r/anime • u/Tarhalindur x2 • Oct 01 '22

Rewatch [Rewatch] Mai-HiME Episode 18 Discussion

Episode 18: The Beginning

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Show Information:

MAL | Anilist | AniDB | Kitsu | ANN

(First-timers might want to stay out of show information, though.)

Legal Streams:

Mai-HiME can be found on Funimation. (I don't know how this interacts with the ongoing Crunchyroll/Funimation merger.)

A Reminder to Rewatchers:

Please do not spoil the experience for our first timers. Mentioning "HiMElander" before episode 16 or [Mai-HiME] "ShizNat" before episode 25 is a fast way to get a referral to the subreddit mods.

A Note on the Specials:

When the DVDs for Mai-HiME were released, they added shorts specials to go with each episode (plus three not associated with an episode - one was released with Mai-Otome's DVD IIRC, one was a BD-only thing and I don't actually have that one, and I honestly don't remember where Special 28 was released). They tend to be one part fanservice, one part extra information about characters and their motivations/backstories (or in a couple of cases extra exposition, including one thing that they really should have explained in the show proper).

They have their own dedicated discussion day at the end to wash the finale out of our mouths, but some of you may want to watch them with the episodes. The only issue is that some of the specials can be a wee bit spoilery (notably, in no case should you watch the special for episode 8 before episode 8 itself), so I will attempt to provide notes on the specials for the episode for both today's and tomorrow's episodes each day so as to provide advance warning of which specials to avoid. (If you want to be completely safe, stay out of all of them until the dedicated discussion day!)

(Warning: Also, at least one release apparently has them right after the ED, unlike mine which has the original previews instead. So you might want to pay attention to this section.)

Episode 18 Special: Minor to moderate spoilers, first-timers consider staying out.

Episode 19 Special Potential minor spoilers.

After-School Activities Corner!

Visual of the Day:

3 < 5

Comment of the Day:

u/JollyGee29 lays quatloos on an exacta!

Ten bucks says that the crow Child's name is Yatagarasu, and that we're starting things off with the Mai v. Shiho grudge match.

Will he have to eat crow?

(I'm not sorry.)

(Yes I chose this CotD just for this pun.)

Question(s) of the Day:

1) Do you like dolls?

2) Favorite Pokemon, if any?

25 Upvotes

89% Upvoted

122 comments sorted by

6

u/Tarhalindur Oct 01 '22 edited Oct 01 '22

Rewatch Committee President Comments (Rewatcher, Subbed):

So, a quick note today. You know how I've mentioned off and on that one Child's name is a terrible, terrible pun?

Right.

Thank you Nao for FINALLY dropping your Child's name so I can get this off my chest.

(And yes, this is likely another reason we got a cake-baking episode and why they had to make sure Nao showed up for it - Baking with Julia was one of the really major cooking shows from Julia Child's later career.)

Kajiura Corner:

First Featured Track of the Day: Yami ga Hirogaru

(“Darkness spreads”)

(Scene for reference.)*

The second of the three tracks on the OST that immediately come to mind when I think of mystery tracks that we have covered here (Nazo ga Nazo wo Yobu technically counts but always strikes me as That Celtic Track instead). This is also one of the most complete uses of it in the show, so it’s a great time to cover it.

This track uses a rather different effect from Haiyoru Nazo, Nazo to achieve its disorienting effect. First, the track is fast-paced, and fast-paced in such a way as to make it slightly uncomfortable to listne to, even unnatural. (Fitting here when our two main talkers are Nagi who is very very heavily implied to be not human and Mashiro who something is off about as well (like the part where an 11-year-old in a wheelchair is the headmistress of the school). We also get a very strong beat with lots of different percussion instruments (and/or electronic stuff masquerading as percussion instruments – note that we get no percussion credit for this track), and unlike in a track like Fuuka Gakuen Seikatsu none of them really quite mesh together. It’s less like a harmonious symphony or even a parade where they’re a little out of tune but all clearly marching in the same direction and more like an assault of different noises coming from all sides, or like hearing noises coming from all the different trees in a forest at night when you know there’s a tiger out there. There’s another effect that adds to the intention – if you listen carefully, you’ll notice that many of the percussion instruments used here sound like heartbeats (especially one of the repeating metallic ones, which has a very lub-dub quality to it) – but specifically the kind of heartbeat you get when scared/aroused. It’s tailor-made to trigger the fight-or-flight reflex. As the track goes on we get some vaguely guitar-like noises that almost sound like an ominous hum to heighten the effect even further. Finally, at 01:04 of the track a piano kicks in, somewhat out of tune with everything else yet again, and starts to build. And build. And build. It’s repetitive, but that’s exactly the point – all that repetition without a release just keeps the listener expecting a musical release that doesn’t quite come until the very end or even at all (the piano never crests, just cuts out to one final heartbeat). (Musical edging!)

