Strike the Blood – 03
“Simbaaa.”
 |
…That is a lion, right? Oh well. The episodes keep getting better, but it still seems like something is missing. Maybe they’ll solve it next week, since wherever the story picks up, it should be interesting. |
So apparently Kojou did a couple billion yen worth of damage (did they include the damage done by Rudolf before Kojou even got there in that?), but hell if we’re allowed to see what even happened. It must have been something rather amazing (or at least powerful) considering that Astarte and her partner left before they even saw what happened, so there must have been a reason as to why the anime didn’t show us any of it, right? …Hopefully. Though cutting that out did allow for more time on exposition. The summary I read about this before I decided to blog did say something about familiars (or I guess the anime refers to them as Kenju, which I will be going with since apparently it translates to “gun-beast”, and I don’t know if that’s quite the same thing as a familiar at this point), and it’s interesting that Kojou can’t seem to control them. You’d think that the quickest way to solving that issue would be to just go out and drink some blood, but since Kojou wants to live his life as a regular human, this direction makes sense too. At least it with this, if Kojou ever wants to solve the situation, it should be fairly easy to do so.
Just when you thought that this show was safe from harem territory, it (probably) isn’t. Asagi seems to to be that friend who has the huge crush on the dense main character. You’d think with the plot being so insistent on the Yukina and Kojou pairing, they wouldn’t have had this in here, but I guess it’s necessary for some reason. Maybe this isn’t quite how it looks. I read some spoiler-ish speculation (so I don’t even know if this is true or not) about Asagi, and she might have different reasons for being connected to Kojou than you’d think. …But without that knowledge, it still totally looks like she’s just a girl who likes Kojou. Asagi isn’t dead weight at least, since she seems to know her way around computers, and that definitely came in handy this episode. …Ignore the fact of how plot convenient it is that there was only one building on the entire island that matched the criteria.
There was probably something important in the exposition about Astarte and how she had a Kenju forced on her, but all I got out of that was the fact that her partner is a jerk and her life span was shortened for whatever reason. Even though she’s not really human to begin with. It really would have helped the scene if they had given some kind of explanation as to what a Kenju actually is. Vampires are the only creatures that have them, but how exactly does one go about forcing one into a homunculus? Where do familiars even come from in the first place? …Though I guess that point is less important, compared to the point that it already happened. (…Plus I looked into the manga chapter for this and thankfully, it gave a little more of an explanation. Vampires are the only ones who can handle Kenju, due to the Kenju needing immense energy and the vampires being immortal).
At least the villain character was nice enough to lay out his plans in simple terms. Plus the attacks around the city (that apparently Kojou didn’t notice, despite the fact that this has been going on for a while) now make more sense than they used to. If the point of this was to make the vampires bring out their familiars to absorb them, this way makes sense. Now if only Yukina being left alive made sense. She definitely would have died if Kojou hadn’t jumped in the way. …So I guess having Kojou sacrifice himself was more than enough bloodshed for Rudolf, and he decided that it no longer mattered if Yukina died or not? Or maybe he felt bad about decapitating a guy in front of a middle school student. Maybe he’s not such a bad guy after all.
I should probably come up with something new to say in these situations, but “nice boat” just fits all occasions.
There’s nothing like a good decapitation to end an episode with~. I don’t know what I’m more pleased with. Kojou risking everything to save Yukina, or Yukina’s shocked expression. The relationship the two built up rather quickly over the last couple episodes paid off really fast here, since you could see that Yukina seriously felt the loss here. Though as much as I’d love the plot to pick up Gurren Lagann style, with Yukina suddenly finding her inner badass (not that it’s really hiding, considering how capable she is) and going on a rage-fueled rampage, they made a point of Kojou’s immortality/vampire-ness in the episode. Chances are, Kojou will be fine. I don’t know how the blonde loli died in the flashback in episode 1, but the plot has put a lot of emphasis on the fact that the Primogenitor thing means that he’s reaaaaallly overpowered. So it seems silly that Kojou would be taken out for good 3 episodes in. We also don’t know the full scope of his powers, since they seem to have cut that part out. From everything else we’ve seen in the past 3 episodes, it just looks like Kojou is an inexperienced kid, and that the Lion King Organization is just being overly cautious. However, if Kojou comes back to life after this, it would at least back the claims that he’s a serious threat if he wanted to be.
