Kita ze Inbou! - キタぜ陰謀!

[ BLEACH #142]

We are clear for more canon.

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[ Scene 26: To the Successors ]

I can’t believe it’s over. It’s been such a great ride and this episode just ends it so well. Much of content was of Clare versus Priscilla with Priscilla having the majority of the upper hand in the battle until the last few seconds where Clare pulled out some hax (literally). I personally don’t see this as a defeat for Priscilla since she was still freaking out up to that point with all of the visions of Teresa attacking her and the like. She just wasn’t stable at all during this fight. Personally, if she were stable and aware of herself and that Clare was just Clare but with Teresa’s flesh and blood inside of her, then this battle would most likely would have ended badly for Clare and the others. Anyway, the only person that died was the very person who was supposed to die in Pieta doing the same thing she did here. That is, Jeane bringing back an awakened Clare to human form. Those scenes were done quite well and I loved how she returned Clare’s words to her and added in her own.

The church scenes with Galatea were very well done animation-wise and while I did wish Galatea had more of a role in these final episodes I suppose it wouldn’t have worked out too well with all that happened. In the end, everyone goes their separate ways and parts with the Organization. Miria alone, Helen and Deneve together, and, of course, Clare and Raki (who already told Clare that he loves her). It isn’t the absolute best final episode/ending of the season but it’s a good one nonetheless.

[ Final Thoughts ]

Anime-original ending or not, Claymore was one of the best Spring 2007 shows. From the very first episode the quality of the series animation, development, and sound-wise was almost always consistent. There were no disappointments in regards to the production of the series at all. Though I suppose where the disappointment would come in for some (i.e. those who read the manga) would be the deviation from the manga to create an original ending. Though I am one of those who read the manga at least a year and a half before the anime began I can say that I’m not among those in disappointment. Why? Experience has showed me what happens with series that are serialized monthly when they are animated: they are almost always given an original ending because they eventually catch up with the manga material and can not afford to wait months or even years on end for the manga to finish.

So, I started the anime adaptation of Claymore knowing this inevitability would surface. I suppose that some day they can animate the rest of the manga using OVAs to retcon the anime ending but that remains to be seen. Of course, I would love nothing more to see it happen. For now though, I’m just glad that I had the opportunity to see the characters brought to life on screen by their seiyuu and their wonderfully animated movements. It was also great to see their interactions and relationships in motion. Now that it has all ended I can only look forward to seeing the manga continue this November.

[Overall series review: 85/100]

[ Episode 12: The Farewell Wedding Ceremony ]

Can you say, Deus Ex Machina? Yup, that was fully utilized here but I’ll get back to that soon. We get to see the incomplete marriage ceremony and the battle of Saito versus 70,000 men. The battle scenes were awesome and I liked how they showed the struggle rather than having him outright outclass the soldiers. The death scene was great as well but crafted so that you didn’t really see him die. Now that’s where the Deus Ex Machina comes in. While everyone at the academy is in mourning because they think Saito is dead it seems like out of no where the flower Louise had had resurrected itself (it had died earlier in the episode) and, of course, Louise goes running to see Saito with no so much as a scratch on his body or clothing. Why? Of course, Tifania, the big-breasted elf who is voiced by none other than Mamiko Noto, resurrected him as she did with Guiche. After all this happens everyone is glad to see him back and Louise as usual gets pissed at Saito and tries to kill him for his obsession with big breasts and thus ends the episode.

