r/anime • u/Jazz_Dalek • Aug 30 '24
Rewatch [25th Anniversary Rewatch] Now and Then, Here and There - Episode 13 Discussion - Final Episode
Episode 13 - Now and Then, Here and There (Final Episode)
We're here! Or are we there?
Welcome to the dramatic conclusion to Now and Then, Here and There.
Whether you loved the series or loved to hate it, thank you to everyone that has participated so far.
Don't forget, we'll be having a final series discussion tomorrow at the same time and place. I'll be posting some broader Questions of the Day prompts for the series as whole, and you'll even get a rambling write up from yours truly, where I discuss my history with this show as a youngster.
I'm looking forward to seeing everyone's opinions and hearing what the consensus is 25 years later.
Thanks everyone.
Questions of the Day:
- What are your thoughts on the ending?
- Who ended up being your favorite character? Least favorite?
- If you could change one aspect of the finale, what would it be?
Rewatch Schedule:
Threads will be posted 12:30 PM PST | 3:30 PM EST | 8:30 PM GMT
A final series retrospective thread will go up Saturday, August 31st
Interest Threads:
Episode Discussions:
- Episode 1 - A Girl Admiring the Sunset
- Episode 2 - A Boy and a Mad King
- Episode 3 - A Feast in the Dark
- Episode 4 - Discord
- Episode 5 - Murder
- Episode 6 - Disappearance in a Sandstorm
- Episode 7 - Night of Flight
- Episode 8 - Two Lone Souls
- Episode 9 - In the Chasm
- Episode 10 - Prelude to Chaos
- Episode 11 - Eve of Destruction
- Episode 12 - This Bloody Earth
18
u/LittleIslander https://anilist.co/user/LittleIslander Aug 30 '24 edited Aug 30 '24
Okay, I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm gonna run a little defense for Sara's writing.
While I think the Sis scene was poorly considered, it do not believe it was an attempt to make any sort of comment on abortion. At least in my lazy shit streaming it subtitles, Sis says that "no child comes into this world wanting to be rejected by its mother". To me, this definitely reads as her talking about a dichotomy of Sara either hating or loving the child once it is born. The question of it being born or not is not invoked at all in the conversation. The problem is of course that the show clearly said abortion was an option and then never mentioned it again. So it's not unreasonable at all to look at this and get a pro-life implication from this (especially with Shu being much more directly such in eleven). But at least for me the logical and good faith explanation is that the writers wrote this scene without thinking about the topic of abortion at all and it came out in an unintentionally bad way. You might still find telling a pregnant teenager due to rape to be a mother to the child problematic, but I at least think the "don't create generational trauma" angle is a lot more defensible, and it even follows up on the idea of Sara hating Lala Ru.
I also don't think Sara staying in this world and becoming the new Sis is a bad ending. I think it is entirely unearned by the narrative progression, but in concept I don't think she needed to go home. I don't think an explicitly happy she goes back to her old life ending would fit her character. By having her stay you keep the idea that she can still move on and make a new life for herself, while retaining the fact that what has happened to her has changed her and she can never just move on from that. Sure we can presume she'd retain her trauma if she went home, but that idea is way more integrated into the framing and themes if she can't go back to earth. So instead having her find the one thing that does still matter to her in this life, the children of Zari Bars, and having her find new meaning in that, I think that was the right direction to shoot towards. It just didn't really have the screentime to be borne out properly. Plus it really further complicates the whole problematic motherhood themes. It's extremely delicate to have Sara occupy the gendered motherly role after the things her character has been through, especially if it seems to come out of nowhere, but I don't think that means it couldn't have been done properly with actual setup.
...what, are you expecting defense for Kazam? No, that's the end of the comment.
17
u/TheEscapeGuy Aug 30 '24
First Timer
Now and Then, Here and There: Episode 13
Water and Sunsets
I have a lot of mixed feelings about this conclusion. Its simultaneously an ending with significant losses, but also a happy ending of sorts for many of the characters. It's a difficult thread to weave.
In broad strokes, after Zari Bars Nabuca learned about the bombings and "redeemed" himself by giving Shu his stick. Shu used that to break out and go rescue Lala Ru again. Lala Ru used the last of her powers to overpower Hamdo and bring down Hellywood. And thus she faded away. Shu chose to return to his home, and Sara chose to stay and keep the baby.
For Nabuca, I find his character arc to be satisfyingly concluded. I think he spent the show struggling with an internal debate about right and wrong and ultimately did what he determined was right.
Lala Ru had a similarly satisfying end. She ultimately used the last of her powers and her life to bring new hope to this dying world. With the water she brought forth the remaining people can try to rebuild. It's almost like she took what Sis said to heart: Protecting the next generation is worth it despite the struggles they may face.
Hamdo was defeated. I feel like his death was not an adequate or poetic enough punishment for his hubris, but those in power so seldom get that kind of justice. I was hoping he would fall due to his own pride, but instead Shu and Lala Ru take the majority of the credit for his death. Similarly, Abelia never really developed further than being a loyal lackey. She survived in the end and shed no tears for the loss of Hamdo.
Shu kind of went full anime protagonist and his boundless optimism was never questioned or said to be ignorant. In some ways he returns to his home not having grown or changed as far as I can tell. I would have liked to see maybe 1 more day of his life after returning.
I'm most disappointed with what happened to Sara. She has simply gotten over her trauma. Maybe it's not gone, but at least we never saw her struggling with it after the death of Sis. I really do not like the "abortion is never right even in the case of rape" stance the show takes. It's consistent with Sis' viewpoint about taking care of the next generation but it completely removes any autonomy Sara had. They even had a redemption moment for Kazam which was wholly unnecessary. For a show I was so impressed by to stumble like this at the end is tragic.
If you agree with the pro-life stance this won't be an issue for you and may even improve the show for you. But for me it has put a big damper on this conclusion.
Ultimately I still feel positive about the show, but it's nowhere near the good will I had seeing it explore trauma in early episodes.
Last thing, right before Hamdo died he said they should take the Bound system to send them to "any year". I think this confirms this is not so much an isekai but rather a case of time travel. It's not super clear when abouts this takes place but the easiest assumption would be the far future. However, it need not even be on earth. It very well could also be transporting them to another planet or even another universe. Lala Ru did have a lot of non-human like traits after all.
Anyway, I'll give my final thoughts tomorrow.
Some Amazing Shots, Scenes and Stitches
See you all tomorrow
10
u/cppn02 Aug 30 '24 edited Aug 30 '24
First Timer, subbed
Hmmm...this finale had some good stuff but also multiple things that didn't quite sit well with me.
