mortythesp00k

[mortythesp00k]

Reaction: TG:re Chapter 161

First Impressions: Hello everyone! I hope you all have enjoyed the beginning of a great week. There is a lot to discuss for this chapter, so I am eager to get into it. I’ll give my first reactions here and some analysis later on.

I am not ashamed to admit that I farm reaction images from TG. This one is going to be a fine addition to my collection:

Okay, this panel of Hide is when my sense of extreme nervousness first began. He just looks so concerned:

I have seen lots of posts about the interactions between Urie and Mutsuki in this chapter, but oh my goodness! They are too precious:

This page only got me more nervous. I did a triple take when I saw Saiko’s eyes:

This is completely unimportant, but how gross would this sound?:

This panel gave me some serious Root A flashbacks:

I won’t lie, the entire end of this chapter had me completely confused:

Up next, read my best attempt at making sense of it.

Analysis:

First I want to talk about the ghoul transformations. Our first evidence we get that something isn’t right is Saiko in this panel:

It seems like she has suddenly developed a second Kakugan and her Kagune has also been affected somehow. It is also worth pointing out that the starry pattern behind her might represent some kind of spore or mist being released from Dragon’s decomposing body that is responsible for the events we see later in the chapter. Speaking of transformations, something is clearly wrong with the people of Tokyo:

This information helps clear up some of the mysteries surrounding the 24th ward. It also might mean that Tokyo is screwed. A sudden influx of ghouls that have no understanding of or ability to control their hunger might make for a real mess. Maybe the turmoil that will cause has been part of Furuta’s plan all along (more on that later). One other interesting implication of the ghoul conversions is that the reverse might be possible as well. However, we will definitely need some more explanation of what exactly is going on before we can invest too heavily in that theory.

In terms of theme, there are some interesting directions Ishida could take with the spontaneous ghoulification. Most obviously, we have an idea that TG has been exploring since the very beginning: the question of whether or not ghouls possess humanity despite not being human. I would argue that the series is presenting the ghouls as just as human (with all the good and bad that entails) as the actual, biological humans. Mass ghoulification of the citizens of Tokyo might be the final blow that knocks down the wall between the two groups. It might represent the prime opportunity for true empathy between humans and ghouls. On the other hand, it could just make the situation worse. We’ll see what Ishida has in store for us in the next few weeks.

Next, I want to talk about Kaneki. In this chapter, we saw that getting him out of Dragon was no easy feat:

I read this as an unconscious act of defense (much like the rest of Dragon’s actions), rather than representative of a desire on Kaneki’s part to remain within the monster. When Urie finally cuts him free, Kaneki remains unconscious, but his massive kakuja begins to break down:

I know that a lot of people are discussing whether or not Kaneki is dead, especially after seeing this panel:

I will cover both a narrative and thematic argument for why I think that interpretation is incorrect. Narratively speaking, Kaneki’s character arc just isn’t complete. It would make little sense to me if Ishida decided to kill off Kaneki right after giving him a major revelation. I know virtually nothing about the Tarot card story structure, but it seems like an odd choice to kill the fool before he finishes the journey. I do think that a “fake out” death is a possibility (wherein most of the characters and potentially the audience are made to believe Kaneki has died). I think having Kaneki return from the dead could be a decent parallel to the ending of the original TG and it would also have some nice thematic resonance.

Speaking of themes, we need to consider Jesus. If Kaneki is currently “dead” then him returning to life in the middle of these apocalyptic conditions would be about as biblical as possible. I’ll also mention that this situation is reminiscent of the end phases of Hero’s Journey (more specifically the Crossing of the Return Threshold). To be completely honest, Ishida might just be baiting us all and we’ll find out that Kaneki is just a sleepy boy (the speculation and analysis is still fun though).

Finally, I want to discuss the chapter’s ending. On my first read through I had no idea what was going on. We start off with Furuta and his V buddies finding this egg-sac:

Before I go on, I would like to point out the protrusions behind the egg, which remind me of a crown. Many others have discussed the connections between these scene and The Black Goat’s Egg. I can’t really rap my head around Rize being the murderous mother for Kaneki who becomes the murderous mother for the new Rize, but that might be what Ishida is going for. Rize hatches from the egg in a fairly dramatic fashion:

If this chapter smothered Kaneki in resurrection symbolism, it definitely did not go easy on the rebirth symbolism for Rize. I also think that her bursting free from the egg might set up her bursting free from imprisonment in a more general sense (that is how she spent almost the entirety of both the original TG and Re). On the last page, we get this remark from Furuta:

This comment really got me. Generally speaking, these last few pages almost completely derailed my impression of where the story was going to go next. I guess this is all going according to Furuta’s plan, but I have no idea what that plan is. I am not sure how this can be the real Rize (is this even the real Rize or is there a second Rize still in a tank somewhere?) or what Furuta wants from her. I am also unclear on what the utility of Dragon is moving forward (is Furuta going to try to have someone eat Tokyo again?). Also, I am not sure if Rize was Dragon all along and Kaneki was just part of the process, or if they are both Dragon, or maybe Rize is the second Dragon??? Hopefully we will find out next week.

That is all from me today. I hope you all enjoy the rest of the week and I look forward to reading more discussion about this chapter in the next few days.

[mortythesp00k]

Reaction: TG:re Chapter 159

First Impression:

Hello everyone! I am here on this lovely Monday to discuss my thoughts and feelings about the newest chapter of our beloved series. First up are my initial thoughts with some analysis a bit later on.

