the kind of tension that this series needs in order to really turn its setting around. It’s in this episode where the differences between real money and Midas Money really become apparent: at first the whole concept of using your future as stocks made sortof sense, but there is one major difference here: no matter how much real money you lose: you can always recover. When Midas Money goes wrong, entire freaking countries disappear.
Kimimaro is going to be the key in whether or not the finale will succeed. I mean, he is the destined rookie of this series: he’s going to somehow end up playing a role in saving the world from bankruptcy. With the amount of time this series spent on fleshing out its setting, a cop-out ending will probably ruin most of the build-up, or at least leave a nasty aftertaste behind. Having said that though: this episode was a great start.
It’s interesting to see the “first half episodic stories, second half plot’-format in Noiramina, and it’s really paying off at this point: this episode did a great job of tying the previous episodes together, and I especially liked the teacher part, but also the way in which this episode gave both depth to the information broker and took a lot at the concept of money itself using trust was really interesting. I applaud you, series. Now keep this up, because you’re heading into a direction with a lot of potential pitfalls!
Rating: ** (Excellent)
…and with all that happening, there’s still time for a specific character development. *slow claps*
btw:
…needs fixing.
I agree with you when you said that the series needed to be on something other than NoitaminA because it needs to be longer. If it had the space to be something like a 20-isn’t series, it’d have all the plot and philosophy on top of the action that I know a lot of people wanted from this series.
Perhaps the move to be in NoitaminA was a financial one, seeing as the studio is apparently strapped for cash after the quakes. Maybe all they could allot for it was around 11 episodes or something like that.
I, for one, hope this series is successful. Deep down though, I get the feeling that it will barely sell at all.
psgels, you forgot about THE most important plot point:
Kimimaro having a “flashback” or rather “flashforward” of him looking at a baby and saying “Mashyu”.
If that isnt important forshadowing i dont know what is. Mashyu’s real identity will play the biggest role, not to mention that the information broker also made a tiny comment about Mashyu and Jennifer.
I’m confused. Definitely something that feels like a big time skip or fast forward here. Originally, I thought the city’s destruction would take place over time as more and more entres lost their piece of reality but the pace is becoming difficult to explain. Also confused by the how the counter works. I thought it was meant to show how much Midas money was in circulation, the higher the value, the bigger a grip on reality in that geographical location the demonic financial district has. Hitting zero should have been a good thing, but in Southeast Asia, it seems rather like that counter represents how much non-Midas assets remain in reality. Does hitting zero means reality has been taken over by the financial district and can be devoured wholesale?
Interesting element introduced about “trust”. Reminds me of a definition I read about the “Devil” card in the tarot, where chains worn by the victims are self-inflicted, and all it takes is for the victims to take them off themselves?
Also interesting regarding whether lost futures can be restored, or otherwise manipulated. What are the implications of the possible nature of Yogo’s asset?
And of course, what’s Mikuni’s mysterious ‘C’?
Lots of questions brought up in this episode.
What is wrong with Hanabi?
What is C?
What was that tentacle thing in the south east asia market?
Anyway, this episode was a rollercoaster ride and I was enjoying every minute of it. It may look ambitious for this series to cover its plot in 11 episodes, but it’s not unheard of. The Tatami Galaxy was 11 episodes and had a LOT to cover. For 12-13 episode shows there are also plenty of examples.
I like this entire development and think the plot is going just right. They still have plenty of time to deliver a great ending.
it felt like Kimimaro saw his future, as I think I heard his voice in that … “flash forward”
either that or he has a voice print identical to his dad, hence the odd conversation between Jennifer and …(that golden-teeth guy), and the theory that the Kimimaro’s future is identical to his dad’s…
I agree with info600. Someone in the previous episode mentioned that assets take the form of an entre’s future, the part that they give up in order to reach the Financial District. It seems like that might imply the future Kimimaro gave up was having a daughter, Mashyu.
What is wrong with Hanabi?
The same thing with everyone else I think. People they used to have close relationships with are vanishing from existence and their whole reality is changing rapidly. While they are supposed to be unaware, the change is making them uneasy. It’s like the SOS Dan after thousands of years of repeating the same summer holiday feeling deja vu, or people associated with Torches in Shakugan no Shana.
What is C?
Good question. My guess is Mikuni is hatching a plan to somehow defend against the effects of the Southeast Asian Financial District’s collapse or take advantage of it somehow.
What was that tentacle thing in the south east asia market?
Looks like the Midas money that make up all the entre’s assets were disintegrating and returning to the fold, causing the destruction of reality along with it.
It seems like that might imply the future Kimimaro gave up was having a daughter, Mashyu.
Possible but I get the feeling that entres tend to lose something they already have. It has to be part of their present reality. Instead I get the feeling that Kimimaro might have seen something from a previous holder of his card and recognized the baby as Masyuu. It bugs me also that the informant recognized Kimimaro’s asset as being somehow linked to his father. Could Kimimaro, by some act of cosmic fate, have inherited his own father’s card? And that connection somehow allowed him to inherit his father’s asset? In this case, what his father lost when he went bankrupt was his newborn daughter, which was erased from existence? Is this why Masyuu is so powerful? She still holds the power she used to have when she was Togo’s father’s asset? So Masyuu is like a combined asset of both Kimimaro and his father? Or is there something more to this? The informant with the gold teeth knew of cases of people trying to recover or manipulate lost futures but hadn’t heard of anyone who had succeeded. Doesn’t mean no one found a way, or had found some other means to manipulate those assets. For example, it’s still not explained how Mikuni seems to own more than one asset. So did Kimimaro’s father managed to do something?
I was actually annoyed at kimimaro getting all pissy at Mikuni… it was like wtf, at least hes trying to do something. I really hope the creators dont force them to fight each other like it suggests in the op…at only 11 episodes long that just wouldnt make any sense.
at only 11 episodes long that just wouldnt make any sense.
I’d be surprised if they didn’t though, since the creators have kind of advertised the conflict right from the beginning. And it is something of a cliche of having righteous heroes in a pinch somehow beating the villain against overwhelming odds. (I mean, Kimimaro just burnt up most of his fortune, ie. hit points?)
But know how you feel. I don’t see Mikuni as a villain just yet. Just a brother who wants to save his unfortunate sister. I just don’t yet know what he’s trying to do with this ‘C’ of his or what are the likely consequences. And whether he might be in the wrong somehow. But he does seem to give the impression that he’s doing something reckless, something he would normally have doubts about. He seems disturbed by what’s happening around him but pressing ahead aggressively anyway. I wonder what he meant by “the next stage” and it being all still being within expectations…?
I wished they’d show this episode earlier. Because it definitely has something to do with the thing it’s trying to tackle.
I just hope for a brilliant and hopefully happy ending in spite of the time constraints. XD Demonic construct or not, I like Mashyu alot. (And her seiyuu’s other character this season, Anaru in Ano Hana. Haruka Tomatsu is on a roll.) It would be awesome I think if Kimimaro and Mikuni could find a way to reset everything (and even save Singapore) to a world where Mikuni’s a rock music producer and his sister is his star performer and Kimimaro is waking up in Ebara’s class next to a hot new transfer student…you know who. Wait. If Mashyu is a representation of Kimimaro’s dad’s daughter, does that make her his….?