Lycoris Recoil

[Ryllharu]

https://i.imgur.com/IGlmRbd.jpg

Description from Official Website: "LycoReco" is a café with a traditional Japanese twist located in downtown Tokyo. But the delicious coffee and sugary sweets are not the only orders this café takes! From delivering packages short distances, to pick-ups and drop-offs on the lonely streets at night, to zombies and giant monster extermination...?! Whatever your problem, we're here to help! We will solve any kind of "trouble" you may have!
Waiting for you are the ever-smiling poster-girl and the cool, serious newcomer. A petite girl who never wants to work and a young woman approaching thirty who wants to get married. And the manager is a nice guy who's obsessed with Japan! Whatever your order is, leave it all up to us


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First two episodes are out, I really don't want to spoil the cold opening still, so I won't give any more synopsis about the series other than the above.

It's not a slice of life series though, or a particularly a gig episode of the week thing. Heavy on the action similar to Black Lagoon, Vivy, or even Psycho-pass. There's an overall plot, and the worldbuilding to date has been perfectly blended in with the content of the episode. I'm always left wanting to know more details when they slowly drip feed us them through the episodes.

It does a lot of things really, really well.

[neflight86]

Very good, indeed. The two main leads play off each other well and the action is well animated and inventive.

School girl assassins is nothing new, but is usually played a lot more on the tragic/somber side, so a slice of life light heartedness is a welcome departure for a show where people actually die. It reminds me a lot of Princess Principle, and that makes me very happy.

I especially appreciate that main girl has more personality than the naïve 'don't let anyone die' characters normally get. She is familiar with death and is confident in her ability to ward it off and complete her missions satisfactorily. She then shows off that her confidence is warranted in some earnest if not convincing gun-fu that mixes John Wick style competition shooting and reading recoil to dodge bullet trajectories, it looks like. I'm too old to buy into it, but the effort makes it fun to watch and hand wave.

The characters are more interesting, sly, and interwoven than you might think at first blush, and the pace is good. Don't sleep on this.

[KrayZ33]

I saw some videos with it and one of the girls hold the weapon all tacti-cool and stuff, so I'll watch it for sure at some point. Looked like it was really well animated.

[Ryllharu]

Episode 3

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Hands down one of the top 2 series of this season, at least at the Three Eps Test timeframe.

This show is so good, so tightly written, and a perfect example of how to execute a Show-Don't-Tell progression on the details of its characters and overall storyline.

Excellent callbacks and further overall plotline developments include:

- Chisato scolding the boyish Lycoris in their training bout for sticking her pistol arm out too far, and subsequently grappling her. This is a callback to Chisato's close-quarter gunplay, especially in the first episode where she's moving around the van and holding her own gun practically to her stomach.

- All the experienced Lycoris in DA and their management know Chisato is a bullet dodger. It's confirmed during her medical training where she's at least twice as fast as Fuki. They do finally explain it if the other previous hints hadn't gotten a viewer there, but only at the very end of the episode. They even show us in a more controlled manner that the more shooting discipline you have, the better Chisato will fare against you, explaining why the reasonably-well experienced mercenaries the previous episode couldn't hit her, even with a full-auto rifle.

- Showing us through marksman training that Takina is an exceptionally good shot. I would have liked to see her compared to another Lycoris though to really sell it.

-Nice worldbuilding that Fuki personally knows and admires a lot of the LycoReco staff, continuing to show us without telling us that this world was alive before the audience started to look at it, like the references to Chisato being well known as the Lycoris responsible for "destroying" the tower.

- Chisato knowing that DA and their super important AI 'Radiata' got hacked (implying there is a legitimately huge threat and vulnerability to that critical government asset) that they're using Takina as a scapegoat for. This hacking was done by Walnut, but I'm not sure the rest of the LycoReco staff know this at this point. The evil organization with the owl pins commissioned her to do it though...so we don't yet know what they're up to. Point is, the series is continuing to slowly tease out what implications there are out of this weapons deal incident that started the entire show, which is a great way to handle tension without constantly upping the stakes from event to event.

- We finally see the DA dorm, and the peaceful, orderly, and communal space it exists as. It makes sense why orphan girls want to be there so bad. It's an actual home for them. We've seen the hints about it before, but it finally comes together. They segue perfectly from this into the character development for Takina with Chisato helping her realize that this is more than one home available for girls like them.

- Chisato's personality is perpetually reinforced, including the girlfriend lift that she gave Takina as a side-eye response to the ugly rumors the DA girls keep spreading about Takina. But even though she wants to teach Takina to open up a little more, we also see the side of her where she wanted to fulfill Takina's request to go back, speaking up for her on Takina's behalf to scold the commander.

All the things shown on screen constantly tie back into each other. There is some serious masterwork writing and storyboarding at play in this project.

[shinta|hikari]

Not really liking this as much as I thought I would. Chisato's crass behavior is turning me off. Lively, rambunctious, fine. Crude, annoying, nope.



- Showing us through marksman training that Takina is an exceptionally good shot. I would have liked to see her compared to another Lycoris though to really sell it.


They don't have to sell it. Takina literally got a perfect score. She was intentionally shooting different parts of the target area to avoid shooting into the same holes she already made. She filled the target area up, and you can't really get better than that.

[neflight86]

I'm really enjoying Chisato- not quite pushy, but know knows what she wants. To each their own...