I have to say, these sad Ken faces make my heart a bit heavier every time. He looks especially forlorn in some of these panels:

It does not help that “Rize” is really slamming this boy. Her comments may not be wrong, but they are definitely harsh:

On a related note, I am starting to have trouble telling if this is just Ken roasting himself or if there is actually a real Rize in his mind (I will talk more about this below):

I was so excited (even though it was really sad) to see Kaneki confess something that the Tumblr community has been theorizing about him for ages:

But, it is extra frustrating because even Kaneki is aware that, in some ways, he got exactly what he wanted:

It is starting to look like there will be some actual progress though. Also, is Kaneki aspiring to run his own Tokyo Ghoul meta-analysis blog?:

I really do not want to admit this, but I was actually almost crying (I couldn’t even spell crying right when I drafted this post) when I read this:

This ending had me cheering. It FINALLY feels like Kaneki is going to try moving forward in an actually positive direction (please do not let this lead to another post-Cochlea regression Ishida):

Analysis:

I want to start off by talking about some of the imagery in this chapter. First, the black borders have completely replaced the white borders from chapter 157 and 158. When I first commented on this when discussing chapter 157, I did not have a super concrete interpretation of what this artistic choice represented. I still don’t, but it definitely seems to be associated with Dragon and the destruction it has caused (I know that Ishida also uses the black borders during flashbacks quite frequently).

Next, there are some obvious changed to Kaneki’s dream environment. There is now a forest surrounding the temple and the sky has become overcast:

This seems to be associated with Kaneki regaining his memories of what he did while inside of Dragon. I am not sure what the forest represents (perhaps a shadowed forest in which one can easily lose their path...or have I just been reading too much Dante?).

Finally, there are a lot of hands in this chapter:

I am not an expert on symbolism, but if I had to guess I would say this has something to do with Kaneki reclaiming agency (hands are our primary tools for manipulating the world after all). The fact that he has human hands instead of his red Kagune ones might me relevant also. Or maybe Ishida is just proving he can draw hands after last chapter’s six finger misdraw (joking of course).

Next, I would like to talk about what is going on with Rize. Up until this point, I was firmly convinced that she was just a projection of some of Kaneki’s negative emotions that was here to flame him. This chapter is making me doubt a little bit though. Sometimes she speaks about things that happened to the real Rize as if her interpretations are her own:

She even says things that Kaneki does not seem to know about:

This combined with her comments about being torn apart then put back together inside Dragon creates the possibility that this really is Rize. That being said, all the comments she makes are things that Kaneki would know from what Furuta told him during this conversation:

And it is not completely far-fetched to think that he could recognize his own/Rize’s kagune when he was eating the Oggai. Thematically speaking, I think it makes more sense for this just to be him projecting, especially considering how personal Rize’s attacks on Kaneki’s actions are.

Next I want to talk about progress. It is definitely too early to make any definitive claims about Kaneki genuinely changing and moving forward, but it really seems like he is going in the right direction right now. In this chapter alone we had denial:

Some anger:

Bargaining and depression:

If you have not already caught on, these are the first four of the five stages of grief. It seems like Kaneki is going roughly following this process within in his mind right now. The good news is that the final stage of grief is acceptance, and that seems to be exactly what Kaneki is striving for at the end of the chapter:

As I said when discussing Mutsuki, changing how you see yourself does not equal redemption. However, one cannot be redeemed if they believe they are unworthy or undeserving of redemption. If Kaneki can maintain this state of mind and keep moving forward, he will still have a long way to go to before he can truly atone. Though, I think this has the potential to be a vital first step.

I would put money on the next chapter being something going on outside of Dragon. Although, we could also have Kaneki swimming through the sea of blood and ermering in the real world. Either way, I think there will be some progress made towards getting our boy out of Dragon next week. Also, we got a nice little tease about the Sunlit Garden. Maybe that’s in there to prime us for the next arc?

This is going to be all for me. I hope you all have a good rest of the week. Also, let me know if you have any questions you want me to answer and/or unrelated TG topics you want me to discuss.

[mortythesp00k]

Reaction: TG:re Chapter 158

First Impressions: 

Hello everyone! I hope you are having a good week. I am back again with a reaction/analysis of the new chapter of Tokyo Ghoul:re. This was a wild chapter and I have lot to say, so let’s get right into it.

First and foremost, wet hair Kaneki is a next-level cutie:

I was really happy to be seeing more of him, but his conversation with “Rize” had the opposite effect on me:

I am going to talk more about this later on, but I was shuddering to think that the self blame train was leaving the station at full speed. Next, some more cute Kaneki (I know he is stressing, but these panels are great):

The next one had me thinking “is ‘Rize’ a tumblr meta writer?”

No shade intended here, this just reminded me of the popular opinion that Kaneki was not leading Goat well (I discussed this more here). Next, his face is definitely me when I wake up and realize there is a new chapter out:

This is more of what I mentioned above. I really hope Kaneki grows in a positive (or at least productive) way after realizing what he has done, but that seems less and less likely all the time:

Okay, what is with this mouth?!?!:

Analysis: 

First off, I want to talk about some callbacks to older parts of Tokyo Ghoul. I think there are some cool visual references like this one:

The scale pattern seems to be part of the snake symbolism that is often associated with Kaneki (he has so much animal symbolism my goodness, maybe I should write about it sometime). What stood out to me more were the parallels between this interaction with “Rize” and the one that occurred during Yamori’s torture of Kaneki in the original Tokyo Ghoul. There are some interesting framing parallels like this one:

There were also many similarities in the contento of their conversation. First up is the, *sigh* raging self-blame:

This is followed up by confusion (with some tasteful roasting from “Rize”):

And the icing on the cake is naturally some unhealthy conclusion about what caused something bad to happen in his life:

Now, I want to discuss this pattern, but first I want to talk about “Rize.” I have been putting quotation marks around her name throughout his post because the person we are seeing inside Kaneki’s mind is not really Rize. As she points out in one of the panels above she is just a personification of feelings within Kaneki created by his own imagination. I point this out because the character Rize is separate from this mental projection.

