melancholy of haruhi suzumiya 9
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Appropriately enough, the last episode of Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya resembles the cuddling following a haruhigasm.
Time-wise, story-wise, Haruhi-wise, 9 should be 14, the epilogue episode that wraps up the season. Unfortunately, due to Kyoto’s perchance to jump around, it’s stuck in the middle of the run. [insert Kyon-class sigh] If there’s a lost art in cinetography, it’s the use of quiet. One thing that really sets the new Battlestar Galactica apart from other series today is its use of scenes where the characters don’t speak. There’s pauses. There’s starring at each other. Almost like a real conversation.
Anime, for the most part, is chock full of sequences. It’s hard to catch one’s breath plowing through an episode of Keroro Gunso, Pani Poni Dash, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, Mai Otome, or School Rumble. There’s always stuff happening, and the dialogue is always continuous. Episode 9 of Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya brings back this rare atmosphere that Alpha would have appreciated. A great wrap-up episode to contrast the high energy the series has brung thus far, only if it really were the last episode.
Apparently, this episode follows the school festival, the first closed space incident, and the recently completed CSI: Haruhi arc… in fact, maybe even five or so months after that arc. Only we haven’t seen the school festival nor the first closed space incident arcs yet. The whole club seems to be in a sort of rut… Kyon’s still playing games with Itsuki (and I’m hoping the penalty game doesn’t involve some sort of s&m), Yuki’s still plowing through her books, and Mikuru-run is doing meido things… and everyone is fully expecting Haruhi to come busting through with the next great adventure.
Haruhi does indeed bust through with a “Great news everyone!” as she tells the club that the appliance store is “donating” a heater. Both Kyon and I suspect photos of Asahina-san were involved. In any case, she dispatches Kyon to fetch the heater like how Shana would command Yuji to fetch melonpan. And, like Kyon, I was disappointed about the heater… it’s too…. pedestrian for Haruhi. It’s like seeing Morimoto serve up a tuna melt for Iron Chef after seeing all the wacky stuff that Haruhi has dragged the SOS Brigade though. Anyway, I definitely enjoyed her jealously as Mikuru wrapped her scarf around Kyon… but unless she breaks out the boxcutters, she’s not getting into the pantheon.
Haruhi has an ulterior motive concerning the heater! Ho-ho. She wants to release Adventures of Mikuru-run 00 as a DVD, and she needs to pack it with a moeriffic cover as well as moe bonus material “for the male audience.” I like how you think Haruhi! And can I pre-order a copy? She explains that she wants Kyon out of sight during this extra filming session because he’d oppose her… actually, I doubt it. I think she wants him out because she doesn’t want Kyon drooling over Mikuru like I was when I saw Honoka in her PSP suit. (Um, can we get Plug Suit Mikuru sometime? PLEASE!!!) Anyway, the next few minutes are a spirited montage that would have served as a great way to end the series as it recaps all the relevant Mikuru costumes from meido to nurse to bunny girl to cheerleader to kero (I’m guessing they’ll explain this one in the next five episodes, and I hope it’s “Haruhi sends Mikuru to infiltrate the Keroro Platoon to gather information about aliens”)… and, of course, plenty of squeeling from Mikuru as Haruhi costume rapes her. Plenty of squeeling.
The last half of the episode (notice there’s no eyecatch for Haruhi Suzumiya… very rare to see an anime that doesn’t have an eyecatch) is just normalacy. Mikuru, Haruhi, and Itsuki are still filming. Yuki is reading and doing her best Ayanami impersonation. (The HDTV raw that I originally watched had the voices on the center channel, only mine was on too low of a volume so I never heard it. I was wondering why they were showing four minutes of Yuki quietness until I watched afk’s version. Correct that. I’m still wondering why they showed four minutes of Yuki quietness.) Kyon is fighting gravity and weather effects as he delivers the club’s trophy heater. Nothing wacky happens. Nothing deep happens. Pains me to say this, but it reminded me of Kanon‘s Kazahana’s special in how it serves as a tapering end… only there’s five episodes left. Lastly, Kyon returns to the club room, and, to his dismay, no Asahina-special-blend-tea is awaiting him, and he dozes off. He wakes up catching Haruhi covering him with her cardigan, and the two flirt as they walk into the rain sharing an umbrella.