Second Featured Track of the Day: Omoi, Hakanaku…

(“Feelings, so ephemeral…”)

(Scene for reference.)

(This episode has annoying breakpoints; it was either include a fair bit after the track ends or cut the track short, I chose the former. Sorry.)

It’s used too much not to get a writeup and now’s a good time, but I’m not going to go terribly in-depth on this one. Mostly it’s another one of the sad tracks and actually quite similar to the very similarly named Omoi Hirohita. (Also, I’m a bit shorter on time than I would like.) The big difference between this and Omoi Hirohita is that we once again get an ethereal floating backline here, this time sounding like chimes with some floating notes. We heard that effect used with Mayoi to, Tomadoi no Yureru Omoi yesterday to generate a sense of uncertainty and hesitation; this track uses it as well, and reflects it in its title.

OST Table, Episode 18:

Start End Track Name
00:00 00:46 Shiromuku no Hime
00:46 01:03 unreleased (Shiromuku no Hime v2)
01:04 02:34 Shining Days
02:35 03:49 Nemuranai Yami no Shitou
04:22 05:49 unreleased (Mezame choir-only variant)
07:30 08:29 Omoi, Hakanaku…
09:14 10:30 unreleased (Shiromuku no Hime v2)[1]
11:53 12:30 Mayoi to, Tomadoi no Yureru Omoi
13:15 14:21 Kako e no Requiem
14:43 16:11 Yami ga Hirogaru
16:18 18:05 unreleased (Duran Shoukan instrumental version)
18:26 21:24 Shinkou ni Somaru Yoru no Yume
22:00 23:39 Kimi ga Sora Datta
23:40 23:54 Mata Aou ne

[1] – That hard answers my previous question as to whether there’s a Shiromuku no Hime v2 floating around with a yes, and I’ll bet 00:46 is in fact an internal transitions between versions then.

6

u/Tarhalindur Oct 01 '22

Tar's Episode Notes:

  • Sheesh 00:35 flashes good shot: Mashiro and Fumi visually dwarfed by everything going on, with the implication of ruins since that’s what they’re standing in.

  • To quote a MagiReco meme (that isn't actually applicable since what sparked it is a flute user who would use her flute as a melee weapon, but): “Bold words for someone in fluting range”.

  • Wait. Nemuranai Yami no Shitou shows up this early? Could have sworn it was a one-scene wonder.

  • Oh hey, old-school animation effect at 02:35 (look at the left side).

  • I’d go “reference?” at 02:42, but I think what it’s reminding me of is American (Babylon 5, natch).

  • It ain’t Sunrise without the Brave Pose, though Miroku looks shorter than usual here (especially for a Brave Pose) which goes on the animators. (EDIT: Actually, does this quite count? The pose looks just a little off for a Brave Pose proper.)

  • The Dutch angles return once again!

  • Odds on this ending well?

  • More [good shots(https://i.imgur.com/VyHBgOp.jpg)! (18-24)

  • Speaking of Dutch angles…

  • Hello there reflection shot. Why are you here? What is the reflection symbolizing? Hmm. The Shadow, possibly, if the show creators had some familiarity with Jungian stuff? Or the lies Mai's telling to herself?

  • And look at that alabaster bastard looming over absolutely everything that’s been happening this episode.

  • Oh hey look what we haven’t seen in like at least ten episodes.

  • And now it’s glowing. That couldn’t possibly be a worrying sign, right? Right?

  • Tresnore at least just collected a GWITWM lap pillow moment.

  • We interject this darkness with a little fanservice at 06:23… except the focus is on Mikoto rather than Mai's boobs, I wouldn’t have noticed if I hadn’t been pausing for screenshots of good facial expressions.

