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February 6, 2005 | 
64 Comments
I'll make it short and sweet this time (who snorted "Yeah right", huh?): Episode 18 was great. Due to the HiMElander prophecy things are slowly unraveling, so the expected downspin which the classical drama arc demands now is set into motion. But in what a wonderful and smart way. Maybe I've just had a very slow day, but the final twist caught me unprepared again.
Both Mai HiME and Absolute Rating get a (+) this time. We have goodies for everyone - the action, drama and character fans. The RAW wasn't easy, but not too difficult either, so you should be able to watch it and understand most of what happens.
Mai HiME Rating: +
Absolute Rating: +
RAW complexity: Medium
Mashiro and Fumi are shown in a place which looks like the ruin of a modern multi-story building. Mashiro is looking at a wooden chair which is placed like a throne and wonders if what they are doing is really just. Fumi replies that she has no opinion on that and doesn't really understand, but she is going to follow Mashiro to the end. Still lost in her thoughts, Mashiro remarks that the obsidian prince will soon awaken.
A couple of things should be mentioned here. First, Mashiro is using a male pronoun this time, so it's definitely a prince after all. Also, Fumi refers to herself in the third person in front of Mashiro. Evidence is piling up that she probably is no normal human HiME after all. She has the same birthday as Mashiro. Her name is also inviting speculation (Himeno Fumi - HiME no Fumi - Fumi of the HiME). Now her strange way of talking to herself... I'll come back to that later in the review.
In the park, Mai is facing off with the apparition in the white bridal gown and the strange crow-like child she has been summoning. The apparition is playing on a weird flute and the crow sets off to attack Mai. Realizing that this is obviously a HiME power she is confronted with, Mai takes a purely defensive stance, but the monster is too fast - she manages to block him with her shield once, but she is thrown back, and after one more exchange in which the monster shoots her with some kind of beam weapon, Mai finds herself prone on the ground while the crow is sweeping in for the kill.
Mikoto to the rescue. Appearing out of nowhere, she slams back the crow and sees Mai in a battered and bruised shape. Irate with anger on seeing this, her ani-ue charm starts to glow, and she charges Miroku for a deadly attack on the white kimono HiME. In the last moment, Mai holds back Mikoto from behind to enforce her "no fighting between HiMEs" directive, confusing Mikoto who simply wants to dispose of an enemy. Still, she gives in as requested, and both the apparition and her monster vanish. Behind a tree, Nao has been watching the scene, and she is turning to leave unnoticed.
I've included a shot showing the HiME from the side. To me, the pony haircut and childish face perfectly mirror Shiho. Make up your own mind, but if this ain't Shiho with all the other evidence against her, I'd be more than surprised.
Akira is standing on a roof of a building, whisper-talking to a shadowy figure behind a structure. It's obviously someone sent from her father, since it passes on a reminder from him to Akira stating that she must not forget her mission. Akira confirms that, but doesn't look happy in the least.
Meanwhile Mai is soaking in her bathtub. She is very downcast about the latest happenings and mulling over the danger which Takumi as her MVP is in. Just when she finds some resolve telling herself that she must not lose, she realizes where that leads and berates herself just to start thinking like Nagi. She still believes in finding other ways out of the crisis and doesn't want to be drawn into this battle royale.
Mikoto is dreaming of her days she spent as a kid with her ani-ue. He congratulates her for her improvements but states that it's not yet enough to win. She MUST defeat the enemy no matter what. If you say so, big brother... and she awakens, realizing that her pendant is glowing hot. Mai comes out of the bath, and Mikoto tells her that she had a dream - but when Mai asks for the contents, she has already forgotten.
In a bit of cuddle- and skinship-time Mai thanks Mikoto for the rescue, but reiterates once more that she shouldn't fight other HiMEs. Mikoto is confused by this. She likes Mai, so she wants to protect her. But how can she if she must not fight? Mai replies that she is grateful for these feelings already, but she does not want Mikoto to fight.
I see a major issue developing here. Ani-ue and Mai are advocating two diametrally opposed approaches, and this won't be pure coincidence. I think that somewhere in the future, Mikoto will be forced to choose between ani-ue (who will almost certainly be the Obsidian Prince) and Mai, and this decision will shape the end of the story.
On the next morning, Mai, Takumi and Akira are walking to school. Mai and Akira are happy that a donor has been found, but Takumi is decidedly unenthusiastic about it. To the puzzlement of the others he says that he wants some more time to think about it. To prepare his heart (no pun intended).
Takumi's defeatist attitude is SO gonna spell problems for Mai. He is the cornerstone of her world, and the task to care for him is the source of her strength. Unsurprisingly, the wavering feelings of Takumi in turn weaken Mai's own determination, making her all the more vulnerable. It's a weakness I expect to continue for a little bit, and to graduallly get worse.
In the school, Mai literally bumps into Tate. Both stare at each other in embarrassment until a blushing Mai wishes him a good morning and passes him by. As usual, Chie and Aoi make some speculations about their love life, but with no conclusive results. Yukino summons Mai to the next HiME conference at the garden monument.
Here, Midori, Yukino, Mikoto, Mai and Nao talk about what's going to happen next. Midori and Mai promote the party line of "We must find a way around this, meanwhile there must be no fighting between HiMEs in order not to endanger the MVPs". Nao cuts in and remarks that Mai already HAS been fighting - it's too late for this talk since someone already HAD shown the willingness to fight (indicating that she knows about the nightly attack). Mai is taken aback and says that she had intended to tell the others about it. Nao forges on that since Mai had already killed Alyssa's child, she also has killed her first MVP. Mai is shocked because she obviously hadn't thought about that before. Finally Nao points out that Mai can summon a monster which is so powerful that it can even go into space. What would happen to other HiMEs if Mai had a change of heart and went berserk on the other HiMEs?
