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ローゼンメイデン 
This has to be the lousiest week ever for me. I'll explain about it when I'm ready but it's likely that I'll have to go away and postpone my posts for a week or two. I'll try to prepare some pre-made posts while I'm away. Anyway, this series is becoming less and less interesting as time goes by. It's really apparent now that the writers try to stretch out the story as long as they can. The things that have been spread over the course of seven episodes could have been done in 2-3 episodes. Basically they've just done the same thing over and over again. For example, Night short circuits, goes back to Kronos Heaven, being released again, rinse and repeat. Also, last week's episode suggests a no-turning point for Night and Gaku since Gaku has been asked to reformat Night. As it turns out, the situation is not that serious after all.
Episode 7
Continuing from last week's episode, Soushi claims that Riiko lacks iron to cover up the awkward mood between the two of them. In response, Riiko claims that lately she doesn't have enough money to buy food. After telling her that iron is important, Soushi runs away. Meanwhile, Gaku is telling his boss that the reason for Night's self-awareness is because of a lose connection to the circuit that controls his emotion. He then claims that the program has returned to normal, assuring the boss that Zero won't behave outside his programming. The boss seems pleased with this, comparing a robot with self-awareness to a dog who has lost its loyalty. He thinks no one would want such a dog. After the boss left, however, Gaku disconnect the computer that shows the repair screen. It seems he actually hasn't fixed the problem. When he lets Zero go, Zero claims that nothing in him has changed although he admits that he feels happy when he sees Riiko's smile.
Meanwhile, Riiko is in a park, asking Mika what does it mean if a guy suddenly hugs you. When Mika asks her if it's Night, Riiko denies this so Mika comes to the conclusion that it's Soushi. Despite Riiko's denial, Mika asks Riiko if she doesn't like Night. Although she claims that she doesn't like Night, Riiko stops Mika when she entertains the thought of going out with Night. While the intention is to stop Mika from dating robot, Mika thinks it's because Riiko just being greedy. Night then comes to the park to bring flower to Riiko. Since a little girl looks at him full of hope, Night ends up giving her one. He ends up giving some of the flowers to other kids in the park and their teacher as well. Mika, who can't stand the whole thing decides to leave the area. Later on that night, Riiko is looking at her patissier book, prompting Night to realize that being a patissier is her dream. Their conversation is interrupted when the busybody landlady comes bringing hot food for them.
As it turns out, the reason she brings the food is because she's hoping that Night will feel hot that he ends up taking off his shirt. Feeling disappointed by this, she asks Night which cake from the book he likes the most, hoping that her taste matches his. Much to her disappointment, Night chooses the same cake that Riiko chooses. Every. Single. Time. Eventually she gives up and just puts her finger on top of Night's and then tries to pull his with hers. Creeptastic. The next day at the office, they meet Soushi on their way to the office. Soushi wants Riiko to think about the cream that she makes because he's going to officially tells the upper management about her entering the competition. Upon hearing this, Night approaches Soushi and thanks him for helping Riiko to realize her dream. Later on, Soushi asks his dad if he can be in charge of the competition. He explains that he's not entering himself but Riiko is entering the competition.
Soushi assures his father that this time around, they'll make something new. Masashi immediately opens his big mouth and asks Soushi if he intends on disgracing himself again. He reminds Soushi that each company can only send 1 person to participate in that competition. Because of this, he sees no reason for the company to let the work of an amateur to represent their company. He then orders Soushi to just do the job that he's been assigned to. In response, Soushi tells the two that at this rate, the Asamoto that his grandfather built will be gone. Masashi, however, argues that time has changed and the kind of cakes that Soushi has in mind will ruin their company. Much to Masashi's disappointment, his father grants Soushi the permission to participate in the competition. Because of this he returns to his desk (and being reprimanded by his boss for being late) to tell Riiko that they've got the permission.
Riiko is happy about this until a woman comes over to the office and greets Soushi, telling him it's been a while. The office ladies immediately recognizes her as Hirai Natsumi, a patissier chef who's been featured in a cooking magazine. The woman introduces herself as Soushi's ex (motokano is ex-girlfriend in Japan). Night's identity recognition program must be damaged or something because he thinks Natsumi's real name is Motokano. LOL. Later on at the cafetaria, Riiko can't help but wondering what Soushi and Natsumi are talking about so Night tells her in a girly voice that Soushi hasn't changed. Riiko is shocked about this, attracting the attention of both Soushi and Natsumi. Since Night stops over at Soushi and Natsumi's table, however, Riiko has no choice but to stop as well. She then gets to be embarrassed as Night repeats his usual repertoire about him being a perfect boyfriend and all. Moreover, he asks why Natsumi and Soushi parted ways.