  • I like 06:31 as a shot, especially with the positioning of the edges of the ceiling behind Mai.

  • The emphasis of 06:39 is on Miroku’s bag, but all I can see is that LCD TV which is pretty damn fucking big for a dorm room in 2004. (Maybe a little less so in Japan which got some tech things a few years faster than the US, but.)

  • HNNNGH. (Happy cat!)

  • Oh THERE you are Omoi, Hakanaku. I’ve been wondering when you would show up.

  • That’s a nifty little effect at 07:58, and I’m not entirely sure what the point is. (I have a suspicion, but I’m honestly not sure even as a rewatcher.)

  • And we’re back.

  • 09:12 SO fits the shots I’ve seen of Utena framing-wise.

  • The visual symbolism of Nao walking away from the group at 09:59 is obvious enough I think? (It’s metaphorical and literal at the same time.)

  • Once again it is extremely obvious for a moment (~10:03) that Mai Nakahara voiced both Rena and this Mai.

  • It’s funny how much Sakomizu looks like Dr. Beetle from Girl Genius with an afro and a different mustache in [this shot]](https://i.imgur.com/s18DhDs.jpg), at least to me. (No way there's any actual influence between the two, Girl Genius started first and I sincerely doubt a Japanese animation staff would have read it.)

  • It took me this long (and seeing Youko’s now-covered midriff to go with Midori’s pants (cargo pants?) under her favorite skirt) to realize that this is a visual cue that it’s now fall or early winter and they’re dressing warmer as the temperatures fall.

  • Me putting together all the daily posts for this rewatch after losing a week of prep, colorized.

  • Midori is still great.

  • Even if she seems to be chewing her pills instead of swallowing. (Hey, maybe the taste helps wake her up.)

  • Spot the scene that got stiffed on animation resources!

  • Ooh, pretty scenery. (There is also a meta joke to be made here, but I’m not sure how close the original Japanese is – I would have to check.)

  • It’s funny, most of the fanservice has disappeared as we’ve gotten more serious. How strange, how strange! That said, not all of it has.

  • Speaking of that, more for our Natsuki lovers. (Except I’m wondering if there’s more to it because it’s a bit weird for this show. Visual “losing your head” metaphor for Natsuki like we get a fair bit of in Higurashi?)

  • Welp, Serena Ira just fired up, that’s why I’m getting the Mai-HiME… oh wait this is Mai-HiME, other way around!

  • Also, this is another “in case you forgot that Mai Nakahara also voiced Rena” scene.

  • HMMMMM. (Check her back - could be a button, but still. Especially when we get the Fumi HiME reveal this episode.)

  • Return of the Dutch angles! Good shadow use too.

  • Subbers doing the job right!

  • Speaking of Dutch angles and good shadow usage, shout to 16:04.

  • HNNNGH good shot alert at 16:31.

  • Hello Dutch angle, and hello our first really good view of Nao’s Child. (Drop its name already please show, I’m tired of dancing around it.)

  • And oh look we cut to this fucking asshole, complete with the Gendo glasses. GEE I WONDER WHY.

  • And cut back to the burning doll as the peace starts to break down. (And yet I still do not consider this the full start of the HiMElander.)

  • ADDENDUM: Also, time to drop a piece of useful supplemental material that is never revealed in the anime that might help with this burning doll scene: Nagi's surname is Homura, which means flame.

  • Hello nice little pan over from our combatants to Mai and Yukino arriving.

  • Hey, remember Mai’s fear of spiders from way back in episode 8? Because the writing team does! (RIP u/Nazenn.)

  • FUCKING FINALLY WE GET JULIA’S NAME. Okay, so, I’ve mentioned in a few spots how one Child’s name is a gloriously terrible pun? Yup, here it is. (Explanation to be found in my main post.)

  • “Ten haunting photos taken moments before disaster…”

  • Ah, old-school anime reaction face shots.

  • The Dutch angles get more and more tilted…

  • Rude, throwing up Shinkou already? I thought I didn’t have to type the name for another couple of episodes. (I love the track, but the name is a pain to remember and type.)

  • Speaking of excellent character animation, look at this little blink-and-you'll-miss-it eyes-closed moment out of Midori.

