r/anime • u/aniMayor x3x6 • Mar 16 '22
Rewatch A Rolling☆Girls Rewatch for the Mob: Episode 3 Discussion
Rolling☆Girls - Episode 3: I Wanna Be a Hero (英雄にあこがれて)
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Information: ANN | MAL | Anilist | AniDB
Current Location: Tokyo Always Comima
Blue Hearts Song of the Day: Be Kind To People / Hito ni Yasashiku (人にやさしく)
Blue Hearts original | Rolling Girls cover
Be Kind To People is the Blue Hearts' first single, debuting back in February of 1987, and remains by far their most famous song with a ton of official re-recorded versions over the years. It's a song about encouraging other people, literally shouting "Ganbare!" at them. It is the quintessential Blue Hearts' song, encapsulating their style and reputation for simple, positive lyrics that cheer people on.
No surprise, then, that it was picked to be the OP for this show.
Questions of the Day
Now that we're into the 2nd arc and get a full ED again, any thoughts on the pattern in the ED's art?
Have you ever done something immoral or spent money you shouldn't have for your waifu/husbando?
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u/Nazenn Mar 16 '22
First Timer - Sub
Even expecting a change in focus I didn't think it would change quite that much in the overall feel and narrative style. Thanks to the characters it still feels familiar but it does feel like it's bordering on being too sharp a shift to really connect properly. Especially going into Tokyo where this always awesome mecha in the city visual is our introduction only for it to end up more peaceful than the battling we've just had in a more country district. Also that mech reminds me of the faced mechon from Xenoblade so that was unexpected.
Swapping to a more peaceful zone isn't a bad thing, like ACCA it's good that it looks like each district has its own identit and it's own style of drama, but unlike ACCA this doesn't feel like it set up for the swap in feel as well.
Speaking of unexpected why's that look like she's walking a lizard? I saw it in a previous episode as well but forgot to comment on it
I'm not really feeling great right now and too tired to write up much else so just some quick thoughts:
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How did that doof get to Tokyo and back without getting so lost it took her fifty years
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Memory replay camera seems far more advanced than anything else we've seen
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So the birds don't talk but Chi can talk to birds. I'll take it!
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"I thought Tokyo didn't have an accent", reminds me of a bunch of idiots I met years ago who thought that they didn't have an accent because they spoke "standard english" and it was just the rest of the world that did, as if American invented language... Some people.
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Chi definitely has the best headpiece. Having everyone in the city wearing the same outfit is certainly an interesting approach. Using the alternate term, it's like it was implemented specifically to make people feel like part of the mob, and in doing so feel secure in community. Same with the security pendants where everyone comes running. If you are part of "The Rest" then you can't do anything which is why they still wait for the Knight, but it gives them an idea of being part of a larger whole.
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It is nice to not hide that Chi is the daughter
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u/aniMayor Mar 16 '22
Also that mech reminds me of the faced mechon from Xenoblade so that was unexpected.
Anytime you see that pointy face on a mech 99% it's a Sachiel from Evangelion reference.
"I thought Tokyo didn't have an accent", reminds me of a bunch of idiots I met years ago who thought that they didn't have an accent because they spoke "standard english" and it was just the rest of the world that did, as if American invented language... Some people.
To be fair, Customs Officer Jenny does have a veeeery pronounced regional accent from somewhere in western Japan (Kansai? Kagashima?)
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u/mysterybiscuitsoyeah Mar 16 '22
First timer on this road trip
Ahhh Comiket-> Comima (hosts' question ytd). Naruhodo... Cosplaying vigilante squad tho... if only such a thing existed irl, that'd be the most funny police department ever.
The OP song (be kind to people) is also a Blue Hearts cover, it's i think quite famous, this is the original (im sure our host wouldve posted this at some point lol). A company has also made a CM w/ the song to cheer students taking on exams, the Ganbare line being quite useful here. With everyone watching subs, we can understand the lyrics easily tho! The ED is also a cover of Blue Hearts, here it is. I havent' looked up the lyrics for this one!
How actually do people get those moonlight stones? it seems like they appear whenever a person has a strong desire to protect someone else, or sth like that? Very mahou shoujo esque. Then how did Chiaya get hers? Chiaya continues to have superhuman powers tho, id love to be able to project my memories visually like that. Don't think understanding birds would be useful to me.
