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ローゼンメイデン 
Monster continues to impress me with the quality of its storyline and its characters. Not many series can make me sympathise with its secondary or tertiary characters but this series always managed to do this easily. One thing that has also impressed me so far is the quality of its animation. It's rare to see a drop in the quality of the animation within this series even though there have been 42 episodes ever since the series started. It'll be interesting to see if the animators can maintain the quality of the series in the remaining 36 episodes. I'm also interested to know where the writer is going with this particular arc involving Grimmer. The thing that I like the most about this series is its ability to connect the secondary characters to the main story with a lot of credibility. I'm hoping that Grimmer won't be an exception to this quality.
Continuing from episode 41, this one begins with Petrov informing Grimmer that the key, the pass code, and the data experiments from Kinderheim 511 are hidden inside a deposit box. One of the data experiments is a taped conversation of a boy who led Kinderheim 511 to its destruction. A couple of days later, Grimmer is seen inside a police station talking Filip Zeman, the detective who is responsible for investigating Petrov's murder case. Zeman tells Grimmer that the truth is, Petrov is responsible for a number of crimes, some of which includes: repression of human rights and child abuse. In addition to these, Petrov was also known to have contacts with former Czechoslovakian secret police aka STB. These are a group of men who suppressed free speech during cold war and supplied far-left organisations with weapons for terrorist.
Zeman then asks Grimmer if he saw the woman who supposedly murdered Petrov, prompting Grimmer to inform the detective that he saw no one left the apartment. Not long after this, the interrogation is over and Grimmer is allowed to leave the police station. On his way out of the station, he notices that some of Petrov's adopted children are being taken to different orphanage. Grimmer tries to cheer them up and asks one of the kids to write letters to the other kids to lift their spirits. As he said this, Grimmer grasp the boy's hand with his own hands. It's likely that Grimmer gives the kid the key that Petrov was talking about before his death. After the kids left, Grimmer calls a taxi and tells the driver to go to a hotel and a bank. The Czech driver, however, does not speak either German or English much to Grimmer's confusion. Grimmer's journey also takes a strange turn when in the middle of the road the driver stops the taxi in a halt and picks up another passenger.
Grimmer is annoyed with this latest development but is powerless to stop the driver from taking the second passenger into the taxi. Later on, he slowly realises that the men attempt to abduct him. The thugs want the journalist to tell them the whereabouts of the key that Petrov gave him. When Grimmer does not give them a satisfactory answer, the men proceed to beat him up and stop the taxi at an abandoned industrial area. Grimmer tries to run away from the thugs but unfortunately encounters a dead end. All of a sudden, Detective Zeman appears claiming that he's been following Grimmer because he's afraid that the journalist maybe in danger. However, it doesn't take long for Zeman to reveal that he actually works together with those two Czech guys to obtain the tape that reveals the location of Johan's mother. The three then take Grimmer inside an abandoned building and begin to torture him.
During the torture session, Grimmer asks his abductors if they ever heard the story of 'The Magnificent Steiner'. It's a TV series about a weak man who is always saved by a secret friend of his called 'Steiner'. When the man's life is in danger 'Magnificent Steiner' shows up and beats up the bad guys to a pulp. But the truth is, 'Steiner' is simply another personality of the guy that shows up when his life is threatened. Grimmer's abductors are not amused by this story and begins to beat Grimmer until he's unconscious. However, before they can continue the torture session, a mysterious woman opens the door to the room and points her gun at the three. When Grimmer wakes up, he finds all of his abductors dead on the floor. Grimmer, however, realises that even though one of the thugs died with a shotgun wound, the other two simply died from beatings. As he looks into his bloodied hands, he believed that 'The Magnificent Steiner' has done 'it' again.
Impression:
When I said that I think the mysterious woman is Johan in wig, I wasn't really sure. I don't think I'll ever be sure until it's revealed in this series but I think I'm more confident of the possibility. The reason for this is because the series has now confirmed that MPD (Multiple Personality Disorder) is one of the sub-plots that is used within the series. Grimmer's fascination with 'The Magnificent Steiner' and the eventual incident that happens within this episode is a proof that one of the characters at least suffer from MPD. I honestly don't know yet how I'm going to react to this. On the one hand, I'm disappointed that the kind, innocent character that I like turns out to be an MPD sufferer with a deadly alternate personality. On the other hand, I can't say that those guys don't deserve what's coming to them. Zeman was especially creepy with his nail-clipper torture. I practically winced during the torture scenes even though I normally can see a decapitation scene without blinking an eyelid.
I wondered whether "The Magnificent Steiner" was a real TV series but "Steiner" itself triggers nothing. However, I found a comment with Google that suggests the authors meant the "Incredible Hulk" or a series with a similar plot at least.
I concur what you wrote about the nail-clipper scene. It is *very* seldom that I try to look away from the screen - especially considering that it's just an animation. Maybe that's also because it was pretty "innovative" and unexpected. At that moment I really wondered whether Grimmer would survive. I'm pretty sure if the woman hadn't come in, he'd be dead by now.
When the woman enters the room, zoom at her face and look at those scary eyes.
A last thought: It's not clear whether Grimmer really killed them. His hands might simply be so bloody from the torture before. I wouldn't be surprised if he just tried to scare the guys as he didn't have much of a chance to survive at that moment anyway. If you remember one of the past episodes, you know that Nina is very good at martial arts - although I think she's too skinny to beat someone to a pulp.
Impressive episode.
Now I wonder if Grimmer killed his son and he doesn't know it. It would be a very sad story. But as he said that a doctor as Tenma would have saved his son, I suppose that he dies because of a illness.