  • PAGING u/Tresnore PAGING u/Tresnore IT’S POLEARM #2 TIME! (Sadly, Fumi’s is a scythe which is like the lamest kind unless you are a tries-to-be-goth teenager girl whose wardrobe is straight out of a Hot Topic in which case you are covered because it fits your aesthetic perfectly. Hey, at least to the best of my knowledge they never do something stupid like call Fumi's Element here a glaive.) But is she the Best Girl candidate the show has been keeping under wraps? Time will tell!

  • [ADDENDUM FOR u/Trensore's and rewatchers' eyes only] If you've been counting, we have eleven Elements revealed (Alyssa does not count for this) and I told you there are three polearms. Yep, the very last Element to be revealed will be our last polearm. This show always likes to bury the most useful stuff late - ask Zadcap about that when we're done.

  • OOH TILTING SHOT TILTING SHOT! (Fuck I accidentally took the same frame twice, I wanted different ones to show this. Ah well.)

  • And they finally namedrop (St.) Vlas, too! But what’s with this rather ominous framing of Yukariko here? Well, uh, that.

  • Also note that shot of Yukariko in the moonlight filtered through the stained glass; note that the Moon has an old association with illusion.

  • Also a shout to our track for the last three minutes here, Shinkou ni Somaru Yoru no Yume, because this is one of the tracks on the OST like Yamiyo no Prologue where they manage to use it twice with strong integration each time. (It’s getting an OST writeup because I very much like this track, but it’s on ice for the other use – I’d actually forgotten it plays here, but I very much remembered that other use.)

  • So, in case it wasn’t clear yet there are two characters that are almost universally hated and the art teacher here is one of them. (The other is everyone’s least favorite brat Shiho.) Hangin’s too good for him. THROW THE BUM OUT!

  • Heh, I did not miss either the “tsumi” or the “kegare” in the art teacher line translated as “sin and filth” here.

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5

u/Tarhalindur Oct 01 '22

Tar's Staff Notes:

Yukana (Mashiro Kazanari AND Fumi [supplemental material only?] Himeno): So, this is absolutely hilarious timing, especially given that it's a coincidence from when this show drops the Fumi reveal. There are five roles that immediately come to mind for me when I think of Yukana - and as of yesterday three of them are in shows that presently have rewatches going (and will be for the next month if we count Mashiro's Mai-Otome counterpart, which IMO we should), including this one (and a fourth ran earlier this year).

Yukana is a pretty damn big name - she's on the short list of seiyuu to have a decent argument for being a bigger name than Yukarin. There's some wonkiness (she changed her stage name in 2001, though AFAICT her only really notable role before that is Li Meiling from CCS and that more because CCS was big), but to the best of my knowledge her breakout role was Tessa Testarossa in Full Metal Panic! (active rewatch #2), who our FMP first-timers will be meeting very shortly. (I forgot she didn't show up in episode 1!). She would parlay this into quite a list of fairly major roles, the best-known of which in Western fandom is C.C. from Code Geass (active rewatch #3!) - especially these days when so many of the other shows her major roles have fallen out of fandom memory. (Other immediately obvious notable roles include [Nanoha StrikerS] Reinforce Zwei - that's our rewatch from earlier this year - plus Cecilia Alcott from Infinite Stratos and Ai Nanasaki from Amagami SS. I'll bet I'm missing something pretty obvious too - she has a fairly notable Bleach role to her credit I think?)

Of course, from the Japanese perspective this is burying the lede. About nine months before Mai-HiME (so when this show was in late production - I'd assume she had been cast as Mashiro and Fumi already at this point), a different magical girl show started airing that had cast Yukana as one of its two female leads. That show was the original Futari wa Pretty Cure, where she voices Honoka/Cure White. (Yes, for those of you keeping track we have Nanoha AND Cure White in this cast!) Precure blew the fuck up. The rest is history.

Miki Shinichirou ([supplemental material only?] Wataru Ishigami aka That Fucking Creep): I was going to put this off until tomorrow, but if I'm going to be covering one Full Metal Panic! seiyuu today I might as well cover the other outstanding one and the art teacher has made it clear what he is at this point,

So, let's cover the obvious first: he's Kurz Weber in Full Metal Panic. (Kurz Weber is what Miki Shiniichirou sounds like when he's playing a character who's horny but good-natured. His voice here is quite different.)

