In the midst of the working world and of real life another Rapidfire post rises from the ashes to inject a thousand-odd words of anime ranting and raving into the bloodstream of a starved anime fan.

Well, in all honesty I hope you’ve been reading elsewhere too, so you shouldn’t be starving, but in any case, I’m just starting to go off on random tangents, having already written all the content out of my head (yes, the pre-jump section comes last here) and now desperately typing random, fourth-wall referential content in an attempt to fill space.

In case you’re interested in what’s on board for today, there’s a news section announcing a new Shuffle!-like substance for the PC, a short metarant involving ads and websites, and a good long analytical-type thing about Howl’s Moving Castle – one of the popular Miyazaki films – and the power of emotional connection versus logical appeal.

Well … uh … how about that Nagato?

Shuffle! Essence+
The Shuffle! anime has always been sort of a dirty pleasure for me. As fanservice-filled and as unabashedly harem as it is, I maintain the belief that Shuffle! has a legitimately intriguing and dramatic plot behind it all; and certainly, its colorful character designs are among the best around, with nearly every character appealing on either a visual or a emotional level (or both).

Still, when I attempted to transfer my affection for the show to the visual novel it was adapted from, I was a bit underwhelmed. Each character’s story, individually, was perhaps less interesting than the way it was all wound together in the anime, and the blatant fanservice became more apparent.

Then again, I was playing using an automatic translator, which had no regard for the actual content of the lines being translated, so maybe the game lost a lot of its feel.

One thing that can’t be denied though is the surprising vastness of the Shuffle! universe, with three separate visual novels – the original, Tick! Tack!, and Really? Really!. As amusingly named as they are, I can at least vouch to the fact that YURIA sings some wicked OP songs (Remember Memories remains one of my favorite songs in both sound and lyrics) and that Navel has come up with some novel gameplay mechanics.

And apparently the universe is about to get a bit bigger with Navel’s announcement of Shuffle! Essence+ (keeping their “what the hell kind of naming is this” crown intact), a reverse port of Shuffle! On the Stage (PS2) to the PC with some extra content added.

In addition to the Mayumi and Kareha paths from the PS2 game, two all-new paths of girls named Daisy and Ruri are to be added, in addition to new dialogue and H-scenes for the previously-sanitized Mayumi / Kareha routes. More info can be found at the Animesuki thread here (thanks to them for the news).

I can only be so enthusastic for Essence given the fact that I can’t read Japanese, but if this gives any hope to the legendary Mayumi path actually getting some form of translation, I’m all for it. Mayumi and Itsuki are a great duo and they need all the attention they can get. I’m less interested in the new characters, because I think Shuffle!’s hitting a sort of a saturation point a la the Sonic series where new characters are superfluous, but this might just be because the current Shuffle! core cast is so strong.

Selling out?
With all the bluntness of Haruhi Suzumiya, I’ve been considering trying to actually wring some sort of profit out of the writing I do.

I say this expecting not to be bathing in solid gold coins anytime soon, but instead perhaps just a modest paycheck which could fuel an additional DVD (or other related merchandise) purchase every few months or so. It’s one of those things that you wake up one day and wonder, “Well, I spend on average one hour a day blogging anyway, might as well get paid for it.”

(Incidentally, that figure is quoted from when I manage to hit my every-other-day post quota, since I spend usually about 2 hours on the writing process.)

Well, to be honest, there’s actually a few things holding me back from stuffing ads into every free space of my site in the fashion some people get violated in disturbing hentai.

First off is the titular issue of this mini-post; I suppose I’ve already let some of my “fame” get to my head if I begin thinking about my readers instead of just focusing on what I’m writing, but a legitimate concern for me is whether if I put ads on my site, will I have enough readers left to make those ads worth it.

Quite simply “selling out” is a phrase that’s thrown about pretty much at anything artistically-related, whether it be music, art, or here, writing. Whether it’s a valid complaint about people losing their way to the greed for money, or just the whining of people mad that others have made their passion their life more than they ever could, I don’t know.

I should hope to someday be so lucky as to ever be able to legitimately sell out, since I don’t exactly have such a readership to be able to do so, but I do still wish to ask before I attempt anything silly: would you be offended by seeing ads on M3? I’m guessing it’ll be the usual fare I’ve seen on other anime blogs: Google Ads, and possibly banners from places like J-List or Amazon. I’m hoping what I’ll hear is “as long as they are integrated properly,” which is something I think I can achieve.

Or on the flip side, for bloggers who do actually put ads on their own sites, does it work? I’m not expecting riches here, but I’m hoping to at least cover server costs if I do use ads.

I say server costs because of a policy here at Dasaku (and a sensible one) that no ads be placed on blogs, logically given that Randall is wonderful enough (in a straight manner) to provide excellent, flexible, and most important, free hosting to everyone that asks. Although, I can’t decide whether pimping his service is a good thing (yay, positive feedback) or a bad thing (incoming begging-for-hosting rush).

But back on track, if I do decide to go ahead with Plan Get Mad Rich Get Paid (A Little) For What I Like To Do, I will probably be moving servers again to new hosting, with a few friends also looking to team up to split server fees.

Well, food for thought in any case. But how about we ramble about some anime instead?

Howl’s Moving Castle and the power of emotional connection
So this Miyazaki guy, he’s something, eh? Right up there with Evangelion and Gurren Lagann in the giant pile of “how have I managed to be a fan of anime this long without having seen this” is the enormously popular stack of films that Miyazaki has created, acclaimed enough to make their ways to American shores, and, if I recall correctly, theaters.

Perhaps it was the plain art style that never really spurred me to watch them; in a world where moe saturates anime like grease does pizza, Miyazaki’s works always look almost boring in comparison. Of course, this is more my fault than anyone else’s; but call me a shallow person, first impressions still count.

Another way to say ‘boring’ might be just ‘down-to-earth’, which is perhaps a better descriptor, but still since watching one of the Miyazaki films would involve either purchasing it or driving to the library to check it out, then shoving time out of my schedule to watch it, I was a bit tentative. At least until my friend came over one day, toting Howl’s Moving Castle and demanding to watch it.

It’s a curious work. I hesitate to give it a high score and hesitate to give it a low one, or, for that matter, a mediocre one.

This is because Howl’s Moving Castle is one of those anime with many facets, some of which shine really brightly and some of which are just plain ugly. I suppose the greatest parallel I could make is to a dramatic, roller-coaster, plot-hole-filled anime like sola or H2O. Like them, Howl’s Moving Castle is a powerful work … but perhaps not a great story.

I say this because as much as Howl’s Moving Castle was beautiful and touching, there was a point where it just sort of stopped making sense. Like my friends joked, maybe I wasn’t Japanese enough to understand it, or maybe it was meant to be open to interpreted.

But that doesn’t stop the fact that I honestly disliked how HMC confused me so much, almost seeming like the visual novel anime that many like to rag on for trying to coax tears out of viewers. For example, the ending parts, where Howl went from dead to alive and back and forth until he became a sort of Schroendinger’s Cat; the ending itself, where the two sides just give up on the war; or a lot of the backstory, which was never explained. Heck, even Sophie’s curse didn’t hold water half the time.

Perhaps I just feel cheated by a simple message; to me, Howl’s Moving Castle boiled down to “power of love saves the day”, and as warm and fuzzy and great as that message is, I’ve heard it a million times from every shoujo show ever. I frequently shouted at the TV, “That’s so, so awesome, yet so, so cheesy,” … because it was.

Whatever it is, despite Howl’s Moving Castle winning over my heart, driving me close to tears with a simple predicament, my brain remains unconvinced. I like to think rationally, but it’s times like these I wonder which organ is more important to listen to.

If you’re pondering the vague title, it’s because I’m going through a similar situation with Nodame Cantabile, with just one episode to go. Now make no mistake, Nodame is definitely a show I enjoy and hold dear to me; but I still can’t determine whether it is one of the true standout anime or not (more concretely, a 9 in my MAL book).

Logically, it’s merely very good. Nodame and Chiaki’s characters are both very empathetic, appealing to me through their mix of insanity and sanity. The comedy is frequently golden, and the show has good emotional moments too. There’s rarely a foot (or perhaps, a finger) placed wrong.

But, it’s missing some spark. It’s like the difference between a slow, prolonged burn at a low temperature, versus a high-temperature, fiery explosion. Both give off the same amount of heat in the end but one is definitely more noticeable than the other.

Nodame Cantabile is the former; a show that I’ve watched over many months, very slowly but surely. I’ve practically never failed to enjoy an episode, but neither am I ever really standing on my feet, holding my sides together, gripping my chair, or generally being far too enthusastic for 11 PM – as I have been with some of the other greats, such as Azumanga or Kaiji.

But the fact that it’s really a near-perfect show for me should be enough to, objectively, get it in the pantheon. I mean, it’s not like it is any worse than any of my ‘9′ anime. And the feeling in the stomach that grows when the end of an anime approaches, is large as ever; I definitely feel the upcoming void of Nodame Cantabile in my heart, mediated only by rejoicing at the upcoming second second.

The end result, still, is indecision, and probably a bit of complaining that there still aren’t enough tiers in the world to subjectively rank my anime, if only because I want to start tossing out numbers like 8.5, 7.7852, pi, and i.

Really, it just spurs more than anything to me, a thought about how time can affect anime so much – whether it be looking back overly fondly on old anime (alternatively, over-praising a recently concluded show), or the actual passage of time between episodes fading one’s enjoyment for a show.

-CCY

(Going back to Navel’s ‘what were they on?’ naming crown, I did see this poster at Fanime for the best-named eroge ever.)

Connection is one of the most powerful things of anime. It can turn the mundane into the interesting, and the interesting into the legendary.

For your average impressionable teenage boy, being able to connect to an anime isn’t very hard, especially in a sea of harem shows full of equal amounts of uninspiring, bland if not unusually nice guys.

Even with all the escapism offered by such shows, there comes a point where as cute as it is to see another “gee well I like X but don’t feel like confessing for another 23 episodes” premise, the raw cliche factor of it drags down the entire feel of the show.

And so when something different, a different view on the topic comes up, it’s enough to make me sit up and notice. A character with a viewpoint, a reasoning different than the norm, and a viewpoint interesting enough to really drive a point home.