This line hits home. The timid Yukino almost breaks down in tears and flees the convention. Nao also leaves parting with a "If I was you, I'd watch my back" comment directed at Mai who is totally shaken. Midori sees this and comforts her a bit, pointing out that Mai had to do it to save the others, and Alyssa was a fake HiME anyway. Still, the initial rifts are beginning to show and Nao made it clear that she was gonna fight when she was threatened.
Natsuki wasn't with the others, because she was talking to Sakomizu-sensei about the latest developments and realizations. She bitterly poses the rhetorical question if he expects her to accept all that, to which he replies that he does not. "Damn right" hisses Natsuki and leaves. After she's gone, Sakomizu-sensei mutters to himself "She is really your daughter, Doctor Kuga" - which confirms an earlier speculation that he is helping Natsuki because of his personal contact with her mother.
Ishigami-sensei approaches him and scolds him not to reveal all this much to Natsuki. So this is why he knew that he had to act when the SEARRS soldiers invaded - he is with First District too! Sakomizu is getting rid of him with the comment that the both of them shouldn't be seen together, and Ishigami beats it.
Midori is spending some time in the Nurse's office to have a talk with her friend Kyoko and get some sleeping pills in order to get some rest after all. In her hand she has a printout of the material her MVP Professor Sasaki has sent her, so Kyoko teases her with it asking if it was a love letter. After Midori weakly replied that it was for her thesis Kyoko asks her if Midori really wanted to go back to the university so badly, and Midori reveals that this was only a part of it - more importantly she has doubts whether or not she is a good teacher. Kyoko is surprised and after she points out that she most certainly thinks that Midori is, she's handing her some sleeping pills which Midori munches down dry like sweets. "Delicious!" she says. I will so miss her one day.
Natsuki is having a heart-to-heart with Mai in the park. She's remarking that she is 17 years old already since she had to repeat a grade when the accident happened which hospitalized her and killed her mother. She says that she will not participate in the HiMElander, since she has nothing to gain from it. She also thinks that she has no MVP. Only if any enemy proves to be with First District, she is going to help.
It's interesting that she repeated her history once more, since she already did that in ep9. Therefore we can conclude that the few new bits (age 17, repeat a grade, no known MVP) will be important later on. A logical explanation would be Shizuru - since Natsuki's relationship will obviously be developed in the next episode, and as the school council head she'd be involved in all matters. Also, Shizuru is the only person our favorite ice queen showed a warmer side to. I guess that ep19 will tell.
Suddenly, Mai and Natsuki hear a shrieking cry. They rush over and see a lightly hurt Yukariko lying in the grass, claiming to be attacked by a child. But by who??? Nao-san, she says. And Natsuki loses it, decides that Nao must be from First District (j/k) and flies off on Duran to find this "stupid girl".
Back in her office, Midori makes an astounding discovery: In the extra material she received from Professor Sasaki an incident is described in past times in which a young girl got lost under mysterious circumstances. Her name: Kazahana Mashiro!
Mashiro and Fumi return and meet with Nagi. Since I can't decipher most of their talk yet, but feel that this scene holds important informations for later, I'll list the dialogue (thanks to TI for translating) of their entire scene in context, skipping the interruptions:
Nagi: Welcome back!
Mashiro: How was things?
Nagi: I did what you asked me to. It's going to start soon.
Mashiro: What you told the girls... did you tell them the truth? Did they accept it just like that?
Nagi: Heh... what do you think I'm for? Those girls are like celluloid dolls.
*Nagi picks up a doll*
Nagi: With just a little spark...
*The doll goes up in flames*
Mashiro: Did the prince awaken yet?
Nagi: Who knows... do you really need to know? Who is it, I wonder... what's with that face? Could it be that you remember something from the past?
The "past" bits will become very relevant later. I don't quite understand what Nagi's role in all of this is yet - unless he is the "Obsidian Prince" of old. More about that down below.
In the park, Nao is having a peaceful rest when suddenly, a gunshot cracks and a bullet hits the tree she's leaning on. However, the sound doesn't quite have the special "clink" from Natsuki's pistols. Nao is getting up and taking a defensive posture, and soon thereafter Natsuki appears and confronts her, accusing her of having attacked the sister. Nao replies that she doesn't know what Natsuki is talking about, and instead SHE has just been shot at without provocation. The quarrel quickly escalates into a fight, causing Nao to summon Julia. Based on the first exchanges, Nao seems to have the upper hand when Mai and Yukino appear on the scene to intervene and stop the fight.
Nao is using her webs to cut some trees, and Mai and Yukino barely manage to avoid being crushed under them. Incredulously they see how Julia's stinger is poised at them menacingly. Mikoto appears on the scene again trying to engage Julia, but she is just swatted away like a fly. Then, Julia attacks Mai hiding behind her defensive shield, almost penetrating it and sending them flying backwards. However, meanwhile the unchecked Duran is able to get a few decisive shots in...
One of Duran's shots hits Julia's stinger, tearing off its tip in an explosion. Nao sees with horror how Julia is shot, and the tip is hitting her straight in the face, causing her to collapse. Duran is readying himself to continue his barrage, but Natsuki comes to her senses and commands him to stand down. Meanwhile, Midori has also arrived at the scene and shouts at the girls to stop the fight.
Blood is dripping from Nao's left half of her face. With some effort she comes to her knees, still holding her face with her hand - and when she removes it to have a look it is totally drenched in blood. She obviously received a horrible wound and might have even just lost her left eye. Crying in physical and emotional agony she is screaming at the others that she would never forgive them what they did, and she orders Julia to shoot web in all directions. While everyone is taking cover to avoid the webbings she is jumping on Julia's back who is making a giant leap into the sky, escaping to safety.
