Dansai Bunri no Crime Edge – 10
…Well, damn.
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Well, I was distracted by E3 (to which I think we can say that Sony thoroughly kicked Microsoft’s ass and then proceeded to rub salt in the wounds while laughing mercilessly) and work, but I managed to finally write about Dansai Bunri. |
Iwai’s hair isn’t growing back as long as it used to and to be honest, I have absolutely no idea what that means. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that Violet and Iwai met? Since Violet seemed like she was trying to avoid Iwai (Plus Emily said something about the something happening if the two of them met). Either that, or maybe the Hair Queen curse is being lifted for some reason. A lot of things happened in the last episode, so maybe it’s due to something like Iwai finding true love (or something cheesy like that) that her hair has stopped growing so much. …Or maybe it’s just due to the curse weakening over time, which would also explain why Iwai doesn’t have any killing intent (since the curse apparently came with it in the beginning… or maybe the queen was just insane).
CANNIBALISM SOLVES EVERYTHING.
In any case, it’s something that she wanted to get rid of, but at the same time, it’s a big part of who she and she probably can’t imagine herself without it. I think a lot of that has to do with the bond her and Kiri share too, but still. She’s lived with it for so long, so it’s probably hard for her. Kiri mentioned about feeling something similar about losing Crime Edge this episode, and he really felt insecure when he lost them. Though maybe it’s not quite the same since Iwai’s hair is clearly a burden on her and for Kiri, Crime Edge is more like an obsession. I’ve never seen Kiri say that he actually wants to get rid of the scissors and be normal. I wonder what would happen if Iwai lost her cursed hair though. Since Kiri kind of needs Iwai as his Instead. …Or maybe not since he did fine without her before. Though Emily mentioned something about her being an Author without an Instead, so maybe Kiri is like that too and is more of a special snowflake than just being a descendant of the world’s worst murderer. …Actually, the real reason should be more apparent next episode, but I figured I should mention this anyways.
So anyways, on to Emily. She has ties to Iwai in the form of knowing her father, but Iwai has never seen the girl (as far as we know). Emily also said something about Iwai’s father giving her the Killing Goods she has too, so my suspicions about Iwai’s father being far from an innocent antiques dealer are deepened. As for Emily’s character herself… well to be honest, she feels like the stereotypical vengeful loli. There’s nothing really special about her personality and while she can fight, fighting with knives in a show that normally has murderous pianos seems kind of uninspired. Of course, it’s her gloves that are the actual object, but still. But at least she finally pointed out that fighting with scissors isn’t exactly the most efficient thing ever. At her proclamation about not needing an Instead, I wasn’t as impressed as I think I should have been. I mean, it’s something everybody has, but I don’t think we’ve ever really seen what happened with any Author who might have lost one. Yes, there was sledgehammer guy, but it felt more like he was totally off the deep end anyways as opposed to being that way because he didn’t have an Instead. If only we had an instance of seeing an Author without an Instead, then I might be more impressed.
What, you don’t clean your knives naked and in front of an open window?
So yeah, I’m really apathetic about Emily’s character. The next episode should explain more about her powers (which are pretty cool actually), but as for her personality herself, there’s nothing that really catches my attention. Actually, the next episode marks where I stopped reading the manga though, so my opinion of her might change in the future. As for now though, she just seems like your typical kid who wants to kill Iwai. She’s mature for a kid, but she’s also still a kid and can experience normal emotions as blatantly pointed out by her bond with those dogs. Though I did like how she told off Iwai for using her to take her problems off her mind. Also, Emily’s voice was really nice and her seiyuu is Hidaka Rina, who was that twintailed loli in Accel World and Kaede in Tiger and Bunny. I didn’t think she was noteworthy in either of those, but I like her voice as Emily here. Also, I can’t comment much on her name (Emily Redhands) since it’s all in katakana. Which probably means that she’s foreign (or it’s a fake name), and not much more.
Actually, the interesting part of the episode for me came from Kiri and Iwai’s reactions when faced with the loss of their curses. Their relationship has just steadied out (and is going well (kind of), despite the two of them being kind of awkward) and now both of them are questioning what would happen if they lost the thing that brought them together. Er, maybe Iwai more than Kiri since Kiri just kind of lost his scissors for 5 second in a fight and freaked out, but I really am curious as to what would happen if either of them lost their curse. I want to see them question if it was ever really a curse in the first place since it brought the two of them a weird kind of happiness.
Well Kiri, time to dope up I guess.
