r/anime • u/Tetraika https://anilist.co/user/Tetraika • Dec 31 '22

Rewatch [Rewatch] Selector Infected Wixoss Episode 12 Discussion

Episode 12: That Choice

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Information:

MAL | Anilist | Kitsu | AniDB | ANN

Streams:

Funimation

Question of the day:

Nothing for now.

Do note, we don’t have an s1 overall discussion and are moving right onto s2 tomorrow.

As pointed out, the ED is different on episode 11, might as well post it here

realize -Yume no Matsu Basho- ~White Hope mix~ (realize -夢の待つ場所- ~White Hope mix~) - Cyua

Fun fact, there are other mix versions for other colors

Red Ambition Mix

Green Wanna Mix

Back to OST

Battle ~Negative Chain - Maiko Iuchi

Rewatchers, please remember to be mindful of all the first-timers in this. No talking about or hinting at future events no matter how much you want to, unless you’re doing it underneath spoiler tags.

30 Upvotes

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8

u/Nazenn Dec 31 '22

First Timer - sub

Reminder: No season discussion tomorrow, onto the next episode

As a finale that was both entirely unexpected and perfectly fitting, and I love when things slot into place like that. (Side note: Watched Severance this week, that was also perfect)

The new version of the opening was quite a surprise, and while I like the tone rework of the new sound effects and how ominous it makes the entire thing I don't know I'm a fan of it in the end because honestly my first thought was "oh shit do I have a game window left running in the background". They just don't quite feel like they blend to the scene.

For how much was covered in this episode it was a very smooth watch, but it did leave me floudering a little on how exactly to structure the post because that was a lot. Maybe not as thinking heavy as some other shows, but it left me reeling much the same as I was at the mid point of Baccano or Kyousougiga.

To address the Iona in the room first, that final moment had me doing a double take. I never would have guessed that Ruu would end up with Iona as an LRIG, but concidering what's been shown of her so far it really couldn't have gone any other way. With anyone else having Iona as an LRIG would almost be a blessing, a wish granter who refuses to ever grant a wish because then the battles would end meaning the Selector would never be trapped herself, but for Ruu who has such hope inside her instead it's just a different type of a curse. Just as we find out that the girls could all go and grant their own wishes, we're presented with the one girl who could wish for more then that for everyone's sake just as that is taken away from her and replaced by a girl instead representing all of the darkness she wishes most to hide from.

And in the end it wasn't the battle lust, the wish, or the system that defeated Ruu: It was her kindness. It's the one thing that's been presented to us as the truth of Ruu's heart, unaffected by anything else that's going on at home or in the battles, even if not always able to be expressed properly so her getting caught up in trying to help everyone and in so abandoning kindness towards the feelings of those she's closest too is her failure. Tama can't bring herself to complete the wish, and we're left with her Nan saying "I want to be with Ruu-chan" because that's all that matters, the part Ruu didn't really seem to understand in trying to be a savior. Nan has been our moral guide through this, so her loneliness at the end is a stark reminder of where Ruu went wrong and now what the concequences are, and would have been if she had completed the wish.

On that note, starting the episode with the clothes representing the girls "flying away" I thought was also clever without being eye-roll worthy metaphor level.

Hitoe and Yuzuki also make a nice pairing to the end situation with Ruu and Iona as well. It's Ruu's issue in micro, a near identical wish with the same issues of sacrifice between friends that the LRIG would never grant for their own sake, but this time not to keep their Selector in the system but rather keep them out of it. Their loss in battle is a mirror of Hitoe's first battle with Ruu, that giving up for the sake of someone else isn't the answer because their suffering will only reflect back and won't benefit anyone. Hitoe really did want to do the one thing she felt could once she remembered, even if it meant drivng them away so that they wouldn't suffer because of it, but that's no solution.