The fight all but over, Yukino breaks down crying. The fighting has been too much for her, and she can't take it anymore. While Akira is watching the scene from the shadows, all other HiMEs are looking shellshocked when the recent disaster is sinking in. Nobody is celebrating any victory, even Natsuki looks terribly downcast. This is obviously not at all what she wanted, and she will feel even worse when she realizes what really had happened... only Midori is looking grim and sets off to have an important talk with Mashiro.
Over there, she confronts Mashiro with the evidence she found - about the incident in the past about the missing girl named Kazahana Mashiro. The accused girl in the wheelchair mildly states that she is surprised, since she had buried her past. Clearly enraged, Midori shouts at Mashiro to find a way to stop this HiMElander madness, but Mashiro objects - her role is exactly the opposite: It is her job to make sure that the "festival" continues. And she commends Sugiura-sensei for her accomplishments so far.
This is getting a bitter reception from Midori. She voices her self-doubts whether or not she has been a decent teacher in the past. But there is one thing she knows for sure: These girls have been given in HER care and it is HER duty as a teacher to protect them from harm, and THIS is what she will do. Therefore she summons her axe and strikes a threatening pose.
Mashiro replies that she understands and will respond to it. Fumi steps in front of her, offers a demure apology to Midori, claps her hands, and a giant scythe appears. So this is how it is, smirks Midori, and the two of them stare at each other...
Time to put the developments in perspective. I think it's extremely likely by now that Mashiro is actually the surviving HiME of the last HiMElander 300 years ago. The timeframe of the incident described in the material Midori received from Professor Sasaki is unknown, but the paper seems to show a medieval japanese shrine, and I'm almost willing to BET that it will be from 300 years in the past. Everything else fits all too well: Nagi's reference to memory fragments of the past in this episode, or Alyssa's ominous "Meifu no Ojousama" (Queen of the Underworld) quote from ep14. I guess that she is feeling so guilty and compassionate with the girls at the same time because she knows very well what it means to be in her shoes. And now that it has become clear that her role is that it's actually her duty to oversee the girls fighting each other, all her past actions make more sense. Like trying to hide each HiME's identities from each other.
It would also give Fumi a new special role. Due to the reasons I outlined above it's very likely that she is no "normal" HiME contender of this festival aswell. Her birthdate, her name, her total devotion to Mashiro rather feels like a pet, a bodyboard - like a "child" with sentience. It will be interesting where this one will go.
I sure pray that the next episode won't see the end of Midori already. Because it's inconceivable that one of the key figures like Mashiro, which is almost certainly going to play a big role in the resolution, will be defeated by Midori so early on. Now Midori on the other hand is painfully expendable, with a capital PAIN. This girl is so all-around likable and _good_ that I already hate to see her go when the time comes. There is a chance that it won't be in ep19. I bite my nails and send some prayers to the anime gods to give her at least some more time.
The real kicker for me in this episode comes now, however. In the church, Yukariko is healing herself with the powers of her child, St.Vrus. She looks downtrodden and weeps:
"Lies... illusions... all of this... I feel so dirty."
Ishigami-sensei enters and remarks "You hate me, don't you"? Then he screams that he will take the power of the HiME star of herself. For him, Yukariko is just a means for this end, and he forces a kiss on Yukario, who just weakly struggles and then gives in.
The implication is obvious: Nao was framed. Yukariko was never attacked by Julia, she only took some bruises from Ishigami to look hurt in order to exploit Nao's delinquent reputation. And Natsuki fell for it, hook and sinker. On the other end, he was the one firing at Nao, both ensuring that she was mentally in combat mode when Natsuki arrived aswell. This is also why in the middle of the fight he was shown with a superior smirk, celebrating his scheming success.
Now that we know his motivation (the power of the star) and his background (from First District), he has established himself as a player. And it's making so much sense. Since Yukariko seems to be the most harmless HiME of all, inciting all others to fight and kill each other is the logical way to go. The weak HiMEs will have to resort to backstabbing in order to win the deathmatch. And Yukariko's entry was very successful in this aspect.
What happened to Nao bugs me bigtime. Yes, she does do her shares of real ugly stuff (trying to bury the others in ep7 or attacking Mai and Yukino in ep18), but she WAS following the "don't fight" directive, as much as she openly denounced it earlier on. Using her delinquent reputation against her to frame her was really vile. And her teary reaction not only to her injury but also to the fact that she was unjustly and unprovokedly attacked by all these from her point of view seemingly hypocritical good-doers, swearing revenge in her isolation... that really really bothered me :}
Maybe I'm too softhearted, but I hope that the anime will not just kill her off like this. It would be way too tragic. But so much damage is done already...
Conclusion
What made this episode so great in my eyes was that slowly but certainly all those little plot threads which were carefully added to all characters are converging. The story is emerging out of the mists all by itself, and the storytelling is flawlessly woven into some action and drama bits to make it go down easier.
So the anime still rewards those who invest some thoughts, because most of the developments could still be logically deduced. However, it still manages to surprise in a logical way - I did NOT expect Yukariko to be capable of such an effective deception. Still, with Ishigami-sensei in the background, it's perfectly logical.
(I need to slap my forehead for this one by the way. I figured early on that it couldn't have been Nao - if it had been, why is she still alive? But I had thought that it was just one more of Nagi's machinations, who wants to pour a little oil into the fire. Accordingly, I was flabbergasted when in the end, Yukariko turned out to be the culprit).
Mai HiME is at its best when momentum is built. This was one of those "momentum" episodes. I wonder if it will continue to grow till the very end, or if we're poised for a second climax before the final resolution issue pops up.
In any way, this was a wonderful episode. More of that, please. As soon as possible!
Once again I agree with absolutely everything you've said.
