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mysticdragon3md3 · 7 years

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thoughts during Yuri on Ice ep9

4:22 PM 2/3/2017 "If you're in trouble, just hug him"???? Yakov?????!!!??? I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Victor really doesn't think. From the very beginning, he was already proving that he doesn't really have a grasp of what a "coach" really is or supposed to do. Even as recently as ep7, Yuri still needed to explain---yell at Victor, what he should be doing as a coach. *sigh* If Victor's flighty brain didn't also make him so free-spirited and lovable, I'd hit him over the head with that Makkachin tissue box. I'm beginning to think Victor honestly believes that ice skating only functions with the ingredients of a skater on the ice and a coach on the side of the rink. He really thinks that Yuri just needs someone labelled a "coach" just standing at the sidelines while Yuri skates? Oh. My. Gawd. Yuri was just yelling at you an episode ago, that your job is to have faith in him and bolster his confidence. You can do that even while you're away from the actual stadium. Yuri even told you to go to Japan while he stays in Russia to continue performing. He can perform without you there physically! As long as Victor is there emotionally/spiritually for Yuri, he's fine. And yet, Victor hands off Yuri to Yakov, thus, severing Victor's emotional presence from Yuri. *sigh* Victor really doesn't think, does he? This lovable, idiotic fool...

Oh, wait. Victor does go on to say, "Even if I'm not here, I'll always be with you in spirit." But does Victor really understand that? Really? While he's handing Yuri's delicate heart off to Yakov's harsh demeanor...as "support"?? ~_~;

At least Yakov agreeing to take on Yuri, quells any suspicions that he might sabotage Yuri, to help advance Yurio. Not that the show has proven he's that dastardly, but without many gaps in his characterization filled in, the brain does tend to assume the worst. I like the idea of Yakov wanting Yuri to fulfill his potential just as much as Yurio, so that they can have a proper showdown without any interference tainting the expressions of their true skills. Like a martial arts anime or a sports genre manga.

It's strange for Emil to skate to the theme "Cyberpunk: I've ceased to be human". He's so cheerful and human-feeling. Does this mean he's going to super-focus on technical skating? It's strange that he'd throw away his emotions, when the series' themes thus far, have been advocating emotions as a strength, in skating. (I expect Seung-gil Lee to come up short, despite his technical skill, because he lacks emotion. He seems to serve as a contrast to the series themes.)

And now Sala is severing her emotional ties with Mickey. Everyone's getting separated from their emotional anchors in this episode. Victor and Yuri separated geographically and as skater-coach pair. Emil separated from his emotional strengths. and Mickey separated from his deluded purpose to protect Sala. Well, he's actually just attached to this image in his head he has of Sala, more than looking at the actual Sala, anyway. I've seen it all before in Revolutionary Girl Utena, where Kaoru Miki---"Miki". Coincidence? Anyway, in Utena, Kaoru Miki was trapped in his own "princely savior" complex (the entire Student Council all were, in that series), where he specifically only knew his own identity in relation to protecting his sister Kozue. So he subconsciously built her up as this perfect and pure treasure to be protected, always in danger of being the victim, so that his psyche could secure himself in the identity of the "rescuing prince". But in reality, his sister didn't need saving and wasn't pure, and was actually sometimes the victimizer, not the victim. But Miki couldn't see that, otherwise, he wouldn't know who he was. He wouldn't be able to maintain the Stronger identity and position of the rescuer. Maybe then he'd have to confront the fact that he was actually the rescuee, in need of saving. Maybe Sala's brother Mickey also can't deal with his Weakness.

"I was able to focus on skating and come this far because you were with me. Dont' leave me alone, please!" It's strange that Mickey's words to Sala sound more appropriate to the blubbering and weak-willed bouts we've seen more often from Yuri, at this point. Mickey's Weaknesses here seem most obviously intended as a contrast to how far Yuri has progressed in emotional Strength. I hope the rest of Yuri's scenes in this episode show him Stronger than Mickey with Sala in this scene.

Even now, Mickey is thinking only in terms of obtaining Sala's full focus. He's thinking of other types of men she might like and implying that maybe if his personality were like theirs, he could have kept her. Even though her need to be independent and to see him become Stronger by finding his own independence has nothing to do with her "falling out of love with him". He really isn't looking at her at all.

Or maybe Emil's unemotional skating program's title is supposed to demonstrate his ability to separate himself from his emotions (his characteristic cheerfulness) and still be able to be himself. Though all those falls he was taking, while Mickey was watching him, thinking Emil might be an example of what a "successful" man is, enough to get Sala's attention, showed the delusion Mickey was having, in the idea of following Emil's example (of cheerfulness). So if Mickey can't imitate Emil or any other man in order to get Sala back, what can he do? He must be so lost right now. And right before he has to skate!