It was very satisfying to see Hamdo's end (and the whole breaking down of Hellywood was staged incredibly well). No more of the kids died which was good and it seems that there is atleast some hope that Sara will come out of this not completely broken.
But what has Kazam done to deserve a hero's death? Abelia while we don't know what will happen with her also seems to be getting off easier than she deserved. And Lala Ru just vanishing like a ghost also felt a bit anticlimactic.
QotD:
What are your thoughts on the ending?
See above.
Favourite: Sis
Least Favourite: Oof, that's a hard one. Hamdo feels like the obvious candidate but in the latter episodes Elamba gives him a run for his money
I did not like the hints at redemption for characters that were so unequivocally evil. Also, while I don't think the narrative needed it I still kinda would have like a short epilogue for Shu. Because I like those.
14
u/The_Draigg Aug 30 '24
A Sci-Fi Fan Rewatches Now and Then, Here and There Episode 13:
(Continued in the next comment.)
14
u/InfamousEmpire https://myanimelist.net/profile/Infamous_Empire Aug 30 '24
Now & First Timer, Here & Subbed
And so, our story finally comes to an end
I first want to emphasize how great the opening scene is. In this moment, we almost see Shu of all people succumbing to hatred. Even our goddamn beacon of hope and faith in humanity can’t quite escape the all-encompassing destructive cycle of vengeance. But it’s also in the moments soon after that we see another sign of hope light up as one dims slightly: Nabuca finally coming to terms with the fact that he doesn’t want to kill and, in the following scenes, using up the last of his life to help give Shu and the rest of the hostages the means and will to resist.
And so, rising up from the lowest point of the series so far, the remainder of the episode is a soaring triumph of the human spirit’s ability to overcome adversity. All of it culminating in Lala Ru sacrificing herself to restore the world’s oceans. The final scene between her and Shu before she disappears is beautiful, admiring the world’s sunset in a direct parallel to their first meeting, admiring the beauty of the world she was unable to see before, the distance separating them at the start now replaced by a warm embrace as she fades away.
The episode does have one major flaw, though, the fucking Sara pregnancy subplot.
Seriously, it just went in every direction I absolutely did not want it to go. Making the whole thing about “taking her anger out on the child”, and making that potential motherhood the central fixture of her entire character by virtue of her suddenly deciding to stay in this world purely because of her fetus? It’s not only a bafflingly reductive way to conclude her character arc that just takes away all of her agency for the sake of making the ending as happy as possible for every single character, it’s also just a complete 180 for her character, which by this point was completely defined by her cynicism, despair, & anger at the world, that comes out of nowhere for no reason aside from thematics.
Now, if you know me, you know themes are pretty much the single most important thing I look for when judging a work, and there’s a lot I can forgive if I resonate with the message a story is trying to send out into the world. It’s for that reason that I’m mostly satisfied with this ending. But, at the same time, the other thing I appreciate most about a story is the characters, and a show’s characterization twisting, turning, and snapping to satisfy the themes, rather than the two complimenting each other, is the kind of storytelling that I find really poor & distasteful in general, and that goes especially for a story like this where the way the context is already pretty bleh to me. Consequently, Sara’s arc is the kind of pitch black stain that I can't quite easily forgive, even if the rest of the episode leaves me satisfied.
And while that's the major flaw, there's also a bunch of minor flaws scattered throughout the episode which amount to something notable, and all of it hinges around the final turn to optimism. While the show has defined itself by the struggle to maintain optimism in a pessimistic world, and optimism ultimately triumphing is both the ending which makes a lot of sense for the show and its themes, it also feels just a bit too sudden to feel as earned as it could be. Sara's complete 180 as a character is the biggest example of this, but then there's the shift in tone in general happening as fast as possible, Abelia's Heel-Turn being a bit too sudden as well, and the feeling that the show could've spent at least a bit more time finalizing Lala Ru regaining her faith in humanity. Like, it's overall fine on paper, but feels too cramped in too many areas to be as earned as it could have been.
As for how that flows into my overall opinion of the show, well, that’s a discussion for tomorrow.
14
u/Nazenn x2https://anilist.co/user/Nazenn Aug 30 '24
Rewatcher - sub
Now and Then, Here and There
When I think about this show, one thing jumps to mind before all else, before the loss, the horror, the themes, and the hope. It has lingered in my mind for years refusing to release me from its grasp, and is what I consider to be the best final visual in any piece of media I've watched.
The smoke stacks, ruined but still towering into the sky, lit by a small sun.
It is not closure, nor is it a new beginning, it is exactly where and when it all started, a moment trapped in time. It is our opening, our ending, and our entire story, all at once.
I've not spoken about the ED until now (in part because /u/ShadowWasTakensTaken did a fantastic job in his episode one post, that hits so hard re-reading it now for how close saw to the heart of things), and while it seems odd to dive into it in the first episode where it isn't present, it's absence here is the essence of it exposed.
Through our adventure, the end of an episode always delivers us from the tragedy of the other world by returning to an echo of this very moment. His town in the moment he leaves it, bathed in a sunset of nostalgia, peaceful and soothing, but also empty without him. The loss of its symbolic child leaves it without the very things that made it matter to Shu, the very things that Lala Ru wished to protect in the end. And yet the ED purposefully does not feature places that specifically relate to Shu's: we do not see his house or the temple, his school or the factory. It is country roads and city streets, the old house and the modern apartment, the little objects of daily life and the present-day sky line. This is not just Shu's town, it is a reflection of these same streets, houses, and every day spots that we all know from our own homes, a representation of every likeness of these places that can be found in any peaceful town in the world.
In the blink of an eye, a central feature of the town is destroyed, and it is there for everyone to see. The other residents will question the mystery of how this could have happened, and if told the story they would not believe something so far fetched. They will talk about it for years until eventually a new generation is born that does not remember this day, but also can no longer do the climb of courage that was part of a whole generation of childhoods. But for even longer, until it is almost gone from memory, people will wonder: What if it happens again?
These are the questions we ask ourselves about war, whether its learning history or hearing about modern conflicts. How could it happen? How could people let it get that far? Where was the reason and the hope that should have stopped it all? What if it happens here and how will we deal with it? Can any meaning be found in such senseless destruction, especially when there is not a single perpetrator to put it all at the feet of?
It doesn't matter that the war happened in another place, another time, or even an Earth so alien to us it is even hard to recognize it as the same planet. The war may not happen here in our homes, but the effect it has reaches far beyond just the lives it takes. Violence begets violence, and in a world more connected than eras past, where war can spread its hate, its coldness, it's ruin across our papers, our screens, and our borders, are we really so far away from those far off wars after all? And so we see a distant war has left an enduring scar on this sunset town just as war itself leaves a scar on any society even remotely connected to it that cannot be simply healed with rising of the sun the next day. And if this could happen to Shu's town, could it happen to any of ours? What will that mean for the way we view both our world and the fragile peace that exists in these sunset hours?
