#AND THE MABU ARE SO CHILL ABOUT IT TOO

[dove-skulls]

Does anyone remember the Thankstaking episode of Skylanders Academy? I sure do!

The reason being that this is one of the times that it is mentioned that Mabu are eaten.

By other sentient beings.

It’s also mentioned during the first episode with Crash Bandicoot, the episode where Stealth Elf meets Ninjini, etc. Also, in the Thankstaking one, even Kaos (who is, almost certainly, human,) expresses no disgust at the idea of eating Mabu.

Why is everyone so chill about eating actual sentient beings?? Why does this happen so often?? Apparently Mabu are regarded as delicacies too- How did they even survive long enough to become the most prevalent sentient species in the Skylands??

(This may be an Academy-exclusive thing as I’ve seen no examples of this in the games as of right now, but if you’ve seen any in the games please let me know! That’d be highly appreciated!)

[houkagokappa]

Sarazanmai episode 9 thoughts and impressions

The episode starts out intense. Enta’s taken to a hospital and Kazuki’s left worrying for him. The cuts are short. Instead of focusing on Enta’s surgery we get to see Sara work on Keppi. Since he's turn into a blob of ice he’s slippery and glides away from her, gets run over by a car and breaks down into smaller pieces. It’s a really bizarre scene, especially when you watch it for the first time on a slightly wonky stream.

There are shots during Keppi’s “idou-chuu/on the move” scene that might be actual photographs, same with the first shot after the opening. It’s so realistic looking I swear it’s actual film. I think it fits well, it adds to the weirdness, but doesn’t stick out too much. This really is a Nobuyuki Takeuchi episode.

Tooi and Chikai have some down time on boat when Tooi finds a gun in Chikai’s possession. However, before he has time to react to it Sara’s show starts playing and Chikai who’s been sleeping is about to wake up and notice him, so Tooi jumps back and starts watching TV instead. Tooi finds out about Enta’s death and that his brother hung out with him for a while. The news claim that Chikai is the perpetrator. Tooi is upset and would contemplate on returning, if not for the fact that he’s all Chikai has, which is why Tooi decided to stay with him. Chikai repeats his line of how “only the bad guys survive in this world” which is chilling to hear.

Kazuki tries to tell some cops the truth of what happened, but since they’re being controlled by the otters they don’t believe him. The candy Chikai gave Enta is what frames him. Otone shows up and speaks in the kindest and softest voice possible. It’s been a while since we’ve heard her and I’m reminded of how much I love her. Kazuki laments the fact that no one believes him and pleades for someone to save him and for Tooi to come back. This is only the beginning of all the heartbreaking scenes episode 9 will throw at us.

Tooi and Chikai reach their destination and meet Masa, Chikai’s friend from before. Masa’s super excited to meet  Chikai again and to see Tooi. It’s an odd bit of some comedy between all the pain, but probably needed just for that.

Then we jump over to Kawauso Kouban where Reo’s having a delusion. He tries Mabu’s ningyou-yaki and they taste just like they used to! He eats them eagerly and gives Mabu a passionate naked hug. Then there’s an otter that turns off the lights, takes the stage and starts singing into a microphone. That’s the scene. Oh and someone’s holding on to Mabu’s mechanical heart. It’s a bit worrisome.

Sara has collected all the pieces of Keppi and starts gluing them together. She succeeds in piecing him back together. He doesn’t look exactly the same, but good enough! In Sara’s words; whatever form he takes he’s wonderful!

Tooi buys some lollipops and I suspect that the guy he buys them from is voiced by Ikuhara, but I’ll have to check the credits to be sure (I checked and he’s not listed at all). He talks in a weird voice and ends the interaction with “merci” which is an interesting choice in Japan.

Kazuki and Otone have another discussion where they’re mostly whispering and it’s like music to my ears. This reminds me of some of the scenes Utena and Anthy had together while they were sharing the same bed. It sounds very comforting. Otone also shares some details from her and Enta’s past that the novel mentioned but episode 3 left out, how they were abroad and Enta spent most of his time alone before he met Kazuki. We get another flashback scene to their first meeting and it’s super cool because Kazuki repeats the same lines he used when Enta was having his delusions in episode 3! Only here he got to hear them for real!! The music is also great, it’s another version of Enta’s theme and it’s really beautiful! I love how they turned everything around here, not just for one of Enta’s delusions, but for several of them (not the kiss though). 

The animation when Kazuki falls down on his knees is really nice. it’s a bit more sketchy that what Sarazanmai has been so far, but it stands out in a good way.

Anyway, then Enta appears in his kappa form. Keppi showed up and turned him, but he’s not completely back. He only has a limited time left before he’s gone for good. His sara has turned into a timer “Dead or Alive”. Don’t you love all these dualities in Sarazanmai?

The item for this episode is “Tokarev” which is a gun (and also a movie starring Nicolas Cage). It’s a Russian gun from the WWII era and it hasn’t been used in Japan, although a copy of that gun (the type 55 pistol) is apparently popular among the yakuza, so there’s our connection.