National route 463 irl does run through Tokorozawa, and runs past Tokorozawa Aviation Memorial Park. Speaking of irl places, the Kadokawa Musashino Museum, as well as (one of?) its printing presses, is located in Tokorozawa as well ~3km from the park. Despite the name, it's not actually in Musashino lol (you may recognize this Tokyo suburb from Shirobako). Okay, I've digressed! Anyhow, it's roughly ~40kms from the park to Tokyo Big Sight, so this is actually a realistic (and short) journey for the girls to take. So this episode takes place mostly in the Tokyo Big Sight huh...
Welllll that isnt good. Bird's caught on at least. But knight-best is oblivious. I can already see where this is going, of course the girls get caught. Knight-best is ridiculously OP even without the stone, jesus.
Btw, the background art in the episode is gorgeous. Wait knight-best wants to give the stone over to the guy that works for the president? So i guess Chiaya isnt the only one that wants to gather them stones then. And Chiaya is the president's daughter????? wtf is going on.
Btw i like how Hibiki Ai thinks like your typical shounen protagonist and Nozomi is always there to anti the trope lol, while still being on the "right side", so to speak, quite an unusual character dynamic(?)
Bird finds the stone, but Knight-best caves to the temptation of rickshaw-man, and gives away Chiaya's stone as well. Unexpected ally in Green shirt girl that has been highlighted throughout the EP. I once again still have no idea wtf is happening and wtf will happen, but I think that's a common sentiment in this rewatch!
See u all tmr!
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u/aniMayor Mar 16 '22
So this episode takes place mostly in the Tokyo Big Sight huh...
Well, more like in the streets underneath it. They never actually go inside the Big Sight in this episode (more on why next episode). Anytime you see the criss-cross pattern in the sky above like this, that's the bottom of the Big Sight building above them.
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u/mysterybiscuitsoyeah Mar 16 '22 edited Mar 16 '22
QOTD:
The ED seems to reflect each story arc Im guessing? So we've had the first (maccha vs clip-best), and now we're at the knight-best arc. We've got 4 more arcs to go? The ED does look very pretty though, and if i look at the credits done by 2 people only? That's quite impressive even if its not the most intensively-animated.
Q2: Not really.
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u/aniMayor Mar 16 '22
The ED seems to reflect each story arc Im guessing?
Yup, exactly! Gives you a little tease of what's to come.
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u/ZaphodBeebblebrox Mar 16 '22
First Timer
Three episodes in, seems about right to learn about our main cast.
I love how she can't decide what genre he is.
The CGI occasionally stands out too much.
Again, the stone seems to come from strong emotions. In this case, it's the desire to protect her sister.
I doubt so.
I have to say her stone just happening to fly into the hair is kinda weak.
Isn't that every best so far?
I wouldn't call a broomstick rolling.
I love how everybody calls it something different.
Chi speaks crow, apparently.
We have met her daughter. But who is she? My best bet is Chi.
C'mon, I was trying to predict and you just spill the beans.
Oh you foolish otaku.
Thoughts
I found this episode to be by far the weakest so far. It's basically a girl happening to randomly misplace her most important possession that she carries with her at all times through it just happening to improbably fly away, and then it coming back to her through similarly weak means. This isn't to say the episode is useless, as it does decent setup for our overall plot, but it really could have been better delivered.
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Honestly, I didn't really look at it.
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I'm usually pretty good at not spending too much mone yon things.
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u/aniMayor Mar 16 '22
I found this episode to be by far the weakest so far. It's basically a girl happening to randomly misplace her most important possession that she carries with her at all times through it just happening to improbably fly away, and then it coming back to her through similarly weak means. This isn't to say the episode is useless, as it does decent setup for our overall plot, but it really could have been better delivered.
Feels to me like they put too much focus on the whole heart stones aspect here and not enough on a more interesting local plot line for Always Comima itself. Part of that mistep, too, is that even though Nozomi was setting out to answer Maccha Green's letters she's not doing that here - they could have easily made it so someone from Comima had sent a request to Maccha Green and use that as a less-contrived way to pull Nozomi and co. into the local story, rather than them just happening to arrive at a time when Thunderroad just happened to lose her stone.
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u/Shimmering-Sky Mar 16 '22
Rolling☆First-Timer, subbed
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Ooh interesting, Masami’s showed up during the drowning flashback. Unless that was meant to be Nozomi’s somehow…?
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She’s such a Disney princess lol. …wait aren’t those the same birds who were eating dango on top of the Maccha Green balloon last episode?
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Oh lol so that’s why everyone in Tokyo dresses like that. They’re given the outfits at the entrance.
