Star Driver: Kagayaki no Takuto

[Zati]

http://i113.photobucket.com/albums/n235/blasta_2006/7rPZy.jpg

Summary: To the south of Japan, there lies a lush green island called Southern Cross Isle. One night, a boy by the name of Takuto Tsunashi washes up on the shore of the island alone. Having swum from the mainland alone and without any possessions, this boy enrolls in the senior high level in the school on the island - Southern Cross High School.

With his bright and positive personality, he starts to mix with various students in the school and builds relationships with many of them, including Wako Agemaki and Sugata Shindou. But this school hides a deep secret. There are sleeping giants hidden under the ground called "Cybuddies".

There are about 20 of these giants, and they are just some of the various secrets kept by everyone on the island: The secret movements of the mysterious organization known as "Kirahoshi Juujidan". The songs of the shrine maidens. And even Takuto himself will soon come to embrace a great secret...

This island in the southern territories surrounded by the blue sea and the blue skies is the stage where the "Eulogy of Youth" filled with love, dreams and friendships, will begin.
-----
Studio: BONES
Genre: Action, Mecha, Shounen
Links: ANN (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=11607), AniDB (http://anidb.net/perl-bin/animedb.pl?show=anime&aid=7591), Official (http://www.star-driver.net/index.html)
-----
Episode 1: gg - Episode 1 (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=162560)
-----

This show has excellent potential. It's directed by the same person who did Ouran High School Host Club and Soul Eater! The production values are very high on this one. BONES are at the helm of this, so quality is to be expected.

[animus]

Star Drive Episode 1 - gg (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=162560)

Just found it on TT, downloading. Expectations aren't too high but we shall see.




Edit - Watched the first episode.

?_? <-- My face throughout the whole episode.

[Zati]

That is exactly how I felt, too. I had no idea what was going on. Going to be a fun and bizarre series, though.

The animation, voice acting, humor, and everything else was very nice. I was definitely impressed, but I'm not going to praise it too much as of right now. I've been reading/hearing some comparisons to Gurren Lagann, and even Code Geass, but I think it's more like Gurren Lagann, lol.

My fingers are crossed. Hopefully, this series will be doozy, and not a failure.

Fabulous!

[Ryllharu]

Star Driver = flamboyantly gay RahXephon
(both series are by BONES)

I liked the character design, and the cast was pretty good, but I hate the mecha design, and it's not even trying to make sense. It was good until Takuto just burst out of nowhere with no warning or any prior hint that he could control the mechs all on his own without the masks or anything. There is a certain level of breaking self-established rules I can handle with mecha series, and that surpassed it.

I think I'm going to pass.

[Death13a]

?_? <-- My face throughout the whole episode.
I concur :confused:

Well i still watch kinda reminds me of Gurren Lagann, they just kinda skip all stuff leading galactic battles

[Archangel]

Well i still watch kinda reminds me of Gurren Lagann, they just kinda skip all stuff leading galactic battles

Yeah, just replace all the GAR with flamboyant homosexuality and they're pretty much the same, with both the characters and the mechas

A fine example is how the protagonist is prettier than the heroine

[Kraco]

Homosexuality aside I found this show to be pretty promising. I like a main character who seems to know what he wants and claims it without useless chatter. Wako was also a refreshingly open minded and energetic person. The only thing that I found more than dubious was the name Galactic Pretty Boy... Nobody should be able to call that even in the middle of a fight and still maintain a serious expression.

I don't really know what's going on but such a thing bothers me less than knowing exactly what's going on and will go on from the first minutes like it's with too many stock shounen shows.

[Shadow Skill]

Reminds me of the dance and pose scenes from Dragon Ball Z. fun none-the-less. :D

[Kraco]

Episode 2 - gg (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=164308)




- - - - - - - -





A little bit more was learned in this episode, like that the shady masked dudes possibly want to take over Earth by ripping those mechas out of the zero space into normal space (now that's original for villains...). However, I considered more important the fact everybody and their pet foxes seem to know of the Cybuddies so unlike one would expect from a series like this, it's apparently no great secret.

Good thing Takuto didn't get kissed, though.

[Archangel]

Again drawing parallels with Gurren Lagann, it seems we won't have any idea what the hell is going on until the later episodes

Still, the kisses and giant robots seem to be doing a well enough job in keeping me interested so far

[Marik]

[gg] Star Driver - 01v2 [898EDA8C].mkv (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=165065)
[gg] Star Driver - 02v2 [8EFDABA9].mkv (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=165084)

Patches (http://dl.dropbox.com/u/6430958/scripts/sd0102v2patches.7z)



01 Changes
- Phase 4 line fixed.
- Zero time song added.
02 Changes
- 9:18 redone. Translator originally interpreted Bank Pres to be the one saying “But Head isn’t the leader”.
- 14:00 fixed.
- 15:00 fixed.
- 19:55 fixed.
- Zero time song added.

I wish they'd remove all those damn commercials.

[Kraco]

I wish they'd remove all those damn commercials.

They have been including them since forever so I don't think they are disappearing any time soon. They actually start to bother me only when I rewatch the show. Or when it's the same bloody commercial in every episode.