The SOS Brigade Awesomeness Index
UP Futurama… “Good news everybody!”
UP Haruhi… watching her and Kyon is like watching an old married couple. Yep, Kyon’s the whipped salaryman husband, and Haruhi is his strong-willed wife who is having an affair with their hawt red-headed meido. She tosses out a classic, “No one if left to oppose me now!” as Kyon leaves the room after losing a verbal sparring with Haruhi he knows he will never win. Nonetheless, I liked how she banishes Kyon on a thankless task to get alone time costume raping Asahina-san, and how she suddenly went into Cute Haruhi mode for the last sequence when she lends Kyon her cardigan as well as alone time under the umbrella. Awwww.
(Am I terrified that my harem is going to fall apart when Haruhi tries to costume rape Mion, only Bunny Girl Mion gets angry and stabs a Cowering Meer with Combat Waitress Shion locked up in a cage? Actually, that would be cool.)
UP Kyon… poor Kyon. He was fantasic the first five minutes or so, but then like a pitcher getting tired, he started losing control of his fastball (his patentable sarcasm) after Haruhi banished him out of the club room. At least he got to spend time with Nakkid Mikuru, even if he was asleep, and we’re treated to Kyon’s “I can’t believe I missed out on Nakkid Mikuru” face. Maybe he can borrow Honoka’s third eye. Plus, he seems to be used to Haruhi — though I can’t imagine getting used to Haruhi… it’s like saying “I’m used to head lice” — to the point where he can more or less correctly guess her actions, and his friends consider him Haruhi’s lackey. Fantastic. Also, I liked the “I’ve spent the last half a year with Haruhi, Asahina-san, and everyone else” comment. It’s kinda interesting that he uses a very casual form to address Haruhi (though I’m hoping he’d slip and call her “anata”), he’s formal with Mikuru, and he lumps Itsuki and Yuki as everyone else. Poor Yuki…
DOWN Yuki… doesn’t say anything, gets left out of the end credits. Ouch. Total disrespect, and the supposed last episode to boot. For the Yuki fans out there, just more ammo for ya. Even LOL FANG-TAN had more lines.
UP LOL FANG-TAN… I recently witnessed an idiotic debate arguing if Tsuruya’s proper meme was either Fang-tan or LOL-tan. Wow, there’s people out there who have too much free time. (I’d rather debate “cowering Mikuru vs terrified Mikuru.”) I’m calling Tsuruya LOL FANG-TAN just to combine the two. Though she earns the up by doing the Mikuru-run Beam dance.
DOWN Itsuki… who has become Haruhi’s yes man. Though I’m glad any homoerotic overtones between him and Kyon were kept to a minimum this episode.
UP Mikuru-run… anytime they run through all the various Mikuru-run Moe Modes, I must give it an up. I liked the introduction of Hit in the Head with a Batton Mikuru and was giddy whenever Mikuru let out her signature squeel. Though we could use more Cowering Mikuru… can we have her hide underneath a coffee table with Young Haruhi?
Except…
DOWN Cinetography… wait, didn’t I just praise the cinetography in the beginning of the post? I did. Like Michelle Kwan’s figure skaing, mechancially, it was fantastic; aesthically, no. They had legitimate reasons to show close-ups of Bunny Girl Mikuru, Nurse Mikuru, Kero Mikuru, Cheerleader Mikuru, Combat Waitress Mikuru, and they didn’t show close-ups of any. Every one of those shots were done from an angle outside of the school or with Haruhi’s non-HD camcorder. As Kyon said, “I just can’t get enough of that outfit.” We always want more Moe Mikuru-run! Plus, they make the ball-busting decision to use Yuki’s books to censor the costume raping… I haven’t been this upset at an inanimate object since the rubber ducky in Fumoffu. I’ll forgive Kyoto for this one since we get an eyeful of Tess’ ass in her OVA, so I’m definitely rooting for a “Day in the Life of Mikuru-run” OVA. I’d even happily write a screenplay.
UP SOS Brigade Home Base… not only is it now equipped with a $20 heater from Target, it’s a museum of Haruhi history. I’m wondering why do they have a baseball bat and if it’s Satoshi’s (didn’t Kyon sell theirs?), when does Mikuru go into amphibean moe mode, and how did they procure so many laptops? Did “ruined for marriage” come into play?
