Tag: s01e06

Thunderbolt Fantasy – 06

by SuperMario, posted in Currently Watching:, Thunderbolt Fantasy

I imagine those of you who expect Thunderbolt Fantasy a full-blown action series, the first half of this week would prove to be a disappointment. There’s too much talking and the plot just floats upon a river, slowly crawls into its destination. But really Thunderbolt Fantasy never intend to be a true-ish action show, the staffs go for it knowing full well it’s a campy B-genre show. They really understand that the band of misfits is a real stars of the show (as oppose to the attention-catching premise which is a puppetry wuxia show written by Gen Urobuchi) and as a result the show spends a considerable amount of time just for the characters interacting with each other. I’m fairly content with it because if the show just relies on its gimmick, it will wear off very quickly. Thankfully again, when the actions indeed kick in, it’s a feast to the eyes. There’s way too much explosions and gores actions (in a puppetry form to boost) that you would never see in anything else, anime-wise.

Our main character Shang Bu Huan, having the same state of mind as myself, has doubt about Gui Niao’s true intention in this whole affair (frankly, offer his head to secure the magic flute shows how desperate he is) and literally spends a good first half talking to everyone in the group. By the end of those talks he never gets the answer he wants to know, but instead learns two most valuable lessons: that his comrades have different sets of personality and they surely don’t look eye-to-eye in almost everything, and that everyone never trust each other, especially against our main character. The only things those people have in common are they’re going to retrieve the sacred sword, and Gui Niao. He’s a tape that stick everyone together and making them perform their roles. Whatever his intention will be, I’m really amazed the way he pulls all the strings behind the scene. Now, I have a theory about the intention of Gui Niao, and that has something to do with the information we gathered this week. It’s about the divided countries of Xi You and Dong Li. From the information we gained there was a sorcery of the demons that formed the Wasteland of Spirits, that split the two countries for almost 200 years. I come to believe that gaining the sacred sword, plus the fact that Shang Bu Huan come from Xi You, there is a fair chance of them to undo the effect of black magic, get rid of that Wasteland, and unite the two nations.

But to give more attention to our group also means that the enemy side gets undeveloped. We hardly see any of them long enough to have any impression, nor do we care much about them. For now, they are just too bland. It’s interesting to note about the character designs of the villains. Besides their black clothes, they don’t look as “evil” as some members of our groups. And I didn’t expect the main boss Mie Tian Hai appears to soon to fight off the group, so his appearance either will limit to talk to our allied group in the next episode (get right to the show’s comfort zone), or he is not the boss at all. From the way the show keeps delving on the nature of all the “archetype” characters (like the demon lady is not quite evil, but actually a bit elegant; or the “sheltered young lady” is the one who sees positive things most characters tend to overlook), I expect a bit of deconstruction on the main boss. Hopefully we will know more about him next week. Overall, Thunderbolt Fantasy’s still going strong. I really enjoy all the gestures and mannerisms each of the possess and hilarious lines like “let’s put aside a cultural difference for now” (when the characters talking about demon and human) are always welcome in any show.

orange – 06

by SuperMario, posted in Currently Watching:, Orange

What a development! It turns out that Sowa’s also receiving letters from the future as well, presumably his future self (there’s no way the future Naho would send him letters, right?). From the look of it I think the entire cast receives letters from their future self too, the way they act very supportive lately. Does this development work? I don’t know, it all depends on the direction it goes from now. Personally I would prefer that Naho asks for their help, and then tell them herself about the letters. That twist makes me questions every actions from the group back then, and if those actions are ‘genuine’ genuine (like Suwa’s selfless actions last week). If it turns out those kids behave the way they did just because of someone telling them already what would happen, then I feel a bit manipulated. But there must be some good reasons to make that twist, right? For now, I will reserve my comment to see how all this play out. I guess after all we just finished the first phase (Naho and Kokeru dating together) and proceed to the second phase now (the group try to help Kokeru out of his attempt suicide). Naho also points out in this episode that there are two things that she couldn’t follow the advice from the letters, and those lead to unchanged consequences. The first being the group asked Kokeru out on the ceremony day, which directly lead to the suicide of the mother. The second time she couldn’t talk to him how she felt face-to-face, and Kokeru decided to date Ueda. Although the letters become less and less relevant, it seems that the outcome of those important events doesn’t always change, which makes me wonder if they can really save Kokeru from committing suicide. But I have a feeling they gain too much information from the letters which give them somewhat unfair advantage, like how Naho already know the time and place of his dead. Whatever you do orange, just remember that relying too much on those letters to progress a story is a dead wrong decision. Those letters can’t solve everything; it needs to be from the characters themselves.

