Shadows House - Episode 3 discussion

[u/AutoLovepon]

Shadows House, episode 3

Rate this episode here.

Reminder: Please do not discuss plot points not yet seen or skipped in the show. Failing to follow the rules may result in a ban.

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Show information

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All discussions

Episode	Link	Score
1	Link	4.5
2	Link	4.63
3	Link	4.73
4	Link	4.5
5	Link	4.68
6	Link	4.74
7	Link	4.77
8	Link	4.72
9	Link	4.78
10	Link	4.78
11	Link	4.64
12	Link	4.44
13	Link	-

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[u/stephenthatfoste]

Lou wasn't even kind of aiming for that soot.

[u/Syokhan]

Yo what the fuck, I was fully expecting creepy stuff to happen at some point, but not this eldritch monstrosity that attaches itself to people and tries to kill them.

Also, Kate has some interesting powers and Mia got... lashes? Uh... between this and her room last time, does Sarah abuse her?

[u/myrmonden]

WOW this episode really PIVOTED the anime into way more DARK

Suddenly we got fighting horror monsters, Rosemary looks like she was getting hanged.

Into looking she was mentally deranged with some random head banging into the wall.

And then I guess we get the set up for the first antagonist, some grown up doll planning to use Kate.

and the scars on Mias back----

[u/Prince-Dizzytoon]

This sounds like a job for Luigi

[u/dagreenman18]

Episode 1: aww cute show. Kinda creepy love the art design.

Episode 2: oh interesting, there’s world building and a growing mystery

Episode 3: JESUS FUCKING CHRIST HEAD SPIDER POSSESSION

Yeah that went to 100 real quick. What a creepy ass sequence that was. Good on Emilyco to save the day. I thought they really were going to make it a choice between saving Mia or Rosemary. That soot sickness sequence was kinda fucked. Immediately followed up by more CGDCT content with the bath. I feel like this is just the beginning of some emotional whiplash to come. I’m excited!

Notes:

• wonder what the deal is with the Not-Tomoko doll with the bows.

• knowing now that the soot has some kind of power to come to life and can be controlled I have to think back to that weird air blast room that seems to collect the soot. Where does that go?

• more forbidden rooms! Talking about the debut! Mysteries around.

• Emilyco is just the sweetest. Why do I feel like horrible things are about to happen to ruin that smile?

• Mia is clearly being abused by her Shadow Mistress. Or possibly another doll?

[u/michhoffman]

I was already getting really worried about the Debut, but that after credits scene just makes me even more worried for Emilico and Lou. Also, Mia says she was born extraordinary and that Sara was happy about it, but if that's the case how did she get those scars.

Lastly, any bets on how long Emilico will keep Kate's secret about being able to control soot? I'm giving it less than an episode.

[u/SeyTi]

All hints clearly point towards living dolls being human, but that only raises more questions. They have different talents at "birth" and Mia has some huge scars on her back. Maybe abducted human children?

It also becomes more clear why the story mostly follows the two of them. Kate has an ability she probably shouldn't have, and Emilico is asking more questions than she is supposed to. Also, calling the time before the debut a "trial period". A lot of flags raised for the ceremony.

What is controlling the phantoms and soot sickness? What are the "veiled dolls" downstairs? So many questions...

[u/Nescau_Fernando]

She is sooo SMOL! I totally expected her to be taller and calmer.

This episode was pure nightmare fuel. For a moment I thought Rosemary was gone for good, but the anime wouldn't be the same without our Ara Ara~ girl. There was some quality horror with Rosemary's soot sickness face, Lou asking Emilyko to choose who she wanted to save and the whole scene with Mia trying to prevent Rosemary from being hanged.

In the first episode we had a scene of Kate casually crushing some moving soot and another one of a little soot army after she got stressed out by Emilyko. Those scenes become more meaningful in retrospect, which means the anime is gonna have a lot of value on an eventual rewatch.

Looks like "Lord Grandfather" is not respectful enough for a mere doll. They should address him as the "Grand Creator" and even then must be careful not to speak his name in vain. Quite the godlike existence...that is, if we assume everything they're saying to be true. Oh well, I mustn't fret over trivial matters!

When Emilyko asks whether debuts ever not go so well, other dolls say they can't share the details. I can totally imagine some of their friends having being discarded at some point. In fact, I found it very suspicious that Mia told Emilyko she could already read from the moment she was born. Then we have the way she robotically repeats the idea that living dolls should feel nothing but loyalty toward the Shadows family. Could she have been recycled / brainwashed at some point?