Another excellent episode that has context and world building in spades, as Ryll demonstrated.

It's so easy to watch and so fun to take in (I'm never going to turn down a boardgame night) that the show has to remind me that there exists trauma and sadness and that these girls are/were orphans, because the accommodations and well adjusted range of personalities gives it the 'after school club' vibe. Animation is holding up nicely as well. Things are going so 'good' that the girls have to annually opt into license renewals to keep performing as Lycrois. Adorable.

[Buffalobiian]

I like Chisato.

What didn't make sense was Fuki saying "you won't hit her if you shoot randomly". That's probably how you'd ACTUALLY hit her.

The only two scenarios that would work would be if you deliberately make a bullet hell web with like 100 machine guns or if you shot randomly and she gets a bad RNG roll.

She doesn't seem to require seeing the target to deduce trajectory though, which makes her even more OP.

[Ryllharu]

I took that line as you have to deliberately trick Chisato into getting hit.

She looks at the barrels, she looks at the shooter's eyes and hands, she's good at guessing when someone will actually pull the trigger to discharge a shot. Fuki implied that the more confidently you are at shooting, the more deliberate you are, the more advantage Chisato has over you. I took shooting "randomly" in the context of aiming at different spots instead of center of mass or head.

Fuki almost hit Chisato by blind firing at her over her shoulder.

Chisato is probably weakest against people who are firing guns and have had no practice with them (bad control).

[shinta|hikari]

Except people who have no practice with guns will just get pawned immediately.

@Buff - I think she needs to see the enemy to predict the bullet trajectory. She isn't psychic. She saw the gun when Tombitch did a no-look behind-the-back shot (which she still dodged), and based on her position and field of view, she would've also seen Tombitch when she dodged the bullets right after pushing away Noobitch.

@Ryll - You are right. Tombitch meant that shooting at Chisato with no plan won't work because she will just dodge it. You have to corner her or overcome her reaction speed with your shooting. Funny enough, shooting from farther away would be much harder to dodge for Chisato because the shooter can move the gun a millimeter and hit a completely different spot/area, meaning the shooter can fire at a much larger area with little time lag between shots.

The closer Chisato is to the enemy, the more impossible she is to hit.

[Buffalobiian]

@Buff - I think she needs to see the enemy to predict the bullet trajectory. She isn't psychic. She saw the gun when Tombitch did a no-look behind-the-back shot (which she still dodged), and based on her position and field of view, she would've also seen Tombitch when she dodged the bullets right after pushing away Noobitch.

So she would have been shot by Fuki if Takina didn't show up with the punch then.

I went back and they did show Chisato turning around just before the AK47 and hair tie were fired those two cases check out.

[shinta|hikari]

So she would have been shot by Fuki if Takina didn't show up with the punch then.

Yes, so Tsunbitch actually saved the day by stopping being emo.

[Buffalobiian]

Episode 04

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I can't imagine they made an episode about boxers and carried it through the entire 23 minutes.

When they did the Terminator music, I thought for sure she was going commando, as impractical as that would have been.

[Ryllharu]

It was a filler and bridging episode, but it certainly didn't feel like one.

Honestly kind of refreshing that Chisato's reason for not killing people is that she doesn't like it. Nothing more, nothing less. It also wasn't before she left DA. She's been using them since she was 7. She's always been different from the other Lycoris I guess. Never as worried that she would lose her place in the organization (we still don't know how or if they "retire" Lycoris) and be an abandoned orphan with no place to go.

In terms of composition, a nice bookend as well with Chisato worrying about Takina getting found out for wearing boxers, drags her through a shopping montage, and then Chisato burns herself with the curiosity of Takina's statement about wearing men's underwear.

[neflight86]

Nothing much to add, just another well executed episode. Its remains entertaining and hold my attention throughout.


I can't imagine they made an episode about boxers and carried it through the entire 23 minutes.

Its like a flex at this point: "look what we can make a good episode out of", or the like.

[Buffalobiian]

Episode -05

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So when Shinji mentioned delivering geniuses to the world, including geniuses of killing - he was referring to Chisato. Maybe the messy-hair-terrorist as well, but we now know he saved Chisato with every intention of her becoming a killer.

The chair made ventilator noises while the old dude was using regular oxygen was slightly distracting. Almost as much as Kenobi series not matching his ventilator noises with his actual chest rise.

[Ryllharu]

So when Shinji mentioned delivering geniuses to the world, including geniuses of killing - he was referring to Chisato. Maybe the messy-hair-terrorist as well, but we now know he saved Chisato with every intention of her becoming a killer.

The chair made ventilator noises while the old dude was using regular oxygen was slightly distracting. Almost as much as Kenobi series not matching his ventilator noises with his actual chest rise.

It was fake, so maybe that was actually a nice touch? The majority of LycoReco aren't going to notice. None of them are medical experts.

Shinji is a real fucking monster. He had his assistant (same earrings from episode 1 so you can visually see all the places she is) hire an assassin, kidnap a random man, and then use him as a remote toy in order to tempt Chisato into murdering someone. He desperately intends for her to be the world's greatest assassin or something. But she took the exact opposite lesson from them saving her, much to his astonishment. He's got a real twisted personality. I kind of expected the other guys to kidnap and torture the low-level DA Lycoris they lured into a trap, but I guess their plan is to just hunt them.

