kanon 8
Categories: anime, episodic review, kanon
Tagged: kanon
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24 minutes of Makoto and nothing but Makoto. Excuse me while I impale myself with a turkey carving knife. Kanon 8.
Abstract
We learn the truth behind Toyota’s secret deal with Kyoto Animation Makoto.
Notables
Bye-bye Nayuki. We won’t be seeing much of her or anyone else but Makoto this episode. In other words, this episode is dead on arrival.
Best. Cat. Name. Ever.
While I enjoyed Yuuichi trying to name the cat, I can only imagine that will happen if he tried such cheeky responses with Haruhi. She would have skinned him alive. Here in Kanon, there’s no alpha female to set him straight so his sarcastic and cynical nature is running amok. Great. 24 minutes of Makoto with an “all-too-pleased-with-himself” Yuuichi. Bad times. It’s like watching an episode of Ghost Whisperer where J-Love doesn’t wear any cleavage overflowing blouses.
Wait, I don’t remember Yuuichi and Nayuki ever walking to school through an underpass. This scenario can only mean two things: one, Yuuichi is planning to murder Makoto here, or, two, Yuuichi is planning to murder Makoto here.
By the way, we’re now four minutes into the episode, and the most mentally stimulating dialogue that Makoto can come up with is “Why do Japanese-style pork buns taste so good?” Not even Crescent Love, Lovely Idol, Tokimeki Memorial, and Happiness have provided this level of inanity. I am surprised that Yuuichi took it well– I’d probably have said something crafty like, “Because they’re made of the same thing Akiko’s jam-mu is made of” or, if I were sleepy, I’d just slap her silly like what Kira does to Lacus.
The Kyotofication of Kanon continues with Kyon body snatching Yuuichi and Yuki body snatching Mai. Both characters are vastly different from their 2002 Kanon versions yet oddly similar to their 2005 Haruhi Suzumiya versions. This change begs the question: wait, what about the big guns? Why not just go the whole ten yards and make Nayuki into a Ryoko clone, make Sayuri into an LOL FANG-TAN nyoro~ clone, and Ayu into a Haruhi clone? Hell, they can even make Shiori into a guy and make him/her/it into an Itsuki clone.
Mmm… Amano might be a better Ryoko clone. Nayuki would then becomes the Mikuru clone with Akiko being All-Woman Mikuru. See, now who wouldn’t watch this series now?
(BTW, I am not enjoying the Shaftification of Negima!?. Neggie and friends just aren’t built for sight gags… it’s like trying to go skiing in Jamaica. In one episode, I was so focused on wondering WTF Cartman, Mesousa, and The Legend of Zelda’s Triforce were doing in the background, I lost track of what was going on in the episode.)
Wait, Nayuki isn’t mad that Yuuichi has been eating lunch with two girls, one of whom is bride material, instead of having lunch with her? Gah. I want a jealous Nayuki.
Amano is a lot colder this time around than before. The first time around, she was actually fairly cordial with Yuuichi and told him about Makoto’s past ASAP. Now, she’s playing hard to get.
I wonder if there’s any shota fangirls (or fanboys) who read this blog. I’m guessing N-O-N-E.
Kyoto displays their god-like powers of animation. Seriously, I’m begging to think Kyoto has started to displace Ghibli as the top animator in Japan– imagine Kyoto with a bit more money and tasked to work on something other than h-game anime remakes– I think they could do a decent job at making wide-market feature films.
(Note the creepy guy in the back checking out Makoto’s ass…)
Different greetings. I’m not happy about Nayuki’s complete and utter lack of screentime.
Yuuichi bribes Makoto with a pork bun. You know that there’s an h-doujinshi floating out there with Yuuichi telling Makoto, “There’s a pork bun in my pocket.”
Eight minutes into the episode, and I finally get some material to work with…
“If you come with me, I’ll show you something good.”
“I’ve already seen your nakkid body. DO NOT WANT.”
Watching a cat is fine too.
Whoa, it’s the girl from the start of Lone Island Syndrome. BTW, white sundress plus white hat always looks great in anime, but I rarely see it work in real life. Maybe it needs a strategically-placed mole. Anyway, if you can make this combo work in real life, please e-mail a picture as well as your three sizes to jason at…
They look like that they’re going on a day-to… Makoto’s outfit is actually pretty cute. But I agree on Yuuichi for the rest: her face, her demeanor, her expressions, and her three sizes must change before she can join the Nayuki Cutie Zombie All-Stars.
Wow, the high school seems to have grown larger the past few years. Ugh. The perspective in the 2002 version seems off… look at the fence on the left. Also, neither Amano nor Yuuichi seem to cast a shadow in the 2002 version.
