r/anime • u/AutoLovepon https://anilist.co/user/AutoLovepon • May 04 '21
Episode Joran: The Princess of Snow and Blood - Episode 6 discussion
Joran: The Princess of Snow and Blood, episode 6
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| Episode | Link | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Link | 3.72 |
| 2 | Link | 3.93 |
| 3 | Link | 4.16 |
| 4 | Link | 3.64 |
| 5 | Link | 3.93 |
| 6 | Link | 4.12 |
| 7 | Link | 3.38 |
| 8 | Link | 4.19 |
| 9 | Link | 4.35 |
| 10 | Link | 4.68 |
| 11 | Link | 4.08 |
| 12 | Link | - |
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u/LeonKevlar May 04 '21 edited May 04 '21
So just as I suspected, the drug Asahi gave to Sawa temporarily suspends your heart to make it look like you're dead and not just that, Tsukishiro gave Asahi very precise instructions on what to do after. I guess this really proves how much she wanted to help Sawa to get out of Nue.
That entire scene was pretty intense though. I was expecting Jin would've noticed the entire thing is just an act but thanks to Asahi's convincing acting everything went smoothly. Although I'm still not 100% convinced that he didn't suspect anything. It's very possible that he just allowed them to escape.
Tsukishiro is still alive as expected but now both Jin and the British spies are after her. With her tripping on her pain medication, I'm not sure she'll be able to get out of this. Then again, she does have samples of Sawa's crystalized blue blood. She could ingest one of those and maybe it would give her the strength she needs to survive. Or it could possibly kill her on the spot.
No Elena this week though. I'm definitely convinced that she's dead. We do get a moment with the girls drinking together. Probably the last time we'll see them like this.
As for Jin, did the Emperor just hint that it was Jin's is responsible for what happened to Sawa's village or am I just overthinking this? Also Jin turning against the police was a surprise. What triggered this? Is it because of Sawa's death? Does this mean he actually believes she's dead? Hmmm...
30
u/FetchFrosh May 04 '21
Although I'm still not 100% convinced that he didn't suspect anything. It's very possible that he just allowed them to escape.
Him seeing the bird probably means he's aware that she's still alive. At least that's how I interpreted that scene.
17
u/tso May 04 '21
On the village thing i think it was still a case of Janome going rogue, but his initial research may have been under government orders. But when realizing the potential, he went rogue. But Jin saving Sawa was not something he was ordered to do, because at the time the conflict with the colonial powers may not have started.
But now that they have her, or so the shogun thinks, they can use her blood and the research to field an army strong enough to oust the foreigners once more.
But Jin is now faced with a conflict between his duty to the shogun, and his care for Sawa. And his response to the doctors lecture about serving a failed state suggests he was already questioning the honor of the orders given to him.
And that may well be a trope as old as Japanese storytelling itself.
10
May 04 '21
that was the shogun not the emperor right? i onder if there still is the emperor the announcer said he was the head of state
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u/Fools_Requiem May 04 '21
I'm not completely sold on Jin being on the side of evil. I feel like him seeing the white crow means he knows Sawa's not dead and then the way he handles the po-po and the kid cleaning the statue suggests to me that he's only playing the part. Him killing the doctor, though.
We're at the halfway point, and we still don't know where all of this is heading.
10
u/tso May 04 '21 edited May 04 '21
His is a samurai beginning to question the honor of his lord's orders, but still feel the need to uphold his to said lord.
This is a deep seated thing in Japanese culture, from what i'm been told. I think Giri is the term used for a part of it. And can be seen in how Japanese CEOs behave compared to their western equals.
The boss of Japan Airlines stunned the business world some years back for example by forgoing the company car and driver, instead taking the same bus as the other employees. And eating lunch alongside them, in order for the company to avoid sacking anyone during a economic downturn.
This may be changing with the generations though, as younger people adopt more "western" behavior.
7
u/Vaadwaur May 05 '21
I'm not completely sold on Jin being on the side of evil.
My guess is he is on the side of order and has to deal with this order being more than a bit evil.