Chikai and Masa had some grief, Chikai shoots Masa which shocks Tooi. I think he might be starting to question his brothers actions some more. Immediately after that he runs into more guys from the organization. Chikai shoots one of them, they start shooting back and Tooi gets involved as well, possibly to Chikai’s dismay?

THEN IT’S TIME FOR REO TO ACT OUT WEST SIDE STORY. It starts out fun, Reo’s so happy he’s getting Mabu back he’s bought wine and Mabu’s favourite pancakes. HOWEVER. Mabu’s not home. He’s having maintenance. The funny peeping Reo image isn’t as fun anymore as it’s revealed he’s looking at the otter uhh... taking out Mabu’s hear to ...lick it.

Mabu’s completely nude. This is really lewd. Reo’s shocked the otter maintenancing Mabu looks like him. The otter taunts him and it’s horrible. It’s also a pretty cool scene with lots of important new information that I'll talk about more once we get the subs.

Reo only needs one more plate, which is currently in Kazuki’s possession. He and Haruka have a cute little talk about how Kazuki will save Enta, but also how Kazuki saved Enta and how both Haruka and Enta have been wishing for Kazuki’s happiness, which came true.

Tooi confronts Chikai on what their relationship is about. Chikai points a gun at Tooi’s head and we hear a shot. BAM! Time for the ending!

“I want to connect, but I cannot go along”

In the after credits scene it’s revealed that it wasn’t Chikai who shot his gun, but someone who shot Chikai. Then we get about 3 minutes worth of a painful death scene sprinkled with memories and moments from Tooi’s and Chikai’s childhood. It’s a really powerful scene. I like the effect it gets from being so absurdly long. This is also a clear death scene, you don’t show this and have the character return for the finale. 

Wow two episodes in a row that ends in deaths. Will it be Mabu’s or Reo’s next? I can’t believe we only have two episodes left!! They’ve packed so much into these episodes almost anything could happen...

[geekybiologist]

Okay let me make a more coherent post about the Massara CM

First of all, Enta’s the one who we see the most of in it. I think that’s really interesting and at the same time I’m super happy seeing him in an active role. I like seeing all those expressions on him and I love that he doesn’t seem to be as happy go lucky naive as the Tsunagaru PV made him seem. Not that there’s anything wrong with that type of character, or that it would have been his only personality trait (I think everyone’s guess was that he’d be carrying some dark secrets and worries in typical Ikuhara fashion), but I definitely think I’ll enjoy this character more. I wasn’t super interested in him before so this is definitely a highlight for me.

Now let’s proceed chronologically. 

First we see the three boys as kappa. They make weird poses that I don’t recognize, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they were taken from somewhere. They sparkle because that’s an important part of any Ikuhara anime. The backgrounds have traditional Japanese motifs, which I think suit both the setting that’s Asakusa and the kappa mythology. The traditional Japanese vibe was present in the key visual as well, it’s something Sarazanmai wants to play up. 

Since these are the only appearances of the kappa forms and the rest of the CM shows us the boys looking human, I once again wonder how this whole “got turned into kappa” thing will work out. Can they transform at will or under certain circumstances? Are all these shots from before they get transformed? Do they transform back quickly, or at least regain their human form while still being partly kappa?

Next up Kazuki makes some interesting fashion choices and Enta’s wearing a soccer shirt with the ア logo, because of course it has to be everywhere. The background art seems really colourful and pretty! This is so nice to look at and although I loved the innovative use of live action footage in the Tsunagaru PV I enjoy getting a better idea of how the actual anime will look like here. 

Then we get our first animated closeup of Sara who’s adorable! Then some more Enta running. Then we have Keppi doze off and not come across as the antagonist at all. I don’t know what to think anymore. Is he on the boys’ side or not? Is he a silly comic relief character who sometimes kinda helps them out? Despite also stealing their shirikodama in a kinda painful kinda pleasurable way?? Why aren’t the zombies shown? I get the feeling that they’re not really that relevant/present after all... 

Then one of the highlights is the introduction of a new character, Tooi’s brother Chikai. The resemblance is definitely there as he draws a blade the same way Tooi did in the Tsunagaru PV. I wonder what their relationship is like? Apparently they don’t live together, and Chikai seems to be working some shady jobs. Despite that I get the feeling that Tooi might be looking up to him? Or maybe it’s just that they have the same tough background that gives both of them the same mannerisms.

To make sure that Sarazanmai with all it’s (forgotten) zombies and shirikodama stealing business doesn’t get too dark, we have a shot of Tooi and Kazuki kinda chill and silly looking, although I have to add that the knife cutting vegetables and moving over Tooi when it does so might symbolize something I don’t want to think about right now. Then we get some more Enta, this time being aggressive with Tooi, who I have to say comes across more passive in this video than in the last.

Then it’s time for another of my highlights, which is of course a split second of Mabu and Reo. They don’t really do anything we haven’t seen them do before and remain as mysterious as ever. That close-up of Mabu’s eye is alarming though, so sinister. Then we get even more Enta! This time he’s rushing somewhere, grabbing a shirt that could be his, or maybe Kazuki’s since they used to play soccer together. 