Night explains that the reason he's asking is because he wants to always be with Riiko. Riiko is embarrassed and tries to claim that they're not together. Natsumi tries to tell them what happened 3 years ago but Soushi cuts her off. So instead, she tells the two that they look good together. Because she doesn't want to be embarrassed anymore, Riiko decides to leave. That night Riiko can't seem to concentrate on her part-time job. Because of this, Fujiko suggests that Night takes her on a date to cheer her up. They start by playing bowling, a game which Riiko shows little interest in. That night goes in a rather similar note. Riiko is busy looking for cake idea while ignoring Night's attempt to attract her attention. The next day, Riiko gets to make the new cake with Soushi so she goes on to praise how his ex is beautiful. Soushi tells her that Natsumi is actually her rival. It seems Asamoto has contracted her to be a patissier.
It turns out Masashi was the one who hired her because he believes that they'll get more sales if they hire a popular patissier. Since only one patissier can be sent from each company, the choice will be either Riiko or Natsumi. Riiko immediately protests, saying that she can't possibly compete against Natsumi but Soushi doesn't think that this should be an issue. All he wants is to make a cake out of the cream that they've made. Ugh, that sound dirtier than what I had in mind. On her way to toilet, Riiko ends up bumping into Natsumi and Masashi. Although Natsumi asks Riiko to do her best, Riiko can't help but feeling that she can't possibly do this. That night, Riiko feels tired that she feels like taking a rest at her part-time job. Fujiko, however, tells Riiko that Night has done most of her jobs. When Riiko falls asleep on the bar, Fujiko decides to call Night but she finds Night sitting in fetal position, charging himself.
When Night stands up again, Fujiko is weirded out after he told her that he just charged himself up. That day, Riiko tries to make another cake but she still can't get the taste just right. As for Night, he tries to raise Riiko's morale by standing half-naked and urging her to do her best. Night's annoying behavior continues at the office, where for some reason, he thinks that waving pom-poms is a good way of cheering someone up. Mika, however, thinks that what Night does is awesome and looks upset at Riiko for ignoring the robot and telling him to go back to his job. At Kronos Heaven, Gaku finds out that the program that they made is now living in co-existence with Night's self-awareness. Despite this, he asks his assistant to send altered/fake data as a report to his boss. Yeah, he'll be fired in no time. Back at Asamoto, Riiko still haven't been able to find the perfect recipe for her carrot cream.
The two are also surprised when Natsumi comes over to tell them that someone has placed their cream at her kitchen along with a message. She thinks someone tries to pester the two. She, however, crumples the message and tells them not to worry since she didn't eat it. Natsumi would rather make her own sweets/cakes. Soushi immediately suspects Masashi as the perpetrator behind this but Natsumi thinks that Masashi is not that kind of person. She also thinks that of all people, Soushi should know this the best. Their conversation comes to a halt when Night comes over with a large tuna on his hand. He claims that he's come to prepare dinner. When Riiko asks him if he bought that fish, he explains that he went swimming to capture it. That's why they don't have to pay for it. He wonders if Riiko is relieved. In her embarassment, Riiko asks him not to make her sound like she's stingy. Because Night doesn't understand what "Momicchi" means, he immediately whips out his handy dictionary and finds the meaning of the word: being stingy.
Despite him being weird, Natsumi and Soushi can't help but being amused by him. They're even more impressed when Night cuts the fish on the spot and makes sashimi out of it. That night, however, Riiko pass out at the bar due to her lack of rest/sleep. Because of this, she ends up being hospitalized. When Night waits for her, he decides to charge himself so a nurse thinks he's dead and decides to send him to an emergency. When Night finished charging himself, the nurse is confused so she tells the doctor that she thought she hears the sound of machine coming from his heart. Fujiko who hears this is weirded out even more. Later on, however, Fujiko sees the barcode behind Night's ear and he also tells her that he's a robot!! At the same time, Riiko finally manages to come up with a cake that looks good and tastes good. When she's about to show the cake to Soushi, however, she overhears Soushi praising Natsumi's cake.
Natsumi also tells Soushi that she still likes him. To make things worse, the two hears Riiko snapping the handle. Riiko immediately tells them that Natsumi should go into the competition since it's the best thing to do. In her attempt to run away from the place, she bumps into Mika and finds out that Mika is the one who's been sabotaging her work. Back inside Soushi room, Soushi apologizes to Natsumi but he can't return her feelings. This causes Natsumi to realize that Soushi has feelings for Riiko. Meanwhile, Riiko finally confronts Mika so the later tells Riiko that she hates Riiko. Riiko becomes depressed about this until she finds out that Night has given the cakes to a bunch of school children who think her cakes are delicious. That evening, Riiko cries against Night because she finally realizes how kind he is to her. Soushi who comes to her apartment to confess his feelings sees the two and decides to leave.
