Rozen Maiden ep.2

October 31, 2004 | 5 Comments

It's a relief to know that the first episode wasn't a fluke although I wished Shinku had decapitated Hinaichigo's inflated head for being such a bipolar rag doll. I personally can't stand her one minute cutesy act and another minute psychotic rampage. Apart from that, however, this is another good installment to the series. I like how the episode manages to balance the comedy and the creepy scenes. And to top it off, it turns out that this series was shot as a Widescreen series. And I must say the difference is astounding, especially during the fight scenes between Shinku and Hinaichigo. Just look at this comparison pictures. The Widescreen definitely shows the perception of scale and space that was lost in the 4:3 format. If you look at one of the pictures, it's obvious that the room where the two dolls fight is actually very large but you can hardly tell that if you just look at the 4:3 format.

The episode begins by showing a young girl called Tomoe combing a doll decked in Strawberry-colored outfit. The doll, Hinaichigo, whines about the fact that Tomoe always leave her every morning to go to school. The doll is so cloying to the point that she doesn't even realise that her medium has been feeling weak. Poor Tomoe. It must take a lot to cope with Hina's constant whining. Cut back to Sakurada's household where Shinku is seen bossing Jun around to her heart's content. Jun, of course, doesn't like this new development and tries to threaten Shinku. So Shinku decides to remind Jun of his place in the pecking order by...abusing him. He, he. The lively hinjinks of the Sakurada's, however, is interrupted when Tomoe stops by the house and falls unconscious in front of the house. Upon seeing this, Nori decides to take her inside and give her tea. When Tomoe is inside, Shinku notices the Rosa Mystica ring on Tomoe's finger and realises that the girl possibly owns a Rozen Maiden doll.

Tomoe tells Nori that she's simply there to give a class handout to Jun but on her way out to the door, she gets to meet Jun. Jun is embarassed and becomes withdrawn again that night. Meanwhile, Hinaichigo is pissed off at Tomoe because the girl comes home late. Because of this, she decides to drag Tomoe to an alternate realm where they can play together, forever and ever. What a Creep. Sensing this, Shinku decides to come to the realm as well through a mirror inside one of Sakurada's rooms. Before she leaves, however, she gives some well-chosen advice to Nori on how to deal with Jun. Shinku then enters the mirror and challenges Hinaichigo to an 'Alice Game', where the loser will lose their Rosa Mystica and becomes a normal doll. Hina almost win the fight but she's using too much of Tomoe's energy to the point of exhausting the girl. Hina regrets her action and decides to release Tomoe from her contract by kissing the ring on Tomoe's finger. The episode ends with Shinku taking Hina to the Sakurada's home as a servant.

Impression:

I really like the fact that Shinku is such a multi-faceted character. She's mischievous on the outside, and yet there seems to be an underlying mystery about her. While she doesn't suffer fools gladly, she's willing to give a good advice to those who need it. In this case, Shinku seems to think that leaving Jun to deal with his own problem is not the best way to help him. As for the brat, he seems to be more tolerable this time because he doesn't seem to abuse his sister as much and he seems to be making some good progress with his attitude. It is clear, however, that something happened to him in the past involving Tomoe and his school. This episode also does a good job of dealing with the theme of loneliness and the possessive nature of the Rozen Maiden dolls toward its medium. It's surprising to see the series manages to introduce a new mystery in the form of 'Alice Game' in addition to all of these. It's rare to see a very well-thought of series like this so this is definitely a keeper.

© memento 2003