A Mashiro-centric episode. I personally think it’s a pretty good idea for all Presidents and Prime Ministers to have to go through this kind of experience every mid-term or something. Or at least take public transport to work once in a while. With all this investment of time (and killing off Aoi) to traumatise Mashiro, I’d say that whether or not she’s the real princess, she’ll still end up as Queen at the end of the series. Otherwise why bother with developing her Legitimacy Crisis (doubts of birth right and competence)?
Plenty of Nao-oneesama winding Natsuki up. Lurvely. A good parallel to their antagonism in HiME but ending up with the irony of the two of them and Shizuru ending up as the Mai HiME White Rose family. In the Otome case, all three are officially Columns aka Old Miss Military Club. I can so imagine Natsuki being reduced to tears by Nao’s constant tormenting but then flourishing her ace… Natsuki: “I’ll tell Shizuru you were super mean to me!!” Nao: “… Ok, I’ll be good.” LOL
And Miyu is also a Multiple Intelligential Yggrdasil Unit like the Miyu from HiME. What are the implications if she is the same Miyu?
OMG! They killed Aoi! You bastards! (Whither Chie?)
But I can’t seriously believe that Aoi is dead. We aren’t shown a body. But mostly because I’ve watched too many TV adaptations of Jin Yong novels like Eightfold Path of the Heavenly Dragon (天龙八部), Legend of the Condor Heroes (射雕英雄传) and Return of the Condor Heroes (神雕侠侣) where someone who falls off a cliff almost never dies but instead almost alway re-emerges with more powerful skillz.
So, will Chie lose an arm and start riding giant condors?
… Actually that’d be way cool. I’m still a bit peeved that Chie hasn’t done anything cool in a robe yet. Wonder what her Meister robe will look like.
So, this episode confirms, for me, that Mashiro will be the Queen at the end of the series. Why go to the trouble of a Mashiro centric episode this far along, if she’s not going to return to her position?
We now have two down, one green sparkled, one off a cliff, the two different means, makes me think that we’re still in a no reset zone. Doesn’t mean that Aoi won’t come back, no body after all, just that in Hime, most of the “deaths” were all of the same green sparkly variety, making a reset explainable if not completely plausible.
The entire series needs more of “Big Pimpin’” Chie pulling lots of Tenoh Haruka style ass-kicking and lady killin’.
I thought this ep had more impact than the previous. I was genuinely sad to see Aoi go as opposed to Erstin’s somewhat contrived death.
And for someone who just lost both of her pals, livelihood and love, Arika seems to be pretty genki.I see it as both Arika’s strength and the scriptwright’s oversight. :)
Reset. I agree it’s not likely at this point, given that not enough of the cast has been offed and so far no commonality in method of death.
On impact of Ers-chan’s vs Aoi’s deaths, I’m the Ers camp. While it was certainly more contrived and I should have seen it coming from miles away, Ers-chan was a much more substantial character than Aoi. I’m with Jason and Washi on this one. As you might have guessed, my immediate reaction to Aoi off the cliff was “Dammit! What about Chie x Aoi!?”
Actually precisely Ers has a lot more character development, there’s a greater expectations for congruency in her choices/motivation. Her sudden affliation with Schwarz felt very much like a deux ex machina just to deliver a kick in our guts. For 17 eps, the only hint we have is that she’s not into the Otome business on her accord. (Maybe I missed the rest :P) Aoi on the other has been Mashiro’s surrogate mother and died protecting her as a mother would.
I’ll with you on Aoi’s survival though. There be hope for Chie X Aoi yet :)
About Ers-chan, I didn’t think it was that much of a deus ex machina. She was so sweet and lovely that she just had to be marked for death - it’s just that I imagined it to be a Lunamaria interposing self between Shinn and Athrun (but getting killed instead) type scenario.
I liked how the hints were disguised as her lacking self-confidence and as you said, “not being in the Otome business on her own accord” - certainly had me fooled and I give Sunrise full credit. Her death was more sad for me because she chose quasi-religio-familial duty over her friendship even though the latter had given her a lot of happiness. Also had this sneaking suspicion that if Arika had been closer to her by the time of the hiking exam or if Nina had returned her feelings, she just *might* have split the beans on the whole Schwarz double agent thing.
The maternal thing for Aoi is definitely there but she’s just not been developed enough for me to feel a whole lot of sympathy.