One might say that trying to learn anything about real life from anime, especially the incredibly unrealistic harem genre, is ridiculous. But sometimes, you come across a gem in the rough.

Enter Shuffle! 16.

12 Moments of Anime 2007
#9 Shuffle! – 16
“Sia vs. Sia”

Shuffle! would probably be the last thing on a list resembling anything close to real romance. Tally it up – you’ve got one guy, his childhood friend, two otherworldly world princesses, one artiicial loli form, and…uh…Asa.

It’s definitely a show that leans a lot towards the escapist side in the first half or so, with fanservice left and right. Even the more dramatic parts that Shuffle is remembered for could be considered the same – like most visual novel shows, as intense and emotional the plot is, it usually boils down to something involving the guy bailing the girl out of some danger.

Your eye-rolling mileage may vary; some are more cheesy than others, usually depending on the amount of character development the guy recieves – because an interesting show doesn’t just show how the girl changes and falls for the guy but also how the girl can change the guy himself.

Y’know, beyond the whole ‘blushing and stuttering’ mess.

It’s this kind of balance that, suprisingly, Shuffle! of all shows, pulls out of its hat right in the middle of it all. The balance is of a different kind that’s equally interesting, in discovering the other side of romance.

Lisianthus is an oft-ignored in Shuffle!, her arcs falling in the worst spots: at the beginning, and between the first ‘real’ arc of Primula’s and the most memorable arc of Asa and Kaede’s.

Her personality can be considered to border on grating, with Nerine’s elegant demeanor, Primula’s silent stares, or Asa’s cheerfulness preferred by many to Sia’s hyperactive stalker attitude – which Kikyou, her alter ego, takes to an incredible level.

But, as such, one could say she has the most to gain. In the same reason that tsunderes are so highly valued, I see a lot of worth in Sia in how her outlook on Rin – or her outlook on her love life in general – changes.

Originally, Sia was very straightforward, almost pushy in her obsession over Rin (right down to the ‘battle panties’, right?), letting nothing stand in her way in her eternal quest to win Rin’s heart. This is reflected in Kikyou, who takes this desire and amplifies it many times.

However, as the writing begins to appear on the wall for her relationship (as Rin takes a turn for the Asa), some revelations hit her. She begins to wonder if it’s really all right to be fighting a losing battle like this, if it’s right to try to take Rin’s love from her friend Asa.

We see the Daidouji-special ‘If My Beloved is Happy Card’ played, as Sia tries to convince herself that as long as she can be with Rin as a friend, as long as he can be happy, then Sia can be herself happy.

Naturally, Kikyou is arguing the other way the whole time. It’s an internal conflict expressed externally through Sia’s dual personalities, and it’s one that’s extremely emotional as well.

It’s a viewpoint very rarely seen in anime; so many characters focus just on the the ends, getting the girl (or guy), that the means begin to become irrelevant. Very few people consider the circumstances, the cause and effects.

They think just about themselves, even less than the other person. It’s less “I want X to like me” and more “I want to like X”, “I want to be with X”. Often the other person is just reduced to an object of adoration, with no real emotions and thoughts.
Life After Confession isn’t very much considered so much as idealized.

So Sia’s maturation in viewpoint, thinking more realistically about love, is something that’s really touching. Ever so much more because she is fighting against herself, fighting against her own emotions – she is trying to morph her desire for Rin into something more controllable, something more honest to herself, something that both she and Rin can be happy with.

It’s something that’s hard to do, and it makes her character all the more admirable. It shows that she has worries, she has fears. It shows that she’s not just a fangirl.

It shows a side rarely seen in romance, and that, for me, is more powerful than any boxcutter fight.

-CCY

While I am unable to provide pictures for these two I can still review them and provide some information, of which was sorely lacking when I tried to research these two the day before. (when drooling over them at twice-the-price Kinokuniya.)

Jump!

The Haruhi Suzumiya Official Fanbook (Suzumiya Haruhi no Koushiki) undoubtedly, even for lesser Nagatoists Haruhi fans like me, was a good buy at $6 (Kinokuniya price $16). It comes with a pull-out poster, and being reversable it’s your choice of the full cast in swimsuits or Yuki reading a book in the clubroom. Unsurprisingly I chose to bring my Nagato poster count to a whopping two. Insert fanboying.

The Haruhi book (the inside cover says “Haruhi’s Formula”, cryptically enough) features more information than you really need, which is strange considering that I don’t even understand half of it. But when you flip to a page which has a picture of the entire seating layout of Kyon/Haruhi’s class, including names and sentence blurbs about every member, you can tell there’s a bit of detail put into it.

There’s a good section on each character (unreadable, of course), in addition to interviews with the voice actors for the anime and the producers of the novel (artist + author, I believe). There’s also another section which I think is terminology or something, but it’s uber wall-of-text.

About 10, 20-odd pages consist of random illustrations as well; there are 3/4 page pictures of textless images that ran in magazines previous (if you have Haruhi wallpapers from the interwebs, you’ll probably recognize quite a few), as well as some fanart by other artists (one was the core trio of girls in the Shuffle! art style) and a set of four 4-komas which, again, I don’t get.

Someday I plan to get it though, which is my excuse for buying this kind of stuff.

There are also pages devoted to going through each episode (in addition to the OP/ED sequences) in full blog-post fashion, with more screencaps, more moonspeak, and apparently Haruhi’s “tsundere” meter, which measures just how much she’s either a) beating up or 2) melting over Kyon at that episode’s time.

All in all a very worthy purchase, in my belief, doubly so if you actually understand any of this. Eheheh.

The Shuffle! On the Stage artbook was decent as well but at a comparatively whopping $13 (Kinokuniya: $30) and feeling a bit sparse on the art, I didn’t think was as interesting. To be fair the Shuffle! book was a bit bigger (both clock in above 125 pages) but it didn’t come with any nifty posters.

It too had a selection of art, from what I understand of the English-heavy Shuffle! was sourced from either game releases (the LE/SE versions of Shuffle!, Shuffle! On the Stage, and the DVDs, among others), but there weren’t a massive amount of random artwork as well.

The bulk of the book came from the sections on the characters; there were about 6 pages devoted to each main heroine (7 in On the Stage, the core 5 plus Mayumi and Kareha), and a few less for each minor character (Itsuki, Kikyou, Tsubomi, the parents, etc). Each section displays most to all of the game CGs for that character, as well as a sketch or two and a Wall of Faces. No kidding – they took all the facial expressions and pasted them next to each other on a half-page; most clock in at about 30 or so. Walls of Text are, of course, very applicable throughout.

There is also a sketch section, where some unfinished art plus commentary from the artists are displayed; interesting perhaps, if you’re interested in knowing how the process works or how to draw the characters; but most of the art is just uncolored/unfinished CG, so it’s nothing new.

The interviews with the voice actors and the terminology section also exist in the Shuffle! book, and are still equally incomprenhensible.

If you’re curious about the worksafe-ness of the artbook, since On the Stage was the PS2 version of the visual novel all ero content has been removed and as such the novel is relatively safe. There is no sex, no nudity (there are Barbie-style models in the sketch section, however, but everyone knows those don’t count) and strangely enough no panty shots as well; although all the fanservice situations (Mayumi shoving her butt in Rin’s face, etc) are relatively intact, although things have been censored to the standards stated.

What really weirds me out is that Mayumi and Kareha’s scenarios still feature situations that look like they could have been lifted from the PC version, in that there is obvious censoring going on; one wonders why they even bother sort of leading the viewer on like that, pretending that they’re seeing something.

An interesting bonus to the On the Stage artbook is that it features sheet music and lyrics for the OP and ED themes of both Shuffle! and Shuffle! On the Stage; however, being musically inept beyond DDR, I am not able to take advantage of these.

All in all both fanbooks feel like very good buys, although I personally prefer the Haruhi one, perhaps because it contains more content to the untrained eye. I would recommend both of them to any fan of the series, especially if they can be found this cheap.

-CCY

(Stock images from Animephile and Animebooks.com. This has not been an advertisement. XD)

Subject: Shuffle! Memories the 12th
Age: 25 minutes
Sex: Unstated. Tests report “Yes, please”
Race: Japanese animation

Background: Known history of insanity in family, especially in earlier Shuffle! generations 1 through 12. Fanservice abuse often common through the years, leading to unhealthily low amounts of plotline and occurances of Type-II (a.k.a Hit or Miss) Humor. Suffered from Beach Episode Disease.

Cause of Death: Appears to be natural causes. Many suspicious suspects, better known as “main characters”, are currently being investigated as possible contributing factors to death, to be explored in “after jump” segment.

Subject A: Rin Tsuchimi
Possible leader of crime group known as “The Harem”, considered highly dangerous. Suffers from a affliction of the Tohno Gland (named after infamous criminal Shiki Tohno of Tsukihime) which causes him to exude pheremones at unstoppable rate, attracting many females of various background, but not their clothes. Prone to hideous facial contortions due to typical attack pattern of these “Haremettes” which involves many socially awkward but highly fanservicey situations.
Verdict: Possibly guilty, cleared due to proof of insanity

Subject B: Kaede Fuyou
Has exhibited close, perhaps obsessive ties with Subject A in the past, leading to suspicion by authorities. Suspicion confirmed with background check revealing many charges of aggravated assault with deadly weapon including but not limited to I) boxcutter, II) cleaver, and III) physical force. Charges have not yet been pressed due to said charges increasing subject’s controlling power over defense force which protects her from authority. This factor is understood by scientists to be a result of “psycho moe.”
Verdict: Guilty, cleared of all charges…for now

Subject C: Lisianthus
Extremely unstable personality exhibited, with obsessive and sometimes suicidal tendencies noted. Has a past of being schizophrenic, and as thus very dangerous to approach. Known to use force of the sexual manner to get her way. Has been previously arrested for assault with a pair of deadly weapons on one (1) Rin Tsuchimi, but was released on parole after the conclusion of a good arc. Now considered once again highly dangerous, and all citizens are advised to use extreme caution, especially if they are named Rin.
Verdict: At large

Subject D: Nerine (Not pictured)
Possible partner in crime with Subject C (Lisianthus). Subject appears innocent to the outlook but is currently under arrest for charges in drowning of Mayumi Thyme (pictured). Alibi of not being near victim at time of death checks out as plausible but is under suspicion of using magic powers of ‘bouncy’ type to drown victim from long range, in addition to causing massive damage to any male beings in a 5-mile radius.
Verdict: Restraining order issued for Nerine and her chest region.

