Subete ga F ni Naru: Perfect Insider – 05
Can’t sleep, the bread phantom is haunting me…
The big mystery this episode: where on earth did Nishinosono got those cute pajamas from?!?!
Most of my enjoyment of this week’s episode was tarnished by the last conversation Nishinosono had with Saikawa. On one hand, I feel like he’s designed to be a bit of a pretentious know-it-all, but on the other hand, I couldn’t help but get just as frustrated with him as Nishinosono did. I really dislike the way he’s going about things. First of all, there’s the general discontent I have with him refusing the divulge his theories about the murder. You would think someone like him with such a sharp, detective-like mind would be the first to take charge and start pooling information to try and figure out who the killer was. Or at the very least, how to escape this facility with a potential murderer on the loose. I’m a little confused why people are baking cookies instead of freaking the fuck out that they are trapped on an island with at least one cold-blooded killer. I guess at some point you just become so resigned to not being able to escape that they just accept their fate.
My first thought was “THE COOKIES ARE POISONED” but then I regained my senses…
However, this lack of co-operation regarding the mystery is not what irritates the most about Saikawa, as he does share theories with Nishinosono in the end if she prods him enough. What irritated me was the way he fell back into his annoying, philosophy major discourse pattern. Not only that, he dialed it up to 11. I remember one of my profs once saying that Plato and Socrates came up with brilliant stuff, but they would probably be the most annoying people to talk to on the planet. Saikawa has always been that kind of person when discussing deep topics, but this time he really got unnecessarily preachy at Nishinosono about the morality of murder and how other humans lack something that Dr. Magata has. For someone who has been so careful to tread lightly around Nishinosono when it came to touchy issues, it was so shocking to see him rub salt in her wounds without reservation. It may have to do with him starting to get “confused”, perhaps about his feelings towards Nishinosono, but that doesn’t do much to make me less pissed off at him.
He responds indirectly to everything, muses about things that don’t really matter in the grand scheme of things, and is too stubborn to let anyone prove his theories wrong…despite the fact that there’s no way to prove or disprove such opinions. It’s very clear Nishinosono was getting upset at his work, and yet he continued to talk about Dr. Magata being this pure and special person on another plane of being from us. You would think he would let up when she started to cry, but he just kept it up and eventually walked out on her. I hope this guy gets killed next or at least suffers from some wicked nicotine withdrawal soon…
Basically, I felt exactly the same as Nishinosono and everything she screamed at him was something I would have said to (well, minus saying that I wouldn’t kill my parents because I don’t have that issue). So in a way, I think it’s intentional that his words are supposed to be grating. They’re irrefutable because they’re just his opinions, but that’s what makes it all the more frustrating to listen to. There’s no way to win that argument. As angry as I got, I do recognize that this fight is a key part of the mystery. Saikawa and Nishinosono can’t stay at an impasse forever. They have to directly address their feelings for one another – whatever they may be. Their first real fight is a good way to bring those emotions to the surface. I think Saikawa may have said all those horrible things to try and push Nishinosono away (especially by saying “you should handle things yourself”) because he’s afraid his kindness may be crossing over into love. The only way for him to stop this from happening to keep her at arm’s length…and what better way to do so than to get her to hate him?
“That’s right, Saikawa, you’re some basic-ass Wonderbread. You ain’t even the good shit with fibre in it”
I’ll stop myself from ranting so much about Saikawa being a jerk and refocus my attention. Let’s talk about Nishinosono being rude! Oddly enough, I find it endearing the way she’s so selfish and forthright this episode. A little hypocritical of me, but I just feel like Nishinosono is more of a victim lashing out because she’s in pain. She gets extremely upset when she’s asked to recall when her parents died, and is brought to tears when she realizes she was wearing purple on that day. I think Nishinosono fears that she may be very similar to Dr. Magata, in ways that she doesn’t want to be true. This is partly why she shifts from being curious about the murder to being more interested in Dr. Magata’s past. I give her props for being the only one actively looking for a solution to all this, but man is she ever rude to get her intel! She prods the recently-widowed director’s wife about sensitive topics non-stop and then stress eats a ton of cookies. She may be doing this more for her own satisfaction than to keep everyone alive, but it’s still for a good cause in the end. The closer we get to solving this mystery, the better off everyone is.