Silent Jin ended up being a fairly ethical assassin. I like those kinds of nuanced takes. He didn't kill Mizuki when he easily could have, and was generally aiming for Takina's legs as well. Mika and Jin had a remarkably pleasant discussion considering he had just attempted to kill Mika's proteges. He's not some noble assassin, just a very professional one.

It's also very neat that they gave Chisato a pulseless artificial heart (they're real things for those that don't know), and I'm guessing she was shot through the chest during the tower incident.

[neflight86]

He had his assistant (same earrings from episode 1 so you can visually see all the places she is) hire an assassin, kidnap a random man, and then use him as a remote toy in order to tempt Chisato into murdering someone. He desperately intends for her to be the world's greatest assassin or something.

Glad to see the reasoning behind the contrived scheme. Though it will probably take Takina being a hostage for Chisato to seriously consider killing someone at this point, but I'm sure we'll get there.

[Ryllharu]

Glad to see the reasoning behind the contrived scheme. Though it will probably take Takina being a hostage for Chisato to seriously consider killing someone at this point, but I'm sure we'll get there.

My guess is that Shinji was saved by a super young Chisato, back when she was still killing, and since he's a very much a sociopath, probably thought a very efficient genius-level loli-assassin was the most beautiful thing he'd seen. She got wounded, he replaced her heart, and wants to see her go back to killing.

But Chisato was never the person he wants her to be.

[neflight86]

Apparently, Hideo Kojima (Metal Gear Solid series and Death Stranding) accidentally watched it and gives it two boxer-briefs up:

https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2022-07-29/metal-gear-creator-stumbles-upon-lycoris-recoil-and-loves-it/.188097

[Buffalobiian]

Episode 06

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So much fun and cuteness in one episode.

Chisato being the loose cannon that she is, getting excited about sleepovers and getting pissed about losing a poncho.
Takina just trying to rein in all in and have some control somehow (and winning a 33% game of Rock Paper Scissors!)

[Ryllharu]

At least Kurumi was forced to admit she hacked into DA and broke Radiata to Takina.

Oddly enough, they also casually tossed in that there are boy orphan assassins, and Chisato has been attacked by them.

Lycoris/DA being older than the Meiji restoration was a bit of a surprise though. I had been under the assumption that it was much more a recent thing, in response to a ramp up in violence.

The casual worldbuilding this series does is so well interwoven into its dialogue.

[Buffalobiian]

Lycoris/DA being older than the Meiji restoration was a bit of a surprise though. I had been under the assumption that it was much more a recent thing, in response to a ramp up in violence.

Yeah. I didn't think it was so ancient either, but I guess they just mean that the DA are just current Japan's covet peacekeepers/counterterrorism squad. I'm not sure that they necessarily meant the practice of using school girls, or even orphans was as old a practice.

[shinta|hikari]

Chisato was pretty much dead there. She shouldn't have gotten so close with her gun outstretched like that. That was the exact same lesson she taught Noobitch a few episodes ago. Had she kept her gun on her torso, he couldn't have swatted it away, and he'd have gotten shot up instead of being able to spit blood in her eyes. I'd call that out of character, but even monkeys fall from trees. As long as this doesn't become a pattern, I am ok with it.

Takina's joyous outburst at the end of the episode made it worth watching.

[Buffalobiian]

Takina's joyous outburst at the end of the episode made it worth watching.

Yeah man, 100% chore distribution suuuuuuuuuucks.

[Ryllharu]

Takina was stupid for falling for Chisato's trick.

Chisato can dodge bullets by watching the shooter's eyes and hands, of course she can see your RPS hand unfurling from rock.

[shinta|hikari]

I don't understand how omitting the first motions helps. If Chisato can see your fist before you or her throws the final choice, she can just react anyway. You only change your hand position at the very last moment, after all.

[Ryllharu]

"Throw rock first" is a common RPS psychological strat.

They were saying that Chisato will always go for the tie that first strategy results in, and then use that as the basis to immediately detect an individual's hand differences when they're about to change. She knows what your rock looks like now...or will tell with her super reflexes that you're changing.

She eliminates the need of ever having to throw rock herself after that very first round, so she will always tie or win thereafter.

You only have a chance of beating Chisato on the first throw, before she gets a sense of your attire and muscle movements to invoke her own unbeatable strategy.

[Buffalobiian]

https://youtu.be/ND4fd6yScBM

Video is added just so we all have a reference footage, and can all play this back at 0.25x if required.

But basically they're saying that by analysing your movement, Chisato can tell if you're going to change from your original fist or not.
She's probably reading something on your final upstroke, as both players are supposed to commit on (at the beginning of) the downstroke.

If you have your hand behind your back and simply decide to whip it out - Chisato has to choose between 3 options (paper, scissors rock), not just 2 (counter fist, counter not-fist).

[Ryllharu]

That's also why Takina rushes the game she wins. She doesn't want to let Chisato see her closed fist for very long and let her develop the sense. We see Chisato calling out the prolonged windup sequence of playing Japanese RPS before Takina immediately cuts in with the rushed Jan-Ken...

[Buffalobiian]

Oh yeah, forgot to mention.. someone was monitoring / hacking Robota and saved him by playing Chisato's vid.