Subject E: Primula
Scowling, purple-haired criminal arrested recently under many more charges than can be listed. Primary accusation is identity theft of one Yuki Nagato, with both eating and vocal habits being lifted directly from the victim. Also charged by lolicons for evasion of fanservice, made mandatory in compliance with the laws of Harem Anime, rule 95 part IIIa (page 496, Beach Episode Corollary).
Verdict: Currently under test tube arrest.

Subject F: Mayumi Thyme
Long-time reporter often infamous for lack of boundaries. Has been noted to suffer from many mental afflictions, including the Daidouji Camera Complex (note the digital camera grafted to Mayumi’s hand) the Flat Chest Complex, and the Eroge Complex (part IV, Obsession with Genitals). Extreme care is advised when handling.
Verdict: At large, currently being sued by one Konata Izumi for violating trademark on Haruhi references.

Subject G: Itsuki Midoriba
Infamous pimp known to deal in both genders in order to fill his harem. Wanted for violation of anime guidelines which state, in part, “No male shall perform acts of fanservice (including but not limited to, jiggling, shaking, groping, squeaking, or skirt lifting) in any anime expressed declared to be of the harem variety.”
Verdict: At large, possibly in the Middle East searching for his harem (see Shuffle! 24)

Subjects H and I: King of Gods and King of Demons
Shown to exhibit tentacle fetishes common of many people their age. As such, study was prematurely concluded before more info could be obtained
Verdict: Currently contesting charges of Being Useless Under (and Over) the Influence.

Subject J: Asa Shigure
The seeming odd character out of the group, showing strong signs of sanity, including logical reason, common sense, and a lack of a need to strip, kill, drink, copy Nagato, have a harem, be gar for Rin, or make funny faces.
Verdict: Innocent

—

…in the end, I’m not sure quite where this blog post was going. I was watching Shuf!Memo 12 and basically was contemplating just how insane every character was (due to their personalities getting dragged to the deep end), with the exception of Asa, and as such, an insanity check medical report blog post ensued. I can almost see where the Asa fanboys come by now – I used to not really like Asa too much but I seem to find that sanity just might be a good trait in people.

This episode actually was a pretty amusing one, though, once you get past all the fanservice. The plot was funny, it was hilarious to see all the characters be really insane (especially Kaede’s segment. I was waiting for her to scream, “Heeeeeeere’s Johnny!”) as well.

…but what’s with Mobius being in the god world? (Hint: play Sonic Boom.)

-CCY

“As long as Rin-kun is happy, then everything will be fine.”

It’s why I watched Shuffle. It’s why you should too.

Today begins another flavor of content, full series recaps. Instead of recounting series episode-by-episode it’s time to write some more all-encompassing content in reviewing the series as a whole.

Episode recaps will likely continue for newer, more recent series (such as Lucky Star and the upcoming summer season) but for older series these types of posts will probably become the norm, since most of you have watched this sort of stuff ten times over.

So, how about Shuffle!? On the face of it it’s a very generic harem show, with one typically bland protagonist choosing between five typically varied girls, but there is a lot more depth to it than first meets the eye.

Here’s the non-spoilery version for those looking to watch Shuffle!, and bonus details with spoilers can be found after the jump.

Shuffle doesn’t really kick in until about halfway through – episode 12 is where the serious content starts, and it hits high gear around 16. Still, I would reccomend watching some of the early episode to familiarize oneself with the characters, if only so that the later parts can hit harder. Still, since Shuffle! is hitting R1 DVD this fall and it’s a bit hard to come by online (by, y’know, legal means), if you could only buy some DVDs, pick up the 5th for sure (17-20, projecting 4 episodes a DVD) and, if possible, the 4th and 6th as well.

I would reccomend Shuffle! for those who like the “Sad Girls in Snow” genre (to steal a cliche), which I attribute to most visual-novels such as Kanon, AIR, Tsukihime, and yes, Shuffle. What I mean by that, is that, although these appear to be harem anime on the surface, each character has a compelling story to tell, instead of just being rehashed fluff. At the least, they are emotionally powerful rehashed fluff.

Shuffle! is similar to anime like the Key ones and Tsukihime in this regard, but it differs in that it is more tilted toward its fanservicey origins. So if you like panties and breasts, Shuffle! will be something you enjoy at least partially. And if you like serious storytelling with twists and tears, you will also enjoy Shuffle!.

As such, Shuffle! will probably be enjoyed by the latter audience, who can stand the former. If you’re just in Shuffle! for the dirty aspects of it, the first half is nearly all yours. I would suggest, if you’re into that sort of thing, check out the Shuffle! series of h-games, which seem significantly more biased towards ero content.

Still, for anyone who is not overly disturbed by fanservice (and if you are, there’s always the fast-forward button, or your eyelids), I would give Shuffle! a strong recommendation. Spoilers ensue after the jump.

There are a few aspects to Shuffle! that really make it stand out among the many contenders in its genre. After all, fanservice anime have always been pretty crowded, and the field for eroge adaptations is pretty strong as well. As mentioned above, Shuffle’s acceptance of its fanservice roots will draw in an extra audience, and it doesn’t detract away from the more meaty content too strongly.

What Shuffle is really known for, if you’ve ever heard the term ‘to pull a Shuffle’ used in my blog or others, is the twist ending. Very often harem animes are extremely predictable – the main girl is designated early and focused on often, to the point that one doesn’t really even need to spoil the fact that she is the ending girl (i.e. the True Love).

Shuffle! set up viewers this way subtly, listing towards Kaede’s direction if not solely because of her Childhood Friend designation (which has a strong track record of winning). But she was quickly cast into the background in favor of the rest of the cast, who faded in and out of the spotlight, sometimes numerous times.

That’s the interesting thing, that there really was no such thing as “down and out” in Shuffle. Sia, who suffered the death blow of having the first arc early, came back two-thirds down the line, right in the heat of things. Kaede, as mentioned, was the one who was always ignored throughout the series, but being the Childhood Friend, technically was always in it – especially when she pulled off her arc in style with 5 episodes to go – decision time. Doubly so because the episode before, Asa, the one who had the most hints dropped towards her getting an ending, turned down Rin (hint: the male protagonist) because of his inability to function on his own.

In the end, of course, Asa came back and won, but who would have put money on her after episode 1? And it was a fight all the way to the wire as well. Nerine and Primula, although not mentioned above, did have their moments as well – although they were the first true victims of First Arc Syndrome. All the girls resolved their conflicts in a realistically viable manner, choosing to accept Asa as the winner in addition to giving up their own affections – or at least, resolving to fight harder to overtake Asa.

After all, as Sia puts it, the Gods practice polygamy.

Enough about the twist ending, as it is. The characters, as hinted at above, are a varied and interesting cast as well, and aren’t just cookie-cutter – although they do fit a few stereotypes.

Sia, the god princess, and Nerine, the demon princess, share many similarities in that they are both two-for-one deals in that they harbor alternate personalities, in addition to both of them having met Rin in the past. Sia has Kikyou, and Nerine has Lico.

Taking the first pair, Sia is your typical Genki Girl at first, being very enthusiastic and energetic, but not as much as to get onto one’s nerves. She has a more shy and reserved side though, which shows in her second arc, where she begins to mature and doubt herself about chasing Rin so blindly without considering others. This is of course a sharp contrast to her alternate personality, Kikyou, who is more of a ‘win-at-all-costs’ type personality, which makes for some interesting switch-offs and stand-offs between the two of them.

Nerine is decidedly more reserved than Sia, and is more prone to embarassment. Perhaps this is a fault of blue hair, but she reminds me a lot of Mina from TokiMemo Only Love, in that both of them, despite being a bit shy, aren’t afraid to speak their mind and stand up for themselves. As such, she’s much of an improvement over the typical Shy Girl mold. In the overall scheme of things, she actually sneaks in the first kiss on Rin. How about that, eh? Lico is her alternate personality, who sacrificed herself a long time ago for her sister (Nerine, if you’re not keeping track). Not much is exposed about her but she seems very much like your typical Idol-type who is confident, and perfect-seeming. At least, we don’t see much of her flaws.

Primula is the real Quiet Girl of this cast – must be something with the purple hair – but she does show facial emotion quite often, most often worry in the tearing apart of her ‘family’ (Rin and Kaede). Her form of love deals less with romantic and more with family, as her arc deals with the separation of her from everyone, and she frequently tries hard to keep everybody happy and friendly, in her quiet little way. She’s also the closest we ever get to a meganekko, for those who are keeping score.

Kaede’s a cookie-cutter Childhood Friend for most of the show, in that she’s very friendly and yes, willing to step out of the way as her love goes off to cavort with more interesting personalities. She does show change though, as all this wear is piling up on her behind the scenes, until she snaps (see the famous first picture of this post), going through the typical phases of stress; denial, anger, depression, acceptance, or something like that? It’s something we rarely see in anime, and it really goes a great way towards giving Shuffle top tier status, in that Kaede, in addition to the other characters, do not stand by the wayside and let Asa win.

Asa is Genki Girl 2.0, even more so than Sia, frequently speaking in English and giving Rin enthusiastic slaps on the back. She is of this type to the extent that she plays happy in order not to worry others (since she actually turns out to be a Sick Girl). She has quite a backbone, which is shown in her shaping of Rin, whether it be how he treats her or how he confesses to her. She actually TURNS DOWN a confession from the lead protagonist (Rin) – which has to be a first in anime, especially since she harbors feelings for him too, of course. It’s the little surprises of Shuffle that count.

Rin is the male protagonist, and I haven’t written much about him because there’s not much to say about him. He starts as your typical spineless character, realizes his weakness, and matures into a responible young man, or something honorable sounding like that. He’s not anything far out of the norm, to the extent of, I suppose, Kyon or Yuuichi – although there HAVE to be other people to mention in these situations – despite sharing the same voice actor.

