Bokurano

Discuss Bokurano here.

I'm surprised there wasn't already a discussion up for this. Both the manga and the anime are very worthwhile, if you don't mind a depressing story. (But what else would you expect from Mohiro Kitoh?)

To start the discussion off, what do you think is the right thing for the pilots to do in their battle? If you were piloting, would you try to win, allow your world to lose, or refuse to fight?

Trying to win seems the best thing to do, unless there's some reason presented why the other world deserves to survive more than yours does.

I loved the manga, though I was mildly confused by some details of the ending. For instance, is that new...coordinator, or whatever you call those guys, Jun? It has his hairstyle and speaks to Coemushi like Jun would; but that doesn't seem to tally with that scene near the end showing Jun joining his deceased friends.

Haven't watched the anime, though I'm familiar with how it ends as well. I think I preferred the manga ending, but I tend to be a purist.

About your question, yeah, I agree that one should just fight for their own universe. There's no particular logical reason to prefer one universe over the other, so it just comes down to protecting the one that's yours. Maybe I've just been influenced because I went through Heaven's Feel recently. (Unless, maybe, the opponent's universe has achieved a more desirable society than yours, like some kind of utopia or something. That would require a bit of research on their universe though, which you might not have time to do depending on how aggressive the opponents are.)

edited 8th May '11 12:11:05 AM by ashnazg

The whole "should we save our universe or somebody else's?" thing reminds me of the later episodes of Kamen Rider Decade, when the Alternate Universe Kiva was at war with AU Blade, and non-au Blade talked about how Tsukasa had no world of his own to fight for (there is a Decade world, but Tsukasa didn't seem too attached to it).

Anyway, I guess in a more idealistic story, the "heroes" would instead fight to stop whatever it is that's destroying the different universes, as to prevent lots of people from being sacrificed. People are still people, and all that.

edited 8th May '11 8:08:26 AM by ThatHuman

I'd argue that you should first ask Dung Beetle if he's ever actually seen the 48 hour limit expire. If he hasn't, or if he refuses to answer, then I would ensure that the fight lasts at least 48 hours. Sure, that will probably result in the destruction of both universes; however, it's plausible that nothing would happen (as suggested on the WMG page).

The potential benefits of this course of action far outweigh the risk. If both universes are destroyed, that's twice as bad as the normal outcome of a fight. (I'm assigning all lives equal value here, since I see no objective reason to value someone's life more just because they live in the same universe as me.) But if neither universe is destroyed, then all subsequent pilots in both universes will probably use the same strategy, resulting in the knowledge of this tactic propagating exponentially over time. This one-time gamble of two universes has the potential to save countless more universes, and that's worth the risk.

However, if Dung Beetle has seen the outcome of the 48 hour limit, then that's not an option. That makes things more complicated, and I'm less certain of what the right course of action would be in that case.

Because awesome show was awesome. Theme: Face Death with Dignity.

That's under the assumption that whatever's making the rules doesn't just change them when someone discovers some sort of loophole.

About Bokurano: I read the manga a long time ago, and I love it. Even though I'm not fond of depressing stories in general (I am prone to darkness-induced apathy). I started reading it because, well, it was a mecha story, and it certainly delivered on that front. It just so happened that there was a lot more to it than awesome robots duking it out.

If I were a pilot... I'd protect my universe, of course. I love my world too much to consider letting it get destroyed.

@ ashnazg I don't remember a lot of the details (it really has been a long time since I read it) but I do think the new Koyemshi really was Jun. The previous coordinator became the pilot who's supposed to demo it for the new guys.

Just saw a review of this on Glass Reflection, decided to check out the trope page. I'm sad now. T_T (Also, I'm reminded why I don't like sadistic choices. There should always be a third option. If one isn't available, make one yourself. Happy endings should be a thing, dammit, no matter how unrealistic they are.)

If I had to pilot, I would use the giant robot to kill the people I didn't like - Not that many people, just the ones I despised personally - before fighting like a demon to win. I mean, if you're going to die either way, you might as well go out in a blaze of glory.

I did like that there's no third option in the manga. The anime is notably inferior for the subplot they introduced; A search for loopholes, to my mind, weakens a story somewhat. If it's inevitable, then there's a lot more room for drama.

edit: Seriously, that seems entirely reasonable to me. "Guys, I'm going to give *everything I've got* to win. Just let me kill these people, first."

edited 4th May '14 4:17:00 AM by iridium248

That's essentially what Chizu did, wasn't it? I wouldn't agree that it seems reasonable from an objective standpoint, though. Everyone has different standards for who they despise, and it's easy to have one's judgement of their enemies' worth clouded. Of course, I'm sure that from a personal standpoint it's eminently reasonable.

And I too like the inevitability of their fate. Soul-crushing despair is delicious.

EDIT: I just realised that the tropes page for Bokurano claims the new Dung Beetle is Sasami, addressing the question I had from two years ago. The hairstyle matches I suppose...

edited 4th May '14 6:56:46 AM by ashnazg