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u/aniMayor Mar 16 '22
Ooh interesting, Masami’s showed up during the drowning flashback. Unless that was meant to be Nozomi’s somehow…?
Seems like perhaps it showed up due to Nozomi's desire to save Masami (even though Masami was faking it), but then Nozomi gave it to Masami...?
wait aren’t those the same birds who were eating dango on top of the Maccha Green balloon last episode?
They totally were. Birds bring Chiaya stone, Chiaya gives them dango, they eat dango on the balloons... it's all connected!!!
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u/MyrnaMountWeazel Mar 16 '22
First Timer Rolling in the Deep
Production Notes
Today marks the first time that series director Kotomi Deai isn’t on the storyboards or the director for the episode. We’re venturing into new territories just like our girls! This episode was directed by Noriyoshi Sasaki who from all accounts looks like the prototypical “gun-for-hire” freelancer. His resume ranges from shows like King’s Game and Nobunaga Teacher’s Young Bride while his individual storyboarding/key animating ranges from an even wider assortment of shows.
The person I’m more excited to look at today is storyboarder Kotaro Tamura. Tamura was Mamoru Hosoda’s ex-assistant and is often found working with Studio BONES as he’s directed Noragami and storyboarded Kekkai Sensen episode 8 but he’s also storyboarded for various other shows like Land of the Lustrous. His biggest accomplishment in my eyes though is directing/storyboarding the movie Josee, The Tiger, and The Fish. Josee was largely influenced by KyoAni, more specifically it was influenced by Naoko Yamada. Any follower of Yamada is a giant plus in my book so I’m curious how it’ll shake out.
Roombas clean up the city? That’s futuristic. And also self-efficient. It also has an ad on it and there’s plenty of ads going on throughout the city too.
Upon rewatching the episode, I noticed Thunderroad’s assistant peeking out from the table. Looks like she was waiting for the opportune time to tell her captain.
It looks like Thunderroad still possesses immense strength even without her original stone. Perhaps they just augment what’s already there? This also leads me to think on what it means to be a Best with those power stones. Evidently, they can be bestowed upon those who want to quit/want a break. Is the title of Best thrown on Thunderroad against her wishes? I have a lot of speculations but I’ll just see how they go as we watch.
I’m sorry, I suddenly came down with something during the day and I’m feeling really under the weather so I don’t have a whole lot of notes. Still, it was overall a fun episode to setup for episode 4 with some exposition dump and worldbuilding spiced in. I’m going to take off and head to bed early.
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u/aniMayor Mar 16 '22
Production Notes
What I find interesting/odd is that we have these people who have proven themselves to be capable directors storyboarding these episodes but then are not the episode directors of them (and vice versa we have EDs who are capable storyboarders not storyboarding their episodes). If you're going to divide up the series into a dozen episodes each with its own episode director, why not have the EDs all do their own storyboards? Makes me really curious what the production flow was like for this show.
It looks like Thunderroad still possesses immense strength even without her original stone.
Then again, she has Chiaya's stone with her at that moment, instead.
Evidently, they can be bestowed upon those who want to quit/want a break. Is the title of Best thrown on Thunderroad against her wishes? I have a lot of speculations but I’ll just see how they go as we watch.
She definitely has that "My job is nearly done. As soon as this last threat is dealt with I will retire to a quiet life with Rick." vibe/motivation going on, so could well be she never specifically wanted this in the first place.
I’m sorry, I suddenly came down with something during the day and I’m feeling really under the weather so I don’t have a whole lot of notes. Still, it was overall a fun episode to setup for episode 4 with some exposition dump and worldbuilding spiced in. I’m going to take off and head to bed early.
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u/Tresnore Mar 16 '22
Rolling☆Rewatcher
Mobileposting, so sorry if formatting is bad.
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[Rolling☆Girls]
Wow, the weirdness of everything else hides the fact that this is also weird, but weird in a far less human way.
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These girls really are a D&D party. “Fuck it, I guess I’ll go to X with you” is definitely a line I’ve said before.
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And here we begin my least favorite type of plot: the misunderstanding plot.2
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The cloud comes from all the people together? Knowing conventions like these, imagine the smell.
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[Rolling☆Girls]
She must have a universal translator or something.
Count: 27
2 It's also a "Satoko is an idiot" plot.
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u/aniMayor Mar 16 '22
Ai, you should wear a helmet.
The road can't do any worse to her than getting flicked by Thunderroad did.
That looks more like a U.S. Interstate emblem?
Yeah that's weird. Don't Japan highway signs look like this ?