[Marik]

They have been including them since forever

Hrmm, really? I don't remember there being any commercials in Nyan Koi, Kampfer, or even Highschool of the Dead. Thankfully, this is the only show that they release I'm interested in.

[Archangel]

It's not a constant but they've been around for a while now, it's just another troll that you're better off ignoring

[Marik]

[gg] Star Driver - 03 [8A012BA4].mkv (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=166098)

[Nipponsei] Star Driver OP Single - GRAVITY 0 [Aqua Timez].​zip (http://tracker.minglong.org/torrents/%5BNipponsei%5D%20Star%20Driver%20OP%20Single%20-%20GRAVITY%200%20%5BAqua%20Timez%5D.zip.torrent)

[Kraco]

An interesting job to clean a gator's pool while the gator is home as well.

I wonder why Wako is always just standing in the bubble doing nothing. If I understood correctly, the fish maiden did have a cybuddy of her own, even if she didn't put up much of a fight. This series would be a bit more interesting if Wako also did something else than watch from afar how Galactic Pretty Boy beats all her (and also his, I guess) enemies one by one.

[Marik]

This series would be a bit more interesting if Wako also did something else than watch from afar how Galactic Pretty Boy beats all her (and also his, I guess) enemies one by one.

Yeah. The whole beating a different member of the enemy side at the end of every episode shtick is pretty boring. Hopefully, we'll get a decent opponent for the "Pretty Boy" sometime soon that can make it past being a one episode wonder.

The Cybuddy system has to be annoying for the good guys. You can be minding your own business, then someone decides they want to fight you, and then all of a sudden, you're being pulled into another dimension without any say-so whatsoever.

Takuto should have taken a dive and spent some time receiving kisses from Kanako. That other girl had already offered to make him food for the month and he still would have received the normal amount of pay.

[RyougaZell]

Yeah, its getting annoyed we see the same formula each episode. The next one seems interesting on the preview, but Im afraid we'll get the same formula yet again.

[Marik]

[gg] Star Driver - 04 [891F361E].mkv (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=167790)

[RyougaZell]

Hmmm. It was a good change I guess. No evil guy of the week, instead using one of their allies. An illusion and no fight. Don't know if it was a good change or not, but at least I didn't feel bored this episode thanks to the growing relationship between Takuto and Wako.

[Kraco]

Yeah, in fact it was a splendid and much needed break in the sense this time it wasn't a foolish pilot single-mindedly thinking he/she can surely beat Galactic Pretty Boy in a fight unlike all the others trying and failing before. It was more like a simple test to see if the dude could be beaten approaching from a dead angle. If it works, good, if not, nothing was lost.

Although it seems like they didn't mind Takuto and Wako getting closer to each other, either. I'm not sure what's the relevance there - it's not like anybody but Takuko had ever managed to stop them. Maybe they intend to hurt and discourage him through Wako.

When watching this ep I came to think Takuto is kind of similar (in personality) to Eden's Takizawa.

The Kara no Kyoukai teaser was a nice addition. The only time lately I didn't curse gg for leaving commercials in the release.

[RyougaZell]

Which teaser was that? The Live Action one? I actually liked the Gundam model one. I've always had curiosity of getting one of those models you need to build yourself.

Regarding somethin of the episode I forgot to comment.

Wako can't leave unless her seal is broken... what does it mean for the seal to break? Maybe if she gets 'too' near to Takuto the seal breaks... and that is what the evil guys intended with this episode. They did mention their purpose was fulfilled this time.

[Archangel]

That was boring and lacking in flamboyance

I am disappoint :(

[Kraco]

Which teaser was that? The Live Action one? I actually liked the Gundam model one. I've always had curiosity of getting one of those models you need to build yourself.

The very last thing in the whole release. It even said "Kara no Kyoukai"... >_>


Wako can't leave unless her seal is broken... what does it mean for the seal to break? Maybe if she gets 'too' near to Takuto the seal breaks... and that is what the evil guys intended with this episode. They did mention their purpose was fulfilled this time.

Based on the case of the fish maiden the villains hold captive, breaking the seal simply means defeating Wako's cybuddy. Which we haven't even seen so far because she never does anything but stands in a bubble while Galactic Pretty Boy does all the fighting. She even talked about her cybuddy in this episode yet I wonder if we are ever going to see it...

[RyougaZell]

The very last thing in the whole release. It even said "Kara no Kyoukai"... >_>

Ah... I stopped the video on the middle of the ending sequence. Oops.



Based on the case of the fish maiden the villains hold captive, breaking the seal simply means defeating Wako's cybuddy. Which we haven't even seen so far because she never does anything but stands in a bubble while Galactic Pretty Boy does all the fighting. She even talked about her cybuddy in this episode yet I wonder if we are ever going to see it...


The obvious thing would be indeed breaking Wako's cybody. But then... what do they gain from making her and Takuto close? To force her to summon when he is danger? She could very well do that for any of her friends... so I still can't understand what they would gain.

[Kraco]

I certainly hope it won't be the ages old plot of holding Wako captive and telling Takuto that if he moves, she'll be killed. And then expecting Tauburn to stand still and get beaten without resisting.

[RyougaZell]

I hope so as well.

