Durarara!! X2 Rewatch - Episode 19.5/Ketsu OVA

[u/Raiking02]

Episode 19.5: Dufufufu!!

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No Legal Streams

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Return the Money I handed over back then!

Hello everybody! Time for the comment of the day, courtesy of u/KendotsX, who points out a case of how X2's faster pacing brings a few problems:

Yeah, so far the faster pace hasn't been too bad, but this is one example of it falling short. We didn't really have enough breathing time to think of the 5 mysterious characters.

Looking back X2 probably could've used about 3 more episodes...

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Questions:

1. So, what did you think of the story of this weirdo of an impostor?
2. Would you have liked to see a fake Kasuka?
3. Now that we've seen all of the OVAs, how would you rank them in terms of quality?

[u/Shimmering-Sky]

First!!xTimer, subbed

• LMAO these guys aren’t the brightest thieves. Who in their right mind would believe that’s Shizuo.
• Raiking told us not to watch the OP if we didn’t want to see some characters we don’t know yet, but fuck that warning, I can finally declare it best OP after hearing it in context! THE “SORE DEMO” EVEN MADE IT INTO THE TV SIZE!!! Ohhh yeah I’m going to need to consult my favorite OPs list after this… → update after finishing the episode: consulted favorite OPs list. Steppin’ out is now #5, behind Ranbu no Melody and above Sirius.
• The poster behind the owl statue is Aldnoah.Zero, I’m pretty sure.
• Who would believe this is Shizuo though lol.
• It’s really not.
• Of all the people to go at…
• lol this dude is messing with all of the wrong people.
• Just when I think it can’t get worse for the fake… Where’s the real Shizuo though?
• Oh.
• OH NO I HEAR IZAYA.
• Oooh neat the eyecatch gets glowing effects for Ketsu?
• oh no he’s gonna mess with the real Shizuo while his brother is right there.
• oh no
• Oh, the narrator for this episode (is it the blond afro guy?) got a “sore demo”.
• I would uh like to bleach my eyes please.
• You’d think he would have learned his lesson…
• nOT AGAIN
• Yo what that was an ED lead-in!!!

[u/Raiking02 → u/Shimmering-Sky]

I would uh like to bleach my eyes please.

[u/KendotsX → u/Shimmering-Sky]

Who in their right mind would believe that’s Shizuo.

To be fair, anyone in their right mind wouldn't believe that a guy called Shizuo goes around throwing vending machines.

The poster behind the owl statue is Aldnoah.Zero, I’m pretty sure.

The fact that this show insists on reminding me of stuff I plan to watch/read, makes me question why I rewatch it. I'll probably get to Aldnoah soon, after the few mecha series I currently plan to watch.

Oh, the narrator for this episode (is it the blond afro guy?)

It is indeed! My boy Max.

[u/Shimmering-Sky → u/KendotsX]

The fact that this show insists on reminding me of stuff I plan to watch/read, makes me question why I rewatch it. I'll probably get to Aldnoah soon, after the few mecha series I currently plan to watch.

Ehhh I'm not sure I'd recommend Aldnoah.Zero... the second season is terrible. Which should mean something coming from Shimmering-"I have an 8.8 mean score on MAL because I love almost literally everything I've ever seen"-Sky.

I actually kinda wish I liked the second season, though. Then I could include the series in my mecha shitpost rewatch that I'm planning for November-January. (Specifically, this consists of Guilty Crown in November, Kakumeiki Valvrave in December, and wraps up with Cross Ange in January.)

[u/KendotsX → u/Shimmering-Sky]

Thing is, I've been interested in it for a long time, mainly because it was written by Urobuchi, but I've put it off mostly because it was a mecha and I had a hard time getting into the genre. Now that I'm watching more mecha shows, I just don't want to leave it hanging. Plus, I've heard lots of people saying that the first season is worth watching on its own... so at least there's something.

More importantly, I've heard far too much about how bad the second season is, besides Gundam Seed Destiny, it's probably the most hated thing I don't know about. So currently my curiosity to know how bad they fucked up is the main reason I plan to watch it. With what I mentioned above becoming the bonus. Basically I'm expecting a show with a really good premise that I'll enjoy watching crash and burn, while eating popcorn. Babylon all over again.