As a side note: this mental Rize does seem to be somewhat similar to the real Rize based on what limited glimpses we have gotten of her. This does not make that much sense considering the small amount of time Kaneki spent with her. However, this is a work of fiction and I can see how Ishida benefits from using her “real” characteristics with this imagined version. I would love to see what is going on with Rize in the real world though (please Ishida).  

Anyway, if Rize is just a projection of thoughts that Kaneki already, it is worth considering what those thoughts are. The most obvious thing she represents is the ghoul inside of Kaneki as evidenced by him “eating” her in the original TG to embrace his ghoul side and the power it contained:

Beyond that, I think imaginary Rize embodies Kaneki’s self loathing. As I pointed out above, she ridicules Kaneki whenever she appears and laughs at his attempts to struggle against the world. “Rize” pushes Kaneki to adopt some new belief that usually leads him down a dark path. The parallels between the two major Rize encounters almost makes it feel like Kaneki has not changed at all since being tortured by Yamori, but that is not certain yet (please Ishida and God let this not be the case this time).

One final thing I noticed was a seeming contradiction in Rize’s criticism of Kaneki. When Kaneki says he should have been more active in attacking the CCG she questions him:

But concludes by saying he should have done nothing at all:

Seems kind of like a damned if you do damned if you don’t situation to me, but maybe that is the point.

That is going to be all from me today. I have to apologize for not posting more regularly. I don’t really have a good excuse outside of just being busy. I promise I will have some more content this week though! I hope everyone reading this has a good week and is enjoying TG as much as I am right now.

[mortythesp00k]

Reaction: TG:re Chapter 157

First Impressions:

Happy Monday everyone! I dragged myself out of bed early today so I could check out the new chapter and boy was it worth it. I will start off with some of my initial thoughts and get into some more in depth analysis later on.

The setting of this chapter (and the content) reminded me of  something that I could not quite put my finger on:

But then I realized it was this scene from Samurai Jack:

Not sure why this was on my mind, but the more I thought about it the more similar I realized the two scenes seem to be (Jack faces an internal debate between different aspects of his own personality within a serene and isolated mental landscape). Anyway, I probably woke up my neighbor with my excited exclamations when I saw that our boy is back:

I was expecting a search for Kaneki chapter, but I am also happy with getting a glimpse into what is going within his mind right now. I was really surprised with how analytical he is being despite how confusing his situation is:

I can’t imagine that I would be so Socratic after waking up in an unfamiliar setting with a noticeable gap in my memory. Next, I would like to point out the return of the treasured King Dash meme:

Also, I almost spit out my milk when I saw Rize at the end of the chapter (I didn’t actually, but it’s a good expression):

Analysis:

I would like to start off this section by discussing symbolism (there is a ton of it this chapter). First, the colors are generally much brighter in this chapter than they have been since the awakening of Dragon:

This chapter features much more use of white to fill space instead of the blacks and greys of recent of chapters. I did not realize how visually dark the art was getting until this chapter actually. Ishida subverts this lightness many times in this chapter, especially when Kaneki struggles to recall what led him to his current position:

This color contrast is especially evident in this image of all the bodies underwater is especially noticeable:

Unfortunately, I don’t know enough about Japanese culture to have any profound commentary on the architecture of this chapter:

The gates surrounding Kaneki’s mental temple are called Torii. As far as I know, they have to do with they serve as markers for the entrance to temples and have some connotations of purification. I am 105% sure that someone knows more about this than me and is going to post about it, so keep an eye out for that. I have a couple of other little things that stood out to me like this:

It immediately reminded me of this panel from chapter 125:

Sleeping in the fetal position usually alludes to vulnerability and a desire to feel safe and protected (as one does in the womb). This is pretty in line with Kaneki’ character, especially in this chapter. Next, I noticed some all to familiar imagery in the water:

The swirling currents surrounding Kaneki stood out to me as large eye reminiscent of the ones covering Dragon’s body. There is plenty more to say on the subject of water symbolism. As referenced in the opening text of the chapter, the sea is often used as a symbol for something vast (or even infinite) and unknowable. Drowning is invoked by the gradual increase in depth as Kaneki runs further away from the temple:

This might parallel Kaneki’s literal drowning in his own massive kagune. Water also serves as something that obscures the truth and hides dangers from us. This symbolic use of water is quite blatant here:

There are probably dozens of other clever pieces of symbolism that I have not picked up on, but I am sure others will do an excellent job finding them.

Next, I would like to discuss the significance of this chapter in terms of plot and character. We have seen Kaneki enter many mental landscapes in times of great duress, and this is no exception. Historically, he emerges from these moments of introspection with a new goal or sense of self. It is important to note that this is not always a productive or healthy change (looking at you Black Reaper). Overall, I think this chapter serves as the setup for the same kind of intense emotions and self-questioning next chapter. I really want to say that Kaneki will come out of this with his best mindset yet, but that is merely a hope.