It is a day-to! Kimi o kimi o aishitte mo… sorry, I’m reminded of that song every time I see a green hill being disturbed by wind in an anime series. If only rose pedals and angel feathers started raining down on them… hey, wait a second, green hill? The whole town was covered in a few inches of snow! The surrounding hillsides are all entrenched with snow! How can this place be green? Grass generally takes a while to regain their full greenness after being buried under snow for significant periods of time. Does this mean that:
(A) This hill controlled by magicks. (More fun to say in vieranese than type.)
(B) Yuuichi’s and Makoto’s burning love for each other melted the snow.
(C) Kyoto goofed.
(D) They tried to sneak in a green hill hoping that all those anime bloggers wouldn’t notice.
(E) We should just be glad that we didn’t see Cartman sledding down this hill on Mesousa’s back while holding the Triforce. Oh wait, isn’t that– OH SHI-
I’m about twenty times more interested in why this hill is green than debate about its name. Just to wrap up that debate, when driving around the US, have you ever seen those blue signs saying “Scenic overlook, next exit”? or something similar? “Momomi” means pretty much that. Just like how I wouldn’t assign a name to the scenic overlook near I-280 and Page Mill, I wouldn’t leave it as it’s English “scenic overlook” if I had to translate into another language. I’d translate the words rather than keep them as a proper noun, but that’s just me.
(Of course, there’s people who don’t believe in this philosophy of translation, and thusly they usually end up being mocked in TMQ. Though I think Taco Bell takes the burrito for having the worst translation department ever– “grilled carne asada steak burrito.”)
(And, “moromi” is some sort of food I think. Don’t recall anymore and am too lazy to flip through a dictionary.)
Creepy. This place doesn’t seem like it has been touched by snow. All the trees still have leaves.
“Perfect place to dump a dead body.”
“Yuuichi, why do you have that baseba-”
Notice before how she had trouble standing, and now she’s clumsy as an Ayu (who apparently is getting zero screentime this episode). Also notice that she’s wearing shorts– come on, I want some believability in my anime. If she’s going to wear shorts, at least have her wearing warmer socks. Either loose socks or thigh highs are fine. Wait, I meant that think that rather than type it. DOH.
Classic day-to montage. It’s seven frames of animation spread over 30 seconds– I expect cheaper studios to employ this type of trick, but Kyoto?!? They must have been rushed for time and just decided to toss in a day-to montage to chew up screentime. And, also, have pork buns become the new melonpan? Could it be that Kyoto is jealous of JC Staff receiving so much attention over melonpan that they needed to counter with something just as large and shapely?
Honestly, if Makoto looked and acted less like a spoiled brat, she’d be back in the ranking. Though I wouldn’t rank her above Nayuki, Ayu, Mai, Sayuri, Shiori, Akiko, Kaori, or Amano. In other words, she has as much visibility as Pani Poni Dash‘s Kurumi.
Nayuki! We missed you!
Ayu fans, who is your Oharuhi-sama now!?! Ayu doesn’t even make it into this episode. I, for one, welcome our new zombie Nayuki overlords.
It’s not Pizza Hut, but Kyoto seems to enjoy referencing Toyota. Remember Melancholy of Haruhi Suzmiya IV where the Prius did a drive-by? You know what would be shat-tastic? If C.C. gets a Pizza Hut stuffed crust pizza delivered to her on a Prius. That would rock.
(Makoto holds up manga.)
Makoto: Utawarerumono.
Yuuichi: Utawarerumono?
(Makoto opens up the manga.)
Makoto (reading): Underwater Ray Romano!
Sorry, this gag structure may be too old for most of AoMM’s readers. For the older readers, you should know what I’m talking about. And I can only imagine my Japanese readers (both of them) shaking their heads, Kyon-style, going “baka Amerika-jin otaku…”
I think it would have been hilarious if they were reading Full Metal Panic, Haruhi Suzumiya, or any other Kyoto franchise. I vote for either Yuuichi reading to Makoto “Tess, Mao, and Chidori are at the hot springs” or “Haruhi costume rapes Mikuru.”
“Chance!” (So wrong on so many different levels.)
(Please remember that no matter how sweet and cuddly other people as well as Kyoto may want to portray Kanon, it’s origin is still a poorly drawn h-game where you could have had your way with any of the ladies except for Akiko. Now that’s messed up– no Akiko. But it sure wasn’t popular for it’s discussions about the tastiness of pork buns. I think we all forgot about the fact that Kanon was all about the h.)
