Rozen Maiden – 05
Then there were 3
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Yay this episode did not disappoint! I loved all the lighting they did for the scenes too. It was really noticeable in the flashbacks and a lot more interesting than having two characters talk in a well lit room for half an episode. |
Sisters indeed.
So when I said that you missed a lot of the dolls interacting when they breezed over the first half of this story, you missed a lot of… this. Actually, this was pretty mild since Hina Ichigo and Suiseiseki weren’t involved to make things annoying it was just Suigintou and Shinku having one of their usual spats. Since I’m not entirely sure that the OVA was canon or not, I’m just going to say that I’m not entirely sure why Suigintou and Shinku hate each other’s guts. They just do. Though their personalities are pretty conflicting (both are kind of stuck up), so even if they don’t have some grand event that started all of this, I can see them disliking each other regardless. Anyways, long story short, these two sisters fight an awful lot and hate each other, but they don’t really have a choice at the moment but get along. …Or at least tolerate each other’s presence. Dealing with Kirakishou is obviously a way more pressing matter for both of them.
Not much happened this week with Jun other than him being invited to help out Saito’s production (actually, that part with telling the dolls to stop fighting was pretty funny too). So instead, I’ll talk a bit lot about Suigintou and Megu’s characters. I’m glad they took up a good portion of the episode to explain her relationship with Megu, since that’s a huge part of this subplot here. So yeah, Megu has some kind of illness that she’s survived an incredibly long time with (the doctors originally said she wouldn’t live past 5), her father is never around so she feels abandoned, and she’s not exactly mentally stable, since she has an unhealthy obsession with her own death. Though she’s not going to commit suicide or anything, since she has her own vision on how she’s going to die. She meets Suigintou, and Megu is immediately attached, where Suigintou isn’t entirely sure what to think. They never form a contract for some reason. …And eventually, Suigintou is hesitant to form one since she’s worried about Megu’s health. They’ve never showed it in the anime so far, but the dolls fighting is actually really strenuous for their medium. Suigintou is (apparently) unique in that she can take energy from any human without a contract, so a medium would make her stronger, but they’re not entirely necessary. The reason why she was injured and wandering around in the middle of the episode because she was living in the church that was taken down. Also, this happened after she stole Souseiseki’s Rosa Mystica, which was rejecting her because she stole it and apparently that causes pain or something.
What they did cover was great (and really all that the story needed), but there’s another layer of sorts to this story and this helps explain why Suigintou became attached to Megu like she did. If you read the manga, you’d know that Suigintou is rather similar to Megu on a lot of levels. Her wings have caused cracks all down her back (in the original anime, I think she was missing her torso if I remember correctly) and Suigintou wants to win the Alice Game so badly because she’s desperate for Rozen’s love. Plus they both act out in attempts to get others to dislike them (Suigingtou with her first encounter with Megu, and Megu’s talk with her father and the nurses) in an indirect way of attention seeking (which probably isn’t the best way to describe it, but hopefully you get what I’m trying to say). However, after spending time with Megu, Suigintou eventually wants to win the Alice Game not for Rozen, but to heal Megu’s illness. Because apparently the Rosa Mystica can do that. Megu knows nothing about this and just continues on in her dark fantasies about Suigintou killing her. After Megu’s outburst towards her father, Suigintou decides to finally grant Megu’s wish… and then Kirakishou happens.
Suigintou isn’t an antagonist for no reason, she’s just trying to take care of Megu in her own way. I find this really heartwarming, since Suigintou seems to hate everyone else on the planet. This includes herself since on some level, she considers herself defective (not that she’ll ever admit it to anyone) which again, is why she wanted Rozen’s love so much. There was a part in the manga where the wound Jun finds Suigintou crying in the N-Feild about this, and now that I remember it, I wish they had kept that in there since it was an interesting moment for her character. Megu… actually becomes REALLY creepy in the manga in the the arc after this one, but there’s no way we’re getting there this season. So for now, she’s just a character who has wild mood swings.
If you’re wondering why Kirikishou kidnapped her in the first place, it’s because she kind of has a… medium farm. She has this creepy crystal world set up with a ton of sleeping mediums so that she can steal energy from them (or as the manga put it, “steal their souls”), and I imagine that’s why she’s currently kicking everyone else’s asses when it comes to the last few fights. This kind of seems like the same as Suingintou’s power to steal energy to me, but I guess with Kirakishou, she can only do it with mediums. Speaking of Kirakishou, her plans should come to action soonish. The book Jun received is pretty suspicious, considering that they originally stopped because of her. But for now, Jun needs to deal with the fact that Shinku has a limited time span in this world.
