G-Senjou no Maou

Well now you're onto the main route. Good luck.

I'd say I was on the main route all along, though. Just that there were a few deviations here and there.

Eh... it looks like I was right about Kyousuke not being Maou after all. It was so confusing since there were discrepancies like the bomb threat at Kanon's performance but the novel kept shoving into my face that Kyousuke was Maou as though it was already a known fact.

The whole sex scene was bloody hilarious. Normally, I just skip them with an autoclicker but Haru's behaviour was especially amusing.

Honestly, I don't know what to make of this route so far. I had expected my opinion of Haru to take a complete turn once I got to know her circumstances but if anything, I find her even more unlikeable. And a small part of me is actually sympathising with Kyouhei, rooting for his victory. I must be mad.

Wait, you find her unlikable???

in the CD Dramas Kyousuke gets a voice,and it's the same as Maou(Jun Fukuyama,using an alias in the VN,of course),it shows the deep connection between them and you will find out what it is by the end of the story.

Well, it's more of apathy rather than outright dislike. How do I put it... basically, I find most of the other girls likeable in their own way so the indifference to Haru kind of stands out.

Hm, I found Usami the best of them while being my apathy was reserved for Mizuha, personally. They should have had a Yuki route instead. It could have been extremely good.

edited 11th Dec '11 5:15:43 PM by Arha

Mizuha wasn't that bad. She at least, has a bratty side and can get affected negatively like normal people. I also felt somewhat sorry for her because her route felt like a half-assed effort.

But if I was given a choice between a Yuki or Mizuha route, I'd choose Yuki's in a heartbeat.

Of course her story felt half hearted. She has no story to tell. Tsubaki barely did either, but they did a decent job with what they had.

Mizuha isn't a real person. And she still has problems. The route as it is feels so mediocre alongside the rest that I feel that if the effort wasn't so half-baked, the writers could easily come up with something interesting.

It almost felt as if the writers were beginning to tire of having to think of and write proper backstories and decided to just have fun with the last route before Haru's. Hence the high school romcom routines and numerous heavy lampshades.

Oh God. The epilogue.

It is horribly similar to where we started from. I... I don't even know what to say.

What's that supposed to mean?

Kiyomi is the daughter of a convicted murderer.

Yes, but that's not publicly known and she has no one to seek revenge on, nor any reason to desire it.

Well, I'm not really talking about the revenge part since there's none.

Lord knows how hard it would be for pretty much everyone to find out. Her mother's fame could easily draw attention to Kyousuke. Hell, Kyousuke's mother was a nobody wallowing in poverty yet everyone in the village knew who her husband was and what he did. I'm thinking the stigma associated with him could be cause for a lot of grief for both of them somewhere down the line. And for him too.

Not to mention Kyousuke basically broke off his relationships with everyone who had feelings for him. Really, I would have loved it if the story ended right at the credits. Not to say that the epilogue wasn't fantastic but I'll be damned if it wasn't terribly depressing. If only Haru had managed to let go of her thirst for revenge, none of this would have happened.

edited 11th Dec '11 11:56:32 PM by Thrombin

If Haru let go of her thirst for revenge at the epilogue, wouldn't she have been killed instead?

No. Kyouhei ran out of the house as soon as Kyousuke shot him. He also dropped his gun on the floor. At that moment, if Haru hadn't chased and tried to kill him, it would have been a clear-cut case of self-defense.

Oh my God, I nearly jumped out of my seat. I was watching the video of a Let's Play. At the point where the visitor was revealed to be Kyouhei, I glanced at the total views and saw that it was 666. I swear I am not making this up.

edited 12th Dec '11 12:07:35 AM by Thrombin

I don't think the ending is as depressing as you suggest. First, Usami's relation to Kyousuke is not public knowledge, meaning she's just a single woman with a daughter of unknown parentage. Second, years have passed since Kyouhei died. How many people would still care about the murder of some guy in a town ten years before? Especially considering what else happened in that town. Kyousuke should not be that infamous anymore. I mean, yeah, he'll find employment and stuff difficult, and if anyone finds out they'll be pretty leery around him, but gossip dies eventually.

edited 12th Dec '11 12:09:29 AM by Arha

I thought the ending implied that Kyousuke, Usami and Kiyomi were going to live together as family?

I am pretty sure people (and the media) would be very interested about this new development of the famous Usami Haru's personal life.

Especially since, you know, it was implied that outsiders thought Kiyomi was Iwai's child, since Kyousuke, who was in prison until then, pretty much took that as a fact.

edited 12th Dec '11 12:14:05 AM by Thrombin

You're forgetting that Kyousuke also has skills relating to his past Yakuza lifestyle/training from Gonzou. I think he's competent enough to make things work out in the end.

So what did you think about the novel as a whole?

Nope. The only way to silence the media with those Yakuza skills is with the backing of something like Gonzou and the fearsome corporation that he ruled with an iron fist. Kyousuke no longer has anything of the sort.

The parts until Haru's route were pretty good. I actually liked every heroine so I was kind of depressed when the epilogue called back all the alternate endings. Yeah, I know, I probably have low standards for things like that since I've barely read any VNs.

As for Haru's route, I'm still trying to sort out my thoughts on it. The epilogue came as a huge shock. I can say for certain that I have a fairly positive view of it, though.

edited 12th Dec '11 12:27:09 AM by Thrombin

They are going to live together, presumably. My point was that if, say, Kyousuke changes his name to something like Jayjay the Jetplane and they get married, no one's going to know anyway. If Usami is so popular that the media will find out about that kind of thing, they could simply not get married. But really, Usami wouldn't be that famous and likely has little media attention. "So in other news, Usami Haru has just gotten married. It is unknown as to who she married as both parties wish for privacy."

I thought the whole point was that Kyousuke felt that they shouldn't be together because he knows that the stigma he carries will also be passed on to Kiyomi? Wasn't that why he was so conflicted about accepting Kiyomi as his daughter? If it wasn't a problem, if Usami wasn't famous enough for people to care and the media to snoop around, why would he get so worked up over it?

He's overreacting, frankly. And how many current classical violinists can you name? There's little reason for the media to care about her, even if she has a fairly wide fan base.

edited 12th Dec '11 12:42:48 AM by Arha

If you say so. Thinking about it this way makes me feel better about the ending, at least.

Okay, I admit the ending was pretty good. I guess I just wasn't expecting something like that to happen in the after-credits epilogue.

On to Sharin no Kuni next.

edited 12th Dec '11 12:52:17 AM by Thrombin

I don't think anyone expected that. Really well pulled off. And the song that plays during the epilogue is sooooo good.