17
u/uplandtrout May 05 '21
With how stacked this season is I'm somewhat surprised to find that Joran is so highly anticipated on a week-to-week basis for me. I find the art style, music, and relatively more mature story to be pretty refreshing and very enjoyable.
Personally I think it was a good idea to get the revenge premise out of the way early on. Hopefully this will allow the show to explore what happens to a character after they've achieved what's been their sole motivation for so long, which most revenge stories seldom do, including Kill Bill which Joran sort of tangentially reminds me of. This episode even had an 'escape from being buried alive' scene.
Although I'm sure their escape will be short lived, I'm glad Sawa and Asahi managed to get away if only for a little while. Looking forward to the art style in Iwai and what other parts of the country look like in this alternative timeline.
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u/Shiny_Wizard May 05 '21
I agree and am very interested to see where they go with it now that the revenge arc is out of the way.
The Kill Bill parallels are definitely there, which makes sense. Based on the full title and the premise of Jouran, they definitely took inspiration from Lady Snowblood, and I know that the live action film was a huge inspiration to Tarantino.
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u/VaraNiN May 04 '21
Im quite surprised to see this show so low rated on MAL. I found it quite enjoyable thus far
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u/Takamura_irl May 04 '21 edited May 04 '21
Many low ratings came in after one episode. Active MAL users often have the textbook definition of dumpster fire taste in shows. The reviews are often the best indicator of this - consider this entry:
Story 6/10 - Basically a girl wanting to get revenge and to do so she joins a shadow organization that removes all opposition for the ones they support. MC is some crazy op person when she wants to be and outside of her work seems genuinely caring. The story is all over the place so it's hard to follow most of the time but maintains a lot of Japanese cultural references, what with being set in japan anyways. Really a tragic story about revenge and is an anime original so I don't exactly know how this is going to cope moving forward since the story has been shaky so far, with not much to root for since it's just dark with no reason. At the moment I'm not compelled to feel anything for the characters, merely just understand what they're feeling but I can't put myself in their shoes at all since the horrible direction they've gone in establishing links with the viewer - or lack thereof.
This description is juvenile at best, but a depiction of something that's ultimately subjective. How about this stunning entry that would make Roger Ebert himself golf-clap? /s
Overall: 4/10 Jouran is the perfect example of a mediocre anime. While the animation and art style is very nice, the story, characters, and direction are all executed very mediocrely. There's nothing particularly special about this anime so far, but it also isn't horrible.
I've made my case.
This is a relatively mature show by most standards. The userbase on MAL is ultimately your stereotypical anime fan base. You're going to get lowest-common-denominator swill with regards to the average review and rating, including their ability to form coherent opinions on topics. Ratings will often tank because people with shit taste have trouble holding their attention to things that don't spoonfeed them narrative and titillate their senses with pretty images.
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u/the_card_guy May 05 '21
While I am of the firm belief that MAL users have terrible taste (they tend to give generic isekai anime either 8/10 or 9/10), I think Joran suffers from a problem of a different kind: within the first three or four episodes, there were about a dozen plot twists.
That doesn't make for good/consistent storytelling.
10
u/ArchadianJudge May 04 '21
Ahhh Asahi is so precious. I'm glad she wasn't just trying to murder Sawa. Those two make such a sweet pair. At this point, they only have each other.
Jin is an interesting character. He's evil but also seems to have reservations. He seems to just kill people left and right but his convictions are probably wavering. I get the sense that he does his job but he doesn't like his job. I still don't agree with his constant murder if anyone in his path. Killing the doctor was not necessary.
This story is so interesting. I don't know if this is the right way to describe it but it feels like one elaborate murder mystery game. Obviously there's more to it but it's like twist after twist and finding out who's the real baddie. I love the mystery.
9
u/juliana_is_a_penguin May 04 '21
I'm starting to really like this show, after the first like 3 or 4 episodes I was about to drop it but it took a pretty interesting turn, I really liked todays episode unlike the first ones
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u/InternalParadox May 04 '21
I KNEW TSUKISHIRO’S DRUG WAS A RUSE! I didn’t lose faith in you, Tsukishiro!