He's skating to "Serenade for Two". Ouch. She's not even at rink side.

"Sala, are you watching me somewhere out there?" I expect to see a contrast with Yuri later skating and not thinking such things. Yuri should skate with full confidence that Victor's presence is with him. Yuri shouldn't look out, wonder, or hope that Victor is watching. He should feel with bulletproof certainty that Victor's spirit is with him. Mickey's purple costume reminds me so much of Yuri's "Yuri on Ice" costume, that it seems more obvious that Mickey is going to serve as a parallel contrast to Yuri later. If they're going to be equated in costumes, then their differences in actions should really stand out.

"I can tell, even when we're apart." Really? You sure don't act like it. But I guess Mickey is only really seeing the "Sala" in his head, and not the real Sala standing in front of him, anyway.

The thing I like about this whole "incest" motif between Mickey and Sala is that she actually tells him to stop obsessing with her, get a life, and let her have her own. So many anime use incest for fanservice and never once have I seen the sister forcibly, physically, make the brother stop letting this continue. If she's a tsundere, she'll get mad, but just kind of stay sprawled and limp, wondering what the heck her brother is doing. Like Bakemonogatari. Or more often, the sister is waaaaaay too handsy and the herbivore brother doesn't have the guts to shove her off of him, even though it makes him visibly uncomfortable. Like Bungo Stray Dogs. Or even more often, the series treats the incest pair like the canon OTP or at least the background pair to root for. The Irregular at Magic High School, .Hack//Legend of the Twilight, Tenchi Muyo, Tenjyo Tenge, etc. I once went to a anime convention panel where a Japanese panelist explained Japanese cultural reflections in anime, and he explained the ubiquity of incest as the desperation of heterosexual males to be near females, in their society of such strictly separated genders. "So having a girl in your house, so close to you everyday, is an exciting thought." Ug. Stop it. Good on Sala for grabbing Mickey by the chin and telling him to get a life and that she had a life outside of him! Personally, I chalk it up to the writer and director of "Yuri on Ice" being female, females who are probably just as sick of the incest trope as the rest of us otaku.

On the other hand, if Mickey does well, even while his costume draws a parallel with Yuri, then maybe the contrast will be of Yuri doing badly, while separated from Victor. O~O! ;o;! Nooooooooo!

"What should I do with my feelings?" I think it's really important that Mickey phrased this in a way that implies that he does realize there are other things he can do with his feelings besides being obsessed with his sister.

"I can feel lost love in Michele's skating." Don't look so happy to have a comrade in misery, Georgi. Mickey is "mellow" and sad right now. Ah, well. Maybe a few drunken drinks together and messy crying about their ex'es will finally get both of them over it. We can only hope.

"Sala, this is the last time that I skate for you." Wow. Mickey is accepting this "break-up" pretty quickly. Good for him. ^-^

"This is my real love. Farewell, Sala." So are they saying Mickey took breaking up his obsession with Sala well, because he's considering honoring her wishes to have him stop obsessing over her, as another expression of his love?

Oh wow. Sala is really crying. I guess she was the one who was more attached. Or maybe just attached enough to let it last this long. It's pretty healthy for her to have recognized the stagnancy, broken it off, and is already into her grieving phase. Even if she didn't want to be the object of her brother's obsession, I'm sure their bond was still the most important to her.

"That was the coolest program I've seen from you so far. You thought of me when you were skating right?" "I'm sorry for saying such mean things earlier. But I'm glad I did! We're better apart, after all!" Thank you, Yuri on Ice!!!! If this was any other series, the sister would have gone back to the brother, as if they were reuniting lovers. Thank you for maintaining the growth of the characters and a demonstration of superior emotionally healthy relationships! ^O^ Just because Sala wants to see Mickey do well and can feel happy that he thinks of her and loves her, doesn't mean that she wants to go back to being his obsession. In fact, those are the same reasons she wants him to be independent of her. And he just proved that learning to become independent makes him Stronger. He had the best program performance ever! It's just healthier for a person to not have illusion-based obsessions, and to be an independent person in a relationship, vs co-dependent.

And I guess if Mickey/Sala was representative of anything in this series, it was the dangers of co-dependency. Now, let's see our series’ main protagonist couple avoid that obstacle, by contrast.

What's with Seung-gil? He seemed so freaked-out right before he stepped onto the ice, and now the camera's first glimpse of his performance is of him falling? Why is he so freaked-out? Was he intimidated by someone? Not by Mickey's awesome performance, was it? Was Seung-gil so nervous because Mickey's program was flawless? If so, then it just might prove my theory that Seung-gil is supposed to represent the importance of emotion (emotional expression) during skating, by being too unemotional and failing.

