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ローゼンメイデン 
I'm sorry if I've been slow in catching up with some of the older series. The new anime that came out this week and the fact that I tend to be away during the day really cause a havoc on my timetable. Anyway, this turns out to be a rather interesting episode. I don't really like the fact that Kuda-Kitsune large form also has that green tea color but I love the creature so this is a minor problem. I also think that the animation seems to be slightly better for some reason. The scene where Kuda-Kitsune fight against the Hane parasite was quite exciting and dynamic to watch. If the animators can maintain consistency in the character design and adds more complex shading into the background, this would have been a better anime than it currently is at the moment.
The episode itself begins with a shot of a female student gazing at the sky from the rooftop of the school. When the camera zooms out from her, however, her shadow shows a pair of wings. After the title card, Watanuki is seen having problem with his drawing and thinks that maybe he shouldn't have enrolled in an art class. Watanuki then asks Himawari if she's doing well herself and upon seeing her drawing, he calls it 'unique'. Their conversation, however, is halted when a group of girls across them praise one girl for drawing a self-picture of herself looking sad and lonely. Upon seeing her talents, her friends ask her to help them with their drawing. The girl at first looks reluctant but eventually agree to help her friends. Himawari points out to Watanuki that the girl is from class 2 and is known to be nice to everyone. Because of this she wonders if there is something about the girl that bothers Watanuki but Watanuki denies that there is anything like that.
Later on that day, the girl is seen standing in the rooftop again until her friends call her and invite her to come home with them. Meanwhile inside the class, the drawing that the girl made suddenly shows that the girl has a pair of wings on her back. Meanwhile, Watanuki is seen walking back home looking happy because he just saw Himawari. His happiness, however, turns into annoyance when he realises that Doumeki is walking side by side with him. Doumeki's excuse is that his club is having meeting today. Before Watanuki can unleash his anger, however, Kuda-Kitsune appears and tickles him. When being asked by Doumeki, Watanuki claims that he didn't bring the creature on purpose but rather it tends to follow him around. Watanuki also thinks that if Yuuko finds out about the little guy, she'll force him to do all sorts of chores. Unfortunately for Watanuki, Doumeki can't care less and is more interested in the bento that Watanuki will make for him.
After Doumeki left, Kuda-Kitsune appears again and seems to be interested in the girl that Watanuki saw in the drawing class. This time around, however, Watanuki sees a pair of wings on the back of the girl. Watanuki immediately assumes that it's some kind of costume. When the girl's friends try to borrow some money to buy drink from the vending machine the girl refuses and gives them a cold look instead. After the girl and her friends left, Watanuki realises that there is a piece of feather where the girl used to stand. When Watanuki goes back to Yuuko's shop that night, Yuuko asks him to show her the item on his pocket. Watanuki immediately thinks that Yuuko is referring to Kuda-Kitsune but much to his surprise, she's interested in the feather on his other pocket. After finding out from Watanuki that he found it on the street, Yuuko decides to burn the feather right away. She then tells Watanuki to be careful or else he'll become dinner.
The next day, Watanuki gives Doumeki the Inari-zushi that the other guy asked for. The two then talk about the girl that Watanuki saw the other day. Before they can continue their conversation, however, the girl in question comes right to them and tells Watanuki that he's on her way. After the girl left, Doumeki tells Watanuki that he can't see the wings on her back which suggests that it could be a spirit. Watanuki, on the other hand, realises that the wings on her back seems to have grown bigger. Later that day, Watanuki returns to Yuuko's shop with the intention of inviting her to the Autumn festival. However, since Yuuko is out with Mokona, Watanuki decides to ask Maru and Moro to come with him. Upon hearing the invitation, the two kids look sadly at Watanuki and tell him that neither of them can get out of the shop. Watanuki wonders if they need Yuuko permission to do so but as it turns out, they can't go out because they have no soul.
They tell Watanuki that even though the inside of the shop and the outside world may look similar, they are different. Bodies without soul appearently can't cross the gap between the shop and the outside world because their body won't be able to survive. Watanuki is confuse to hear this but before he can ask the two kids about it, Kuda-Kitsune begins to tickle his body again, causing him to forget his point. That night Watanuki goes to the festival on his own and becomes happy upon seeing Himawari. Unfortunately for him, Himawari has invited Doumeki as well because she thinks Watanuki and Doumeki are best friends. Once they enter the festival ground, Watanuki is a bit worried because he thinks there will be several spirits around the area since the place is close to a temple. However, after looking around for a while, he can't seem to find any. Watanuki believes that this is because Doumeki's presence next to him repels the spirit.