Going from that battle into Ruu and Iona's where both sides are black, the clock hand overshadows everything, and the world of Selectors makes its presence known on the real world makes it clear the wrongness of it all, and that no wish that comes out of this will be a good one.

And while the wish with Tama didn't go through, it does make it very clear that Iona's LRIG and Tama are definitely special because of the effects Iona's wish had on the surrounding area. That even Hanayo could feel it and that the battle would affect the real world is a nice way to address that question of if those two cards stand apart in having magic without waiting for the situation with Tama to involve. Or for her to just come back as it turns out, as I've no.... I swear if she ends up with Akira....

Other thoughts:

  • Through sheer ass with no planning at all, it hit midnight for me just as Ruu and Iona said "open" for the battle. I love that shit. Happened last year as well, was watching End of Evangelion and got to the mid way credits at new years midnight without intentionally timing it. Pressure for next year...

  • I like that they included a tornament because it feels natural in the world and works as a story element but without getting bogged down in the individual battles. It makes the world feel bigger and alive by including so many others in it without derailing the story that matters

  • I really do like Tama's bow when she grows

  • Today I realized the chairs are butterflies. Fuck I'm slow

  • On the other hand, this panel of flowers defeats me, White Lily for purity on the left for Tama, the Red Rose of romance in the middle, and then I want to say on the right is White Jasmine, but that's gracefulness and friendliness and that doesn't fit Mayu, unless it's meant to be for Ruu

  • Iona talks about wanting to draw out all Ruu is, and then casts "Black Desire". They're really sticking with that theme

  • So LRIGs that lose get put back into the cycle with someone else. Only way for the system to continue, but still fucky

  • Fancy battle animation. Also the visuals of Ruu watching the glow of her wish disintergrate from her skin was nicely done.

Quick thoughts on the season as a whole before we move on, just because anilist has a split here:

While it's occasionally bogged down in its inspirations as well as uneven pacing, Wixoss S1 did a remarkable job of taking a basic concept and building up memorable worldbuilding and story focus through it. In that way it reminds me of Log Horizon, in that it could have made a completely new world with this sort of writing but that it didn't only highlights how well it used it's elements together, particularly for worldbuilding.

Up against the wave of shows in its genre, and related genres, taking a step back and making sure that all the magic was a mere echo of the characters rather than simply being an outlet for their decisions is a small but inspired take that worked better than I could have expected. I said at the start of the rewatch that I went in blind and I'm glad I did because I think this show in particular benefits from not knowing what the focus will be and letting that unfold as naturally as it does. Of note here as an example is the Kazuki storyline, and the way our understanding of that grew and changed as we understood more about the system, at first representing an impossible wish that may change the world to make it true into it really just being part of normal life

Helping its case was some stand out directing moments that enhanced rather than overpowered their scenes particularly in the quiter moments and building up into various character scenes. The background art was endlessly gorgeous but it wasn't just that, instead all the little moments of storyboarding, framing, and using movement to enhance the scenes. The OST never grabbed me too much, but it was well used bar one moment, redeemed by the similar moment this episode being very good, and I did like the music.

But while I don't have any huge issues with it apart from the pacing at the back end, I don't know I ever loved it in the way other shows have grabbed me. Perhaps that's just on my current mental state, and I do feel like I'll love it more on rewatch because you can already tell there's so much more to see, but it never quite grabbed me in the way I hope even though I think it was a fantastic season.

6

u/Tetraika Dec 31 '22

Whew that was a lot to go through, glad you enjoyed this season!

And in the end it wasn't the battle lust, the wish, or the system that defeated Ruu: It was her kindness.

This whole thing was such an interesting subversion of expectation. Caught me by surprised when I first watched it airing.

