Kyouran Kazoku Nikki #03 — Megalomelodrama

April 26th, 2008

  

Ew… get it away, get it away!

Impressions:

Ugh. Who got all this serious melodrama in my show about megalomaniacal catgirls? The comedy was basically completely missing from this episode and instead we got the bizarre story about Yuuka’s former family, the Yumemiya’s, who torture their youngest daughter for being a demon. Even in a world of telekinetic gourmand jellyfish, that doesn’t make a whole ton of sense. I’m not even sure what Senko/Chika’s plan was here. She said she wanted Yuuka to go back, but from the two seconds of Yuuka’s flashback, daily beatings by a couple of schoolboys is absolutely nothing compared to… you know… being flogged in a dungeon. How exactly were weak little kid beatings supposed to make her so miserable as to want to be chained up again?

So… meh… Chika didn’t really strike me as a particularly sympathetic or sensible character. She was crazy alright, but relatively nonsensically so. How are you supposed to empathize with that? I do have to admit that Ginka’s a pretty manly man when he tries to be, though I kind of dread any future episodes about his ‘hijinx’ with the Himemiya family. Ugh, though. Megalomania and melodrama are not a particularly good combination. Hopefully we’ll be back to the comedy next episode.

Oh yeah, and we got the Teika ED on the primary broadcast this week.

Edit:
Oops, screwed up the code and the rest of the post got eaten. Apologies. All fixed.

Teika ED

Yuuka is running home when the bullies step out to confront her. She cowers from them.

Ginka praces around as Yuuka comes home. She tries to hide her wounds and tells him that it’s nothing. It only takes a moment before she breaks into tears and hugs him. He comforts her, but there’s a strange resonance between the two.

At dinner Kyouka is pissed that this nonsense is still going on. Yuuka is spouting a lovely eyepatch. Ouka thinks that Teika and Hyouka are going to do something rash… and they’re lurking off. Kyouka gets in on it, yelling at them for not following her glorious plan. Yuuka stops the ruckus and thanks them all for their feelings, but she’s really okay. Everybody is proud of how good a girl Yuuka is, etc etc.

The next day, at the same corner, Yuuka runs away and tries to cut through a park. The crazy goth girl is waiting for her there. Yuuka calls her sister… but then corrects herself. That’s Himemiya Senko. Senko refers to Yuuka as Reiko and moves in close. She caresses Yuuka’s eyepatch, but Yuuka yells at her that she’s not part of the Himemiya family anymore. She has a new family that she treasures. Senko’s surprised for a moment and tells her that she can’t leave the Himemiya family so easily.

Images of torture flash through Yuuka’s mind. She tries to convince Senko to leave her alone, but Senko won’t relent. Yuuka tries again to say that she’s not with the Himemiya’s anymore, she’s Midarezaki Yuuka. Senko shakes her and says that she can’t just leave her family. She grabs Yuuka’s neck and starts strangling her while yelling that it’s not fair for Yuuka to just abandon her.

Ginka tells out to let go of his family. Yuuka runs to him in thanks and they hug. Ginka reverts to his gay mode to greet her, but goes back to manly hero of justice as he explains that he won’t let Senko continue with this. Senko plainly states that she won’t give up. The Himemiya won’t be denied. Ginka recognizes the name, and Senko explains that Yuuka is a daughter of that family. He says that he understands… Himemiya Senko. She’s surprised that he knows her name and runs off.

Ginka and Yuuka enjoy parfaits. Ginka is exhausted by that display of manliness. Yuuka wants to know why he knows about Himemiya Senko. He just brushes her off.

Later, Ginka and Yuuka enjoy all the things fruity men and little girls do… video games and makeup.

Senko cries in bed, asking God to save her.

In the past, Senko cried in a garden. A man came up to her to comfort her. He tried to pat her head and she flinched away. He told her to cry whenever she needed to, he’d always play with her and have fun.

Ginka wakes up from the dream of his past to Kyouka sitting on him. She asks who Senko is. A girl that Ginka is interested in? HOW SHOCKING. Ginka says it was just a dream. Also, why is he wearing a bonnet? Kyouka doesn’t buy it for a moment and wants to interfere as usual.

At night, the bullies are beating up Yuuka as Senko laughs to herself. She cries out that she deserved to be saved too. Punish Yuuka more and more and more. She loses it and throws a bucket of water on Yuuka while screaming. The bullies are freaked and run off. Yuuka asks her why she’s doing this.

Ginka comes running up to protect Yuuka again. She passes out in his arms. He demands an answer from Senka. She turns away, but suddenly a voice echoes in her head telling her that she really is a demon if this continues, etc etc. Senka screams.

Kyouka has appeared at some point. She’s not sure what’s happening either and can’t use her cellphone telepathy to find out.

Senka screams and passes out.

Ginka watches over Yuuka in bed. The rest of the family is ill at ease.

Senka has a dream of herself in a coffin surrounded by roses. A voice echoes in her head, wondering if she is a demon. There is no god that will save her. Etc

Kyouka wakes her up and demands to know why she’s an enemy of the family. Senka cowers against the wall as Kyouka rants and threatens death. Ouka stops her and says that Ginka explained everything about the Himemiya family to him, that the youngest daughter of the Himemiya is considered to be a monster and tortured accordingly.