There’s a theme which ties Shuffle! together, which is the supernatural aspect of magic. The gods (Sia’s people) and the demons (Nerine’s people) have worked together to try to create a human lifeform capable of using and controlling magic (or something like that). They failed at least once, maybe twice, and succeeded once, and all three characters play a strong part in the series. Why?

The first one was Ama, Asa’s mom. The first ‘clone’, as it is, was presumed dead for a long time, but since it’s well known that Asa’s mom is rather in the alive column, that’s proven false. She had some vague form of magical potential, which she passed on to her daughter Asa, setting up her arc.

The second one was Licorice, Nerine’s sister. She’s been explained already, and she proves to not have tied only to Nerine but to the third test subject…

Primula. See how it all works together? The theme pops up now and then, as such, for surprise plot twists or explanations, but it seems almost plausible and doesn’t detract from the experience, especially in comparison to other unifying explanations of eroge.

The other theme of Shuffle! is flowers or something, as everyone is named after a flower in some way. This is most obvious in characters such as Nerine, Nadeshiko, and Mayumi Thyme. I don’t believe this convention means anything beyond the names, though.

The side characters of Shuffle are very good as well, as Itsuki, the runner-up male, is much stronger of a character and much more entertaining than the usual pathetic to the nth degree Second Harem Guy, as well as his friend (and, as has been hinted at in Shuffle! On The Stage blurbs, his love as well. I would like to beg for a Mayumi path translation, please?) Mayumi Thyme, who forms the energetic comedy duo with Itsuki. The pair are always good for laughs, as they each have repeated – yet amusing – gags involving Itsuki’s harem dreams/jealousy and Mayumi’s defensiveness of her small bust size. The parents of Sia and Nerine are also a good combination for humor, and even Nadeshiko, the typical Overly Racked Teacher, has her moments.

And on a minor note, the opening and ending songs are really ace – YURIA and Miyuki
Hashimoto have cranked out a lot of good songs for the Shuffle! series, in addition to just the two here in this anime.

So, with all the gushing about this series, what’s not to like about it?

The fanservice, honestly, does get to me at times. It’s not as horribly bad as some other series, but sometimes it just seems like it could be made more plausible, or less obvious. When was the last time a swimsuit got washed off by a rogue wave while swimming at the beach? Or the last time a eight-year-old kid ran around lifting up girls’ skirts? Or even Mayumi accidentally going commando (gee, I tend to remember whether I put underwear on or not) at the maid cafe? But then again, I’m talking about fanservice, so I don’t know why I’d even bother trying to make it believable.

The first few episodes seem a bit dull at times as well, although this might just be my personal First Episode Syndrome of not liking beginnings. The ending falls rather flat as well, as Asa seems to act particularly out of character, refusing to use magic and save her damn life based on personal beliefs. Not to mention Rin cutting himself. And then the last half of the last episode is the usual Life X Months Later concept, with really ugly animation. C’mon.

Shuffle! Memories, if you’re considering that as well, is a silly idea as well, being 99% recaps. I would say, maybe watch the last episode of that and call it a day. It’s no diet substitute for the real series as well – it lacks a lot of buildup, personally.

And the Shuffle! fanbase? Scary. Whose idea was it to invent canon fanclubs in the anime?

But overall, Shuffle! is definitely on the higher end of recent harem shows and maybe anime in general. It’s a bit more light than the really heavy anime such as the Key series (Kanon, AIR) and maybe some of the Type-Moon stuff (Tsukihime) as well, so you can feel some strong emotion for the characters without the tissue box for once (maybe). It’s innovative, and has a a lot of surprises in store. And the flaws can be overlooked – and after all, every show has their flaws, even shows that I’d gush over like Haruhi, Kanon, Cardcaptor Sakura – and there’s really a lot of good stuff, especially at the end, that makes it worth your time – and maybe money.

-CCY

Not a lot to say that won’t spoil this episode to death, since it has some large exposition, but to say the least it involves several years’ worth of buildup, although, from the anime where everybody knew somebody back in the ‘promised girl’ flashback age, that shouldn’t say much.

XWindow: Jump out in.
This should. Someone – or at the going rate, more than one someone – is out to get Rin. Who? Why? Are they successful?

Well, of course, the last answer is kind of a no, as having your harem lead die would be a bit of a downer. But then again, there’s always Itsuki, who’s too shiny-glasses awesome in this series to be called by that name which graces that of lower-grade espers and drivers of Levins.

Anyway, find out next time on – what, this isn’t a TV commercial? There’s more? After the jump (spoiler safe through Shuffle! 19). Fine, be that way. Can’t I stretch this out over two days of suspense?

Don’t give me that ‘everybody’s already seen the anime’ look. It’s coming to R1 soon, and then I’ll laugh at you fools who said nobody cares about Shuffle anymore! Mwhahahahahah!

Er, sorry, that acts up. I wonder if Shuffle! still does have a decent fanbase – although, from the looks of the AnimeSuki forums (the ones I browse frequently) it’s much more chaotic and cutthroat (with those stupid fanclubs) than other harem anime. Possibly because they learn from example, if this episode is any cue.

Additionally, I wonder how the censoring will work on the Shuffle! R1s. I’d like to know if I am able to buy the DVD without putting on a trenchcoat and a fake mustache.

See that title card? That title card screams ominous. We don’t even get color and large kanji like we did with the Rimu arc. Just a bit of tiny text, an episode number (oddly), and we’re off. Shuffle! wants you to know when it does plot, what with the flashing back and forth between happy intro/serious intro and happy eyecatchcleavage serious eyecatch.

In Key fashion, we begin with a flashback, to the most repeated one of the series: loli Kaede and loli Rin in the rain. As we all know, rain in anime is a Very Bad Thing, and Kaede reinforces this by finally filling in the words we’ve been waiting to hear for about 15 episodes:

Hmm, somehow that just doesn’t have the same ring, I must say. So now that we’ve established that Rin has done something Really Really Bad to Kaede (like, post bad things on her Myspace or something. I can’t believe I just typed that), we…wake up. What did you want? More plot?

Strangely enough, this morning Kaede is not up to wake Rin as she always seems to be. Adding to the awkwardness, Rin refuses a meal (breakfast) for the second time in favor of going out and playing with Asa, a foolish move. He’s not doing much to maintain balance in the harem – although he may feel he owes Asa something after the uber-failed date at Cupid Land.

And so Rimu and Kaede are left alone in an extremely quiet house, doing busywork. There just seems to be no life in it without Rin. Why do I mention that, you wonder…

Oh, hey, we get plot after all! Going back to 8 years ago, we learn of the fact that Kaede’s mom and both Rin’s parents died in a car accident – eat your heart out, Kanon. (it’s not spoilers, I swear!) That’s one hell of a car accident. I’m sure this has been referenced before but now it’s brought to the forefront.

Obligatory ‘opposite meaning’ statement. Last time you’ll see her happy in the next 25 minutes. (ncidentally, if you did not get it, her parents did not end up fine, and as proven, neither will she:

It’s a bit of a shock for her. It’s interesting, showing some real reaction to the death of a parent. Often times in anime, dead parents come standard, and the children are either ‘too young to remember it’, or blatantly ignoring it, referring to themselves in the third person and buying giant anteater plushies.

Flash-forward briefly to loli Kaede in the hospital. She hasn’t incurred any physical injury, but her mental trauma is shutting her down as she’s stopped reacting to any outside influences, being very glassy-eyed and downright creepy. Rin notices this, and goes to the hospital that night to cheer her up.

Why? Nothing important can happen before sunset, and so Rin must wait until after dark to discuss important matters with Kaede. Namely, the fact that he killed their parents.

WHAT!?

Oh yes, that’s a twist. It’s actually only a vague association, since Rin claims he asks them to come home early because he was lonely, but it’s enough for Kaede, who, almost looks shocked even more so than she already did, to react again.

Unfortunately, it was not the reaction anyone was hoping for, as Kaede begins choking Rin, the beginning of a series of nasty events that includes the pictured slashing of the blinds and the infamous boxcutter drop on Rin.

Now, speaking as one who is theoretically watching this live, how the hell did things change in 8 years? You’ll note that Kaede in the present talks about how her life is devoting to serving Rin. 8 years ago, her life was devoted to killing Rin. Indeed, she screams at Rin, 8 years ago, how she would “never forgive him.” – although, it sure seems like she has. Remember, 5 minutes ago? The ‘you deserve to die’ line?

We actually manage to get to that full scene in the flashback, in it’s correct chronological place. Kaede adds an additional powerful line, asking why her mom is dead, yet Rin is still alive. She sure seems a bit enthusiastic to place the blame on Rin, casting him aside from her life, but, I’d imagine an event like this would make anyone unstable.

Flash forward a few years, to middle school Kaede, cleaning. The flashback continues, as Kaede knocks over a couple of things from Rin’s desk, and finds a very important, and conveniently placed, card.

It’s addressed to her.
Picture: her and her family, including her dead mother.
Sender: her dead mother.
Date:

Now, if there was ever an in-anime WTF moment, this would so entirely be it. Even the viewers might be a bit shocked at this twist, which, looking back, seems unbelievable, but I didn’t mind too much.

It turns out that Kaede’s mother actually headed home early to attend to her daughter (hint: that’s Kaede) who was ill that day with a fever. Incidentally, the fever may or may not be important (who else’s backstory features sickness in youth?), but at least there are no worries about her turning back into a fox.

Anyway, here’s the point. Somehow, it’s not Rin’s “fault”, but Kaede’s “fault”.

You thought Kaede was broken before? Oh, no, you didn’t. You don’t know broken. This is broken like all of the climaxes of the Kanon arcs put together into one, broken. (which would make for a weird story)

Rin comes out of nowhere to snatch the card back from Kaede. This really reveals a lot about Rin’s selfless side, in that he is willing to sacrifice a lot of himself in order to get Kaede to live a normal life, even up to the extent that he’s willing to endure abuse forever – note how he doesn’t want Kaede to know the truth. Putting it this way, it seems that certainly he had a level of feelings for Kaede – whatever happened to that?

Anyway, Kaede (in the past still) can’t handle it, as predicted, and does the typical “I’m at a loss for what to do, so I’ll run away.” As if her guilt for Rin wasn’t enough, she runs in front of a truck (by accident, it must be noted), only to have her life saved by, yup, Rin. That’s not them dancing in the screenshot above.