In true Ikuhara fashion the character animation portion ends with hands trying to grab on to each other but failing. This time around we have three hands, one boy trying to hold on to the other two, I presume. 

Then the CM gets interesting. 

There’s the ア logo again, pink, black and white like in the Tsunagaru PV announcements, with the same “ 欲望 /CHARGE” border that we saw in the teaser PV’s. The background has been changed to purple. It’s not quite Sara’s image colour as hers is more pink, so I think I’ll associate it with the zombies instead. Some weird red contours of what looks like technical imagery flashes on the screen. Also slightly reminiscent of the red that’s used for the zombie design. Maybe.

The next image is of the otter symbol, turquoise and black, rather than a solid colour like we’ve seen before. It also has the “ 欲望 /CHARGE” border around it on top of a pale greenish grey background that doesn’t match with any of the characters. The image colour they’ve given Chikai is golden brown, so it’s not his even though he was introduced here. There are also turquoise flashes of the same kind of technical imagery as with the ア symbol, that can be barely seen as they’re so quick and faint.

The next shots show us pictograms with humans flashing on screen faster than what can be perceived by the mere eye. I had to slow down the video and then quickly pause it to be able to catch them all. The first one is a ghost, then we have what I think slightly resembles a police officer. It’s a man with a uniform and hat. The third person is a man with a cane. All three people are facing left. Next there’s a woman dressed in pink traditional clothes facing straight ahead. Then a woman in white facing left and a nurse who’s part way facing left. Then there’s a man in what looks like regular clothes, a shirt and a hat and the last pictogram is of a man in blue traditional clothes facing straight ahead. It’s worth noting that all the hairstyles are traditional and not really what you see in today’s Japan, even though you still see traditional clothing and art etc. I wonder if this is to lead us to the past? Also all the pictograms are inside white circles and when you put them together they form a loop, like in the Sarazanmai logo which I think is pretty cool/might be what it’s alluding to! It’s all about connections after all... 

After the slideshow there one slightly terrifying image of different meters and gauges, surrounded by pipes and the 吸 kanji which stand for “suck” or “inhale”. There are a few different ways we can interpret this. Something seems to be getting absorbed, but what? Also, there’s a heart. Is this some kind of “living” machinery?

The final images of the CM show us a circle with an aerial shot of Asakusa in it. There’s a huge growing hole right in the centre of it. The hole is covered by the otter symbol, this time in red and white. A second white circle is getting drawn around the otter symbol, like a timer, also very reminiscent of the teaser PV. While that happens there are some red flashes over the destroyed Asakusa area. The otters are destroying Asakusa? Or is it the zombies, since this red colour and technological imagery is reminding me of them. Are they the same or do they work together? The zombies seem like henchmen to me, but who’s orchestrating all of this? Is this happening on its own/due to specific circumstances or due to someone’s efforts?

As usual the last shot shows us the Sarazanmai logo. This time with the red bridge in the background. We can see some pictogram people on it as well as Kazuki who’s carrying the kappazon box in his hands.

Overall I love the energy and all the information this CM gives us. The song doesn’t stand out too much, but fits really well with all the action that’s shown on screen. I like the combination of funny and silly and bizarre and sinister. It looks super promising and it’s getting me even more excited for Sarazanmai!!

I also have to express my excitement for how they brought back several things from the teaser PVs, it gives me more hope that everything really is connected and relevant.

[skylanders-after-the-end]

Off Track

„Come on Chill, we’re gonna be late!” Roller Brawl shouted while skating with a cup of soda and a bag of popcorn in each of her hands.

“I told you not to stop for the popcorn!” Chill tried to keep up by running behind the speedy vampire. “But you insisted to wait in the line for ten minutes!”

“Because you can’t watch the Multi-Terrain Race without popcorn and soda!” The roller jammer responded.

The two were heading to an enormous arena, featuring each of the three terrains in one track. Almost every Skylander and thousands of creatures were there to observe the exciting competition which only happens once every year. As usual, Pandergast was hosting the spectacle and soon greeted the audience.

“Ladies and Gentlemen! Welcome to the most amazing, most fascinating and most expensive race in all of Skylands! The annual Multi-Terrain Race!” The crowd was clapping and cheering while eagerly waiting for the race to begin.

Spitfire and High Volt were in a room inside of the arena. The Superchargers used it to prepare their vehicles and themselves for the big race. The participants change each year, the two Skylanders were among the first chosen racers when the tradition started and after many years it’s finally their turn again.

Spitfire stood next to High Volt, who didn’t move in the slightest and was ready to enter his vehicle and reach the finish line first. “You ready to watch me win again?” Spitfire smirked and reminded the goldling of his victory last time.

“It won’t be that easy this time.” High Volt kept staring at the gate in front of them, which was about to open up any second. “You won’t have Hot Streak to win this year for you.”