Actually I was hoping more for a 'if Wako gets an intimate relationship she loses her position as Maiden and breaks the seal'. And that the only way to not break the seal is through a 'chosen one', hence the current fiancee...

Maybe not that original... but certainly better than the typical 'Don't move Takuto, or she dies' plot.

[Kraco]

Could it be that Sugata actually does like Wako despite claiming the marriage thing is nothing but a forced formality? If that was the case, the villains' plan could be to estrange the three with a triangle affair, thus potentially lowering Takuto's effectiveness.

[RyougaZell]

Could be. Sugata DID have a reaction, although calm, when he noticed Takuto calling Wako by her name.

[Archangel]

I think any attempts to decipher the plot just yet are a waste of brain cells, experience tells us that Enokido shows are not something so easily predictable after all

[Kraco]

Well, we are just trying to decipher the single detail of why it seemed like getting those two closer to each other seemed to be half the plan. Not the whole story...

[Archangel]

Implying the relationship between those 2 won't become a major plot point soon enough?

[Kraco]

I saw a potential for a relationship between those two right in the beginning of the first episode. The question here is why the villains think so too.

[RyougaZell]

Exactly. With the information we have... the villans don't seem to benefit much from Wako falling for Takuto or viceversa, yet episode 4 implied that was their intention by using the girl that likes Sugata.

[shinta|hikari]

Maybe they just want Sugata and Pretty boy's relationship to sour when they go after the same girl. Then maybe they want to recruit Sugata or something.

[Archangel]

Maybe they just want Sugata and Pretty boy's relationship to sour when they go after the same girl. Then maybe they want to recruit Sugata or something.
He doesn't seem to have a mecha though

[shinta|hikari]

He doesn't? I thought he did, only that he hasn't performed apprivoise (sp?) yet. I think Wako mentioned something like this before, but I'm not sure.

[Kraco]

That's not a bad theory, assuming he has the potential to apprivoise and especially the skills to actually be any good after the release. Since the defeated people aren't actually physically harmed, from what I can see, beating him in a battle would be no problem for Galactic Pretty Boy. Takuto doesn't seem like an emo kid so that shouldn't be a problem holding his hand back either.

[fireheart]

No mention about how in the third episode the guy's mask didn't break and not to mention the whole thing they said about controlling the cybody with a cybercasket even though he have a mark?

[Marik]

[gg] Star Driver - 05 [7C8FBC51].mkv (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=169748)

[Kraco]

That was a deadly skill for a cybuddy but fortunately for Takuto, the pilot also had a deadly weakness. And considering that weakness someone called the Galactic Pretty Boy was the worst possible opponent... Well, aside from that somewhat underwhelming fight, I found particularly the cafe scene funny.

The next episode could be good, with Takuto going out with Wako and something troublesome intervening. I'm not sure if I saw correctly but it looked like there could be some fighting also outside of zero space. That would be cool.

[RyougaZell]

Back to the normal formula... at least the opponent was strong... yet her weakness was terrible for her.

Cafe scene was indeed awesome. I laughed very hard when even the little fox glared at Takuto.

Wish they had had next episode this week though. The preview makes it look it will be very good and apart from the usual formula.

[Marik]

I'm sorry to see that nurse lose. She had some nice underboobage going on. It wasn't a total loss for her at least, as she managed to snag herself a guy in the end.

[Marik]

gg - Star Driver - 06
(http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=171520)

[Kraco]

No wonder we hadn't seen Sugata's cybuddy before... I was taken by surprise by the masked girl who could summon such a thing into the real world. It certainly was different compared to the fights in previous episodes, even if Takuto kicked as much ass outside of Tauburn as in it. Though he couldn't handle a whole army of the things.

I wonder what happened to the summoner girl. I have a feeling she won't get out of this just with a broken mask. The repercussions could be worse since it wasn't in the zero space but the first phase apprivoise and it took over her, no less. Just my feeling, though, nothing else.

[RyougaZell]

A very different episode indeed. This opens a lot of possibilities for further episodes. Its obvious at this point that Takuto will get a First Phase for the real world as well.

I wonder if its really just a coincidence that Sugata and Takuto have the same birthday. And boh at Wako not learning about it. She's currently more concerned about Sugata's condition. Which brings us back to the previous question... what did the evil doers gain from getting Wako closer to Takuto? Getting rid of the King Cybody?

[Kraco]

Have we seen the dude with the fish maiden apprivoise? I can't recall anymore if it was him who broke the maiden's seal in the first ep. But if it wasn't him, maybe he also has a King Cybuddy? And maybe the villains know the real function and meaning of it?

[RyougaZell]

I don't remember. I would need to watch first episode again since I honestly forgot something like that happened.

But I was under the impression only one King Cybody existed. Though that guy does look a bit like Sugata so maybe they are related.

[Kraco]

Since even Wako knew that everybody who has ever apprivoised a King cybuddy fell asleep and never woke up, it's safe to say that while they might be rare, there have been statistically enough of them around for people to come to such a conclusion.

Though what you said could still be true: Maybe there's only one in a generation. However, if the potential for it may still exist in more than one, then the dude, if he has no other cybuddy, could "inherit" the King from Sugata, should he die in his sleep.