All Kaede can do, in her wrecked state of mind, is cry and apologize. A lot. Like ten times. Maybe
twenty. After this scene ends we move back to the present, where it almost seems like Kaede is the one having this flashback, not Rin.

This is because Rin’s at the cafe, having fun with Asa. It’s about time we got some smiles in this episode. That’s one good thing about Asa, she always seems happy, even one episode after Rin seriously, seriously messed up with her.

She’s even happy when she’s fainting – kind of a detraction – making amusing remarks like the one two screenshots above. Although, there’s something to be said about the whole playing-happy idea, the “Nothing’s wrong” approach. There is so something wrong, Asa. But not with you, for now.

Rin comes home to Rimu and Kaede. However, he continues to worry about Asa, which worries Rimu and causes her to worry about Kaede (worrying about Rin). It’s a worry triangle-ish-shaped-thing. How sad. Also, note dramatic, sad piano music.

Rin and Rimu try to burn away their trouble by playing video games. And by video games, it appears to be Pong. ON A PS2. Funny how this would kill the mood for a moment for me, in the ridiculousness (and laziness of animation) of it all. Although, it builds back up when Rin starts ignoring Kaede in favor of, in this case, PS2 Pong. Rimu gives him more worried looks. He’s not watching.

Kaede asks Rin to go shopping with her tommorow, which he finally agrees too…and instantly cancels in favor of another date with Asa. Bad Rin. Bad!

The signs begin to mount:

Rin and Asa seem to be having a lot of fun, one would say too much fun, in contrast with:

Kaede, who tries to sound happy, but finds out she has no eyes. And what does it mean when they purposely don’t show a character’s eyes? It means they’re lying. To others, to themselves, something.

But, as it always is, it is NOT all right. Something IS wrong. It’s NEVER nothing, nothing at all. Don’t believe it for a second, Kaede doesn’t either.

Oh yeah, and to make the situation better, after Rin comes back from his date with Asa, he refuses another meal from Kaede, like he has been doing. Now, what happened the last time he refused meals? That’s right! We got sad Kaede, which makes sad Rimu, which makes goddamn annoyingly oblivious Rin. Come on.

Things get worse, as Kaede cancels a shopping trip tomorrow with Rimu in favor of sitting around the house and losing herself in her own handiwork. Rimu, as usual, looks worried, as she’s probably the only one who knows what’s going to happen. And yet, she can do so little…

The next day, Rimu and Kaede spend the day at home while Rin, yup, is out with Asa again. He has some more dangerously happy montages, while Kaede continues to crack, mentioning just how happy Rin must be with her. Kaede doesn’t want to be in Asa’s place on a date with Rin, no, definitely not at all.

She continues, with a breaking voice and no eyes, about how Rin is the happiest he’s ever been – with Asa, a.k.a. Not Her.

Rimu, still worrying (if there is any other face), tries to help the conversation along but asks a very, very volatile question in posing the Tomoyo Trap: is Kaede truly happy? Is she happy if Rin is happy, even if that happiness is with another person?

Of course she is, says Kaede.

Of course not, says her face.

The famous shot. Something says Rimu isn’t going to be very reaffirmed by this response. And, all of a sudden viewers out there should have premonition of just what’s in that pot that Kaede’s stirring.

Or, what isn’t in the pot. Namely, food. Something says Rimu might have coincidentally lost her appetite. Cracked, Kaede? No, we passed that point a long time ago, Kaede.

The phone rings. It’s Rin. For the love of Haruhi God Asa life, save yourself, Rin!! It turns out that he’s called to tell Kaede that he doesn’t need dinner.

BRILLIANT MOVE!

Also heard in the background are nice, happy sounds of Asa and Ama. (incidentally, there’s also a scene of Asa and Rin playing Time Shot, a.k.a. Namco’s thrilling Time Crisis series?) Good job, Rin. You’re now a dead man.

Kaede, with any hope of redemption lost, finally cries blood again. It doesn’t need saying, but, Rimu worries again as always. She goes looking for Kaede in Rin’s room.

Oshi~ She finds the vacuum cleaner, mysteriously unattended, in Rin’s room. What would break Kaede’s attention so abruptly.

OSHI~ Kaede found the pictures of Asa and Rin, happy, at the amusement park. As the screenshot will attest, she’s not pleased.

OSHI ANYTHING BUT THAT~ As Rimu begins to add two plus two, the doorbell rings.

It’s Asa.
In Kaede’s house.
In happy mode.

The perfect storm.

The calm is eerie, as an unusually (to Asa and Rin) serious, emotionless, and faceless Kaede repeatedly asks Asa to leave. Now. Asa attempts to defuse the situation, but cuts the wrong wire in trying to act happy, instead of serious.

Snap.

The line, take two.

Rin, 25 minutes late, springs into action, confronting Kaede and trying to knock her into sense.

Meanwhile, things get better, as Asa has a very conveniently timed attack. Rin and Kaede ignore her for a moment, as Rin almost solemnly tries to interrogate Kaede, who is beginning to realize she’s lost her mind, while Rimu clings to a wall in fear (doesn’t she have any power?), until…

There is a thump from the direction of the door, interrupting the heated emotional battle of Kaede and Rin for a moment. They realize that…

This could be a bit of a problem. Asa passes out completely, and at the end of the episode we return to the same oddly unwelcome calm that was here 3 minutes ago.

Rin’s shocked, Rimu’s scared, Asa’s passed out, and Kaede’s beyond speech. Now, if you will recall, the order of events goes:
1) Asa is happy.
2) Kaede attacks.
3) Asa is unconscious.

Whose fault does it look like, especially to Kaede, who knows nothing of Asa’s previous fainting spells? That’s right. Hers. That’s not quite the right thing to compound onto her situation, which certainly is not moving in the right direction.

Rin may be going the right way with Asa right now, but now there’s a problem too big, and too close to him, for him to ignore. Is it time for his hidden feelings for Kaede to be unlocked? Or is Kaede’s insanity merely a roadblock on the way to an Asa ending?

Or, will Itsuki turn Rin to the lolipedofin side with Primula? There’s only 5 episodes left, and in the Kaede arc, it is going to be one hell of a ride.

-CCY

The light-hearted title card is back, and it is screaming Very Important Episode at the top of its lungs. It’s kokuhaku (confession) time this episode, and so we’re getting down to crunch time – and don’t expect, even after the main two get together, that things are going to be all better.

Well, what’s to say? Let’s get this mission started. And what a mission it is – that subtitle says “secret strategic meeting for the date”. This is Spartaaaaaaaa business. This recap is spoiler-free, covering only Shuffle 18, so if you’ve gotten this far, keep going.

The episode starts with some conversation with current leading girl Asa and Rin, who talk about Asa’s cooking and her 3 Color Cookies (which doesn’t sound all that appetizing, personally), and how they taste simply magical. A strange choice of words, for those who know Asa.

Meanwhile, Nerine and Sia stare from afar and lament the fact that their arcs are over (and, in case of Sia, doubly over). They talk obvious for a while, figuring out that Asa likes Rin, Rin likes Asa, and the sky is blue. They are regretful, but oddly enough, happy for Asa. There seems to be, at least at the current moment, a lot of peace within the harem.

In fact, since Nerine and Sia notice Rin is developing Gutless Harem Lead Syndrome, they resolve to ‘do something about’ his affections for Asa, and vice versa.

They confront Rin directly, trying to get him to ask Asa out on a date. Neither of the demon/god girls really seem to count themselves out of the picture, considering Sia just wants to know more about her ‘rival’ for Rin’s love, and Nerine’s cliched, but so damn true in Shuffle, ‘all’s fair’ quote. Neither of them remembers to bring up polygamy though – that must be a last resort.

Also, the synchronized speech never fails to be somewhere between entertaining and adorable, even when they have a bit of a scary look on their faces. Rin is thankful for the girls’ enthusastic support of it, but of course is a bit hesitant on asking the girl of his dreams out on a date on the urging of…the rest of his harem.

And so backup arrives with the awesome (comedy) duo of Mayumi and Itsuki, replete with that shiny glasses look that says “You have no idea what acts I’m about to do to you.”

See. That look. GAH IT BURNS, but it burns so good! Uh, what? Anyway, Mayumi and Itsuki know all, and are much more blunt about it than Nerine or Sia, and so we go off to the aforementioned ’secret strategy meeting’, located in a mysterious hidden place, probably Itsuki’s hidden harem torture chamber in his basement.

The rest of the group, Rin excluded, is predictably enthusiastic about setting up their Rin up on a date with Asa, and are especially offended when Rin happens to demonstrate just how little he knows about her. And so the rest of the group takes over to mastermind a plan, with Badass Shiny Itsuki leading the helm, proposing the Uber-Date: The amusement park trip to Cupid Land, the park designed for lovers! (scary, isn’t it)

Everyone is impressed greatly, except for, yup, you guessed it, Rin, who wants something more sane and ‘down to earth’. But at this point the group will take nothing less than blowing the issue completely out of proportion, even claiming “A normal confession won’t do!”

Meanwhile, Kaede and Rimu sit around in the calm before the storm. Kaede is still dangerously naive, even when Rimu, the one who actually knows things, adds two and two and starts talking about dates and all. Hint: it’s not with you, Kaede.

Predictably, the reaction at school is warm and accepting, although it seemed strange that going shiny and daydreaming was only Kareha’s second reaction. Asa also tries to play it off as “just going to have fun”, although I doubt any of the three believe that. But yeah, Asa’s happy. Rin won’t have to work too hard to win her over (which happened, what, 11 episodes ago?).

Kaede, even when informed of the fact that her obsession is going out, on a date, with another girl, to bloody Cupid Land, still seems strangely supportive and happy for Rin. The peace within Shuffle! harem is boundless. Either that or Kaede’s just dense. Or optimistic. Rimu seems noticeably more concerned though, and not for Rin…

The big day! Let’s do this!

Both Rin, waiting at the station, and Asa, looking for a perfect outfit, seem decidedly, and justifiably, nervous about the coming date, and so, it comes to the backup force to help them along…

Yup, just like most anime – Cardcaptor Sakura was the first one I was reminded of here, with at least 2.5 amusement park dates – the entire supporting cast is out in force to track the main couple’s progress. They’re decked out in typical disguise clothing that wouldn’t fool anyone, but still looks neat. Sia’s a meganekko now. Win. It’s too bad she’s wearing those huge “disguise” sunglasses.

