A lot of build-up in this episode.

Neviril won’t accept Aeru yet at the same time, Aeru isn’t trying to understand Neviril. These two really don’t match, do they? I can’t see them hooking up at all. Hell, given the tone of this anime, I can’t see anything good happening. Bad end, for reals.

And now the holy of holy is being desecrated. Though, I lean more towards the Simouns being machines but it’s hard to explain why it reacts to the Sibyllae’s feelings. If they were alive or actual blessings, you’d think they’d aid the Sibyllae’s in times of dire trouble. I guess, as an analogy, it comes down to whether the Simoun’s are guided by a form of A.I. or a true higher power.

It’s hard not to think it’s the latter though, ain’t it? I mean…

What the hell did Dominura see?

That’s a crazy expression she’s got there. Genuinely freaked the fuck out.

Alas I won’t find out tonight. No more faking me out ya stickin’ cliffhangers!

On a side note, there’s no “what’s going on in Aeru’s head” moments. Aeru hasn’t had any inner monologues. Every line she’s had has been verbally spoken and easily heard by those around her. She hasn’t even muttered something then used the classic “it’s nothing” line. No flashback for her either.

Most if not all the other characters have had one of those moments and in turn, I can see more into the characters. They display a side that only the “audience” can see. I get no advantage for Aeru… it’s extremely unusual especially since she’s one of the main characters. Now I see why she’s such a damn mystery.

Why is such a simple character so friggin’ complex.

…or have I like, totally missed something obvious? Beh…

The fake cliffhangers keep tricking me. Nearly all the episodes end leaving something hanging and the following episode spends two minutes touching up on what was left off then it’s on to another story. I start up the next episode thinking I’ll get into some more good stuff and they keep screwing with me.

Jerks.

Unnecessary super mini-rant aside, things are getting heated up.

Before I get into the episodes… seriously. SERIOUSLY. FF music, man. I can’t shake the thought. Not only am I constantly aware of the BGM, I keep thinking a random battle is gonna happen. HAHAHA…

Ok, moving on…

Obviously, the sisters had funk. I didn’t think it was so traumatizing, though. Episode 12 went into Alti and Kaimu’s back story and it seems there’s more to it. Kaimu’s keeping something in that’s probably gonna drive her insane. I doubt the events of “that night” is the cause anymore. Her psyche keeps breaking her down. And with these events, Alti doesn’t seem to care anymore. She’s practically given up. I’m gettin’ into their story but as usual, they moved on to something else in the next episode.

I did enjoy the sisters’ story but I’m glad they finally got into Aeru and Neviril. There hasn’t been anything between them ever since they paired up… and though they gotta go through some funk as well, HOLY SHIT I didn’t expect what happened in episode 13.

Aeru is… is… shit, I don’t know. Is she stupid? Ignorant? Self-absorbed? Dense? She’s possibly any or all of those yet I’m leaning towards none. Why? Normally, when someone accidentally does something fucked up, they eventually realize it and will apologize or at least make amends in some way. Aeru never did. Hell, the thought never even crossed her mind.

Malicious. Evil. Straight jacked up.

Now, those assume things happened on purpose and I don’t believe Aeru intentionally wanted to harm Neviril yet… yet… sigh, I don’t know. Aeru has now become the most mysterious character. Initially, she was simple-minded and aloof; the type of character that is easy to read. I have no idea what her deal is anymore. She only wanted to be a Sibyllae cuz she didn’t want to choose a gender, right? And becoming the best Sibyllae means she can fly for a long time, right? Ok, so for her to not make a choice, she’ll step on anyone to ensure that goal? Ain’t that evil?

ARGH!

I’m confused. Don’t get me wrong, I like her. She’s the type of character that oozes attraction and with the shit she’s making Neviril go through, I’m even more curious about her now. I’m still adamant that there’s more to her story… or rather, there had better be more to her story.

I’ve hit the halfway mark and the character development has been outstanding. On the surface, most of the episodes have been one-shots normally revolving around a pair of girls. The fake cliffhangers seemingly tie the episodes in but really, it’s been episodic except one small story arc.

Even so, the flow of the stories has been solid. When one episode finishes and the next moves on to another story, the previous story continues to linger in the background. It plays out nicely.