This episode was more about character relations than unveiling new clues. We see Saikawa act very nice to Nishinosono, who purposely pretends she doesn’t know the difference between kindness and love. Cheeky little thing. But I like the way that her relationship with Saikawa has changed from her just blindly ogling him to being mad at him. It should make for interesting dynamics later on now that he’s gotten on her bad side, perhaps allowing her to examine why she likes this loser in the first place. It certainly ain’t for his looks or his fashion sense. I also like that the sense of urgency in solving the mystery has shifted away from “Who is the killer?” to “Who was Dr. Magata?”. It may make less sense that they’re worried about personal stuff instead of how to stay alive or contact the outside world, but it makes for a much more interesting story.
At the end we get one big, shiny new clue: the knife. Dr. Magata gives her uncle the same knife we see that was used to kill the director. Right now, this makes him a prime suspect for being the director’s killer. I think we’ll move on and learn the significance of that more next week…
Here, take this knife as Michiru watches creepily in the background
About Overcooled
A neuroscience graduate, black belt, and all-around nerd. You'll either find me in my lab or curled up in my rilakkuma kigurumi watching anime.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
So, who do we know that’s been recently been killed with a knife!?
But, I agree in that the focus on character this episode gives us some insight into future clue gathering. And I do like the fact that someone baked cookies in the middle of all this. So much nervousness focused into such a mundane activity; along with the every present “I made to much” line. If that’s not a clue staring us in the face…
I wonder who has it in this much for anything associated with Magata and her uncle’s past “indiscretion”.
POWUH: Meta Team and The Mad Scientist with 5525 comments
There’s only one option!
It’s a good balance. When we’re loaded up on clues, the show gives us some time to breathe, regroup and learn about the characters. And yes, learning about the characters also counts as future clue gathering a lot of the time too.
Yeah, the cookie thing was a nice way to cover the crushing pain of losing her husband and being trapped with his killer on a remote island…but wow, she has a crazy good poker face! Do these scientists and associates know no fear? I would have gone nuts by now out of fear of being slaughtered.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
A friend of mine over on the G+ Anime Talk page kinda sees the people trapped in the lab as facets of Magata’s brain; just take her identity issue and expand it…
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I’m on the fence about the cookie thing. One the one hand, I can see it as a means of calming down in a stressful situation. If you can’t think clearly for the next step, you’ll pay for it with your life. On the other hand, it’s rather foolish to be so trusting given what’s presently happening. For all we know, the cookies could be poisoned.
Nishinosono and Saikawa’s dispute reeks of the difference of opinion. Because people are so different from their upbringing (Which also is a factor on whether a person would kill or not), it’s almost insurmountable for them to completely understand each other. Proving theories is one thing but there’s no denying him coming off as an ass with his continual praising of Shiki. In front of Nishinosono again, no less.
However, Nishinosono doesn’t get a cover for herself, either. That interrogation she forced rubbed me the wrong way. Her being conscious of it was also a nail in her coffin. Surely there was easier means to go about.
So a new clue in the form of a knife. One thing on my mind is where it was before used to kill the director. Was it in the house or stashed somewhere in the helicopter only a few would know? If someone was walking around with a blade that long, I think they’d have been noticed without effort.
POWUH: Meta Team and The Mad Scientist with 5525 comments
BB, I was kidding, I don’t think the cookies are actually poisoned!
It was pretty mean of him when he knows the effect it has on her. And calling Shiki a better person for being a genius even though she killed someone is a bit of an obtuse way of framing things.
Nishinosono was no doubt super rude as well. I’m more forgiving of it because she’s trying to achieve something good from it and her prodding didn’t make the person she was talking to break down and cry.
I have no idea how easy or hard it is to conceal a knife, but I think it’s possible to have it on you and have no one notice if you’re sneaky. Kinda like how cops conceal guns. So either the killer had it on them the whole time or they stashed it somewhere.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
The cookies are the doll, man! Don’t trust any baked products in this show. First it was the bread….
POWUH: 900-999 with 915 comments
When I saw this, I couldn’t help but remember this…
Well, thank you. Now I’m having a Humanity had Declined craving.