This was a break from all of the Jun focus, but it is interesting to know more about the other mediums that exist out there. As you probably guessed from the large volume that I’ve written, I’m really fond of this relationship between Megu and Suigintou. Jun and Shinku are nice too (and it’s interesting to note that Shinku’s presence makes Jun open up to society in both worlds), but I see Suigintou and Megu relating on so many (more obvious) levels. I think I remember Shinku saying in the manga about the Rozen Maiden going to people who resemble them (or that the medium and doll share the same Sea of Unconsciousness… or something), and I can definitely see the similarities for those two. I kind of wish they would go into Mitsu (Kanaria’s medium) a bit since she supports the wound Jun a lot, but I highly doubt that we’ll see her since she doesn’t appear in this arc. …And those two don’t quite have a meaningful relationship quite like Jun/Shinku and Megu/Suigintou. Or at least, not one that the manga goes into.
If my hunch is correct about the pacing, the next doll should arrive in episode 8 (probably towards the end) and then there’s a big event that will take up the last however many episodes this anime is.
Next episode should contain a lot more Jun and a lot less flashbacks.
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
Maybe it’s because I don’t have so much background in the story, but to me, Shinku and Suigintou don’t really have a hate on each other. It felt more like an extreme sibling rivalry. Neither wants to see the other get ahead, but I don’t know if they’d really ever want to see the other one go away permanently. I could be reading it totally wrong, of course, but that Suigintou hung around with Shinku made it seem that way.
At this point, I don’t see how there’s anything they can do about Krazikashou. I hope the show gives us a plausible pathway from Shinku and Suigintou basically last-ditch holding out to making marked progress against Kirakishou (since I’m assuming that the end game of the show isn’t “Kirakishou wins and craziness reigns”).
POWUH: 800-899 and Mad Scientist with 814 comments
I agree: I don’t get the feeling that Shinku and Suigintou really hate each other at all. It feels more like the standard friendly rivalry in spite of all their little arguments and fights.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Hmm, yeah I think a lot of my views on the two come from my background knowledge. Aside from Suigintou trying to kill Jun early on in the story due to Shinku being wound by him (even before they formed a contract), there was this part in the story where Shinku called Suigintou “worthless trash” or something (which like I said, is a sore spot for Suigintou, and Shinku knows it). This caused Suigintou to viciously rip off Shinku’s arm, leaving Shinku severely depressed until Jun magically fixed it.
They’ve since reconciled a bit (Shinku apologizing for calling Suigintou worthless and telling her that she has the same right to be a Rozen Maiden as the rest of them do), so they’re not as bad as they used to be. Suigintou’s softened a lot towards everyone since the beginning of the series, and Shinku’s become more tolerant of Suigintou.
I don’t think what Kirakishou is trying to accomplish CAN be accomplished, so you’re right about the end game (at least for this arc). …I can’t say that these two really have a plan, but more like they take a chance when an opportunity arises.
POWUH: iLurker with 2 comments
Consider the last part of the first season of nomad’s anime to be completely different from what this series is, even traumend does not really help.
Suigintou in the manga is very different from Suigintou in the first anime series.
She is shown as someone who’s really spoiled just because she’s the eldest amongst the sisters.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
As expected, things got better thanks to Suigintou’s arrival and it’s interesting to see how easily she gets under Shinku’s skin. Maybe now she has an idea of how she treats this world’s Jun. They both may be stuck up but in my opinion, Suigintou is a lot more tolerable and elegant.
The best part of the episode was the interaction between Suigintou and Megu, it certainly had more appeal than with Shinku and Jun. Though the setting would be considered morbid given Megu’s determined wish for death, it was still intriguing because of how Megu’s carefree attitude about her own end affected Suigintou’s character and actually made her worry. Amusingly, before they were interrupted, it almost sounded like a marriage when Megu put the ring on her finger.
In another view, Megu is like an orphan forsaken by everyone around her though they’re still in arms reach and Suigintou is this supernatural being with whom she can relate to and so they become friends while Megu is slowly but surely being lured further into darkness. If you want similarity to this, just think of the quiet and romantic relationship between Seishin and Sunako. For some reason, I really like these kinds of dark, dramatic relationships better than the standard ones.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Shin-ku! Shin-ku! Shin-ku!
To me, Suigintou’s relationship with Megu is much more of a standard tsundere feeling, not interestingly complicated like Shinku’s attitude. And I think that was supposed to evoke marriage allusions, with the ‘veils’ and the ring. I don’t really understand why Kirakishou picked that moment to ‘steal’ Megu.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Kirakishou can only steal the souls/energy of mediums. Before Megu put on the ring, she wasn’t officially one; she was just someone Suigintou hung out with.
…Don’t ask me why Kirakishou has that kind of limitation on her, but she does.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Ahh, that makes some sense, and it also answers a question I had about Shinku and unwound Jun.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Ahaha Shinku is never going to treat Jun any differently. He’s the shared punching bag for all of the dolls. xD
Yeah, Megu wanted it done like a marriage since it’s more elegant that way. She has… I have no idea how to put this… artistic visions? Like with the flying out the window when she dies, Megu wants to live her life like a fairy tale or something. It’s her way of running away from reality.
Hmm, maybe I’m the same as you on that. I really liked Seishin and Sunako’s relationship. Or maybe I just like the ‘villains’ being tragic figures who are saved on some level by having someone come to understand them.