I think I’ve figured out at least one of my problems with this anime. I have no idea what the plot it supposed to be. Things seem to be heading in some kind of direction, but before Yukina went and basically said “our next move is to find these people”, this was just a show about two people talking to one another with some vague political thing hanging over the protagonists. Well, we have the two main characters and their relative relationship to one another established, so hopefully the plot takes off now. As much as I enjoyed watching the scene at the end, it still kind of felt like a cheap way to grab attention and even more so, since Yukina isn’t under any kind of threat considering how Rudolf just walked away. …I’d also like to know how only Kojou’s head was removed since the ax angle probably should have taken off part of his torso too, but this is just me being overly critical of small details that mostly likely don’t matter. Maybe this will be a transition kind of like Tokyo Ravens had this week, and here is where Kojou decides to step up as the powerhouse he’s supposed to be (assuming that he’s even alive). Maybe he’ll go off and attempt to tame his Kenju. I’d just like to see this story move somewhere. Anywhere.
Though I do like the fact that Rudolf likes to explain things in more detail than necessary.
About Karakuri
University student and the one at Metanorn who's known for wearing glasses. Likes blood, insanity and plot twists, but also plays otome games and adores cute romance anime. It balances out... somehow.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
Yeah, they need some work on basic plot development, they really to much on character interaction to save the day. As it is, the various factions pile up into a hot mess, so I don’t think it would be out of the ordinary for a crazy middle school girl with rage to save the day/plot.
I’m still in it, as the ingredients the story brings still has some juice.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Character interaction is pretty much all this has going for it at the moment… Yeah, I’m sure if they ever figure out what they’re doing, this should be good.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Oh, they know what they’re doing. 😉
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
Well, Kojou definitely chose to tackle that problem HEAD-on. (^_^)
But I think he really got aHEAD of himself jumping in like that. （＾ｖ＾）
Because now he’ll never be the HEAD of a major corporation. (＾▽＾)
(gets sliced to ribbons by a grieving Yukina (×_×# )
POWUH: 600-699 and LN Enthusiast with 623 comments
*punning intensifies*
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
It’s a shame he wasn’t more HEADstrong.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Not only head puns, but Rudolf Exposition, Basil’s older brother.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Maybe Kojou should’ve quit while he was still aHEAD.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
…Come on, guys. Maybe this was just an AXEdent on Kojou’s part.
POWUH: Meta Resident and Metanorn's Hime-chan~ with 1758 comments
those puns (｡ >艸<)
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
The end of this really left me cold. There’s no way they’re killing off the big bad Fourth Progenitor in episode three, so the fact of him getting beheaded means absolutely zilch. I felt no drama, no suspense, no shock. Just cynicism. Yeah, Yukina doesn’t need to have her hopeful boyfriend’s noggin lopped off in front of her, but it’s not gonna stay like that.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Maybe this was more for Yukina’s personal development than Kojou. Or maybe it’s supposed to be one of those “look how badass the MC is!” things, since Kojou’s powers have probably been downplayed.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Well, at least Yukina and Seras can relate to each other now. Both their vampire guys got their heads chopped off by an insane priest.
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
I’ll still continue watching for good fun. Besides, the world of Strike the Blood seems fairly intruiging.
Someone on the Animesuki forums was kind enough to translate some terms from the show’s website re. the show’s universe.
All credit goes to Marcus H. of the Philippines. Refer to post #389.
http://forums.animesuki.com/showthread.php?t=118397&page=20
Something tells me these terms will form major plotlines later on.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Their world is like Index/Railgun meets Dance in the Vampire Bund. And all of the above were good in my opinion.
POWUH: Meta Resident and Werewolf Chaser with 1270 comments
NINJA’D!
Also this comment from @eality_Breaker XD
PS You can actually click on the number at the top right of the post to just show the comment in particular.
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
I can definitely see potential plotlines spinning out form the glossary.
Namely
1)possible Manmade Island Corp conspiracies and secrets, given the company is in charge over island admin and governance.
2)Lotharingian/Dominion political games/summits played on Itogami.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Oh, that clears SO many things up. I’m sure this was better in novel form, since they would have had time to explain all of this stuff. Or at least have a glossary or something.
POWUH: Meta Resident and Werewolf Chaser with 1270 comments
Well, in the novel there the advantage of letting the MC monoposition whenever the author feels like it. 😛
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I bet y’all weren’t expectin’ any gore, were ya? The title is “Strike the Blood” and blood has been struck. That was a lot of blood that splashed on Yukina’s face. Rudolf let her go on a whim after the look on her face when he took off Kojou’s head. Getting beheaded slowly… Ooh, that has got to be painful.
