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| I love how this show just casually introduced infant mutilation and doesn't even spend time on it. geez, this show deals with some heavy themes in such a light-hearted way, I can't think of any show like this. |
| Man all they wanted was just to have a good game of chess/go, but they HAD to get horny right before Lakan had to be sent away. Am curious though to know what the outcome of that game would've been had they actually completed it; each promising to grant one wish to the other should they lose. Though with how things went down that night, I'm sure both of their wishes would've been more or less the same. |
  NYANPASU  5700XT |
| No doubt I'm in the minority with this one, but Lakan's backstory pissed me off. Given how good this show has been so far, I'm disappointed they went for the cliche "oh you thought this was the bad guy but ACTUALLY his backstory is super tragic-" boooo! Get off the stage!!!! Like, yeah, obviously my opinion of Lakan has changed now, and I do feel sorry for him. It's just such a cheap and overly played out plot device. |
| Well well, Lakan really did mess up 2 lives, but what it comes down to is that it wasn't intentional at all, just late realization of life altering facts till the point of no return. The sequence of events are really tied up together in an interesting manner, so props to that! |
| Penultimate episode! I didn't expect to see Lakan narrating his backstory, but it's great. We get to see 猫猫's mother as well. It's a sudden character shift. Prior to this, Lakan has always been portrayed as someone sinister and cannot be trusted. But now, you can't help but feel for him. So he did not force himself to Maōmaō's mother contrary to what was hinted earlier. Anyway, whilst Maōmaō couldn't actually win a game, she outsmarted him. Will she then be reconciled with her father next episode? Let's see. |
Reply to Estoy_Gordo
An interesting game of logic and wit, where Maomao was guaranteed to win by having her father trapped from the very beginning, all without any need to win the chess games.
After some searching, I found Lakan's psychological issue which is apparently a very real thing...[copied]: "A neurological condition called 'prosopagnosia', also known as 'face blindness', where individuals have difficulty recognizing or distinguishing faces. This condition can be congenital (present from birth) or acquired due to brain injury or neurological disorders." But I guess there's still a handful of faces he can recognize just fine, like Maomao, and people he takes an interest in like Maomao's mother.
Maomao's adoptive father (Luomen) is Lakan's uncle , so that would also mean Luomen is Maomao's grand-uncle. I know Luomen was expelled from the family...but I wonder if Maomao can ever reclaim her birthright from having the lineage of a noble family through Lakan. If she can...maybe she can have enough of a social status to one day be eligible to be a partner to Jinshi as a lover one day.
In the manga it should have been being sent off to a military campaign, whereas they changed to being forced to study abroad in the anime. Maybe they did this to put more of the onus on Lakan with his "mistake" of not returning sooner or realizing she was pregnant...because if he was on a military campaign, then he would not have as much control to return to his own volition.
The whole situation between both of Maomao's parents is tragic...all victims of circumstances. Speaking of the past...Lakan's monocle changed eyes. I know it's possible since I personally experienced one eye going bad sooner than the other and vice versa over the years and needed to either prioritize looking through one eye more often or just get a stronger prescription lens to even them out...but still, I just thought I'd point it out anyway.
Maomao's pinky finger was sliced off as a baby by her mother going insane after contracting syphilis. Would explain why she would occasionally look at her pinky finger every now and then throughout the series. I've always known that if it's just the very tip (that's what she said) then it can technically be regenerated...to an extent. If the nailbed is intact, then it might pass as normal looking enough at a glance, but noticeable that it's slightly shorter upon closer inspection.
Next episode...I hope it's not a recap. It's the last episode! I'm not ready...(unless they renew a sequel season).
After some searching, I found Lakan's psychological issue which is apparently a very real thing...[copied]: "A neurological condition called 'prosopagnosia', also known as 'face blindness', where individuals have difficulty recognizing or distinguishing faces. This condition can be congenital (present from birth) or acquired due to brain injury or neurological disorders." But I guess there's still a handful of faces he can recognize just fine, like Maomao, and people he takes an interest in like Maomao's mother.
Maomao's adoptive father (Luomen) is Lakan's uncle , so that would also mean Luomen is Maomao's grand-uncle. I know Luomen was expelled from the family...but I wonder if Maomao can ever reclaim her birthright from having the lineage of a noble family through Lakan. If she can...maybe she can have enough of a social status to one day be eligible to be a partner to Jinshi as a lover one day.
In the manga it should have been being sent off to a military campaign, whereas they changed to being forced to study abroad in the anime. Maybe they did this to put more of the onus on Lakan with his "mistake" of not returning sooner or realizing she was pregnant...because if he was on a military campaign, then he would not have as much control to return to his own volition.