UP DVD Extras for Adventures of Mikuru-run 00… I hope they include these with the real life DVDs as extras. It would top Shana-tan. Seriously. I’m not kidding. And if they package uncensored Mikuru-run outtakes as well as a Mikuru-run photobook with each limited edition DVD of Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, I would fly to Narita International, catch a train to Akihabara, and wait in line with all the other fanboys to pick up a copy. You think I’m kidding?
DOWN Photography in anime… as an amateur photographer, I need to suggest to Haruhi that if she wants to take some good pictures of Asahina-san, she needs to use a soft flash when indoors like that. Even folding a white sheet over paper over the flash would work okay.
DOWN World Baseball Classic… I remember ratings for it were lower for it for ESPN than the WNBA. Ouch. Still, I’m giddy that the mere mention of it made it into the series. Plus, it establishes the timeline very well (winter 06!… also explains why Haruhi’s melancholy… I mean, I was reduced to blogging about REC! — REC! — that season because of the slim pickings… anyone would be melancholy if they had to blog about REC).
UP Mikuru’s tea… legendary. Maybe she doesn’t need my advice after all.
UP Crazy, costume raping, omnipotent tsunderes… just even cuter when they finally turn the corner.
55 Responses to “melancholy of haruhi suzumiya 9”
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I give 2 thumbs up to Haruhi with a cardigan and thigh-highs, so hopefully there will much more of that. :D
>>> UP DVD Extras for Adventures of Mikuru-run 00… I hope they include these with the real life DVDs as extras. It would top Shana-tan. Seriously. I’m not kidding. And if they package uncensored Mikuru-run outtakes as well as a Mikuru-run photobook with each limited edition DVD of Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, I would fly to Narita International, catch a train to Akihabara, and wait in line with all the other fanboys to pick up a copy. You think I’m kidding?
Be careful what you ask for. and how about some of this?
http://www.hey.ne.jp/~mp/game/sos/sos.htm
yeah… nice closing episode, i guess, but i wish they had spent a few more minutes on the gang and less on 4 mins of yuki silence… seriously, more yuki needed!
This is the last episode, chronologically? I have to say then, I’m really disappointed. This would be the whimpering conclusion paragraph. Was there something artistic going on that I missed when we watched Yuki flip pages in her book for those long long long four minutes? Was any of what Kyon was saying this episode funny? Some things are funny when repeated a number of times… others are not. We get the point that Haruhi is fucking nuts, we get the point that everyone thinks Kyon is fucking nuts as a result of his participation in Haruhi’s club. Now let’s please see more demonstrations of Haruhi being fucking nuts?
In the end is there no point to this show? I feel like my intelligence is being insulted by the amount of fanfare such a hollow vessel has received.
Frankly the highlight of this episode for me was the first shot of the clubroom. I kept thinking “Satoshi’s gonna club you!” when I looked at the baseball bat.
I also think the episode had too many stillframesque shots. I know they weren’t actually still, but the episode seemed to have received a lot less attention, animation-wise, than previous episodes. Disappointing, especially since in retrospect the animation was probably the number one thing the show had going for it after ridiculous amounts of fanservice.
The parodies, the references and allusions, the cult-creation techniques employed, they were all exquisite. But in the end that’s all they really boil down to- fanservice.
I’m sad.
(Don’t pay attention to me. I watch shit like Soul Link and Joshikousei without blinking an eye.)
In the end is there no point to this show? I feel like my intelligence is being insulted by the amount of fanfare such a hollow vessel has received.
I wouldn’t go that far, but when the highlight of what should be the concluding episode of a widely adored anime series is fanservice, you know something is going wrong somewhere.
I can’t wait till my exams are over and I can start catching up with my anime.
>> UP DVD Extras for Adventures of Mikuru-run 00… I hope they include these with the real life DVDs as extras. It would top Shana-tan. Seriously. I’m not kidding. And if they package uncensored Mikuru-run outtakes as well as a Mikuru-run photobook with each limited edition DVD of Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, I would fly to Narita International, catch a train to Akihabara, and wait in line with all the other fanboys to pick up a copy. You think I’m kidding?
If you do I’ll lend you Flak, Helmet, Gas mask, and smoke grenades, I might procure a CS canister as well, provided I get that DVD as well. If nothing else the flak and the helmet can help you look like Animal Mother.