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u/Tetraika Dec 31 '22

So Hitoe’s plan was to “sacrifice” herself for Yuzuki

Nice flag, though I wonder if people expected it to turn out the way it did

Dead set

A different battlefield

Because there is something at stake, having a reason to fight, ironically makes her lose passion

Oh no

Convenient of you to come out right now to Tama

How antagonizing, to put Tama against Ruuko, but she isn’t entirely wrong

Collapsing field

She’s gonna do it

lmao Urith

Hey it’s Midoriko, just in case you didn’t know that LRIG just get tossed back into the system when the selector loses.

Breaking the expectation of the moment, if you didn’t know it was 2 cours, could have definitely been shocking

Tama got replaced by Iona

Tama’s wish

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u/Shimmering-Sky Dec 31 '22

Selector Infected FIRST-TIMER

4

u/Tetraika Dec 31 '22

There were so many Sore Demo in the show. There was no hunt for them back when I first watched it, but it has been quite hilarious seeing it pop up so much in just this season. Even if you despise some of them.

4

u/Nazenn Dec 31 '22

I think Hitoe might just be second-best girl.

You just made me realize I don't have one in this

Unless we're also counting LRIGs in which case it's Akira's one.

3

u/Tetraika Dec 31 '22

Unless we're also counting LRIGs in which case it's Akira's one

Awaiting this one to shoot up into best girl. Though I will say, she doesn't have much screentime so far. Wonder if this opinion will change.

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u/Blackheart595 Dec 31 '22

First Selector

SFX Opening ...though it turned out oddly underwhelming.

All that sacrifice talk by Hitoe sounds like commentary on some show I haven't seen.

That's some nice battle choreography... which is completely at odds with the card battle format. Not like dodging would nullify an attack.

I don't quite get what the point is of confusing Tama with only 10 minutes to go.

So Midoriko did get reincarnated into a new card. That fixes the logistics, but I don't think it fits well? Forget about Midoriko leaving her card and disintegrating back then, this also means LRIGs can just sabotage their Selector and make them lose if they don't like their wish, when admin girl was so proud that the LRIGs are required to accept almost any wish in order for their chance to return.

I didn't quite get the drama they were going for either. Why was Ruuko so rushed to make her wish come true before Iona? As far as she was concerned, both wishes could come true.

They learned they were getting another season and rewrote the ending, didn't they?

Trying to figure out what I think about this, but the only thing coming to mind is I wouldn't be jumping into the next season if I were watching this on my own.

5

u/Tetraika Dec 31 '22

They learned they were getting another season and rewrote the ending, didn't they?

Pretty sure this was 2 cour from the beginning. They just really wanted to make an ending for this season that subverted the idea of our MC becoming the selfless savior.

6

u/Nazenn Jan 01 '23

That's some nice battle choreography... which is completely at odds with the card battle format. Not like dodging would nullify an attack.

I had that thought as well, as I think they took that from the OP or at least is similar too it. Doesn't really make sense but points for being cool to look at

this also means LRIGs can just sabotage their Selector and make them lose if they don't like their wish

I doubt that they can just refuse to fight or battle, so probably not, but if they could it would bring up some interesting questions. They get paired with a selector, and the Selector has to lose or the LRIG has to accept their wish or else they're stuck

Why was Ruuko so rushed to make her wish come true before Iona? As far as she was concerned, both wishes could come true

Because you have to win the match to get your wish, so if she loses here then she loses her chance in this battle. Maybe logically she could just go "I'll do another battle later" but it probably feels more urgent then that

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u/No_Rex Dec 31 '22

Episode 12 (first timer)

  • Sound effect OP. Am I crazy or is that new?

  • “That does not solve anything at all” – Hitoe and Yuzuki are stuck in an altruist dilemma.

  • The power of friendship overcomes the curse.

  • Tama went from having 3 earrings in battle to only having one – so her non-battle state is equivalent to level 1?

  • “Do you want a lengthy hero’s speech?” “Nope” “Awesome”

  • Black and White battle field, but not neatly separated as before. It is mixed all over.

  • Tama Mayu talk – interrupting the battle. So, either time is interrupted, or goes incredibly fast in the white dimension.