“I can win inside any vehicle.” The fire spirit didn’t allow the robot to discourage him. “I have waited too long for this day to fail! You need a bunch of luck to defeat me, Volty!”

“Don’t call me that.” High Volt hissed at the spirit without giving him a look.

The enormous gate finally opened, the light filled the dark place and blinded everyone inside. The Superchargers could see the entire stadium with the race track right in front of them.

Three separate tracks all portrayed the multiple Vehicle Classes. One track for Land, one for Sea and one for Sky. One vehicle for each class were already present and the drivers could be seen approaching them.

Pandergast saw the Superchargers and began announcing each of them. “On the first track for the Land terrain we have the captain of the guard, the Tech Skylander High Volt with his highly defensive Shield Striker!”

Applause could be heard from the crowd as the Supercharger stopped next to his vehicle with a stern expression.

“Next up we have the dashing fire spirit Spitfire, piloting his… borrowed vehicle the Sky Slicer!”

Spitfire already hopped into the jet before Pandergast finished his sentence and waved proudly. He could see two small Mabu fans dressed up in shirts and hats with his face on it nearby the tracks. The racer didn’t hesitate to point finger guns at them and wink, which caused them to swoon over him even more.

“And lastly we have the dark and dangerous dreadwalker Nightfall with her terrifying Sea Shadow!”

Nightfall entered her vehicle and closed the shuttle without even looking at the audience, leaving some of them disappointed and irritated.

Pandergast waited for everyone to turn their vehicles on before continuing. „Now that all participants are buckled up and ready to go, we can start the countdown!”

The crowd calmed down before the countdown was displayed on a giant screen inside of the stadium. Everyone was yelling the numbers from three to one before the three Superchargers started the race.

High Volt was following the floating track in front of him and carefully accelerated his vehicle. He soon noticed Spitfire flying oddly low above him, until the Sky Slicer suddenly dropped right in front of him and forced High Volt behind it.

“What are you doing Spitfire? Stay in the air!” High Volt exclaimed as he looked at the back of the jet angrily.

Spitfire smiled and looked back at the unamused Skylander. “Well, I can’t just let you get ahead of me like that! And I can’t do much about it in the air!”

High Volt sighed annoyed. The weapons of their vehicles have been disabled to allow a fair race, so he didn’t have a lot of possibilities to get ahead of Spitfire. The Tech Supercharger thought for a second before he got an idea. He increased the speed of the Shield Striker and rammed it into Sky Slicer’s turbines. Spitfire turned around in surprise and didn’t understand what he was trying to achieve.

“Do you want to get me to the finish line faster?” The spirit asked confused. “This sure is a strange way to do it.”

“Sorry Stormblade.” High Volt mumbled to himself before charging forward one more time and damaging a turbine.

That caused the jet to fall from track, which was meant for Land vehicles. The Skylander smiled in satisfaction underneath his armor and continued to follow the track at high speed. However, Spitfire soon hovered next to the shielded car, struggling to keep the Sky Slicer flying straight.

“Are you fucking insane!? We’re not supposed to attack each other, you broke the rules!” Spitfire was furious and didn’t even focus on the race.

“It’s against the rules to attack each other with our weapons!” High Volt possessed the superior knowledge about rules. “As well as constraining other racers in favor of your victory!”

Spitfire clenched his teeth and piloted his vehicle closer to High Volt. He used the dangerously sharp sides of the jet to damage a row of Shield Striker’s gear wheels, even tearing one off in the process.

High Volt looked at his broken wheels in disbelief and then back at his opponent. “You never learn, do you?”

Spitfire stared at the robot with a cold, dead serious look. “No, I don’t.”

High Volt proceeded to charge across the track while Spitfire was flying above him. The speed demon attempted to drop his vehicle directly onto the Tech Skylander, but he was able to dodge it by charging forward. He then steered his wheel sharply to the right, doing a 360 spin with the Shield Striker and hitting the peak of the Sky Slicer. That caused the jet to spiral out of control and stay behind for a few seconds, which gave High Volt the opportunity to win. As he was driving, Spitfire soon appeared next to him again and hit the Shield Striker from the side. The Fire Supercharger leaned in, attempting to push High Volt off the road, who prevented that by steering in the opposite direction. That went on for some more moments, before High Volt was able to push the Sky Slicer aside and carry on. Both vehicles were damaged and began to effuse smoke. They both decided to stop sabotaging each other and instead concentrated on crossing the finish line, which was already within reach. The bickering Skylanders leaned forward inside of their vehicles and squinted their eyes. They were equally fast and it was a head-to-head race. Finally, both of them dashed through the finishing gate and braked their vehicles. Spitfire immediately jumped out of the Sky Slicer and headed to High Volt, who just got out of his vehicle as well.

“I clearly won, you arrived after I already hit the brakes!” Spitfire expelled in an angered tone.

“You won? You have to be kidding me!” High Volt walked towards the spirit and got closer while towering over him. “Your jet is covered in the dust I swirled up after crossing the finish line!”

Spitfire gasped offended. “That’s not the dust! That’s from all the dirt of the track you were on!”