The thing that bugs me is that if the episodes were made in chronological order, then perhaps this lack of close up, no Imouto-san, and Yuki silence was the result of an over stretched budget? I think I smell an nasty girl named Ayu gorging on a budget that should rightfully be Haruhi’s.
All Haruhi needed to challenge the many moe modes of Mikuru was to grow her hair again, it would have been a treat to see her with a pony tail to kick Kyon off balance…but such is life. She looks adorable when she tries to get closer to Kyon.
Kyoto had better make more before a Kyoto Animation Crusade is called…
IF the USA’s WBC team didn’t stink so much, they might have gotten better ratings. And I’m still bitter about Korea getting knocked out in one game at the end after defeating Japan twice in a row. Really, a team that loses only once in the entire series loses out to a team that lost 3 times? Fix the damn series first I say.
I find it quite nice of change for and ending eps. Maybe cause I have finshed all 8 novels, and seeing the Dan Slice of life is great. More Haruhi at the end is also a plus, cause there’s actually very little of Kyon and Haruhi together when compare to Mikuru or Yuki (In novel).
Finally, it bring me a great feeling of warm after seeing all the items in the room (related to different story, some not in anime). And at the end I personally thinks this is a great eps, and bring back lots of memories.
In the end is there no point to this show?
You know, I think your post is best responded too by Haruhi herself, in the very last image of the episode.
>>> She wants to release Adventures of Mikuru-run 00 as a DVD, and she needs to pack it with a moeriffic cover as well as moe bonus material “for the male audience.†I like how you think Haruhi! And can I pre-order a copy?
http://www.amazon.co.jp/exec/o.....000F9RBE4/
Already got mine preordered. International shipping, English-language help available, and 22% off retail price. :)
Now, if it has what Haruhi’s adding in this episode, I’m thinking, since it’s the LE set…maybe.
Note that there’s a very valid reason why they episode skipped for this one – as some of the above commentors have said if the show followed Haruhi chronography then the show would end with a whimper not a with a bang that I expect will be the Kyon chronography end episode.
Think of this as the quiet before the storm as we have a several whirlwind episodes (resolution of book 1 and hopefully the behind the scenes episode for Mikuru-run Bouken film).
Nobody seems to support my theory that Yuki was the one that placed the first cardigan on Kyon. :P
I didn’t catch that they left Yuki out of the credits though… ouch. Ow… as a Yuki-fanboy, that… hurts. It serves to reinforce my theory that KyoAni is trying to emphasise the loneliness of Yuki in this episode.
Cheers.
> DOWN Itsuki… who has become Haruhi’s yes man.
That little exchange reminded me of that one Twilight Zone episode where everyone lives in fear of an omnipotent little kid.
Haruhi: “She made a great mascot. That’s why I made her a bunny girl.”
“Itsuki: “It’s good that you did that Haruhi! It’s real real good!”
Itsuki has always been Haruhi’s yes man, though, almost from the moment they meet. It ties in with his Shizuru-esque quality of making things more difficult for everyone else. (e.g. the baseball game)
Haruhi’s “No one is left to oppose me now!†scene reminded me of Kyon’s “She’s like an evil feudal lord.” line from a while back. I guess this makes Itsuki the Grand Vizier, Kyon the classic Henchman, and Yuki the motionless Imperial Royal Guard in the background. Mikuru alternates between the lady-in-waiting and Slave Girl Leia.
Kyon’s the whipped salaryman husband, and Haruhi is his strong-willed wife who is having an affair with their hawt red-headed meido.
SOS-Dan club room needs webcam.
Trivia garnered from the AnimeSuki Forums,
..) The card game that Kyon and Itsuki were playing had pictures of Lina, Naga, and Gourry from the anime series, Slayers.
..) Most, if not all, of the voices from the radio during the Yuki bookreading scene are done by the VAs themselves.
..) Speaking of the radio… there was a damn subtle reference to AIR (TV). Yukito, a character from Air, was known for shouting, “RAMEN SETTO!”. Yukito shares the same Voice Actor(VA) as Itsuki, and it was the VA shouted the “~ SETTO!” pieces for the radio.
..) Nagara Tanigawa, the writer of the SHaruhi novels, was also the scenerio writer for this episode. His name is highlighted in green in the credits.
..) Haruhi sang part of the ED while ‘costume-raping’ Mikuru. Specifically, the “BOOOON. WA-PU de” part.