As a whole, the episode went alright but I’m pissed they cut out the very scene where Kojou lost control of his familiar and that it caused the damage. And it’s the same familiar as the one in the screenshot for the heading: a lion. Plus any damage Rudolf did would’ve been overlapped by Kojou’s.
At least they added why Kojou couldn’t control it because they don’t recognize him as their master. Personally, the term he called himself in the anime sounds better than the manga. From “Bloodsucking virgin” (manga) to “Virgin vampire” (anime) because he hasn’t had any blood in the three months he’s been a vampire.
There’s a reason Asagi is relevant. Other than being Kujou’s friend, she’s a programmer for the Manmade Island Management Corporation, one of the people responsible for the island’s entire security network as she said she had to put together a replacement from scratch so she’d know more things than most and from what I’ve read, she becomes even more relevant.
I see you did some digging. Astarte is the only successfully created homunculus that can bear a familiar through incubation. Only vampires can handle familiars in their bodies because when they materialize, they feed on their host’s life force at a fierce rate and vampires, beings without life expectancy can handle them. All those attacks on demons over the months were a means for Astarte to consume them and their power to prolong her life. She has two weeks at best to live in. That prior fight with Yukina and her lance was also used as data to perfect the formula engraved inside her, the reason Yukina’s lance attacks didn’t work this time.
More and more, Yukina’s actions are being carried out by her own motivations. Her orders were to kill Kojou if she deems him dangerous and the last incident has proved that abundantly yet she finds excuses to protect him. Not only that, she was told to “observe” him but she ends up getting involved with him further.
If you’re wondering why Astarte warned them to leave is that what they’re after is supporting that section of the island. Once that’s gone, that section will sink into the sea. Well, it’s official. After the next episode, I’ll be in the same boat as the anime only viewers.
Side note: Do you ever just stop and notice a pattern when you watch a particular anime? So far with the number of vampire anime I’ve seen, I noticed there’s always a girl, main or supporting, that has a name starting with the letters “Yu”:
Yukina Himeragi (Strike the Blood)
Yui Komori (Diabolik Lovers)
Yuuki Cross/Kuran (Vampire Knight)
Yuki Saegusa (Dance in the Vampire Bund)
Strange, huh?
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Ahaha well, I now feel better about blogging this. If I’m going to talk about a show that doesn’t know what it’s doing, I’d at least like it to be as blood-filled as possible. xD
Oh, so they kept the scene in the manga? I figured that they would have cut it out intentionally so we’re all left wondering just how badass Kojou was without them having to prove it. …I wasn’t aware that vampires even had a kind of virginity. I guess I learned something here.
My ‘digging’ consisted of choosing a chapter name that seemed relevant and looking at maybe 3 pages of the manga trying to figure out what Rudolf’s name was. xD Though I did learn about the Kenju thing, so it was worth the effort. Maybe I should go back and read the rest then, if it’s caught up.
…Huh. I never noticed that.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Hahaha, it wouldn’t be much of a vampire anime if there wasn’t any blood somewhere and I know how you have a thing for blood.
Yeah, that scene was cut and I found that a serious waste because it would have shown people how unstable and dangerous Kojou is because he refuses to accept his new life and control his familiars. Running into that term was new for me altogether, something Kojou made up. You can probably refer it to vampires who were originally human but haven’t yet engaged in their converted instincts. A pureblood vampire would have experience sucking people’s blood the moment they are able to stand on their feet.
Like I said before, Yukina is slowly but surely straying away from her objective which was only to observe and kill if necessary. And by that notion, she shouldn’t have cared if Kojou died because he is supposed to be dangerous but she developed an attachment to him and got complacent. Personally, I like to see that happen in this kind of setting where lines get blurred because it’s a forbidden love and she’s going by her own motivations and as you can see from my avatar, you know what eventually is going to happen.
The scene where Kojou lost control of his familiar can be found in chapter 6 of the manga and the explanation regarding Astarte being able to support a familiar in chapter 8. And I just got lucky. Turns out chapter 11 got released two days ago and it’s titled the same as the episodes so far: “The Right Arm of the Saint”. I’m losing myself to temptation trying to abstain from it. 😀
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Glasses and blood. Yes, I am a well-rounded individual.I guess I’ll check out the manga then (thanks for the chapter numbers). Well, there are some purebloods that haven’t had blood though, right? I think the blonde girl from Fortune Arterial? …Or maybe I’m thinking of some vampire off of some other harem show. I’ve seen far too many of them to remember every detail of them all. xD
Ahaha. Well with the plot shipping them so hard, it’s probably hard for Yukina to feel anything else. But yeah, I’m glad she’s converted her way of thinking like that, since we’re definitely not seeing any uncalled for tsun. You were definitely right when you told me not to worry. …But really, I hope the Lion King Organization isn’t going to blame Yukina for getting attached. They’re the ones who sent an impressionable middle school girl to do this job.