[Marik]

gg - Star Driver - 07 (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=173316)




------



So... none of the previous drivers of Samekh had awakened after using King's Pillar, but this guy wakes up from his coma after like half an episode. I thought that was pretty lame. I was expecting him to wake up at some point, but not this soon and pretty much without them having to do anything. He just fell, got caught, and emerges from his coma.

I'm seriously getting Naruto/Sasuke vibes from the preview. I can totally see Sugata defeating Takuto in the next episode and then setting off to become the new Emperor of the Glittering Crux. I just hope the series doesn't turn into to Takuto trying to bring Sugata back from the dark side.

Benio having an orgasm after kissing Sugata, made me lol.

Eh, I just found out that the North Maiden's seiyuu was also Mana-chan's in White Album.

[Y]

None of the previous Drivers woke up because before, the Glittering Crux and Takuto weren't fucking around in Zero Time.

Also, this is the only good show airing right now. The animation is more than passable, it's lighthearted and fun, and the musical interludes although formulaic really kick off the final act of an episode well.

[Archangel]

You know what was lame? That after all the fights we've witnessed we're only now finding out that a little tilt on those bubbles is enough to get the enemies out of there.

If pretty boy wasn't such a pussy he could end all of them right then and there

[Kraco]

This show is theatrical enough to avoid such logical solutions. I don't actually mind it because I enjoy shows that are consistently full of tasteful theatrics. And you can't say this show wouldn't be full of taste. Whatever taste it is.

It doesn't bode too well for the friendship of those two that Sugata's first words to Takuto after waking up were a death threat. I hope we won't ever venture into emo drama. I guess Sugata was pretty emo from the beginning (of the series), but still. I'd hate to lose the nice and relaxed southern atmosphere the show has sported.

[Cal_kashi]

Ep 7.
DDL (http://www.fileserve.com/file/ukzyTDr)

Torrent (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=173316)

I want to know if Sugata is under lil miss pink hair and no chest's control

[Archangel]

Is that the real deal? Looks like a fake.

[Marik]

Ep 7 = last week's ep.

[Archangel]

Ah...

Thankfully my fail is overshadowed by Cal's

[Marik]

gg - Star Driver - 08 (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=175115)

[Kraco]

Finally got around to watching this episode. I was mortally afraid of things turning emo with Sugata's behavior turning into what it did and that kept me from double clicking the file. And I absolutely don't want to see anything emo in this show.

Fortunately my fears were unfounded. In fact how they solved the issue between Takuto and Sugata turned out brilliant in my opinion. It was very stylish that they were just about to launch a bout when the zero space was initiated. Not giving a shit they just continued the same fight with Sugata taking over the cybuddy for that purpose as if nothing else mattered. That's style, alright.

[Marik]

gg - Star Driver - 09 (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=176480)

[RyougaZell]

I liked the twins, specially Mizuno. And its nice (althought a bit cliched) to have a 'good' guy among the bad ones. Seems the intelligent twin (forgot her name) is in the Glittering Crux in order to lead them away from her sister.

With Mizuno confirmed as a Maiden... I guess that the class president from Glittering Crux is really the 4th one, after that bus scene last episode.

[Archangel]

No more fish girl song? FUCKING DROPPED! ;_;

[Kraco]

No more fish girl song? FUCKING DROPPED! ;_;

Haha. Yeah, I certainly liked that song. Even if I shared the boss dude's opinion of the ending of the story. But what more could you expect from a caged girl than a morbid ending?

The weird girl being a maiden was evident as soon as it was clear the episode centered around her so much. Little reason to introduce such a character at this point so early on. However, I wasn't sure what her sister's stance was; whether she was just waiting for her cybuddy to get repaired to use her sister or whether she intended all along to protect her by any means necessary.

Takuto's fighting in real world didn't look convincing in this episode. I suspect the reason was the need to make Sugata look better but they didn't manage it without making Takuto look worse.

[Marik]

gg - Star Driver - 10 (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=178011)

Shin-S - STAR DRIVER ~Kagayaki no Takuto~ ED Single - Cross Over [9nine].zip (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=177722)

[RyougaZell]

New song. I don't know if I had become accostumed to fish girl's song cause I felt this one a bit off, but I guess I'll learn to like it.

Interesting to see that little bit about Class President having been a close friend of Tsugata and Wako.

And lol at Mizuno pointing out she and Marino end up liking the same things always. Takuto is a lucky bastard.

[Kraco]

And lol at Mizuno pointing out she and Marino end up liking the same things always. Takuto is a lucky bastard.

Yeah, that certainly was a shocking line to Marino in a certain sense. Mizuno really seems to be her only light in life and I don't think she will thus appreciate liking the same guy. Marino might be in the most difficult position of all the characters: falling in love with her sister's love interest who also is the enemy and dreading the day her allies find out about her sister.

Quite a pleasant episode all in all. I like the weird characters in this show and all the theatrics.

[Marik]

gg - Star Driver - 11 (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=179496)

[Kraco]

So, the King figured out how to grant a magic sword to the Knight...

One thing I like a lot about this series are the songs of the Maidens. Too bad the fish maiden went away and thus won't be singing anymore.

[Archangel]

Is she gonna jump on top of a bus every time they go into zero space?