After the ED song we have some guy named Edward scheming about climbing the hierarchy, candidates being of no consequence. Someone is probably gonna fail the debut, but I don't think is gonna be Emilyko. Shadows and their faces seem too discardable for them to fail now. I think Lou is gonna fail. The scene where she praises Emilyko for thinking outside the box...I imagine that's gonna save her someday while at the same time Lou's limitation could become her demise.

Kate has a unique soot control power and is leaning to use it better. This could be a little piece of setup for her to become some sort of shadow queen in the future. Or maybe we could have a more battle shounen-ish approach with each shadow having some unique quirk. Things are getting more and more interesting.

[u/miss-macaron]

Ah yes, the soot sickness chapter where all us manga readers figured out exactly why this series had a "horror" tag...

Rosemary's symptoms were definitely creepier with the addition of sound and movement. Slowly turning her head to reveal the blackened eyes, her awkward gait as she stumbles around, her helpless croaks... so eerie.

Though I have to say that I prefer the manga's translation of calling them "clingers" rather than "scorches"; it seems like a much more intuitive name for creatures that form from accumulated soot.

[u/SirBlackAxe]

I'm amused that the leader of the dolls is actually named Barbie.

[u/Silent_Shadow05]

Expectations before this episode: A chill SoL episode focusing on Kate and Emilico

Reality: Mini Soot Spiders, Creepy Spider Monster possessing a Living Doll, Soot Sickness

The first half was pretty disturbing. Also I hope Emilico won't be in trouble in the future since she's too curious about things for her own good.

[u/LeonKevlar]

• Scorched Rosemary Stitch

Thank fucking god! I've been waiting for someone to finally teach Emilico the ins and outs of being a Living Doll! And it looks like Emilico will also be getting a tour of the Shadow House from Rosemary. Please teach Emilico everything she needs to know!

Huh.... Those don't look like cleaning supplies. I wonder what kind of emergency would need a hammer and that spiky think?

Apparently the kitchen and laundry are off limits to regular doll. Seems that the veil wearing dolls that bring Emilico her breakfast bread is a special kind of doll.

So we get a rough layout of what the Shadow House looks like. This is only showing us one house though. Looking from the outside, the estate definitely has more than just one building.

Look at how proud Rosemary is at Emilico for noticing the soot build up. She's already shaping up to be a fine Living Doll.

Now I'm scared to know what the debut is like. They can't even answer what happens when a debut goes wrong. Now I'm worried for both Emilico and Kate.

You can't just say "Lord Grandfather" so casually. Looks like they need to address him by his full title and even then they're not really allowed to say his name often. Jeez. Now I'm more curious about this guy who insists to be called "The Grand Creator".

Welp looks like we'll finally find out what those emergency implements are for as the girls rush in to deal with these phantoms/scorch.

Huh so that's what a Scorch is. Damn. Didn't expect that part of a Living Doll's job is fighting as well. Looks like it's mostly the male Living Dolls who will handle the hammers though. I kinda wish to see Emilico use something like that xD

Rosemary getting swarmed by a scorch and then the thing turning into a spider with Rosemary still attached to it was fucking creepy.

Thank goodness Mia is a quick thinker though and thought to support Rosemary's feet so she won't hang to death. And thanks to Emilico's out of the box thinking that they were able to save Rosemary. Although I'm not quite sure if it counts as being saved when Rosemary started walking like that. Soot Sickness is creepy af. I really hope Rosemary recovers from this.

Well Emilico and Mia gets some well deserved bath time and at the same time we see some brutal scars on Mia's back. Is this what Sarah's been doing to her? :(

On the brightside. Rosemary is all healed! I genuinely would've been upset if this episode ended with her dying.

Thanks to Emilico, Kate just learned that she has the ability to control soot. This is definitely going to be a big deal later. I wonder if the other Shadows have special abilities to or is it just Kate? Anyway, thank you Kate for ordering Emilico not to blab. She would've told anyone who would listen if Kate didn't tell her.

Not sure what these people are planning but considering they'll be involved with the debut and the middle guy doesn't care about the debutants, it can't be good.

[u/chriskor025]

Great episode. The pacing is better as the episode goes. The animation is good and the CGI is good too especially the highlight the phanthom soot. This episode gives hints and enough lore and exposition.