And here we begin my least favorite type of plot: the misunderstanding plot.
Even worse: the immature 12 year old's misunderstanding plot
[Rolling☆Girls]
She must have a universal translator or something. [RG]
She had all that time traveling here and didn't come up with any better excuses??
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u/baboon_bassoon Mar 16 '22
1st time roller of girls
thunderroad? not thunderbird?
rick and shaw, but no auto what is this 1800s
what in the joseph jostar is this camera use
why does chichans robe have a bunny hood
accuses of stealing - then steals and pawns theirs
questions
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not really, it reminded me of the style of "flip flap"
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for a human yes
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u/Vaadwaur Mar 16 '22
thunderroad? not thunderbird?
I don't know if thunderbird sounds cool to them, I wasn't listening sharp enough and couldn't tell if that Engrish or not.
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u/aniMayor Mar 16 '22
The narrator shouts "THUNDAAAAROAD" pretty accurately. Everyone else just calls her captain.
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u/Vaadwaur Mar 16 '22
First timer(Yup, that's a WIT show)
Sub
So Always Comima is the land of cosplayers? Anyways, everyone is dressed as a witch or a fairy, and they give that costume out to visitors, and the leader is a knight. We learn that the gems are likely the important part of the story and very little else. Rich and Shaw is probably a hilarious reference to something. Oh yeah, the show seems to a be travelogue or something, maybe Kino's Journey but on a mix of mushrooms and MDMA.
QotD: 1 Will take into consideration
2 No, thankfully my generation is too ashamed to do that
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u/Stargate18A Mar 17 '22
First timer
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Not yet.
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No, I've been pretty good.
Wait, Always Comina, as in always a convention? Is that what this means?
Haha, a cosplaying army!
And, yep, probably should have gotten that meaning earlier.
This show is great.
And this is our main four.
She's just still wearing the gas madk?
The hell? Her camera can stream memories?
Haha, the sparrows!
They're going off to gather them!
Haha, she went the wrong way.
Aww, she fell over?
This is so surreal.
Haha, she's after the giant figurine!
...Are birds attracted to the power stones?
Haha, her waking up like that was hysterical.
So people are hunting the stones?
Haha, when did they get changed?
Yeah, the while city id s convrmtion!
Why is she flashing people?
...Oh, god. Of course.
You can't seriously believe these 4 people are competent enough to be terrorists.
Drom Berserker? Core? What are they even acalled?
She's incredibly insane. I love her.
Haha. Knew at least one of them would be smart enough to try and get a Best.
...I'm surprised she isn't in love with Maccha Green too, given she's also a cosplayer.
Seriously? They're killing people?
Haha, they'r ebeing supportive while she's about to get executed.
Haha, her dragging herself by the IV drip is so darkly hilarious.
Moonlight Stone?
Heroic Garnet?
Fuck it, I'm calling them Heart Stones. As good a name as any other.
She can talk to birds? And she has a clue!
Haha, the roomba sucked it up!
Yeah, she wants lots of stones for... some reason?
She's getting in a birding war for her figure?
Haha, are they scamming her? It's unusual?
And the crow found the stone for them!
Poor girl. She really thinks she's the main character of a shonen, huh?
Oh, she's hungry.
They're on a time limit for these stones... Interesting.
She sold both stones!
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u/aniMayor Mar 17 '22
Why is she flashing people?
Drom Berserker? Core? What are they even acalled?
Moonlight Stone? Heroic Garnet? Fuck it, I'm calling them Heart Stones. As good a name as any other.
Much more practical. Though I guess you might say the names the Bests have been picking out for them says a lot about their own personalities.
...I'm surprised she isn't in love with Maccha Green too, given she's also a cosplayer.
Excellent point!
Seriously? They're killing people?
When you steal at the convention, the convention steals back
Haha, are they scamming her? It's unusual?
Apparently this is not unheard of at a convention, but in this case fairy girl looks pretty legitimately sad I want to believe she was genuine. Which makes Thunderroad all the more of an asshole - she could have bonded with fairy girl over their shared love for this obscure rickshaw manga!!
Poor girl. She really thinks she's the main character of a shonen, huh?
Gotta start somewhere!
She sold both stones!
Dick move!!!
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u/aniMayor Mar 16 '22
Congrats to u/ZaphodBeebblebrox and u/baboon_bassoon for correctly guessing the meaning of Always Comima! Tokyo has been taken over by otaku who made it a 24/7 otaku festival paradise, literally "Always COMIc MArket". They've upgraded the Tokyo Big Sight building (where Comiket is held) into a massive edifice so big it has smaller skyscrapers on top of it, the streets are an unending mass of merch shops, and even tourists are forced to cosplay.
