"VI"
Oh come on, Shujinko; that was the most anticlimactic drowning scene ever.
It seems that with this episode the
Ikki arc draws to a close. To be honest, it wasn't as bad as I was expecting, at least not on Ikki's part. He still wasn't particularly interesting or un-shoujo hero-like, but he wasn't a total jerk either, I suppose. The fact that Ikki does indeed suffer from a supernatural ailment isn't too surprising (though it is kind of bizarre; why would you wish for girls to like you as a grade school kid?) but it feels somewhat out of place. Of course,
Amnesia is kind of
absurd in general, so that might be a bit of a stretch, but somehow I can't help but feel the whole development is sort of random in nature. The
bullying, however, is a pure and classic shoujo development, and one of those things about the whole fan culture I never could agree with. The whole "Bishounen-san belongs to everyone!" gimmick really bothers me on way too many levels, and every instance of it is nearly identical to the rest. It's just such a ridiculous cliche that I can't even understand how it became a cliche in the first place. I know that Japan is infamous for the whole "the nail that sticks up must be hammered down" idea, but this verges on stupidity. If girls really act like this somewhere out in the world, I'd like to revoke my female gender license, please.
As such, the "mystery" behind Ikki wasn't much of a mystery at all, and weirdly enough the arc technically
ends without the resolution of the problem with the Fan Club girls. Perhaps this is a conflict that will arise later on, but assuming Shujinko drowned here (at least struggle, woman!), she's met her third bad end and she'll awaken on August 1st in order to restart with either Toma or Kent.
However, I'm more convinced than ever that the
mysterious stalker is the central love interest in this harem. He's the only character other than Orion who seems to know that something strange is going on, and he seems familiar enough with Shujinko that he approaches her openly, asking her if this is the first time they've met or a reunion. He also seems to know how each arc ends, warning Shujinko not to make enemies while she's dating Ikki "this time around" before disappearing once again. If I'm right and every arc lasts two episodes, that leaves just enough room at the end for this character to get an arc of his own, one which hopefully clears up what's happening and why.
Weirdly enough, what I found most interesting this episode had nothing to do with the actual events of the arc. Since Shin's arc, there's been little clues to what Shujinko was like before she became an amnesiac, and it strikes me just how much more interesting she would have been had she retained some of that personality. Previously we learned that she was a singer and that she worked hard at it, but this time around we learn that she was easily angered and hated Ikki to the point where she
joined the Fan Club to spy on him on behalf of
Rika and her followers. That's quite brash and strong-minded for a girl who barely speaks up now (and who won't even attempt to save herself while she's drowning), and I'm afraid it only makes me sadder to know that Nazuka probably won't get to play that personality at all. Oh well.
It seems that with this episode the Ikki arc draws to a close. To be honest, it wasn't as bad as I was expecting, at least not on Ikki's part. He still wasn't particularly interesting or un-shoujo hero-like, but he wasn't a total jerk either, I suppose. The fact that Ikki does indeed suffer from a supernatural ailment isn't too surprising (though it is kind of bizarre; why would you wish for girls to like you as a grade school kid?) but it feels somewhat out of place. Of course, Amnesia is kind of absurd in general, so that might be a bit of a stretch, but somehow I can't help but feel the whole development is sort of random in nature. The bullying, however, is a pure and classic shoujo development, and one of those things about the whole fan culture I never could agree with. The whole "Bishounen-san belongs to everyone!" gimmick really bothers me on way too many levels, and every instance of it is nearly identical to the rest. It's just such a ridiculous cliche that I can't even understand how it became a cliche in the first place. I know that Japan is infamous for the whole "the nail that sticks up must be hammered down" idea, but this verges on stupidity. If girls really act like this somewhere out in the world, I'd like to revoke my female gender license, please.
As such, the "mystery" behind Ikki wasn't much of a mystery at all, and weirdly enough the arc technically ends without the resolution of the problem with the Fan Club girls. Perhaps this is a conflict that will arise later on, but assuming Shujinko drowned here (at least struggle, woman!), she's met her third bad end and she'll awaken on August 1st in order to restart with either Toma or Kent.
Weirdly enough, what I found most interesting this episode had nothing to do with the actual events of the arc. Since Shin's arc, there's been little clues to what Shujinko was like before she became an amnesiac, and it strikes me just how much more interesting she would have been had she retained some of that personality. Previously we learned that she was a singer and that she worked hard at it, but this time around we learn that she was easily angered and hated Ikki to the point where she joined the Fan Club to spy on him on behalf of Rika and her followers. That's quite brash and strong-minded for a girl who barely speaks up now (and who won't even attempt to save herself while she's drowning), and I'm afraid it only makes me sadder to know that Nazuka probably won't get to play that personality at all. Oh well.
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