BTW, you are right. After 42 episodes the show continues with its good drawing. I think only episode 5 and part of episode 31 (with the Dieter teenager-looking xD) were a letdown of the normal quality.
And I am the only person that wonders what has Grimmer in her bag? :D It's strange that Grimmer left his bag in the taxi and inspector Zelman brought it to him again. :S
Grimmer... will be really important... not a lot in this arc... but only wait to the end...
that scene with the nail clippers was truly hard to watch. and it is just animated, and yet still...
at first glance it would seem like a show that takes so long to reveal everything would be dull, but in fact it's really better this way. you can really appreciate the complexity of the situation, and the people, like this.
Chris.
Have you got any idea what is Aikido ?
As for "The Magnificent steiner", It seem to be real, I found photos image in a book called "Another Monster"
*spoiler starts*
Translation
http://www.mangascreener.com/stephen/monster/am/amonster.html
Actual book
http://www.amazon.co.jp/exec/obidos/ASIN/4091852793/250-4219223-5113069
*spoiler ends*
I didn't know what Aikido is but I looked it up. So this seems to be what Nina was practising. There are actually many Aikido sport clubs in Germany so it this isn't even unrealistic.
I'd like to point out that the book "Another Monster" is written by Naoki Urasawa and his editor, Takashi Nagasaki (I think that's the name). Every chapter is about one of the characters of "Monster" so I guess one of them is dedicated to Grimmer and Steiner, but I don't think "The Magnificient Steiner" was a real series.
I still haven't seen this chapter, but the nail clipping scene is really scary and disturbing in the manga too. *shivers*
As to Grimmer's bag, he mentioned earlier that he carried all the books and info he had about the Kinderheims of East Germany.
Thank you for your comments of every chapter, Garten. It's great to read the impressions this series left on someone who hasn't read the manga, it feels as if I was discovering it again.
...and Aikido is most defiently not about beating someone to a pulp.
Manificent Stenier maybe or may not be a series. It can be a 'special' program for researcher or maybe...it is just kidstuff.
Anyway, haven't we heard from elsewhere that children can get more violence just by watching these show ? Now sure how true it is though....
Sort of a newbie to this place...
As for Aikido, Steven Siegal supposedly practices it. His movies show a highly violent form of aikido that I personally don't train in. With Aikido, it's mostly throwing, and twisting people's arms and such. There are no kick and punches involved so you can't exactly beat someone up with it.
I have a hard time believing Nina is the culprit. If it is her, I wonder what happened to Dieter, isn't he supposed to be with her, and hopefully stop her from commitiing horrible crimes?
Also, about Grimmer, I believe his interest in Kinderheim 511 is probably due to his son being in that orphanage. He might have died there, so that might motivate Grimmer to do an investigation of sorts.
I didn't mean that she actually used Aikido to kill them but rather to overpower the guys. After that, kicking or beating them to death doesn't need any special technique. I don't even think the guys looked too horrible considering how they had been killed.
*sign...you obviously do not understand what is Aikido...
I've only read a little about it at http://www.aikidofaq.com/. Throwing someone who doesn't know how to catch his fall properly on the hard concrete can be sufficient to take him out. Regardless whether she used aikido, karate or a sledgehammer, my point was that Nina herself seemed to skinny to be dangerous for 2 guys. So either she's trained and aikido was a hint that she knows at least one martial art (even if not an aggressive one) or it was really Grimmer who killed them.
Rememeber the bloody scene. If she kick or puch, her whole body may got messy with blood. How do you expect someone to just run off like that in that manner ? Beside, she has a gun with her. Unless she run out of bullets why not shot all of them ?....but I just can't find a reason for her to get messy and bloody.... even if she use a cloth to clean the blood but this would mean leaving evidence behind if the cloth is not properly got rid of.
Let us think of it in this way, the girl got a gun on her hand. What everyone is thinking at that moment is to get hold of that dangerous weapon. With a gun on a hand, it would be rather difficult to execute any martial arts....expecially that she is a girl. Maybe she can kick...but she has got a gun and why wouldn't she use it then?
And...how did grimmer hand got bloody ?
The girl wipe it on his hand rather than to use a cloth?
Well, if you're angry, some good old fist/foot to face violence is more satisfying than a mere gun shot. I have no idea whether you get bloody from such a (assumed one-sided) fight. I would think the blood comes out after the hit. Look at the delinquents, they didn't get bloody dirty at all, even though Grimmer spit quite some blood. I mean, there wasn't *that* much blood. They certainly did not bleed to death. Zeman got a broken skull as you can see, so a brain injury is likely the cause of his death. It looks like his head was repeatedly smashed against the wall. Ok, I certainly won't insist that the woman did this. It's simply much more likely that Grimmer did this. It's still odd though. Why didn't she shot all three? I could imagine that the woman was after Zeman - who seemed to be the leader - then why would she shoot the (uninteresting) delinquent instead of him? Did she expect Grimmer to take care of the other two? I suspect, she was after the key as well and came in when she thought they would kill Grimmer making it impossible to find the key.
If Grimmer become the super hulk, would she not attack the woman as well ?
My guess is that she had been gone by then when Grimmer awaken his monster within.
If the key is the key to these mystery....then it will explain why not all was shot. Unless of course she runs out of bullets...but hmm.... that is not quite possible.
Beside, Grimmer was left alive.
This means that Grimmer has some sort of value in that woman eyes.
That value...could be the key.
The key is the key to the key of all the mysteries.
Which one would want the key most ?
Johan or Nina ?
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