[Marik]

gg - Star Driver - 12 (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=180877) - DDL (http://www.fileserve.com/file/xxMn5tp)

[Archangel]

Ok writers, i'm ready for some plot now.

[Marik]

Get the V2 below.

[RyougaZell]

I think I'll wait for the re-release. Unless the Narutoforreal one you posted is good. Do you recommend it?

[Marik]

gg Star Driver - 13
(http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=182544)

[Archangel]

Cool episode, Akuto keeps bring them bitches home with him.

I'm starting to think there's going to be some sort of a second season though, we're already halfway through and it's still in episodic format.

[Kraco]

I'm starting to think there's going to be some sort of a second season though, we're already halfway through and it's still in episodic format.

I'm not really expecting a story of thrilling depth from this series and thus I can easily see this finishing in just one season if needed. Considering the recent trend, this show has far too little mindless ecchi comedy and nipple exposure to justify a second season.

Still, longer arcs would be nice.

[Marik]

gg - Star Driver - 01-13 (Batch) (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=184621)
DDL Folder (http://www.fileserve.com/list/z5yJ3hc)
Updated Script Pack (http://dl.dropbox.com/u/6430958/scripts/stardriver1-13_updated.7z)
Patches (http://www.mediafire.com/?4fsv1byfr01kb)


All scripts updated by the translator and editor for consistency/terminology/general fixes because as you know, gg is a group that doesn’t care or put any effort into our shows.

[Marik]

gg - Star Driver - 14 (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=184986)

[Kraco]

Unless something very strange happens, I see myself adding this to the season's top three in a few months. I like the theatrics so much.

[RyougaZell]

Based on what Marino 'saw'... I'm led to beleive Marino doesn't really exist and was created by Mizuno's magic...

[Kraco]

Hmm... An interesting theory. Such a thought never crossed my mind. We haven't really seen any magic of such scale so far, have we? Everything has usually been related to the cybuddies, although it's true we don't really know what power the maiden's exactly possess to limit the Glittering's cybuddies.

[Archangel]

If the preview is any indicator things are about to take a turn to the dramatic very soon.

I also overestimated Manticore, i thought her plan was greater than just a mere lie, and such an obvious one at that.

[RyougaZell]

Indeed... Marino's plan wasn't actually well thought. But nevertheless she would have accomplished her goal if one of the maidens wasn't part of Glittering Crux.

Add the fact she doesn't know everybody behind the mask... she screwed herself when the Maiden Class President (forgot her name) noticed the lie. No one else caught it. Well... maybe Boss Guy noticed since he personally knew two maidens (fish girl and class president) and probably had the same information that all 4 maidens had to be born in the same year.

This in turn supports my theory that Marino doesn't really exist. Why is Mizuno a maiden and Marino isn't? Mere chance? Or my theory (thanks to those flashbacks) that Marino is merely a creation of Mizuno's power.

[Marik]

Star Driver 14 Patch (http://dl.dropbox.com/u/6430958/scripts/sd14patch.7z) – Fixes the muxing errors (2 sets of chapters, missing styles).

[Marik]

gg - Star Driver - 15 (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=186614)

[Kraco]

Things don't look too good right now. Mizuno is in a poor state of mind to defend her seal. She wants to leave the island because of the worthless mom and now she even thinks she lost Takuto. And maybe she feels a bit alienated from Marino as well. Who knows how this will turn out. It's true, though, that Takuto has been winning too easily until now, mostly, so maybe we will get another seal break to even the odds.

What comes to Marino, I'm beginning to think Zell is right. There's something strange about her. Not only is Mizuno shown alone in half of the flashback scenes but the mom only called for her as well. Maybe she split herself in two, creating Marino to keep herself company.

[RyougaZell]

Mizuno-chan looked on the border of breakdown... only Wako's presence seem to save her for now. Though with the arrival of the Glittering Crux maiden things don't look good for her.

The repeated flashbacks without Marino seem to indicate she's a creation of the maiden's power as I thought before. But I wonder how it will affect them? Will Marino dissapear when Mizuno's power gets ripped a la fish-girl? I mean... fish was allowed to leave, so it means her power was stolen or destroyed.

[Archangel]

On that note, fish girl is still in the OP so her return may be just a matter of time.

And honestly i don't mind the darker tone of the episode if it leads to some answers. I'm not sure you all realize this but flashy battles aside we still pretty much have no idea of what's going on here. They've been distracting us with pretty lights and pew pew lasers for far too long, i want some plot dammit!

[Marik]

gg - Star Driver - 16 (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=188708)

[Archangel]

Wow, for all his talk Head got whooped pretty badly

What exactly changed when the third phase commenced? And how did Mizuno create Marino anyway? And who is gonna sing the zero theme song from now on?

This show is pretty entertaining but i'm afraid it's gonna turn out like one of those "It's magic, i don't have to explain shit" kinds of series.

[Marik]

And who is gonna sing the zero theme song from now on?

Wako - South Maiden had a song.
Fish Girl - North Maiden had a song.
Mizuno - West Maiden had a song.

So going by that, the next one should be....

Keito - East Maiden - Will most likely have a song.

The single for Monochrome comes out this Wednesday.

[RyougaZell]

I want the Glittering Crux Maiden dead.

