Shiki Episode 18 Discussion

frank_desu said:
Those that rooted(ing) for the humans I think just aren't putting enough thought into it.

dasbattousai said:
Starting to really wonder here, who's the really monster? Us or them?

frank_desu said:
Yo so I'm really late to the party but I can't help but root for the shiki. What's not to like? You're just as you were before only now with eternal youth and an almost immortal body. Sure you might not be able to go out during the day and you have the burden of having to kill but who cares when compared to all the benefits. The only reason we're ok with eating meat is because of willful ignorance. We don't have to think about the awful systematic murder of livestock to care. Those that rooted(ing) for the humans I think just aren't putting enough thought into it.

What happened to Kyoko was awful and what looks like is going to happen to chizuru is making me feel pretty sick too. I can't think of any reason to root for the humans especially considering all the characters that are now shiki.

Nayrael said:
He already played one... anime cut some stuff to keep it hidden until the end.
Ask yourself: why wasn't Ozaki hypnotized and rewatch the scene

Psychotik said:
The entire episode summarized in one image:

Monad said:

What the hell are you talking about? They didn't do it to survive. They did it because they wanted their own village so they can walk around freely.
They can easily survive by lurking in the shadows considering how big the disbelief of their existence is. They didn't had to go and try to erase a whole village from existence.

Bura said:


Did you even pay attention? He was giving himself a blood transfusion to prevent anemia.

tingy said:

Yeah I knew Ozaki was up to something since he barely resisted Chizuru in the last episode. But that was definitely a great plan, having Natsuno bite him a second time. Still, I felt really sympathetic for Chizuru at the end. It doesn't matter what kind of person (or being) you are, having a phobia is not pleasant, but she tried to keep on going. And despite her being pretty annoying and for going along with Sunako's plans, she just wants to keep living, and living somewhere where she and her kind and feel safe. It just sucks that they need to kill humans to do it. This anime is playing with my feelings D:

LOAD said:
It's not about "which side is cooler and is more badass". It's natural to sympathize for the side that you are most familiar with. In our case, it's humans. Yes, this is fiction, but most people would feel bad about say, Kaori, who has
a) Megumi as a friend even though she's a total bitch to her
b) Megumi killing her dad who raised and loved her
c) Megumi convincing the dad she killed to kill his own family- leading to her mom being killed too
d) In addition to now being an orphan, this middle-schooler only has her younger brother left- who was also killed by a shiki.

This girl is essentially driven to near-insanity by shiki, while we see her grovelling in front of the monk describing how she knows she'll die next. Kaori is only one example in this series, as there are multiple others who have cases in which sympathy/empathy is strongly elicited from the audience. I'm not saying it's wrong for you to root for the shiki, it's that you're insulting those who exhibit emotions which the series most likely intended to do. Otherwise, why else would they show the humans going through such despair? If a group of individuals you never knew or thought could exist show up and kill your family, friends, and people you know, wouldn't you be afraid? Obviously I don't know you, but most people would be.

The human side is more complex. Questioning or thinking about the humans' (or, ex-humans') makes them more interesting. Take Natsuno, who wants to save people from shiki despite hating the town and wanting to leave quickly. He still wants to save people even though he is a shiki himself. Most people might question why he would think that way. Take Toshio, who wants to kill the shiki as well, but allows himself to be bitten by them. Most people would questions that as well, and we did get the answer as to why he did that in this episode. And as much as I hate him, take Seishin, who despite knowing what the Kirisakis are, goes to their house willingly and had even conversed often with Sunako in the past. Tohru is a contrast to other shikis. He feels such strong guilt about killing and we even see him cry- an action that is (usually) so full of emotion and is something so... human.
Aren't the human characters just more interesting and complex compared to the shiki, who feed on humans because of survival and hierarchy? Sunako is an exception, since she has what is most likely the most complex character as a shiki. But the point is that wouldn't most people prefer the character that has more to them than what meets the eye over the character that is what it is?

TL;DR: It isn't that we/I don't "put enough thought" into who or what I am rooting for. It's being able to see the depth behind characters that makes people sympathize with them and in turn, want them to win.

TomDay said:
although...i am confused at when she saw his arm being pierced (i still loved that wicked grin he gave her)...what did that mean? how could she have not bitten him?

Fried_Potato said:
Let the Rebellion begin!!!!!

PrOxAnto said:


She did bit him ... but Natsuno bit him first in the arm (hiding it from Chizuru) so his orders are the one he has to follow, for example ... not listen to Chizuru, or ignore her orders.
Meaning ... Toshio was already bitten (in the arm) before Chizuru bit him in the neck.

Blondie said:
Just when I thought this episode couldn't get any better (after Toshio tricked Chizuru), Atsushi gets scared by his father and leaves even though he was already dead xD

Watching Chizuru cry at the very end was actually somewhat sad, though.



That isn't explicitly shown though, is it? I figured Yuuki bit him AFTER Chizuru bit him, making his orders override her's.