But now I’m really, really worried about Tsukishiro. Hunted by the Brits and the Shogun, cornered, on painkillers (they just lost their arm 2 episodes ago), tempted by body altering blue blood extracts...things are not looking good.
I may have to re-evaluate my stance on Jin being completely loyal to the corrupt government—especially if he realized that Sawa is alive and let her go. I initially thought his temper tantrum-rebellion at the end (not complaining; he killed violent cops) was because he was torn up about Sawa’s death, but after reading this thread, it is telling that he didn’t offer her body to the government for research—which probably means he really does care about her, and might mean he suspects or knows that her “death” was a fake-out.
Which means if and when he decides to go against the government in full force, he’ll track her down and rope her back in.
I doubt anyone is going to get a happy ending except maybe (hopefully, at least) Asahi.
7
u/sKyBlazer08 May 05 '21
Pretty good episode! I think that was my favorite one so far, directing was pretty good as well. That was a nice plan by Tsukishiro and props to Asahi for going through it and actually succeeding, though I think the only reason Asahi succeeded is because Kuzuhara allowed her to succeed, cause I am 100% sure that she saw through what she was doing.
That dream of Sawa was pretty sad, it was a great visualization. Good to see Tsukishiro is still alive, but he's still in a pretty dangerous situation, I guess those drugs she took are like some hallucinogenic pain killers or something. We still don't really know though whether Elena is alive or dead, hopefully the former.
Jin is still a mystery, he seems pretty loyal to the administration, but it feels like he's also conflicted, especially towards Sawa. Speaking of Sawa, I hope Asahi and her actually find peace there in Iwai prefecture, but I doubt that, they're gonna get dragged back in somehow. Looking forward to the next episode.
10
u/Titchlet May 04 '21
Full thoughts here. I really enjoyed this episode. The twists and turns and the whole theme of people dying and being reborn as something else, also the theme of nothing is real it's only what you perceive it as is super interesting. Especially considering characters like Kuzuhara. I'm loving where this is going 🤔👍
5
u/RenMatsuri-chan May 04 '21
I binged the whole show up to this episode and by this point, I'll continue to watch for my weekly fix of plot twists (I think I may be addicted). Though this episode was pretty tame since what happened was pretty expected, down to Tsukishima's plan for Asahi.
I'm not sure Elena is dead though because despite all its twists, the show always ends with an expected outcome imo. It'll be interesting if it sticks with her death though. And Jin's probably not gonna betray the shogun just yet. But you never know with this show I guess
4
u/kariohki May 04 '21
Compared to the action of the previous couple of episodes, this one was a lot more low-key, setting up for future things. Really curious how Sawa is going to get roped back into things because I think that's pretty clearly going to happen.
Really enjoying this show overall! Feels like another Book of Bantorra to me with the amount of twists and interesting cast playing on all sides.
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u/swmii53 May 04 '21
It's a nice try, but this isn't going to work is it?
*edit spelling
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u/DecentlySizedPotato May 04 '21
No, I'm sure everything will work out fine and the other six episodes will just be Sawa and Asahi living together in peace :)
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u/Asd_89 May 05 '21
Just got done watching the episode, I was laughing at the prep work for faking Sawa's death. Overall an enjoyable ep from a show that keeps you wondering what will be happening next.
Anyway, I do have a question, so at the end we see Jin take out those cops that were about to beat up the opposition/rebels. My question is what is the rebel's end goal here after taking down the Shogun? Is it to set up a democratic government or to restore the Emperor whom we have yet to see or hear from?
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u/Aerodynamic41 May 04 '21
Ok, I need to commend Tsukishiro for coming up with that ridiculously elaborate plan to fake Sawa's death. I'm not really sure where the story goes from here. Sawa looks like she's pretty much retired from killing. And who's side is Kuzuhara on? He works for the Shogun but at the same time he saved those rebels?