I don't think Nao will make a return appearance till at least episode 20. She'll need to get herself one of those half masks Alv and Dvergr had at the end of Kiddy Grade.
great summary as usual,Mentar.with the action going up a notch in the coming episodes, i'll be relying on your summaries to make more sense by the episode( and hopefully increase my Japanese comprehension).
well, keep up the good work. ganbatte ne!!
Midori will survive for now. Mai needs to know about Fumi and thus, completing their version of the 12 himes.
"(I need to slap my forehead for this one by the way. I figured early on that it couldn't have been Nao - if it had been, why is she still alive? But I had thought that it was just one more of Nagi's machinations, who wants to pour a little oil into the fire. Accordingly, I was flabbergasted when in the end, Yukariko turned out to be the culprit)."
totally with you on that one. Heck, it was only after reading your review that I sorta realized this.
... and dang it, I want Nao to live longer!
*sigh*
Nao is NOT going to die. The HiMEs are not SUPPOSED to die, they live, even if they lose.
There are two ways to win, Fencedude. Kill the HiME's child or kill the HiME. It's not Pokemon :}
In her current state of mind, Nao won't try to have revenge on Duran. The target of her hate will be either Natsuki, and/or - if she learns about it - Ishigami-sensei and Yukariko. Assume for a second that only Julia is defeated: Would Nao be the type to cease her hostilities?
We don't know yet who her MVP is, so simply killing Julia wouldn't somehow feel "right" to me. I could imagine her _really_ dying (in the bad case), or somehow coming around in the end and surviving (which I would prefer).
Nao will use the power of the face scar and survive!!
She'll take notes from fellow sunrise brothers Kazuma, Dilandau, and Yzak
Nao will live if for no other reason than because after she loses she'll WANT to die.
Like TI speculates, after her loss, Nao will attempt suicide, but she'll be stopped.
I can't see any advantage plotline wise for Nao to die...unlike Midori.
Also, Natsuki won't kill Nao. No matter how cold she seems, I can't see her actually killing Nao. But then again, I don't think Natsuki will be the one to defeat Julia either. *cough*Shizuru*cough*
Great summary & commentary once again! To answer your question that you posed on my comments section, I didn't actually hear any mention of when the documents were found. In addition, I'm pretty sure Mashiro was supposed to have died in that accident, not disappeared. Which might explain why she's not an old woman, but still in a girl's body, if these events took place long ago. She may not exactly be human...
As for Fumi referring to herself in the 3rd person, that's actually not very unusual for females to do, in the presence of someone they're close to. (Haha...I do that when I speak to my parents, e.g.) But yeah, it does show a deep connection between her and Mashiro.
I don't want Midori to disappear quite yet either. I want her and Akira to stay as long as possible. ^_^
T-I: I thought it'd be more in the style of Bartfeld, but okay. ;)
Sheesh, but actually think about it, you put Yzak and Nao together and it sort of clicks huh. Hair colour totally doesn't match though.
"Since Yukariko seems to be the most harmless HiME of all, inciting all others to fight and kill each other is the logical way to go." What did you mean by that? I thought harmless people would just want to leave each other alone. Surely she has enough brain cells to figure out that protect MVP = don't get into harm's way = don't fight... or Ishigami sensei probably has a Sexy Pheromone (sp) Alice and is exploiting it :P
Typing that reminded me of Sexy Commando. Aaaaaaaaahhhhhh. Do you think Mai did a Sexy Commando on Reito this ep? Distract him and while he's not looking... okay, well she didn't kill him or something, but it's an idea! All she needs are those heavy golden things on her shoulders...
Great summary Mentar. Unfortunantley I think Midori is done for in the next episode...she is such a likeable character but I think it is necessary for her to die to develop the plot.
My only concern is when are they going to bring up Tate's past...they keep alluding to it but they haven't brought it into the mix yet ...I really want to know!
but wao, she'll need also need to wear pant with zippers! Come on, that's the BEST part of the distraction XD
seriously, I kind of want to see some HiMEs die. I think it'll bring the reality of the situation a lot closer to home for most of them, plus tragic deaths of "heroes" are always good ;)
blah, sorry for the double post but I didn't see Kris' comment about Tate til afterwards.
If I was to take a guess, I would have to say Tate got an major injury in one of legs. Probably something similar to what happened to him in the manga version, where the scar is on his arm instead. How they're going to play it out, if any, is anyone's guess.
Hmm *ponders* ... being De-HiMEd and then rescued... okay, that might work. I just sense that there's a bit more to Nao which we know yet - I hope that they'll show what turned her into the cynical lone wolf she is nowadays. But they would only do this if there was some kind of hope for a positive solution - or it would be doubly cruel.
So I hope that if she is to survive, it's not going to be as a defeated and deserted ex-HiME, but give her something positive to work with instead. Neh?
Great summary! i'm always impressed!
Due to the fact that Mashiro and Fumi also have the same voice (the same voice actor),
I have the feeling that they're most likely kinda the same person...the HiME of the past and the HiME of the future, or a HiME and child relationship?
As for The Obsidian Prince, I hope it will be somebody not to be expected as for example Takumi! That'ld be awesome!
(but I know that it's not likely to be that way )
Awesome, awesome episode. One of the best original shows I've seen in a long while.
Anyway, Nagi doesn't pick up a doll, he pulls it out of nowhere ^_^
(seriously, the doll he burns appears nowhere in the previous shot. I'm obsessing for too much on the fact the fact there are twelve (thirteen if you include the one Nagi burns) of them).
"How they're going to play it out, if any, is anyone's guess."
Something tells me that his injury (if it's an injury at all, that is) is somehow connected to Shiho, as in the manga. I think they might just do a flashback in the next episode during the promised Shiho+Tate time we see in the preview.
As for Yukariko's willingness to fight, I think it's because she secretly knows that her REAL MIP is out of harms way. Can't really kill God, after all.. ^^;; (j/k)
Erhm... could anyone please enlighten me where in the show you found any hint on a Tate background story about an injury or anything? There's one in the manga storyline, but I couldn't remember anything from the anime pointing in this direction.