My guess is next week will be a confrontation between “Rize” and Kaneki. Her appearance at the end of this chapter is highly reminiscent of Kaneki’s mental projections during his torture at the hands of Yamori. It seems like she is filling a similar role as a representation of Kaneki’s own violence and cruelty (especially with her accusation of him being a murderer). I could see Kaneki finally facing this side of himself and trying to move forward (please) or he might keep denying and end up needing a confrontation with his friends to get him on the right track. To be completely honest, I have no idea what is going to come of any of this, but I am definitely interested in finding out.

[mortythesp00k]

Reaction: TG:re Chapter 156

First Impressions:

I saw the spoilers come up this morning and have been checking for the release obsessively since then. I nearly jumped out of my chair when I saw the chapter go up. I’ll run through the thoughts that popped into my mind while I was reading before I endeavor to make any kind of real commentary.

I cringed when I saw how thoroughly impaled Urie was here:

Urie is an absolute tank no matter what anyone says. I also spotted a nice parallel to Haise on the next page:

I think this chapter was ripe with parallels that I will get into later, but this was a good one that caught my eye. Next, this panel had me screaming:

I was dying after seeing Saiko take a hit like that, but in the next panel we got to see the face of an angry goddess:

This whole fight was tearing me apart honestly. I know the battle between the original Qs is important (and really well drawn), but I hate seeing these youngsters fight. This panel got me especially:

I mean every involved party is in pain:

This chapter was definitely a rollercoaster of emotions. I went from anguish to joy over the course of 18 pages. I guess that’s Ishida for you. Anyway, I hope you all liked this chapter and I am happy to say that it was worth the wait.

Analysis:

I would like to begin by talking about parallels. Many others have written about how the Qs serve as mirrors to different parts of Kaneki’s personality. First, this:

Mutsuki’s desire to be killed by Urie and Saiko in the previous chapter had clearly failed, so he decided to end his life himself. This is very reminiscent of Kaneki’s desire to die doing something “stylish” and his final confrontation with Arima. The interference of the other Qs showed Mutsuki that people genuinely care for him, thus derailing his plan for suicide. It seems like the other Qs also pushed back against some of their flaws. Saiko’s passionate outburst and Urie’s heartfelt show of emotion:

Show them overcoming their respective flaws of inaction and silence. This chapter showed that the flaws present in the Qs are not insurmountable. I do not think any of them are done growing (they still have to confront Kaneki after all), but this was a step in the right direction.

Next, I want to talk more specifically about Mutsuki. I think it is safe to say that he is now on the path to redemption. Based on this apology:

And how he broke down crying at the end of the chapter:

It seems safe to say that he is feeling real remorse and, on some level, is willing to acknowledge what he has done is wrong. This is all positive character growth and a firm step towards a more positive state of being for Mutsuki. I know some people might see this as too rushed or insufficient to make up for what Mutsuki has done. I understand that perspective, and if this is all it takes for Mutsuki to be completely changed and redeemed, then I would agree. However, I think this is only the beginning for Mutsuki. He is now on path that will lead him to redemption. I think looking at Nishiki’s character arc would be a good point of comparison for how a character can walk the road to redemption within this series.

While I think Mutsuki is now heading in a better direction than he was before, I still have some concerns. More specifically, I am worried about his fixation on the past. I would like to draw your attention to this:

As cute and nostalgic as this panel is, I think it represents something that is holding back many characters, especially the Qs. No matter what they do, their life at the Chateau is gone. Shirazu is gone and so is the Haise they knew. I do not think it is impossible for Mutsuki or the other Qs to gain what life at the Chateau represented for them (familial love), but I think clinging to an image of the past will keep them from moving forward.

As a final comment, I would like to express some concern over Kaneki. He was not in this chapter of course, but I am starting to worry about what will happen to him. In a previous post I discussed some theories about what state Kaneki will be in when he emerges from Dragon. I am starting to fear that the generally positive developments going on (Ghouls and CCG teaming up, calming Aura down, reconciling the Original Qs) might be derailed by a crazed or malicious Kaneki. That being said, I have never been good at predicting this series. We all have to wait and see what is in store for next week.

[mortythesp00k]

Review: Tokyo Ghoul Movie

I had mixed feelings when I first heard that Tokyo Ghoul was getting a live-action adaptation. I find most cinematic recreations of both books and manga usually fall short of their source material (I’m looking at you Death Note). However, I was pleasantly surprised by Tokyo Ghoul. I do not think it was a flawless film, but it did not leave me feeling disappointed like many adaptations of stories I greatly enjoy. I will be splitting my discussion of this movie into four parts that are labeled below. Before I begin, I would like to state a quick disclaimer: I have not seen many live-action adaptations of anime/manga. As a result, I will not be able to make too many comparisons between Tokyo Ghoul and its fellow adaptations. I am also from the west, so my idea for what makes a movie good is probably out of touch with the standards of cinema in Japan. All of that being said, I am happy to be discussing and sharing my opinions on the 2017 film adaptation of our beloved Tokyo Ghoul.

Plot:

In this section I am going to giving some general thoughts about the story of the movie and how much its deviations from the story presented in the manga affected its quality. First, there is something important that I need to get out of the way early in this review: the manga is always better. I am going to do my best to judge this movie on its own merits, but I cannot ignore the superiority of the source material.