Yep, that’s right. Makoto isn’t really human. She’s a fox who originally was helped by Yuuichi when he was little, and her desire to see him again gave her this human form.
Perfect time for Amano to whip out some boxcutters. Actually, the question you should be asking is, “Why does Amano know about Makoto?” (As for why Mai knows, I have no clue– Mai’s and Makoto’s storylines didn’t intersect much prior.) Keep in mind one big clue– Makoto isn’t exactly social, and remember what the girls at the photo sticker booth said about Amano.
I’m glad Makoto’s story is getting taken care of ASAP. Hopefully, we’re soon approaching the superior harem dynamics of Nayuki (who still needs to debut “devoted Nayuki”), Ayu (who still needs to debut “Ayu with a hat”), Sayuri and Mai (who still needs to debut their lesbian affections for each other), and Shiori (who needs to debut her frickin’ last name already– clue: rhymes are fun). Still, this episode felt low budget compared to other episodes– very few characters; lack of animation at spots; and way too much Makoto.
36 Responses to “kanon 8”
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Lol, why all he hate ?? makoto’s and Ayu’s storylines are easily my favorites :) well, to be quite frank I can’t even remember Shiori’s ^^ I did enjoy that episode and reading your article too. It is refrehing to see someone disagreeing with you in a organized and fun read :)
…. holy shit, ‘past’ Makoto looks like chick in the white sun dress in Haruhi episode 6… x_x
>>Kyoto displays their god-like powers of animation. Seriously, I’m begging to think Kyoto has started to displace Ghibli as the top animator in Japan– imagine Kyoto with a bit more money and tasked to work on something other than h-game anime remakes– I think they could do a decent job at making wide-market feature films.
Shinkai Makoto is THE god of movie animation..can’t wait for the upcoming Byousoku 5 Centimeter, the trailers were awesome!!
Well, look on the bright side- way too much Makoto now, no Makoto later… doesn’t that make you feel better?
And Piro is too cute u_u () Yuuichi no baka
Kimi o Kimi o indeed.
>>Note the creepy guy in the back checking out Makoto’s ass…
Wait Makoto has ass?
Kyon’s sarcasm is losing its luster for me, while he is an improvement to the tradtional door mat I also feel that letting it go on unapposed is a bit annoying. There is a Great Disturbance in the Force and balance must reinstated. I hope Haruhi-sama comes back earlier than promised and decides to posses well anybody, preferably at random. There a plenty of moe characters to play with and plenty of mysteries not in the least of which would be Akiko’s jammu.
At the very least das fox girl is going kaput. Ep 9 is going o be decidedly more fun than the Kyonichi and Makoto bestiality day to. Though isn’t lack of Ayu Ayu a good thing? Why there was nary an uguu. Let there be less loli and more zombified Nayuki who claims Shamisen, err…Piro by right of conquest.
>>Kyoto displays their god-like powers of animation. Seriously, I’m begging to think Kyoto has started to displace Ghibli as the top animator in Japan– imagine Kyoto with a bit more money and tasked to work on something other than h-game anime remakes– I think they could do a decent job at making wide-market feature films.
Yes, I demand my feature length Adventures of Ashina Mikuru Special Edition.
Let me tell you why Moromi Hills are special.
The land itself is covered in ash, and the very air you breathe is a poisonous fume. It is a cursed place where no creature of light dares and even the snow shuns. And Why is this so? It is because it is where Makoto the Devourer makes her abode to pile up her stacks of loli-lies and fox droppings to plague this unhappy Kanon with her vile stench and wicked theft of nikkuman.
Ah man and I was hoping that this series would actually be something just about normal people instead of un-realistic phenomenon. I figured Mai was just insane or something. Oh well at least with the lack of anyone but Makoto in this ep there was still quality kawaiigasming from Nayuko. Piro? Piko? ok lets expand our horizons a bit kyoto.
>>Lol, why all he hate ?? >>
Because, I’m pretty sure Jason is STILL sore about Haruhi having 14 episodes supposedly because of Kanon. Granted I thought he would be bashing it alot more than he currently is
>>(BTW, I am not enjoying the Shaftification of Negima!?. Neggie and friends just aren’t built for sight gags… it’s like trying to go skiing in Jamaica. In one episode, I was so focused on wondering WTF Cartman, Mesousa, and The Legend of Zelda’s Triforce were doing in the background, I lost track of what was going on in the episode.)
First Post! ^^ Wish it could be more positive, but since you arn’t blogging Negima!? I gotta make my stand here. Negima!? is awesome in my opinion, I love the carefree feel. Negima is better as a fluffy comedy, it helps distract from a storyline that revolves around a 10 year old kid scoring kisses from girls 5-8 years older then him.
