Thursday, December 20, 2012

Little Busters! episode 11

XO It's almost Christmas! Quick! Wrap the presents, make the dinner, decorate the tree, enjoy the lights, celebrate at your worship place of choice, send the cards, spend time with friends and family, and sing some carols. Then on December 26th...pass out from all that hard work. XD
Photobucket
I see boring people.
Before I pass out as tomorrow is a half day at all public school it seems which means pizza day (which I hope means BIG TIP day) one more post. Up now is Little Busters! episode 11. Spoilers for ghosts or darkness.
Photobucket
I hate bananas so I should be okay!
Episode Summary: The main Little Busters are chillin and doing various things when Kyousuke looks bored. Kengo senses a disturbance in the force and tries to leave before Kyousuke can explain his plan. Kyousuke manages to get Kengo to stay and explains that he wants to do a test of courage even though it isn't the right “season”. Rin tries to run away but Kyousuke decides all the Little Busters, new and old will partake in this event. Besides Mio since she hasn't officially joined yet. The group are divided up into teams and they must go into the school to find 4 talismans that Kyousuke has hidden. Rin, Komari, and Noumi make up the first group and off they go. They manage to scare themselves silly with Kyosuuke mild scares. Rin and Noumi try to rely on their animals but they run off all crazy like. Komari and Noumi try to rely on Rin but she is must too scared for that. Komari tries to be brave but ends up passing out. Kengo and Masato end up being paired together and make it a competition. They try to make it to the first clue first but Masato runs into a cloth and ends up looking like a ghost thus scaring the girls more. Riki is paired with Haruka who is brave under Yuiko's watch and Yuiko who thinks this is a joke and rather scare the other girls. She ends up doing so and then have to have a sexy attack to bring Komari back to life. Everyone tries to go back to looking for talisman but they get freaked out over what they think is a real ghost. They all run outside to tell Kyousuke there is a ghost. Kyousuke cancels the test of courage and tells Riki and the girls they are ghost hunting. Noumi decides to stay outside to guard for....ghosts escaping. Everyone breaks off into groups to search for the ghost while Masato and Kengo continue the test of courage with real ghosts? The blob ghost keeps on flying everywhere so Noumi goes and fetches Mio to help because she reads books you guys. Mio tells them that ghosts are scared of loud noises and light. After getting this obvious piece of information everyone sets to work and they eventually trap the ghost in a room. It turns out to be a GIANT bird and before anyone can think about cooking it Kyousuke remembers it was a bird from his past. A eagle that everyone played with as kids but had to send back to Hokkaido because HELLO it is an eagle. They share a hug and Kyousuke sends it off again and tells it to visit soon. Kyousuke declares the night a success even though many people are tired. THE END!
Photobucket
Even Komari fell asleep! XD
YAWN YAWN YAWN! I don't think things could be any more fluffy or predictable. Perhaps this is all making us nice and gooey for the sadness that is surly to come. Well maybe it should come a little faster before I pass out. XD
Photobucket
Sit down and participate!
I like how everyone is used to Kyousuke's random ideas and they all seem to have varying degrees of not liking them but in they end up doing what he says so why bother? Sit down Kengo you aren't playing baseball so you have to hunt ghosts with us. Kyousuke gets bored rather easily. Or everything he reads/sees he needs to do himself. XD Someone has ADD.
http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk126/tenchilove/Anime%202012/littlebustersepisode112-1.jpg
Any time of year is perfect for fun!
I also like that everyone was like no this is the wrong season to do a test of courage. Sorta like we always see anime episodes in a certain order. School festivals are before Christmas and that is final. You can only smash watermelons at the beach. And now you can only have test of courages during the appropriate times. Don't break the rules Kyousuke!
Photobucket
I am sleeping. I am going to lie down now. Thanks.
I thought it was kinda weird that Mio wasn't invited to do this test of courage. I thought Riki invited her into the fold already but next week he is going to officially invite her to the join the Little Busters? I thought he did that last week! Like play baseball with us was code for hang out with our insane group. Clearly I was missing things. Mio did turn up at the end but she really did nothing major. No one else can read? All of her tips on ghost catching were pretty basic. Like Noumi could have done that all on her own so Mio didn't really have to be there.
Photobucket
Wai! Where is Riki?!
I thought Riki was going to end with Rin, Komari, and Noumi and everyone else was going to be their own group. It just seems like they are the main girls while everyone else is leftovers. So it was nice to see them change it up a bit even if everyone acted like how I thought they would. All the scared people in one group, Yuiko wanting to scare her little loves so she could save the day, and Haruka adapting and changing to the situation as it calls for. Kengo and Masato had a competition that actually made sense this week so HEY for progress yes?
Photobucket
Decent okay! Nitpicking!
I thought Kyousuke did a decent job trying to scare people. But he does take on a very passive role in all the fun things they seem to do. Have Riki gather up all the girls and have everyone else run the test of courage. Almost like he is creating fun times for everyone else and his fun comes from watching everyone else. Almost like a parent. HMMMM something to think about.
Photobucket
Maybe we should call the Ghostbusters.....
I thought chasing down the ghost was 3289 kinds of dumb. Everyone watching knew it wasn't a ghost but what the heck was it bouncing down the walls? Yay random video game music. Everyone acted typical in the being scared portion of the event and everyone acted weird/crazy trying to catch the ghost. So banging on things and trying to cut it off at the pass....so much special. Ghost catchers indeed. It would have been more entertaining if it was the Disciplinary Team getting them for breaking into the school at night. WHERE ARE THE ADULTS?!
Photobucket
What the hell is this?!
In the end it turns out that the blob was a bird from the Little Busters past. Exactly Kyousuke. That giant bird of doom is the tiny thing that rode on your head as a child. Obviously it was the same bird and a reunion was in order. Crazinesss. I don't think if I was a wild bird I would fly all that way to come visit someone for 5 seconds but then again I am not a wild bird. Or insane.
Photobucket
Random moments of fun seem more fun when you make them missions. XD
Did everyone have fun? It looks like. Well maybe not Kengo and Masato now that they know they were really fighting off ghosts. But everyone else was against the idea and scared out of their minds but ended the night/morning looking happy. Which is always Kyousuke's point. Having as much fun possible while they are all still together. But still a bit of a snooze. It might have been more entertaining if Yuiko was the scared one or Komari was the brave one, switch it up a bit.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hello @Christina