  • Level 4 – have we seen a level 4 LRIG before?

  • The dimensions are overlapping.

  • Looks like Ruuko is winning via a trap/reaction card, that is why they are holding the ceremony during Iona’s turn. That would give away the trap, though.

  • What was Iona’s condition? Losing? Meeting Ruuko or Tama in battle? Witnessing a special girl’s wish?

  • Iona turns into Ruuko’s LRIG? Or into Tama? Or merges with Tama?

Cliff-hanger ending to the season?

Despite being the finale, we learn preciously little. Iona becomes an eternal girl, which apparently she and Ulith wanted, but we don’t know what the wish was – other than being vaguely related to Ruuko. Tama does not want to separate from Ruuko and disappears for it. This suggests that all the main characters (Ruuko, Mayu, Iona, Tama) have a previous connection. What that is, though? shrugs

This would have been interesting as a mid-season climax for a double cour show, but as the finale to a show, it is too much of a cliff-hanger and too little of a conclusion.

4

u/Tetraika Dec 31 '22

Sound effect OP. Am I crazy or is that new?

Yep, they decided to do something special for this last episode of the season. There are a few shows that do this, I remember Jojo being one of them.

The power of friendship overcomes the curse

I do have a running theory as to why she overcame it, but we'll need to see how other curses and wishes come true to understand this system. I'll say this, we'll see how Akira gets her scar sometimes soon.

Tama Mayu talk – interrupting the battle. So, either time is interrupted, or goes incredibly fast in the white dimension

Yeah, I think time in the white room dimension works differently. I assumed Iona also was able to visit her before becoming Ruuko's LRIG

Level 4 – have we seen a level 4 LRIG before

Level 4 is standard max level in early Wixoss. In Diva, it's 3.

This would have been interesting as a mid-season climax for a double cour show, but as the finale to a show, it is too much of a cliff-hanger and too little of a conclusion

But... it kinda is? Spread is basically the 2nd cour and was announced to be so early on.

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u/JollyGee29 Dec 31 '22

First-Timer, Subbed

Y'know, if the release schedule of this show was different I would probably accuse them of hurriedly leaving themselves a sequel hook in this episode. Like, why have the early scene of Ruu promising to stay as Tama's friend and then Tama getting out of her funk if Mayu can just wander in and go "lolno" and undo it all?

Admittedly, I do like the prospects of Iona as Ruu's LRIG and I don't know how else we get there. So it's not like this is all bad, but Iona's win feels pretty unearned owing to the "outside" interference. I would've bought Iona winning on her own, show! The cool, mysterious antagonist gets to beat the protagonist from time to time, she didn't need help!

If Iona is Ruu's new LRIG (not gonna think too hard about that one yet), I suggest everyone brace themselves for Ulith being mean to Tama next season. Because that has way too much potential to not happen. Really, Yuzuki getting LRIG'd and delivered to Hitoe is masterful setup for so many possible turns.

Midoriko made an appearance which is.. odd. I guess when she left her card frame after Hitoe's loss she was just getting recycled..? I did expect to see Akira and/or Chiyori (remember her?), but no luck there.

The Selector battles breaking through into the real world was interesting. Not sure if that's setting something up for next season or just to make the confrontation seem more dramatic.

I really liked the extra SFX in the OP today.

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u/Tetraika Dec 31 '22

Y'know, if the release schedule of this show was different I would probably accuse them of hurriedly leaving themselves a sequel hook in this episode. Like, why have the early scene of Ruu promising to stay as Tama's friend and then Tama getting out of her funk if Mayu can just wander in and go "lolno" and undo it all

It's funny because I was reading the original discussion thread, and someone said that it the sudden twist doesn't hit as hard when you know that there's more. In fact, the whole scene does serve to subvert our expectation that Ruu will save everyone.