Speaking of source material, I want to begin by talking about how much of the original Tokyo Ghoul manga that this movie actually covered. Basically, it adapted the beginning of the story and the Dove arc. I think this was the right choice. Trying to jam the Gourmet arc in would have made the movie feel bloated, sped the pacing of the movie up way too much, and created an odd sense of anticlimax after Mado’s death. I cannot even imagine what kind of disaster this movie would have been if they tried to adapt as far as the Aogiri arc. My only criticism of the choice of material to adapt is that Nishiki’s role in the story feels a bit more random (although it is far from irrelevant). We also do not get to see any of his redemption arc.  

Even with such a small amount of the Tokyo Ghoul narrative to work with, the movie still had to condense or remove some scenes to keep the runtime reasonable. Some of this I thought was well thought out and did not harm the story at all. Some examples include this scene:

Having Ryoko and Hinami already in Anteiku when Kaneki arrives seemed like a good way to introduce their characters earlier on without badly disrupting their or Kaneki’s story. Another example was the second appearance of Nishiki:

This scene fit with the narrative well and gives us the background information to Kaneki’s and Hide’s relationship. This method prevented the exposition from being completely forced in a much more awkward way or just completely absent. Having Hide attempt to answer for Kaneki was also a clever way to show more of the relationship between them.

Unfortunately, some scenes seemed to be stretched out for unclear reasons. The best example of this is Kaneki’s alleyway encounter with Nishiki and Touka. Instead of ending like this:

Kaneki runs away from Touka only to encounter her shortly afterwards taking the trash out at Anteiku:

This is where they have a tamer version of the infamous cake conversation before Yoshimura arrives and invties Kaneki inside. I am not sure why one of the most iconic scences from the early parts of Tokyo Ghoul was split like that, but I do not think it adds much to the film.

Overall, I think that the Tokyo Ghoul movie picked a good amount of the manga story to adapt and did not, for the most part, reduce its quality in adapting it.

Characters/Casting:

First up is our boy. Masataka Kubota nailed Kaneki’s personality and effectively used mannerisms and behavior to convey ideas that were expressed using internal monologue in the manga. I think he also succeeded in making Kaneki’s revulsion to human food (something I was worried would be super cringe-worthy if poorly acted) seem genuine and disturbing. His portrayals of Kaneki’s turbulent emotions were also spot on. 

Maybe I am just used to the more serious Hide we have been seeing in recent chapters of re, but Kai Ogasawara’s performance felt a bit too goofy. I did not get the feeling of a caring and intelligent mind that lurks beneath the jovial exterior, and I think that is a quintessential part of Hide’s character. However, Hide played a fairly small part in this film. I can’t fairly expect a ton of characterization given how little screen time he has.

Fumika Shimizu did a good job bringing Touka to the big screen. I do not have too much to say about her performance and the character played a fairly similar role to what she did in the manga. I think some facets of her personality (like eating Yoriko’s food) are not fleshed out enough in the film to make her as compelling a character as she is in the manga, but like I said for Hide, that was hard to do in a movie format.

Mado was probably the second best portrayed character (next to Kaneki). Yô Ôizumi did a great job with Mado’s focused, but unhinged, personality. Additionally, his dialogue did a great job of characterizing his dehumanizing view of ghouls. I also really appreciate the fact that they made an effort to give him a cockeyed appearance similar to his manga counterpart.

This was probably my least favorite of all the major characters. Maybe my memory of early Tokyo Ghoul is clouded, but it seems like Amon came across as much more of a general jerk in this film. His treatment of his subordinate and his incredible willingness to commit terrible acts seemed different from his manga counterpart. He just seemed too angry and one-sided. I did not get the feeling that he would be a character who would end up questioning much of what the CCG stood for later on.

Honorable Mentions:

Despite his incredibly minor role, I thought Kenta Hamano did a great portraying Enji. The Devil Ape’s unique sense of humor definitely came through. I would also like to give a shoutout to Shôko Aida. I think she did a good job bringing Ryoko’s character to life and not letting her admittedly odd role affect her performance.

Dishonorable Mentions:

Yomo was looking a little bit too fresh. I do not know how canonically old Yomo is, but Shuntarô Yanagi felt way too young. It was hard to see him as the serious character that he was in the manga and, to a lesser extent, this film as well. Also, where are the flowing silver locks? I’d also like to mention Hinami. I might just not like child actors, but I thought her performance was not compelling even with the emotionally loaded scenes she featured in.

Cinematic Elements:

I know that special effects are usually the most obvious point of criticism for anime/manga live-action adaptations, but I feel the need to mention it. Generally, the movies effects are not noticeably bad, but the kagune really stand out. I will admit that Kaneki’s kagune looks okay (although its motion is often jerky and awkward), but the other ones really suffer. I’m especially looking at Nishiki and Touka:

I missed Nishiki’s elegant dolphin tail and Touka’s gorgeous, kinetic wing. On a somewhat related note, I did not care for the CCG coats. This might be minor, but they looked too much like a costume instead of the relatively simple garment they are in the manga.

While the cinematography was generally quite good, there were some moments were more reliance on the manga might have helped. A good example is this scene:

Working in some of the most famous visuals from the manga might have made shots likes this a little more dramatic and would have been a nice way to pay homage to the source material (not that I can really fault the movie for not doing this).

I’d also like to draw some attention to some setting changes that bothered me. I think the change in location for both the Kaneki v. Nishiki fight and the Kaneki v. Amon somewhat detracted from those scenes. This problem was especially evident for me in Ryoko’s death scene:

I never realized how much I liked this scene being in a long, narrow alley until it wasn’t. I understand the limitation of shooting on location, but I thought this particular choice took away from the quality of a key dramatic moment in Tokyo Ghoul.