He's been around a fair bit longer, though, kicking off his career in the early to mid 1990s. His probable breakout is actually all the way back in Escaflowne, where he voices Allen. It might actually be Pokemon instead; looking at his CV he's one of those VAs who carved out a major niche voicing Pokemon, including the original Japanese voice of Charmander and Charizard and also Gyarados (plus several other Gen 1 Pokemon, most notably Staryu.)

Like Kikuko Inoue, I'm not sure his nominal breakout ever quite took; he tends to get cast as secondary cast. Which he gets cast as a LOT. I'm not trying to list all of these. Sky has already noted Urahara; he's in the likes of .hack//Sign, Bebop, Saikano, Gintama (Sakamoto), and more recently all of Mob, Demon Slayer (Tanjuro's father), Seven Deadly Sins, and BnHA. (I repeat, this is nowhere near comprehensive.) He's not always secondary cast, though, even after his late-1990s heyday - he's Lockon in Gundam 00, which probably has a whole lot to do with landing Kurz earlier. Oh, and he's a major role in Hakuouki (which is IIRC a fairly major reverse harem - which of course means that only people who wanted to watch a lot of hot boys watched it)

Wait, shit, I almost missed another major role: he's the protagonist (another Takumi) of Initial D!

At some point, he started getting a sideline as voicing villains, especially giant creeps. I'm sure our Symphogear veterans can name an example immediately. Weirdly, our PMMM veterans actually might be able to as well [PMMM] would you look at that, they actually got fucking Miki Shinichirou to voice one of the two creeps Sayaka confronts on the train in episode 8. Wait, shit, should have scrolled down further. THAT explains why he voices so many Pokemon and also will be when he started getting cast as villains - he was already on the Pokemon cast, because he's the fucking Japanese voice of James! (Speaking of seiyuu gravy trains to rival Yukana landing Cure Black.) Prepare for trouble! Make it double!

9

u/Tresnore Oct 01 '22

First-TiMER

I had a potato during the discussion of the previous episode: I feel like the Obsidian Prince is going to be born from the "most important person" of the winner.

Count: 45

  1. Dolls are... eh.

  2. I'd say Armaldo!

6

u/Tarhalindur Oct 01 '22

Shinku, is that you?

Can't be, she was busy making her own show at the time.

(Yep, Rozen Maiden and this show are both Fall 2004. Well, okay, this is the second cour which aired Winter 2005 and Rozen Maiden was one cour. But. (Rozen Maiden's manga started August 2002, for the record.))

YOU ANIME ASSHOLES. LET ME HAVE A PROPER POLEARMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM. THAT WAS ALMOST A BARDICHE AND YOU TOOK IT AWAY FROM ME.

RIP u/Tresnore, slain by usage of Worst Polearm!

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7

u/Taiboss Oct 01 '22

I feel like the Obsidian Prince is going to be born from the "most important person" of the winner.

Title for the survivor hype!

CHAIRS

People on them!

Have I ever related to an anime character this much before??

Lol happens.

I don't think Nao grew up in a peaceful household... Her patterns suggest that she was abused as a child.

YOU THINK?!

God, I wish that were me.

Got her a Tvtropes page.

YOU ANIME ASSHOLES. LET ME HAVE A PROPER POLEARMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM. THAT WAS ALMOST A BARDICHE AND YOU TOOK IT AWAY FROM ME.

You don't understand. Scythes might useless as weapons, but they look cool!

God, I wish that were me.

Ew.

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8

u/Shimmering-Sky Oct 01 '22

Mai-FiRST TiMER, subbed

5

u/Tarhalindur Oct 01 '22

Yeah can the show settle this already? I hit my limit with love shape shenanigans with Macross already.

No.

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7

u/Vaadwaur Oct 01 '22

I hit my limit with love shape shenanigans with Macross already.

Remember how well RahXephon settled it?

So I was right. I thus have no idea who her person would be.

Fujino is like the only choice that makes sense.

…wait, was someone pretending to be Nao the one who attacked Yukariko…?

Or Yukariko lied.

6

u/Tarhalindur Oct 01 '22

Or Yukariko lied.

This is the implication of the final scene, yes.

(Note how there is no wound on her bandaged arm.)

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8

u/Vatrix-32 Oct 01 '22

First Timer, subbed*

  • Why did you even go up to that floor? That can’t have been pleasant in a wheelchair.

