Koutetsujou no Kabaneri/Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress

[Shradow]

Holy. funking. sheet. This episode was freaking intense and awesome. I was just wide-eyed for the entire latter part.

 

Yukina and Amane being best buds this episode, that's cool. Wonder what's gonna happen to Kurusu, as well, hopefully he can come back with the briefcase.

 

So yeah, there may have been some grey morality last episode, but now Biba is totally just evil. And Mumei's age has been more apparent these last few episodes, you have to remember she's still only 12, and now she's realizing how brainwashed she's been and that Biba's not all he's cracked up to be.

 

The action was crazy. Man-made Black Cloud was really surprsing, though shame to see poor Horobi going out like that, she was pretty cool.

[vla1ne]

well bieber is definitely insane, his view of the world is just ridiculous. a minor nitpick i have though is that ikoma's taken way worse damage than a baton to the face before, so why exactly was that all it took for him to be brought down here. it's sort of plot induced weakness. if they'd just used hostages, i could see that, but the guy just took him out off the bat. unless he turns out to be a kabaneri, i'm gonna have to call bull.

 

as for mumei, it's nice that she's realizing how brainwashed she's been, but dear gods i wish she'd actually used a bit more forethought when she did that.

[Shradow]

That's one of the keys to taking out really tough people, you rattle the brain to make them unconscious. Taking a full force baton to the head is no laughing matter, Kabaneri or otherwise, I think. Remember how Mumei knocked him the funk out in one of the earlier episodes with a kick to the face? Obviously she's a Kabaneri, but still. And while it's true he's taken more damage like when battling Kabane, there was definitely adrenaline involved, most likely more than what was happening here.

 

And it's also entirely possible that guy's also a Kabaneri.

[mitchermitcher]

sheet went south this time. Southern as sheet.

 

Still waiting for the Biba backstory scene that paints him as a very tragic and somewhat sympathetic character because goddamnit, that's very likely to happen.

 

I actually found myself hoping Kurusu doesn't kick the bucket. I guess that's a good thing, me being attached to characters that were previously unlikable as hell.

[Progenitor]

Horobi showin off dat Kaberyuu no Hokou amirite?

[Shradow]

So I was curious about the VA for Suzuki (blonde Engrish guy) and his name is Maxwell Powers, of all things. This is his first anime role but I've realized where I've heard his voice from. He does lots of commercials and things:

[Progenitor]

So I was curious about the VA for Suzuki (blonde Engrish guy) and his name is Maxwell Powers, of all things. This is his first anime role but I've realized where I've heard his voice from. He does lots of commercials and things:

You're doing god's work.

[Shradow]

His page on MyAnimeList says he was born in Oakland, California, and he clearly looks to be of mixed ethnic background. No wonder he plays the foreigner character so well. I still can't get over his "Daita-tetsu ga no more desu." line back in episode 7.

 

EDIT: We need to see Yukina's midriff so we can compare her abs that I assume she has to Mikasa's.

[Fusion X. Denver]

Meh, I'm not a fan of Biba. I think I liked it better when the show didn't have a clear antagonist, but that's more of a personal grievance than an actual flaw.

[Shradow]

[spoiler=Episode 10]Takumi's dead, Ikoma lost a hand, Mumei's been even more brainwashed.

 

Well, shiiiiiit.

 

Just about the only silver lining is that Ikoma didn't get stabbed in the heart, it looks like. Given that he's the main character, he's probably alive. Also, that blonde guy who knocked out Ikoma previously also beat down both Mumei and Ikoma this episode pretty effortlessly, he's a tough one. It was questionable at first, a seemingly normal guy taking down a Kabaneri, but with the repeat performances something tells me there's more to this guy.

 

At least we got some more Suzuki. "Watashi ga support shimasho." XD

[Progenitor]

Holy crap I have an unyielding, burning urge to see Biba get punched so hard in the face that his stupid fuckin perfect hair implodes.

No one has successfully made me feel this level of hate since Dio, but at least Dio was someone you kinda love to hate.

 

This guy's just a fakin jabroni.

[Shradow]

Dio is at least fabulous and fantastic while being an jabroni, Biba has the hair but doesn't use it to its full potential.

[mitchermitcher]

Meh, I'm not a fan of Biba. I think I liked it better when the show didn't have a clear antagonist, but that's more of a personal grievance than an actual flaw.

I agree. The show felt a little less comical back when Biba wasn't a thing.

 

Be an jabroni if you want but shoot Takumi and you are officially sheet. Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit. There's really no room for ambiguity at this point that the Biba's actions are never going to be justified in-show and that he'll remain simply a simplistic villain who'll get his downfall eventually. Sure, because >muh supplies or something he wants revenge but I absolutely doubt the writer can competently paint him in a more sympathetic light after we learn the reason why, if at all.

 

What'll happen to our boy Ikoma now?! Considering Kurusu is MIA, maaaaybe they'll help each other out, or something. I find myself wishing the entire crew of the Koutetsujou was characterized better. Sure, you can't give a name to every single passenger and I don't expect that to do well, but I do want to care about the passengers beyond the named cast.

