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** The hug itself is also irrefutable proof that she is who she claims to be. The unveiling online could have been faked in a number of ways, but the way she hugs him is very emotionally intimate and personal: It’s not something that can easily be faked.
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** And if he doesn't kill Kei first, there's someone else to consider: hundreds (if not thousands) of past opponents who lost to the Dragon at fighting tournaments. They'll all want a piece of Kei once he's been Unveiled. And who's to say they'll all have the moral fiber not to beat up on a 14 year old boy?
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* There's something [[{{Symbolism}} symbolic]] about the ending portion of "Swarms of Song". It sounds pretty much the same, outside of the techno/pop music mood. But notably, it leaves out the last few lyrics of "Gales of Song" ("Gales of Song, please stay by my side, Winds of Love, breathe into my life"). Fittingly, it reflects that in glorifying Belle, Suzu's new-found image has glossed over her vulnerability.
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* Gales of Song's last line is "Lift me high/I'll be me." The last we see of Bell/Suzu in U is her lifted in the sky of U in her true schoolgirl/doxxed form.
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*** Adding onto that, [[FridgeHorror one possible reason]] why the father doesn't seem to be affected by his wife's death: remember that we [[NothingIsScarier never find out]] what ''[[DomesticAbuse or who]]'' killed Kei and Tomo's mother in the first place...
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* Everyone Suzu and Hiroka suspect of being the Dragon unwittingly fit the classic theme of "Beauty and the Beast": things aren't always what they seem.
** Jellinek puts on a façade of a suffering artist and grieving boyfriend who could be the Dragon trying to work through their grief. But instead, it turns out his girlfriend is very much alive and he spun lies about her passing to get more attention.
** The "Ideal Housewife" comes off as an elegant wife and mother with a loving family. But not only does Hiroka [[SherlockScan deduce]] she's actually alone and single, it turns out she has a baby avatar on U, reflecting her lack thereof emotional maturity that clashes with her polite front.
** The baseball player is two-fold, appearing as both the perfect athlete and a man with a shady past. He later shows to the public he is neither shady nor perfect, as he's really hiding surgery scars that reveal he used to be TheLittlestCancerPatient.
** Heck, even the true identity of Dragon (Kei) fits in with the theme. Their father tries to keep up an image to the public that he and his children are rather happy despite the loss of his wife and their mother. But just behind closed doors, there hides [[AbusiveParents a violent home life]], the one that lead to Kei becoming the Dragon.
** Jellinek puts on a façade of a suffering artist and grieving boyfriend who could be the Dragon trying to work through their grief. But instead, it turns out his girlfriend is very much alive and he spun lies about her passing to get more attention.
** The "Ideal Housewife" comes off as an elegant wife and mother with a loving family. But not only does Hiroka [[SherlockScan deduce]] she's actually alone and single, it turns out she has a baby avatar on U, reflecting her lack thereof emotional maturity that clashes with her polite front.
** The baseball player is two-fold, appearing as both the perfect athlete and a man with a shady past. He later shows to the public he is neither shady nor perfect, as he's really hiding surgery scars that reveal he used to be TheLittlestCancerPatient.
** Heck, even the true identity of Dragon (Kei) fits in with the theme. Their father tries to keep up an image to the public that he and his children are rather happy despite the loss of his wife and their mother. But just behind closed doors, there hides [[AbusiveParents a violent home life]], the one that lead to Kei becoming the Dragon.
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* When one thinks about the "Ideal Housewife" with the baby avatar on U, it dawns on one that U also makes one's avatar based on their mental age. It's rather appropriate that Suzu and Kai's avatars (Belle and the Dragon) make them look [[YoungerThanTheyLook older than they really are]], as both prematurely aged from their respective hardships.
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** Building on this, remember how U is supposed to enhance the user's potential to the fullest? This could foreshadow that Suzu has major diplomacy skills. With nothing but a song, she was able to make all of U forget their hatred of the Dragon.
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* The Dragon having bruises primarily on his back was a big clue from the start he came from an abusive home life. When fighting, one's opponents often fight from the front. What kind of fighter has attackers from the back? A fighter trying to protect someone.
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* When Suzu’s friend named Hiroka is explaining to Suzu the reason Suzu’s avatar named Belle is successful, she mentions how U’s body-sharing technology draws out the user’s hidden strengths. That does explain why Suzu can sing normally in U when she wouldn’t be able to sing in real life due to her trauma. That, however, doesn’t explain why Suzu’s avatar Belle looks like Ruka, the most pretty and popular girl at Suzu’s school. When we think about how Suzu created her profile for U, however, it starts to make sense. This is because what picture did Suzu uses when she was selecting her facial profile…that is right, the picture of school girls including Ruka right next to Suzu. And since U has to create an aesthetically beautiful avatar to draw a new user in, it naturally used Ruka’s beauty as the basis. It should, however, be noted that U’s philosophy is about how “you can live as another you” and not “you can become someone else”. That is why it needs to take something from Suzu’s appearance, but what? She is not really beautiful or noticeable except…her freckles. That is why with Ruka’s beauty and Suzu’s freckles, Belle is created.
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* When Suzu’s friend named Hiroka is explaining to Suzu the reason Suzu’s avatar named Belle is so successful, she mentions how U’s body-sharing technology draws out the user’s hidden strengths. That does explain why Suzu can sing normally in U when she wouldn’t be able to sing in real life due to her trauma. That, however, doesn’t explain why Suzu’s avatar Belle looks like Ruka, the most pretty and popular girl at Suzu’s school. When we think about how Suzu created her profile for U, however, it starts to make sense. This is because what picture did Suzu uses when she was selecting her facial profile…that is right, the picture of school girls including Ruka right next to Suzu. And since U has to create an aesthetically beautiful avatar to draw a new user in, it naturally used Ruka’s beauty as the basis. It should, however, be noted that U’s philosophy is about how “you can live as another you” and not “you can become someone else”. That is why it needs to take something from Suzu’s appearance, but what? She is not really beautiful or noticeable except…her freckles. That is why with Ruka’s beauty and Suzu’s freckles, Belle is created.