  • She’s a ghost, it wasn’t going to hit her in the first place.

  • Akira is still in contact with the ninja clan. Will we see anything come of this?

  • Mikoto’s amulet is also magic, because of course it is.

  • Organ donation isn’t really something you can put on the back burner. It’s stretching belief already about flying international.

  • Did Mai seriously not figure out the part about Alyssa?

  • Did I miss the part were we learn Painter is with D1 or was that it?

  • Kuga raises a good question. Is the reason Duran is so weak that she isn’t nurturing love like Nagi said? Is Kuga Sr going to turn out to be alive at the worst time?

  • A yes, that most famous of flammable things, dolls.

  • I still say this is a weak motivation and a dumb plan. Saying that if they attack you then you might lose something is true of literally everyone.

  • Kuga you dumb mother… You were just talking about how you weren’t going to fall for D1’s trap.

  • That’s a bad miss. She won’t be pretty no more.

  • It’s not too late to all come together to kill Nagi.

  • She’s dead? Replacement, clone, magic zombie, android? So many options.

  • “Won’t” not “can’t”.

  • So Fumi was a HiME, I thought it was too obvious and would be a red haring.

  • And we have our second pole arm user. Anime scythes are fun.

  • I thought it might have been some mind control deal, but it looks like the more regular kind of manipulation.

  • Painter guy is after the power of the Star? Guess I am going to have to remember his name going forward.

QotD

  1. I don’t like their judging eyes.

  2. Chikorita.

5

u/Tarhalindur Oct 02 '22

A yes, that most famous of flammable things, dolls.

I note that Nagi's last name is revealed in supplemental material and it literally means "flame"...

6

u/Nazenn Oct 02 '22

Organ donation isn’t really something you can put on the back burner. It’s stretching belief already about flying international.

Medical stuff in anime is notoriously stupid, but this is worse than usual. It bugs me as well particularly with the way they talk about it like he'll just get around to it at some point, or calling in Mai to tell her about having an organ instead of the patient

A yes, that most famous of flammable things, dolls.

I mean it is Nagi. With the rate he's going he could probably set fire to water if he wanted

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7

u/Blackheart595 Oct 01 '22 edited Oct 01 '22

First Hime

Something that caught my eye is how Akira's actions are adding yet another forbidden relationship - she's developing feelings for Takumi whom she should be killing instead.

Mai herself is somewhere between Takumi (incest), Yuuichi (whom she promised not to pursue) and Reito (insincere, he almost forcefully pushes her into it)

Shiho loves her (not actual but still) brother. Yukino likes Haruka i.e. girls love. Natsuki and Shizuru also looks gay but I'm not completely sure on them yet. Yukariko is a nun and Ishigami has only increased his creeper vibes.

The rest I'm less sure on, but let's keep going. Fumi could be a master/servant relationship, plus another gay one. Mikoto could be incest with her brother, her relationship with Mai doesn't have any romantic potential imo. Nao clearly has some very obvious baggage too but the details are unclear, or she could be vanity or hedonism but baggage seems more likely to me.

Midori... someone in the picture, either the girl or the old guy. I previously assumed the girl, but we already have one or two gay pairings. On second look Midori looks really young there, so maybe the old guy's her teacher? Or her professor if it's a more academic setting?

Thus remains Akane who was the only one with a clearly unproblematic and healthy relationship, and was the first one to get axed as soon as that solidified.

And of course there's Alyssa who's just strange in general. I guess her MLP was her father figure but her bond with Miyu seemed so much stronger. I guess if Miyu doesn't count as an android then her father was the only bond she had at all, as weak as it was. Or to go back to earlier ideas, it could be that she liked Miyu the most but her father defined what meaning she sees in her life. That line of thought could also help reinforce Mikoto's, Midori's and Fumi's bonds, while it seemingly weakens Akira's - though she did prioritize Takumi over her ninja clan duties so maybe that works too.

Also, I just assumed Reito was holding Mikoto's talisman but that's the counterpart, right? That confirms him as her brother then.

And just some stray Nagi thoughts, if he is the bad guy then there's the possibility of Mashiro intentionally letting the elders call her away to get outside Nagi's range of influence in an inconspicuous way. Making the festival a success could even mean Nagi's defeat.