“Which you shouldn’t have been on!” High Volt countered immediately after Spitfire’s statement.

Both then turned around to see their finish on the screen, but instead saw Nightfall waving at the crowd, which cheered at her rather than Spitfire and High Volt.

Spitfire stopped for a second before being struck by realization. “Wait a minute did-“

“Nightfall win?” High Volt finished the Supercharger’s sentence and they looked at the dreadwalker, who seemed to be slightly happy for once.

Pandergast soon approached the rivals, who were still in shock. “Seems like your gloomy friend over there reached the finish line before you. I mean, it’s no surprise after the intense battle which occurred on the track!”

The Superchargers looked at one of the big screens which repeated the dangerous argument they were having during the race.

“But don’t worry!” Pandergast ensured them. “You’re both in second place!”

The screen then showed the final seconds of the race, where both vehicles crossed the finish line at the exact same moment, thus leaving a shared second place. Spitfire and High Volt looked back at Nightfall, who was receiving the trophy for winning the race.

Spitfire looked at the ground for a second and thought about what just happened. “Wow, we really screwed up, didn’t we?”

High Volt glanced over to the Fire Skylander, who was smiling nervously. “We really did.” The guard crossed his arms and looked at Nightfall again. “But hey, it’s only fair that she won if we’re so busy fighting each other.”

“You’re right.” Spitfire admitted. “What were we thinking back there?”

“I don’t know.” High Volt laughed at himself for being so immature. “What I do want to know is what Stormblade’s going to think when she sees her vehicle.”

Both Skylanders looked at the Sky Slicer, which was heavily damaged from the race, before Spitfire showed a panicked expression. “I should probably go now.” The fire spirit quickly dashed off. “See you at the next race, Volty!” He said before disappearing.

“I told you not to call me that!” High Volt yelled after Spitfire, but couldn’t keep himself from smiling underneath his armor.

Meanwhile the crowd was still cheering and applauding for the winner of the Multi-Terrain Race. Among them were Roller Brawl and Chill, who were just as excited as everyone else. The vampire even managed to spill her entire soda and popcorn onto the people in front of her during the race. Chill however, kept on holding her drink the entire time. She tried taking a sip from the straw but was unable to. When she opened the lid to see what was wrong, her entire drink was frozen.

“Woah, you got a little too excited it seems.” Roller Brawl said while looking at the frozen juice in awe.

“Seems like I did.” Chill responded blankly. The Water Skylander didn’t bother to think about it anymore and simply threw the frozen cup away after the crowd has left.

During the big race, the Academy was nearly empty. Golden Queen took that opportunity to sneak to Cloudcracker Prison. While the guards were away, the crystalized building was surrounded by a magical field, which could not be passed by anyone. Golden Queen stopped right in front of it and whistled a specific melody again, which summoned Dreamcatcher who was hiding in between some pillars.

“Do you have it?” Golden Queen asked the imprisoned Doom Raider.

Dreamcatcher used her powers to pull a small blue button out of her giant bow and hold it in the air. “As promised, your majesty.”

“Perfect.” Golden Queen then took a piece of Traptanium, which she chipped from one of Snap Shot’s arrows and hid in her sleeve. “This should do the trick.” The Goldling then carefully touched the barrier with the piece and created a small hole in it. Dreamcatcher guided the button through it and right into her leader’s hand before the hole closed again.

“How much longer do we have to wait?” Dreamcatcher asked the Earth Sorceress with a tone of impatience.

“Not much longer.” The queen responded. “Soon I will free all of our allies and together we will take over the Skylands piece by piece!”

Dreamcatcher smiled sinisterly. “I can’t wait!” The floating head then headed back to the prison and returned to her cell.

“I can’t either.” Golden Queen said to herself before heading back to the Academy.

[houkagokappa]

Sarazanmai episode 4 thoughts

The episode starts with a flashback involving guns, blood, a young Tooi and Chikai as well as the the phrase “only the bad guys survive”. Should be a fun episode!

After the opening sequence we’re back at the Yasaka household, same as last episode. We’re shown even more accommodations for Haruka’s disability; ramps and his wheelchair. Sara’s on TV and she announces a fan meeting that Haruka’s excited to go. The meeting comes as a surprise for Kazuki who’s now in huge trouble, since it’s tomorrow and he has to come up with something to keep with his secret. Haruka can’t meet the actual Sara.

Next up Chikai’s up to no good and Tooi’s chilling/ playing around/ reminiscing with his gun while talking to him on the phone. Okay it’s not as chill as I’m making it out to be, there are heavy memories attached to that gun and Chikai’s a pretty bad guy to be talking to. It also turns out that Tooi’s living in the upstairs space of a Soba restaurant – how appropriate!

“A friend” comes to meet him. It’s Enta. First Enta goes on about how he called himself Tooi’s friend just to be able to get a hold of him, then he starts praising his family’s soba place, and finally he gets to the point and asks Tooi to give the plates to Kazuki.