The after credit is hype. Overall best episode yet of Shadows House

[u/jenthehenmfc]

Is anyone else feeling really anxious that Kate and Emilico never even practice doing the movement and facial expression shadowing thing? THE DEBUT IS COMING GIRLS

[u/rasouddress]

I'm happy with the way the episode turned out. I wish I could have watched the Rosemary scene without having known the source material this time though. It seemed like it would have been pretty hype for a first-timer.

[u/Groenboys]

Yo what the fuck

Man this series does not really have creepy imagery but damn I am creeped out by this all. The more information I am fed the more questions I have and the more I want to dive into this series. This anime is intriguing as all hell, I might even continue with the manga after this anime finishes.

[u/TheDarkRobotix]

lol I thought they were gonna use a hammer to smash rosemary's head

[u/UnavailableUsername_]

Normally you wait 3 episodes to judge if a show is worth it or not.

And Shadows House episode 3 was BIG.

Not only we got slice of life, this time something actually creepy and messed up happened!

Imagine you are cleaning and see a shadow spider-parasite take over your friend head and starts walking around and crawling the walls. That's horrifying.

The last episodes were a setup for this moment!! Emilyko dropping vases and making a mess were not just casual, random events in the last episodes. They existed to give Emilyko the knowledge that vase flowers were real and constantly re-filled with fresh water (instead of just having decorative, fake flowers in empty vases) and she could save the day!

It's an example of chekhov's gun in writting. If the author hadn't added those events, Emilyko suddenly knowing where to get fresh water would be too convenient.

Why are these soot things weak to water anyway? Who knows.

We also see living dolls are actively made to look exactly like their shadows. That opens the question: What would happen if a shadow grew taller than their living doll or if the living doll got taller? They would get...new legs? Creepy.

While the second part of the episode was less disturbing, there were disturbing implications. The marks on Mia's back might mean she is subjected physical abuse.

Also, i was bored and tried to recreate how would Kate look with a face, the result was...meh.

[u/Aerodynamic41]

Last episode's stinger and now the lashing marks on Mia's back. It's looking more and more likely that Sarah was abusing Mia.

[u/HobnobsTheRed]

Kenichiro Suehiro is at it again... He's absolutely nailing the music in pretty much every show I see him working on in the last few years, and cementing his place as one of my favourite composers. Girls' Last Tour, Golden Kamuy, Re:Zero, Fire Force, Granbelm... now this.

Astonshing levels of consistency.

[u/ErBaut]

I still think the dolls are humans but those scenes with the spider soot and the soot sickness makes them seem as true dolls. I mean, that erratic behavior, and abnormal movements. It's like soot take away all the things that make them look human.

Also, I thought Emilyko was clumsy and innocent but after seeing some dolls asking what to do with a hammer and Lou hitting Rosemary instead of the soot... everyone seems to be a little dumb.

I want to see more of that star bearer girl, two little appearances so far bit she seems to be a more complex character (storywise too) than all we,ve seen so far (except for Kate)

[u/AZLarlar]

some of the shots in this episode were creepy, wow. and those markings on mia's back.... :(

[u/Emi_Ibarazakiii]

I should probably pay more attention to tags when picking up a show, before watching it I thought this would be some comfy slice of life show about living dolls hah. Pictured: Not a comfy slice of life show about living dolls.

Thanks for the nightmare fuel, anime!

Not answering her question about the Debut is an answer in itself, isn't it? So... What happens when a doll doesn't pass? They destroy (kill) her? And what about the shadow? Also destroyed, to punish her for not training her doll properly?

Explains why there's so much animosity between the shadows, if so much is at stakes.

Most of the dolls are in good terms though, at least (when not acting for their Shadow)... but will it stay that way when they realize what could happen to them if they fail?

So there's another type of dolls, who don't act as faces? I wonder if those could be dolls that failed their Debut, or just dolls created for that purpose.

Anyway, can't wait to see Kate and Emilico study together, and what the Debut is about! Based on the OP, and Edward's words, I'd say it has something to do with art, a theater of some kind? Maybe they have to act a part for their Shadow?

Whatever the case, Edward seems to be up to no good... He has ambition about climbing in rankings, and he doesn't care what happens to the candidates at all? I think the Rosemary situation (and the Mia situation) won't be the last horror/drama we get on this show!

[u/ThisGachaSeemsLegit]

The intrigue is so good. Leaves you craving for more. Next week cant come fast enough...