Other than his mysterious exit from the Kendo club, there's nothing.
I think you're slightly wrong fencedude. There have been (I think) two-three scenes where Tate looks at his (injuried/scarred) leg while pondering what to do (i.e. Act like an man and be an hero). Maybe I'm reading too much into it, but something definitely happen to Tate in the past. I thought they even mentioned part of the reason Tate left the Kendo club for a bit was because some injury or wound?
Midori's chances for survival depend on whether or not she will be the victim of the "You know too much. Thus you'll die before anyone else can know!" cliche for the lack of a better term. I have a feeling that Fumi and Midori will not use their Childs in the battle. This does not of course factor in all the varying theories about Fumi's HiME status out there. Still it will be interesting to see what Fumi's personality battle wise will be. Still hopefully if Midori does goes down in her fight with Fumi, she won't go down easily.
The fact that Natsuki so easily believed Yukariko as far as I can tell just goes to show to me one thing. That Natsuki thinks extremely lowly of Nao. Thus it was very easy for Natsuki to believe Yukariko. I know both Natsuki and Nao were tricked by all parties involved. However I still can't help, but feel Natsuki was ready and willing to believe Nao did something bad just because of Nao's nature and didn't even need the so called "evidence".
Shiho's potential kiss with Tate can go a number of ways. Either way regardless I have bad feeling the end result won't be good. Because either Tate will pretend to kiss her out of love, but still be going after Mai. Or it will be a goodbye kiss, but Mai will see at the wrong time. That's even if the kiss happens at all. Still it would be a good point for them to do some flashbacks concerning both Shiho and Tate.
We all know that Natsuki and Nao aren't exactly the best of friends, but I don't really think that it means that Natsuki truly hates her. For one thing, not only does Natsuki not only see a reason for Yukariko to make up a lie like that, I'm sure she also doesn't even EXPECT her to -- no one should. Nuns can't lie, after all (or at least they shouldn't) . Therefore, it's Nao's word against the Sister's. Those are some pretty bad odds, I'd say.
Gee, thanks a lot of that last screencap, Mentar. I think I'll have nightmares for the next couple of days :P That kiss better be a dream or else I'll be as traumatised as Akane.
This show reminds me more and more of Battle Royale. Anyone who haven't seen that film is recommended to do so. You probably want to see the lighthouse scene to see how easy it is for everyone to distrust each other so quickly. In addition to this, the weakest person in the group may turn out to be the one that is most willing to attack/kill the others. The girls better keep their eyes close on Yukino and Yukariko.
Having said that, I'm surprised at how easy it is to bait the girls to fight each other. To begin with, these girls still have no idea on what to be gained from killing another HiME's Child (apart from protecting their MIP). But anyone with a logic will realise that if they intent to protect their MIP, then the easiest solution to this is to not engage in a fight with one another because there's always a chance that the other HiMEs will be more powerful. So why bother fighting? The only reason I can come up with is that the HiMEs don't trust each other and they have these "What if they attack me first?" and "Maybe I'll be better off if I attack them secretly" voices on their minds.
Midori doesn't have to survive in order to tell Mai about Mashiro/Fumi's secret. She could have left Mai a copy of the document that she found as well as some kind of a message that tells Mai that she's on her way to Mashiro/Fumi to investigate the two. If she doesn't come back, then it means she lost to those two.
I don't believe that Natsuki doesn't have a most important person. She probably thinks that she doesn't have one but Nagi went out of his way to ensure that Mai chose one in one of the previous episodes. So it's possible that he did this to other HiMEs who haven't got one. It seems that this tournament relies on the idea of sacrifice and therefore, it's important that all of the HiMEs have an important person (or probably a thing - assuming that's possible) whether they realise it or not. Since there's a reward for being the last one to survive (their MIP will stay alive and probably something else) then it's only fair that each HiME will also have to risk something in order to rightly claim that 'reward'.
Speaking of Nagi, it's interesting how Mashiro actually asked him if the Prince of Obsidian has been awakened. It seems that he knows some things that Mashiro doesn't such as the knowledge of Prince of Obsidian. It is therefore interesting to know that Nagi doesn't seem to be willing to share his information. The chances of him being the previous Prince of Obsidian seems to be rather high now. This will explains his power and knowledge in the matter of Prince of Obsidian. I wouldn't be surprised if killing the Prince of Obsidian, or maybe killing the previous Prince of Obsidian, is probably the only way to avert this tragedy.
I also just realised that ever since this tournament starts, all of the Orphans seem to have conveniently disappear, just as Nagi promised. This seems to give credence to the theory that all (instead of just some) of the Orphans that appeared before really were controlled by Nagi and not some random creature lurking around the school. But if Nagi really is the main enemy the girls have to defeat, they'll have a big fight on their hands. So far Nagi seems to possess the following ability:
Doppleganger creation
Orphans summoning
Floating/Flying
Time freeze
Fire spell
His ability to summon Orphan itself will be enough to create problem if he intends to release all of them at the same time. But he'll be a rather powerful enemy to fight if he decides to use the rest of his abilities. Personally though, I'm not sure if I want Nagi to be the main antagonist or if I want the series to surprise me and let the HiMEs fight something else instead. But if that were the case, what is the purpose of having Nagi to begin with? He's not exactly a mentor-like character. He's been hiding a lot of secrets to both Mashiro and the girls so at the very least I want to know about these secrets.
Hmmmmm...don't mind me folks just comparing Mai-HiME to Kamen Rider Ryuki
Mai -> Ryuki
Mikoto -> .At this moment...unknown.
