Sakurasou no Pet no Kanojo

Episode 10:

• Akasaka is the new poster pretty boy/ trap maid for blunt honesty.
• Rita's issues were resolved, not only by Sorata, but also Mashiro herself, which is nice. I find it interesting that Mashiro didn't actually understand Rita's rant, which is a good way of showing part of Rita's insecurities about her. The conflict was overall lighter and thus its subsequent resolution doesn't have as much impact as the previous ones, but still decent I guess. Also Rita's grandfather... wasn't very nice, it seems, though I wonder if what Rita said is just something she distilled from her grandfather's words.
• Sorata successfully gives a presentation! Huzzah. That said, their video game looks cool.
• The only really funny moments this episode were at the end, via Rita's interactions with Akasaka.
• Oh, and Mashiro not knowing what it's like to be jealous? Hahaha, the girl has no idea...

edited 16th Dec '12 8:11:58 AM by fillerdude

I'm really starting to like Akasaka a lot. That kind of honesty is far preferable to me than lying, bush-beating, Hint Dropping, or other deceptive behaviours. Especially to someone who seems to buy into the retarded idea that if you can't be the best, you can't be anyone at all. If you do something you like, you don't do it only and only if you can be the very best at it. You do it as long as you're reasonably capable of doing it. Otherwise you're cheating yourself out of your own life.

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Episode 11.

Mashiro running away looks more awkward than running usually looks.

Akasaka looks better than Nanami in that, even if she looks good. And at first I wondered how Rita managed to get into his room, but then I started thinking about him as your average harem protagonist, and everything made sense. With his weakness to women, he can't really fight her all that effectively.

Towards the end, I liked everyone's reaction when Sorata mentioned The Power of Love. And was that the first time Akasaka smiled? For any given value of smile...

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Holy shit, Maid-chan just got trolled hard by Rita in this episode.

In this episode, we also discover that Fuuka, Jin's ex-girlfriend, is actually Misaki's older sister. She knows that Jin really loves Misaki, and she's just The Beard to him. Which might be part of the reason why they broke up.

While Fuuka is basically an older, more mature, and more serious version of Misaki, she can actually be pretty funny at times. So that's how Jin was able to handle relationships with older women, huh?

edited 17th Dec '12 7:50:28 PM by judasmartel

Episode 11:

• Poor Maid-chan. XD
• Gotta say I was impressed that Misaki didn't care about Jin going to another university. "Is that love?" Hell yeah it is.
• "You can't sway others if you can't sway yourself."
• Things are looking bad for Nanami in the romance department... Especially in that last part. Where Sorata and Mashiro look at each other, in silence, then fade to black. Dang. A fine set up for great things to come.
• Speaking of set ups, Nyaboron being powered by love (everyone's reaction to that was hilarious XD) is quite the... convenient situation for Sorata's anguished declaration of love. Color me excited.

That last thing is what has me anticipating the next episode.

I'm honestly curious about how this is gonna shake up their dynamic. 'Cause we know something like that would.

Along with that, I'm sorta dreading what Nanami will have to say about it.

My Sakurasou "moratorium" has been lifted (For why, see my reply at #34), so today I watched episodes 3-5, with some opinions, rants, headscratchers, etc, below.

In General, effective to this and future replies: Whenever I comment on Mashiro, I may compare her autism with mine. Note

Episode 3:

• I still have no idea as for why Sorata is interested in video game design, or the Fujisawa guy that appears in the whatever article he read what showed up in 2 and 3.
• After watching episode 4, I wondered what did Mashiro want to find out from going to a Love Hotel...?

Episode 4:

• Misaki's One of the Kids moment is fun.
• I'm not expecting much from an autistic attempting to write novel. I can completely vouch for this.
• Love tension defined: Mashiro sees Sorata as her boyfriend, but not vice versa.
• Looking at Chihiro's response in Sorata's career sheet, she is also behind Jin's plan, right...?
• Male!Mashiro: "You're my special panties!" Mashiro certainly made quite a bit of exaggeration on her work compared to what actually happened.