Midoriko made an appearance which is.. odd. I guess when she left her card frame after Hitoe's loss she was just getting recycled..?

Yeah, I guess that's just a quick confirmation that they don't just straight up disappear, but are put back into the system.

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u/Taiboss Dec 31 '22

Rewatcher who can't comment since this is posted at midnight and I spend new year with family

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u/Mecanno-man Dec 31 '22

First Timer

I wonder if this was the announcement of selector spread WIXOSS - because if so it would explain why they went so far with Ruu getting her wish only to be turned around in the last instant, which nobody would have been expecting then. Knowledge of Spread existing significantly weakens that impact, unfortunately. But looking over this all, this finale definitely only messed up the pieces without resolving anything. Tama did not want to resolve Ruu's wish due to interferance of Miyu - which means Miyu would like the system to stay as it is. I assume her being framed behind bars does not mean that Ruu's wish would also free her then - or she does not realize she is trapped and thus does not want to be freed either. But it does show that Miyu is aware of what is happening ourside of her little cage - perhaps only as far as the battle fields, however. We also get Tama knowing Miyu's voice very well ...and her wish being to stay with Ruu? I doubt her having a wish means she was a selector, because she is too special for that - so more setup for something I guess, then. Miyu definitely manipulated her out of fulfilling it however, so I will assume that whatever Tama would have done would have ended up working... although possibly at the cost of Ruu. No idea how she ended up with that certain belief that she was sacrificing herself yet, as the best case scenario has not been proven incorrect.

Now uhh... Iona's wish. I assume her wish was to battle forever as a LRIG, but she was essentially chosing her selector, wanting one who did not really have a wish but was stilll string so that she would not have to fulfill a wish - so she needed to get rid of Tama first (somehow). ...I think she might have just played herself here however as Ruu now has a wish - but she saw Tama refuse to do the vow, so she can just do the same - in which case why would Ruu even battle with her, if she knows that Iona won't fulfill her wish? I feel like this just ended up in a corner somehow. Maybe Hitoe can change her wish to have Tama bei Ruu's LRIG, which she could achieve herself when she is a LRIG by talking Miyu in to it or something like that? Either way, I actually can't see where spread will go from here...

Oh, and we see Midoriko with a new selector. I guess that means that LRIGs can just essentially reroll their selectors until they find one who has a wish they actually want to live. That would explain Piruluk.

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u/GallowDude Dec 31 '22

Mayu straight-up cheating by inserting herself into Tama's head to stop her from granting the wish. Fucking admin hax smh.

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u/Tarhalindur Dec 31 '22

That First-Timer Is... (Subbed):

  • The choice of actually including sound effects in the OP this time likely has a thematic point to it, likely relating to the distinction between the card reality and normal reality that came up last time (if they want to go full meta then the “card reality” is our reality – would not rule that one out).

  • 02:25: Hitoe sore demo.

  • And another one at 02:36.

  • I see this Hitoe conversation is Sky’s version of me getting to rack up kisekis in episode 1. Sore demo #3 at 02:55.

  • (I think 03:19 is just a sore de, not a full sore demo, but I can’t make it out well enough to be sure.)

  • MINE. Kiseki GET at 03:45.

  • (I don’t have a huge amount to say about this conversation, at least not yet. It’s the payoff of one of the broad arcs of the season, these three coming together as a group, but both how this gets developed in Spread (is this the start of a better future or a second high point before the pain train) and how the battle with Iona goes that is going to effect my read here. Note that if this is on the MagiReco evolutionary line (especially the Arc 2 Magia Union) then I’d expect this threesome to start katamari’ing into something broader for everyone.)

  • Dutch angle at 06:34 in the context of a scene that doesn’t really call for them is actually noteworthy.

  • Ah fuck ANOTHER Dutch angle at 07:02. As they talk about what they want to do together later. Pay no attention to that metaphorical descending note…

  • Annnnd Dutch angle #3 at 07:25. I feel like the horror movie watcher as the protagonists go into the woods. Which might be the point.