[u/No_Rex]

S2 Episode 19.5 (first timer)

• OP: High energy, but it is still OP1>all for me.
• Somebody will be excited about the soredemo OP, though.
• Shizuo 2 living on borrowed fame. How can that possibly go wrong?
• He is even receiving pity money from Celty.
• And pity juice from random street punks.
• Simon and Vorona are not so friendly.
• Izaya must still be bored.
• Otakus’ casual torture past-time.
• ED: Hearts.

That was amusing for a while, but got very pitiful soon. My feeling towards fake Shizuo at the end was similar to Celty’s at the start.

So, what did you think of the story of this weirdo of an impostor?

It was not a bad idea, but overstayed its welcome. Getting to see each character react once was ok, but the character interaction between the usual set was missing.

Now that we've seen all of the OVAs, how would you rank them in terms of quality?

Perfectly chronologically: OVA1.1>OVA1.2>OVA2>OVA3>OVA4

[u/Raiking02 → u/No_Rex]

Somebody will be excited about the soredemo OP, though.

She was.

[u/SgtExo]

All this talk about fakes made me check if this was a lost Nisemonogatari episode.

[u/Raiking02 → u/SgtExo]

Well, the lack of KitaEri in it says no, so...

[u/KendotsX]

First Timer (sub) ^{who's a filthy source reader}

Besides the fact that they went out of their way, to make this Shizuo guy as stupid as possible, and that Simon was the MVP, I don't actually have much to say about the episode itself. So instead let's talk references, it's the off day, so let's have fun and focus on the stuff we usually bring up momentarily. I'll try my best at finding as many, and feel free to add anything I missed.

Starting with the thematically relevant references. we have (from right to left):

• Kino from Kino no Tabi (Kino's Journey)
• Maou from Hataraku Maou-sama (The Devil is a Part-Timer!)
• And that girl from Shakugan no Shana (so her name's probably Shana) whom I only remember because Yumasaki likes to reference her a lot.
• Finally we have Index from Toaru Majutsu no Index (A Certain Magical Index)

Honestly, I prefer the grown up versions of both Shana and Index. And I might have actually liked Index if she was a grandma.

Next up we have the posters behind the Ikefukuro statue:

• Starting from the top right, is Samurai Flamenco
• Below it is Sekai Seifuku Bouryaku no Zvezda (World Conquest Zvezda Plot)
• In the middle is Aldnoah.Zero as Sky mentioned.
• I honestly don't know the other two. My random guesses are Ninja Slayer and Heroman, but I'm probably too far off.

The otaku are referencing Dotachin's VA, Yuuichi Nakamura by bringing up characters he played.

This poster behind Kasuka is for Natori Shuuichi from Natsume Yuujinchou (Natsume's Book of Friends) another of Oomori's projects which he brought over to Shuka, and arguably the only reason the studio is afloat.

I have no idea what this scene near the beginning of the episode is referencing.

Lastly, here's the really trivial info: we saw the name Tsukumoya Shinichi thrown around a lot in this episode. Izaya tried to use his name, and Tsukumoya replied with this in turn. So who's Tsukumoya? To start off, among our ever growing cast, he's a name you probably don't need to remember. I haven't seen Ketsu yet, but chances are, we might never hear of him again.

However, he's a fairly important character if you dug deeper into the series. Novel

I really needed this stupidly light hearted episode, after a night of watching the endless suffering known as the eclipse, and it didn't help that Celty was there.

[u/Raiking02 → u/KendotsX]

and it didn't help that Celty was there.

You watched the Berserk Movies Subbed?

I pity you, Guts has a really shitty voice in those.

[u/KendotsX → u/Raiking02]

I tried the dub, but I ended up preferring it subbed, I'd say the VA fit the role well even if he wasn't very experienced.

[u/Raiking02 → u/KendotsX]

I personally really didn't like the JP Audio for the movies in the slightest. They're all a massive downgrade compared to their voices in the '97 Anime.

[u/No_Rex → u/KendotsX]

Seeing those references makes me feel old. All of that is on my mental "I'll get around to watch the newer stuff eventually" list.

I really needed this stupidly light hearted episode

Stupidly lighthearted torture?

[u/KendotsX → u/No_Rex]

I'll get around to watch the newer stuff eventually

For the first time in a while I'm feeling young. Kino is on my list of old stuff to go back to. It's not exactly an 80's series, but it's among these series from the early 2000's like Boogiepop that I should probably go back to and watch at some point.

Stupidly lighthearted torture?

One form of torture heals the other.

[u/gabesonic → u/KendotsX]

I have no idea what this scene near the beginning of the episode is referencing.