Unjustified Nitpicking:

I know you are probably thinking that my whole review belongs under this category, but I aim to prove you wrong. For these next few points I am throwing any attempt at objectivity to the wind and just listing some personal gripes that, while not objective flaws, still stuck in my craw while I was watching this movie.

First, the mask:

This is a prime example of “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it.” I really liked the mask design from the manga and am not sure why they chose this new look. I thought the flat human teeth were better visual imagery than the series of sharp, metallic teeth on the film version of the mask.

Next, I would like to point out some odd examples of foreshadowing (I guess these are more of references since they have no payoff in the film). In no particular order:

Eye-lick scene:

Centipede in the shadows:

Hajime is here:

I guess these were nothing more than references for the hardcore fans, but it seemed odd to include them for only that purpose. 

Finally, I would like to register a formal complaint that the song BANKA by illion was only used as an end credit song. It is a great track that reminded me a bit of Kisetsu wa Tsugitsugi Shindeiku (the Root A ending theme, a track that might even rival Unravel in quality).

That will be all from me. I know I spent a lot of time harping on this movie (I tend to do that), but it was really not that bad. I think that long time fans will have a fun time watching this take on the opening to TG. This movie is also a nice gateway into the series for people who have never experienced any part of TG. I think it’s worth checking out either way. 

I plan to be writing about a new chapter tomorrow (fingers crossed). I am also happy to wish you all a productive and enjoyable week. Hope it’s a good one!

[mortythesp00k]

I have finally discovered what kind of music Ishida listens to while he is working

[mortythesp00k]

Egg of the King

I know I’m not alone when I say that I miss Kaneki. I know he’s technically still around in the form of Dragon and we did recently get blessed with this panel:

But that’s not quite the same. To make up for his absence, I am going to dedicate this post to some speculations concerning Kaneki’s current state and what will happen when he (finally) emerges from his massive kakuja.

First, a quick rundown of the current situation. We have not seen Ken’s face since chapter 144. The last truly coherent statement we got from him was this chilling line:

In the following chapters we got to see Dragon rise up from the 24th ward and create a path of destruction through Tokyo:

After this initial rampage, Dragon has gone dormant. The question we are left with is: what is happening to Kaneki within this monster?

The first theory is that Kaneki is asleep within Dragon and has no conscious awareness of what the monster is doing. This seems like the most popular theory within the narrative, but there is still an element of speculation:

We get a slightly more scientific opinion from Kimi:

Basically, Dragon is operating on instinct alone and is not being actively controlled by Kaneki.

This theory is definitely plausible and I would not be too surprised if it turns out to be accurate. This theory would also keep some consistency with the properties and narrative roles of kakuja in this series. As we saw here:

A kakuja tends to leave its user with little conscious awareness of what they are doing. They also tend to create a state of delirium that exposes the id. The kakuja is a means for the narrative to explore some interesting themes dealing with madness and the nature of power, but delving into those is not the focus of this post. If Kaneki does not have any control or even awareness of what Dragon is doing it raises some questions about responsibility. Naturally, it is hard to pin the blame on him if he was not in his right mind, but his choices did lead him to this point. I think if this theory holds true, Kaneki will emerge in a state of confusion and will struggle to come to terms with the damage Dragon caused.

The next theory is basically the opposite of the preceding one. According to this theory, Kaneki is awake within his kakuja and is in complete control of his actions. Dragon does seem to have woken up in recent chapters:

This might mean that Kaneki is also awake within it. Additionally, dragon released these somewhat rudimentary kagune soldiers:

One one hand, this seems like too advanced of an action to just be a “response to stimulation.” On the other hand, we have limited information about how kagune clones work, which makes it hard to use this as definitive evidence.

If Kaneki really has been controlling Dragon this whole time, he has gone through a much darker transformation than I anticipated. This seems like quite a stretch considering how far he has gone throughout the series to safeguard the lives of others, but I suppose it is possible. I think it makes the least narrative sense of the three theories I am discussing. If Kaneki did actively carry out an act of mass murder and mass destruction, his character arc would be completely derailed. It would also make much of his character development throughout the series seem pointless. It could potentially represent a big step in the wrong direction that he will have to overcome, but I do not think there is enough time left in this story to deal with that.

The final theory is a blend of the last two. This theory states that Kaneki is awake within Dragon, but has no control over the monster’s actions. This theory does make some sense in the context of how kakuja’s tend to work as I mentioned before. Many people have also pointed out this odd behavior:

The eyes on Dragon seem to be intently watching its surroundings (especially Touka). This continual observation might just be a reflexive behavior of Dragon (we are kind of in unprecedented territory here), but Kaneki might also be looking through those eyes from deep within his kakuja.

This theory has the most room for interpretation in terms of its potential narrative significance. Being forced to watch as Dragon destroyed Tokyo against his will would undoubtedly have a negative impact on Kaneki. It seems like this would be just another opportunity for Kaneki to agonize over his decisions. This might leave him in a dejected and helpless state similar to when Yamori was torturing him. However, I can also see this leading to an entirely different outcome. Having his agency stripped away but retaining his awareness of the world around him might be an ideal catalyst for Kaneki’s growth. It seems obvious that he would not be unaffected by witnessing the devastation caused by Dragon, but seeing (hearing?) all the important people in his life working together to save him and witnessing the conflict of the Qs without being able to help might force him to actually think about his choices and what he can do moving forward (wouldn’t that be nice?).