Im sad to see Mizuno leave :(, at least her clone, Marino, is still there with her. Heh... interesting to see a theory of mine finally hitting jackpot.

[Kraco]

That was quite interesting. I don't fortunately share Archie's feelings either: This series wasn't overly much based on logic from the beginning so I'm not expecting things to make sense or be explained at this point either. Takuto winning is given considering he's the Galactic Pretty Boy. I guess that flashback and remembering his friend who gave his dreams his everything till the day he died recharged Takuto's batteries, if you must seek for an answer. If you believe Head, that alone is quite enough, considering how, according to him, the machines are powered.

And I hate series that feel the need to explain everything anyway.

Marino remaining (in the story) was very nice. Having her disappear for good would have left a bad aftertaste.

[Marik]

[Shin-S] STAR DRIVER ~Kagayaki no Takuto~ Insert Song Single - Monochrome [Tomatsu Haruka].zip (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=189396)

[Marik]

gg - Star Driver - 17 (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=190338)

[Archangel]

Bitching:

- Keito's song is pretty meh, easily the weakest voice of all the maidens.

- Why can't there be any ginga bishoujos? Fucking misogynous Japan...

- We're at episode 17 and Takuto is still getting asspull wins?

- He didn't kill anyone on luck? Feels like bulshit to me, he used plenty of apparently deadly attacks so far.

Regardless i still enjoyed this episode and the overall series, I'm just pointing out a few annoyances I've found on the way.

[Kraco]

- He didn't kill anyone on luck? Feels like bulshit to me, he used plenty of apparently deadly attacks so far.


So far he has only fought few opponents with the pilot inside. Most of them were in the cyber casket. How he won this one was quite nice in my opinion. I have no troubles with it. Surprisingly enough I also had nothing against his reluctance to kill the enemy pilots. I mean, just the previous day he was rubbing oil on the girl...

I agree on the maiden's song, though. I miss the fish and clone maidens.

[Archangel]

Why do you assume using a cybercasket means you only control the cybody remotely? If everyone else gets physically transported to zero space then why wouldn't the driver himself be as well?

[Kraco]

Actually I also thought they always transferred, but this episode had a few odd details. Like why say Takuto has fought against manned cybuddies before if they are all manned? Since Takuto has fought much more than any of the Glittering people, it would be a strange thing to say just to indicate he has fought cybuddies before. And why did Takuto hesitate only now, if the cybuddies have always contained a living pilot? He's not so stupid that he would have thought they don't only because he couldn't see them as well as he now saw this girl.

[Marik]

[gg] Star Driver 18: Torrent (http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=192029) | DDL (http://www.fileserve.com/file/KzMJ9DK)

[Archangel]

Raep tiem?

Bishounen has a point, exactly which part of Sugata's personality allows him to get that much tail?

[EpyonNext]

Danger - Please do not imitate rapists. Well played gg, well played.

I'm actually starting to think that Sugata is going to be the big bad in the end.

[Archangel]

I'm actually starting to think that Sugata is going to be the big bad in the end.

No kidding Sherlock?

[Kraco]

After 18 eps and not remembering a single ep I would have disliked (though I didn't check my old posts to be sure), I'm at the moment trusting the author to take his into a good direction, whether it's Sugata or not. Although with how they are making him so powerful and with the rest of the gang introduced so far not providing too huge obstacles to Takuto, Sugata indeed seems to be heading that way. Maybe the winner can claim Wako... Something about Sugata's character seems to suggest his fate won't be a gentle one, but who knows.

The southern island setting alone makes the series worth it, when everything over here is covered in snow and freezing coldness. I'm glad this was a winter show.

[Marik]

[Nipponsei] Star Driver ED2 Single - Pride [SCANDAL].zip (http://tracker.minglong.org/torrents/%5BNipponsei%5D%20Star%20Driver%20ED2%20Single%20-%20Pride%20%5BSCANDAL%5D.zip.torrent)

[Nipponsei] Star Driver ED1 Single - Cross Over [9nine].zip (http://tracker.minglong.org/torrents/%5BNipponsei%5D%20Star%20Driver%20ED1%20Single%20-%20Cross%20Over%20%5B9nine%5D.zip.torrent)

[Marik]

[gg] Star Driver 19: Torrent (http://www.nyaa.eu/?page=download&tid=193699) | DDL (http://www.fileserve.com/file/qbuJESk)

---

(ﾉゝ∀･)~キラ☆ KIRABOSHI!

627628
629631

[Kraco]

I wonder which one Wako has chosen. Despite being occasionally playful, I think she's also pretty conservative and dutiful, unlike the clone miko, for example. So, my initial feeling is she chooses Sugata. However, I'm far from certain Sugata will simply accept it. Even if Sugata doesn't end up being the last boss to defeat, he still has an aura of a person willing to give up his life without a second of hesitation for any cause. I'm not sure if he's weary of life as such, despite being so gloomy, but I don't think he's too full of it either, as opposed to Takuto.

[Marik]

[gg] Star Driver 20: Torrent (http://www.nyaa.eu/?page=download&tid=195149) | DDL (http://www.fileserve.com/file/Q68bXq2)

[Kraco]

Hohumm... So, if I understood correctly, Takuto is a Glittering Star section boss's son. And he inherited the family mark that apparently skipped a generation, leaving Miyabi without. I didn't really think Miyabi was that old... But of course it's hard to tell with these anime characters.