Since Kazuki was the one to save Enta (from being lonely), now Enta wants to help Kazuki. I like that Enta actually wants to give the plates to Kazuki out of gratitude and not plain obsessive love. That way it actually helps him too.

Tooi gives us his PV speech. It’s fun to hear them in the actual show, although really weird to know what the character’s next five sentences will be.

There are lots of interesting shots over Asakusa. When I was there I mostly spent my time around the temple and river so I’m curious to look them up later.

Tooi’s angsting and then he meets Kazuki who jumps on him. It’s one of my favourite little scenes in the series so far. Kazuki asks Tooi to kidnap Sara. I had to do a double take there, but yeah, that’s actually the great plan Kazuki came up with. Tooi also needs to take pictures of Kazuki eating soba for Haruka and Tooi seems to get a little flustered when he looks at Kazuki’s weirdly seductive eating. He actually blushes here!

Then we get a flashback. When Tooi was 10 his parents died. His room is filled with soccer stuff, that’s an interesting connection he might have to Kazuki and Enta (that I was supposed to talk about, but never got around to). His brother is a jerk, but I suppose he also has his reasons? And he does help out in the end to his own detriment.

This Yurikamome group seems kinda odd and interesting. Why black headed gulls though? I need to look into this later.

Back to the present, Kazuki reveals his plan of Tooi locking up Sara’s manager in a bathroom and then kidnapping Sara. I’m sure Tooi’s capable enough to be able to pull it off and Kazuki’s a pretty convincing Sara, but there’s got to be hundreds of people around, no way things will go smoothly. Couldn’t he just stop Haruka from going and then meet him privately to make up for it?

Then Kazuki’s soba flies away, they realize there’ll be another zombie and the scene shifts over to the police headquarters where Reo and Mabu are about to dance. This week our zombie guy was arrested for making soba broth out of women’s bathwater. Then he got murdered. Serves him right I would say.

The boys meet up with Keppi and he turns them into kappa. Since Tooi’s family’s place was shown on TV, he’s the one connected to the zombie and it’s his time to take the lead.

I really like his music for his leak. All the boys have gotten really good tracks, I’m going to be listening to them all once the OST is released. 

I love that Tooi’s reaction is pretty much just “oh I knew this would be it”. I don’t have that much to say about his secret. I saw it coming/had it partially spoiled for me. I like Chikai and I like their relationship. It’s very brotherly.

Then Reo and Mabu have a very short scene, but it’s the highlight of the episode!! It’s the first time they’re talking to each other privately so I’m treasuring this moment.

Kazuki eating a cucumber in the background is hilarious. He’s weirdly calm while Enta’s freaking out.

The episode ends with another shocking reveal. Kazuki offers his plate to Tooi, perhaps since he could relate to Tooi and his brother a little bit? He also says that he hates Haruka. Umm wow rude?

Enta’s incredibly creepy again, this time for doing “the bridge” and walking around like that on all fours. Seriously I do not need a shot of him approaching me like that.

I guess next episode will be about Kazuki and Tooi kidnaping Sara, and Enta freaking out about everything. The next secret will probably be Kazuki’s reason to hate Haruka, although it’s slightly unfair and unbalanced how he’s the one revealing the most. Then again it’s his own fault for having so many dumb secrets to being with!

Those are some good words to end this on.

[houkagokappa]

Sarazanmai Main PV analysis

Third time’s the charm. With Sarazanmai airing tomorrow I finally want to go through the main PV and give you my thoughts and impressions and observations from it.

The timing hasn’t been too bad since the official English subbed trailer came out yesterday when Crunchyroll announced they would add Sarazanmai to their simulcast for Spring 2019.

I don’t really have any authority to comment on the translation. It’s professionally made and it’s good. There are some translation differences to mine (I never translated the main PV, but they reuse a lot of the phrases I’ve translated in the past). For the most part I’ve been more literal (mainly so that I can retain as much original information as possible, even at the cost of it sounding chunkier).

Japanese is a very contextual language with room for many interpretations, especially when the full context is missing, so seeing differences in the translations are to be expected. The only difference I find eye-catching is the phrase “Suck out the greed” since they clearly use 欲望 desire/lust. Maybe the translator knows something about the upcoming episodes that I don’t? 

The PV starts with the same beautiful gloomy music from the Tsunagaru PV and Kazuki jogging/running in Asakusa. He’s wearing the matching bracelet he shares with Enta around his ankle. We specifically see shots of the red Azuma Bridge as well as Tokyo Skytree and Asahi Beer Hall in the background on the other side of the river. The stage is Asakusa alright.

Then there’s this wild spark in the middle of Kazuki’s melancholic narration about wanting to connect but not being able to.

Pink’s an unusual colour for sparks but plays on Ikuhara’s typical use of colours. It seems to be revealing a grid of some sort. This also feels very Ikuhara, he has a habit of combining the whimsical with the mechanical and technical. Think about the whole “ROCK OVER JAPAN” sequence for example.

