DO NOT discuss the source material beyond this episode. If you want to discuss future events or theories, please use separate threads. DO NOT ask where to watch/download this episode or give links to copyrighted, non-fair use material. DO NOT troll/bait/harass/abuse other users for liking or disliking the series/characters. DO read the Anime Discussion Rules and Site & Forum Guidelines.
haven't commented on this season as i have actually just been going along and enjoying it! but this episode was just..... wow, totally amaazing, in terms of intensity and emotion probably ONE of the best episodes i have seen in anime, its amazing how one episode just turns the whole series on its head and breaks the barriers and just totally makes it go up in your expectations, EF has just managed that, that last scene was just so so good, really just went from annoyed/angry to complete depression/meltdown! and so relatable for the viewer!
The first half was good of course (like Renji's hesitation), but I really wish they didn't put together the two stories in the same anime. The two should really be alone, I can't enjoy them as much as I should and could that way.
The second was even "better". Oh my god the feels. I'm pretty sure others have noticed that as well, but I especially liked how it started with a lot of kanjis with some hiragana, then it became some kanjis with a more hiragana, and finally almost only hiragana... Showing really well how she became more and more desperate :(
Though I wish they showed and told us more about her past and not that little :/
And I wonder, what was Hiro doing all day? I mean I don't think Miyako was waiting there for only some hours, and I also don't think that Hiro going to the school took that long...
And why the hell did he not at least text Miyako when he got home? >_>
Also, this is the point where I would fucking punch (killing might be too much unfortunately) that bitch, Kei. How dare she?
And I wonder, what was Hiro doing all day? I mean I don't think Miyako was waiting there for only some hours, and I also don't think that Hiro going to the school took that long...
And why the hell did he not at least text Miyako when he got home? >_>
I think that setting occurred during the previous episode when he mentioned to Kei that he stood up to Miyako to help take care of her when she hurt her knee.
ninjaclone09 said: jesus christ, this episode was horrible. I really liked the renji and chihiro part. But the miyako breakdown was retarded. it was completely forced, as if they wanted to make it as dramatic as possible so it could follow up the other story. this episode really hurt the series for me.
Interesting thing is that the break down sequence does not happen in the VN, at least not normally. Not sure if it is a bad end or something, but considering how different the VN is I wouldn't be surprised if it wasn't the same even if it was in the VN as well.
"Yes, I have been deprived of emotion. But not completely. Whoever did it, botched the job."
Ouch. Ouch. Ouch. And motherfucking ouch. That was way too hard to listen to. That was way to hard to watch to. That last scene. Arg, can't think right now :/
Now we know Miyako past. Dayum, I didn't thought about it, but now it hit hard.
I didn't really understood what happened to Renji. Is he starting to get outworn by Chihiro amnesia?
They almost finished her book. That went fast as hell.
Anyway, next episode will surely be as hard to watch as this one. It was just so much drama, it gave me dizziness...
«Time is passing so quickly. Right now, I feel like complaining to Einstein. Whether time is slow or fast depends on perception. Relativity theory is so romantic. And so sad.» - Kurisu Makise a.k.a. The Zombie
Hiro should have at least called...
OMG the calls and voice mails! Kei deleted them! I seriously hate her now, her jealousy caused Chihiro's accident and now this!
Whoa, what an intense episode. Up until now this anime was nice to watch but now it really got compelling. Seems like it gets better and better each episode.
By far the best episode! UGH I love this show! So emotional! Miyako's pain is so real! I really hope that both of them end up together! Kei can have that other guy... but Miyako really has nobody if Hirono isn't with her...
Tengoku_no_hakai said: Hiro should have at least called...
OMG the calls and voice mails! Kei deleted them! I seriously hate her now, her jealousy caused Chihiro's accident and now this!
Ther should be a Top 5 worst characters on this site. After this episode Kei would be on this list.
And i really don't want a happy end for her.
3 setps to become Masochist:
1. Read source material
2. Watch anime adaptation
3. Suffer
Bonus Step: Tell everyone that anime is crap becouse Manga/Novel is better (duh..)
How to find the worst trash anime ever, so bad that people should be ashamed for even knowing this trash exist:
1. Check your favorite anime
2. Enjoy your shit taste pleb
Works everytime for everyone.
Well, another powerful episode.
I like how the climax and tension is growing, but the tragedy we're witnessing involving Miyako is overwhelming.
The characters are credible in eany of their acts.
this....
chihiro's story so similar to the clannad one.