Before they visit any booth, however, Himawari is distracted by the presence of her friends so she decide to talk to them. Meanwhile, Watanuki and Doumeki witness the girl they saw the other day having a fight with a guy because the later accidentally bumped into her. The girl, whose name is Rie, insists that the guy apologise to her even though the guy has done exactly this. Rie, however, wants the guy to apologise properly and when the guy refuses, he whacks him with a toy riffle. Because police are coming towards their way, the girls' friends have no choice but to drag Rie away. Watanuki decides to follow the girl after noticing the wings on her back growing exponentially. Watanuki immediately comes face to face with the girl, who accuses him of starring at her. Despite Watanuki's attempt to tell her that he didn't stare at her, she wants Watanuki to apologise. Doumeki, however, tells the girl that Watanuki has nothing to apologise for.
The girl, however, pulls out a boxcutter and makes an attempt on Watanuki's life. Doumeki immediately steps in and grabs the knife, Nagato Yuki style, telling the girl that she's the one who has to apologise. The girl suddenly passes out and the wings on her back suddenly starts to take a life on its own and begins to leave the girl's body. The wings then attack Watanuki, prompting him to give the girl to Doumeki so he can distract the creature. Eventually Watanuki is cornered by the wings but before the wings can do anything, Kuda-Kitsune appears and transform into a giant fox. The giant fox then proceeds to fight, defeat, and devour the wings. Yuuko then appears all of a sudden and tells Watanuki that she did warn him to be careful. She explains that the creature is called "Hane" (Feathers), a parasite that controls human. Once the creature captures a human, it will consume the human's mind for self-control.
In exchange, the person is released from whatever burden they feel at that moment. Watanuki wonders if the girl was trapped by bad luck but Yuuko denies this. Yuuko tells Watanuki that he's probably heard acquitances and friends often say that they never expected the perpetrator to be someone who is normal and quiet. She explains that the creature doesn't just attach itself to anyone but rather to someone who wants to be strong so badly that they don't care if they lose control of themselves. The girl simply matched with what the spirit was looking for. Watanuki then notices that the girl opens her eyes but her face is expressionless. Yuuko tells Watanuki that unfortunately, once the spirit took over, the victim will lose its ability to think. Yuuko believes that human strength has its faults so one who has lost his/her mental ability must be nursed back to their previous state. The mind, however, will take a long time to recover.
Impression:
This is such an interesting episode that manages to blend a mystical explanation to human behaviour. As Yuuko said, acquintances and friends often say that they never expected a person to do something so evil since the person usually is quiet. However, what they often fail to notice is that the person is being quiet because he/she feels oppressed by its situation and surrounding. Some people cope with this by finding something that allows them to release their stress while others go to therapist. Other people, however, choose to become strong and decide to confront the surrounding that oppressed him/her. However, when the person is willing to let go every single moral that he or she has in order to fight the oppression, the person often ends up becoming the bigger monster. Imagine having a power all of a sudden when one didn't have any previously. The person will probably want to use said power to revenge those who oppressed him/her.
In the girl's case, she seems to be one of those types who always agree to help her friends even when she doesn't feel like it. As a result, she is often used by her friends even though her friends probably did this unintentionally. Another interesting point raised by the episode is the friendship between Watanuki and Doumeki. Although Watanuki still needs some anger management, it seems he starts to appreciate Doumeki's presence a little bit more now. I never thought I'll see the day when he admits, even to himself, that having Doumeki around him is a positive thing. Maru and Moro's explanation of their inability to venture out of the house is also interesting and raises a lot of questions about Yuuko's shop. Having read volume 8 of the manga, I'm aware that Yuuko's shop is certainly different. Having said that, the manga still has not explained where Yuuko and her shop actually came from and her purpose for recruiting Watanuki as her helper.
The anime is more lenient on the winged girl than the manga, in which I think she died after her wings flew away.
Regardless, I am irked by the never-changing interactions between characters, namely Doumeki and Watanuki: One a brat in constant tirade about Doumeki, who in turn sits as mute as a tree stump. How can anyone hold interest for long watching this?