This episode seems like a filler episode to me. Maybe I'm wrong, but I do get that feeling. You're probably right, Christina; the melodrama is right after this episode--mood whiplash definitely!

To me, this episode was just random nonsense you see in filler episodes of Naruto or Bleach. I find it to be strange since the writers didn't use the episode and time to focus more on character development and plot advancement. Instead, they just relied on ghost and scavenger hunts to distract the audience and conceal the fact that is probably a filler episode. If they're going to do a filler episode, why don't they use the "beach episode with pointless fanservice" format like in nearly ALL anime shows!

This would have been the perfect time to show the audience more of this "supernatural"/"occult" theme with Mio. After all, it's night time and creatures of the dark lurk during the full moon. It would have put to rest the audience's speculation of whether Mio is a vampire or not. Or an angel. Or a kitsune (fox spirit). Or a dragon in girl form. And so forth.

I guess this episode was about bonding. Maybe.


That's all, folks.

Anonymous said...

First anonymous here

Forgot to add:

I looked up the voice actors on this anime and I'm surprised that JC Staff didn't hire many of the big names for this most anticipated show! :O Many of the voice actors are relatively unknown. There are some actors that have a tremendous resume of shows under their belts, but most are pretty green.

I was hoping for Kana Hanazawa (BRS/Mato's voice actress), Eri Kitamura (awesome girl!), Chiwa Saitou (Homura Akemi), Norio Wakamoto (all hail Britannia!) or Miyuki Sawashiro (I'm surprised she didn't take the role for this show!) to appear.

A little disappointed. :(

eternia said...

They are nameless voice actors because they are the original voice actor for the PC games, except several character, such Mio's VA who's on pregnancy leave, and Riki who's voiced by Horie Yui, while in the original, he's voiced by the same person as Rin.

Well, there is supernatural in this episode. Those ghosts Masato and Kengo fighting were real.
:-D
I kind of forgot about the next episode preview already, but isn't it showing Mio? Finally getting into a route? Or is it simply intended to put her into Little Busters officially? We will have to wait...

Anonymous said...

Hello @Eternia

First and second anonymous here (same person)

Whoa, whoa, whoa! The ghosts were real?! I thought it was just Mio who was the "mystical" one! Weren't the "ghosts" just the Eagle thing Kyousuke mentioned about?

So, are they going the Ghost Busters route with these "apparitions" in the next episode starring Mio? Does she attract the supernatural? Or are the writers just being hysterical with all these supernatural events?

About the voice actors, well I was watching Psycho Pass (episode 6 and 7) the other day, and I was super excited to learn that Maaya Sakamoto (a truly talented actress) voiced a female villain (Rikako) who is crazy, murderous and artistic--Man, Maaya knows how to play wicked villains! Every scene when Maaya acted her character, I just had to watch! Kudos to Maaya for some superb acting. :D

I was hoping for the actors Little Busters to bring the excitement out of me and the audience just like Maaya did in Psycho Pass. The current actors do a decent job, but the more talented actors/actresses (Kana, Norio, Miyuki, Eri, etc.) would bring greater enjoyment out of Little Busters! I mean, can you imagine Norio Wakamoto acting as Kyousuke (large ham indeed! XD)? Or Miyuki Sawashiro using a sultry voice for Yuiko (HOT!)?