The tone shifts, the upbeat ending theme “Stand By Me” by the peggies starts playing and Sara greets us cheerfully. She looks like an idol with her sparkling starry eyes and own TV program. The ア is everywhere. It seems to be used in her show a lot. There’s still no indication what exactly it stands for though.

This screenshot is pretty interesting. The text under “Fortune of today” says “lucky selfie divination”. Is Sara a fortune-teller? Are these her mysterious powers in action? The smaller text says “dish. I can’t see regular people. SARAtto report + Looking for the Prince. Characteristics are [ikevo?] a good smell and fair complexion”. Is that going to be Keppi or the mysterious figure from the last chapter of the manga? Or are they the same?

The focus shifts back to Kazuki. He’s talking about only needing three rules in his life, which could be good or a bad depending what those rules are. Okay let’s face it this is Ikuhara they’ll be bad. 

First he’s on his phone like in the earlier PV’s and then we see him with the kappazon cardboard box in his hands walking among other people. We get a quick glimpse of a weird golden kappa statue that makes the same kind of pose I assume the boys will do when they transform. What looks like a phone strap with Sara’s kappa-like creature swings by. It’s probably Kazuki’s and he’s a fan of Sara. There’s also a not-so-hidden ア that’s just on a tile on the pavement, showing us that they really are everywhere.

Next up we have Tooi. We’re shown a calendar (that I think is hanging on a classroom wall) with an overview of July and August (covering the summer vacation). Is that when Sarazanmai takes place? The illustrations for the calendar are of kappa. One highlights that kappa like/need water in their “sara” plates, the cavities on top of their heads. The other one depicts their love for sumo-wrestling. These are both typical kappa things we know from having studied the lore!

Tooi himself is along the river talking to his older brother Chikai. “Let’s get this over with. You and I aren’t very different”. There’s also one of the funniest reveals yet when we see Tooi’s weapon up close and it turns out to be a ruler. As a final touch there’s another ア to be seen right next to the brothers.

Then we get Enta’s presentation. At first he’s playing soccer by the river and then we see him holding on to the bracelet he shares with Kazuki. The in-between frame shows us a fish shop. What’s remarkable about it is that all the signs on it say “kiss”. Then we get a kappazon.co.jp box that flies away. Enta talks about having a strong bond that can’t be easily broken. Based on what we know it’s safe to assume he’s talking about Kazuki.

Then things get weirder when it’s Keppi’s time to appear on screen. He’s holding on to a cucumber, which is another thing that kappa love. He tells the boys that they’ve been turned into kappa and that they need to get the zombie shirikodama in order to turn back. We see the boys all slimy and gooey in their new kappa forms. Kazuki still has the box, so it might be something that happens during this walk of his that we’ve been seeing the whole time.

This is a very interesting frame. The pictograms behind the kappa boys look like ghosts. Are they supposed to be the boys’ souls or something like that? Or are they actual spirits wandering around? Story wise them being the boys’ makes more sense, but from an artistic viewpoint I think it’s weird to suddenly draw something that’s part of the main characters in the style that’s deliberately simplified and created for background characters. There’s also the “DO NOT ENTER” sign with the otter symbol and a cross over it. Clearly the otter is unwanted, that’s been confirmed by the Reo and Mabu’s keeponly1luv twitter account as well.

The PV continues with its interesting imagery. The next shot is of this circular shape with the words “no start”, “no end” and “no connection” getting revealed. We’ve heard these words before so they’ll be important.  They all tie together, but we’ll have to wait and see just how. It’s possible that they each apply to one of the three boys. Kazuki can’t connect, Enta doesn’t want to let go (end) and Tooi doesn’t want to uhh... get involved and start anything?? I’ll have to think about this more another time, or please send me your theories!

The background isn’t the same as it was for the spark earlier, but it’s the same style. I wonder if it’ll have anything to do with what the cops are up to because they’ll be introduced soon and they were the ones talking about no beginnings or endings.

The PV continues and there’s a small explosion hiding the boys in a cloud of black smoke while they let out a surprised scream.

Then there’s a pling, which I think resembles the sound an elevator makes when it reaches the right floor and opens its doors. The background is a metallic grey so it might as well be where the scene plays out. Reo and Mabu appear with their weird new catchphrase “Suck out the greed” (or desire!) and there’s some mechanical action that starts. Lights get turned on, gauges reach their max and a bunch of signs with the kanji 吸 “suu”, to suck or inhale appears.

I guess this is their machine for sucking out the greed? Or desire. I’ve pointed out the heart in the upper right corner before but it’s worth pointing out again. Earlier I wondered if this machine was somehow alive, but now I’m thinking that it might just stand for “desire”.

This is all controlled by the otters, the next cut shows us otters decals that are peeling. The otters seem to be controlling some circular objects, not unlike the construction we saw light up earlier.

Then there’s the “desire extraction” that covers all of Asakusa. The cops throw their hats. Celebrating their success? In an attempt to be dramatic? You decide.

Next up the opening there “Massara” by KANA-BOON starts playing and we see the three boys striking poses while in their kappa forms. I’m guessing it’s from the actual OP although it might be part of their transformation sequence.