Episode 5:

• I just happened to notice the page quote for Photographic Memory is from no other than Temple frickkin' Grendin...
• Mashiro not only for a zero for English; she didn't answer any question at all. But she clearly isn't nonverbal...
• I'm surprised that Nanami still can somehow pay her bills, albeit barely. I expect Suiko to be pretty expensive.
• Nanami again: She's not only a workoholic, she's an extreme Determinator!

edited 23rd Dec '12 7:42:11 PM by SamCurt

Scientia et Libertas | Per Aspera ad Astra Nova

Episode 12.

What you should do if you have such a a production: Plant a few audience members who will shout to get the rest of them following. It really is one of those things that's really hard to accomplish on its own, even with buildup.

Rita's true meaning was rather obvious, really. Standard twist.

Also, was Akasaka not entirely repulsed by Rita's kiss? At the very least, he seemed to be appreciating her smile.

edited 25th Dec '12 5:30:17 AM by AnotherDuck

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Epic trolling by Rita of both Sorata and Dragon.

Sorry everyone, I'm still on Episode 6:

• The main thing in this episode was that the chemistry between Sorata, Mashiro and Nanami started to become really complicated, after the relationships between Nanami and Mashiro developed here... Nanami should have confessed already, as Mashiro has already, sort-of.
• Kamoshida must be involved in the game production business.

Scientia et Libertas | Per Aspera ad Astra Nova

Actually over Christmas I have watched 7 through 10, and finally got to 11 this morning... But I would leave the Rita episodes later as they need a bit more time to digest. Especially, I need to review the shiritori in episode 9, and as for 10... I expect a long rant to be written.

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Episode 7 In General: Like somebody put on the work page, this is as much a Breather Episode will get... It may be sweet, but not so much on the plot department.

• Fanservice. Censored with cats.
• Probably Sorata is trying to teach Mashiro some common sense, but she did the same thing again as in episode 2...
• I bet Misaki's driving lesson is foreshadowing something...

Episode 8

• Mashiro asking "What Is This Thing You Call "Love"?", because Ayano asked her to put a bit of romance in Nanohana-sou. If Nanohana-sou is really a Gender Flipped replica of what's going on in the Sakura Hall, I suppose the writer lampshaded a lack of romance in his work at this point...?
• Sorata's inferiority complex came up again, for obvious reasons. Unlike the last time, this time is out of comparison with Mashiro alone.
• Sorata's change of I Just Want to Be Normal in the beginning to I Just Want to Be Special at this point is noteworthy.
• Mashiro's "Go forward" which everybody quoted out-of-context...

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Some Crunchyroll comments raised strange issue: Video Games and Anime are more "team" art than classical art that emphasizes personal talent (as Episode 10 has demonstrated), and the two "genius" ladies (Misaki and Mashiro) aren't really the type that would work well in a team. Right now I guess Mashiro would end up as a video game artist—and I'm not that sure that would be an appropriate career path for her either.

Scientia et Libertas | Per Aspera ad Astra Nova

Episode 12:

• A great showing from Mashiro. That shout (her voice sounds great), and that indirect confession. HNNNNNNGG. I did expect someone to break the ice in the Nyaboron finale (which was bound to be awkward), and someone to confess, but to think it would be Mashiro doing those things... Really great.
• Dang Rita knows how to troll. Sorata should have really seen that one coming, but that kiss was nice payback for Dragon's reluctance to share his e-mail.
• Nyaboron looks hella fun! Agreed that they should have planted some people in the audience, but it turned out well in the end! Catgirl Nanami was a nice bonus. (Yes, Sorata, she does look good)
• Speaking of Nanami, poor Miyahara. Wanna see what happens with that plot thread.
• Jin finally gives Misaki the damn necklace. <cheers>
• Oh, and guess we now know what Misaki got her driver's license for.
• I believe this is the first time that we heard of Fujisawa Kazuki being a former Sakurasou member?
• Dat hug. Just beautiful. And dat indirect confession. "Is this..." Mashiro starts, then it becomes really silent, then: "...love?" then the ED kicks in while her hair's swaying in the wind. Really beautiful.

edited 27th Dec '12 5:58:03 AM by fillerdude

I still can't get behind the thing. Anything romantic with Mashiro is just squicky as hell.