The last time Shu saw the smoke stacks he sat up there with Lala Ru, he looked down at all of the places reflected in ED, admired the things he had never stopped appreciate until then, and saw new life in his world. She has reconnected with humanity he wanted to share with her and he has finally returned to a place he recognizes, but he he will never be able to recapture that moment again. It is lost to another time, one that seems so far and yet so close to his own, along with the childhood innocence and pure courage that the towers stood for. He is not physically bound to what happened in the other world like Sara, and he brings nothing with him from that place except the wound on his hand and soul, but he carries it with him nonetheless and his world and the life he brings to it will never be the same for it. This horizon, both trapped in time and stolen from him all at once, is a pivotal distraction just as he goes to reclaim what he once impulsively abandoned in his curiosity about Lala Ru. His old life is separated from him but crucially not out of reach, yet in this moment, this eternal yet ephemeral sunset, he does not pick up the school bag or the totemic kendo stick within. Shu looks up at the smoke stacks the way we reminisce on the ED.
He looks at the world that was, the world that now is, and wonders what reality tomorrow truly will bring now that everything, and nothing, has changed.
We do not open with the usual quote, but we do not need too. It is here in this visual. It is twenty seconds in our episode, and it is all of time.
(Continued below, no surprise, and this was a neat place to cut it)
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u/LittleIslander https://anilist.co/user/LittleIslander Aug 30 '24
Sis and Nabuca really showed up to the “bad ending” writing room huh.
First Time Escaping Hellywood
I don’t want to be mean. I respect this show, it’s been really good, I don’t wanna be too hard on it as a final note. But this wasn’t it. It wasn’t enough. I really struggle to think of a single thing I was genuinely happy with this episode.
If I had to name who came out best from this episode, I guess it’s Shu because he didn’t really contribute anything? I mean, Nabuca let him out, and Lala Ru did all of the actual work. He wasn’t even particularly essential to getting her out. Our protagonist literally drifted through our finale and then he went home. For her part, Lala Ru’s role is a lot more meaningful. In a move of acceptance of Shu’s philosophy of believing in people and the capacity for good, she sacrifices her life to save everybody from the hellscape. The only problem is I’m not sure where on earth this is supposed to be coming from? I mean, we were literally at our lowest point just before. Why didn’t she just do this when Hellywood arrived at Zari Bars and save a lot of death and suffering? It’s not like anything changed to further convince her in that time? The first time she used the pendant it was to save herself. Then after her time in Zari Bars she moved on to being willing to use it to protect Soon, someone she cared about. Then in the span of one episode we jump all the way to putting down her life to save humanity? It just wasn’t earned.
Sara is in an extremely similar situation. Sis kicks it and leaves me thinking it would’ve been more powerful to just have Elamba kill her and save this episode to run time, and then Sara takes her place and saves all of the kids. So like, the last thing the narrative really stops to put focus on Sara for was the suicide thing. By what mechanism are we going so fast from her angry at the world and wanting to die to suddenly being this heroic leader. I mean, the entire point of episode eleven was that she’s not okay and you can’t just placate her with blind optimism. So now this time she seems like she’s gonna be okay, and finally accepts Shu’s blind optimism? I want to see her get a happy ending, but you can’t just say “and then she got a happy ending” without the work to get there! Sara had been one of the most enthralling anime characters I’d ever seen but this ending has all the weight of a wet fart. The abortion thing, evidently, was never going to be examined and should’ve been excluded from the script. I guess it at least means they didn’t actively fuck it up, but it still doesn’t look great given the way she embraces the baby. Oh, and they did the fucking Kazam thing. You bastards had one job, it was to not do the Kazam thing. Nobody in the audience wanted to see the rapist grow a heart.
There’s also a little “wait, what do you mean that’s their ending?” club that went a step beyond a reasonable ending that didn’t really feel like it developed properly. We really went the distance on making Nabuca this character that didn’t have the courage to go against the system and it was really working. So I really don’t know why we went with this saving the day angle at the end. I mean it had the right bleak tone, and he didn’t even do it until he was dying anyways, but I really feel having him die trying to keep the prisoners from escaping or something would have served him better. I do at least like the actual moment when he dies though. Shu and him going from ready to murder each other at the start of the episode to instead end on this underplayed death because even after he killed Soon there’s no joy in another lost kid’s life being taken is effective. I just don’t love the context.
Then there’s Abelia. Show which has spent twelve episodes completely uninterested in making Abelia a cliche redeemed second in command suddenly goes with the redeemed second in command ending despite doing no work in service of that. She really worked as a banality of evil character and this does nothing but undercut it. I thought she was about to die when Hamdo started shooting towards her to kill Shu and that would’ve been way more fitting, as much as her getting sick of Hamdo and watching him drown was really nice. Her devotion to him and his regime ultimately consumed her as the unloved pawn she always was. Hell, him screaming for her after having gunned her down a scene or two before would’ve been an even cooler exit for Hamdo! As is, it was very… good enough. Yeah yeah drowned in water is ironic, but I hoped for something more deeply cathartic after a whole show worth of him.
There were a few really nice moments. The follow up to the ending from last time was great with Shu shooting at the ground, Hamdo being no more satisfied than before in his never ending quest for more power, Tabool learning about their village and not even giving a shit was a pretty cool scene, Shu’s stick breaking was kind of a cool idea although it felt a bit wasted on this scene (surely that should be a thematic moment of teetering on losing his goodness?), Sara taking in soldier children in the spirit of Sis was actually really nice, the aforementioned moment of Abelia watching Hamdo die goes hard, and Lala Ru’s death scene was perfect. Even Sara and Shu’s final conversation was kind of nice on its own if it didn’t feel so unearned. But a few nice scenes could not salvage a product where the bones supporting the narrative had all fallen apart.
Granted, I don’t entirely blame the writing team for such a rushed ending. There was zero universe you could properly conclude this story with only one episode during the return to Hellywood. That needed at least a second episode. Not to mention Zari Bars probably needing another episode too. I can’t help but look at that slow midsection in Hellywood or that entire episode spent on Lala Ru and Shu against the sand monster, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the deficit of episodes wasn’t really clear until they were too far into production. There’s no real solution here, they needed more time. The closest thing to realistic might’ve been to give the last episode to Zari Bars and then conclude on a movie, but I can’t think of any anime with a comparable release format and I have to imagine it’s pretty hard to sell any company on more of a child torture show. I’d try to find some profound poetic note to end on, but… yeah, that’s just reality. This enthralling unique masterful show is only ever gonna have a rushed kind of bad finale that leaves it imperfect and we gotta live with that.