Yurio's statement is really surprising. He sees JJ and Yuri as his strongest competition. Almost takes the doubt out of Yuri's close-ups while he's nervous. But more like the audience knows he has earned more confidence, but Yuri himself doesn't know it.

Oh my gawd. Seung Gil is actually crying. I guess he's the type to stay stoic until the very last second.

Wasn't Victor supposed to choreograph Yurio's senior debut? I guess Yurio is ok with just the Agape program.

Are Yurio's jumps at the 2nd half of the program really low now?

Alright. that's better.

I want to say that Yurio gets really motivated when he's angry, but that didn't work out too well when he preformed Agape. But maybe it's only because Agape is the opposite of his nature. Maybe here, his anger will make the 2nd half of his program go even better.

I love seeing that focused expression on Yuri's face, like when he was preparing to skate against Minami. But during his stretches this time, he got distracted by Yurio superseding himself. I hope Yuri doesn't get mired in self-doubt in the middle of his Yuri on Ice program. Especially after all this inner monologue from Yurio, explaining that Yuri's program is already intimidating to Yurio's chances of getting into the Grand Prix.

I like how Yuri's lack of response to Yurio's brag about getting first place so far, made Yuri seem very focused and unfazed. But then the camera goes watery, like Yuri is going to cry and really is mired in self-doubt. I really expected some kind of inner monologue, where Yuri says he's either focused or crumbling. But there was nothing. I like that the direction is keeping us guessing. Now I really want to see how Yuri feels, through watching his performance.

I just realized that both Yuri and JJ are preforming to music composed just for them, to encapsulate themselves. But whereas "King JJ" makes JJ seem arrogant, "Yuri on Ice"'s somber, wavering, and frail, hopeful journey doesn't seem self-centered at all. It's just a story.

"I popped it." Is that bad or good? This is what I meant when I said before that this series doesn't do as well as other sports anime, when it comes to explaining the sport sufficiently, by the time of the performance, so we can understand the tension and stakes during the performance. Even with the reaction shots, it took the commentator explaining "His second jump turned into a single" for it to be clear that Yuri messed up.

"Until Victor came into my life, I could never openly say that I'd win gold, but I never skated with the thought in my mind that I'd lose anyway." There's something lost in the wording of Yuri's internal monologue. I guess I don't understand. Is he saying that Yuri's ambitions about skating were never strong enough to win gold nor to lose, as if he didn't have enough passion in his skating, before Victor appeared? Is he saying that Yuri always wanted to win, but never was ambitious enough for gold? Maybe never had the self-confidence to aim that high? Or that Victor made Yuri finally able to express aloud his pre-existing (maybe muffled) strong will to win? Then he says, "Truthfully, I wanted to win gold at last year's Grand Prix Final, too." So I guess...Yuri is saying that he always had a strong ambition to aim high, but it wasn't fully expressed until Victor boosted his self-confidence? Now we're getting all these flashbacks of Victor boosting Yuri's confidence, so that's a confirmation.

"I was able to come this far because Victor believed in me." And now we get an answer to Yuri's first line in his inner monologue: "I don't want them to think everything Victor's taught me has been a waste." So the thing Yuri feels that Victor taught him the most was belief in himself. Which is a nice call back to the opening theme's lyrics. ^-^

It's nice that Yurio is cheering for his rival to do well.

But I actually kind of like that Yuri messed up a little during the first half of his program. "Yuri on Ice" is supposed to represent his skating career, right? At the beginning, Yuri was making all these missteps because of his lack of self-confidence. So in the second half, which is supposed to express after Victor became his coach, it would be appropriate to show then, all the (bolstering) influences that Victor has had on Yuri.

It's funny. Yuri seems to preform better when he's huffy about something. Before, he was angry at Victor for not knowing that all he needed was for Victor to have more faith in him than Yuri had himself. Now he's huffy at the idea of Yurio demonstrating impressive stamina, when everyone keeps saying Yuri is supposed to be the one defined by stamina. "Idiot! I have more stamina than him!"

"Whether Victor were with me or not, it would still feel just as tough." "I'm the only one who can skate this program with this much appeal." I like when Yuri's inner monologe starts becoming more confident. ^_^ It's like when he first began to understand how to be in-character for his Eros program: His performance is going to suddenly become something amazing.

"I'm the one who loves this program victor and I made the most in the whole world!" There's a slight variation in the violins here that strikes well, while Yuri is thinking about his announced theme for the year: finding Strength through Love.