Now all we need is a I'm your father. Join me and together we will rule the world as a father and son scene.

[RyougaZell]

Wait... so Head is Takuto's father? Since he looks so young his time must have been stopped by Zero Time as well. Of course... it seems he doesn't realize it... does he?

[Archangel]

Ok first, LOL NTRed!

Second, did the director from School Days come to supervise this particular episode?

And thirdly fuck yeah, fish girl in next week's preview

[Marik]

[gg] Star Driver 21: Torrent (http://www.nyaa.eu/?page=download&tid=196708) | DDL (http://www.fileserve.com/file/TayuUND)




---



[01:19:29PM] * Super Gotenks eats sausage biscuits and watches star driver
[01:19:44PM] Naozumi Sudo: :( @ no mame shiba commercial

wtf gg! I find the lack of a mame-shiba commercial disturbing. I'm quite disappointed that I didn't get to see the baby tiger with the horn this week. sigh

Looks like Wako has finally come to a decision on which guy she wants. I'd much rather see Keito end up with Takuto, since they both have played the third wheel to Wako/Sugata at some point. Frankly, I just don't find Wako visually appealing. Out of all the females in this series, I'd put her in the the bottom two along with that teal haired mainnish chick that hangs with Window Star, whose name I don't care to remember.

I've always preferred Kanako, Keito, and Sarina over the rest of the girls. Sarina hasn't done much of anything so far, but I've been expecting that to change ever since they added her to the OP (and they show her right after two of the Maidens). Hopefully, she'll do something important soon. Maybe something during the play next week.


Ok first, LOL NTRed!

Yeah, that was quite the situation for that guy. Saw them kissing, gets blown off by her when he asks to hang out with them, guy paints her in the nude, bangs her, knocks her up, and then she leaves.

[Archangel]

Wako really does have the inferior design... or so i thought until i saw the dyke megazord. Now THAT is some shitty character design.

[Kraco]

I wouldn't be too happy about Keito ending up with Takuto. She's too cold, unimaginative, and emotionless. Perhaps she needs to be like that in order to be in the Kiraboshi, but that makes it even worse. I don't know why Takuto should be punished by ending up with her... Takuto is the kind of guy who's on fire (like he belonged to Gurren Lagann instead of this series) and throwing ice water like Keito on him seems exceedingly unfair. Back when the Witch Maiden still hasn't left the island, I was thinking Takuto ending up with her and Sugata with Wako would be cool. But now that she left, Takuto with Wako is my favorite option. I like Wako as a character, as well. If Wako ends up with Sugata, for all I care Takuto could be left totally alone until the show is over.

[RyougaZell]

I still hope Mizuno returns. If not... Wako it is. I too wouldn't be happy if Keito was thrown into the mix (specially since she whores herself to an unconcious Sugata). The only thing I like about Keito is her voice actress =P

[Marik]

[gg] Star Driver 22: Torrent (http://www.nyaa.eu/?page=download&tid=198249) | DDL (http://www.fileserve.com/file/e5RfgYD)

[Kraco]

Hmm... It seemed to me like they attempted to explain a little of the background. And apparently we got two aliens in to boot. Well, it was a nice enough theatrical piece as it was, even forgetting the hard to decipher meaning behind it all. Miyabi must have got a whole lot out of it, though, having listened so much to Fish Maiden's stories in the past.

The kiss scene was sped past with little dramatics, however, considering all the anticipation during a whole bunch of past eps. I felt a bit let down.

[RyougaZell]

Wait... so now you tell me the Vice-President (the fox) is an alien?

[shinta|hikari]

It was utterly random. Still, it explained what the hell the cybodies were and where they came from.

[Archangel]

Wow, Wako looks way hotter with long hair!

[Marik]

Indeed, she actually looked feminine for a change.

Hrmm so, Sarina is an alien. Too bad she'll only be watching and not getting involved. That boy's voice belonged to the fox Vice-Pres, right? It didn't run into the scene until after that voice had stopped. I hope they were communicating telepathically and that she doesn't have dual personalities or something.

[Board of Command]

I just marathoned this series over the past two days.

- Phase 3+ is some Power Rangers growth potion thing?
- Head is Takuto's father?
- Sarina and fox are aliens?

WTF

[Marik]

[Shin-S] STAR DRIVER ~Kagayaki no Takuto~ OP2 Single - SHINING STAR [9nine]: Torrent (http://www.nyaa.eu/?page=download&tid=199195) | DDL (http://www.megaupload.com/?d=YNNZMEH7)

[Nipponsei] Star Driver OP2 Single - SHINING STAR [9nine].zip (http://tracker.minglong.org/torrents/%5BNipponsei%5D%20Star%20Driver%20OP2%20Single%20-%20SHINING%20STAR%20%5B9nine%5D.zip.torrent)

[Marik]

[gg] Star Driver 23: Torrent (http://www.nyaa.eu/?page=download&tid=200916) | DDL (http://www.fileserve.com/file/zQVb4vG)

[Kraco]

So, Sugata finally joined the Crux. It's hard to say yet whether he did it for his own reasons or if he was dissatisfied with Takuto's performance and decided he need to deal with things himself, from the inside.