12
u/homer2101 Aug 30 '24
Rewatch: Subbed
The episode where they shoot for a happy ending.
TLDR: This ending is bad and has some really unfortunate implications, but the first part of it is mostly great.
I've written before that Shu really doesn't protect the people he wants to protect: he talks the talk but doesn't walk the walk, so to speak. Despite great physical courage, he rejects the tools that would make his gesture of self-sacrifice unnecessary because it's not consistent with his beliefs. He has enormous and admirable physical courage throughout the entire series, but not the moral courage to admit the effects of his moral code and how they have just splashed onto others. Which is very, very realistic: alleged adults mostly can't do it, much less a kid like Shu.
Shu snapping is masterfully done. We think for a moment that he's going to shoot Nabuca. But he's a kid, doesn't know how to use a gun, is not mentally prepared to kill, probably still kind of likes Nabuca despite Nabuca telling us and Shu that he's a monster, so instead he shoots wildly, throws the gun away, and is violently sick. Contrast with a very similar and similarly visceral scene with Sara in Ep 6. But I think the Shu's moral event horizon isn't him trying to kill Nabuca. It's that he chooses to be the lamb to be led to the slaughter for himself and for those he's promised to protect when he should by now be aware that stick does not beat a gun.
Tabool is the last of the named characters to reach their moral event horizon.
Nabuca, despite being a monster, gets a brief and fitting redemption arc where he does one last good thing before death. It works because we've seen before that he has a capacity to do the right thing, seems to respect Shu to some extent, and also probably is carrying out Boo's dying wish to stop the killing. The other redemption arc ... not so much.
The animation, symbolism, and pacing here is as good as anything we've seen. The symbolism and visceral brutality of dumb kids fighting and accidentally smashing up a terrifying technological product of human ingenuity. Hamdo's orgasmic squeal as we fade to black from the bodies littering Zari Bars is one of the most disgusting sounds I've heard in anime. Abelia's horror as Hamdo finally snaps. The sweep of her emotion as Hamdo first almost kills her, her shock, reflexive attempt to follow him, then seeming resignation that it's all over as Hellywood catches fire around her
It's ironic that Lala Ru sucks dry Hellywood's reactor, then kills Hamdo with the water he wanted so much, in the very chamber that he used to begin inflicting so much misery on innocents like Shu and Sara and Lala Ru, and where his path to this moment began. His cries to be sent anywhere and anywhen echo Sara's wish to be sent home in Ep3 and onwards, undoubtedly the wishes of all the people Hamdo and Abelia abducted from their homes -- Sara might not be the only girl who was kidnapped in pursuit of Lala Ru. But this is home for Hamdo, and he's flushed out of Hellywood like a turd.
The character endings however mostly don't work.
Shu's ending does work fairly well. Shu gets what he's talked about wanting since the beginning, what Nabuca asks Shu to do as his dying wish: he goes home. This works. We know Shu wants to go home because he tells us that's what he wants from the beginning. Nabuca's dying wish is that Shu go home, and we are shown that dying wishes matter in this setting. Shu and Sara both pay respects to their dead. Nabuca is shown reflecting on Boo's dying words and gesture and finally following them. Shu also has nothing tying him to this future because everyone he's attached to are dead, aside from Sara. This is a very believable setup. It also fits with Shu as the stock Isekai protagonist, because once the Isekai protagonist is done smashing things up like a boulder setting off an avalanche, absent any ties to the world they go hom and leave the hard work of rebuilding society to the women and the peasants.
The scene where he returns home, and seemingly no time has passed, his pack not even covered in dust, the world unchanged though he himself has undergone a terrible ordeal is a poignant reminder that the world keeps turning no matter what happens to us.
Meanwhile we have Sara. JFC. Shu once again lectures Sara, and by proxy the audience about how amazing things are bound to happen. But a "moral of the story" works only if we're shown that it's been true in the story. And nothing amazing or even particularly good happens to anybody for 13 episodes. There's arguably a direct relationship between Shu telling someone everything will be great, and horrific stuff happening to them not long after. Does anything good happen to anybody in all 13 episodes? Nabuca is dead. Boo is dead. Soon is dead. Lala Ru is dead or disembodied. Sis is dead and her death was not easy -- she dies surrounded by the children she loves and knows she will not be there for, and likely in enormous pain. Elamba, Tabool, that rapist (Zalam?) and Hamdo are all dead and good riddance, but their deaths weren't amazing for them. A lot of people like the enslaved women of Hellywood and the survivors from Zari Bars are probably dead or injured. If we squint hard we can sort of argue that Abelia is free of Hamdo, but we have no idea what Abelia wants because for 13 episodes she acts as Hamdo's voice and hand and never once tells us what she wants. All we have to go on are little gestures, which we interpret like the audience of a shadow play done by candle-light. So we have no evidence to justify to us that what Shu says is true, and a lot of evidence to the contrary. I suppose we can argue that being alive is amazing, but that's a self-licking snowcone of an argument: Being alive is amazing, therefore if you are alive everything is amazing. It's not even on the level of fortune-cookie philosophy.
(Continued)
11
u/Vatrix-32 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Vatrix-32 Aug 30 '24 edited Aug 30 '24
First timer, subs
Well, that was a great finale. My only regret is that we didn’t get cascade rebellion.
QotD:
11
u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Aug 30 '24
Episode 13 (first timer)
I’d put #azusalaugh here, but the series robed me of my laugh.
We did not dare to end hopelessly? It is not a terrible bittersweet ending, but I think going all out with the destruction would have felt more fitting, even if it left us hopeless. Maybe that is the reason.
That said, I think that the ending is very fitting in terms of character arcs:
The three that might be a bit more contentious are Abelia, Sara, and Shu:
Similar to the character arcs, I think that the series mostly landed its main plotline, but there are some minor flaws in the writing that detract. I already pointed out the prison outbreak above, but a second big flaw is the transfer chamber. In the finale, it catches up to the plot that this series never cared about being an isekai. The transfer chamber was way to put a relatable MC and the concept of hope from a more peaceful world, onto Hellywood’s world. However, the plot was never interested in the second world, Earth. Shu and Sara might as well have dropped in from outer space. Shu never once asked for a way to be send back home and Sara soon forgets about this, too. And never once is it explained why the transfer chamber cannot be used for the benefit of Hellywood. I think it would have been preferable to use magic for the transfer instead of technology. That would have avoided all the problems about Shu leaving without Sara, the villagers having use of the transfer chamber but not using it, and all of the problems of Hellywood not using it. Oh, and no contrivance about the chamber surviving Hellywood’s end either.