I have another bonus theory that I am just going to throw in here for the heck of it. I call this the “just according to keikaku” hypothesis. I have seen some people speculate that all the events following Kaneki’s crowning as One-Eyed King have been according to some scheme of his. I will admit that I am slightly suspicious about certain conversations like the one he has with Takizawa:

And his remarkable amount of calm when Goat was facing increasingly dire circumstances:

However, I do not think that is nearly enough evidence for such an outlandish idea. First of all, it would make almost no sense within the narrative. Furuta’s plan borders on the edge of being too complex to be believable. It seems completely outside the realm of possibility for Kaneki to have not only foreseen every move Furuta would make, but to also to have decided that letting Furuta win was for the best. Furthermore, this theory would make the excellent inner monologue in chapter 144 meaningless and suggest that Kaneki was willing to accept the deaths of the Squad Zero kids and who knows how many others.

Now that we have gone through some of the theories about Dragon’s current state I have seen floating around the internet, I will advance a final piece of speculation about the nature of Dragon and what it might produce. The gist of this theory is that the monster we are seeing right now is not the final form of Dragon (THIS ISN’T EVEN MY FINAL FORM intended).  

First, I would like to look at what Furuta has said about Dragon so far. He introduces us to the idea when he it talking to the other clowns about his plan:

While Dragon’s current state is indeed formidable, Furuta seems to suggest a level of intentionality behind its actions. Being “merciless” seems more like a characteristic of someone making choices. An avalanche or earthquake is not merciless, but a man willing to kill others without hesitation is (if the second theory discussed above is true, then this does not apply). Additionally, his comment about defeating Eto and Arima seems a little odd to attribute to a beast that, though it may be impossible to defeat, does not seem like much of an offensive threat to a powerful individual. Anyone who can avoid being crushed or eaten as people like Juuzou (with a comparable skill level to Arima), seems safe from Dragon.

On top of that, Furuta uses rather interesting language when Dragon appears. First he says:

Followed by:

This might just be Furuta’s usual weirdness, but it may also suggest that the creature in front of him is only the infantile form of what is coming. Dragon does grow quite a bit after this moment and apparently ate some kind of “nucleus” that Furuta had inside of him, so he might not be referencing anything beyond that.

This kind of vague language returns when he confronts Ui after the emergence of Dragon:

Ui wanted a treasure that would bring back his dead comrades, but what is Furuta actually talking about with this metaphor? Is Dragon’s current form the treasure or simply the “X” marking Furuta’s true objective? This would be good foreshadowing for the current efforts to “dig up” Kaneki if it were the case.

So far all I have presented are alternative interpretations of Furuta’s notoriously vague dialogue (not the most compelling evidence, I know), but there is a more general problem that this theory addresses. Over the last 30+ chapters we have gotten a general understanding of what happened to the One-Eyed King of old:

It is clear that this king failed at his goal (whether that was the destruction of the Washu or a liberated ghoul society). Furuta likely knows the fate of the previous King. He knows that he (or she?) was unable to break the birdcage. The problem is that history is repeating itself. Kaneki has become a giant kakuja monster and collected a strong base of allies. However, it was at this point that the previous King was pushed back. While Kaneki might have some support from parts of the CCG, it is unclear whether or not that will be enough to make the difference (and it’s still anyone’s guess what the CCG will want to do with him or the other ghouls once he is out of Dragon). The point is, Furuta might have known he needed to create something that could go beyond what the previous One-Eyed King was able to do. That thing might not be Dragon itself, but rather what emerges from it.

This idea is further supported by how much Dragon’s current appearance resembles an insect larva (especially a caterpillar):

(I was going to put an actual picture of larvae here for comparison, but I know bugs make some people uncomfortable. A quick google search will be all you need if you want a side by side comparison).

A larva is a creature that has hatched from its egg, but has not reached maturity. Perhaps Dragon’s current form is similar. This might have some connection to all the butterfly imagery in this series, but I am not about to dig into that can of worms (also intended).

The implications of this being true are hard to pin down. On a more practical level, this problem:

Will most likely be solved (which is great because I will actually cry if Kaneki dies of old age before he gets to see his child). 

It is clear that Kaneki has undergone a value/personality shift of a still unknown severity. This makes it hard to predict how he will act when he does finally emerge, but if the current form of Dragon really is only a means of creating an even more dangerous entity, then Kaneki might be a real nightmare when he emerges:

Thanks for reading my post! I hope it was somewhat enjoyable (I know I had fun putting it together) even if these ideas are a bit far-fetched. This year ought to be a wild one for Tokyo Ghoul and I could not be more excited for it. See you wonderful people in 2018!!!

[mortythesp00k]

2018 Update

2017 has been a pretty wild year, but I am sure no one missed that. I am writing this to give a quick update on my plans for this blog in 2018. I currently don’t have any followers, so I guess this post is more for me than anyone else. It’s still something I’d like to say, so I am making it regardless.

Anyway, I think I will keep my focus on Tokyo Ghoul for now. I might throw in an occasional post about one of the other manga I’m currently reading, but I’m not making any promises. My main goal is to put out one longer meta post every weekend (hopefully there is one such post coming shortly after this). I also plan on typing up my first reactions to the new chapters as they are released. I want to say that will be happening on the day of release, but who knows how my schedule will be in the spring. Other than that, I might post a bit throughout the week if anything I can quickly write up comes to mind or if anyone asks me questions. Who knows, maybe I will even be bold enough to reply to a post from some of the popular TG blogs (unlikely). Finally, if I can get my art to a point where it does not make me cringe every time I look at it, I might post some low quality fanart.

That’s all for me. I hope you all are enjoying your new year celebrations and have a wonderful 2018!