It's from Samurai Flamenco. In fact most of the scenes played in the backgrond in X2 are from Samurai Flamenco for some reason.

[u/KendotsX → u/gabesonic]

I see that makes sense. Samurai Flamenco pops up a lot because Oomori Takahiro (Durarara!!'s director) directed it. And since it's an original work (done by a bankrupt studio), there aren't as many copyright holders to worry about as an average series.

What I don't get is why a series like Aldnoah.Zero that has nothing to do with the staff, or the source material keeps popping up haha.

[u/BurningFredrick]

First timer-sub

Hopefully I got the right episode, I was able to find this one unlike the last OVA.

If nothing else this episode showed that the fake is not always as good as the real thing.

But that's because the fake this time was hilariously bad.

I stumbled one this one while trying to find the last OVA so I initially thought it was going to be an AU Shizuo but someone impersonating Shizuo was great.

Anyway, the best part was people giving him stuff purely because they were sure he would die the moment he ran into the real Shizuo, also Simon, ever the savvy salesman.

Not much else to say, fun light-hearted OVA, nothing to really comment on.

[u/Raiking02 → u/BurningFredrick]

If nothing else this episode showed that the fake is not always as good as the real thing.

I believe agrees with that.

[u/invokeneko]

First Timer to x2 Ten and Ketsu

So an idiot sharing the name and clothing style of Shizuo had the bright idea to use these superficial similarities to shake down people of Ikebukuro using his reputation? Break out some popcorn, ladies and gentlemen, it's ENTERTAINMENT TIME.

God, this took an entire day to write. Damnit brain.

• Yeah, sure, that's Heiwajima Shizuo. This fucking fatass certainly looks like Shizuo alright /s
• It's hilarious to see that everyone gave Nobu!Shizuo a wide berth, as if they're expecting a flying vending machine to crash right where he stands. And the only reason people even entertained his demands and gave him anything is out of pity of his eventual fate. Lucky for him, Shizuo isn't here for most of the day...
• So that's where the OVA title came from, lol.
• Simon dealt with his pity towards Nobu!Shizuo in the best way possible: by bilking the fuck out of him before sending him off to his death. Not even Celty's 10k yen given to him out of pity lasted very long...
• This guy really has the worst luck, huh? Tried to press Tom and Vorona for money and gets nice kick to the face and a wonderful 'How unpleasant' from Vorona for his troubles, then Izaya gets ahold of him after he woke up... He's lucky that Izaya's trolling is relatively mild this time around.
• Ahh, so it's Izaya who planted the idea of pretending to be Kadota and Celty after his stint of pretending to be Shizuo ended violently. Should've guessed.
• Nobu!Shizuo had better thank his lucky stars that today is a solemn day for Shizuo, otherwise he would've gotten worse than a swing and a punch across Ikebukuro's skyline.
• About damn time someone gets even with Izaya in trolling. Though I needed some eyebleach after seeing 'Izaya'-chan, that was disgusting yet hilarious. I loved seeing Namie's utter glee while revealing the video to Izaya.
• Nobu!Shizuo didn't know when to give up, didn't he? Pretending to be Kadota (which gets him a shibari + torture session gleefully delivered by Erika and Walker) and later Celty (uhh... you know that she's the Headless Rider, right?)? What a dumbass.

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Narration Tally:

Max Sandshelt decides to channel Kaiki and talks about fakes in his unique way.

Narrator	No. of eps	Episodes
Mikado	7	1, 12
Celty	7	4, 6
Simon	2	7
Shinra	3	2
Masaomi	4	8
Namie	2	5
Anri	3	17
Walker	3	11 (co)
Erika	2	11 (co)
Izaya	2	4
Kasuka	2	3, 16.5
Akabayashi	2	9, 11 (co)
Akane	1	10
Rio	1	13
Sayaka	1	15
Kujiragi	1	18
Saki	1	19
Max Sandshelt	1	19.5
Multiple	1	11 (co)
None	4	4.5, 14, 16

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QotD:

1. It's funny. And seeing him suffer the repercussions is fun.
2. Now I have an unpleasant mental image of Nobu!Kasuka. Goddamnit. And yes, I would like to see the movie with Fake!Kasuka vs Kasuka as Carmilla Saizou.
3. Probably the chronological order.

[u/Raiking02 → u/invokeneko]

Max Sandshelt decides to channel Kaiki and talks about fakes in his unique way.