Impression
Maybe it's because I'm not in a good mood but I can finally understand why Riiko is annoyed with Night. Damn, that robot is hyperactive, to say the least. It's mystifying why a company would make a perfect robot to be so annoying. Shouldn't he be able to detect what kind of mood its owner is in by observing his/her face? The part when he went cheerleading was so over the top that I felt like sending bolts of electricity his way. Anyway, I'm glad that Natsumi turns out to be a decent human being. Although she's still interested in Soushi, she doesn't see the need to resort to dirty tricks to win him over. It was impressive to see her returning the cream to Riiko and alerting her and Soushi to the possibility that someone might be trying to sabotage them. That someone not surprisingly turns out to be Mika. Well, at least this time around she gets caught by Riiko so she can stop pretending being a good friend to her.
At this point her reaction does suggest that she feels Riiko is being greedy with the men in her life. But considering that she has done the same thing before, it's extremly hypocritical of her to criticize Riiko. Moreover, prior to this, she tries to seduce Night even though she knows Night is with Riiko. I don't think there's any reason to redeem her and make her into Riiko's friend again. If the reason she's being nasty to Riiko is because she thinks Riiko treats Night badly then she still have a point. But the thing is, she has done the same thing to her ex-boyfriends and she tried to steal Riiko's boyfriend to boot. At any rate, this makes me realize that it's easier for writers to make a rival who's so despicable that the audience would root for the main couple. On the other hand, it's a lot more difficult to create a rival who's so respectable that the audience can't help but being confused as to who should they sympathize with.
Preview
Poll:
In a series, would you prefer to see a devious rival for the main character or one who's sympathetic? Also, do you think Mika is still redeemable as a friend? Did you have a friend who behave like Mika?
Wow, 7 episodes and Riko still is not falling for Night? What kind of ending the writers possibly have in mind? I think she'll cry at the end but it'll be a hollow sadness since she's not that attached to him.
Sorry about your bad week. In a series I like a rival that is sympathetic.
of course a rival who's sympathetic makes things more interesting. i prefer things to be in shades of grey, rather than black and white. sorry to hear about your bad week.
i know i'm somewhat off topic, but just checking in to say i'm still hoping osen will eventually make your blog list, even though you'll have to take weeks off to tend to real life. maybe this belongs in the osen topic, but... wanted you to know your favorite mukai-san has a prominent part in ep. 6, and i believe ep. 7 is devoted entirely to his back story, so there's something for you to look forward to in osen. i started out not liking him very much, but i've come to see that he does certain things well, and he has good chemistry with this cast, so i enjoy watching him here.
i know you have downloads limits to consider, but i couldn't help putting in a plug for osen. maybe if you start blogging while the series is still going strong, you'll attract so many mukai osamu fans that we can start a fan club. i'll be treasurer.
A devious rival. Easier to side against. :P Sympathetic rival just makes me feel bad if he/she doesn't end up happy. Mika is definitely not redeemable.
I really feel like reading Zettai Kareshi again, now....I think the live action is really very different from the original, but I can't remember any more. XD
Thank you for reviewing this series and Last Friends, you have no idea how happy I was when I found these 2 here. (: I'm going to read both properly when I find the time soon. Awesome episode, this is!
And adding on to what 'spitzfan' said, it'll be awesome if you could add Osen to your list, but there are obvious constraints and would probably take a very very very long time.
I agree with you. The writers had overdone Night's "cheering" for Reiko. Judging from next episode's trailer, it looks like they won't be showing a lot Reiko and Night "moments". It's silly that they are going to add another robot. This version is disappointing so far.
I still don't feel any chemistry between Soushi and Reiko.
well, definitely mika is not redeemable.. it only shows that mika is not a true friend.. and greedy too..she's only thinking on her own happiness...
Oh, hey, the preview has the guy from HYD in it.
I'm actually pleased with this episode, despite to exaggerated parts. But over all, I liked how it went especially the ending part where Reiko hugs Night.
It's the first time she actually did it if I'm not mistaken.
And the children eating Reiko's cake was really touching
I hope it goes smoothly from here.
Ah... wow. I just recently finished the manga and let me say, this is really really turning out completely different. Other than characters nothing else has been preserved. I'm kind of disappointed since I liked the manga so much, but I suppose this is interesting in its own way too.
me too i'm pleased with this episode too. it's the first time we finally see night unraveling his "human-ness". hence, i think this episode saved the whole series for me. i was really getting tired of it since it was too repetitive. it gets better on the next episode!! you have to review the next one! i've already seen till episode 9 but it's still fun to read your reviews. hehehe.
mmmm i just watched 5 epiosdes in a row lol. i liek the series... or perhpas i just like it because im procrastinating on a paper due tommorrow. but i was readign the ending, its goign to be a sad ending :( so far i liek the characters, and i actually like soushi. but i can see what garten means about the plot getting repetiive. but i like the characters quirks, like riiko's attachment to her froggy pillow, and namikiris over all weirdness..
It's really interesting to see a Mika that is different from the manga. She's a lot more complex. In a way, it's boring not to have somebody to hate, but it's also annoying to have someone that just won't stop being a jerk.
And the guy in the preview is soooooo unattractive, IMHO. So so so so so much. He definitely can't compare to Mokomichi-san, who is adorable in this show.
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