"Urushibara Ruka. The mannerisms and voice of a woman... No... More feminine than any woman. But he's a guy. Taller than Mayuri, but so very thin... But he's a guy. Looks great in a miko outfit... But he's a guy. It's already twilight And yet, it's so hot. The cicadas are crying. But... He's a guy."
This episode...wow
I cant believe Kei deleted all those messages...if she thinks that making Miya disappear will be a good thing then she is completely wrong. Hurting other people to get your own selfish way is unacceptable.
Hirono, please just find out what happened and sort things out with Miya...shes all alone in the world and needs you. Kei has friends, she has another guy interested in her...dont be drawn in!!!
PS. This episode was very relatable...Ive been on the receiving end of what Miya went through...I cant stand to see her being hurt
They are both just as bad as each other, in my opinion.
Miyako deliberately scheduled their date on the day of the basketball match, Kei deleted all the messages she left.
I know it's not her fault, but Miyako is mentally unstable.
I don't think she will do anyone any good in her current state, therefore I am taking Kei's side.
I can easily say that was one of the greatest things I've ever seen. It was just so unexpected and amazing! A cinematic orgasm, if you may! I'm almost sad that it's unlikely I'll ever see something like that again..
Monstrum said: Miyako is pitiful, she can't contest with Kei really.
They are both pitiful. Kei is using dirty tricks and expectes someone whom she keeps calling brother to see her as a lover. Her egoism even caused her sister's life long trauma. Fucking, selfsih retard who doesn't learn.
Miyako just now sounded as a real life case where woman kept bugging a guy wih tons of sms each minute. It even made it onto radio and everyone agreed that she has massive issues. Miyako depends on others too much. Whole life has to circle around her.
Any other person, would call few times, leave and see him in the morning and ask directly instead of sending 99 call messages. That would make me feel extremly uncomfortable.
Both are horid options and should be kept at the distance.
After all this time, Miyako's freak out and 99 messages remains one of the most memorable anime scenes I have ever watched. Gosh, that scene, man... I dunno if any romantic drama could ever capture such extreme heartbreak so excellently as that one does.
Damn even after all these years, rewatching this episode still gives me the chills. Made me remember how fond I was of Ef years ago. Just this episode alone was worth it all. Such a cathartic experience. I feel deeply for both Renji and Miyako here.
The art direction was slightly overly exaggerated for my taste during the beach scene, but the story developments in this episode were excellent.
While Renji's situation played out a bit differently than I expected, the end result was very much expected. He did indeed underestimate the responsibility he was taking on in growing closer to Chihiro. In helping her write the novel, he came to better understand what it must be like for her to read her diary-- and how each "version" of herself won't necessarily come to the same conclusions, just like how she didn't realize the tragic interpretation of the first ending to her book even though it was her idea. At that, her determination to make the book tragic when it is in many ways an extension of writing about herself speaks volumes about her self-confidence. Renji realized that Chihiro likely won't ever be able to "love" him in an emotional sense, and it scared him so much that he was stunned. However, this is what made his conversation with his mom earlier in the episode so important: Renji is confusing passion with love. You see, the flutters of the heart and other such feelings aren't love, but infatuation or passion, and while said passion can be developed into love, it is an easy yet sore mistake to confuse one for the other because they are completely different. (Renji's mother's bean analogy was particularly excellent in demonstrating this.) Infatuation, or passion, is a selfish emotion that seeks ones own pleasure, while love is a selfless ongoing choice that places its object in greater importance than itself. The ironic part is that this flips the tables on Renji and Chihiro's roles. Although Renji was trying to help Chihiro, he now realizes that he was doing it out of a place of selfishness, whereas Chihiro genuinely cares for Renji in a deep way that extends beyond mere emotion. Her decision to become his lover wasn't callous or alien it all; it was real love. Chihiro legitimately loves Renji while Renji has only been infatuated with Chihiro. In the end, it was she who was helping him.
Hopefully Renji's naiveté in what being "a knight in shining armor" entails will come to an end with this development. Real love involves sacrifice and selflessness, something he is just now discovering.
As has been the case with almost every development in the show, these events are mirrored to an extent with Miyako and Hiro's situation, and it's brilliant.
It seems the comparison between Renji and Miyako will hold fast, because the tables have been flipped with Miyako and Hiro as well. It seems I misjudged Miyako's character to an extent in that she's far more broken than I thought she was, and that brokenness is now translating to despair. I think what triggered her emotional breakdown is the "erase" that reminded her of Kei's words; Miyako was going to respond normally, but when she remembered Kei's basketball game, she freaked out. Seeing Miyako break down further and further was both disturbing and realistic; it was a powerful display of raw emotion that made for one of the best dramatic developments I've seen. However, while I sympathize with Miyako, and although I thought Kei's decision to delete her messages took Kei's selfishness to a perverse level, I wonder if the messages' deletion might be for the better. Showing such intense psychological damage in such a raw manner would scare away most people (including Hiro, potentially). I think the main difference here is that although both Hiro and Miyako figuratively lack color, Hiro doesn't necessarily love Miyako like Chihiro loves Renji. I think that unlike Renji, Miyako does know what it means to love and probably does love Hiro, but her need for him is equally strong and places her on the side that needs more help overall.