I’ll admit, there are some things they could cut out, like the deep voiced announcer dude. Its possible, they cut the baka rangers crap after like 3 eps. Sight gags are down in eps 5-6. Its definitely not Pani Poni Dash, which was just a total bombardment. This is way more ‘subtle’ compared to that.
NEway, thats my 2 cents. thanks for listening to me rant.
(Oh and to be on topic I am definitely in the Nayuki corner. ..Sleepy moe…
I hereby declare AoMM’s new spoiler tag: “OH SHI-“
This is my first time through Kanon, and I think it is inferrable from earlier episodes that Makoto is not a normal person.
No ~uguu this episode. They should have made Yuuichi read a Pron mag like Light-o did.
Nikuman vs Melonpan should be a poll.
>>Kyoto displays their god-like powers of animation.
Shinkai Makoto will be reclaiming his crown with his movie “5cm/s” this January, 2007. ( Byousoku 5 Centimeter means 5cm/s=3m/min=180m/hr=4.32km/day )
I thought makoto was itsuki, no? Then why does my gay-dar have these weird spikes al the time?
Wow…it literally was all Makoto. No Shiori in sight, little Nayuki, minute amounts of Mai, and no speaking from Sayuri…still on the plus side there weren’t even five seconds of Ayu *heh*.
After you talked about series action this week, I’m a little surprised you didn’t nail the first major deviation from the dream one this week. It’s been Ayu’s dream every episode except for #2 (blah blah spoiler Shiori whatever), and Yuuichi was the one to talk about dreams this episode in the middle. Even began it in the exact same way before going into his flashback.
Plus, we have Yuuichi taken more or less by surprise this episode the one time that Makoto sneaks in to not do something to him. Definitely an excellent use of showing how the focus of the current plot is on Makoto in the first change and how the character attitudes and interactions are evolving in the second.
And I just feel like mentioning that I think the Kyon references people keep getting at are hilarious. Yuuichi actually enjoys himself, speaks his mind and is a very active character in the story. Kyon internalizes pretty much everything, bitches nonstop, seems to pretty much hate the world, and is totally passive to the world. Really, the voice and visual character design are the only similarites I’m seeing between the two.
>> The Kyotofication of Kanon continues with Kyon body snatching Yuuichi and Yuki body snatching Mai.
We are Kyon of KyoAni. Lower your standards and surrender your bishoujo-tachi. We will add your moe distinctiveness to our own. Your anime will adapt to service us. Prepare to be Haruhi-ed. Resistance is futile.
>> In other words, she has as much visibility as Pani Poni Dash’s Kurumi.
You mean Jimmy? There’s no one by the name Kurumi in PPD. =P
btw, I disagree with you on SHAFT’s Negima!? If it distracted you, it’s good. It keeps to realising the stock standard plot. Negima!? #6 highlights are the three-headed talk (Whose Line is it Anyway?) and the Secchan/Ojousama indirect kissu. XD
>> The Kyotofication of Kanon continues with Kyon body snatching Yuuichi and Yuki body snatching Mai.
We are Kyon of KyoAni. Lower your standards and surrender your bishoujo-tachi. We will add your kawaii and moe distinctiveness to our own. Your anime will adapt to service us. Prepare to be Haruhi-ed. Resistance is futile.
>> In other words, she has as much visibility as Pani Poni Dash’s Kurumi.
You mean Jimmy? There’s no one by the name Kurumi in PPD. =P
btw, I disagree with you on SHAFT’s Negima!? If it distracted you, it’s good. It keeps to realising the stock standard plot. Negima!? #6 highlights are the three-headed talk (Whose Line is it Anyway?) and the Secchan/Ojousama indirect kissu. XD
I have to agree, Makoto Shinkai >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> KyoAni!!! Pwnz
Very soon Nayuki will go about smashing snow bunnies…I hope
Tenshi no Shippo?
>>> I think we all forgot about the fact that Kanon was all about the h
couldn’t totally agree, since i played all-age ver first(when i was like 16?~~)
and i enjoyed it, though might be slightly less than the full version some year later
>>>Excuse me while I impale myself with a turkey carving knife. Kanon 8.
And guess what? The next episode is still all about Makoto, muahahaahahaaha!
>>>BTW, I am not enjoying the Shaftification of Negima!?
I’ve been telling people that for awhile now… Just because the animation quality’s better than the original TV version doesn’t mean you can do whatever teh **** you want with the characters. Negima is not Pani Poni Dash for the love of god!