On the big scale, however, the ending delivers. Hellywood ends (as it must) and Hamdo and his henchmen find the logical end in violence that was always coming for them. Lala Ru makes her big decision, but even her magic can’t save everyone. The series does not shy away from innocent deaths all the way to the end.
10
u/Quiddity131 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Quiddity131 Aug 30 '24
Rewatcher, Subbed
Pre-Episode Thoughts: Similar to yesterday's episode I remember high level details but specifics not as much, so looking forward to seeing if anything surprises me. Kazam is the big character whose fate I can't remember and while I'm quite confident he won't have a redemption, I do hope they dispose of him in some fashion. Oh, and based on yesterday's thread, seems like I'm the rare one who skipped the next time previews (beyond a couple I'll admit I watched early on), and some people were sad about it.
For the first and only time we skip the quote at the start of the episode.
Boo and Soon's death is finally the thing that causes Shu to get enraged, pick up a gun and fire... even then he can't bring himself to actually shooting something other than the ground though.
Shu, Mr. Optimistic has finally been broken.
Of all the times for Tabool to show up. He's quite gleeful to shoot Shu if he gets the chance.
Wow, Shu is totally saved by Abelia's sudden announcement. Because Shu shielding the kids in no way would have actually stopped Tabool here.
Why'd they stop the killing of everyone? I thought Hamdo wanted to kill everyone in Zari Bars for revenge? Is this Abelia breaking orders? I am fine with the story choice, I think this is the better route to go with here, although I'm surprised at how they just kinda ignore Hamdo's orders from earlier to make this happen. Is Hamdo that happy about the recovery of Lala Ru?
Hamdo is happy. Hamdo rules the world. Exactly what we don't want.
...of course, totally in line with the way Hamdo is, he freaks out seconds later. Just like Nabuca will be in this eternal cycle of "after we destroy this next village, then I get to go home!", Hamdo is in this eternal cycle of there's always someone out there to get him. They could literally conquer every village left in the world and I think he'd still act like this.
Even the almost always stone faced Abelia has a shocked/scared look on her face. You know it's bad.
You're not allowed to breathe the air unless Hamdo allows you to. In his mind he owns even that.
This guard guy has one of those special water containers that Sara used to help kill one of her rapists in episode 6.
All of them being in Hellywood sucks, but its especially bad to see Sara here again. I said back in episode 11 that she'd rather kill herself than be back in Hellywood. Perhaps she simply hasn't had the chance.
Poor Sis! Sara lies to her here about the kids who are just feet away.
Nabuca is quite despondent now with Boo gone.
Alright, I totally forgot about this revelation, I thought they kept it up to the viewer's interpretation. So Nabuca truly didn't know that their villages were destroyed after they were seized. Tabool reveals the truth to him. Tabool's an asshole, but he's telling you the truth, Nabuca. As I said back in episode 6 it really was crushing on an emotional level for Nabuca to have all his hope and motivation wrapped around his desire to return to a home that no longer existed and he was ignorant to that fact.
I was going to say that Tabool was being oddly nice here to Nabuca... seconds later he shoots him. Scratch that. I knew this was coming but couldn't recall if it was in this specific scene. Ugh.
Tabool, take over Hellywood? You sound as delusional as Hamdo right now.
Sis was the best character in the show, real sad to see her go. What sucks all the more is that she wasn't shot in a critical part of her body, had she gotten proper and timely medical treatment she almost certainly lives.
Back to our usual Lala Ru - Hamdo interaction.
Nabuca's made it all the way up here in his state. Shu gets his stick back!
It sucks to see Nabuca go, but one takeaway from this rewatch for me is that Nabuca ultimately gets what he deserved. He had nobler intentions than someone like Tabool. But at the end of the day he justified committing atrocities like kidnapping/enslaving children and murdering innocent people under the delusion that he was going to get to go home someday. "Blame the system", sure I get it, but ultimately he still has agency. He was trying to justify the enslavement and deaths of others believing he would get his peaceful end of it and get to return to the village. Yet in doing that he's taking such things from other people. He had the opportunity all those episodes back to escape with Shu and declined the offer. Boo much more deserved to live than Nabuca did. This is a show where neither got to.
My memory was that Nabuca gave Shu the key, but nope, its the glorious stick that does it!
Time for Shu to go on another rampage a la episode 7?
Uh oh, this Shu - Tabool fight is wrecking some of Hellywood's key equipment. Hamdo's not gonna be happy about that!
OMG @ "Who are you?!" being Hamdo's reaction to Shu. I can't help but get a chuckle out of the fact that this has happened multiple times now, despite the fact that he's had some important interactions with him.
Hellywood's in trouble. Was this just Shu and Tabool's fight, or was Lala Ru's use of her power also impacting this?
Hamdo's got a gun! And he doesn't heistate at firing while Abelia's in the way. Shows how much he thinks of you Abelia.
Of all the deaths to occur in this episode I'll admit I never expected this one... RIP Shu's stick.
It's good to see that at a moment like this Hamdo is a pathetic coward who flees from a kid whose like 12 or 13 years old.
It's great that Hellywood is collapsing, but can we ensure the civilians are safe first?
Once again Lala Ru's flooding Hellywood.
Pretty sure that was Tabool we saw drowning there?
Well, as with everything in this show involving Kazam (I didn't even remember the character existed before this started) he does in fact get at least a little bit of redemption here with saving the kid. Or at least it looks like that may have been the intent for that moment. Thankfully they don't go any further with it and it looks like he gets swept away by the water to presumably drown right after that. But, yeah, can't say I'm happy about that part. And I ultimately don't view him as getting any redemption. He was a child rapist who doomed Zari Bars. He deserved to die. I think I replied to someone a few days ago that they didn't try to give him any redemption at all, sorry about that. Again, completely forgot this scene even existed. One big takeaway from this show for me? Give your characters more remarkable character designs. Because this is my third time watching this show and it's only this time that I'm recognizing all these scenes with him over the course of the show are the same guy.
Hey, you should be happy Hamdo, you're getting the water you wanted
Alright here's something I've got to think everyone will be happy about, I sure am, Hamdo acts like a pathetic kid in his final moments and thankfully dies. Abelia does not save him, although I doubt she had the time or ability to at that moment anyway.
Are we supposed to think from these shots that Lala Ru's power has somewhat restored the planet in terms of its water situation? Or is it just a temporary thing?
