#and you know what even though Aruto is my least favourite this ain't right by him either

[firebirdsdaughter]

The longer I think about the disaster 01 turned out to be post-break, the more I'm convinced something went down bts. The whole Gai redemption thing, Horobi going back to square one after actually making a lil bit of process after protecting Jin, the new ZAIA guy turning up so late in the game, the shock value thing with Aruto becoming Ark-One. The moment the break was over, 01 felt like a different show, one that didn't even bother to make any sense.

On the one hand… I’m like… Okay. Pandemic. You don’t know if you’re going to get put on hold again.

And I’m also like… Okay, maybe they sprang on you that you would only have 45 eps bc Reasons.

On another… There is an amount of sense to Horobi’s initial response, it’s pretty in character.

On  the third… I wouldn’t want to watch most of this at normal pacing, either????

Like. Okay. I absolutely agree the tone has been totally off since we came back. Every single ep since the return, everything, and multiple characters, have felt… ‘Off’ is the only way I can describe it. Jin (though we are finally getting back into a more natural beat for him) esp, but also Yua, Gai… Just… Off.

I do have to admit that Horobi’s initial response… Does make sense, esp regarding the fact that his singularity point is Jin, wanting to protect Jin, and wanting to be Jin’s father, and humanity… Would, from his point of view, be a danger to that, and also one to his son, bc he is right, they did, literally, create the Ark.

It’s where they decided to go immediately after that went super off the wall.

I mean, other stuff went off the wall already.

So. My suggestion for what maybe could/should have happened:

Nix Gai’s personality doing a one eighty. Have an alliance of necessity bc the Ark is just that badass (she is). Do everything up to a point mostly the same (though… Maybe also nix Jin’s ooc behaviour towards humans he barely knows, and bc I am a glutton for angst, the simulation idea came from him bc that was how he ended up at the point where he thought he had to kill Horobi, in the vein of becoming convinced he couldn’t save his father but could at least spare him a more painful death, and only really starts warming up to humans when they do something that defies those simulations, or something… I just like the simulation idea for Jin), you can even have Horobi being like ‘human destruction’ if y’all really want that, though it does smack of an ‘f you’ to Horobi fans, bc gods forbid he be allowed any… I’m digressing. Anyway, instead of… Whatever this episode was, maybe there’s still a big fight, but at an integral moment Izu (and maybe also Jin) jump in and are like ‘no, stop!’ Izu shields Aruto and starts prodding Horobi, but Jin shows up and steps in. They manage to at least temporarily calm things down, there’s emphasis on the fact that humans need to give HumaGear a reason to believe in them, too. But all of this upsets Gai, maybe bc he has some kind of personal history w/ Horobi (hey, remember the time he stepped on Horobi’s chest? Bc I do, that was the moment that made me love to hate the character), maybe he had some shemey plan that this is fucking up, and he goes, you know, Gai™—but then the Ark is like ‘hey, free bastard!’ and possesses him instead.

Or some bullshit (Takahashi, if you’re listening, please, some bullshit) where it looked like Horobi killed Izu but it was actually Gai or someone else (Takahashi, I will literally pay money, I will buy the fucking rings, just some bullshit, I’m begging you). Aruto can still go nuts (I… Guess? It’s… Super weird how he’s going psycho over this, but is apparently a-okay w/ Gai just getting a tap on the wrist… Did I miss something? Bc I may not like Aruto much, but… This feels ooc), but eventually manages to snap out of it when that’s revealed. Or bc Izu is resurrected. Maybe bc Horobi brings her back. (admittedly, one of my original ideas for Horobi post-series was him working on recovering any HumaGear who were ‘lost’ when they were hacked… Though now that seems more like a job he can share w/ Naki while he and Fuwa also deal w/ remnants of the Ark/protecting peace as a new AIMS… Ah, spoilers, spoilers…!)

If Takahashi really wanted to make me a happy camper, he’d reveal that Horobi didn’t actually kill Izu and have Horobi bring her back. Sweet, sweet justice.

Anyway.

But yeah, ever since we came back, it’s been… Off. Like… Some of it I’ll attribute to the situation, being even more janky than it was already janky (imo, of course, other people seem to adore it), I mean, global pandemic, we don’t know how unexpected the cut down was for them, and they didn’t know if they were going to be locked down again.

But.

The subject matter is… Not great, despite that. Like… If I felt like we had a logical, coherent-ish, even for Takahashi, story under there… Yeah. Okay. I’d be more lenient. But… This is just… So off the wall. Like, this doesn’t feel like ‘oh, they had to rush bc eps got cut and they were flying blind.’ This feels like… Something else entirely.

If that makes any sense.

I mean. I suppose this could all be wildly popular w/ the kids in Japan. I know the show owes me nothing. But… Still.

#Anonymous #Asks #Firebird Opinions #I have many words #and feelings many of those too #mainly this 'Horobi kills Izu' shit is bs shock value #'oh we're going to end like no other KR series has ended before!' #y'all really think we need that rn? #like… #if they had set it up #but it really just comes across as them derailing two characters for 'shock drama' one of whom happens to be my fave #and you know what even though Aruto is my least favourite this ain't right by him either #I'm sorry THIS is what makes him go homicidal? #you did a fucking Rider Kick w/ the dud who made the Ark tortured your friend tried to have you and your secretary killed #fucked w/ Fuwa's memory and ordered his assassination was an absolute dick to Yua tortured HER #and gods know what else #but your secretary allowing herself to get shot by an android who was brainwashed and mind raped for twelves years #who doesn't know how to handle freedom or emotion and was in the midst of a mental breakdown #bc y'all were pressuring him and reacting aggressively #and you were chilling outside and not heading for the 'root' of the 'problem'??? #THAT'S gonna make you go serial killer okay #yeah no #you don't get to have Aruto be okay w/ Gai's getting not even a tap on the wrist for EVERYTHING he did w/out remorse #but an android/grown up child soldier who was brainwashed and conditioned to be dangerous and volatile gets cornered and lashes out #and your secretary is handed a damn idiot ball by the writers again to poke a damn dragon… #THAT'S unforgivable? #like no I get being upset at Horobi that's why I want Horobi to be responsible for bringing Izu back #but it's weird to me that we're a-okay w/ all the times Gai tried to murder Izu or had Yua nearly murder Izu (and she almost did!) #but Izu chooses not to dodge and obviously this is all exclusively Horobi's fault he's such a horrible monster for being broken #…