Following this there’s a scene where the otter symbol all over Asakusa (or Sumida where Tokyo Skytree is located) burning red. It definitely looks like a bad infestation. There’s also a spiral with text reaching down from the heavens. The text is the same as we got in the first teaser PV’s and says “CHARGE” and “desire”. As something new there’s also ハコ which is the word for “box” written in katakana. I think this is a reference to the Box Zombie which is supposed to be the first zombie we’ll be introduced to. There are certainly boxes everywhere in the following shots while the zombie seems to have a lust for more cardboard.

Are the otters summoning the zombies? There’s definitely a connection between them.

Then we see Keppi run with a cart (or whatever it’s called) where the kappa boys sit. They seem pretty chill so I wonder if this is after their fight with the zombie? Next up we see one of these legendary shirikodama balls. It’s a ball with the kanji for butt on it. Then the three kappa boys are flying around, apparently connecting through the sarazanmai. They managed to connect in one way at least by holding on to each other’s hands.

I also find this next image interesting, it really plays up the “connection” part of Sarazanmai. We get the ア again and what looks like a mobile signal. It’s a very modern and a very literal interpretation. Ikuhara has mentioned the era of the internet and how easy it is to connect through the use of smartphones and apps several times when he’s talked about the inspirations behind Sarazanmai. Old vs. new has been another topic and this highlights that as well.

After this we see another shot of the Asakusa Sara TV program. The text is the same as previously but this time the image is of a traditionally drawn Japanese woman. Is this where the “old” is brought in?

Then this is another one of my favourite shots! It’s the Niimi Yoshokkiten kitchenware department store, that’s also the building where Reo and Mabu’s “Asakusa Sara Kouban” is located. Their police box/station is the red structure at the bottom of the building and I think we can see their silhouettes inside of it. What I really love about this image though is the otter that’s next to the giant chefs head on top. To be clear, the chef’s head is actually there in real life actual Asakusa while the otter is something the anime added there. I think this highlights the fact that Reo and Mabu are working under the otter (literally! - pun not intended).

The signs on the building are a bit difficult to decipher, but I see ウソ a lot which means lie. There’s also something about the world and food/eating? The text on the top that says “kawau” is probably in reference to “kawauso” which means otter.

As a side note I want to point out that the second teaser PV that featured the otter symbol had a narration about lies and otters. Could it be about Reo and Mabu? Who’s the one with the strong desire…

Right after that split second image we get this one. That’s an otter! Clearly controlling/ordering all the other otters around! Mabu makes a comment that someone tries to get in their way, which we can assume will be the three boys. Are they confirmed villains now? I feel like a lot of people aren’t buying it. With Ikuhara first impressions are often deceiving and characters can have good reasons for their seemingly horrible actions, so I wouldn’t count in it.

Next Asakusa Sara TV reports on flying boxes. The text that is show on screen is absolutely horrible to read and full with silly puns on Sara’s name and her using “dish” instead of “desu”. It’s cute as long as you don’t have to translate it yourself. The time here is 19:00 which makes me think that this PV covers the entire first episode and will end here with this (it was 7:55 at the start).

Reo and Mabu have their little quasi villain speech and then Keppi talks to the boys and says “you’re as dead as you are alive”. Does this have to do with the “turning into kappa” process and the “ghosts” I mentioned earlier? Are the boys’ actually half-alive, half-dead? Isn’t that what zombies are? Suddenly things are starting to make more sense!

There’s quite a lot going on visually. Keppi’s eyes look terrifying. They’re large, read, black and purple. He seems to clapping, so I’m guessing this happens after the boys have dealt with the zombie successfully. One of the ア signs falls down and is heavy enough to break the pavement. There’s a close-up of Kazuki’s face where he looks kind of frightened and surprised and then in classic Ikuhara fashion there’s a shot of hands trying to hold on to each other but not being able to do so. However, unlike in his previous works there are now three of them. It’s most likely for the three boys, although it could also be one boy using both of his hands.

Then there’s text on the screen that says “even if you connect”. Tooi fills in that he “won’t let you have it”, Enta says that he “doesn’t ask for anything else” while Kazuki “can’t bear to lose his connection”. Tooi’s just angsting in front of the lockers, Enta’s shown where he was practising football, but what’s interesting is that he has a kappazon box right next to him. It looks like the one Kazuki was carrying. Could it be the same? Could it have been for him? Kazuki’s chilling somewhere (at home?) out of frame with his phone in his hands. He has the Sara strap on it and a tiny otter icon appears on the screen.

Then the most mysterious thing in the PV happens with all these ア signs flying around and uhh... through Kazuki? The pink things look a little bit like buildings, are they perhaps reflections? The sparkles and the rainbow give this image the impression there’s something reflective. I really don’t have that much else to say although I’d love to be able to do so.

The PV ends with the three boys appearing as kappa yelling “sara” and “sarazanmai”. The final shot shows us the iconic look over Asakusa and Sumida with the tagline “Don’t let go. Desire is your life.” The ア’s are everywhere.