People have the ability to hold contradictory information or ideas in their minds. If the person is unwilling or unable to resolve the conflict, this causes a problem. Our logical minds like things to be logically connected (premise + premise = conclusion, cause = effect, given A and B then C, etc.).  That state of mind that people get from holding ideas that don’t mesh is known as cognitive dissonance.

There are several means of dealing with cognitive dissonance. One could resolve the conflict. Resolution can be difficult because it may entail coming to terms with truths that conflict with other ideas, resulting in more dissonance. Too often, the easier route is to change one’s world view to accept the contradiction, resolving the conflict. It’s easier that it would seem.

Case in point: Kirino. Kirino is a pedo. This doesn’t mean that she is going to go out and attack children. Though, strictly by the book, she skirts the definition a little. Let’s just put it this way, she wants a little sister to do naughty things with.

Or maybe not. It may be that she wants to be the little sister.

The artist captured the “perv” quite nicely in this above image. Notice, even the hairpin cannot cover the abundance of depravity.

We all know by now that, when it comes to anime, the brother-sister relationship can cross a line that is all too solidly defined in modern societies. Of course, most of the time, we have to qualify it with some notion of  disjunct relation (eg not by blood). Yet, a blood relationship hasn’t stopped some anime from taking that path. A couple of notable examples are Koi Kaze and Angel Sanctuary.

Incest, in various forms, is a long running theme in the anime subculture.  Its prominence and necessity for story telling are debatable. For a story such as Angel Sanctuary, it seems to be a superfluous addition. That is in the sense that a plot where lovers are caught up in the dealings of heaven and hell does not need the addition of incest. However, almost everyone who has watched Angel Sanctuary recalls the incest plot over the other parts of the story, mostly because that is what the anime fixated on.

Kio Kaze is the total opposite. Its plot demands the inappropriate relationship because the main character, Koshiro Saeki, is a fool. The plot centers around rejection and grasping at anything that will offer love or affection. The differences between the emotional capabilities of an immature adult and a young women presented as being virtually the same are a core concept of the story. Add to that the want of the main character for affection, to the point of ignoring social programming, makes the use of incest an effective plot device.

Given all that, I’m surprised that the inappropriate feelings scale hasn’t tipped in Ore no Imouto, yet.

On another note, I feel sorry for miss-unrequited-love best friend.  She’s destine to lose out in the end.  I choose to blame that entirely on her shameful lack of hair accessories.

This is a follow-up to a post on the old blog: School Days – Playing devil’s advocate, Makoto was misunderstood

I decided to invite my evil alter ego to have a discussion about the Makoto character in School Days. Those of you who read my last post know that I had taken the stance that the Makoto character was misunderstood. I entirely agree that he was irresponsible, ignorant, selfish, as well as many other things, but my point was that he was no worse than any of the other characters, and his labeling as essentially the bad guy is the wrong categorization.

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The following post first appeared on my old blog: Chibi no Nothing

I may be one of the few people who actually like the way School Days ended. Let me rephrase that. I loved the way School Days ended.

Watching the characters in a show unhinge and fall apart is one of the most interesting ways to convey their perspective. This is the case no matter how unreal or real it may seem to the viewer. I find it particularly insightful. Obviously, it doesn’t work in all situations and story lines, but the School Days plot did it well. Whether you are in love, out of love, forlorn love, lust, or hate the plot had something for us.

Kotonoha, despite being a main character, wasn’t very dynamic. She spends a great part of the series being an object of empathy for the viewer, but only because she is such a completely innocent person. She can’t be faulted in any way for much of the events that occur around her. That makes her practically blameless. Oddly, even knowing this from the start, I had thought she was the one who would kill Makoto.

Sekai’s dynamic was a little more complex, but only near the end when it becomes apparent that she had been after Makoto since the beginning. The explanation that she setup Katsura and Makoto as a way of being nearer to Makoto, by proxy, actually made sense in the context of the story and her character. It was the simple fear of rejection, and the thought of being alone.

School Days relied on simple emotions to tell the story, most of the time. With regard to that, it is most evident in Makoto who we saw changing interests on a whim whenever he was around a different girl. But, I just can’t fault him the way others do because it’s evident that he was a pawn, just as much as those around him. We seem to think that because the girls seemingly had “purer” emotions that they are somehow less liable for the events that surround them. Sure, Makoto was a letch, but was he taken advantage of as much as others took advantage of him. Case in point, how often was it that he pursued someone, as apposed to how often it was that he simply took advantage of what was laid before him?

Makoto was an idiot. It was apparent that he regretted his behavior, but not to the extent that he should have and not for the reasons he should have. In the end Makoto died for being selfish and ignorant, which was exactly what he was from the beginning. He was not more selfish or ignorant that any other character in the series. It’s just that he had more opportunities.

As I mentioned before, the best part of School Days was watching the characters react. Falling apart is enlightening, and events that cause sorrow are learning experiences. Our literatures are filled with the tales of other’s pain because we want to know more about ourselves through those stories.

School Days will never be held up as an epic. It’s because the story is so common. The characters didn’t go through any events that weren’t ordinary in every respect, with the exception of the end. A lot of it was over dramatizing the ordinary.

Still, it was plenty good in its own right.

The following post first appeared on my old blog: Chibi no Nothing

I was watching episode 22 of Lucky*Star and came across something unexpected. For a brief moment Lucky*Star made a small turn into the emotional alley when Konata’s mother shows up for a visit. Of course, we already know that Konata’s mom passed away. So, naturally, she is in spirit form. We get to watch her while she listens in on the conversation that Konata and her father are having, which is about her.

I find it interesting how easily a comedy can change moods so quickly. In general, it isn’t impossible to mix elements from different types of story telling and atmospheres. Also, it isn’t unusual to find bits of comedic divergence in other types of stories. For that matter, I like a mix of comedy, action, and drama. Of course, there are other story elements that weigh on the entirety of the plot.

Lucky*Star doesn’t actually have a plot in the literal sense. A show like this is supposed to be primarily funny and entertaining. It is also supposed to be a bit insightful. The introspective comments by the characters are supposed to develop their “types” and poke fun at the audience.

We could have been given flashbacks and character interaction in the form of conversations that would have given us just as much information about these three characters. However, it just wouldn’t have been Lucky*Star-ish if Kanata hadn’t shown up as a ghost.

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Finding a ghost in one of my pictures wouldn’t bother me at all. Finding a ninja in one of my pictures would totally freak me out.