So, yeah, awesome actors/actresses are awesome! :)

eternia said...

The brown ball they are chasing is just an eagle, but the flying hands that Masato and Kengo fought against in principal office are real ghosts. Oh, no, they won't make any reappearance, in anime term, it's not wrong tho call this episode a filler.
I see you are pumped up to watch Mio's route, but there's no guarantee JC Staff is going to animate her route first...

Anonymous said...

Hello @Christina and @Eternia

First anonymous here (again)

Eternia: Thanks for the clarifications about the ghosts. I should have paid more attention to the scene regarding the "ghost battle" with Masato and Kengo. I still think it's a bit weird for the writers to implement the supernatural in a filler episode, and not in Mio's story arc. After all, Mio is supposedly the "supernatural" one, and the ghosts would be fitting in her story.

Christina: Re-reading your blog on this episode (after Eternia corrected me on the real ghosts), you questioned why Little Busters was on campus at night. Don't they live on campus? I think the school is a boarding school similar to the campus in Psycho-Pass (Rikako's school). So, it would make sense that Little Busters would be lurking around when the dormitory is right next to the school. Though I don't see any other students including the Disciplinary Committee. Maybe they all went home to visit their parents on the weekend except for Little Busters (for some strange reason). You're right that there should be security around the campus to prevent theft; a prestigious boarding school would definitely have security to protect their valuable assets. And what Little Busters were doing was pretty much illegal. They are fortunate that the police didn't arrest them for breaking & trespassing or that the Disciplinary Committee couldn't suggests to the school board that they be suspended severally (they weren't there and don't have proof).

Why a filler episode now? In a long running (300+ episodes) series like Naruto or Bleach, I can understand because the anime needs to wait for the manga writers to create new arcs. So they animate nonsensical stories to occupy time. But Little Busters only has around 24 episodes total this season. Again, why now? They are obviously not a long runner like Naruto or Bleach. I think it's a waste of time, money, and effort to make filler episodes when the producers could have focused more on plot advancement and character arcs, especially when JC Staff is on a tight schedule and under heavy scrutiny from fans.

Man, filler episodes are strange. :(

Anonymous said...

Hello @Christina

First anonymous here.

I apologize for not being clearer regarding your question. You asked, "Where are the adults?" The adults (i.e. police/security) should have been there. I have no idea why they weren't there. I understand that Japan has a very low crime rate but they still need to be safe. Your question also lead to another question of why Little Busters were on campus at night. I already answered this question in the preceding post.

Hope this clears any confusions regarding questions and their answers. :)

elior said...

it indeed mio arc in episode 12 i watched it and i have to say they did the first part very good but it was a little rushed becouse certin somone apeared in this episode

elior said...

it indeed mio arc in episode 12 i watched it and i have to say they did the first part very good but it was a little rushed becouse certin somone apeared in this episode

Christina said...

Anonymous 1- I understand filler episodes but this one was almost beyond pointless and in the middle of someone's arc! Like what was that all about?! The person who would enjoy this the most wasn't even part of the group officially yet. And then it turned out to be some mutant bird? So weird.

While I am not really up to speed/knowledgeable about voice actresses this show seems to have some annoying ones. XD Hope they aren't the ones you like. But maybe since there is such a large female cast they had to make them sound different thus...Komari. :(

I should have been more specific. I should have been "why were they in the classroom areas" and not "why were they on campus". XD Silly me of course they live there.

But yes WHERE ARE THE ADULTS! A few cafeteria workers get sick and not one is around to make sure all the kids get fed? A few power hungry students on the Disciplinary are the only ones running things to make sure no one is....winning free sodas or skipping class?

As fun as the Little Busters are they aren't helping Haruka get on the straight and narrow are they. XD But maybe I am just old and don't understand kids having fun. Just take your courage test somewhere outside so maybe you won't be caught by the nonexistent staff.

As for the real ghosts Kengo and Masato's scenes were so fast I can see how one would miss they were "real" ghosts. One that will probably never be mentioned again. Like oh remember how we almost died by ghosts? Yeah lets go get some ice cream weee!

Eternia- I didn't know that about the voice actors/actresses. I guess that would make hardcore fans of the game happy that things weren't all changed around. Probably was hard to do to round up the whole cast again.

Elior- I think they should have continued with Mio's arc all the way through and then do this "filler" episode if they felt they needed to. With so many girls do they even have time for filler nonsense?! X__X