>> I have to agree, Makoto Shinkai >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> KyoAni!!! Pwnz
May be we should be demanding our local movie theaters to show Byousoku 5 Centimeter.
I vote for (D)
Well, how should we dub this episode?
“The Gar and the Furriest”? :D
Yeah, lots of Makoto, I can now stab myself on the heart repeatedly, and enjoy it. Anyways, it seems there are still two episodes left for this arc? Even I think that’s too much. I hope they wrap up this one quickly, because it has certainly taken too much time.
>> I, for one, welcome our new zombie Nayuki overlords.
Same here.
>> (C) Kyoto goofed.
NO WAI!!!
>> I think we all forgot about the fact that Kanon was all about the h.
Those H-scenes weren’t worth the dozens of hours of text reading. And I actually did like what I read, so it’s not really about the H.
>> Still, this episode felt low budget compared to other episodes
>> lack of animation at spots
First time KyoAni is doing a 24-episode series. I was expecting a quality drop around this episode.
I’m sure there are some “shota” fans about.
And be careful, “foxgirls” aren’t often really girls… no one remembers the old tales about foxes shapeshiping into beautiful women to trick the men? :)
A Dog is clearly fine too, now bring on more Nayuki. I am with you in this, man. I remember being totally screwed by the first series because of stupid Ayu. I just fear is fast careening toward that now.
“Yuuichi’s and Makoto’s burning love for each other melted the snow.”
They’re in a Bollywood movie!!
Seriously, though, my biggest problem with this version of Kanon is that Yuuichi is just an asshole. It’s like KyoAni tried to re-create Kyon but failed to draw the line between “snarky” and “outright bully.” Even after watching this episode and its lame attempts to show that Yuuichi is actually all soft and squishy inside so that makes his godawful behavior okay somehow, I still think that Yuuichi is a jerk.
Gotta give the guy some credit, at least Kyon never abused Mikuru this way.
Heh heh. And I am obligated to say Yuuichi predates Kyon. Heh heh.
They didn’t recreate Yuuichi. Yuuichi’s character was like this in the original game. Heh heh. I wonder why this is lost to the many, but oh well….
He teases the girls, but he does care for them. You don’t have to look far to see that, but oh well. I suppose it is missed upon the few… Tut, tut….
Ah. Jason. It’s Monomi Hill and it does translate to scenic, I believe. Although, I’d rather keep the pronouns as they are. Think of the things one can do to other area names (even the city names…).
Strange, Monomi Hill had grass last episode. Was it missed? Well, here’s the counter question or questions to be precise (with an obvious answer). Why would Monomi Hill have no snow on it? What does it show of the hill?
To Anon – Um, I think everybody here understands that Yuuichi predates Kyon. And I understand that Yuuichi does care about the girls, but in my opinion that does not excuse his behavior toward them.
I haven’t played the game so I can’t speak about Yuuichi’s character in the game, but I remember that he was a lot more likeable in the 2002 anime. Whether he’s the same in the original game or not, I don’t care. I still prefer 2002 Yuuichi to this over-the-top asshole Yuuichi.
Not sure if anyone took care of this yet, so here you go: Imperial Nayuki.
>>We learn the truth behind Toyota’s secret deal with Kyoto Animation Makoto.
Wait, the person Toyoda, or the corporation Toyoda?
…or the other person Toyoda?(!)
Ah. Understood, Kotetsu. I prefer 2006 Yuuichi myself. Tis all a matter of opinion I suppose. Heh heh.
I actually thought Episode 8 was the best episode to date; wouldn’t it be more appropriate to rant about the show after a lackluster episode?
I’d put it a notch behind AIR, but not much worse than that. The characters are a bit lackluster, and the plot just started to kick in – but it still has a chance to redeem itself. Remember, D.C. ~ Da Capo didn’t kick in until Episode 16 or so, and emerged as one of the best dating sim conversions to date.
With that said, watching this show is the equivalent to seeing the New York Yankees enter the All-Star break with a .500 mark. Not awful, but you expect more.
Makoto is a fox? Dear god I hope you’re kidding
Hi, glad to see this blog.
I love this episode that is full of Makoto. She’s so cute!
I vote for (A). :)
Makoto when she was a fox puppy looka a lot like Rumiko Takahashi`s Kitsune(who was male)in Urusei Yatsura.I know
there`s one art of foxes which is the same as in whole Eurasia,but i suspect in Japan exists one very small-sized fox species.If so,those must be one of cutest animals.Of course i have seen Toei`s version from 2002.I hope i do
not spoil anything.