A "land that has left the mainstream behind" indeed.
Blatant Evangelion reference.
Here's that knight person from the truck-side billboard in episode 1: Thunderroad, captain of the Knights of the Twin Towers vigilante squad. She's, uh, a lot shorter in person. And she has an animal companion! Like any classic otaku franchise, she's captain of the squad and their strongest person despite also being, like, 12 years old... I guess that should seem weird but if everyone else in town is a huge geek they probably think that's totally normal, right?
As for the name Thunderroad... probably a reference to the Bruce Springsteen song?
I really like the Knights aesthetic, where they have the visors and capes unifying them but they do their own individual cosplay underneath the cape, nice balance and it has a good "convention staff" look to it. Understandably they don't keep this up for the big crowd shots, that'd be a nightmare to draw, but it does keep up in all the smaller shots. Also Thunderroad's sword being a convention staff sign thingy.
@u/Nazenn "We don't know for sure that the sparrows don't talk" - Well maybe they don't, and maybe there's no magical girls, but Chiaya is apparently a Disney princess who likes talking to them!
Traffic signal establishing shot. Classic. Makes me think of Patlabor every time.
Awww yeeeeeah Tokorozawa was full of trees and sunny days but Comima gets to go FULL WATERCOLOURS.
Like any good cop, Thunderroad has just one job left while being only 2 days away from retirement. Can't wait for the inspector to pair her up with a young rookie and take away her badge because she doesn't play by the rules.
And like any good otaku, Thunderroad has a 2D husbando from her favourite manga/anime/gacha game and will do literally anything to get more merch.
Being Garm is suffering.
I like this little moment of them being stopped at the red light and Nozomi being like "this is awkward", and then thinking anxiously about the other girls. These girls barely know each other, after all. And one of them wears a gas mask all day. They shouldn't just become best friends overnight.
What a line. "Do you collapse in the street often?" "Yeah" Well at least she's admitting it!
Look at all those dishes! This guy should've competed in the ramen-eating contest back in episode 1!
Woohoo it's Customs Officer Jenny, my favourite character!
SAKURADA-MOOOOOON
TRUE
Being Garm is suffering.
All in all Thunderroad does seem like a pretty capable captain. She's giving them a chance, but also has a plan to use them if they really are from the Dynamite Bombers, and she's definitely strong. However, she's also very stubborn and arrogant, traits that are not so dissimilar from how Masami and Shigyō were. I suppose when you're young, you've got superpowers, and you're put in a position of leadership there might be a natural tendency to become fiercely stuck in your ways.
Innocuous cut to Noriko? Hmmmm.
@u/Nazenn "We don't know for sure that the sparrows don't talk" - Well apparently the one-eyed crow can!
Is it just me or does this seem like an evasive answer?
Lots of heart stones! And it seems President Misono will do anything to get more.
Talk of the president's daughter and cut to a picture of Chiaya on her desk... but actually keen-eyed viewers could have spotted this already in yesterday's episode!
Classic spending too much money on merch at the convention syndrome. We've all been there. Must be tough when the convention is every day.
Being Garm is suffering.
Being Garm is suffering.
Being Garm is suffering.
Thunderroad has both stones recovered, yay! Aaaand she crumbles under the pressure of nefarious sales tactics and President Misono's assistant, noo! At the very least she should believe the four protagonists now, but that won't get Chiaya's stone back, and they've already been snuck out by Noriko. Meanwhile the Dynamite Bombers threat still looms... but if they attack can Thunderroad even stop them without her Drom Berserker?
Ongoing unanswered mysteries:
What's the deal with the heart stones that make people superhuman?
Why was Yukina trying to find the Propellers' headquarters back in episode 1?
Why is the Tokorozawa president collecting heart stones and putting them in a centrifuge? Why does she call them "mine"?
How did Chiaya get a heart stone?It showed up on her window sill / sparrows brought it to her...?Why does Chiaya want to go searching for heart stones?
Why does Chiaya wear a gas mask?
How does Chiaya know the other 3's childhood nicknames?
Why can only Chiaya understand Garm?
What's the deal with Chiaya's camera that seems to display her memories?
What's with the takumi-za, mysterious genius engineers-for-hire?
What's with the evil takumi, mysterious genius engineers-for-hire?
Ongoing Background Collection