[Shradow]

[spoiler=Episode 11]Man, what an episode. sheet's going down again and we're one episode away from the end. Ikoma's new haircut is sweet, and he took a level in badass to boot. I also saw this image which was pretty neat:

 

Meanwhile, Biba's still going around as a terribly written villain. But 1 dimensional villains aren't a deal breaker for me, I think this show's still quite good.

 

One thing I can't get over is how much I love the occasional sakuga moments when there's a zoom in one someone's face. The art style just looks so pretty.

 

[Progenitor]

"Hi, I'm Ikoma.  And I am Iron man"

[Fusion X. Denver]

Well, that ending was cool. Sawano knows how to hype up a scene with his score, as usual.

[Shradow]

By no means a bad ending to the series. I can appreciate a happy ending, and I like the use Ikoma's stone got in the end, it didn't have any sort of magical McGuffin powers or anything.

 

Also, apparently the show was supposed to have 13 episodes and the earthquake that got it delayed messed that up? That's what some people are saying but I'm not sure how accurate it is.

[Fusion X. Denver]

By no means a bad ending to the series. I can appreciate a happy ending, and I like the use Ikoma's stone got in the end, it didn't have any sort of magical McGuffin powers or anything.

 

Also, apparently the show was supposed to have 13 episodes and the earthquake that got it delayed messed that up? That's what some people are saying but I'm not sure how accurate it is.

Some things seemed a little rushed in the last episode, so I could see that. But the final showdown was pretty cool to watch and the series overall was an enjoyable ride. no pun intended I swear

I give it a 4/5

[Shradow]

I liked the little pseudo-grave Mumei (I assume) made for Biba at the end. I wasn't expecting him to be a Kabaneri, either. I also like how naturally the second vial of white blood was introduced, foreshadowing Ikoma being saved. It technically came out of nowhere, but not in a deus ex machina sort of way.

 

I'm a bit miffed that Sahari got taken out so easily with Ikoma being buffed with the black blood, but when he did the blast thing to take out the train that was awesome at least.

[mitchermitcher]

You know...I'll take it. This ending. It wasn't the worst we could've got. This sheet still really deserves more than a single cour (and preferably an eraser to the entire Biba arc part of the storyboards) but I'll funking take it. It wasn't bad.

 

The writing in the episode and arguably the show might not be great but it sure knows when and how to excite and hype. When Ikoma singlehandedly blocked the train, I thought 'what the hell' and then went with it because hey it's Ikoma on Kabane steroids, that sheet works fine and it was eye-shattering to see. The whole 'Biba shot the white thing into Ikoma saving him' part was a little dissatisfying but again, I'll take it since it's slightly better than having a copout where Ikoma recovers just because. And the silent moment Ikoma went Kabane for a while and Biba was about to off him, that was great, 10/10. As is seeing Mumei running around like normal again, that felt refreshing to see after so long.

 

But it's Kurusu that's the MVP of this show. He's not even that well-done but the guy has been nothing short of amazing the past few episodes. The series probably could've built up Ikoma and Kurusu's rivalry throughout the show better and have their separation on the bridge in this episode be more dramatic and meaningful but again, I'll take it, he was great as is.

 

I don't mind the show not ever really delving into why Kabane are a thing, but what we got instead wasn't really satisfying either. Biba was bad. He brought along a lot of narrative tension and change and a decent climax but he was still a pretty damn boring villain.

[EHN.]

I don't think I've seem something lose its potential as much as this for a loooong time.

 

Like when this first came out people were saying it was a better version of SNK but it turned out really...meh. Classic example of how too much hype can ruin something.

 

Biba ended up being a really weird character and I would have been fine if he never showed up. Zombie apocalypse while people are stuck in trains sounds f***ing awesome enough, without the inner human conflict which had very little build up and felt very forced. 

 

That being said, the anime wasn't terrible as such and it had its good moments. The ending was actually a lot better than I was expecting and some of the visuals were very nice. 

[Progenitor]

But like....nothing was resolved.

Biba just like appeared 3 episodes ago, became the main villain for some reason, ruined everything, then died.

But now they have nowhere to escape from the Kabane, so we're right back to where we were in episode 3.  Where all that conflict amounted to literally nothing.

 

There's just no resolution because all that was resolved was a superficial conflict that was established way too far into the actual series, while the main conflict is still hanging.

Really disappointing.  That's a fundamental mistake in storywriting.  Establishing a new conflict near the end of a story can work, but you can't forget about the original struggle when writing the resolution, or there will have been no progression or sense of satisfaction.

[Shradow]

So, just a little thing, maybe it's nothing, but WIT Studio's been putting out some bonus art over the past few weeks, and the most recent image brings up something...

 

 

Why doesn't Biba have a halo?

[mitchermitcher]

the ride was supposed to have ended gdi dont do this to me wit

 

while we're at it, i'm listening to the OST and damn it has some great tracks.

[Shradow]

I love any soundtrack that Sawano Hiroyuki does, he's fantastic.