..) The discussion over ‘roast bear pot’ caught Yuki’s attention. Observe how she turned her head to face the radio.
Speaking of VAs… I find it amusing that Kyon’s VA also plays the sarcastic Alien Subordinate in Pani Poni Dash.
either they copied it or your mixing Ouran host club episode 8 cowering under the table with this. Because that was the flashback shot how Haruhi there was always alone.
I just watched Ouran 8 yesterday, so I still remember. I have downloaded but never watched the melancholic Haruhi.
re: my last post. Considering the screenshot ratio compared to the rest of your screenshots this time, I do think you’re mixing Ouran’s Haruhi in there. On purpose? ^^
>>You know, I think your post is best responded too by Haruhi herself, in the very last image of the episode.
Kind of sad that the last image of the the episode was so visually unappealing, though I suppose in the end it works perfectly. She’s had us, the bitch.
>>Note that there’s a very valid reason why they episode skipped for this one – as some of the above commentors have said if the show followed Haruhi chronography then the show would end with a whimper not a with a bang that I expect will be the Kyon chronography end episode.
…
So in otherwords, the plot of Haruhi is so weak that the animators needed to scramble it? That’s the only conclusion I can come to if they moved a weak ending to the middle of a discontinuous TV show.
Oh, and in the case that anyone’s wondering why I’m “bashing” Haruhi so much, I’m not really. I’m trying to puzzle out why certain unsatisfactory aspects are the way they are.
I thought it was a great episode. I’m a fan of the life goes on manner of ending series because 1) big bang endings almost always fall flat (think GSD, Mai-Otome, various Sunrise crap) and 2) it leaves behind an opening for a continuation.
I thought they ended each character rather nicely (although I would have preferred even ONE measly line from Yuki this episode) in that they were shown doing what they do best. Haruhi’s a megalomaniac, Mikuru’s a doormat, Itsuki’s a yes-man, Kyon’s the sarcastic lackey and Yuki’s well… Yuki.
The Yuki book sequence-Mikuru costume changing was a LOL moment for me. Especially with the pretty imaginative ways KyoAni used Yuki flipping through the books to cover Mikuru changing clothes.
Great episode. Hopefully the next episodes are just as awesome leading up to this one.
Btw, I forgot to say that tsunderekko’s are the win and seeing Haruhi move from one tsunderekko aspect to the other was sweet.
I simply adore the way Kyoto Animation adjust the focus in this episode(both technical-wise & plot-wise), look at these two screenshots:
http://derailedbydarry.com/ima.....7_full.jpg
http://derailedbydarry.com/ima.....4_full.jpg
The slightly blurred effect is what one would expect in real world … (which unfortunately becomes a popular image for kuso-ing, because of the grip… orz)
Plot-wise I think this episode is laying some ground work for ep.11 or 12, If Haruhi is to disappear, then it’s better off if we can remember her as an adorable person…
Yuki, bravo, you remain silence leaves great room for reference, *salute*
>>1) big bang endings almost always fall flat (think GSD, Mai-Otome, various Sunrise crap)
They do? Is using examples from the works of a single studio really enough to demonstrate a grander pattern? I can think of several series with eventful/definite endings that didn’t fall flat on their faces as a result of the ending. Wolf’s Rain, AIR, Saikano, and Interlude, just to name a few, but there really are a lot. Even Azumanga Daioh, one of the foremost “nothing happens” shows, has a clear ending.
I hope it’s not just me – I find Haruhi is really superior, in the sense that even Mikuru shines with her Moeness on maximum, Haruhi still wins my heart in this episode ;)
I fail to see how Azumanga Daioh has “a clear ending” since just like in Haruhi the end can be summarized as “we’re still toegether, and life is going on”, but that’s not the point.
I really like this ep myself, since it makes a good job at remebering people that even SOS-Dan don’t make or break the world everyday; it was quite enjoyable to watch characters acting on their own, without following any plot. My only complaint would be, of course, the lack of Yuki speech.
So in otherwords, the plot of Haruhi is so weak that the animators needed to scramble it?
No, its just that the “climax” of the main plot they are telling would have been at episode 6, so they decided to move things around.
You know, you are always whining about this show, why do you keep watching?
hola lindo blog cuando quieras post
>> http://www.amazon.co.jp/exec/o.....000F9RBE4/
episode 00…what exactly is going to be on this dvd?