Natsuki -> Knight
Midori -> Raia
Nao -> Scissors
Akane -> Imperer
Yukino -> Gai
Yukariko -> Femme
Fumi -> Zolda (...the second Zolda...)
Shiho???/Cloaked HiME -> Definitely Ouja
Alyssa -> Alternative
That leaves Ryuuga, Odin, and Verde....
"Midori doesn't have to survive in order to tell Mai about Mashiro/Fumi's secret. She could have left Mai a copy of the document that she found as well as some kind of a message that tells Mai that she's on her way to Mashiro/Fumi to investigate the two. If she doesn't come back, then it means she lost to those two."
She's going to pull an Kaji on us! NO~~!!! X(
"Then he screams that he will take the power of the HiME star of herself."
This line is bugging me. Maybe there's more to the star itself.
Yeah the fact Yukariko is a Nun would probably make it hard not to believe her. I guess it's sort of like the situation of who are you going to believe, the angel or the devil? So I guess that's another angle. Still either way because of her actions, Nao will never forgive Natsuki. So for certain Nao probably does hate her.
There is definitely a lot more to the HiME star than it seems. Of course more information is needed. I would not be surprised if this turned out to be nothing more than an endless cycle. As for Nagi. He's definitely going to be one of the last people they fight, but I'm not sure if he'll be the final boss. Still I'm hoping to see one of the HiMEs challenge him. Perhaps maybe have Mai attack him in rage.
I must also give thanks for the final screencap, but of course for completely different reasons. Even through the end result of it will probably involve someone suffering because of it as mentioned before. Too bad currently because the image is from the preview it's covered in text. Ah well it will be text free once 19 airs of course.
Wow, great speculations abound here at Memento. :P Why I always come around here... That last screencap was very....well, let's just say interesting, for the time being. Of course it's fodder for much future angsting even if it did get stopped before completion.
Then again, it could be a dream/fantasy sequence. ...which would totally be lame at this point of the story, but just another possibility (albeit low).
*correction*
Mai-HiME -> Kamen Rider Ryuki
Mai -> Ryuki
MIkoto -> Ouja
Kuga -> Knight
Midori -> Raia
Nao -> Scissors
Akane -> Imperer
Akira -> ???
Alyssa -> Alternative
Yukariko -> Femme
Yukino -> Gai
Shiho???/Cloaked HiME -> Tiger
Fumi -> Zolda (...the second Zolda...)
??? -> Verde
??? -> Odin
Hmmmmm...
Now, I'm just taking a stab in the dark here, but maybe the reason why the Obsidian Prince hasn't woken up yet is because he hasn't been picked yet? Wasn't there a line that said something similiar to "the greater the tears of the maidens, the greater the joy of the Obsidian Prince" in one of the earlier episodes? And Nagi sure seems to enjoy bringing bad news a lot, like he wants the HiMEs to really dislike him. It would seem to imply that the Obsidian Prince is picked by who the HiMEs hate the most. And if Nagi WAS the previous prince, that would mean that the prince gains a lot of power. And if all the previous turned out to be true, it would make Ishigami's strange comments at the end of this episode make a lot more sense. But that's a lot of what-ifs and maybes.
Based on the screenchange in ep17, I think it's almost certain that the Obsidian Prince is Reito. Also, the key phrase is "awakened" - I interpret this as gaining conscience/knowledge of something he didn't have before. And we haven't seen Reito ever since.
Also, remember Mikoto's ani-ue charm? In the famous scene change, Reito was suddenly looking at a charm of his own which was identical to hers. However, in the past, Reito has denied to be ani-ue. Maybe now that he has awakened, he WILL remember. After all, why should he lie? He is clearly connected with Mikoto over the charm, and recently the charm has been beginning to glow and get hot. To me, this looks like a "certificate of proof" to me ;) - like "yup, this is him".
alternative names of Mai Hime
Kamen Rider Natsuki / Masked Rider Natsuki
(Kuga Natsuki is a not so average high school student, she becomes Masked Rider in order to protect people from the Orphens living inside the land of Fuuka and stop the senseless war among Himes that Nagi has started. Each Hime was lured into the Hime's battle with the promised of having his wish come true if she is the last one standing. Among the chaos Natsuki befriends Tokiha Mai and Minagi Mikoto
Fate / Stay Child
(in the city of Fuuka.. 12 Himes and Childs await. A young girl named Tokiha Mai is dragged into the war when she accidentally summons the strongest Child, Kagutsuchi)
Kannaduki no Hime
(12 Himes are destinied to protect the land from darkness. As their reward, they are granted the chance to kill each other. angst! love triangles! whee! Can they escape their crue fate?)
yup good summary......somepeople say that the bruises that Yukariko has was an illusion(her child's power) So does that mean her powers is something to do with illusion? If so, then is it possible that the Hime that attack Mai was actually an illusion after all made by Yukariko?
lalala, I would find that highly unlikely. The way they did the scene changes and whatnot, they're most definitely pointing the ghost girl to be some form of Shiho and her CHILD.
And I doubt the bruises Yukariko got was an illusion, because otherwise she would have bandaged herself while her CHILD was healing her. That just wouldn't make any sense
Here is some stuff I found about Tate's past:
After watching episode 13 I found out something about Tate(this could just be me being slow though). There's a scene where Tate is in his room and it shows flashbacks him and Mai and Mai's saying "You can't do anything anyway, so just leave me alone"(time: 6:50) . After the first flashback we see Tate practice a bit with his wooden sword and then stops after the second flashback. At first I was like...where did this come from...all of a sudden he can use a sword? Then I skimmed through the previous episodes and they've been building Tate's past quite a bit.
In episode 2 we see two kids talking about an upperclassman who quit kendo after an injury and that he was a regular at the national tournament. Then there's a short scene where we see Takeda looking at a wall with placings and Tate's name is placed the highest(Starts at 10:46).