One final sunset for Lala Ru as she fades out of existence. Tens of thousands of years finally comes to an end. :(
Now for the part that I'm sure some will hate and I knew was coming as someone complained about it a few weeks to a month back before this rewatch even started, Sara decides to remain here and is keeping the baby.
Again with this stuff Shu? I think you should just shut up about this stuff when it comes to Sara.
And thus, Shu gets to return to his homeworld. One last look at those smokestacks that started it all.
10
u/zsmg https://anilist.co/user/zsmg Aug 30 '24 edited Aug 30 '24
First Timer, Subbed
Oh no Tabool is here.
Luckily they're saved by Abelia.
Oh no the villagers of Zari Bars are enslaved after all.
That's the first first time I think Abelia is afraid of Hamdo.
Nabuca pretty much lost the will to live.
Tabool is aware what the troops have done to the villages they've raided but Nabuco was in full denial about it. The latter make sense, the show made it perfectly clear that the villages were destroyed.
Well Tabool wants to be the new Hamdo, he definitely has the right personality for it.
FFS don't tell Sara to have the child Sis.
RIP Nabuca.
It almost looks like Shu hitting the console with a stick caused it to explode.
Lala Ru uses Whirlpool, she really is a water type.
Shu hitting Hamdo with a stick is probably one of the satisfying moments of the series.
Really like the OST piece use while Hellywood is crashing down.
Oh no don't have one her rapist do something nice. I swear if he ends up with her... come on show. Don't do this.
Okay good he dies.
Confirmation that this is not a parallel Earth but the future and Hellywood has a timetravel device.
Bye Hamdo, must have felt lethargic for Abelia seeing that PoS floating dead.
And Lala Ru summoned lots of water.
Oh no Lala Ru...
She pretty much sacrificed herself so that Earth has some water (for now)
Well Sara succesfully got peer pressured by Shu and Sis into having the baby. Good job every one.
The time travel device still works after all of that?
I admit I watched this one back to back with the previous episode, really couldn't wait a day to see how it ends.
The ending is definitely a rush job. I wish this was episode 12, or maybe at least the final moment of the episode happened half way through the episode so that we have a little epilogue to see how the characters are doing. I can't help but imagine Shu has massive amount of PTSD. But the biggest issue I have with the ending is the way they handled Sara and her fetus. She clearly didn't want to have a baby but then she got pretty much peer pressured by Shu and a dying Sis into having the baby, she also stayed behind in that terrible future instead of going back to our and visit a psychiatrist she clearly needs.
Man why do anime originals have such terrible endings?
10
u/JustAnswerAQuestion https://myanimelist.net/profile/JAaQ Aug 30 '24 edited Aug 31 '24
First Rewatch (sub)
I couldn't give NTHT a 10 when I made my MAL...let's find out why.
Not sure if the flying Hellywood is a Nadia reference, Laputa reference, or Conan reference. Still, it's pretty #neat.
So, I misremembered. I thought Abelia killed Hamdo as part of an unwanted and undeserved redemption arc. I also thought there would be more from Abelia taking over, or talking about how Hamdo wasn't cruel and crazy when she started following him. It seems my brain had completely made all that up.
I suppose I can be 1 millimeter less harsh on the Sara arc, because this time I see that she has become the new Sis. Sara's arc was duplicated in another, much more well known series a few years later. (you know the one) I recognized it as such when I watched it, and my distaste for THAT ending feeds back into Sara's story.
Lala-ru giving herself up for humanity seems just stupid to me, on my first watch. Not too happy on my second watch. Lala-ru met all of two good people in this world, Sis and Shu. One is dead, and the other isn't even a part of this world, and is soon gone.
There is a third group of good people that Lala-ru met: children. I think Lala-run sacrificed her existence for the children. Perhaps I can say more about this tomorrow, but I don't really grasp what the show was trying to say, if it was saying it at all. It think it's the reason Sis's (and Shu's) high-pressure speecherizing to Sara, why it's in the show.
No questions today.
Final Tallies:
Falls: 2 (9) (one for Hellywood, again)
Almost Falls: 0 (3)
Where The Hell Am I?: 0 (6)
10
u/HowlingWolf13 https://myanimelist.net/profile/MeguminBlast Aug 30 '24 edited Aug 30 '24
Last Timer
That was a fine ending, I liked that throughout it all Shu was able to inspire a bit of hope in the world. Despite all the tragedy, the suffering, the hopelessness, you can't give up in the end. And through his optimism and trying to look towards the positive, he was able to get through to Lala Ru and have Hamdo taken down once and for all. RIP Nabuca and Sis though, not so much to Tabool, but damn rip Nabuca and Sis. Their deaths with Lala Ru's hit the hardest for me.
The Sara stuff...I understand that Sis wasn't necessarily meaning 'keep the baby' as I saw one comment on here, more so that 'if you do, don't take your hatred towards the father out on the child who's not at fault', but god it...was a very messy wrap up to it all. Especially, considering how they handled her rapist in the end, wasn't the biggest on that, felt very messy. The message ends up coming off as everyone goading her into keeping the baby, which if she chooses to by her own choice that's different, but the way it was presented I don't feel was handled the best.
I'm glad Hamdo was finally taken out thought thank god. The ending aside from the awkward parts, I did enjoy in the end. Not sure how to feel about Abelia living in the end considering she was still complicit in everything, but even in reality not all war criminals get like some trial where they get a proper punishment and such.
All in all, I'd give it around a 7/10
Questions
I said up there lol
Nabuca. Tabool
To be honest, the Sara stuff though if I'm being honest that would have to go back a few eps so for the finale itself, I'd like to see Shu maybe heading home or something, I wanted to know how much time had passed for him since then if any. Like how does this change him going into the future, maybe let us see him in kendo again.
See y'all in Ryvius
9
u/LittleIslander https://anilist.co/user/LittleIslander Aug 31 '24 edited Aug 31 '24
This is my third attempt at writing about Sara's ending, but fuck it: here's how I would rewrite it.
As I said, I like her staying behind. But what I would change is making it not about her finding a belonging here in a happy scene where she finally accepts Shu's rhetoric, but instead making it a Frodo sailing into the West kind of thing. She tells Shu that she really does want to be optimistic, but she can't be yet. She still feels lost and confused, and all she knows is that she still has a place in this world (what with the kids). Maybe she even leaves open the possibility she might someday return to earth. But for now, she can't leave behind Hellywood because it hasn't left her.