The war is still raging and no questions have been answered regarding it and now they’ve thrown in some funk between the girls.

Crazy shit, man. And I’m lovin’ every minute of it.

I caught these last night and wanted to catch another episode or two before blogging. I assumed there’d be some follow-up to the happenings at the end of episode 11 but after watching a bit of episode 12, it doesn’t look like there will be much. So, I’m throwing up this entry now since I’ll end up forgetting shit I wanted to put down regarding these two episodes. Idiotic me forgot to jot some stuff down last night.

Actually, I already forgot a bunch of shit I wanted to note. Beh, time to babble and see if I can’t miraculously recall some things.

As per usual, my head isn’t in the game and it took me this long to realize this series hasn’t been about the war or politics or any other number of plot settings. Up until now, it’s mainly been about the relationships between the characters and the rest of the story simply moves along with them. My “I like to guess shit even though I’m always wrong” mind tells me that this character building is just a large set-up in making Chor Tempest uber again and once there, all hell will break loose. In essence, it kills two birds with one stone; we get some character development alongside main story progression.

Buuuut, again, that could just be me thinking too much.

Episode 11 finally broke down Ms. Tsuntsun (Mamiina) and even had a cheesy deredere moment at the start of episode 12. Mamiina and Rodoreamon’s conclusion was obvious from the moment Mamiina spoke. Add in her obvious character design and it was simply a matter of “when is she gonna do something nice for Rodoreamon?” Unfortunately, I didn’t expect her first, nice gesture to be so weak. Seriously, Mamiina swoops in as the hero to fix an uneven bed? Whoop-pee.

Hahaha… I just couldn’t go w/o picking on something small, could I? Beh…

Enough about that episode. It was a slow episode since it featured two bleak characters. On the flip side, episode 12 was awesome and made up for the previous one. Floe isn’t much of a character either but sticking her in a potentially complex story opened up her character nicely. This story, especially with that crazy ending (I can’t believe they blew up the town w/o a second thought), only adds to my question of whether Simulacrum and Sybillie’s are the “good guys.”

I’ll save more Floe ramblings for later since there may be more to her story. Hopefully there will be. I may end up liking her depending on where the story goes. I’m normally neutral on energetic characters like her.

Aaaaand, that’s all I can conjure up.

More watch less talk!

After the last set of episodes, this one played out expectedly.

Chor Tempest is back online though a few questions still remain.

What was Plumbum’s objective; simply to destroy the Simouns? There must be a bigger reason behind that. And will this “one thing that Aeru and Neviril have in common” be something that will drag on until the end? It seems like a minor thing but the more they bring it up, the more friggin’ curious I’ll become. Then there’s Dominura. What’s she and her mysterious buddies up to?

This war is nuts. Everyone is against Simulacrum and I’m still wondering if they deserve it. For the invading nation(s), it doesn’t seem like it’s simply survival anymore. Or maybe the different factions have different motives… not enough to go on yet.

The Ri Maajons just get fancier and fancier. I suppose if I thought about it, it would’ve been obvious that they could be used for more than offense. How many more crazy types are there? Hmmm… nah, I won’t think about it. It’s more fun this way.

And Neviril is finally back. The crew did need her and though I didn’t want things to magically be good again just because she returned, they handled it well.

Argh, what’s her reason for choosing Aeru? I haven’t put up this entry yet and already it’s buggin’ me more than when I started typing. Why must I get stuck on the little things!

Anyway, good lil story arc to get the crew going again.

Does this mean the war has officially begun for our girls?

That was intensity done right.

Episode 7 started off passive and slowly built up, peaking with the potential Chor Tempest disbandment at the end. Episode 8 picks up right afterwards with the crew in disarray from the sudden notice then WA-BAM, things get even more intense. The end of episode 7 dropped a big bomb yet it was surpassed with the craziness that went down at the end of episode 8. To surpass crazy shit with even crazier shit is… crazy. And very impressive. This show has now officially gained my undivided attention.

It ain’t over yet either.

What an incredible way to get Chor Tempest back in action. Hey, let’s blow up all the other Simouns. Craziness, I tell ya.

I’ve got plenty of questions but what’s the point when I’ll find out in a few minutes?

I had to take a breather to soak things in.

…

Done with that. Time to catch some more.