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: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Iwai freaking out about her hair not growing out and Kiri being upset about it was dumb, but authentic. I think it’s completely understandable that a 14-year old girl would act like that (oh, I do so wish this show was set in high school, tho).
I’m not a huge fan of Emily, nor the ‘kid killer’ idea.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
True, it is kind of disturbing to imagine a cute, little kid as a cold blooded killer.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
It’s that image gap that makes that interesting though. If Emily was a little different as a character, I think I would like her as a child killer better. I don’t quite know what she’s missing, but she’s definitely missing something.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I think it would have been better if Emily’s body was a little more grown. That chibi body of hers isn’t making it easy to accept that she’s killer. However, she does have the physical capabilities of a professional.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
See, that’s what I find most unrealistic about kid killers like Emily. She’s like a ninja savant, but that just doesn’t fit with kid physiology, really.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Well, this is anime and it rarely dwells in the realm of reality. What it does best is bringing out things you’d never think would be possible in the real world. Giant fighting robots is a huge example so child assassins like this is another one of its quirks.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
I guess seeing her flip around like that is stretching logic a bit. …Lord knows where she gets her strength from considering that she’s a child, but I guess being an Author gives a convenient excuse for all of that. Of course, Kiri is one too and he lost pathetically, but he has the excuse of “he was holding back against a kid” or whatever.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
I think my main problem with her at the moment is that she doesn’t even seem to have a good reason for being a killer (I haven’t gotten around to watching 11 yet, so I could still be proven wrong at this point). She just kind of is one because screw logic, this is a dark edgy show about murderers.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Isn’t stupidity pretty much linked with youth at this point? I don’t think the story would change that much if this was in high school, so I’d kind of like to see that too. Though it would give Iwai less of an excuse to be socially awkward.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
It’s not really the stupidity, because I don’t think that Iwai, Kiri, and the others act particularly stupid. Most of their issues (like in this episode) are just being new to love, and would be fine either in high school or middle school.
For me it’s that those extra three years from 13 to 16 add a lot of freedom for how kids are likely to act romantically with each other. That’s one reason I find Aku no Hana a lot tougher to deal with (especially in that show because they look like adults, and then they’re saying they’re 13 or 14). I’m not denying that 12 year olds even are thinking about girlfriends and boyfriends, but it seems like it’s pushing it a younger.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I find that’s becoming increasingly relevant with reality. These days, children are becoming a little too advanced in that department and the shows on TV are only feeding them more.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
I’ll admit, Kiri and Iwai get into more… risque scenarios than you’d think for their ages. As for Aku no Hana, I’m kind of suspending my disbelief like I do with Hollywood movies (aka, the story says that the characters are in highschool (or whatever age), but all of the actors are totally in their mid-20’s or older and look nothing like actual highschoolers).
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Well,for me, Aku no Hana would be completely believable in High School. But they say Middle School…
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Another child assassin. I haven’t seen one those since the deranged little kid in Mirai Nikki with the hand puppets. Based on what Emily said about Iwai’s father, it’s possible the two are related. I’d have to go with half siblings and Emily’s the illigitimate child. She talks to Iwai in a rather jealous and condescending tone.
Iwai’s hair growth most likely represents her state of mind and I guess having it long was some kind of indication of despair. Since meeting Kiri, she’s been slowly changing, becoming cheerful.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
Yeah, LOLidom is not going to rally behind such an uninspired characteristic. Not character, we have yet to see her develop much; not that I am sanguine, the show does paint in broad strokes.
Like liking hair….Dude…I understand the feels, but…decorum….ah, youth is wasted…
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
See, I like the kid in Mirai Nikki infinitely better though since his story was one of those bittersweet things. I… don’t know how I’d feel about Iwai and Emily being related. Maybe they have different mothers or something since Emily seems free of the Hair Queen curse.
Oh, and if that’s not the cause, it could serve as some sort of metaphor anyways. Bringing back that quote in the first episode about a woman’s hair being her life this could mean… something deep. Maybe. I don’t even know.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
That kid in Mirai Nikki was so efficient in his killing methods I felt sighs of relief that I wasn’t in his path. The biggest surprise was that he had the mentality of a serial killer yet according to the story, he was only 5 years old. He got that way after watching his parents die in front of him. Too bad for him in the end that he couldn’t handle Yuno. He electrocuted her after soaking her and she still killed him.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
See, I think he worked better than Emily because he was a bit deranged. Emily still looks totally sane and has no excuse for killing people. At least #5 had that childlike innocent sadism going for him.