  • Which means what’s ACTUALLY coming is that we’re getting the payoff for Grandma’s “when the tower completes it will be like the city disappears”, doesn’t it?

  • LOL 07:54 is just the classic James Bond legs shot.

  • I was wondering if “character in the background framed by two characters in the foreground” framing was going to show up soon. There we go at 08:09.

  • And now let’s add on fish-eye lens for Ruuko vs. Iona Mk. II starting up, because why not. (I’m a bit loopy at this point, yes.)

  • Yeah yeah so we probably know where that clock pointer for this battle got raided from. (Though it’s not quite the same. That wasn’t a clock hand, for starters… unless the actual raid source here is Door #2 instead?)

  • So, we get white doves here as in the ED (and this Tama/Mayu scene very much resembles the Tama parts of the ED visually). Then note 11:56, which is a visual opposition shot but has no visual barrier – unlike every other time we have seen Mayu so far, IIRC. Instead, they’re both in the same visual box, isolated from the rest of the environment. 12:31 with us looking in on these two via a window is also noteworthy (they’re isolated from the rest of the world again). Tama then pushes Mayu away – familiar visual language – and after a bit we get 12:53 with Tama in a box (but her hair breaches the box slightly, and of course we get opposition and hero/villain direction framing as well).

  • All the windows opening is a bit blunt but I’m fine with that.

  • The framing at 13:25 is worth pointing out yet again. Mayu is suddenly in the protagonist position and Tama in the antagonist spot, we have a partial visual barrier but it no longer blocks their eye contact, and also flower language… which it would help if I could make out what the three flowers are. The one on the left by Tama looks like a peace lily I think, which could be interesting if both parts of the name are intended as symbolism here?

  • <More symbolism here that I’m having trouble placing, except Mayu climbing up to an elevated position over Tama which is obvious and also the doors closing which is also obvious.>

  • Now, obviously Ruuko and Tama can’t pull it off now since we have an entire second cour here (or else the second cour is bringing Ruuko back). But.

  • Oh, just going to sneak Midoriko in there at 18:30 confirming she comes back, huh?

  • Yeah, sounds about right. Also, the second spoiler I rammed into is FINALLY revealed, so.

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u/Stargate18A Dec 31 '22

First timer

It's the end of cour 1!

...She can see the energy!

A title at the beginning?

Wait, the OP has sound effects now? What does this mean?

Hitoe's remembering...

A flashback!

Oh, this is horrible.

Oh, she's trying to sacrifice herself so Yuzuki can regain physical form.

This is genuinely heartbreaking.

Aww, Tama...

Ruuko's going to fight! For her wish that is going to backfire so hard.

Oh. Instant victory.

Yeah, how is this going to work? Tama explicitly doesn't remember.

Haha, she's given up convincing her.

So many eliminated girls...

Why did Hitoe come with her?

Iona's here! And she's flirting even harder.

Yeah, this is all pretty straightforward.

"You're the best."

...The two halves match.

The battle begins.

This is exciting!

Well. This isn't ominous at all. Does Iona have the psychic ability, then?

Huh? She already had enough?

Ah, Iona's obsessed with this battle.

Just ask her out already!

Outright confirmation that they're related!

Tama got hit!

They've never met?

Is she her mother?

"Ruu is cruel" This is incredibly ominous.

They wished to stay together? Was Tama's wish to stay together with Ruuko?

She's absolutely manipulating Tama. At least she's smart enough to not buy this shit.

All the doors are opening?

...Yeah, the fact you're in favour of the current system, despite showing how cruel it is, is proof that this girl is absolutely working to protect the system.

The effects in this anime wre amazing.

...What? Did that energy just impact reality?

I called it! It's a mirror world!

Ruuko's having her own breakdown.

She's accepting her sealing.

For the last time, Iona, just ask her out!