This episode further highlights the insecurity of Kokeru. Several times in this episode, he asks Sowa if it’s really okay for him to date Naho, not because he fears that would hurt Sowa (maybe a little), but because he fears that dating Naho would turn out to be a disaster and he will bounce for more regret. Moreover, he always feels guilty about his mother’s death. But really, he should understand that moving forward is way better than don’t do anything at all, and he shouldn’t blame himself on the death of his mother. It is really a good call from Naho to ask him about the mother, because this guy needs to share it to his friends. Keeping it to yourself and the pain will never go away. The two lead’s chemistry is engaging and intimate so far, kudos to the fireworks scene, which for me is a bit cheesy but overall effective.

This episode is also a return-to-form quality in terms of production values. As mention above, the firework sequence is animated very well, and I love the shot’s choices of many scenes. Many of the shots focus on the pair with their backs on us, either when them watching the fireworks, or later when they sitting in a park, it creates their very own atmosphere: just the two of them witnessing things together, but perhaps never really see things eye-to-eye. I also like the shot when Kokeru needs sometimes alone and sits in a different chair. The shot (included in the screenshot above) really establish the distance between them and moreover the isolation of Kokeru. To conclude, this episode marks the end of the first half and wheels forward to the latter stage in which the group attempt to save Kakeru from committing suicide. I’m overall happy with the first half and hope it continues to be a rewarding ride. But seriously Naho, get rid of that hairpin. It brings you no luck at all.

~SuperMario~

Berserk(2016) – 06 [Nighttime Feast: Burning at the Stake]

by Bam, posted in Berserk(2016), Currently Watching:

The episode picks up where the last one left off, with the lakeside haunting of Casca and Nina. We see the brand attracting ghouls followed by the Demon Child warding them off. For those who might be unfamiliar with the franchise, the Demon Child is Casca’s infant, and it’s been corrupted by the Godhand form of Griffith, Femto. The child’s powers were never clearly explained, but it’s safe to assume that he takes a bit after his stepfather. This will be further explored in the coming chapters.

The next scene marks the return of the Skull Knight. I’m definitely disappointed that we didn’t get to see the fight between Guts and the Wheel Skeletons. It’s not really a crucial scene, but given the iconic design of the monsters it is still a letdown. Skull Knight warns Guts of the significance of the ‘hawk dream’ which apparently was shared with him as well. Guts calls him “old man” which is a bit of an understatement, given that he’s at least a thousand years old.

Speaking of millennia, the Skull Knight explains that an Eclipse-like event is about to unfold, which takes place every thousand years. It’s unclear if he’s referring to the general descend of the Godhand, or specifically to the rebirth ceremony. It is widely believed that the he is the psedo-apostle form of another character in the Berserk universe called Emperor Gaiseric. He supposedly united the nations of Midland over a thousand years ago. Later in the episode we learn that the emperor imprisoned a man that refused to deny his sins. The prisoner must’ve been in the possession of a Behelit, as his trial ends with an Eclispe. This occurrence causes the empire to crumble, and earlier in the story we see the remains of branded bodies in the tower where Griffith was being held prisoner. It’s unknown if Gaiseric ever became a Godhand and then later reborn, or gained his powers from a separate source.