Hacking Hacker implies superior skill so you'd think of Walnut, but then Kurumi would have no reason to endanger Chisato to save Roberta. Alan institute is motivated to involve Chisato, but this implies they've got a backup (and ?superior) hacker in their lines.

Weird.

[Ryllharu]

I think Shinji has malware on Robota's machines as a part of their contract arrangement. The same way Shinji had a bomb big enough to blow two entire floors out where Kurumi used to live.

Unless he's like an ex-boyfriend she still sorta likes/respects (and he didn't know she was Walnut), I don't think Kurumi would save him. He did actively participate in the attempts to kill her in multiple quite gruesome ways.

[neflight86]

Super interested about the prospect of the boy's division. Lily bell, was it?

Chisato's near death by the hands of green hair only half worked for me. She has a gentleness that can be exploited, but I didn't take him for the play with your food before you eat it type. Oh well. It gave the other members of her team a chance to shine...

I suspect robo got hacked by his original client's secretary at that time to save him. She seems like the 'infinitely capable' type.

If anything, I'm surprised Chisato's hideout(s) doesn't get attacked more regularly if she can list off groups who have tried.

[Buffalobiian]

She has a gentleness that can be exploited, but I didn't take him for the play with your food before you eat it type. Oh well. It gave the other members of her team a chance to shine...

The only reason it worked in this scene was because he saw her Alan Institute charm and wanted answers.

[neflight86]

That's a better answer, then.

[Ryllharu]

Episode 7:


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This series should honestly be taught in screenwriting classes.

The way the series has set up a trio of clashes between the characters is better executed than a lot of classic film and critically acclaimed novels. The conflicts are so elegantly staged and effortlessly interwoven into narratives in a very natural progression.

- Chisato and Majima being the obvious one.

- Kurumi and Robota across this entire season. He notably said there's no one left who can hack into DA, and no one left on this world who can do the things he can't. Because he thinks Walnut is dead by his hand. He'll hack into Radiata, and I'm willing to bet that Kurumi will break into it again to override him.

- Mika and Shinji disagreeing philosophically about what Chisato's true "talent" really is. Sociopath Shinji believes she is the best of all killers, and Mika has been crafting nonlethal bullets for her before the tower incident and betrayed their agreement to keep his ones with Chisato.

[shinta|hikari]

The banter scenes are handled very differently than usual in anime. It feels real, especially how they interrupt each other and how the action on the screen keeps going instead of focusing on the characters bantering.

[Buffalobiian]

I love the classy fanservice in this show.

[shinta|hikari]

Chisato tying her hair made me rethink my stance on her character.

[neflight86]

What would anime do if not for the concept of clandestine child training/super soldier programs? Looks like the cat's somewhat out of the bag earlier than expected. I like that an actual effort to identify the villain went down even before he shot up the police station on camera.

[Ryllharu]

Episode 8:


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While the opening half was extremely chaotic, it was remarkably excellent at filling in a lot of little holes in the series. LycoReco does not have unlimited funds (they're underwritten by DA, but they still need to operate correctly). Takina's practicality makes up in surprising gaps in the other three. I almost expected the segment to end in a joke that all their money was disappearing because Mizuki was drinking expensive liquor and wasting it chasing guys. No, it really was Chisato blowing all their money on super-bullets and trashing every place she goes to in her style of confrontation, as opposed to the much more covert ops DA main force.

Kurumi's age being confirmed to be at least 30 (she probably wasn't lying in the fancy bar). Mizuki and Mika being terrible at managing their cover cafe because they're still a DA Trainer/Commander and a Recon/Analyst from DA. Kurumi masterfully day trading and managing their social profile. Takina controlling Chisato in combat. Takina's witch outfit and Chisato's cosplay. The fact that Takina has gotten much more sociable at their routine jobs at the daycare, the JaLS school (Chisato's thighs...), and then bam tone shift.

This series is the way it avoids tropes in such a natural way. Though it started as a threat, Majima and Chisato had a very calm discussion, with a coffee, and both learned quite a bit about their benefactor and each other in the process. He even heard Takina with his talent and went out of his way to avoid a direct confrontation. We finally got to see monster Chisato at the tower flashback, and learned why Majima has an equal level of hyper awareness. That does make the RPG thing even worse then, because his eardrums should have ruptured from that.

The Alan Institute really is fucked up though. They're effectively deciding what someone is best at and forcing them to do it no matter what. Even Shinji's assistant could have been something else if she wanted to, but they imply that Institute certainly made sure she never even explored the idea.

I guess we'll finally find out what means of compulsion the Institute will try on Chisato, or are the merely taking her heart back?

[Buffalobiian]

I guess we'll finally find out what means of compulsion the Institute will try on Chisato, or are the merely taking her heart back?

I think they're making it malfunction such that if Chisato wants to have normal health again, she'll have to kill for it to happen.

I'm really entertaining the idea that someone's going to die and give Chisato a human heart here. I can't decide on whether Majima, Mika or Takina would be the most likely candidate were it to happen.

[shinta|hikari]

Majima's ability is the most unbelievable thing in this show. It's like the creators have never shot a gun in their life.

Oh wait, the creators are Japanese. Of course they haven't heard, much less shot, a gun in real life.

[neflight86]

I'm expecting some sort of memory wipe/mind control, but I hope I'm wrong.

The poop dessert gag was excellent.

Another great episode.

That is all.