That would be the legend of Mikuru-run run
It will be the DVD as prepared by Haruhi through this episode!
>>No, its just that the “climax†of the main plot they are telling would have been at episode 6, so they decided to move things around.
If the climax is at six, then it’s at six. That’s fine. I have no problem with that. But clearly they feel it’s inadequate, if they’re moving the episodes around like this. They should have more confidence in the material they’re working with.
>>You know, you are always whining about this show, why do you keep watching?
I just watch a lot. There are a lot of series that I’d be better off not watching than this. It’s not so much whining as it is critical wondering. I wonder how certain faults can be tolerated, I wonder why certain faults come to be, I wonder what an absence of such faults would be like. I do believe there are many flaws in Haruhi that turn something that could be incredible into something that’s just a small step above mediocre. If there’s any real outrage (which I doubt- I rarely get outraged) it’s at the fact that the show promised a lot that wasn’t delivered in as sublime a manner as expected.
The first two episodes, a bit of the third- they were promising something new, something beautiful, something hilarious, something interesting. Everything since then has been some number of degrees duller. If we take the real crap shows I watch, the truth is that I expect practically nothing of them. They suck and they’ll continue to, and if they don’t continue to they’ll remain crap shows thanks to installments up until now. Haruhi is not a crap show. But it disappoints at levels equal to Fate/Stay-night.
I’m not sure how to explain myself further without getting redundant… basically, some shows suck and some don’t, and expectations (at least for me) get raised exponentially higher with each degree of awesomeness a show reached. Haruhi presented awesomeness at the highest degree I’d experienced in a long time, and thusly my expectations skyrocketed. Now I’m disappointed. Soul Link will never disappoint me, so I’ll never bitch about it. It’s that simple.
Will I keep watching Haruhi? Of course. Gotta keep my anime-watching stats up!
But clearly they feel it’s inadequate, if they’re moving the episodes around like this.
So you have sources inside KyoAni?
lolikitsune, instead of bitching here, why don’t you write your rubbish in your own blog so no one has to spend time scrolling downwards to avoid your long ass pointless argument.
>>So you have sources inside KyoAni?
Do you have to ask something like that? Let me ask you something- what other reasons can you imagine the producers would have to pull off the episode-scrambling? I’m willing (eager!) to listen. I’d like to know. I get the feeling like you’re attacking me with that question, and I don’t like it.
>>lolikitsune, instead of bitching here, why don’t you write your rubbish in your own blog… yadda yadda yadda
Not everything is a topic for a blog post. If every comment on every post on every blog became its own post on its author’s blog, that’d be the day. But since you asked why don’t I, I suppose I’ll answer. For one thing, I’m replying to things write addressing me. Take this post for example. For another, discussion of the episode is taking place here, in the comments on this post of this blog, so I discuss it here, in the comments on this post of this blog. My comments can’t be significantly more than 800 pixels high, and are thusly a matter of two or three presses of an arrow key to get from top to bottom on a 1024×700 odd resolution screen. And if you consider it pointless than should you even be reading the comments on this post anyway? I believe we’re discussing Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu… maybe you’re not interested in that? In which case you can avoid my “long ass pointless argument” by closing the browser window?
damn, slip of the mind.
>>I’m replying to things write addressing me. Take this post for example.
That should be:
>>I’m replying to things written addressing me. Take this comment for example.
The books aren’t in chronological order either, you know. Even putting Mysterique Sign inbetween RIS is in keeping with the spirit of the novels. Basically, KyoAni was given license to order the story in whatever manner they felt provided the best narrative flow.
By this logic, they’ve structured the series around the two halves of no Yuuutsu so it ends on an ‘epic’ climactic moment. I personally disagree with this reasoning, but hey.
Even then, though, I can’t understand why they aired the ending as episode 9. This is original material written by the original author specifically to bring a sense of closure to the animated series. There is a reason and a purpose to its place in the chronology that is not there for the ‘out of order’ stories in the novels.
See… I’ve never seen “Haruhi” as a jumbled up show. It’s out of chronological order, yes, but that doesn’t necessate that it’s out of any other order.