[mortythesp00k]

King’s Folly

Kaneki Ken was a bad leader. This is an opinion I have seen many people express on Reddit and Tumblr as if it were an obvious fact, but I have never understood it well myself. In this post I will give my take on Kaneki’s performance as the One-Eyed King and hopefully address some of his supposed failings.  

First, I would like to discuss Kaneki’s priorities as king. Kaneki’s stated goal is challenging and complex, but explicit:

He wants to do what Arima and Eto asked of him; he wants to end the conflict between ghouls and humans. In the chapters following this declaration, his motives are questioned by Seidou, Amon, and Shuu. I would like to bring special attention to his conversation with Amon:

Many readers have taken this as evidence of Kaneki being disingenuous about wanting to end human and ghoul conflict. I don't think that’s the case. This statement implies that Kaneki is motivated to achieve his goal of peace between humans and ghouls because he wants a better world for his friends. Instead of accusing Kaneki of blatantly lying about his goal, it's more accurate to say that Kaneki's motives are less noble than he makes them seem. This point is brought up again in his conversation with Shuu:

While Kaneki might not be broadcasting it to the world, he wants to achieve his peaceful future for the specific individuals he cares about. This is not an inherently flawed reason, but it often makes it difficult for Kaneki to act as a an effective leader. There are two prime examples during his first real move as the One-Eyed King. First, when he is hesitant to leave the White Suits to fight V:

Second, when he doesn't want to leave Amon in his crazed kakuja form despite already achieving the mission objective:

All of that being said, I don't think this makes Kaneki a terrible leader. Ken caring so much for others is an important part of his personality and ability to lead. To succeed at his goals as One-Eyed King, Kaneki must balance the pragmatism needed to defeat his enemies and the compassion needed to unite ghouls and humans. I do think he tends to fall too heavily on the side of compassion, especially for individuals close to him, but that is a fairly common literary conflict for leader characters. It reminds me a little bit of Ling from Fullmetal Alchemist actually. Anyway, my point is that, while Kaneki does make mistakes, his motivations are not invalid or wrong.

Next, I want to talk about what Kaneki did do as the One-Eyed King (hint: it was not just sit on his ass underground). First, he sent Ayato to the deep 24th ward (not just so he wouldn’t be around for Kaneki’s *expert level* seduction of Touka). Before Goat was driven into the 24th ward, Kaneki was putting time into some extensive research about the previous One-Eyed King:

It is still unclear what exactly Kaneki was hoping to find out from this research, so I am going to withhold judgement on whether or not it was a good idea (although the information we have gotten in recent chapters pretty clearly indicates that the fate of the deep 24th ward is critically important). Obviously, it was something he believed would lead to information or an ally that would help in Goat’s fight against the CCG. Second, he was actively working against investigators even if the readers did not see much of it:

It is unclear how much disarming investigators affected conditions on the surface, but I cannot imagine that it had no impact on the CCG. At the very least, Kaneki was not sitting idly by while the CCG slaughtered the ghouls of Tokyo. Third, Kaneki launched the food gathering mission. This plan is not inherently flawed or as simple as “Kaneki left the base undefended.” The need for food was pressing and Kaneki had very limited resources. In terms of strong fighters, Goat was stretched extremely thin with Ayato, Touka, Seidou, and Kurona out of the picture. In fact, even the people Kaneki took with him would likely have had a hard time dealing with all the Oggai and Juuzou’s S3 Squad. Simply put, Kaneki was not just wasting his time. He had plans that, despite not being very effective, did display his willingness to act.

Finally, I want to discuss who Kaneki was up against. Furuta had plans for days. As we found out in chapter 101, Furuta has been pulling strings behind the scenes since long before the story of Tokyo Ghoul even started. On top of his naturally machiavellian character, Furuta had spent long enough observing Kaneki to know the intricacies of his personality and how to exploit his weaknesses:

This all goes to show that Furuta alone was an incredibly dangerous foe; unfortunately for Kaneki, Furuta was not alone. Goat was working against pretty much every part of society to achieve its goal, but Furuta had three powerful groups (CCG, V, and the Clowns) supporting his agenda. On top of that, Furuta had Kanou whipping up the Oggai and who knows what else (zombies?). Kaneki had legitimately no way to predict the kinds of trump cards that Furuta would throw at him with Kanou on the loose. Speaking of the Clowns, they were willingly providing Furuta with information and physical aid that gave him a considerable advantage over Kaneki.

On a more individual level, Kaneki’s unwillingness to kill was also giving Furuta an advantage. It is hard to argue that Furuta’s willingness to murder countless ghouls and humans to achieve his goal helped him corner and eventually defeat Goat, but that does not make Kaneki a bad leader. I have yet to see convincing evidence that Kaneki acting with a similar disregard to life would have helped his eventual goal of peace. As he says to Shuu:

I will never claim that Kaneki is beyond criticism (might have more on that later). He no doubt failed at leading Goat to victory and soundly played into Furuta’s plan to create Dragon. However, this does not make Kaneki incompetent. His motivations were sound and he did take actions as One-Eyed King that were not useless. In the end, he was defeated by a man who utilized his superior position and knowledge of Kaneki’s weaknesses very effectively.

Thank you for reading my first meta post, I appreciate the support! Feel free to hit me with any questions and I hope you all have an enjoyable new year!

[mortythesp00k]

A nice Kaneki pumpkin carved by one of my fantastic floor-mates. He is not a fan, but he knows Halloween is my favorite holiday. Hope you all enjoyed the spookiest time of year!