Then in episode 4 we see Takeda and Reito talking and Takeda is asking him to give Tate back to the club(starts at 4:30).
In episode 5 when Tate is talking to Mai we see Tate put his hand on his knee when he's talking about people saying "good luck" or "hang in there." Also a bit earlier he told Mai that he was seeing a doctor that treated him(starts at 18:54 and other one with his knee at 20:42).
In episode 15 we see Tate talking to Shiho and she asks him "Do you really love her so much?" He replies that it is not like that and " It's just...it's just that I..." and again the picture clearly is moved towards his knee.(11:58)
Finally in episode 17 Takeda again asks for Tate to be reinstated into the kendo club.
So from some of the information above, we can conclude that Tate had an injury around his knee area, feels guilt for something and is very good at kendo(considering he was a regular at national tournaments).
I really like Tate's character, he is not a bad guy but he is emotionally unstable and his past will reveal more about his character. I think he'll be an important character in the later episodes because it doesn't really make sense to make him good with a sword if we don't get to see him use it.
Oh sorry for the double post but I had another question. With the flashbacks of Mikoto's ani-ue the eyes are bright like hers but Reito's are dark(though the black hair and similar pendant match). Does anyone else see the difference with the eye colour?
People can relate to Tate because he's powerless, yet he wants to do his best (with questionable results)
Giving him any active fighting role will further alienate.him from the audience.
Even in the manga he didn't use sword. (despite having the oh so powerful harem protagonist status)
I think it's a generalisation to say that people like Tate because he's powerless and yet want to do his best. Yes, there maybe some people who like him for this reason, but since there's no statistic available to measure this, I think it's fair to say that different people like him for a different reason.
For example, I originally like him because his interaction with Mai amuses me and because he's a funny guy in general. Nothing more, nothing less. So I don't think he'll alienate me by getting a power/active fighting role. In fact, I think it'll make him more useful than he currently is at the moment.
On the other hand, Kris in the above like Tate because "he's not a bad guy but emotionally unstable". Just using the two of us as an example, you can see how two people like the character for two different reasons. So if he's suddenly get an active fighting role, I don't think it'll be obvious how it'll be accepted by the viewers.
Plus, you have to remember that the last time I checked, some viewers actually put him in the 4th position in the character popularity ranking. Yes, the poll was rigged, yes, people cheated. But the fact that people cheated at least suggests that they have some investment in the character to the point that they'll go out of their way to vote for him more than once. Despite what one may feel about the character, he seems to be a rather popular character that ends up in the 4th position.
Kris, that's true about Reito. However, as others have suggested, the current Reito isn't Mikoto's "true" ani-ue and one can say he's a totally different person in the same body. Once he awakens, assuming he IS the prince, I bet his eyes will change back to their norm.
... also, he could just be wearing color contacts ya know? ;)
Just the way Midori has been acting really parallels one part from Kamen Rider Ryuki….
Kamen Rider Ryuki
Raia ignores the rules of the Rider Fight and finds the means of preventing it. During the battle, as Ouja initiates his “Final Vent” called “Veno Crash” (A team up attack with his Advent Monster, Venosnaker) against Ryuki. Raia says to himself in a trance…”The Next Rider that will die…WILL BE ME!!!” To protect Ryuki, Raia jumps into the path of death and takes the hit from Ouja’s Final Vent. As a result, Raia is severely wounded and from those wounds has some last words with Ryuki, then dies in his arms.
…If Midori stays true to her mindset…
Hypothetical Scenario
Midori ignores the rules of the HiME Battle and finds the means of preventing it. During the fight, [insert HiMEs name] initiates a final attack against Mai. To protect Mai, Midori jumps into the path of the attack and takes the hit from the HiME/Child attack. As a result, Midori is severely wounded and soon dies in Mai’s arms.
*gets beaned by multiple bath pans thrown by Midori fans*
Quoth the Midori Fans…”THAT’S NOT FUNNY!!!”
…it’s just a theory. Not saying it’s going to come true.
Actually, its mostly the Midori fans who think she's going to do exactly what you said.
Because thats exactly what she WOULD do.
I could also say that Nagi parallels Kamen Rider Ryuki’s villain, Shiro Kanzaki a whole lot.
Shiro Kanzaki…
Chosen the Riders
Gave the Riders their powers
Send Mirror Monsters after the Riders
Manipulate Time (Freeze, Rewind, etc.)
Doppelganger creation
Vanish
Nagi Homura…
Chosen the HiMEs
Gave HiMEs their powers.
Send Oufans after the HiMEs
Time freeze
Doppelganger creation
Vanish
*Ryuki Spoiler*
If Nagi ends up creating “HiME Dolls,” that’s one thing that would truly confirm that Sunrise watches too much Ryuki because in Ryuki, Kanzaki created Kamen Rider Odin, which is basically a Rider Doll sent to fight the other Riders. Odin was basically random people under the control of Gold Phoenix (Odin’s Advent Monster) and is under full control of Kanzaki. Something tells me that Nagi is probably capable of doing that. Then again, his sister Yui can control the Advent Monsters, that’s like saying Mashiro (or whoever she is) can control all the HiME’s Childs.
Furthermore…if there ends up being a Evil Mai-Clone in the show…yeesh…because Ryuuga was the evil twin of Ryuki.
*smacks forehead*
PS: I just hope the Mai-HiME ending turns out to be a total disaster like the Ryuki ending.
Actually Garten, they used a script to rig the vote. When you that the actual human element is impossible to gauge.
If there's another poll, I might even set up one of my own for... hmm... how about Yukino or Kanzaki.?
Now, from personal experience the average 2ch regular has this opinion regarding Tate
http://img195.exs.cx/img195/2413/up215970eh.jpg
Tate's role is to be useless (as fighting is concerned) He'll have his important role, but it wont be the as active fighter or saviour of the world. That unlikely role goes to Takumi.