It’s out of time, but not out of story, is what I mean. The order of the episodes feels a lot to me like a person telling an anecdote, then backing up to an earlier event to explain some little detail. “…and then your Aunt Flo threw the football, and dislocated her shoulder. She dislocated her shoulder because back in ’41 she stormed the beaches of Normandy…”
I mean, look at how it starts. Episode 00 totally gives away EVERYTHING that happens in the show. But you don’t realise it until the end of (Broadcast) Episode 2, with Yuki’s speech. Then, just to make sure you don’t think she’s just screwing around with Kyon’s mind, they jump to the baseball game, where you go, “Oh. My God. She’s not just screwing around with Kyon’s mind.” Then they go back and Yuki finishes her talk.
Likewise, in the middle of the CSI: Haruhi arc, they have the room, just to show they’re guns and say, “Yeah… what Haruhi wants, Haruhi gets. So when we go back to our little desert island, keep in mind that Haruhi might have just killed that man for her own amusement.”
As an alternate way of viewing the skipping, one can also take it to be Haruhi herself, bored and impatient, skipping around to the ‘best’ parts. I mean, we do that with our anime, right? Like hell I’m sitting through Shinji and Touji talking, I want to see Purple Giant Robot tear apart Black Giant Robot like KFC.
Anyway, now I can’t wait and see how this show ties in with the next one…
Especially Frog-Man Mikuru!
First of all, the series isn’t finished yet. The episode skipping/non-linear story-telling especially makes any snap judgements made _before_ the final episode of SHnY airs knee-jerk reactions to things that personally displease or please the viewer. Heck, the entire blogosphere’s ranting about the coolness or non-coolness of Haruhi is moot.
Any true speculation on the whys and wherefores of the episode skip/directorial choices/narrative choices and their validity should be made after the DVDs with director’s commentaries and interviews are released. All else before is, colloquially, pissing in the wind, like my earlier observations. I like doing that for the breezy feeling of wetness.
Plus any moaning and groaning is not going to change anything, the series is technically in the can for it be being aired now – people will still watch it. Even if they don’t like it because the subliminal messages in the Episode 00 video told them to. Viral meme FTW!!!
>They do? Is using examples from the works of a single studio really enough to demonstrate a grander pattern? I can think of several series with eventful/definite endings that didn’t fall flat on their faces as a result of the ending. Wolf’s Rain, AIR, Saikano, and Interlude, just to name a few, but there really are a lot. Even Azumanga Daioh, one of the foremost “nothing happens†shows, has a clear ending.
?
Azumanga had a “life goes on” ending. Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu has one too. What’s the difference? Alot of anime have weak endings. Having a life goes on ending is sorta hedging your bets because it pretty much guarantees the ending won’t be crap and opens up the possibility for a continuation. I like having that option. And Haruhi is a series that’s not predicated on action nor is it on a drama of any kind. The ending fit it rather well.
No Itsuki X Kyon Yaoi?
if(VA for Kyon || VA for Tsukimichi Rin)
document.write(“Kyon has a harem in another wacky dimension.”);
I apologize for the JavaScript nerdiness.
Kyon’s current state of mind would be such that would view any yaoi advance towards him in very negative fashion; He really digs Mikuru and, unconsciously, Haruhi and Yuki as well. The stability of Haruhiverse requires that Kyon’s displeasure with SOS-dan must not become too great for him to avoid it, thus, if you buy into my Kyontropic principle, there will not be any noticeable yaoi in this series, at least not until Kyon reveals definite change of heart ( preference ).
>>?
Azumanga had a “life goes on†ending. Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu has one too. What’s the difference?
While Chiyo does say something along the lines of “We’ll always be friends forever!” and life goes on in azumanga daioh, there was still the definitive conclusive tone during the last episode, with scenes such as the girls bowing to Yukari, “Thank you very much!”, the whole crying graduation scene, the revealing of Yomi’s exam results, etc. Yes, life goes on, but so do most anime endings anyway. but even in azumanga, the ending demonstrated a significant “end” to an era in the girl’s lives.
not tat i disagree with Haruhi’s “final” episode, but this ep showed nothing like that. no revelation on Haruhi’s presence as our God, no actions by Yuki, Itsuki, or Mikuru as alien, esper, or time-traveller. NOTHING! it’s as if theres an episode afterwards…which there sort of is i guess.
*demands sequel after Kanon*
no revelation on Haruhi’s presence as our God, no actions by Yuki, Itsuki, or Mikuru as alien, esper, or time-traveller.