At Cupid Land itself, we also get a shot of Itsuki and Mayumi, who are a little more active than their harem friends. Itsuki actually gets to the point of shoving Rin around and yelling advice, not at Rin, but at Asa. Clearly they’re all looking for a happy ending here, even if they’re not part of it. And Itsuki, what’s with changing your glasses? They were just fine…and that hair. Geez. Also, Super Mayumi Sisters? I’d buy it.

First ride, the merry-go-round, and Asa’s already starting to get into her role, clinging to Rin and toying with him. Rin, suddenly, has lost all his harem momentum and is scared utterly witless at being so close to his goal. He knows what he has to do over the next 8 hours or so. It’s going to be an amusingly long time for him.

Next up are the spinning tea cups in GLORIOUS 3D CG ANIMATION – why? because – and Rin continues to be gutless, while Itsuki and Mayumi seem to be having too much fun forcing Rin along. Nerine and Sia, with their magical powers, realize they can mess with the situation, sending the teacups spinning in just the right way to hurl Asa into Rin’s arms. How convienent.

It eventually devolves into a humorous montage, featuring

The return of Rin’s look of UTTER HORROR – and of course Asa’s enjoying the ride. The anime rule of only one character at a time may like thrill rides…

Go-karts, which are awesome because I’m a fan of motorsports (although that stuff is expensive in amusement parks). Asa’s an agressive driver, amusingly.

The picture booth, with typically happy Asa and typically (for this episode) frozen stiff Rin…

And, finally, not-pictured, tunnel of love boats in open water, which is sort of strange.

They finally take a lunch break, and Rin takes the opportunity to collapse in exhaustion. He’s beat from going on all the rides, but despite it all seems to be enjoying the time with Asa. We also get the first shot of the Battle Plan the supporting group has laid out for him, with a note to keep your eye on the Ferris wheel.

Asa may or may not have noticed this, as she makes mention of “to heck with the plans”. She, at least, has noticed that Rin’s a bit stiffer than usual, mentally, and jokes with him that the “rides won’t run away”, since Rin seems so scared of them. Maybe because Sia and Nerine have been sending him into too many intimate situations with Asa?

By the way, I’m afraid to ask what Asa was picking off Rin’s face – cotton candy? – and why she knows what Rin tastes like. (the crowd in the background, still watching, is amused, disturbed, and tormented) When were the H-scenes in the original eroge? Or, of course, it could be a figure of speech.

The ride montage continues, with Rin taking note of just how much the plans he was given are being dashed to pieces, and mentally apologizes to the group. Really, just relax and enjoy Asa dragging you around for once! Although, Asa seems to be getting a bit sad as well, as even though she plays the guilt card, asking “Aren’t you enjoying yourself?” playfully, she seems genuinely sad. She knows too much for her own good.

And so we get to sunset, and you know what that means. Ferris wheel time! And if you’ve seen anime – or at least Cardcaptor Sakura – you know how huge Ferris wheels are, and not just in size. Here’s a hint: Rin’s plan/map says “Confess to her on the wheel”, just in case you couldn’t figure it out.

We begin to get some unrest in the crowd. Nerine and Sia, who by the looks on their faces are just dying wishing they could be the ones on the wheel with Rin, prevent Itsuki and Mayumi from tailing the couple onto the wheel, leaving Rin and Asa some along time for once.

Although the mood is rightfully tense in the wheel as well. It’s pretty certain that Asa knows just what is going on, and with Rin being too scared to make a move, the silence is truly deafening. Rin tries to make a move but false-starts, starting to say something but catching himself and going back on his statement, saying “The sun’s setting!” That’s great, Rin, it really is. He continues to score and generally score aggressive negative points, until Asa finally decides to reluctantly make the first move.

She talks about how happy she was Rin went out with her today, and finally brings out her famed 3 color cookies…which, unfortunately, turn out to be normal cookies. Still, cookies are cookies, and Asa takes it one step farther…

Yeah, the ‘both ends of food’ kiss thing, which should have revived Rin’s morale at any rate – after all, if a win is guaranteed, you’d be more confident too – although with a cookie? That’s a bit smaller.

It’s strange that at this point, I didn’t see it coming, but once again, a near-kiss is interrupted. You didn’t think they were going to get that far, did you? Not before the end of the ride, nope, not with all that stalling! Asa appears worried again, but brings out her final weapon…

Run ahead, turn around, and with a smile…

The crowd (in-anime as well) holds their breath, waiting for a score. And then, the crowd gets discovered.

Yup. That’s right. Asa knows what’s been going on here, since she’s breathing and has a brain. She knows that everyone’s waiting on the sidelines, for that one iconic line, and she confronts them directly. She makes a lunge for Rin and gets the plans too! You hear that sound? It’s the sound of audiences around the world going “OSHI~”

Rin finally begins to spill all about the plan, blaming himself, Itsuki, everybody, trying to cover up but really digging himself a hole. A deep hole.

Asa isn’t amused.

Slap. Yes, slap.

I think both parties here are very close to losing it at this point. Rin just ends up looking dejected, finally taking the blame for not standing up for himself, while Asa goes on a rampage. Sia and Nerine try to take the fall for the team, telling Asa that they made Rin do it, but they are quickly silenced.

Asa asks Rin why he bothered going on a date with her today, and he jumps at the opportunity, an opening to strike back, but Asa’s still got the advantage. She’s gone from pleasant to angry and now to, the worst of all, dissapointed, and on that note, she walks out. No one stops her.

Everyone runs to Rin afterward and tries to comfort him, but he finally realizes that this is his job to do and refuses support. He finally owns up and says he’ll tell her himself next time. And so ends the wildly (un)successful date.

And so we dash to the Fuyou household for one final scene, where Rin finds out that Kaede made dinner for him even though he was out. He, in not quite the mood for accepting it, turns down her hospitality.

Kaede ends up scraping the dish into the trash, with the look and the lighting making her seem sad and broken the whole way.

Dear Haruhi God why are we doing this gag again? God Rin, what have you done!? Not just to Asa, but to Kaede!?

Speaking as one who’s actually finished the series – and yet, somehow, did not see the Bad End of this episode coming – neither of them – this sets up the next few episodes to be a ride. A wild, wild, emotional ride. Hang on.

-CCY

So, Shuffle! Memories is a recap series, half the length of the original with the story split up into multiple parts. Each main heroine gets 2 episode for a total ten, there’s one intro episode (the previous one), and one new episode (finally!) at the end for a total of 12.

However, the dividing up of the story does strange and awkward things to the flow of the plot. Kaede Fuyou, the first girl featured in Shuf!Memo, was one of the last to get a story arc in the original series. So now, instead of starting out with some of the lighthearted stuff and then going into the more serious plots (I think the arcs built off of and eclipsed each other in the original), we’re going straight into the deep end.

Each character is split up into two parts, so Kaede’s entire story isn’t laid out at once, but we get a significant enough chunk of it that I’m forced to issue a spoiler warning for through Shuffle! 21 or so. Somehow, I’ve managed to overtake my blogging of the entire Shuffle! series with the 2nd episode recap of its…recap series.

Not to mention…a recap of a recap? Strange, isn’t it.

On the plus side, since it spoils that far in the series I can talk about all the tangentially related stuff in the series now, without spoiling the poor newbies.

There is some vaguely new scenes in this episode, although a large amount of it is in the OP sequence. There’s another good thing about Shuf!Memo – there’ s a different opening and a different song for each character. Pretty neat!

Look! It’s smiling Kaede!

OK, it’s gone now. Kaede really doesn’t have a lot of that ’smiling’ thing going on in the later parts of Shuffle! and through a lot of this recap episode. Her plot’s a lot heavier than all the others, and sometimes I wonder if even her smiles during the lighter parts are true smiles – I bring up this topic a lot to relate it to a Tsukihime character with a similar fate and a fake smile… I wouldn’t be surprised if Kaede’s like “I have to be very happy and stuff around Rin because I owe him after all those years” and all.

Anyway, the intro features a wide range of Kaede. We have happy Kaede, killer loli Kaede(a.k.a. why do I look like Ayu gone crazy Kaede) …

…’I'm being ignored in favor of two princesses, an upperclassman, and a loli. A loli, for crying out loud!’ Kaede too.

Oddly enough, we also get shown a picture of the wreck, presumably. I’m not sure what retcon’ing they had to do to get Kaede into the shot while it’s still burning – not to mention whatever stupid logistical decisions they made to show her the wreck (just about beats Kanon’s similar event). And finally…

Kaede ending. Yes, the OP ends with the two kissing in a sort of ‘what if’ scenario – what if they went down the Kaede path? Spoilers a bit, but if you’ve done Shuffle! 21, you should know where it’s headed. Unfortunately.

We start, oddly enough, with the car accident itself. It’s a new record, with the adults lasting
about 5 seconds. I hope you enjoyed your happy Kaede while it lasted, as she’s already gone into shock at her mom’s death and goes catatonic, pretty much.

Rin makes a move towards a Kaede ending, but wisely moves away from the misleading screenshot and decides to own up for causing the fatal accident. It’s odd that Rin is so mature early on in his life, as he puts himself in quite the perilous position just in order to make Kaede feel better, or at least… to have a reason to live.

But as you should know that reason becomes to wreak revenge on Rin, as our first interaction between Rin and Kaede turns out to be Kaede choking Rin. How loving.

Next up is the montage of scenes proving that Kaede, really, really hates Rin. The most important one, as always, is the one where Kaede drops the box cutter on to Rin at an extremely improbably angle – straight down, yet it falls diagonally down the staircase – injuring Rin’s eye. No permanent scar is left, even though that would make a great plot device. This scene also shows up in the intro, which should be noted.

The second important scene is the other one, in the rain, which was flashed back to multiple times over the course of the original series, but is shown in full the first time in Shuf!Memo. The scene I am referring to is of course the one with the iconic line “You deserve to die!”, with strange-eyes Kaede. Amusingly enough I am reminded of vaguely similar events…

You think that this is a joke? Because I truly want you to die.
(…I don’t understand the concept of death for organic life forms…)

Flash forward to the next plot point, middle school, where Kaede finds the important card from her mother, sent the day she died. She learns that everything is, technically, her fault, for being sick and having her mother come home early to take care of her.