Kyouka and he argue a bit over Senka’s head about monsters and the like. NEVER GIVE UP! She declares war on the Himemiya family that causes such problems. She recruits Senka as well, saying that it was a request from someone… MEANINGFUL GLANCE AT GINKA.

At night, the team lurks around the Himemiya mansion. They case the joint, and Yuuka especially has some words of encouragement. Hyouka breaks in and the rest follow, beating the hell out of the guards. Kyouka rants all the while.

Ginka hugs pretty boy guards. Yuuka throws a helmet, Kyouka beats on them with the Mona Lisa and then puts her foot through it out of spite.

Kyouka has some words of wisdom. These people aren’t a family. Families don’t behave like that, etc etc etc. Yuuka laughs at it and Senka looks surprised.

Medics take away the injured guards. Kyouka is ready for the real fireworks to start, but Ouka thinks that’d be going too far. Hyouka apparently overdid them anyway, reducing the entire area to rubble.

Senka’s now got nowhere to go. Ginka comforts her, but she says that it’s okay. Besides… Kyouka has a plan. Kyouka always has a plan.

Some time later, she has her DNA analyzed… and no way… she’s one of Enka’s children as well. But… she can’t be. Of course not, Kyouka used her Jedi Mind Tricks on the lab tech.

As she leaves, she apologizes to Yuuka. She’s happy that Yuuka found family and happiness. She’s so sorry for hurting her and starts crying. Yuuka smiles at her. Tears all around. Kyouka interrupts the moment and declares the newest member of the family… Midarezaki Chika.

Usual night at the house. Chika’s in casual wear.  The voice echoes in her head again, questioning whether she is a demon and if she can find happiness now. Chika looks over at Gekka, thinking it’s him and smiles.

Preview:

Kyouka’s culinary abortions… a good start. I’m already sick to the gills of Yuuka though.

Posted in Kyouran Kazoku Nikki | 7 Comments »

7 Shouts From the Peanut Gallery

  • blissmo says:

    Man, I wasn’t sure if I should follow this series after ep1 and 2. Now I really don’t know. Hope this anime gets somewhat better though.

  • Myssa Rei says:

    And thus ends book 1 of the novel. According to my friend, it’s been a pretty faithful adaptation so far. No worries though, the craziness returns the next few books (or episodes in this case). This IS a Shounen light novel series, after all, not Seinen like Shana, Haruhi, or Seirei.

  • Tokkan says:

    Gekka’s a she.

  • yuuka says:

    well i like it i think its good to have a comody have seriousness to it too, i hope it gets better and better witch im sure it will people who dont like it stop watchin and/or stop bloggin and putting in a bad name for the show!.

  • Kikaifan says:

    This is a public service announcement to the above commenter reminding them that the internet does not exist solely to reinforce their views.

  • name says:

    This series is quickly going down the drain. Down… doooowwwnnnn… yup, and it’s still goin’.

    Not to say that this is an incredibly bad show (and not pretending that I know how the rest of the series is going to be like), but regarding how much I actually liked the first episode, each episode just drives me deeper and deeper into disappointment. I already disliked the second episode, and then this one came out.

    I cannot recall the last time (though I’m sure there was such a time) that I was ever so actively frustrated and embarrassed with a show’s content (oh wait, I do remember. I was watching Infinite Ryvius). Using an art piece as a weapon and then using its destruction as a segue into a lesson on the illusion of happiness? What the hell? On that note, I’ve seen the omnipotent type that the director’s trying to portray with Kyouka. It wasn’t done well the last time I saw it, and it isn’t done well here, either. And then there’s Senko. Putting up with how unrealistic and non-empathetic of a character she is was simply trying.

    And here, for those people who might feel the need to respond, let me do it for you: whine whine whine, would you like some cheese with that whine, let me call you the waaaaambulence, etc. etc. Yes, I’m quite aware that this whole post has nothing positive in it. That’s what happens when I’m dissatisfied with something. Whoever’s watching the show, you can glean what’s good about it for yourself, you don’t need me to tell you.

    I’m probably still going to watch the fourth episode. At this point, I’ve made some sort of commitment, and I’ve not yet reached the point of intolerance in watching it that it would be worth dropping the show and leaving that commitment (what little of it there is, I know). And for the record, I as well hope that the next episode is good on the assumption alone that it won’t feature Yuuka to such a heavy degree.

  • PurpleKama says:

    While I understand that kicking a hole through a painting was a bit-off putting, it’s funny how people above me seemed to miss an important bit of Yuuka’s backstory entirely.
    Yuuka had the role in the Himemiya family of being their “Solitude Doll”. That is, a piece of flesh the entire family could vent out their stress, frustration and violent istincts on. With her missing, the family members took it out on Senko/Chika. Who’s couldn’t handle that (partly out of immaturity), so she twisted Yuuka’s arm into coming back home.
    Is that so hard to pick up? It was said outright.

    And anyway, you’re all being too judgemental for a freaking episode 3. The series barely started.

    Just saying.