Well, that’d be because THE STORY ISN’T OVER.
I don’t get why people are complaining about the ending lacking plot resolution. I hated how the Furuba anime wrote a 1-episode ending to a billion-chapter manga after a season of imitating it exactly.
Are you guys saying you seriously want them to write their own ending after one season when the story they’ve been following continues?
Personally, I find myself mostly in agreement with lolikitsune. Less from the scrambled order of the episodes than from what a weak offering that episode was. And frankly, it’s the tipping point for me; I now detest Haruhi and her charming obnoxiousness more than I like her for it. I seriously wanted to slap her over the way she treats Mikuru. I didn’t even like the so-called flirting during the walk home. It just felt like more Kyon-abuse.
The brightest points to me were the tricks with Yuki’s books to hide the changing, and “LOL-FANG-TAN’s appearance. She’s actually getting to be my favorite character, which is saying something….
I also agree that the show has been trending downhill since the fifth episode completed; it doesn’t feel like it is living up to the promise of the first few episodes. Those make it seem like we’re going to witness whacky hijinks and alternate realities, along with a running commentary from the master of sarcasm, Kyon. Instead we’ve gotten half an episode of that, two episodes of Haruhi CSI, one slice of life, and a half-episode of Haruhi being…well, Haruhi. Good grief, I mean in one episode, she’s biting Mikuru on the ear!
I’ll be completing the run, but color me disappointed in what was a very promising beginning.
What i don’t understand is why Haruhi would put on another cardigan on Kyon when he got one from Yuki already ?? it seems unnecessary. Perhaps that is to show that the self-centered Haruhi has changed after all ?
I acctually sorta enjoy the life goes on ending. Kyon still has to return the cardigan and scarf. It leaves a feeling that the SOS-dan would get together again tomrrow or whatever for another bizarre adventure.
BTW, is Kyoto hinting for making a real movie based on the sequel to the adventure of Mikuru when Kyon mention that there aren’t enough audiences at the school festival? MMmmmm
>>Well, that’d be because THE STORY ISN’T OVER.
>>Are you guys saying you seriously want them to write their own ending after one season when the story they’ve been following continues?
well, i’ve never read the novels so i wouldn’t know that the story actually continues, but in any case this is just more argument for a sequel.
Sequel or no sequel though, ending the chronological series on a seemingly unfinished plot like this is like stopping in the middle of the story. Now, for some anime this is a good thing, like a “life goes on” ending. SHnY isn’t really like that, since there were objectives outlined by Itsuki, Yuki, and Mikuru in the third chronological episode. Seeing nothing resolved (unless we do actually see them resolved in the episode preceding this) is just kinda disappointing.
>>I’d rather debate “cowering Mikuru vs terrified Mikuru.â€
I agree, there’s a subtle but powerful difference between them that needs to be discussed in an open dialogue.
ubu roi, I’m really relieved I’m not the only guy who saw it this way. If Haruhi hadn’t pissed me off that much, I would have fallen asleep.
And here, I thought I was the only one who didn’t have an orgasm when Haruhi costume rapes Mikuru. Not to say I hate Haruhi, but I find Mikuru a sweet girl, especially with the way she wraps that scarf around Kyon (typical Kyon who thinks typical male thoughts). I guess my problem with the whole Haruhi/Mikuru thing is how Mikuru is reduced to this plaything for fanboys, in both anime and in the fandom, and sadly, Haruhi contributes a great deal to it. But that’s to be expected, considering its target audience.
Oh, it was funny the first few times. But it’s getting rather pathetic. Still, having read the translation to date, I think the zaniness may return. It needs to hurry…I really have a problem enjoying seeing even a cartoon human being as a plaything.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that, of course! (tongue jammed very far in cheek)
Sorry for double post: And having just read someone’s review of the raw, it looks like it will get crazy again. Here’s hoping Kyon’s sarcasm is back in force also.
Regarding the idea that this represented the closing episode, we don’t know that. All I see supporting that is an assumption that the source set of episodes will match the aired set – [i]surely[/i] they wouldn’t skip anything!
I’m sorry, but all we know is that our infuriating Haruhi-kami has seized control of the series’ schedule for reasons that only she may understand. For all we may know, the last three episodes aired will be #24, #5301 and #-1.
They were talking about the 2009 World Baseball Classic. The series takes place in 2009.