#curious about the mention that the explorers all 'look up to gibeon'.. wonder what the word in jpn was (track 17)

[amelikos]

The booklet that came with the Horizons OST included some notes from Conisch (the composer), translation can be found here. Worth reading imo, some interesting insight given (Gibeon is mentioned in some of the notes too).

[amelikos]

Going over the trailer for the upcoming February episodes.

Also taking a look at the summary for HZ083 and the preview, and the summary for HZ084.

Starting with HZ083 (here). The preview is online too.

Still no info about the writer for this ep, but I'm hoping it's Kureha Matsuzawa or Dai Sato.

The summary is funny to me because Amethio is spotted and captured at his dad's workplace.. Amethio, what are you doing- The "certain person" might be referring to Hamber?

Also very emo over the summary mentioning that Amethio will learn about the connection between Gibeon and Lucius. I wonder if he'll learn it from Hamber? And I will never say it enough, but the AmeLiko of it all. Especially since Liko extended an offer to Amethio back in HZ065, thinking that the RVT and the Explorers should team up since they have the same goal.. And she considered that without even knowing about her connection to Lucius and the fact that Amethio's grandfather was friends with Lucius! Now, Amethio will learn the same thing, and make a resolve based on the information he will learn. Perhaps he will consider Liko's words again and come to the conclusion that he should take up on her offer to team up? We do know from the upcoming trailer that Amethio will battle with them, but I want to know his thought process and what will lead to that scene. Will his resolve be specifically about teaming up with the RVT, or about something else?

Anyway, Liko and Amethio.. Becoming aware of that connection they both share. Who knows what will happen going forward.

Also, looking at the preview for the upcoming ep. A few things to note.

It's the first time Zir and Conia's names have been said in the anime. They never said each other's names before that and Amethio never called them by name either. Also, it's so cute when Amethio says "don't miss it" about the next ep.

I wonder what Amethio will learn when going through Exceed files? I also think it's interesting that Amethio is trying to go undercover in Exceed, while Spinel appears to be in Gibeon's place(?). It was the opposite in HZ054: Amethio was with Gibeon, and Spinel stole the Rakurium at Exceed.

Speaking of Spinel: why is he so hot. Why does he appear to be kneeling. Is he showing his devotion to Gibeon. Why are you so into the old man. Is Spinel just like me for real, or is there something else going on here..

Things I'm also curious about: Gibeon appears to be awake and reflecting on something? What will he talk about? Hamber has a Zygarde cell. How did he get it? We see the Rakurium too. Is it in Rakua?

Amethio appears to be in his home too. Amethio gave me bocchan vibes from the beginning of the series, and he really is bocchan. He seems to live in a huge house.

Also: that huge portrait of a woman in Amethio's place. Given the eyes and white hair, she does appear to be Amethio's mother and thus Gibeon's daughter? Which is interesting. I was sure that Crave was Gibeon's son and that Gibeon's lineage was all male while Lucius's was all female (and that they'd contrast each other in this sense), but it doesn't seem to be the case. That's something I didn't expect, which means I'm reframing some of my thoughts, but I like that there is room for unpredictability in this sense. It's interesting to me because I feel like many stories with male ancestors focus on guys all the time, but having female descendents feels refreshing in that way. Horizons, my favorite shoujo anime, as always. I will wait for next week so there is confirmation that the woman is Amethio's mother.

If she is Amethio's mother.. It also reframes Crave's position a bit. Though, I do wonder how he became Exceed's director in that case? Also makes Friede's connections to Liko and Amethio's ancestry feel a bit more distinct in a way (Lucca is related to Lucius, while Crave isn't related to Gibeon?). It doesn't take away from the absolute hilarity of Friede knowing Amethio's dad and beefing with his former superior's son, which is important to me <3 It's untouched, and remains funny and meaningful as ever.

It'd give me more appreciation for Crave's character too, because the man probably just came from a normal background and wants to live a normal life, and probably just doesn't want any problems and to keep his loved ones safe, but he is still in a complicated position. I do wonder what happened to Amethio's mother and if she is still alive (Crave still wears a wedding ring), but either way, Crave still has all the reasons to not want Amethio to be involved with anything that has to do with the Rakurium. (Also, imagining how Crave and Amethio's mother met is pretty cute.. I wonder how they met.)

Potential fear.. I hope Amethio's mother isn't a vehicle for male character angst. Female characters being used to further angst for guys while having no interiority pisses me off, and I hope it's better than that. I think they did a good job with Rystal, showing her as a full character with agency, thoughts and opinions, so hopefully the same applies here. If she is Gibeon's daughter, there are a few questions which come to mind. How does Gibeon feel towards her? Is Gibeon the one who had a painting made of her? This seems like something that someone "old" would do (preserving a memory through a painting, rather than a picture). If so, it's kinda cute really, because it'd speak volumes about what he feels towards her.

Other than that.. Why did Amethio say he is nothing like his father then? Who was Gibeon referring to when he spoke of someone "straying from the path"? If the woman on the painting is his daughter, did he expect her to take up his will? Did she fail Gibeon by choosing a normal life with Crave over continuing her father's wishes? Or it something else completely? I do like that I was expecting Crave to be the person Gibeon was referring to when he talked about someone "straying from the path", but now I'm not so sure anymore.. I like that it's not clear who this sentence is referring to. Maybe Zygarde? Lucius? Gibeon's child? We'll probably know soon.