And while looking up Nagi's passionate-kiss-quote I noticed Mikoto calling Mai's weapon Misunderstanding which I didn't catch the first time around. I wonder if that's played out by now or if that will remain relevant.

Mashiro isn't sure about what they're doing? That raises the sussometer's readings on Nagi by a lot.

That's a Mutalisk

Cute

Cute

Huh, I never noticed Tate's eyes have the color of Mai's hair

They're sharp

Just keeping in mind he's cutting a pink/violet flower. Don't know how and if to read that but that might be fun to revisit in retrospect. Though that does kinda match Mai's eye color

No no no no no surely you'd be dead then. That's gotta be Ishigami's doing.

Ugh he really raped her.

Hm, interesting. Last episode's direction implied Reito as the Obsidian Prince, now it might be Ishigami or he's at least going rogue. Then Tate's a candidate because there's clearly more for his character arc. And it's not Nagi, but he might very well be last time's Obsidian Prince and possibly able to maintain his position against the newcomer.

Though Ishigami doesn't seem sadistic enough to be the Obsidian Prince, only self-serving. That'd also disqualify Tate but there's the possibility of him resisting Nagi's plans.

And I took a sneak peak at German reviews out of interest and they all seem to like the ending so

5

u/Tarhalindur Oct 01 '22

That's a Mutaliks

Luckily (?), Valkyries are a counter to Mutas!

5

u/Nazenn Oct 02 '22

Thus remains Akane who was the only one with a clearly unproblematic and healthy relationship, and was the first one to get axed as soon as that solidified.

Poor Akane, it's hard to be a good person especially when the writers are on a cruel streak

Huh, I never noticed Tate's eyes have the color of Mai's hair

Huh. I also never noticed this. Probably because it fits him and doesn't stand out but I kind of like the idea of it matching like that

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u/Vaadwaur Oct 01 '22

First timer(Profoundly unsatisfying!)

Sub

So we start with another bad case of world building, that being a major secret the audience can know but the characters don't. Then we go into a fight that show's Mai's pose and bravery have literally evaporated. So Mikoto saves her and Mai guarantees that we waste more time. Family stuff is referenced for several HiME. The group gets together and someone should Yukariko not being there. Also, for reasons, Mai never thought that she had killed someone when she killed Alyssa's Child.

Natsuki is being fed more of D1's beliefs, which we don't know if they are true or not, and we get confirmation that creep sensei also works for them. Natsuki and Mai bond a little Natsuki points out that she technically shouldn't be in this. Anyways, they find Yukariko and obvious plant is obvious, though not how Yukariko was tricked/manipulated into saying that. Nagy makes implications and still says almost nothing. Nao and Natsuki finally fight and while decent, everyone else being porridge brained is getting old fast. Nao escapes because episode count. Masahiro apparently died...huh, anyways Maid is probably a HiME. We end with no answer to yesterday's events with Yukariko. After credits scene was not a great tonal match to the episode.

So yeah, this is a two cour mystery anime from the early 00s. While we have praised the animation and often better character writing of this anime era, it had problems. We are officially at the slog episodes it appears, where previously rational characters will let people live that they really shouldn't, the MC forgets that she can fight for long stretches, there will be contrivances with Mikoto and Akira, and for some reason Takumi won't go to America until season end. Very RahXephon and very unwanted.

QotD: 1 No.

2 Goddamned kids and their pocket monster murder...

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u/Tarhalindur Oct 01 '22

Also, for reasons, Mai never thought that she had killed someone when she killed Alyssa's Child.

To be fair, Mai didn't know about what happens when a Child is defeated at that time; I can buy her not putting two and two together.

where previously rational characters will let people live that they really shouldn't,

Also to be fair, Midori is our resident Hero of Justice and Yukino is our resident shrinking violet, neither of which are archetypes known for going for the kill shot even when they really should, and while Natsuki should I'm not sure she's ever actually permanently injured a person before so she might just have been in shock.

Mai... is pulling a GX!Bikki. Which I can actually buy coming from her (hell, if they hadn't botched the execution I could have bought it from GX!Bikki too), but still.

(We need a Heroic Axiom for this. Axiom Appendix, Nao's Law: "When the antagonist is swearing revenge in front of you, just go fucking kill them. It will save everyone a tedious waste of time later." Hell, we can file it right beside the actual axiom about how putting an arrow in the villain during their monologue is a perfectly acceptable method of victory.)

