Nobody can stop the Shuper Saiyan.
So, Guilty Crown was an experience. For me, it was a mostly fun experience. I ragged on Guilty Crown from week to week, but aside from some questionable elements (i.e. the abundance of rape), I had a ton of fun watching it. Maybe you’d say it was for all the wrong reasons, and you’d probably be right, but if I’m having a good time, then I’m not going to question it much. Well, question much beyond point out all the dumb and/or silly stuff each week, that is.
I was skeptical after the last episode handled the initial part with Kanaria, and I still think it was condensed to the detriment of that character, but this episode makes this arc kind of awesome. It’s to the point where I actually sort of like it now instead of thinking of it as a boring road bump before the best arc in the series.
There are a couple of important ways in which the remake’s approach improves upon the way the arc is depicted in the original series. The first is Kanaria’s story. In the original, Kanaria’s interaction with Killua forms a simple, human story: Killua is a lonely kid, and Kanaria happens upon him one day while working, and they get to talking and become friends of sorts. It works to humanize Killua and Kanaria, but in a weird sort of way, that actually hurts them, because these are two characters who are not meant to be humanized in that sort of way.
I’ll admit to being a bit confused at first with the conclusion to this arc. After a few minutes of thought, it’s not really that confusing . . . it’s just that the reveal of the deceptions at the end come so fast and furious that everything is over before the mind has a chance to figure out just what the hell is going on. It feels kind of cheap on the surface, but when you examine everything in hindsight — as emperorj does in his post — it’s not as if it totally comes out of nowhere. The episode is actually amusingly sneaky in the way it puts the viewer in Gruier’s shoes.
Shu is the perfect guy to take on the Oregon Trail, because if everyone gets dysentery, he can just absorb it and everyone will be fine.
Guilty Crown is over, and I am sad. Whatever one’s opinion may be about the overall quality of the show, it’s been quality entertainment, and I do believe the creators genuinely tried to make it a big, awesome action series. They came up far short, to say the least, but I did at least enjoy watching Guilty Crown each week, even if it was for all the wrong reasons. If I have one complaint, it’s that I wish the finale were more of an insane trainwreck. It unfolds almost exactly as expected, which is a bit disappointing. But I guess it’s not too surprising to see a series like this use nearly every beat from the Stock Anime Ending Playbook. Then again, Guilty Crown is selling decently from what I’ve heard, so what the fuck does my opinion matter?
By the way, I’m planning to do a proper Guilty Crown retrospective next week that will feature the final polls in this wonderful series. So, yes, stay tuned for that!
Now for this week’s voting . . .
Get out of Leorio’s way — he’s got a 50 kilogram dump building up!
This episode has me thinking about something I’ve (bizarrely) never considered before: training “episodes” in manga versus anime. They pad the story for sure, but they do make a bit of sense in manga. It might seem long at the time given the one chapter a week release schedule many manga run on, but in the grand scheme of things, a chapter or two of training isn’t much. (I assume this part of Hunter x Hunter isn’t drawn out that much.) In anime, though? The pacing necessarily works differently between mediums, so something that doesn’t seem too long overall (the training takes up about two-thirds of the episode) still seems way longer than it should be because it takes more time to absorb what’s happening here than to absorb training or whatever in manga.
Mouretsu Pirates is sinking your ships.
Should have known that the ghost ship would be waiting in a dangerous place like this. You can’t have a proper ghost ship without a graveyard! And a graveyard this is for sure, what with the ship being buried behind friggin’ space-time quakes and shit that will launch you back into subspace. No wonder a giant ship made out of gold is still there for the taking. You’d have to be crazy to go in there and snatch it.
Have some of Gai’s abs again.
I am beyond sad that Guilty Crown is ending next week. Why couldn’t it go on forever? The creators have clearly shown that they are not ashamed to recycle their storylines — this is basically the ending of the show’s first half all over again. So why not go on into perpetuity? I would gladly sacrifice one spot on noitaminA to keep Guilty Crown alive for eternity. Come at me, bros.
I don’t remember if the two dudes who try to break into the Zoldyck Mansion have their skeletons tossed into a garbage can in the original anime, but this is a hilarious instance of black humor, haha. I also love that Mike is polite enough to drop the skeletons outside the gate. Methinks the Zoldycks do not tolerate littering!
Anyway, I wasn’t a huge fan of this short arc in the original anime, but I imagine this series will move through it quicker, so maybe I’ll enjoy it more here. I’m curious about what the ending will be like. I recall having problems with how it seems like all the crazy shit Killua goes through at the end of the Hunter Exam is tossed aside, and he’s totally cool and normal again, and it’s never addressed again. Maybe it will make more sense here, though, since it seems like Killua is more of a sociopath than in the original series. Not that he isn’t crazy to a certain extent in the original, but he feels just a bit crazier here. But, yeah, this is probably getting too close to out and out spoiler territory, so enough about that . . .
I’m not one to HNNNNNNNNNNGH, but if I were, this would probably be the catalyst.
I like it a lot when shows are able to wrap a bit of fun in the context of the overall plot and have it work splendidly. Most people watching have probably been eager to see Chiaki as a captain-in-training, and with Marika needing some cover while going ghost ship hunting, the perfect opportunity to have Chiaki show her skills. It’s not surprising to see Chiaki be so charismatic and have so much fun with the role of the captain; she’s so blatantly tsuntsun that you instinctively know that she’s hiding a desire for fun under that shell. Watching the sheer joy Chiaki displays as she goes pirating is pretty awesome. The girl is born to be a pirate.
I’m going to venture a guess and say this is the happiest Shu will be in the final three episodes.
So, um, that sure was a flashback, wasn’t it? I guess it’s nice to get a look back at the people who stumbled into this mess in the first place, but I don’t think it added much except some fodder for this post and that one guy basically being ageless and pulling the strings and whatnot. Whatever. Also, Shu’s dad is kind of a dork and TAKES ON EVERYTHING BY HIMSELF JUST LIKE SHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOE.
Anyway, fun time guessing time for fun begins now!