The scene comes to a close with Guts asserting his intention of saving Casca, no matter what gets in his way. I have to say that it’s refreshing to see this defiant side of Guts again. His resolute attitude and disregard for warnings and danger is a core part of his personality, and one of the main reasons why he’s such a beloved character. He fights on against all odds, and his neverending struggle is symbolic to the spirit of survival that keeps pushing all humanity forward. This charming arrogance is sorely missing from some of the new chapters of the manga. Readers who are staying up-to-date probably know what I’m talking about. He has been portrayed uncharacteristically timid in the newer installments. This might be due to character growth, but I’m hoping that it’s temporary, and that we’ll soon get to see the true berserker in action.

We switch back to the Tower of Conviction, as a doubtful Farnese is reflecting on the state of affairs. There is a subtle juxtaposition of the relative prosperity of the Holy Iron Chain Knights, set against the hunger and famine that continue to ravage the land outside. If you’ve been paying attention, there are frequent close-up shots of Farnese throughout the series. I realized that the reason for these is most likely because the close angles hide the uncanniness of the CGI, and create a more drawn look to her face. Moving on, we get to see the prostration of Mozguz, and him reassuring Farnsese of her faith, by an appeal to blindly following the divine authority. Even in reality, blind faith is often used to give purpose to those who are distressed by uncertainty. It’s also explained how Mozguz targets the social outcasts and uses their ostracization as a tool for recruitment.

We then head back to the campsite, and are introduced to Nina’s thirsty lover, Joachim. He’s mostly used as a plot-device for the viewers to get to see the other side of Nina, as she invites him to their secret gathering. As I expected, the episode includes the infamous cave scene. Similar to the manga, the gathering is a plethora of psychedelics, sex and cannibalism. I guess now we know where Nina caught that nasty little STD. Among the storm of hedonism it seems that some curious nipple-theft is taking place, and nobody’s the wiser.  It’s surprising that so much nudity is included, especially given the fact that they were well aware of their limitations due to censorship. It’s not really a big deal, but it’s seriously distracting. The orgy scene itself is drawn minimally and awkwardly, giving it a clean and sterile look that detracts from the sense of grotesque that they were going for. No matter how much they distort the images, and draw characters off-model, this still doesn’t look all that hellish. The cannibalistic imagery might be the only aspect of it that is slightly unnerving. We also get a glimpse of the Goat Head, who serves as the leader of sorts to the cult. I’ll be discussing him in more detail in the upcoming episodes.

The party is interrupted when Joachim is chased out of the cave, leading to his fall into the ravine. He’s later found by the Egg-Shaped Apostle, which will be playing a crucial part in what’s to come. It’s always good to see Luca, as she takes no nonsense from Nina, and promptly starts scolding her for her stupidity. Their reconciliation doesn’t last long, as Casca’s discovery leads to an attempted rape by a group of impressively aerodynamic men, which itself is interrupted by the manifestations of some more ghosts. This scene is very awkward, since the few models they had were reused so many times, in some instances standing almost next to eachother. The saving grace is that the scene is brief, as the Demon Child yet again dispels the apparitions.

Similar to episode three, this one also has an extended post credit scene. We get to explore the backstory of both Farnese and Serpico. Farnese is engaged in almost Lady Melisandre levels of pyromania, and it is shown that this is deeply rooted in her childhood. Serpico again demostrates that he’s a sympathetic fellow, and it’s his tragic past that has brought him into the Vandimion fold; that among other things. This episode in whole was rather plain looking, and primarily used as set-up for the next one. I understand that there was no way to exclude this whole section, but I hoped that they portrayed it with some more energy. The grey muddy colors are really tiring, and at this point I can’t wait for the Eclipse to bring some change in the scenery. The next episode is called “The Black Witch” so at least we know it’ll be racist. I jest, in reality we’re going to get a big reunion, but not a particularly sweet one. Things always seem to pick up when Guts enters the picture, and so the next one is going to be a more dynamic episode

~Bam~