I don't think Tate will have an important role later on unless...
1) He is the obsidian prince.
2) Shiho lets go of Tate.
I'm aware of the rigging. That's why I said that some people cheated on that poll. But if as you said, the average 2ch regulars want him to disappear, then obviously they didn't vote for him, right? Let alone make a script to vote for him.
Now, unless whoever made the script is lousy with scripting, I assume the script is created as such to ensure that the winners are the favourite characters of the person who created the script. So with that in mind, Tate should not even be in the top ten to begin with.
Even if the script is created as such so that it'll randomly included other characters, apart from say, Mai (since she's the one who end up as No.1 winner), then some other character should have occupied his position. Assuming, of course, that person is good with his/her programming skills.
As for Tate, getting additional powers, I also highly doubt that they're going to start doing this since the series is halfway to completion. I think while it'll make his character more interesting, it'll also reek Deus Ex Machina ending (since he'll probably be used to help Mai and the others). There's nothing that I hate more than resolution that comes out of nowhere and has not been introduced properly in the previous episodes. If they want to make Tate an important player in the series, they should have hinted at it a long time ago.
On an entirely unrelated note, guys, please do not forgot to use a screen name. You know comments without names will get deleted unless I can guess who that person is from their IP address. I've had occassions in the past where people post just to test if their IP address can be used to spam the blog. So, I have to enforce this rule now. Obviously someone who knows about the characters' name and action are less likely to be a spammer. But if I can't match your IP address with your previous post, then unfortunately, I will delete a nameless post just to be on the safe side.
I wonder where you have this Takumi bit from *brrrr*. I rather think he's a huge hindrance in the near future, when his tanking self-esteem drags Mai down. And in the end she'll go uber-hyper to save his rear. But why should he gain any "powers"? I don't see that :}
I also don't really see any indication for an injury on Tate's end. He was apprehended for the student council, but he ain't an invalid (or they wouldn't want him back). Finally, in ep15 he jump-straddled over fences just fine.
I did like him alot initially, because he had the guts to whack back at Mai. And even now in the end, he has the heart at the right spot. Part of me applauds him for caring for Shiho and giving her priority treatment. But he should learn to be friggen honest to himself AND Shiho, even if it hurts. Otherwise he's just setting her up for even more pain.
I think he is going to be the "tie-breaker" against Reito in Obsidian Prince mode. But I don't expect him to turn into a fighter with a bamboo sword ;) ... the (censored)kicking part is monopolized by the girls here.
Re:Mentar
Because we can assume that winning hime's VIP gets a portion or even.. the whole amount of the himestar power as well, and I forsee Mai "winning"
Takumi's being self loathing recently. I assume being the unlikely saviour of the world would help his self esteem a bit. Maybe he'll even do the heroic thing and sacrifice himself. He has the perfect mentality for that. Not that it's necessarily a good thing, mind you.
That would just totally crush Akira though.
That would mean that they're going through with the HiMElander though, wouldn't it? I don't see that much carnage happening yet. At least I hope so ^_^;;
I want to see CARNAGE... and DEATHS!!
... but most of all, I want to see the HiMEs strip each other of their clothes! The anime version should really take a page out of the manga version ;)
Yeah unfortunantley I see Midori dying in a self-sacrificing sort of way too...its fitting but pretty sad(I'll be pretty upset...).
I don't like Takumi so I really don't care what he does...he might end up dying too.
Finally I don't think its too late to give Tate a bigger role/power...I mean a lot of us think that Shizuru is going to be a HiME so that is pretty late in the game for her too and they didn't lead it up with much except for a vibe that there might be more to her than meets the eye.
To be honest the show has revealed the powers of characters at various times already anyway. Mai got introduced as HiME in episode 1. Nao was not introduced as one until 7, Yukino was not introduced as one until 12, and Fumi was not introduced as one until 18. The last two won't be introduced until 19 or later. Well okay last one, but two in a sense since they still need to completely confirm who WKH is. Because while WKH has been revealed, her identity still needs to be 100% revealed to the point it can't be denied. So the said girl may have appeared HiME wise in 17, but her official status won't be until at least 19 or later.
So on one hand it's not a stretch to believe Tate would have powers revealed late. Same for any male. Only problem is while the structure of the story gave us reason to suspect almost any female may have powers. It never gave us much reason to suspect any male may have powers. Well beyond Nagi's abilities and the prince talk. Still it would not surprise me if Tate got a larger role regardless of whether or not he can do anything.
BTW, that's not Shiho in the beginning. Rather, it's Nagi in disguise. So, it wasn't a HIME after all. But does this mean that Ishigami and Nagi are in it together?
err... I sounded so definitive in the last post... It was only my speculation and not something I confirmed...
Question about the manga...weren't Haruka, Youko, and Shiho (well...more like a Princess) supposed to be HiMEs? If so, Sunrise...26 episodes isn't gonna be enough for this series.
I think its safe to say that the manga and anime can't be compared much... firstly, there's not enough space left for mroe HiME (unless dead HiME can come back up again)
Though true, I wonder why Youko hasn't played a bigger part in this whole thing. She's even in the character page but she's featured less than Ishigami-sensei himself...
Who is Youko again?
The nurse, Midori's friend who loves to drink ;)
We also see Youko's "driving skills" in episode 9...LMAO
how many hime are there? and could tate be the obsidian prince?
There are "13 Maidens", 12 HiMEs, 1 Fake HiME.
Tate is most definitely not the Obsidion Prince.
There was also a famous driving scene in Futakoi... ^_^
I can't stand Tate. Weakling.
And I can't stand Shiho. Boobless pink haired whiny little brat!!
That crow must be Shiho's Child,finally,Shiho attacks Mai,Shiho's evil side is growing bigger now
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