[shinta|hikari]

Damn I got spoiled with that comment. I was just scrolling for the torrent and the very 1st line entered my field of vision. LOL.

It was an expected outcome though, so it doesn't matter much.

[Archangel]

Holy shit, so much win this week:

- Punched that cocksucker's lights out

- Date

- Teleguided tau missile

- The emperor's new groove

Guess this is when shit finally kicks in high gear, looking forward to it.

[RyougaZell]

Best part is that upon meeting his Dad, Takuto only punched him and left. Awesome.

[Kraco]

Yeah, that was such a jolly good no-bullshit scene.

[EpyonNext]

Yeah, that was such a jolly good no-bullshit scene.

Even more so when Takuto basically said, "Dont bullshit me."

[Marik]

[gg] Star Driver 24: Torrent (http://www.nyaa.eu/?page=download&tid=202197) | DDL (http://www.fileserve.com/file/DJNNy5m)

[Archangel]

Pretty powerful episode, though with only one missing I'm thinking a whole lot of plot points will be left unresolved

And damn, women are so weak in Star Driver! They keep falling for other guys and living for them, it's like they don't have any ambition for themselves at all.

[shinta|hikari]

That is probably what I dislike about this show the most.

Strong female characters are a must for me to really enjoy a show.

[EpyonNext]

Damn good ep, seems like a good number of things are falling into place, but like Archangel said, it looks like a whole lot will be unresolved. With that said, they should have made this a 13 episode series. It probably would have cut down on the number of unresolved plot points as they would never have been introduced in the first place.

[shinta|hikari]

I actually agree with that. This show would have been better if it had a shorter run time. It would have cut out repetitive fight scenes and needless complications.

Wako is being really unfair. I'm glad Keito pointed out her half-assed attitude towards the two guys.

[Kraco]

That is probably what I dislike about this show the most.

I used to think this show had no particular weaknesses, but now, after what happened with Keito, I will readily agree it's a clear flaw. This might be a bit twisted bishounen story, but in this particular case I don't think that's a reason enough. But then again, I'm looking at it from the perspective of a citizen of a country where both the president and prime minister are women, so maybe I simply think stronger women won't automatically make men around look pitiful. The Japanese could think differently.

[Archangel]

Interesting tidbit from the author


Actually, there is a secret piece of background information that “Galactic Pretty Boys can’t sleep,” but Takuto, the True Galactic Pretty Boy, Sugata, the owner of the King’s mark, and the women who posses the Maiden marks are special, even though they have marks they can sleep. On the other hand, since all of the other mark bearers can’t sleep, you’ll never see them sleeping in the show. Head’s, “I can’t sleep, tell me a story” line to fish girl was hinting at that piece of background.

[Marik]

[gg] Star Driver 25: Torrent (http://www.nyaa.eu/?page=download&tid=203719) | DDL (http://www.fileserve.com/file/DgsZ98J)

[Archangel]

Fabulous series with amazing visuals, good characters and a powerful ending ( threesome! )

Perfect if not for its sluggish pacing, not that i'll complain too much since the overall production quality never dimmed in the slightest.

[shinta|hikari]

I hated how they didn't conclude the love triangle. It was a cop out ending, and only exemplified how weak Wako is. I thought she had enough guts to decide at least. She was even ready to make Sugata make the decision for her by sealing himself.

Takuto is great, and glass kissing girl is cool, but the rest of the characters are pretty boring. It didn't catch up with the animation and plot (which is pretty standard fare for shounen, but at least well executed).

[Kraco]

Yeah, in retropect I'd say this show succeeded very well. No weak eps at all. Maybe the women were a bit weak, like has been said, but since this was a twisted bishounen, like has been said, that didn't bother me so much. Especially since Wako also took out her cybuddy and joined the fight (even if very defensively). I wanted to see the thing from the beginning, and it fortunately suited her. I also thought it a great scene where Takuto slashed it in two, without a word.

A nice ending, though I'm not so sure I like the threesome conclusion. Because I view that as a no conclusion. I said before that I wouldn't mind Takuto being left alone if he didn't get either Wako or the clone maiden, and that's still true. Sugata intended to leave Wako to Takuto, but naturally Takuto wouldn't accept such a thing - only a proper decision from Wako. And she seems unable to make it, unless you count her saying she wishes she never met Takuto as one. I'm inclined to think she'll choose Sugata. Not that it matters with the series over but anyway.

[shinta|hikari]

I'm more inclined to think Takuto will get chosen. He has a huge handicap of time, but still managed to tie in just a few months.

[RyougaZell]

So... was this the final episode or do we get a dvd/blu-ray extra episode/epilogue somewhere? While the ending was good and all... I feel there are unconcluded matters concerning the Glittering Crux members and specially Takuto's father.

[Marik]

[FFF] Star Driver -Kagayaki no Takuto- Insert Song 2 - Innocent Blue [Rina Hidaka]: Torrent (http://www.nyaa.eu/?page=download&tid=209870) | DDL (http://www.fileserve.com/file/3GFhf3j)

The West Maiden, Mizuno's song.