[Ryllharu]

Episode 10

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I expected a somewhat sedate set-up episode for the climax ones, but the series continues to surprise me with well-crafted emotional episodes like Chisato getting her Coming of Age early. We finally saw what Mika is always gazing at when he's working the counter: Chisato's picture of her family.

The series consistently subverts the audience's expectations without ever relying on "OMG Twist Outta Nowhere" stuff. Every action is foreshadowed or set up for a later payoff. Majima's calculated restraint despite being a global terrorist. The plan not being a simple "blow up the tower" or attack DA in a direct assault but rather to force the government to expose DA. DA leadership happy to throw the girls to their deaths in order to keep its secret.

Majima's plan is very smart because it puts DA and the government in an impossible position with almost no effort on Majima's forces. It doesn't have to be instant chaos, just the suggestion of it. Gun crimes will increase over time just as the scattered weapons are found and used later. The government is either forced to admit that Japan was never as peaceful as people believed, or admit the existence of DA, which is a failure of Japan's insistence it is a peaceful because of its culture. And DA Leadership is stupid enough to think that their Radiata AI (which both Robota and Kurumi can hack) will cover up what millions of people just saw, and they're willing to burn up Chisato to go after one man, which won't even solve the problem.

I liked the ambiguity of whether the guy on the bench was shot by the cop or shot himself, pretty sure it was the latter with his horrible trigger discipline (as one would expect from someone who has never really handled a gun before).

[shinta|hikari]

It's hilarious how this gun plan kind of directly attacks gun culture. They basically flat out said that having more guns will lead to more deaths, regardless of which society it is and what state that society is in.

[Ryllharu]

It's hilarious how this gun plan kind of directly attacks gun culture. They basically flat out said that having more guns will lead to more deaths, regardless of which society it is and what state that society is in.

That's not the intended takeaway here. Majima's statement is that Japan is lying to itself thinking that it is so peaceful. He's basically insulting the Japanese Nationalist stance that they are a "more cultured" nation and that Japan's people simply aren't prone to that kind of violence. His assertion that it is all lies and exaggeration (which it is, both in the series and in real life).

The guns are just the tinder to enflame the monstrous behavior in all of humanity. Because they make violence easy for anyone. A trained merc or a bunch of orphan girls. He's accelerating the natural cycle that DA controls by overburdening their ability to respond in secret and cover it up. Somehow in universe, people are still finding bombs and taking them to public parks as shown in the cold open of the series. Majima filled the city prefecture with items that are typically very difficult to acquire in Japan.

They're setting up the conflict of Chisato who has inherent faith in humanity against Majima's view that peace itself is a lie.

[shinta|hikari]

The guns are just the tinder to enflame the monstrous behavior in all of humanity. Because they make violence easy for anyone. A trained merc or a bunch of orphan girls.

This is what I meant. This statement is something people who love gun culture actively deny, always shifting blame to mental health or people or whatever. The reality is, and what this episode plainly accepts as truth, is that having guns will lead to more violence and death.

I know it is not the intended message, but it is a message you can very easily take away nonetheless.

[Ryllharu]

The counterargument is that guns also make it easier for weaker people to defend themselves from all types of physical violence.

So no, not quite the conclusion and inference you think it is. More guns provide opportunity only. How they're used is a still a people problem.

Both the gun and education are "the great equalizers."

[shinta|hikari]

That's what you think, and I disagree, but that wasn't what the show blatantly showed this episode. Some dude literally just grabbed a gun from a paper bag thinking it was a toy and got shot by an antsy cop. That wasn't an opportunity or an equalizer. That scene basically said having guns will cause more violence and death, and that is the premise of greenhead's plan anyway.

And just use pepper gel spray to defend yourself. That is very effective in many scenarios, unless of course the attacker has a gun...

[Ryllharu]

It's meant to be ambiguous. I'm pretty sure the guy accidentally blew his own head off.

[shinta|hikari]

And that is still violence and death. Accidental gun discharges are plenty dangerous and deadly.

[neflight86]

The same can be said of anything capable of being used for violence purposefully or accidentally, in my eyes. Cars, cutlery, or chemicals to craft explosives and poisons can all be misused. I'm on the "blame the finger before the trigger" side, but as Ryll said, that isn't the takeaway. It was funny that the first thing depicted was a person picking up a gun, pointing it at his own head in amazement and a 'peace adjusted' police officer immediately escalated the situation. It depicts the chaos and potential damage that injecting power to people not used to or trained it can fall victim to, which was Shinta's takeaway, and I can appreciate the depiction, even if my own sensibilities don't align.

Glad that Chisato didn't blame Mika for keeping quiet about the extenuating circumstances of her situation, and got to wear her Yukata before going on her possibly last mission.

Looking forward, I hope, if the showrunners had planned for this to continue on, that they don't kill off Chisato, but also I wouldn't be satisfied with a soft reset... Perhaps a shift to a new character set, or perhaps some focus on the boys of lilly bell? Either way I stoked to see where it goes!

[Buffalobiian]

Stuff hurting people is a public health issue, and the degree to which you limit its access is determined by its opportunity cost and its utility in the general public if access was less restricted.

Examples:

Motor vehicles kill. Their usefulness in society is huge. They're not banned. Levels of control and their fatality are deemed acceptable in for the most part.
Same with knives.