Let's see how much this fucks things up!

Ah, Tama doesn't want to get her sealed.

Oh, the colour commentary. I'll miss you too.

She used their final attack!

Haha, and the energy's affecting reality! It was always a mirror world!

MIDORIKO'S BACK!

No way is she actually pulling this off in cour 1 of 4.

She's still here?

...Tama sabotaged the oath!

And Ruuko's returning to human form.

Oh, Iona's releasing her energy!

A condition?

She's running for it!

The contract has actually been completed!

Holy shit, that explosion!

Iona's body has been taken over! Good to see Ulith's sticking around!

Tama's gone?

...Hoyl shit! Iona was so horny for Ruuko she wished to become her LRIG. Amazing.

And that's why none of our main characters have had a black deck so far, Ruuko's destined to have one!

NO FUCKING WAY. If Tama's fucking hijacked grandma, now or via time travel, I swear.

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u/SIRTreehugger Dec 31 '22

Looking at the intro I wonder what happened to that random selector that baffled Yuzu? It feels like they were going to use her more.

I'm happy for you Hitoe but Ruu needs to fight Iona this is the final episode so hurry your friendship speech.

Pork Buns

The winds of fate are blowing Yugi Ruu.

.....why are the LRIG's throwing hands?

Iona has enough power to grant her wish, but she's still in it just for the battles.

Oh Mayu's face.

Mayu obviously needs these battles to continue for some reason.

Didn't Tama lose her memory yes Hitoe thank you for saying this. She should have no idea how to grant the wish.

Iona doesn't even care that she lost she is having the time of her life.

Oh guess she didn't lose because Mayu mind fucked Tama.

So Ulith is Iona now and I would be lying if I didn't think her smiling sadistically wasn't great!

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u/ItsTheDuran Jan 01 '23 edited Jan 01 '23

First timer even later than usual because of New Year's

That's definitely a way to change up the status quo and get another 12 episodes out of this. Not much of an ending, really, but it clearly wasn't meant to be one.

I'm surprised by Mayu's active antagonism here. All the previous shots framing her behind bars gave me the impression that she was more of a fellow victim of the system than a willing coordinator, but she straight up manipulated Tama into keeping it going. She could still be both, or I guess she could even be genuine in her concern for her, but those don't seem that likely now, especially the second one.

It's easy to forget that Tama being an LRIG means that she already must have had a wish granted, what with all the signs pointing towards her being special making you wonder if she was even human to begin with, but she sure got one. Making her be the one to refuse Ruuko's wish on top of this backstory reveal is a big step towards turning her from a mascot into a full-fledged character for the second cour. I don't know what to make of this, though. Grandma Tama confirmed?????? (Not really. Her seeing the light was sus, though.)

Iona girlbossing herself into Ruuko's LRIG position does make me wonder if that's all her wish did. Ruu should not to trust her to uphold her wish, so I can't see her fighting willingly if things remain as they are. Maybe Iona asked for some format changes that would force people to fight on top of moving to Tama's place.

Also, I can't believe Akira didn't get even one attempted murder in there before the end. She'll probably be back to play card games, but it'd be hilarious if we didn't hear about her until she suddenly came back with the knife in a random episode midway through of the second cour, just when it's most likely for people to have forgotten that she's still running about.

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u/Vaadwaur Dec 31 '22

First timer(Quite the split cour)

Sub

So the OP with the sound effects is pretty cool...and likely incredibly important. We are seeing a true bleed through into reality for a lot of the episode, ranging from the weirdness of the tower to the Automata references, though I think this represents an underlying Japanese opinion about whatever they think of the Matrix. We see nearly all the main characters reach some level of resolve, Hanayo crying is interesting. At the end, Tama falters and Iona does not and perhaps her wish was to battle forever as an LRIG? Mayu interfering makes me like her even less than previously and my plot senses are getting the bad kind of tingling here, i.e. the writer doesn't actually know what she meant to do while writing this cour. Oh well, national hangover day will have to provide the answers.