A very irritated fan.
My impression from the manga was that she didn't die, but was in a permanent catatonic state - either way, the anime was still lenient on her in comparison to the manga; it gave her a chance at recovery, while in the manga, once her soul was gone, it was gone for good. Still, I liked the permanency the manga tends to make, rather than the second chances the anime implies (like the lying woman from earlier). Since Yuuko seems to want to teach Watanuki about things like that, it helps ground in the point.
I liked this story, since the Kuda-Kitsune is one of my favorites in the series.
It is still evident that Watanuki still dislikes Doumeki, but despite that like what was also mentioned, I agree that he's beginning to appreciate Doumeki. His anger management is slightly under control and he does not flare up as much. One detail would be that under serious situation, Watanuki seems to forget everything and talks to Doumeki in a more serious manner.
One thing about this episode is that I don't fully understand what the parasite 'fallen angel' (english sub) gave in return for using the human body as a host. It says in the anime the human mind can be released of all burdens, but is confronting the problem aggressively a form of releasing a burden?
Having to worry about the consequences of your actions is a constant burden for anyone living within the dictates of a society. A normal person can't go around smacking others who bump into them or slice up people for mouthing off. The Hane takes away the capacity to care about such things so yes it does free them in a way.
In the manga, the Koda Kitsune needed Yuuko to give the Hane/Ko the 'finishing blow' (incineration), whereas here it did it all by itself, which gives it a BIT more power than it had in the manga... although I do wonder how others nearby would've seen teh incident, given that none of them (as far as we know) can see spirits like the Hane, although the Koda Kitsune seems to be easily visible to anyone else about it (Doumeki), which suggests that it, like the Zashiki-Warashi and Ame-Warashi, has a physical body in the 'real' world.
I was kinda wishing that there'd be a tad more character development on Watanuki's side, though - he really IS different from the manga, where Doumeki is changing 'little by little' into a less... overtly annoying and dislikeable character compared to what he is here. The relationship he's had with Doumeki in the manga, along with that of Yuuko, is quite a bit different from the one displayed in the anime; Doumeki does act abrasively towards Watanuki, but both of them get less combative and more visibly concerned for one another as the series goes on; there's the usual 'Hey!' and general type of baiting that friends can and often do engage in, but a lot of the overt anger is gone... something that is sorely missing here.
Garten: as far as the store's concerned, it's explained (somewhat) at the start of Volume 5, with the aftermath of the Hyaki-Yakko story; "Only those who need to can enter my shop." was Yuuko's explanation for why Doumeki couldn't enter the store - he's the type who will always try to find his own solution, and thus has no pressing need to go in... ever. Nor can he see it, because of that, nor can most people for that matter - otherwise Yuuko would be swamped with customers, at least during the scenes we'd see. Watanuki's presence, as Yuuko explains in that same chapter, is due to his need to 'practice for the future' - in other words, everything Yuuko's putting him through is to get him ready for the future, and perhaps for dealing with spirits on a more advantageous basis, which (if he removes his ability to see them through his work at Yuuko's shop), he may need... even if his blood may not draw them any longer. Assuming, of course, he goes through with that wish - which would be a pity, given the Zashiki-Warashi's interest in him.
In a sense, I like this portrayal better than the manga. In the manga Himawari told Watanuki that the girl is quiet and it's unlike her to do this. in the anime Watanuki sees it for himself and I think it provides a more powerful effect. In the manga, when Himawari said she was quiet, I just thought she was shy, but I didn't think that her friends were using her. The anime version makes it a lot more understandable as to why she would be taken by the wings.
Wow, Kuda-Kitsune's giant fox form really looks like the Champion form of Renamon, Kyubimon, in Digimon. :D
Jessica: more like the Champion form of Renamon and the Vulpix's ultimate form (Ninetail) from Pokemon come from the same source that the full-sized Kuda-Kitsune form here came from. :D
In the manga, I think the very end of this story actually had some correlation to Tsubasa, which of course, for whatever reason, the anime has decided to leave out; Watanuki asks Yuuko why all of this could happen, and Yuuko responds saying that there must be a plan for it. When he asks her to explain, she simply doesn't answer, and in the sky several more Hane fly away, instead of just the ominous sparklies in the anime.