COVID kills. Controlling COVID by keeping people at home was useful for the most lethal strains and before we knew how to deal with it. Now that most governments have accepted that COVID can't be eradicated, the population has greater immunity and health facilities can somewhat keep up, the general public has come to accept that the opportunity cost of staying at home is no longer worth it. They'd rather earn money, go travelling, and accept the higher death rate COVID brings to the more vulnerable cohorts and accept whatever strain on the public health system this entails.

Guns increase the ease of mass killings. Their utility of being accessible by the general public is ...I dunno, you tell me. Different countries have decided on different balancing points, and decided on whether the deaths associated (not caused) with easier access to firearms is worth its utility - whether that's freedom, hunting, whatever.

Alcohol kills. There was once a prohibition. People decided it was too much fun to drink and have easily accepted that any alcohol related death is more acceptable than a complete ban on it.

It's just all a balancing thing. What balance keeps people happy and alive enough to pay taxes to keep the world going.

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I was particularly fond of the gradual cafe downsizing such that only Mika and Chisato were left. It was always portrayed as being a big happy family, but I liked seeing the core family interact on their own. I remember the scene where Chisato saw Shinji in the bar and decided "Yep, it's a date. It's rude to intervene any further. Let's give them space" because it's Mika.

[shinta|hikari]

Guns increase the ease of mass killings. Their utility of being accessible by the general public is ...I dunno, you tell me. Different countries have decided on different balancing points, and decided on whether the deaths associated (not caused) with easier access to firearms is worth its utility - whether that's freedom, hunting, whatever.


Agreed. I just think there is very little benefit to having wide access to guns (like in this episode) versus the gigantic risk and danger it poses. My wife has been within steps of 2 shooting incidents while working retail. Even if she physically didn't get hurt, the mental trauma it gave her is significant, to the point she quit her job. I have a carry license, and we have both shot in ranges together, but I'd gladly never do that again if it meant even 1 less shooting incident to traumatize people, more so ones I care about.

[Buffalobiian]

I do think that the general population has little utility in owning a gun compared to its perceived harms. I looked into trying to acquire one in Australia some time ago for shits and giggles, and to see what it'd be like owning one. The commitment to the minimum participation rate at shooting ranges required to obtain and keep the license made me decide otherwise. Too much work.

edit: Said work -

-Join a shooting club.
-complete their training.
-Probation with club for 6 months.

Then:

-Apply for firearm license, criminal record check, photo ID.
-Select desired firearm, but not purchase.
-Give firearm details to police, apply for Approval to Purchase.

-Wait 28 days. If approval granted, purchase firearm.
-Take to nearest police station, register it within 14 days.
-Pay fee.
-Gun only to be used in approved club events.

-Attend 4-6 club events / year to maintain licence.
-Store in gun safe ($400-800)

https://www.ssaa.org.au/?ss_news=handgun-ownership-facts-in-australia

[shinta|hikari]

in contrast, I had to watch a 30 minute video and then attend an in person test where a guy just handed me a loaded, laser-sight handgun to shoot a target 7 yards (around 6.4 meters) away, which I could've done with 0 experience, like my wife did when we did it for fun (without the laser-sight).

I could've also just skipped all that if I just wanted to buy one and "conceal carry"* it by driving 20 minutes east to a different US state.

*it is illegal here, but if it is concealed, no one would know anyway.

[Ryllharu]

Rather than continue a dissertation on guns in the real world, you're still both missing the point of this episode and the series theme. It's not guns.

Majima is challenging the status quo with fear. The literal definition of terrorism.

1. Fear of blowing up the replacement tower - lures DA out into the open in the center of the city.
2. Fear of the opportunity he's provided across the prefecture - threatening Japan's illusion of superiority at controlling violence.
3. Fear of losing control of power/authority - Forcing the hand of the gov't and DA's leadership to demand DA act when they should not, lest they lose their authority
4. Fear of losing their secrecy and freedom - Forcing DA to act and risk outing themselves.

This one is actually Shinji, but centralized with the rest of the conflict by having Majima kidnap Shinji:
5. Fear of Chisato dying - Takina (and the rest, but not quite as forceful about it) don't want her to die.

The guns don't matter. They could be guns, knives, bombs, laser katanas, tasers, magical bullshit, superpower granting drugs, scifi bullshit, literally whatever lowers the bar for people doing bad things. All of the above have been done elsewhere. He chooses the distribution method because it is more effective and even works if he dies to DA.

Chisato is the counter to all of Majima and Shinji's machinations. She isn't afraid to die. She accepted it long ago, or else she wouldn't be as good as she is. Chisato refuses to react to or be trapped by fear. She lives free and wants to share that mindset with everyone she meets. You've seen it consistently throughout the entire series.

[Buffalobiian]

We didn't miss the point. We're just talking about the aspect that interested us more.

I get that Majima is enabling crime should people choose to embrace it and that it doesn't have to be guns.

[shinta|hikari]

But the story also used guns because they are the most effective. Imagine spreading 10,000 kitchen knives and expecting anything to happen lol.

@Buff - That is some extreme measures to get a gun in your country. I actually find that a little too much, to the point that shooting as a sport would die there.

[shinta|hikari]

Episode 11:













Majima's ability not getting fucked by gunshots will never stop pissing me off.

Did the animation become shit this episode? The action was choppy, and a lot of the art was shoddy. Are they saving money for the next one, which I assume is the climax?

