Kakumeiki Valvrave - 10 & 11

"The Campaign of Love" and "The 54th Military Tribunal"

You have no idea how relieved I am to have had so much time to mull this one over.

Episode 10

I'm aware of the shitstorm surrounding the premiere of episode ten, and I can understand why so many people were shocked and scandalized by what happened. My own reaction was quite loud and incoherent, I can assure you, and there's plenty about the whole affair that bothered me. However, I will say this upfront; I do not think the rape as a narrative device was a bad idea. I also have lost none of my fondness for the series because of it, nor do I feel that it would have been better without it. Yes, there is plenty of reason to be upset; Sunrise is definitely using shock factor here, and it's unfortunate that Valvrave will never again be the fun playful show it was once. Some of what happened could have been portrayed better, but really in the end, I've found myself inexplicably right where I started: I love Valvrave the Liberator, horror and ridiculousness all.

So how can I be okay with rape as a narrative device? I'm not; there was a lot of stuff going on in that scene that really had me cringing, but nothing so much as Saki and her depiction during the whole thing. Saki hasn't exactly been the nicest person on the planet this season, but nothing that she said or did could ever justify her being raped. No victim is ever deserving of such a fate, no matter what they're like otherwise, but that's not what bothers me here. What bothers me is that Saki gave up; or rather, Saki gave up in a way that makes it look like she was okay with being raped because it was Haruto doing the raping. That she couldn't fight back isn't so hard to accept, considering that Haruto is just as immortal as she is and otherwise as feral as a wild beast in the moment. It's that she gives in to the act, that she embraces him as he's doing this horrible thing to her and accepts her fate that really makes me upset. There's a nasty message in this about rape and victims, a nasty message earlier echoed by both Saki and Haruto when he almost attacks another girl, that the victims are somewhat responsible for these things and that they have to accept that at some point. Had Saki continued to fight, or had at least just broken down and done nothing with a deadened expression, that would have felt more natural and more right to me than what she did. Instead, it feels as if she's forgiven Haruto for not being in control of himself; and though this is true, that he's not able to do anything as his mind is taken over by Valvrave-chan, this is far too logical a response for someone in the act of getting raped.

Nevertheless, I commend Sunrise for wanting to go all out. The rape depiction was horrible in a scary, shocking kind of way, but in the end it does its job. I am still not happy with Saki, but at the very least, the game has changed and become a hell of a lot more interesting. Consider this; before the rape, we had a love triangle like any other. Haruto and Shoko were in love, and Saki was pining for Haruto without getting closer to him despite being the only female kamitsuki and the second Valvrave pilot. The drama was predictable, and as Shoko ran for Prime Minister (only teenagers would vote for a party first), we were all just wondering what her "campaign" would change in this dynamic. Now, however, things are a lot messier. Whether or not Haruto was aware during the rape doesn't change the fact that a rape has indeed occurred. It is ostensibly not his fault, and it's just as much a rape for him as it is for Saki herself because of the fact that it was not consensual on either's behalf. However, though he is indeed a victim, Saki is worse off here. She has to live with the aftermath of the thing, with the horror of having been raped (despite her lack of reaction when he wakes up, Haruto, good guy that he is, will undoubtedly worry about this), and there's no telling if any further complications (such as possible kamitsuki babies) are in store from this point on. There is no way in hell that Haruto could just brush this off like it never happened, and that makes his relationship with Shoko far more complex than ever. Whatever love he feels for her does not change the fact that he's wronged another girl so terribly that there's effectively no way to make things right.

Episode 11

Tokishima Haruto has now officially shot up into my favorite character rankings for this season.

Yes, one of my favorite characters is a rapist, and so ridiculously naive that he makes knights in shining armor look rather lackluster. I have a lot to say on the matter, but first things first: Saki. Continuing on from my dissatisfaction in the previous episode, Saki doesn't do a whole lot to redeem herself as a character this time around. Her reaction to what happened is nearly non-existent, acting exactly as she normally would, if only a bit more manipulative and otherwise detached from any real emotional response. She's not acting like a rape victim; instead she's acting the way someone might when they sleep with someone they love despite that person loving someone else entirely. Her actions are almost calculating, such as when she mentions she won't let Haruto apologize, or otherwise subtlety tries to make him feel guilty in order to make him stay. She's fighting a battle with Shoko, not with her own emotions, which are disturbingly lacking. Even if used to being abused, as her backstory seems to imply, she should at the very least be afraid of Haruto, seeing as there's no telling when he'll lose control again. Instead, we get this slightly bitter girl who refuses to let the whole incident seem like it happened, and to me that feels unnatural. Whatever she feels for Haruto, there should be something happening to her as a result of the rape, and it's honestly disturbing to be me that there isn't.

On the other hand, Haruto really steps up to his game this time. He's always been a good character, if far too naive and a little on the soft side, but this is different. What impresses me isn't the marriage proposal in itself (though damn, I was not expecting that), but rather the subtle way in which his reaction is characterized throughout this whole episode. Unlike Saki, Haruto is very much affected by what happened and he's not the kind of guy to run away from it. Instead of avoiding Saki, the first thing he does is try to talk to her, though in her fears that he'll apologize and leave her for Shoko, she makes it very difficult for him to address the issue. Not once do his own feelings and needs cross his thoughts or otherwise make him hesitate to do what he feels is the right thing to do; he doesn't agonize about his love for Shoko or what the rape has done to his relationship with her. He doesn't try to apologize and insult Saki by doing so; a rape is something you can never apologize for, and even though Haruto wasn't directly responsible, I admire the sense he has for not trying to take something like that back. In short, Haruto knows he has to do something for Saki because he's wronged her, period, and though his proposal is a way for him to take responsibility for what he's done, it nevertheless sends a very clear message about what kind of person he is. In his mind, Saki needs him most, and Saki deserves his care and concern first, even if he doesn't love her. At least, not yet.

But of course, a marriage proposal isn't going to make things magically better either. Personally I really want Saki to say yes, not just because I feel that a relationship is always much more interesting to watch than a couple that has yet to come together, but also because such a union would cause chaos of the kind Valvrave revels in. True, even without the marriage, Shoko has already had her heart broken and her father killed unwittingly by the person she loves, and even if Saki refuses, it's also true that Haruto isn't the type to abandon her either, but a marriage is only bound to make the drama increase. Personally, I think the union might not go through and that if they do get engaged, some huge cliffhanger will happen in this week's finale that separates them, but imagine for a moment if it did happen. Can you imagine the two of them trying to get government recognition for their marriage on the module? The shitstorm bound to occur now that Shoko's lost everything? The character drama is thick, and I can't help but feel simultaneously terrible for Shoko and impatient to learn of Saki's response.

N.B.: Thanks to Ivan for the caps! They're rather visceral to look at even two weeks later, huh.