I'm having distinctly mixed feelings about this show.

First the bad: I've never been a fan of comedic violence, and this has a lot of it. Haruhiko abuses Ruru, and Mai abuses Haruhiko. It's supposed to be funny but I don't think it is. (Chuck Jones can do it and make me laugh, but these guys aren't that good.)

And "the team of losers who keep screwing up" doesn't really work for me. Of course it's intended as a low point out of which they climb, but I wouldn't mind if they do the climbing sooner rather than later.

In particular, I wish Haruhiko wasn't such a turkey. For instance, in this episode he revealed a new ability: he can summon phantoms to work for him. Well, sort of. This was what he wanted:

This was what he got:

The good: I have to admit it's a pleasure to spend time with Mai. We're due for a swimsuit episode and I'm looking forward to that, too. (I have simple tastes.) And in general the art in this series is excellent, and not just of the girls.

And there's an interesting story concept here which is pretty deep and complicated. The series description says that we're due for a plot whiplash before it's all over, and from what I'm seeing it could be a doozy. Whatever it is, I'm sure it involves the loli with the teddy bear.

They're laying out a lot of mysteries without shining spotlights on them, which is a sign of mature story telling. (Too many directors will put in a plot point and then point at it and shout HEY LOOK AT THAT THING I JUST DID.)

The biggest mystery for me is Ruru, because I have the distinct impression that there is more to her than she's letting on, and it's probably sinister. After they defeated the robot in this episode, she flew over and found that small gizmo and brought it back to Haruhiko, and she didn't really have to search. She knew it was there and knew she wanted him to have it. What is it? (We're probably going to learn more about it next episode.)

Why is she hanging around him, anyway? She plays the clown, but is that all there is to her? She doesn't stay in his home at night; she flies away and goes somewhere else. Where? Why? But she's back every morning (according to the first episode) and goes through his morning routine (teeth brushing etc.) with him. So what's her deal?

And, of course, there's a huge mystery about The Event ten years previously. Just what were they doing in that factory? Was it really a terrorist bomb that released the virus, or something else? Was it really a virus that caused all this, or something else? And is this really about teleology? How can things that humans imagine actually cause physical damage, and hurt people, and move things around?

Are we in full-scale Bishop Berkeley mode here? A tree falling in the forest when there's no one around doesn't make a sound and in fact doesn't even exist unless a human is looking at it? The opening of the first episode suggest that may be the case.

Now a grand edifice like this could collapse in an ill-conceived heap but it could also end up being really intriguing and thought provoking. And in the mean time we can ogle Mai.

So I think I'll stick with it for a while yet.

Posted by: Steven Den Beste in General Anime at 04:31 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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