I love that Takina finally got to save Chisato's life. Majima should get his shit shot out of him next episode. The only reason he was winning was because of the darkness. Now Takina just needs to find cover and let Chisato fuck him up.

Why is the Lycoris organization so inept? How can they be fucked over so many times by Majima and one hacker? How did they not even think Majima would bomb them AGAIN? Did no one really wonder why the fuck vacuums were just running around during a shootout? My first thought upon seeing one was "oh bombs again."

[Ryllharu]

Majima's ability not getting fucked by gunshots will never stop pissing me off.

I tried to ignore it the last time, but agreed, media in general has a misconception about how loud gunshots are. I tried to rationalize it from the perspective of maybe the Alan Institute gave him some additional hardware parts too like Chisato, maybe even after she blew out his eardrums 10 years ago, and whatever aural implants he's got level it out.


Did the animation become shit this episode? The action was choppy, and a lot of the art was shoddy. Are they saving money for the next one, which I assume is the climax?
The animation was a little worse overall, but also had some nice details, particularly the parts where Chisato was climbing the wreckage and when she almost fell off it just barging through the door.


Why is the Lycoris organization so inept? How can they be fucked over so many times by Majima and one hacker? How did they not even think Majima would bomb them AGAIN? Did no one really wonder why the fuck vacuums were just running around during a shootout? My first thought upon seeing one was "oh bombs again."

Hubris.

At least we know what the backpack inflatables are for that we see in the OP. That was pretty cool to see. Fuki, Sakura, and the redhead got theirs off in time, but I'd guess the other squads are pretty much done.

I guess Sakura isn't nearly as stupid as she comes off. She was the first to realize it and her first reaction was to direct the others even before she warned them why.

[shinta|hikari]

I agree with the hubris idea. That leader really needs a punch in the face. So fucking arrogant and smug. If the top is like that, it wouldn't be a surprise that most leaders are the same.

I do like that Majima is a legitimately strong and smart villain, yet at the same time not utterly despicable. Those are getting harder and harder to find nowadays.

The loli is extra cute this episode.

Did Yoshi escape? Or did Majima somehow rekidnapped and hid him?

[Ryllharu]

Did Yoshi escape? Or did Majima somehow rekidnapped and hid him?He scooted off to temporary safety and to recover the replacement heart.

My guess is that the actual conflict next episode will be Shiinji vs Chisato vs Takina over the heart. Majima interrupted Shinji's plan to force Chisato into killing people. Majima happily used the guy as bait because he doesn't really like him to begin with, and it is a good way to sideline Chisato from his own operation which is now a complete success.

Shinji's last resort was to destroy her heart, while he already had a replacement in the works for when she hit her 10-year time limit anyway, and was going to use it as a bribe to get her "back on track" killing people.

The problem is that not only does Chisato consider him her 2nd father, she also knows he is her savior and the one who set her out on her outlook. The question is how completely Shinji considers Chisato his daughter as much as Mika does.

My guess is the duo knock out Majima, then Shinji reappears and demands that Chisato personally murder Majima. Chisato doesn't care if she dies, and isn't willing to give up on her ideals, but Takina won't want to lose her. Setting up a second emotional conflict between Chisato and Takina directly.

[shinta|hikari]

Takina should just use the non-lethal gun and shoot Yoshi, get the heart, and have it transplanted into Chisato. AFAIK, the heart itself is what is special. The surgery itself doesn't need Alan level skills.

I still have no idea why they can't just give her a normal human heart from a brain-dead donor. I know those are hard to find, but it's like they didn't even consider it.

[Ryllharu]

Because DA and Alan Institute both want her as a top-notch killer/operative until she hits her Lycoris retirement age.

Heart transplants aren't great due to the autoimmune issues.

[shinta|hikari]

I meant the black dad and the rest of her team. Why didn't they try that path and only looked for Yoshi?

[neflight86]

Weaker animation to go with a weaker episode, as noted above. Majima's part in the story is all but done, so hopefully he can contribute one final sakuga fight before becoming the crux of Yoshi's proposition (agreed with Ryll; that is the most likely way this plays out).

I'm kinda disappointed that there exists a mcguffin to save Chisato. The series ending with her dying or approaching it would be less marketable, but make her personality and way of living hit harder, for me at least...

[shinta|hikari]

Chisato grew on me BECAUSE of her death sentence. She behaves like that because she knows time is limited. But that's also why I don't want her to die.

[Buffalobiian]

I'm just here liking the happy music as Majima gets kicked in the face.

[Buffalobiian]

Episode 12

-------------------------







Optional Boss (Chisato) appears.... everyone backs off..... and she gets baited with a puppy. xD

[Ryllharu]

I'm just pleasantly surprised that I was kind of correct on the overall theme, but horribly wrong on all the specifics.

I like being surprised by how narratives play out without any asspulls or deus ex machina elements.

And they addressed deafening Majima's ability with gunshots!

[shinta|hikari]

And they addressed deafening Majima's ability with gunshots!

No they didn't. The distance she was shooting from in the previous episode versus shooting near his ears makes no difference if his ability is to be hypersensitive to sound. A normal person's hearing would've been messed up by both. You can't claim hyper-hearing and handpick your threshold per situation.

[Ryllharu]

But they didn't ignore it completely. I'll take it.

[shinta|hikari]

I understand what you mean, so this next part is just my personal gripe and not in any way a criticism of your take on that scene.