Rin tries to stop her from reading the card for some reason – perhaps he doesn’t want her to learn the truth, that he would rather have her blame him for it than herself. It seems a stretch at best, but both character are really the type to take the responisbility all the time, even when they shouldn’t really. So Kaede takes all of the blame onto herself for everything as always, and runs off to go get pwned by a truck.

Rin stops her with the interests of harem++ in mind, and Kaede finally breaks down (as opposed to just going stoic) for the first time in, I imagine, a while, apologizing at least 10 times.

Back to the present, finally, about a third of the way through the episode. Kaede’s back to ‘normal’, and we get some more of the lighthearted scenes, featuring Kaede’s grade-A cooking. There are some important clues left lying around for the plot to pick up later, such as the innocuous sounding “Taking care of Rin is my purpose in life” and the shot of a black cat crossing Rin and Kaede’s path as they walk to school.

Some h-game hijinks ensue as Rin talks very nonchalantly about Kaede’s fathers approval for Rin to take his daughter and ‘plant his seed in her’. Subtle. I wonder at what point was that point though, that Kaede began really falling for Rin (like every girl in the series, for crying out loud) instead of just, uh, pity loving him or something.

Gah. The annoying, ugly, yet amusingly titled fanclubs show up again. Kaede makes a bit of a Freudian slip, saying that she’s already given her body to Rin, when she really meant something different. Somehow I wouldn’t doubt that they’ve already gotten to that point in the h-game, if you told me that was true. Sure Kaede, you said your goal is to serve Rin, but in what way exactly now?

Some more scenes are rescreened from episode one, such as the entertainingly dramatic door opening, with a glomp-happy Itsuki on the other side. Clearly this was not one of Itsuki The Harem Master’s more shining moments, as his first appearance makes him look more like a common fan club member.

Also, we finally get some non-Rin and non-Kaede characters to show up, with all the usual school suspects like Sia and Nerine. They exist in this episode primarily to undermine Kaede and her Rin-serving interests. We get a lot more of the ‘I’m not important anymore’ looking Kaede now.

Amusing translation of very true Sia line. Don’t worry, your story and your alter-ego still rocks.

Check it out, new eyecatch, with the usual ol’ happy eyecatch music! I never understood what was with the cats in the original one. They had some connection to Rimu – one was the cat Lico gave her, and the other might’ve been from Rin?

Lunch scene comes up after the break, with the return of Nerine’s “quantity over quality” omelettes. You know how the gag goes. Nerine has a strange expression on her face here, to be honest, and to say the least about it. It’s strange how fragile the girls are in the beginning, both Nerine and Kaede (maybe others), how much offense they take to…uh…not having their omelettes eaten.

Some more scenes that are vaguely important but I didn’t find interesting enough to screencap follow, such as Kaede being annoyingly nice and spoiling Rin, Kaede learning to cook with the Shocking Shigure, and Kaede being sad that it rained and she didn’t bring an umbrella to walk with Rin (he ended up sharing with Sia if I recall correctly).

The next big scene is the one from circa episode 5 or so when Kaede falls ill. She continues to fighto dayo~ and tries to keep cooking and keep the household running, but of course Rin and the rest of the harem (who of course have nothing better to do than gain points with Rin) know better and try to let her rest. This, funnily enough, is the last thing Kaede wants to do, and we get a lot more sad Kaede in snow bed scenes, listening to the ‘happy’ conversations outside. The road to Kaede hell is paved with good intentions.

Asa’s the only one really who is smart enough to tell Rin to pay attention to Kaede as well, or else there will be severe consequences. Despite her morality, Asa still won’t escape these, as will probably be shown in Kaede’s second episode.

I still don’t understand the random earthquakes that plague some of the early few episodes but it gives Kaede a moment to be clingy to Rin. It’s rare for her, despite all the troubles she has, to appear so self-doubting, as she almost always seems to put on a good face when Rin is looking.

Still, it’s obvious that she herself is beginning to see her own paradoxes, beginning to question her use. Is she, by pampering Rin, by clinging to Rin, by being there for Rin, perhaps, helping or hurting him?

This is about all the storytelling we get in the first of two presumed Kaede episodes, and although it may not be the groundbreaking spoilers that I claimed it to be – oh no, Kaede’s got plenty of aces up her sleeves – a lot of her backstory is revealed early.

The episode ends with some narration by a (temporarily) happier Kaede – which doesn’t seem familiar from the original, although perhaps I simply forgot it – who speaks of the typical Tomoyo Theory, that as long as she can always be with Rin, that as long as he is thankful for what she does, that it’s OK for her to not have Rin to herself, or at all.

As you likely know by now, that theory won’t stand up for very long. Next episode appears to be an Asa episode, and I’ve got no clue how the ordering is going to work, but given the heavy plot twists and interlinked qualities of the two friends’ arcs I’d guess we’re not going to get closure on Asa or Kaede until the very end. Until then, it’s time for the split-personality characters to shine – Sia/Kikyou, Nerine/Lico + Rimu tag team arcs, go!

-CCY
(here’s a closing screenshot which was going to go somewhere useful but instead is being construed for yuri possibilities)

The further I get into these anime, the less I can really post for summaries in the pre-jump section. Pretty much all I could say about the situation in which Rin and Sia ditch class to go on a date is, em, to put it Haruhi style, classified information.

Here’s an interesting thing though; the episode’s titled True Feelings. But whose? Something that would be very interesting to find out, as the Shuffle! Race for Rin ™ continues, with 2 and a half contestants left in the race.

It’s Sia 2nd turn at the date-o event. She put up good numbers on her first attempt but her scores have quickly been eclipsed and if she doesn’t improve soon she may be eliminated from this competition…let’s take a look at the hidden camera presented by Daidouji&Thyme Incorporated and oh my!

I think we may have to cut the feed on this one. We’ll be right back folks, after the jump! (oh yeah, and spoiler-free (relatively) post; covers through episode 17)

How’d we get here, you ask? Long story short; it’s neither Sia nor Rin’s idea to cut class for an impromptu date, but rather the 3rd-party arbitrator named Kikyou, a.k.a. Mirror Sia. It seems both the God and Demon realms have something about dual personalities; Lico is to Nerine as Kikyou is to Sia. Except Lico’s awesome and ‘perfect’ all-around while Kikyou’s crazy and willing to do anything it takes to get Rin.

As you may have guessed by now.

Although, I suppose, Kikyou is remarkably good at her art. First off she seems to be playing off the popular tsundere trait, in which she alters between ordering Rin around and, uh, clinging to him. She’s well versed in the Karin art of sexual blackmail, as when Rin threatens to leave her he starts screaming claims of sexual harassment.

Even the classic negation style of “well, I don’t hate you, so, conclude the opposite” is used to good effect in conjunction with the googly eyes. Kikyou’s been doing her research, apparently, and this is her time to, uh, shine.

Although, there’s one problem in that Kikyou != Sia. And so, as attractive as she may make herself seem, she’s just too…different for Rin, who still seems more interested in school than “Sia”. Not to mention the whole manipulative type girl just might not work for everybody.

Also, Rin’s concerned about school because he’s ditching someone important there. Asa still seems to be the one rival that could possibly outlast Kaede (the “Chosen One” as per anime cliche) in the overall race; it seems strange to talk about it because I know the real ending, but these were just my thoughts at this point.

Rin and Kikyou continue to go on an adventure, with Rin resisting most of the way. Kikyou finally pulls out the “something important” trump card – right now Nerine’s the only one on the board in terms of confessions, but the tables just might change soon enough…if it really matters in the end?

And so they head to the strangely empty movies, even for school hours during a weekday. There should at least be some adults or fellow deliquents watching; otherwise there wouldn’t be any reason to screen a movie for just two people. But then again, I’m ranting about inaccuracies in a world where one normal guy has the chance to date score with marry get with two otherworldly princesses, one childhood friend of 10+ years, an artificial loli, and, uh, Asa. Who is unique in her own Engrishy way.

Maybe it’s a closed space movie theater.

They also go clothes shopping, which is code for “Kikyou flaunting what she’s got”. When Rin fails to react – and, evil of evils, mentions Asa audibly, she pulls out all the stops and starts changing in front of him. Bra and all. Hello, R-15. She throws on the naive look (what? me? breasts? no wai) while doing it, which is somewhere between highly disturbing and seductive.

Rin takes the former.

Meanwhile, at school, Kaede and Asa conference about Rin’s sudden absence. Asa phrases it rather funny like she should be the one dating with Rin (don’t give Kareha gossip material now), while Kaede is more worried about Rin’s health in general. She ends up freaking out completely and runs off from class also to mobilize a rescue force. Meanwhile, nobody manages to connect the dots of Rin gone + Sia gone = gone off together. Well done, harem.

Meanwhile, reams of time pass, as we cut to the sunset, which, as any Key game will teach you is where all the important stuff happens. Rin finally begins to voice his suspicions about Sia’s sudden personality change. I don’t know, Rin, do you like this Sia? The choice is probably up to you – as long as a Sia wins in the end Kikyou will take on any personality necessary. She’s hardcore like that.

As they’re walking around in the sunset they come across someone shadowy. It’s hard to tell who (for obvious reasons) but the figure seems most similar to one of the harem girls, most likely Asa. Kikyou gets worried a bit and drags Rin off to a grassy field so they can be alone again.

She acts really troubled. It’s difficult to tell here whether this is a part of the act or her true feelings of being worried (about being doubted, and about being so close to the goal), but it really tugs on the heartstrings a bit as it’s a sharp changed from normal insane Kikyou.

Kikyou ends up going in for the kiss, a la Nerine, and…

Shot down~! Ouch, even for someone as detested as Kikyou! Rin protests this time, as he didn’t with Nerine (perhaps hers was sudden enough and made enough sense). Awkward silence ensues as Rin sits there and meditates. We’re not sure what this emotion is. Rage? Fear? Confusion? All of the above? Sure.

Kikyou, at a complete loss for once in her life, runs away from the situation.

Rin stops here.