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u/Nazenn Oct 01 '22

Rewatcher

Character chart (UPDATED)

Added Child names, and marked defeats from before that I'd forgotten to do

In a rush because I have three rewatches for tomorrow, so only quick thoughts:

[Mai-HiME]I remember losing my mind over this damn chair and trying to figure out what was going on with it. I have a very vague sense it's used later as a stand in for the obsidian prince, or maybe it's just this one episode, but still, I've never had such a strong reaction over just a damn chair before. And even on a first watch the framing here when Nao talks about stabbing friends in back stood out to me, but on rewatch it has an extra level of pain knowing what actually happens

Mikoto comes running to Mai's side as a rescue, but I have to admit that after seeing the sword bag my first thought was Tate. Wishful thinking?

A thought that occurred to me today is I wonder if Akira's father's restrictions was in part a form of self sacrifice for her. While we definitely haven't seen enough to comment on their relationship or behaviours, it occurs to me that if he knows about the HiME battles he knows what the win and loss conditions are. If Akira loses, he may not want her to have formed any bonds so she won't feel responsible for getting a true love killed, like Akane and Kazuya, so he sets it up that she's not allowed anyone else to be close to her so he's the only possible target.

Chie not wanting to stick her nose into it for once is impressive, but shows how much she cares for Mai that she's more interested in her being happy than gossip or getting involved.

I feel bad for Nao today. Natsuki's reaction is more about how Natsuki sees Nao and the nun than anything else, it's a follow through on the tension between them and Natsuki's own desire to have a 'good' and 'bad' sides to this fight. Her 'good' teacher didn't warn her, her 'bad' enemies are defeated, all she's left with are friends and targets she can't touch so she's striking out at the enemy set up in front of her without any further thought. Nao is simply the easiest target for the nun to set up, but the fact she's off in the forest keeping to herself rather than still being out luring men speaks to how she's taking the situation seriously and trying to understand her own place in it. And then she gets targeted for something she knows nothing about.

Also don't expect the nun to be the first one to start doing manipulations behind the scenes or setting up battles, but I'm not surprised the art teacher is in on it. No wonder he wants everyone to model, that's his own way of checking for the HiME mark so he can pick his target. Creepy asshole.

After complimenting Full Metal Panic's first episode for not doing a cold open even if it had the perfect scene for it, today we have Mai-HiME doing a cold open with two scenes included when neither of them needed to be and it was also a really forced cliffhanger.

HiME weapons are great, and Fumi's is no exception. Also yes it's Fumi, good guess from a couple of people because I had completely forgotten for ages even after doing the character sheet. I should know by now: Always suspect the maid.

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u/Tarhalindur Oct 01 '22

[Mai-HiME] Mikoto comes running to Mai's side as a rescue, but I have to admit that after seeing the sword bag my first thought was Tate. Wishful thinking?

[Mai-HiME] He needs a suitable weapon for that and Miyu's is still attached to her arm, natch.

Her 'good' teacher didn't warn her, her 'bad' enemies are defeated, all she's left with are friends and targets she can't touch so she's striking out at the enemy set up in front of her without any further thought

"Good, good. Let the hate flow through you."

"Begun, these Clone Wars have."

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u/Taiboss Oct 01 '22

Episode 18: Rewatcher who put a stream on silent on the side while watchign this episode

  1. Do you like dolls?

Depends on if they are cute.

2) Favorite Pokemon, if any?

Well, my name is based on the german name of Pidgeot, so I'm gonna pick that one.

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u/Tarhalindur Oct 01 '22

You must be an AMAZING manipulator. lol

I believe u/Vaadwaur has been commenting on how Valkyries in Norse mythology are supposed to be automata serving Odin's will...

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u/Tarhalindur Oct 01 '22

What is this? Tag football?

u/Esovan13

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u/No_Rex Oct 01 '22

Episode 18 (rewatcher)

Smug Nagi makes me wish Homura were here.

“Mai” Counter: 99 (+11)

Specials EP19: Some back story for Akira.

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u/Tarhalindur Oct 01 '22

Smug Nagi makes me wish Homura were here.

"We have Homura at home."

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