I actually would've preferred if they just pretended that Majima's superhuman hearing can somehow block certain frequencies or volumes. Sure it would be supernatural level at that point, but so is Chisato's gun dodging ability. Neither of them make sense in our reality, so just saying Majima can ignore loud gunshots but still hear other frequencies and volumes is consistent with how Alan children work.

Instead, they created a scene where he CAN get deafened by gunshots, meaning he had to have been hearing them in full the whole time, just that it somehow wasn't close enough. I understand shooting that much closer increases the damage even for normal humans, but the problem is his ability is actually super sensitive hearing, because if he could block out sound like my first premise, he wouldn't get affected by any gunshot at any range. If he can hear pin drops and breathing, he should have definitely been having a lot of trouble with gunshots right on his chest area.

/rant

[neflight86]

13

While the fight was anything but satisfying, this final episode did put real effort into cleaning up the remaining plot threads and character arcs while also giving a plausible and sustainable 'afterward' snapshot. They could make more if they wanted, and if they don't nothing will diminish the quality of the product we have here.

[shinta|hikari]

This is an excellently executed show with a very simple premise. You would be surprised how much time they had to pour into the world, the background, the characters, the technology, etc. in order for this to make this much sense. The only real gripe I have is Majima's hearing ability. You know what would've fixed that? A simple ear plug that is designed to block higher decibel sounds. He'd still be able to catch other sounds, but gunshots won't hurt him, unless it was right up to his ears.

Chisato really grew on me. I didn't like her in the episode where they did the 2v2 mock combat, but her heart-on-sleeve personality fits her viewpoint of having a very limited lifespan. Bothering with niceties is pointless when you won't have to deal with the consequences for very long anyway.

Oh and another gripe, how the fuck did Majima survive that fall? He should've just fucking died. We can have a new villain in the next season.

The black dude's fake cane schtick was ripped directly from the Sharin no Kuni VN, so it didn't surprise me at all. In fact, I would've been disappointed if it didn't happen.

I hope Takina and Chisato become an official couple. I'm sick of all this Sappho and her friend bullshit everywhere. We need more Kannazuki no Miko.

[Ryllharu]

I hope Takina and Chisato become an official couple. I'm sick of all this Sappho and her friend bullshit everywhere.
I have read that Japanese twitter noticed Chisato and Takina are wearing matching gold bracelets in the Hawaii epilogue.
"Look like maile leaf bracelets which have meanings like 'peace, friendship, love,' but are also 'used at weddings to unify couples.'"

So there's a strong indicator to have it mean whatever shippers want.

[Buffalobiian]

I have read that Japanese twitter noticed Chisato and Takina are wearing matching gold bracelets in the Hawaii epilogue.
"Look like maile leaf bracelets which have meanings like 'peace, friendship, love,' but are also 'used at weddings to unify couples.'"

So there's a strong indicator to have it mean whatever shippers want.

I did read that. While I agree that they're matching bracelets, I struggle to call them resembling leaf designs at all.

https://i.imgur.com/Y5OepSZ.jpg

[neflight86]

The black dude's fake cane schtick was ripped directly from the Sharin no Kuni VN, so it didn't surprise me at all. In fact, I would've been disappointed if it didn't happen.

Heh. That brought back some old memories... Did Shinji's lady assistant get killed as well, or did Mika leave another witness to his leg ploy?


Oh and another gripe, how the fuck did Majima survive that fall? He should've just fucking died. We can have a new villain in the next season.

Hopefully he'll get a partner or something to restore his menace. He was a good enough joker style villain, and now we don't have to spend recap time on his backstory in our imaginary second season.

A few other random thoughts that came to me too late:

Why, I wonder, did he not follow through on using an actual bomb? Is it because his plan had already succeeded and just wanted to create context to fight Chisato?

It was interesting to note that apparently Takina is a better shot than Chisato, straining her 'super soldier' image somewhat. Is her kinetic vision the only thing that separates her from a regular Lycoris?

While the animation never got bad, it seemed to drop a bit in these last few eps, but I appreciate the cuts they had and feel the studio(s) did their best with 'what they had to work with'. Again, really enjoyed this.

[Ryllharu]

I did read that. While I agree that they're matching bracelets, I struggle to call them resembling leaf designs at all.

Specifically maile leaf. They're the things they make lei out of. Those bracelets share a pretty standard design (read: cheap tourist trash) for couple's bracelets based on the tradition of using lei in marriage ceremonies. While they're a bit indistinct in this episode, I'm willing to be the bluray corrects that to make them more detailed.

[shinta|hikari]

It was interesting to note that apparently Takina is a better shot than Chisato, straining her 'super soldier' image somewhat. Is her kinetic vision the only thing that separates her from a regular Lycoris.

While it is true Takina is a great shot, so is Chisato. Her lack of accuracy in combat is due to the non-lethal bullets she uses being inconsistent. This was mentioned in the firing range episode.

[Buffalobiian]

It was interesting to note that apparently Takina is a better shot than Chisato, straining her 'super soldier' image somewhat. Is her kinetic vision the only thing that separates her from a regular Lycoris?

Kinetic vision, intuition and athleticism. She dropped her athleticism and got tied up by Takina this episode.


Specifically maile leaf.

Yes, specifically that. What I'm seeing are segmented bracelets.