[ Final Thoughts ]

The biggest problem with this season of ZnT was pacing. Honestly, too much time is invested into things that, while they are fun, didn’t contribute to the overall plot. Some characters, especially a few of my favorites, were pushed completely to the side with very little roles throughout the majority of the season (Kirche, Tabitha, Guiche, Montmorency). I also felt that the use of the soundtrack could have been better in regards to the Colbert arc and the final episode. Ending the episodes with the same upbeat ending theme didn’t really compliment the content of those episodes. While I did enjoy this season much in part to Agnes’ storyline I didn’t like it as much as the first season which, in my opinion, is the best of the two so far. The ending for this season leaves things wide open since the war is still ongoing, Sheffield is still on the move, and Louise and Saito are still taking one step forward and two or more steps backward in their relationship. When it was all said and done, the ending wasn’t as satisfying as I felt it could have been. Now, what would have been awesome was if the season ended with a cliffhanger of Saito dying. That definitely would have left something for us to look forward to. Oh well, I guess it’s time to wait for the third season to be announced some time in the future.

[Overall series review: 71/100]

[ Episode 11: The Silver Pentecost ]

This episode was rather decent. It continued to play on the whole ‘dying for one’s status and reputation’ thing Louise brought up in the previous episode. Guiche also joined in with that belief and it had me wondering just how many nobles feel that way (such as Kirche, Montmorency, and Tabitha). I suppose if I were born into royalty or a noble family I’d probably be the same way but I probably wouldn’t follow that ideology as I am right now. Anyway, there were some good laughs in this episode as well such as Louise wearing a cat suit and Siesta wearing a super-skimpy bunny suit (of which her top came off and practically blinded Saito).

As of this point I’m not sure how the final episode will be pulled off without feeling rushed since the only real buildup for it happened in the final few seconds of this episode. Well anyways, at least Tifania was mentioned in this episode (she’s the elf that saved Guiche). Next up: the final episode.

[ Episode 26: Let's go, my friends!]

What the hell was that? This episode was so many kinds of awesome that it can’t be fully comprehended. Those alternate universe sequences were quite interesting. I found Simon, Yoko, and Viral’s in particular quite well done. Seeing Kamina again was just so awesome that the manly tears couldn’t help but form in my eyes. His interactions with Simon and Yoko were the best. With Simon they basically had a little chat after he had saved Simon. Just mentioning things like him growing taller and their ‘final goodbye’ along with seeing Kittan and the rest of the guys was almost too much to bare. Kamina and Yoko’s interactions were quite interesting with him changing the television for her. While it was pretty nice I felt more closure could have been done between the two of them if a few more words were said but I suppose they weren’t needed and I’m just too picky.

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[ Episode 24: The Green Hills of Terra ]

Thus the end has come for Toward the Terra. While the final episode wasn’t filled with high-energy it was more than a satisfying end for such a wonderful series. It was really sad seeing the deaths of characters that have been around since the beginning. Jomy, Keith, Leo, and the Mu Elders’ deaths really hit me and I could feel the tears forming with ease. However, none of their deaths were in vain. They did it all so that the younger generation can continue on with both the Mu and Humanity coming together.

It was so great to see the Mu and Humanity finally working together at the end. It first started off with Jomy and Keith taking down one part of Grand Mother which caused a domino effect of Mu and Humans all around the galaxy to start destroying network hubs of Grand Mother. They finally took a stand to decide things on their own instead of having a cold and uncaring machine delegate their lives. In the end though, the message Toward the Terra left with us is that you should always think of the younger generation, your children, when your goal is to change the future. Sacrificing one’s self for them shouldn’t be something you need to even think about for a second as proven by all of the deaths that occurred in this episode and which was particularly reinforced when the Elders teleported the human children and Physis to the Shangri-La.

Lastly, I felt a huge rush of emotions flood my body when I saw the final scenes of the series with the now revitalized Terra. I may cry too much but one could not watch this series and then see those final shots of a beautiful planet without at least feeling the urge to cry. That beautiful blue planet is one that should never have to lose it’s radiance ever again.