Also, The knife scene played out slighly different in the manga too. The girl does cut Watanuki once; but after that she keeps running at him with the knife, swinging it around and definitely putting him in further danger. When Doumeki steps in front of him and grabs the knife to stop it, it makes sense, making his actions all the more heroic. The anime, though? The girl flies at him, cutting him once, (naturally the scene is a still image, panned over to avoid actual animation) and although she doesn't actually keep swinging the knife at Watanuki, Doumeki just STEPS IN ANYWAY and stops the knife with his hand. Like, almost out of nowhere. This just reflects more on the anime letting Doumeki be portrayed as some kind of souless tree stump (as Lynn so eloquently phrased it), because naturally stopping a knife with your hand is NOT COMMON PRACTICE with any human being that I know. With nerves, anyway. Yes. Plus, the anime seems to be a lot more lenient with the various characters and their issues, because this is second time they've let them off easy. In the manga, she remains a blank shell of her former self, incurable. The episode actually wasn't that bad, either. And quite frankly, I don't ever want to see how bad it CAN get.
Thanks for the summary and caps, as always, though!
Thank you very much, Garten-san, for this one. It's really fine with me that this has been delayed. I never actually thought that there were hassles in your recent schedule (as part of the very reason for this said delay) during those times that I went into this site and found out that this anime's next episode was still not given a plot synopsis and analysis. I thought instead that this anime might have been almost over (if not totally over), and that there might have been a hiatus (or something like it) in the production of its next few episodes. I somehow based this idea of mine upon some conversations that transpired here (in the earlier episodes' boards) which banked on the possibility that this anime is perhaps just a "half-season" one (around 12 to 13 episodes). But anyway, I'm very glad that my idea's been proven wrong with regards to that possibility. Thanks a lot, once again....... :)
So the "winged one" is a "SHE", huh? You know people...... just somply looking at her short hair and its somewhat dishevelled or tousled style, she seems to be more like a Bishounen Male than a female to me. Kindly look at the first screenshot posted by Garten-san above (if you don't mind, that is). When I got to look closely at it, I was then quite astonished with what I had in mind. She seems to look like Fye/Fai --- only with a way, way much darker hair this time. I'm sorry; some people might think that I'm blind or something, but that's what I really thought about. I am even thinking now that she might have been copied from Fye's/Fai's features all along........... :) :) :)
God bless you everyone......... :) :) :)
I think this episode was one in which Watanuki practically goes by looking for trouble, the other times, spirits only appeared TO him, but this time, even though being awared by Yuuko-san, he goes after the girl after hitting that guy, and maybe for this, if not for the Kuda-kitsune (which I think looks more like the Kyuubi from Naruto), he wouldn't have been rescued by anyone. Consequently, I've started to feel more eager about when Watanuki is gonna ask Yuuko-san about any kind of self-defense, or at least what he should do to get help by people like Doumeki, since the wish he had ask for, the very first episode, has not become true yet, even though he works everyday at the store. One more reason why, I consider we shouldn't expect Watanuki to get more control over his anger, and I hadn't read all the mangas, (by the way, can anyone tell me where to find from number 6 to beyond, as this torrent I have seems to be useless for the rest), but I think that the fact of needing to be with someone, so that one can be safe of spirits would be enough to still feel any kind of annoyance, or annoyance for being eternally thankfull to him for keeping spirits away.
Anyway, I also wonder when Yuuko-san will start to prepare this trio to any kind of magical knowledge because at the beginning of TRC, Watanuki is like an assistant to what whatever Yuuko needs, and also about what exactly Maru&Moro are, just like the totemo-Kawai Mokona's.
Well I think it already bored someone since I'm being like Watanuki complaining for everything and wondering about every single detail too, see ya!
Kouan: Since Del Rey's been publshing these on a regular basis, pretty much any scanlation group's been taking off the published volumes off their sites, to avoid legal issues and to encourage people to buy the manga.. which I also suggest. Volume 8's floating around the net, however, if you want to see how some things turn out.
As far as the rest is concerned... well, Himiwari apparently really is trouble - or at least she draws more of it than Watanuki does, if she's not actively creating it herself. Doumeki has quite a bit of knowledge of magic and spirits due to his background and family.. and as far as Watanuki goes, we'll find out how Yuuko prepares him for the future.
do you have naruto episode 99 and on.If you do pleeeeeeeeas post it on youtube. thanks
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