What Kei is doing is evil, frankly. I understand her situation and why she's doing what she's doing, but that does not justify her actions.
On a Personal Note (& Concerning Some Responses to This Thread)
It's still strange watching Miyako in this. My first instinct when she started breaking down was actually "run!"- and to be honest I'm ashamed of it. I can still relate to Miyako's background and situation prior to this development with Hiro, except, instead of the world seeming colorless, I felt like I was in a cage, trapped. It's funny, because usually I would write off what has been portrayed as a more literal lack of color for Miyako as exaggeration now that we know it's figurative, but when something so similar is your actual life story, you see it differently. Suddenly it doesn't seem so far fetched. Suddenly you realize it could be realistic.
As much as I'd like to deny it, had certain events in my life gone differently, I could have ended up a lot like how Miyako's character is here. It's unsettling, but then, that's why I'm ashamed of my own initial reaction. I've grown a lot since those days, but if even my first tendency was to reject the old me, who would be willing to help such a person? If some of the responses to this thread are any indication, many people don't even believe that this kind of desperation and intense loneliness is even possible in real life. The ignorance is astounding (and I dare say there are far worse possible situations than Miyako's, but I digress). I've always wanted to do what's right, to help people, but my initial reaction to this shows me that my heart needs to be yet more loving towards others.
So Renji was not able to kiss Chihiro, it was kinda sad =/
I felt bad for Miyako, she is a nice girl, can't believe Kei was no mean that she deleted all the messages Miyako left to Hiro!
Wow, that second half! So intense, a great scene with Miyako's breakdown and then a perfected ED on that, trés bon! The text-deleting in the end almost felt too much, but yeah it made sense.
The first half was also good, the feeling in it is the closest thing to Clannad I've seen so far.
For this kind of anime, it was way more realistic than i had imagined. Both parts of this episode were epic, especially the second part. Kei plays dirty but it is like this saying "All is fair in love and war."
I'm terrified that one of these girls will become a yandere or something. I enjoyed seeing some back story on Miyako, though. It's weird that basically no one in this show has any parents that are still alive, with the exception of Renji.
Renji and Chihiro's story breaks my heart. Poor thing, falling in love with her, and she forgets him every day. Then she says he can kiss her, possibly out of pity.
I hope to see more Kyosuke. I'm really rooting for him and Kei.
"It's a tragic misunderstanding that could have been easily avoided if he just finished his sentence in time!"
— Richard Watterson (The Amazing World of Gumball)
That was one hell of an episode. I actually started to sympathise more with Miyako than Kei, although after this ending it shouldn't be surprising. They both go to amazing lengths to get rid of their loneliness - I understand Miya, but you'd think Kei would know better after what happened to her sister. There's also a serious problem of miscommunication between Hirono and the two heroines, but that's nothing out of the ordinary for such fragile individuals as the two girls.
The first part was impressive as well, of course, but the second was so impactful that I was left thinking only about it in the end.
Another amazing visual and auditory experience from Shaft, this new ending - I'm sure I've heard it somewhere before - is even better than the previous one (though the opening still steals the show).
I dont understand the 1st part. There is a darkness emanating from Chihiro and she wanted to Kiss Renji?
2nd half went crazy horror and I liked it, not loved it. Shaft delivers again and I think it showed all 99 calls from Miyako which has tenacity and desperation. Girls sure are scary creature. Kei deleted all messages from Miyako and that is scary poop.
All I can say, this episode is not the best in my watched/readed anime/manga history.
what a dark episode. renji being a nonsensical coward for blowing his chance just cause it didnt feel right, even though he picked an inappropriate time when he first asked to kiss her. miyako's voicemails was too real it was scary. how each voicemail became more distressing to the point she began to break down, it made it nerve-wracking waiting to hear her next voicemail. theres nothing worse than being ignored by the only person that doesnt make you feel alone
I can't tell if this episode was painfully melodramatic or gut-wrenchingly emotional. Either way I loved it all, especially the legendary Miyako call scene. Sheesh, SHAFT makes this show go from a solid 7 to a blistering 9. The sakuga is unreal.