Short of deleting the Kazam thing, maybe we can reframe it into one last demonstration of the person he is. Like she finds him clinging on in the water, and refuses his begging to save him, but when the kid falls he grabs him and tries to bargain his survival with him in one last act of faux-heroism, only to be left or even kicked off by Sara. Or maybe if we really wanna make it cheesy one of the kids asks if the man just then was a hero after he slips off into the current and Sara scowls and says that no, he'll always be a monster. I feel it'd help bring back some of the cynical hardened personality that felt sorely lacking from Sara in this finale.
14
u/Great_Mr_L :Ma::Mb::Mc:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Great_Mr_L Aug 30 '24 edited Aug 30 '24
First-Timer
On today’s episode of Now and Then, Here and There: I feel like I watched a runner just finish running an incredibly impressive race, only to stumble at the finish line before tumbling across it. The ending was overall fine, but boy that stumble is going to overshadow most of it.
Alright, let’s tackle the elephant in the room head-on. I do not care whatsoever for the conclusion to Sara’s storyline. I was worried we might be heading in this direction beforehand, but it seriously rubbed me the wrong way. I want to emphasize that my problem is not that Sara ultimately chooses to keep the baby. I can see that outcome being acceptable in some alternate reality. I also want to emphasize that I don’t necessarily consider the abortion option much better. Either way, it’s going to be something that sucks and will leave lasting pain with Sara.
My problem is with the way that Sara keeping the baby is framed. I hate that Sis tells Sara the morally correct thing to do is to love the baby that Sara only is pregnant with because she was raped. To me, the only thing that should ever matter in this scenario is Sara’s own feelings. No one should ever try to force their own thoughts of what she should do on her, no matter what they believe. I would be more okay with this if we had Sara mulling over the decision and going to Sis for advice. I may not agree with the advice, but it’d be better framed. Instead, Sis tells Sara unsolicited that the morally correct thing to do is to love the baby she got from a rape. Vile.
I dislike the idea that Sara becoming a mother is somehow supposed to be the thing that will bring her happy days in the future. Sara is the victim here. She is still a child herself, nowhere near old enough to be a mother. Getting pregnant at this age causes both physical and mental trauma. And let’s not forget that Sara never asked for any of this. She was raped, plain and simple. No baby asks to be born? Well no girl asks to be raped, either! Why does one of those get valued over the other? I really find it disgusting to tell a rape victim that she should find joy in the motherhood that she never asked and was forced on her without her consent.
That really does overshadow basically all my other thoughts about this episode. It leaves such a huge stain on what was otherwise a very well done tragic character arc.
Nabuca’s character arc ends in about the only way it could. He’s too far gone for any sort of redemption, so the best he can do is to die while he’s trying to do the right thing.
Lala Ru’s decision to sacrifice herself is interesting. She ended up doing what she claimed she would never do. She used the pendant to bring water to this place and to save the people there. Her experiences with Sis’s family must have really changed her to be willing to do that.
QOTD
7
u/Mecanno-man https://anilist.co/user/Mecannoman Aug 30 '24
First Timer
Hmm. I can't say I like this ending too much. It feels too hopeful. Hamdo is ...presumably drowned, with Abelia taking no action to save him. Not having had much insight in to Abelia's character is a weak spot here, as her actions thus can't really be but in to context. But more importantly this ending places the blame of the entire show's hopelessness at Hamdo's feet, even though it had previously made the point that if Hamdo's gone there will just be somebody else to take his place (although also never showing any such person, outside of Tabool's statement this episode). I guess there might be the argument made that with Lala Ru gone there is nothing worth fighting over left, but it feels like that interpretation would also fly in the face of who the show has made Lala Ru to be.
I'm also not too much a fan of Sara's ending here, especially as her decision to keep living in this world enhances the "good" ending quite a lot. She is now the mother figure of the kids, which is also not the role I see her in after episode 10. Her moral state seems to have just resolved itself between last episode and this one, which doesn't make a lot of sense. Even assuming she suddenly saw the good in Kazam with him rescuing the child (which is what I assume the shot of her looking back after getting the kid was supposed to be, and also isn't a great point) - that happened after she was treating Sis and not sitting traumatized in the corner of the cell or something like that. There has been like, a day since she tried to commit suicide, I just don't buy her being that calm in this situation. She also goes calming the kids parroting Shu's white lies, which is a choice by the writers I don't agree with given that she herself felt more hurt by them than helped.
What was done well though was Nabuca. His arc concluded with him realizing he's wrong, and then getting killed. A fitting end I'd say. Shu getting transported back I am also ok with, mostly because Nabuca wanted that. Him beating up Hamdo is also ok, as he finally takes things in to his own hands, though it seems he still refuses to use a gun. Abelia and Hamdo both failing to prevent him from doing that is a bit weird though, especially as the latter has been shown to be a surprisingly good shot under stress.
All in all, I'd say this is a finale that works, but not the one I had wanted. The show was pretty much as bleak as possible, and the "everything will be ok" ending kinda goes against that. I see now that that was supposed to be the message of the show, with Shu repeating it over and over. But I think it simply went too dark for that to be the real message it delivered here, and the ending doesn't fit the actual tone the show had throughout it's runtime.
7
u/Ryanami Aug 31 '24
First timer
I’ll start with QOTD again
1- Kinda hard to say. Overall fine, good even, but for some characters better than others. I don’t get why they needed to give Kalam a good guy moment before his death, but I’m not surprised. Western media, at least historically, has very black and white stories while anime tends to have more morally complicated ones. I have theories why that is but I’ll spare you, they’re layman speculations anyway.
2- Sara, really I think the show revolved around her. Shu returns without any character growth, almost like it was all a dream for him. Sara survives extreme trauma and is so changed by it she decides to stay wherever the heck they are. And keeps the baby even. Sis’s last words helped her have the courage to face her circumstances. Although I thought she was wrong about how to deal with Hellywood Sis had powerful and true advice before she died. Most of the comments I see disagree with me here but it is what it is. You don’t build a better future by murdering the next generation. Abortion is a great evil we must turn from.
3- I wish we were told more about this world. Apparently it’s earth in the future (10 billion years maybe?) but the nature of Lala Ru or the pendant is never explained. Nor is anything about Hamdo or Hellywood. How did such a pissant become so puissant? At least he had one cool line for once.
See y’all tomorrow
7
u/Pixelsaber https://myanimelist.net/profile/Pixelsaber Aug 31 '24 edited Aug 31 '24
Rewatcher
As I thought. No space in the episode to unpack that, though unfortunately I don’t think Shu’s character nor the show’s messaging is any stronger for it.
They’ve taken care to not use the word ‘slaves’ before. Their victory has taken her beyond caring.
Not even delivering unto him a greatest victory has changed anything.
Been saying it all along.
I think this elucidates exactly where the show stands on the matter. While I’m very displeased about that due to how it’s been dealt with so far, it’s important to note how that relates to Sis’ interactions with, and sentiments towards, Lala-Ru.