[ Final Thoughts ]

Another great show has ended and I’m going to miss this one. Initially I wanted to watch this because it was a remake of a show from a decade that had some rather interesting stories emerge from it and figured I’d love to see how it would do in the present. Truth be told, Toward the Terra started out rather rough for me with the earlier episodes not being as absorbing as they could have been. That all changed quickly though as Jomy wasted no time in moving from a whiny brat to steadily developing into a young man who chose to accept himself as a Mu after denying it so fervently in his earlier days. From there it’s a marvelous journey with a wonderful cast of characters who are developed so well all accompanied by times of politics, peace, war, death, struggle, and finally, unification as one body of people. The messages this show left me with are quite memorable and even made me think even more about the future of my own children (well, when that time comes actually) and what I would sacrifice just so that they can live a much better life than me.

In conclusion, Toward the Terra is one of the most memorable experiences of this year for me and joins the ranks of my favorite shows that have ended so far this year, those being CODE GEASS, Soukou no Strain, Reideen, and Gurren Lagann. Do yourself a favor and give Toward the Terra a watch. I personally feel that you won’t regret investing your time into this epic tale.

[Overall series review: 92/100]

Series Information

ANN Encyclopedia | AniDB | AnimeNfo
Episode Total: 62
Producers: Nippon Animation, Togashi Yoshihiro
Genres: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Shounen
Nippon Animation
[Review: 98/100]

For quite a long time I’ve been looking at Hunter x Hunter but never gathered the energy to sit down and watch the series. So finally, about two or so weeks ago after getting some encouragement and finally getting off my ass I started watching. Little did I know that I’d be getting myself into a serious addiction. Hunter x Hunter hooked me from the very first episode and never let go as I drowned over and over inside of its deep characters, brilliant plot, and beautifully crafted music. There were times that I found myself starting from an episode I left off at at around midnight and didn’t stop myself until at least five in the morning. Those were times I had classes in the morning or had some other work to attend to but otherwise my need for Hunter x Hunter was, and still is, astronomical. Forgive me if I come off as fanboyish as I go on with this review but nonetheless I want to say this: Hunter x Hunter is one of the most outstanding shows, especially of the shounen type where predictability is the norm and characters tend to be bland after time, that I have ever laid my eyes on. I’ll say this now and then again at the end, if you haven’t seen Hunter x Hunter as yet then do yourself a favor and watch it NOW.
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It is on this day one year ago that Kita ze Inbou! was born. Blogging was rather new to me when I first formed this blog with my co-writers (one who retired quite early) but as I look back I can see we’ve come a long way. So, I’d like to take this time to thank all of the readers who stop by whether they choose to comment or not. I know you’ve had to put up with a lot from me but I think I’ve learned from my mistakes. I’d like to thank my co-writers as well because without their help I wouldn’t have been able to come up with such a wonderful name for the blog, among other things. As such, I (and Youko) would like to hear from you, KZI fans, lurkers, readers. What have we done well? What didn’t we do well? What would you like to see more of? Editorials? Manga reviews? News? Analyses? We’d love to hear your thoughts so don’t be shy, drop a comment or two.

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[ Episode 11: A Strong Will ]

With Satoko now rescued from her abusive uncle what lies in store for Hinamizawa as the Watanagashi Festival approaches?

Leon
Youko

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[ Episode 23: To Earth ]

Surprisingly enough, it seems the ending episodes of Toward the Terra won’t be filled with all-out action like the previous two were. Instead negotiations are being held between the Mu and Humanity. The best part of this episode that managed to make me react in the same way Jomy and the rest of the Mu is when they saw Terra; Earth in such a deteriorated state. It’s painful to see such a beautiful planet end up in such a state and it makes me think about how much people in real life don’t understand just how blessed we are to have such a wonderful planet. Anyway, after seeing the negotiations weren’t going no where Jomy and Keith go to see the Grand Mother where Jomy also finds out that Sam had passed away. I was surprised at how massive the Grand Mother computer was at the very end of the episode. I’m not sure I can even comment on how large the place is that the computer resides. With only one episode left I can only hope that Toward the Terra ends strong and is not rushed. It’s one one hell of a ride so far and despite not seeing the ending yet I can definitely say that Toward the Terra ranks extremely high up there as one of the absolute best series to have aired in the year 2007.

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