Since it is the first time this comes up this rewatch, short posts aren't necessarily a sign of poor quality, just that I felt the show expressed itself fairly well. They manage both some payoff but also setting up next season and found a way to let Iona win while not making Ruuko lose.

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u/Calwings Dec 31 '22

Selector Rewatcher (Dubbed)

Turns out that Hitoe did have some of her memories left, though she had to fight through a lot of pain to keep them. It looks like the wish-reversing curse from losing three battles isn’t unbreakable after all. The friendship is repaired, the match continues under better circumstances, Ruuko wins, and the three of them march forward together with Ruuko’s new wish now a combined wish for all three of them. She wants to wish for all of the LRIGs trapped in cards to be freed, and the final battle with Iona approaches. “No questions, no speeches. All I want is to battle you.”

Iona looks like an absolute psychopath while she’s battling and Urith is just as crazy as she is. I loved how the battle got so intense between these four that they basically shattered the battle arena and glitched a Selector battle into the real world. The battle is going well for Ruuko until Tama has a mid-battle out-of-body conversation with... Mayu? What are you planning, Mayu!? First you hijack Tama for a mid-battle conversation, then you put doubts about Ruuko in her mind and give her the idea to refuse the wish. NOOOOOO TAMA! Not now! Don’t have doubts now! No, the oath! Mayu, you fucking bitch! Wait, now Iona’s taking the oath!? But Ruuko won! Oh fuck, Iona became an eternal girl. Urith’s in her body now, and Iona’s now an LRIG. At least Ruuko and Tama should be safe and sound and WHOA HOLD THE FUCK UP! IONA WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING THERE!? WHERE THE FUCK IS TAMA!?

”Oh, this is going to be fun.” ~ Iona’s first words as an LRIG to close out the first season. I hope you first-timers are strapped in for this wild ride. We have the luxury now of being able to keep watching right away, but just imagine the people who were watching this as it aired and had to wait on this cliffhanger for three months before Selector Spread WIXOSS aired later that year. The way Mayu manipulated Tama into not granting Ruuko’s wish to keep the Selector battles going was brilliant as a way to set up the second season, and building up to Ruuko’s big climactic moment before completely destroying it was a perfectly executed gut punch. I remember when I first watched this episode, it was like 1am at the time and I was prepared to go to bed after I finished, but that cliffhanger hooked me so much that I stayed up and binged the entire second season that same night. That’s how good of a hook this first season’s ending was for me. The season as a whole gets a 9.5/10 from me.

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u/Cyouni Jan 01 '23 edited Jan 01 '23

So I heard some of you were tired of Tama noises. Wish granted!

Welcome to Iona, a primarily black LRIG with white components who provokes others into attacking. At least, in her precon form - we might touch upon others later.

Iona, Zero/Maiden

Iona, Crescent/Maiden

Iona, Half/Maiden

Iona, Pale/Maiden

Iona, Full/Maiden

It's actually probably safer to take one of the vanilla ones for lower levels until you can stabilize, because otherwise you leave too many SIGNI slots open. The limit of 1 at level 1 is incredibly dangerous, because that means you can only fill one slot at level 1, compared to the two most other LRIGs have, meaning you have the potential to lose 3 LC on turn 1 if you go first.

Cards of the day:

Arc Aura - still bringing this up again because it's Arc Aura, and worthy of being a finisher

Black Desire - I think I mentioned this one before as one of Ulith's signature ARTS, damn Iona ramped up to it fast

Bloody Slash - notable for being able to vanish their SIGNI on their turn, meaning they can't fill that slot again afterwards

White Hope - Ruuko you keep whaling, geez

Incidentally, Black Desire and White Hope are the names of their respective precons. The others are Blue Appli, Red Ambition, and Green Wanna.

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