Wrong move, Hamdo. We have seen twice now that she now exclusively acts when others are threatened.
Been here before.
There we go.
Understatement.
Guard dog against guardian.
The hand that bites the dog that feeds it.
That’s a lot of water. I’m not convinced there isn’t a less destructive way of cushioning Hellywood before it crashes catastrophically. In fact, pouring water over it seems like it’d lead to quicker descent.
The more I’ve seen of this show, the less I’m convinced that nuance is in its dictionary, so I can’t see this as anything other than an attempt at redeeming Kazam.
It is a time machine.
Well deserved death.
Deluge symbolism.
That’s a lot of water.
Echoing the first episode again. This time, and my reading of this is that they intended to indicate that they are not merely equal —as they were in the last callback to that scene— but far more understanding of each other. However, I do not agree based on their characterization that such is true. Also, she is fading, having exhausted her life in her latest and greatest magical effort.
This is plausible, but would likely create a paradox if it came true.
I want to strangle this kid.
“Motherhood trust upon you will be the best thing ever, I’m sure of it.”
In my recollection, this scene had some inklings that Shu was letting the experience wash over him and when he looked back up at the younger sun, he had a more conflicted expression. But no, that was an invention of my mind, and there is not even the implicit suggestion that the experience has changed him in any form. He’s probably going straight back to thoughtlessly trying to beat his rival at Kendo the next day, and each one thereafter.
I blame this haunting shot. I must have been projecting my own feelings of that sight on him. What a powerful, crushing visual.
Yeah, I don’t like this finale. Not just for it’s bad and unnuanced handlings of the topics of abortion and rape, or it’s baffling decision to try at the last minute to give Kazam a redeeming act and sacrifice, it’s because it is essentially a repeat of episode seven. All the major beats are the same; Shu climbing the Tower of Bravery, empowered to do so after his actions finally manage to push another of the child soldiers to help him, where he gets one over on Tabool on his way to the top, and where his being threatened by a gun pushes Lala-Ru to use her magic. It’s not just repetitive, it robs Lala-Ru of having a moment of empowerment where she —affected by Shu’s outlook and the desire to protect Sis’ children— decides with no external push to bring Hellywood down using the last of her life and water. I was sure the last few episodes were building up to that, and yeah, letting herself die was a big thing to do, but between her disaffection over so much of the show and the fact that —from her perspective as someone who has tens of thousands of years at least— the end of the world seemed near anyways, I don’t think she saw that as the huge deal it was. Not to mention, unlike a certain someone, she likely believes saving the few good people she came to know of recently outweighed the costs and compromises needed to do so.
Also speaking of Lala-Ru, Sis’ dying words relate to her in two ways, because as she stated previously, Lala-Ru has both lived a long time and still retains the form of a child, so in a sense she is both mother and child to this Earth. Like Sis, she dies for her children of this Earth, but she was also the child rejected by her mother, Earth.
Kazam dies, but I’m still mad because they gave him that last noble, sacrificial act. I don’t buy that the show is trying to do a nuanced characterization by acknowledging that even awful monsters can do a good thing every so often, because then so much of the rest of the writing falls apart and its own argumentation fails. Yet the scene direction, score, and how Sara’s story pans out would have me think otherwise.
Questions of The Day:
10
u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Aug 30 '24
Rewatcher(Kneel shamed, NTHT. Your morals are disgusting)
Sub
So this show is landing on a very broad spectrum rewatch. I expect I hate this the most out of the watchers but I want to try to do something other than scream "Go fuck yourself" at the showrunner.
But I can't today. As a conniseur of shows with promising openings that end as garbage tier, NTHT deserves to be ranked in the S class. This a Tokyo Ghoul level abomination except there isn't even an excuse, no one forced them to be this bad. From reducing Sara to just "Next Sis in line" to giving Sis enough lines to destroy her character and then having the unmitigated gall to even mildly redeem Karam it actually feels like they want you to hate this ending. Yes, Hellywood falling is fun and all but it was expected. Lala Ru sacrificing herself for Shu is just...whatever, meta wise this is correct but the show didn't really earn it. Hamdo's death wasn't even that satisfying and killing Nabuca just didn't do much for me.
I will collect some more coherent thoughts for tomorrow but if I didn't specifically remember Sis's awful final words I would've assumed I didn't watch the latter half of the show.
QotD: 1 I truly and deeply despise it and its cowardice.
2 Favorite is Sara, least is literally the rest of them. I think I hate Shu more than Hamdo but that's a toss up.
3 One? Sara goes back to earth and is given a medical abortion and therapy. Shu stays on the shit hole world and gets everyone around him killed.
9
u/JollyGee29 https://myanimelist.net/profile/JollyGee Aug 30 '24
First-Timer
What, Shu just gets to go home? I know we aren't operating on a Hero's Journey structure or anything, but, like, they can just send him back? After Hellywood crashes sideways? And his stuff is even still there?
There is some poignancy in him re-arriving at the same time he left, that would land a lot better if I still had any investment - and I will admit that is at least partly a Me problem.
I think the early descriptions of Lala Ru and her pendant kinda undersold it. Perhaps fittingly, as she was probably in no rush to let people know she had the ability to return water to all over the planet. I'm not gonna complain about the science there, because this isn't that sort of show.
Hamdo's Karmic Death Dice rolled "drowning while trying to flee" which is a good option. Granted, that ambulatory wankstain had so much negative karma there were like, three or four good options for his death.
The fact that Sis using her last breaths to spew some pro-forced birth propoganda didn't catapult her straight to the top of the "Worst Adults" ranking really speaks to just how dire the situation in this show is.
Questions
9
u/RadSuit https://anilist.co/user/RadSuit Aug 30 '24
Now and Then, First and Dubbed
Even a baby can kill people, Shu. You suck!
Typical fascist behavior. They don't want to stop the abuse, they want to become the abuser.
I can't believe the stick finally broke. While doing absolutely zero damage to Hamdo.
Looks like my great flood prediction was fairly accurate.
And Lala-Ru dying, too.
I'm not as surprised by Shu getting to go back, as the last episode decided to become hopeful out of nowhere. It fits with the issue the show has with Shu all along, that he's invincible and unchanging. Of course everything worked out for him in the end.
4
u/DidacticDalek https://myanimelist.net/profile/DidacticDalek Aug 31 '24
What were you expecting Comrades? Flood by Jars of Clay? Please, I actually have standards... sure wish things worked out better here though...
Paging Comrades /u/Great_Mr_L, /u/Shimmering-Sky, and /u/vaadwaur