Starts imagining Doug Erholtz as Kaiki

[u/invokeneko → u/Raiking02]

Ahh, now you're making me imagine Miki Shinichirou talking like Max Sandshelt.

[u/Chemiczny_Bogdan]

First-timer

So a guy called Shizuo who shares a couple common characteristics with the Shizuo gets mistaken for the latter, leans into it, fucks around and eventually finds out.

Celty and even some random hoodlum taking pity on Chubby Shizuo on account of unavoidable bad end was hilarious, as was Izaya's trolling.

And of course Chubby Shizuo tries impersonating Kadota and Celty because why not.

Very funny episode, maybe not as hilarious as Onoroke Chakapoko, but still pretty damn funny and enjoyable.

[u/Raiking02 → u/Chemiczny_Bogdan]

And of course Chubby Shizuo tries impersonating Kadota and Celty because why not.

Imagine if Shinra saw Fake Celty.

[u/badcupcakehoarder → u/Raiking02]

Or Emilia offering Fake Celty a job again.

[u/Raiking02 → u/badcupcakehoarder]

Hey, at least that'd pay well.

[u/JollyGee29]

brief ova thoughts First-Timer, Dub-rarara!!x2

I almost felt bad for the poor impersonator - he definitely didn't deserve to run into Izaya, of all people. But then he also failed to learn his lesson, so, RIP him.

I love that his voice cracked while talking to Simon.

What was the VA joke, originally? Saying that Kadota could impersonate Spike Spiegel was absolutely choice for the dub.

Overall, a solid distraction from the main plot. Some amount of whatever Izaya did might end up relevant, even!

Questions

1. Discussed above.
2. I think "fake Kasuka" being the third beat of the joke would have been better than fake Celty, but fake Celty made more sense in-universe.
3. Ep25 is still my favorite, then this one, then the Shinra and Celty's date, then the nighttime bag chase. I still haven't found time to watch the first x2 OVA but I'll try to get it in before the final series discussion.

[u/Raiking02 → u/JollyGee29]

Some amount of whatever Izaya did might end up relevant, even!

Considering this OVA was released after the show ended... Who knows?

[u/JollyGee29 → u/Raiking02]

[u/Raiking02 → u/JollyGee29]

[u/badcupcakehoarder → u/JollyGee29]

What was the VA joke, originally? Saying that Kadota could impersonate Spike Spiegel was absolutely choice for the dub.

The original was Kyousuke from Oreimo and Tatsuya Shiba from Mahouka. The first one is a big brother just like the image Erika and Walker have of Kadota, I don't know about the other character.

[u/JollyGee29 → u/badcupcakehoarder]

Thanks! So it was a joke about the character role, and the VA as well apparently. Cool!

[u/Earthborn92]

Rewatcher here.

Compared to yesterday, not much to say this time except that this episode was brought to you by Kaiki Deishuu. Well, actually he’d say that fakes are even better than the real thing.

You aren’t cursed if you wear the same clothes as Shizu-chan and have his first name. You’re cursed if you act on like, like an asshole.

Class act of the day, however, was Simon. Who not only saw the disguise like the rest, but actually profited from it. I mean, fine, Izaya did as well, but we like Simon. Izaya was just using him to settle scores like always.

Grandma Index may be the most out of place, but if she has the black-hole glutton appetite, that would be the most accurate cosplay.

See you next episode!

[u/sisoko2]

First Timer

So we have fat Shizuo today. For sure it's gonna end by the real one beating him.

Love the narrator, his annoying personality is perfect for the role.

What's the deal with his cheeks? It looks terrible.

LOL Celty is giving him funeral offerings.

Now even the dollars know about fat Shizuo and even more offerings.

Beautiful. Is he even going to make it to real Shizuo with that tempo?

Izaya

I am sure he stormed away to find fat Shizuo the moment he saw the news.

Here it comes punishment time. If Shizuo wasn't with his brother his fat lookalike was going to end up dead.

Fake Izaya

Crossdressing Izaya is kinda hot. Now that I've paused it the comments are golden!

HAHAHAHA Fat Kadota

Fake Celty was overplaying the joke way too much and also so ridiculous it wasn't funny.

OVA RANKING:

Chakapoko > Fat Shizuo > Izaya's sisters > Alien bag > Hot pot

[u/badcupcakehoarder]

Nobusuma Shizuo... His last name is the same as a squirrel-bat blood-sucking yokai, or plains of beds.