POWUH: Metanorn Regular with 88 comments
They weren’t kidding around when the show has “blood” in the title. I mean, we saw some in episode two, but this one had a lot more. And a decapitated head too. I don’t think the dude is dead. He is supposedly the strongest mofo in existence in this world.
I have a feeling that the enemies are given a handicap by Kojou himself since he either hesitates, cannot control or does not know how to use his powers. If he did, he could reach god-hax levels.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
…This made me laugh really hard for some reason. I need to incorporate that title somewhere in a post in the future. xD
Yeah, I feel that too. Though if there are only 3 others as strong as Kojou supposedly is, then that doesn’t make for very interesting battles. I guess the handicap is plot necessary at the moment.
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
Official music video for the OP:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24kxUhe8GZg&feature=player_embedded#t=18
I’s a good season for Japanese rock. ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ
POWUH: Meta Resident and Werewolf Chaser with 1270 comments
I can’t wait for the OP of this, TR and Arpeggio to come out lol.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Yeah, I’m really excited for the TR OP.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
There’s also the OP [Database] from Log Horizon.
POWUH: Meta Team and PreCure Mastah with 9203 comments
The end of this episode gave me a splitting headache…
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I would agree with you on that one but this seems more like a splitting headache.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Careful, Fosh! Don’t lose your head in those kinds of situations. xD
POWUH: iLurker with 5 comments
If Rudolf knows who Kojou is supposed to be, he has to know his attack is ultimately a failure and and so maybe he’s just hoping for enough of a delay to get that item he’s looking for. Since he did go for her instead, I’d have to guess that he is trying to drive her mad with dispair, again giving him time to escape and maybe removing her without actually having to kill her.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I think it’s more Rudolf doesn’t know or care who or what Kojou is because he has more pressing matters to attend to and realizes he’s just wasting time with Yukina.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
But didn’t Rudolf make a comment about the Primogenitor thing in the last episode? I guess we’ll find out in the next episode. …Though your explanation does make more sense, SmithCB. Or at least as to why Yukina was left alive.
POWUH: Meta Team and Ringleader Extraordinaire~ with 6433 comments
I finally caught up to this one and find it interesting to continue. More so because the MC is voiced by my favourite Yoshimasa Hosoya. <3
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Welcome onboard, Kyokai. I’m glad to see that another person has found interest in this show.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Yay Kyo!
POWUH: Meta Resident and Metanorn's Hime-chan~ with 1758 comments
Killing off the MC is getting in fashion or something? o-o
But boy, I wouldn’t want to be in Yukina’s place. I don’t think Kojou will die, he IS an immortal vampire, after all. But still, seeing someone dear to you get decapitated right in front of you must be terrible. And she was holding his head, too. I had no feels when I watched it, but I felt really bad for Yukina.
This whole thing with familiars and homunculus was slightly confusing, since there were no proper explanations. I felt like everything was thrown in my face all at once.
I really like Kojou. He’s just a sweetheart. And dat voice. HNGGGGG~
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
…Was there another show that did this? (I have a feeling that one happened recently, but I can’t think of any minus Danganronpa. …And that doesn’t count because they didn’t turn it into a horrible cliffhanger. xD)
Yeah, they keep saying that he’s immortal, but even then, surviving having his head cut off seems a little extreme. If he does survive, I wonder if it will be as simple as his head magically reattaching or something.
I admit that the only reason I know the term homunculus is because of Full Metal Alchemist. Otherwise, I would have been confused since they didn’t explain that well at all. Though there was a link to a bunch of defined terms in a comment above somewhere that was really helpful.
POWUH: Meta Resident and Metanorn's Hime-chan~ with 1758 comments
The great 5th episode of Shingeki no Kyojin, too 😀
I’m fine with either of those, tbh. It’s just that the moment itself was so…. bad, you know. I’m still in awe.
Yeah, I’ve read that comment, and it’s reeeally helpful. Yeah, I pretty much found out about homunculus through FMA, and that was the only thing that sunk into my brain easily.