I also think it's quite interesting that Amethio will learn information that the audience is already aware of. In general, I like the way characters get to learn truths in the series.. It's not depicted in an overdramatic way? Lots of hints are left here and there and we can infer based on them, and some reveals are supposed to be dramatic and surprising for the characters, not for the audience. Liko learning that Lucius was related to her was surprising to her, but the audience put the pieces together long before that. It's also why I liked the way they introduced Crave as Amethio's father. There were implications and narrative relevancy set up in HZ054 and they just casually confirmed it in HZ078. And it wasn't supposed to be this huge surprising thing (because they weren't going to "trick" us into thinking otherwise, or introduce someone else). Like, why would it be? Amethio knows who his parents are. Same thing is probably going to happen next ep. Zir and Conia will probably ask about the portrait or point out that the person looks like Amethio and Amethio is going to casually confirm the identity of the person on the painting? Like, he knows who she is. The audience doesn't know yet for sure, though. Anyway, I just think this stuff is neat and well done in general.

I think that's it for HZ083 based on the summary and preview for now.

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Onto the summary for HZ084 (here). Also the monthly calendar is relevant in this case.

The comment attached to the monthly calendar is what I find interesting. They mention that it'd be nice if Roy and Rayquaza could bond a bit more on the way to Rakua. Given that HZ085 is when they arrive to Rakua and that HZ083 is Amethio-centric, that leaves HZ084 as a potential episode to further Roy and Rayquaza's bond?

The summary is quite interesting. It seems like Rayquaza is considered as a bad omen. It also mentions a young boy named Yuha. I wonder if Roy will be the one to interact with Yuha? Maybe Roy will take Rayquaza's defense and clear up misunderstandings about him? Which could deepen their bond a bit more. I do wonder why the people at Yuha's town think that disaster will strike when Rayquaza appears. Is there truth to this story? Did Lucius hear of this story in the past too, and took Rayquaza's side? Will Roy do the same thing here?

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Onto the trailer for the February episodes (here).

I said it before and I'll say it again but Gibeon's voice is hot.

Lucius being alive was something that was already heavily implied, and it is the case. It's kind of tragic because Rystal and Lucius will never meet again.. their tragic romance gets to me. I wonder if Lucius felt time going by while he was sealed away? Or did it feel like a single night of sleep? Both thoughts are pretty horrifying from his perspective because he came back in a completely different world: Gibeon grew older and changed while Lucius remained the same, Rystal is gone, Leyla is gone, and Lucius has to grasp the reality that he will never meet his daughter. At the very least, he gets to meet Liko.. Speaking of: he mentions Liko's name. How does he know her name? Was a part of him somehow in Pagogo and he got to know her name because of it?

Also: Liko and Lucius standing each other is really cute to me (that's the great-great-grandfather and his great-great-granddaughter!). Friede and Lucius in the same place is just great (the coolest guys). Roy will also get to meet Lucius, someone he admires! I wonder how he'll react.

Lucius and Gibeon.. Their story makes me sad. Lucius still tries to reach out to Gibeon and tells him to stop (how many times do I have to teach you this lesson, old man, etc), and Gibeon still won't budge. A bit scared of their future specifically. Can they still reason with Gibeon? Will they convince him to stop? Will he still be present after this arc? I feel like I have more thoughts on them, but I need to let them simmer a bit more.

Very pleased that they are still continuing the rivalries between Liko and Onyx and Roy and Sango. I was a bit afraid that they'd be pushed aside after Liko and Roy defeated them at the end of the Terastal Debut chapter, but there is still room to work with them. Their connections to Onyx and Sango has been a nice surprise for me tbh, I didn't think there were going to be more Explorers characters initially, but what they are doing with them feels refreshing?? A different way to explore their characters too, and makes the Explorers side feel richer. Sango will Terastal Onipurin (so they were keeping the Terastal for Onipurin and not Onigohri). I wonder how Liko and Roy will interact with Onyx and Sango? I wonder if Liko will address Onyx by name (he asked her to remember his name). Also curious if Sango will talk about playing with Roy.

It also seems like Dot will face Agate. I wonder if we'll find out about Agate's third Pokemon. Curious about their interactions in general. Agate is a mystery, and I'd like to see more of her sides.

Spinel... Not sure who he is going to face. He is probably the biggest enigma (along with Agate) to me. I really don't understand him at all, which is fun. I hope we get to know more about his thoughts and motivations.

Things I'm curious about: how the Rakurium will affect Cap, and how the Explorers managed to reach Rakua.

And of course: Amethio teaming up with Liko, Roy and Dot. Very cool to see! He is standing next to Liko specifically too, which feels rewarding. Lucius and Gibeon will face each other again after a century and will probably be on opposite sides (because they do not agree on what to do with the Rakurium), while Liko and Amethio will stand side by side when they started off on opposite sides.. The LuciGibe and AmeLiko of it all. It's too poetic. I wonder what Amethio will say, and how Liko will react. And how Roy and Dot might react to this too? How will they battle together? Will they be in sync? What will Amethio say to his grandfather while facing him?

I also appreciate that, by the looks of things, Amethio will accept Liko's offer of teaming up and will be an ally for the time being. He helped her last time and they both got to learn more about each other, and the next time they are going to see each other, it'll be a positive kind of meeting? Which is nice. It only gets better each time they meet. I was a bit worried that Amethio could have regretted helping her in HZ065, but he is not that kind of person. It's also cool that it seems like he is going to settle his own matters by himself (and with Zir and Conia's help too) before facing Liko again. Makes things feel balanced between them. I do wonder if Amethio will go back to acting solo after Rakua, or if he will consider teaming up with Liko and the RVT more frequently.

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I think that's more or less it for now. I am really curious about what will happen after this chapter. Tbh I'm gonna be a bit stressed out about Horizons until we get info about the next arc, even though I know that it's unlikely that it'll end just like that here. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.