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* The ending has a happy tone, with Suzu having finally regained her confidence. But what happened to Kei and Tomo?? Sure, Suzu scared their dad off ''once'', but does that mean she's permanently solved the problem? Won't Kei and Tomo have to back to their house sooner or later, seeing as they have nowhere else to go? Isn't their dad still living there? Isn't it highly likely that he'll return to his abusive ways before long, especially considering that Suzu is no longer there in RealLife to stand up to him? It sure looks as if the problem hasn't actually been ''solved'', especially considering Kei's earlier speech about how people have talked to his father before but it hasn't changed anything.
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* The ending has a happy tone, with Suzu having finally regained her confidence. But what happened to Kei and Tomo?? Sure, Suzu scared their dad off ''once'', but does that mean she's permanently solved the problem? Won't Kei and Tomo have to go back to their house sooner or later, seeing as they have nowhere else to go? Isn't their dad still living there? Isn't it highly likely that he'll return to his abusive ways before long, especially considering that Suzu is no longer there in RealLife to stand up to him? It sure looks as if the problem hasn't actually been ''solved'', especially considering Kei's earlier speech about how people have talked to his father before but it hasn't changed anything.
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* Kei is known in U as a master fighter. He probably got that way because he dearly wants to just beat up his father, but he can't physically do that because he's so young, so instead he just channels his aggression into U.
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* The ending has a happy tone, with Suzu having finally regained her confidence. But what happened to Kei and Tomo?? Sure, Suzu scared their dad off ''once'', but does that mean she's permanently solved the problem? Won't Kei and Tomo have to back to their house sooner or later, seeing as they have nowhere else to go? Isn't their dad still living there? Isn't it highly likely that he'll return to his abusive ways before long, especially considering that Suzu is no longer there in RealLife to stand up to him? It sure looks as if the problem hasn't actually been ''solved'', especially considering Kei's earlier speech about how people have talked to his father before but it hasn't changed anything.
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*** I'd like to add that Kei's father ''never'' expresses grief for his deceased wife. He mentions it during some sort of interview when he's obviously trying to put on a good face, but that's it. We don't see him at her grave, for instance. Nor does he break down sobbing in private, saying that he doesn't know how to be a good father and he wishes their mom was still alive because she was a better parent. He does nothing of the sort. Ever. He yells at Tomo for singing quietly to himself, and he goes on about "rules" and how he's the rule-maker in this house and if the kids don't like that they should just leave. There's no direct evidence that his wife's death has affected him at all.
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*** This may be slightly jossed, as an eagle-eye will notice that Belle's second follower happens to be Hiroka's avatar. If anything, this hints that she might've taken Belle's publicity into her own hands.
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* Kei and Tomo’s father may be a proverbial "beast", but if you consider the very likely idea that he is suffering from his wife’s passing, can you really blame him he wants to take it out on someone…like his only sons?
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* Kei and Tomo’s father may be a proverbial "beast", but if you consider the very likely idea that he is suffering from his wife’s passing, can you really blame him if he wants to take it out on someone…like his only sons?
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** ''[[FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse Yes]]''? (Child) abuse is still abuse, even when the abuser has also been traumatized in some way.
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** ''[[FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse Yes]]''? (Child) abuse is still abuse, even when the abuser has also been traumatized in some way. It honestly makes him ''less'' sympathetic, as treating his wife's children, whom she gave birth to and are thus all that remains of her in the world, like that highlights his [[{{Hypocrite}} utter hypocrisy.]]
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* Kei and Tomo’s father may be a proverbial "beast", but if you consider the very likely idea that he is suffering from his wife’s passing, can you really blame him he wants to take it out someone…like his only sons?
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* Kei and Tomo’s father may be a proverbial "beast", but if you consider the very likely idea that he is suffering from his wife’s passing, can you really blame him he wants to take it out on someone…like his only sons?
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* While sponsors who initially backed this movie’s villain named Justin are not explored further, the implication is quite dire when you think about them. This is because U presumably follows our real world’s policy to keep users’ privacy, but these sponsors have the power that “unveil” the privacy. This parallels with how corporates in real life often violate users' privacy for their own benefits.
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* When Suzu’s friend named Hiroka is explaining to Suzu the reason Suzu’s avatar named Belle is successful, she mentions how U’s body-sharing technology draws out the user’s hidden strengths. That does explain why Suzu can sing normally in U when she wouldn’t be able to sing in real life due to her trauma. That, however, doesn’t explain why Suzu’s avatar Belle looks like Ruka, the most pretty and popular girl at Suzu’s school. When we think about how Suzu created her profile for U, however, it starts to make sense. This is because what picture did Suzu uses when she was selecting her facial profile…that is right, the picture of school girls including Ruka right next to Suzu. And since U has to create an aesthetically beautiful avatar to draw a new user in, it naturally used Ruka’s beauty as the basis. It should, however, be noted that U’s philosophy is about how “you can live as another you” and not “you can become someone else”. That is why it needs to take something from Suzu’s appearance, but what? She is not really beautiful or noticeable except…her freckles. That is why with Ruka’s beauty and Suzu’s freckles, Belle is created.