JJ is the only one not watching Yuri's performance. Even though everyone else is captivated by the 2nd half of his program. I wonder what that says about JJ and how it's going to be built upon later in the series. (Just saying he's self-centered is too easy. I mean, he is. But there can still be more than that.)

Aw, Yuri touched the ground. But the direction tried to deflate it with the side comments from Mila. "When you think of how it could've been with Victor here, you really want to see that, right?" This show keeps doing this thing every once in a while, where emotional response and anticipation from the audience are advocated as more important than technical performance. But it's hard for me to completely buy that, when so much more of the series (screentime) has been dedicated to showing them work out and practice so that they can nail the technical aspect. Only very rarely, like when Minami skated or Yuri skated during the all-Japan competition, did the series mention that enthralling the audience's emotions, as a performer, was more important than technical execution. Sure, they threw in Seung Gil to exemplify how technical merit without emotion can't win, but I don't think that theme was emphasized enough in relation to the whole sport or to contrast Yuri specifically. Yuri and Seung Gil only had 1 interaction so far: when Yuri was one of the few to see Seung Gil cry, while he passed by him. I don't know. As a sports anime, this show just isn't as effective for me. I still prefer to watch it as a character study. That, this series does well.

I wonder what Yakov would say if Yuri told him aloud that Victor's coaching style is just like Yakov's? LOL Maybe then Yakov might start to accept Victor as a coach instead of just "playing coach". At least Yakov knows Yuri never practiced for failed jumps because of Victor's old habit to do the same.

Aw! ^u^ Yuri is so huggy! ^.^!

"I'm no prince. I'm already a king!" Yeesh. Talk about a complete foil to Yuri's characteristic unconfidence!

And here we get that other layer besides the arrogance he's been superficially portrayed with so far. It's good to hear JJ thinking of his family, girlfriend, and country, while he skates.

"This isn't enough love!" So if JJ is Yuri's true foil in the series, and his definition of "love" is getting cheers from the audience...I guess that contrasts with Yuri expressing "love" as support from his closer circle of family and friends. Interesting. Let's see where this goes.

It's kind of weird how instantly enthusiastically Sala always jumps to any guy who isn't her brother. Says a lot about how much he smothered her. -.-;

"Is this a hugging competion?" Oh, Emil... ^_^ Poor Seung Gil and Yurio. LOL But I thought Yuri confirmed that he has progressed to the next stage, just barely above Mickey, because of he placed 2nd at the Cup of China. Why is he practically saying farewell to everyone, like he was the one leaving? ...Unless this shows his character growth, by Yuri saying "bye" to everyone else who isn't advancing, or rather, just everyone who shared this experience of the Rostelecom Cup with him. Saying bye more to the Rostelecom Cup, than to people? Maybe? Well, Victor did say to hug when he was stressed. ^o^ "I'm this close to the peak of my competitive figure skating career. I really want the gold now. The Grnad Prix Final will be my last chance." Yeesh. So final! So the hugging really was about Yuri thinking his career is near its end and he won't be able to be there again. o_o

End credits over the last scenes? A mid-season break for a short 12 episode series? o.o???

Aw, birthday pirozhki! ^.^ How does Yurio know Yuri's birthday? Is it on their official public stats? Wow, Yurio really is playing to the rival-friend motifs. Or maybe he just wants to see Yuri say that his grandfather's food is better than the Katsuki's? LOL Naw. It's even better. He just wanted to show off his grandfather's katsudon pirozhki to someone! Particularly to someone who knows a good katsudon. ^_^

Oh, good. The fluffy one survived.

There's the hug he really wanted.

Oh, don't say it's like a marriage proposal. In an airport? Do you know how cliche that is?! This is much better than that old cliche. ^-^ "I wish you'd never retire." Now that sounds more like a marriage proposal. ^_^

7:05 PM 3/7/2017 The problem I have with this show, is that I don't care about the characters---Well, until Yuri reappears on screen. I can't take my eyes off his performances. But the series takes so much screentime on other characters, that just haven't had the time for me to build any significant attachment to. So I find myself not caring.

The whole reason I've been postponing finishing this series, is because it takes so much time for me to write reactions and watch at the same time. But because I don't care enough for all these side characters (and caring about characters is *really* important to me, even more than plots), I didn't want to just zip through watching YOI without remembering my emotional reactions. If I didn't jot them down as they happened, then I know I'd look back on this series and not really care overall, because my horrible memory wouldn't remember being effected by this series. But I know I care about Yuri, and Victor is a lot of fun, so I don't want to finish this series, thinking that it was the same as if I didn't watch anything.

#md3 watches yuri on ice

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