Contemplate this for a bit. You’ve been dragged out on a date with a girl that you used to know but now no longer do, because she’s gone crazy. She tried to make a move on her and you turned her down (to some, questionable in itself). She runs away, leaves you and peace, and you try to stop her.

That’s pure, unadultered harem lead right there.

Oh, but, by the way, while you were monologuing Kikyou ran away. Oops.

Rin wanders his way home in a daze, and is welcomed back at the Fuyou house by a full police strike force, out searching for him. Rimu is amusingly cool as always, deadpanning “Welcome back, Rin” like the household loli she is, while Kaede is brought to tears. Whether you find this action stalkerish or really adorable will tell you a lot about your Kaede fandom. I’ll take the latter.

Meanwhile, World War III erupts in Sia’s room.

We’ve got 2 demoralized and highly emotional Sia’s here in the same room now, both fighting and struggling to figure out who is the villain and victim here. Who took advantage of who? Is it Sia’s fault for not taking charge? Is it Kikyou’s fault for taking too much charge?

And, who is the girl in the mirror, truly? Sia? Or Kikyou?

Kikyou ends up the depressed one for once, talking about how it’d be better if she left the task up to Sia. But, still, despite it all, Sia wants Kikyou to stay. She doesn’t want to be left all alone.

She is.

You know how Shuffle says it’s serious to you? It doesn’t jump at the fanservice opportunities it normally does. Sia War II is entirely clean, something that you wouldn’t expect happening with the outfit Sia’s got on.

Flash forward to the next day, where Sia looks at Rin, Asa and co. from afar today. But instead of being smug (and, y’know, all Kikyou-ish), she’s sad and melancholy.

Asa seems a bit different as well, contemplating the reasons why Rin stood her up yesterday. She seems to be the one Rin saw yesterday, as Asa explains how he hurt her “more than usual”. The mood here is definitely a departure from genki Asa, and genki Sia.

Sia asks Rin to accompany her again to a different place, and strangely enough despite yesterday’s events Rin isn’t scared of a second meeting – perhaps he can already tell that Sia is “normal” again. She is as happy as usual; even if this is a bit of fake feelings, Rin is comforted by the return of Sia to her normal demeanor.

Sia finally officially explains Kikyou to Rin, who finally gets it. Kikyou apparently was Sia’s twin sister who never was; unlike Lico, Kikyou didn’t even make it out of the womb. And so Sia absorbed Kikyou into her own body for the two of them to share. She didn’t want to lose her precious sister (who she apparently loved already, even before birth). Hmm. Given the previous events, that could be a bit of an issue.

Sia shows some more of her great compassionate side by sympathizing with Kikyou, who despite all her insanity with Rin, really has good intentions, and gives Sia courage and hope. She, like Sia, is just trying to find happiness. Kikyou’s just more, mm, ‘enthusiastic’.

And finally, Sia finishes the business she’s been meaning to do for 17 episodes:

A heart-felt confession in a field of flowers! Certainly a super bonus awesome event that can equal Nerine’s, even without the kiss. Sia seems happier just saying it, letting her feelings out, giving herself a chance.

Of course, Rin has someone else, and he goes all apologetic to Sia. She doesn’t seem too fazed by it, sounding like she already knows it (although it is unknown if he knows exactly who). She even finishes off the episode with a great quip, one that, per se, reopens the field for all the harem members:

And as such Sia’s arc is resolved in great fashion. It seems that once again I find myself unable to hate Sia; to me it is the mark of a great eroge/harem anime for it to really develop characters to the point where my opinion of them changes from negative to positive; the better it is for me, the harder it is for me to find a character to hate.

Although, with Shuffle, there really is no character that stands above and beyond the others, like Mai Kawasumi or Yuki Nagato, but perhaps that’s more a fault of quiet girl/meganekko adoration than any fault of the anime itself.

-CCY

Whose arc is it anyway? Well, we’ve covered Sia’s, Nerine’s, and Rimu’s, so that leaves two characters to go; Kaede and Asa.

Right? Wrong.

We’re not quite going to wind it down that quick, as Sia refuses to be put down as she comes back for Part II.

Of course, if you’ve watched this episode you may vaguely be aware of the face that although it’s Sia’s arc, it’s not really Sia’s arc. WTF am I talking about? Hit the jump to find out. Safe for through Episode 16. (uh, this episode)

But first, a recap of the rest of the episode! Although, mostly this entire episode is 1) Things being happy and back to normal, except for 2) sad Sia in, uh, room. And mirror.

Things are nice and bright again at the Fuyou household with the return of Rimu, and we get the return of the lunch scenes with the whole group (and, as Itsuki mentions, plus omelettes) spending some time together. Itsuki even takes the time to mention how Nerine (and Rimu) have changed in personality recently, presumably as a result of the conclusion of their arc.

We get more Asa points as Rin takes the time to personally visit her, which results in more of them staring lovingly at each other, while Kareha goes all shiny. Did you miss that?

Forward to the group lunch scene as always with everybody and a half; even the side characters, yay!

Asa gets a little more attention from Rin than any of the others when she 1) backslaps Rin to death again (another thing that’s been missing) and 2) semi-flashes Rin when bemoaning her pudgy belly (really now?), in response to Kaede’s mention of Asa not eating. Is this important? It seemed that way to me when I watched this episode. We’ll see if it stays that way.

Also, who’s looking sad in the background of those two scenes? That’s right, Sia.

Also, more omelettes, even though I’ve mentioned it ten times already. We get another lengthy Itsuki exposition on his bento adventures, and the usual scene of I’m crying because the food is so damn good from him as well. Sometimes I wonder, did Lico have any cooking skills in comparison to Nerine?

That’s right. It’s Sia again, looking stunned in the back/fore-ground.

Funnily enough, Sia’s melancholy does not only extend to Rin but also to the other Rin (chan), as Sia is noticably saddened when Nerine cannot walk home with her, Rin, and Kaede. Side note: this is because she’s distracted by Awesome Megane Girl.

We catch up with Nerine later, when she and Sia talk at night about, yup, Rin. Infinity plus one ensues as they discuss their affection for him, and Nerine talks about how comfortable she’s become around Rin since she confessed ,made out with him, and accepted Lico’s feelings as well as her own. Sia, who as we will see has some similar issues to deal with, is noticeably more uncomfortable with her own feelings, and Nerine even notices this in a pseudo-fourth-wall-breaking way when she mentions how it’s Sia’s turn to be happy. (i.e. her arc time now go!)

And finally, we get a strangely sad Kohaku lookalike Sia alone by herself at night for once. There’s another looking-in-the-mirror scene, which is definitely hinting at something by this point.

Meanwhile, Rin and his Not Plot at All Boat stare out the window and think of Asa. Hmm, is this a sign on how it’s going to end? It’s a sign on where we’re heading for sure, but maybe not the final destination… (I’ll fight for a Kaede ending, since there’s no hope for Mayumi. Perhaps thankfully.)

Sia continues to be melancholy on the way to school, and has a bunch of flashbacks to Nerine. At lunch there are clear signs that Something Is Up as Nerine has no omelettes for today, to the wild despair of Itsuki (who is more uncool than usual today). In side notes, Mayumi gets harem points for once by sharing a lunch with Rin. The more Mayumi the better; Flat Chested Alliance fighto!

Rin begins to chat up Asa again, oblivious to the growing problem in his harem, who is lookingly increasingly ignored, and depressed. Even Itsuki and Mayumi, the comedy team (and more?), manage to figure it out.

At home that night, Asa calls up Rin and discusses matters necessary for the private phone (which surprisingly does not bother the other ignored girl, Kaede). It turns out that she’s asking him out – on a shopping date trip, with excuses of course. They’re not an Offical Couple at any rate. Will they become one?

Meanwhile, Sia sits at home, alone, again, and stares at the mirror, wondering what’s the point of longing after someone (Rin) she’ll never get.

While Rin and Asa go shopping and make innuendos, Sia, unsurpisingly, also comes across the two on their date-o.

Funnily enough, rather than being sad about seeing Rin with Someone Else, she’s rather happy just to come across him. She spends a few moments with a very cute fangirl smile, just watching them, before an image of Mirror-Sia shows up, and shocks her out of it. She stops smiling, and leaves. Not even going to approach them, Sia? The situation must be getting bad…

Sia heads straight for Her Depressing Room, while God-chan makes one of his increasingly rare appearance by whining about being hungry. Clearly Sia has been holding up the household, and as of late, with her mood, it’s been grinding to a stop. Even Sia’s chair-smashing (on God’s head) duties have been interrupted.

Ever wonder about why Sia stares in the mirror? Now you know. Mirror Sia is a real entity – at least in Sia’s mind – and she means business, chewing out Sia in an epic conflict. She knows that Sia wants Rin, yet Sia does not do anything about it.

Mirror-Sia (her actual name is Kikyou, by the way, explaining the title) is a lot more proactive than normal Sia. Kikyou’s the ‘ends justify the means’ type, that wants Sia to get Rin at all costs, even by force (stealing him from Asa, at this point) because that’s what she wants, right? Right?

Sia disagrees, playing the If My Beloved Is Happy card, and generally considering Rin’s own feelings. Normally I hate that point of view in anime, but I think that Sia really manages to make it work, showing how much she’s matured since before, where she was really clingy to Rin. Now she, like a lot of the harem, considers both points of view. Sia awesome points ++.

Kikyou’s having none of it though, and she plans to “take care of things herself”. Is Sia going Nanaya? (if you don’t get that, just nod and agree) It seems that way, as the next day, her eyes are smaller and her resolve is through the roof – along with her flirtiness factor.

This is shown as Kikyou-Sia shocks the harem by dragging Rin off on a whirlwind date – even ditching school – while everybody else just stands there and looks shocked. I don’t think anyone else knows of Kikyou’s existence like they did with Lico, and so I see some more trauma coming up for Kaede.

But, the real strange thing is that, Rin’s falling for it rather easily, and isn’t very complaining about going out with a Sia that’s much different than usual. Maybe this is Rin’s type of girl, eheheh? He certainly does seem predisposed towards the genki, hyperactive type, after all…

Remember though, this is Spartaaaaaaaaaaaaa Shuffle! Don’t count anybody out until the end. Except for Rimu. Go away, lolicon freaks.

-CCY