"No, the Singularity will not happen. Computation is hard." -Happy Ent

I don't think so, though I will always prefer Sorata x Nanami more (initialy I had intend dislike Mashiro, but It's not possible with her Deadpan trolling)

I watch this series for everyone's Character Development, rather than Ship-to-Ship Combat. So, I have no comment on who Sorata should pair up with. However...

Mashiro's brain certainly works differently, but she knows what she's doing (in a legal sense). Nothing squicky here.

Scientia et Libertas | Per Aspera ad Astra Nova

I feel like it would be squicky if Sorata was initiating anyway between them. But with her pushing him the way she is, it's fine.

Troping: Can anyone think of a better trope to pothole Nanami with? Right now we use Workaholic, but I think her most important characteristic is "being strict to herself as well as everyone else." Currently I guess we may use The Determinator... But is it correct?

edited 28th Dec '12 4:49:34 PM by SamCurt

Scientia et Libertas | Per Aspera ad Astra Nova

Mmm. Determinator seems like a stretch to me. Especially because working themselves to the bone usually works out for determinators, but it really didn't for Nanami.

Another similar trope is Plucky Girl, but it seem to be a subtrope of The Determinator...

Scientia et Libertas | Per Aspera ad Astra Nova

Episode 9:

• Meow-poleon murals!
• How does Rita know that much Japanese? She couldn't have learnt it from Mashiro (who is somewhere between Terse Talker, The Quiet One and even The Speechless).
• Still, we heard nothing about her Mashiro duty.
• Hm, she seems to be a... I don't know, but Manipulative Bastard will be an overstatement. Especially I'm unsure what's her flirting were for.
• Ryuunosuke. I'm more interesting in his Insufferable Genius part. (Attendance is required for college entrance in Japan?)
• Rita seems to imply that already, but Mashiro seems to making another bunch of Green-Eyed Monsters, this time in Suiko...
• No opinion about that painting. But Sorata is again having an Episode 2 moment.

As for the big conflict: I was of the opinion that Mashiro no longer likes painting (I noticed that as of episode 2). However, I doubt whether manga is something she should go for, either. Autistics, by definition, are awful in making stories, let alone telling them—this shows in previous episodes as well. (Mr Kamoshida: please provide us your autism reference book list please)

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(As previously mentioned, I need more time to deal with the Ep 10 writeup, especially over my lack of emotional response for an episode that I would have banned if it was there 6 years ago)

edited 28th Dec '12 11:21:10 PM by SamCurt

Scientia et Libertas | Per Aspera ad Astra Nova

I've been told that I'm quite good at it, being both a habitual liar and a fanficcer. Please stop generalizing, and especially stop looking at a cartoon character as a good reference. I've lived with plenty of autistic people, and none of them is anything like Mashiro.

I apologize and will be more careful with how I write and analyze.

edited 29th Dec '12 11:55:58 AM by SamCurt

Scientia et Libertas | Per Aspera ad Astra Nova

After discussing with Kayeka, we have noticed that while we agree Mashiro is autistic, that is at most a Word of Dante but not Canon. Canonically she's an Idiot Savant. We then decided that it would be appropriate to remove all references to autism in work pages and all wicks except that is under Ambiguous Disorder and Word of Dante (where that would be appropriate).

What do you think about this?

Scientia et Libertas | Per Aspera ad Astra Nova

I don't have any particular opinion on it, but I would just like mention that Ambiguous Disorder is out of place as well as her disorder exist in Real Life (or to be exact her kind of disorders).

It is called PDD-NOS and it cover any atypical form of authism. Yes this definition is ambigiuous by itself, but still it is valid diagnosis so it doesn't fit trope.

That said I consider Mashiro being sui juris and don't consider her disorder ultimately to be issue.

edited 29th Dec '12 1:27:37 PM by Tenzen12