The whole situation between both of Maomao's parents is tragic...all victims of circumstances. Speaking of the past...Lakan's monocle changed eyes. I know it's possible since I personally experienced one eye going bad sooner than the other and vice versa over the years and needed to either prioritize looking through one eye more often or just get a stronger prescription lens to even them out...but still, I just thought I'd point it out anyway.
Maomao's pinky finger was sliced off as a baby by her mother going insane after contracting syphilis. Would explain why she would occasionally look at her pinky finger every now and then throughout the series. I've always known that if it's just the very tip (that's what she said) then it can technically be regenerated...to an extent. If the nailbed is intact, then it might pass as normal looking enough at a glance, but noticeable that it's slightly shorter upon closer inspection.
Next episode...I hope it's not a recap. It's the last episode! I'm not ready...(unless they renew a sequel season).
| @Estoy_Gordo Speaking of the past...Lakan's monocle changed eyes. I know it's possible since I personally experienced one eye going bad sooner than the other and vice versa over the years and needed to either prioritize looking through one eye more often or just get a stronger prescription lens to even them out...but still, I just thought I'd point it out anyway. Ah, since you noticed that little detail, I think it's worth pointing out a bit of trivia that the anime left out. If I'm remembering right, his monocle actually isn't real! It's just glass. It's not an important detail, but this is noted in the novel at some point. |
| So, this is the story of a player. |
Reply to Zefyris
@RPWPA Season 1 adapted 2 novel volumes.
The 15th volume will be released in Japan in a few days. So, there's enough for 13 more cours, or 6,5 more seasons of 2 cours.
The 15th volume will be released in Japan in a few days. So, there's enough for 13 more cours, or 6,5 more seasons of 2 cours.
| @Zefyris Wow, I didn't expect that. Thanks for the info. |
| "Even if it has good reviews, if I don't like it then it is shit" -Some random anime character |
| Are we supposed to find this episode "good"? Because it practically ruined both Lakan and Fengxian's characters by making them act like complete idiots. Lakan for nutting inside a PURE courtesan and never realizing he could impregnate her (while also knowing the risks of a pure courtesan getting pregnant -> loss of status/practically becoming a streetwalker) and Fengxian for never ever telling Lakan about her plan of making him impregnate her so that her price could decrease enough for him to finally buy her and live together. And on a side note, the brothel's Madam (the old hag who always wants to make Xiaomao become a prostitute courtesan) must be the most inconsistent character I have seen in a while. There is something wrong with the way she's written. Anyways, 2/5 episode. Can't wait for this to end next Saturday. |
SouthRzVaMar 20, 8:12 PM
| I never doubted Lakan's game. Maomao mama is so pretty the backstory is very saddening |
Reply to removed-user
@Piushae Tell me you're either a die hard feminist or never had a partner w/o telling me you did.
I mean they actually did sleep together because they liked each other and it was probably the moms plan to start with.
Sure you could argue that he could have realized that she was pregnant earlier on but thats really it.
I mean they actually did sleep together because they liked each other and it was probably the moms plan to start with.
Sure you could argue that he could have realized that she was pregnant earlier on but thats really it.
| @FoodstampDayo nah. I consider myself a Die hard feminist and Fengxian was no victim here. She knew exactly what she was doing, I even believe she planned for the pregnancy without discussing it with Lakan first. Sleeping with him could be kept a secret for a while without a problem, so going abroad for a while and have her wait, would be no problem at all. also she had other valuable attributes, her purity was not the only sellable point. High value courtesans do not need to be pure, just look at Pairin. A pregnancy is much harder to conceal on the other hand, and it will definitely reduce the courtesan value to almost nothing.Also it's very unlikely that a courtesan gets pregnant agains their will, they have means to prevent and stop said pregnancies. Since Lakan was not aware of the possibility of pregnancy, I don't see how you can blame him, besides what he himself have said, that he should've made the connection with her not being bought after all. |
 |
| Damn, he really was just a broken man who failed to save/notice the woman he loved was going through, Military life will do that to you... |
| They really did a good job in this episode with the direction and the intensity of the scenes! You can really see how much anguish Lakan was in when the realization hit him. I wonder if he acts scummy and puts up a 'bad guy' front because he believes that's how he deserves to be treated |
 |
| I never expected Lakan to be more than an arrogant jerk, but I must admit that his backstory was truly interesting. It made his character feel real and alive. Even though he abandoned the woman he loved, he still tried to reconnect with his daughter (perhaps to atone for what he'd done?), which makes him more of a morally grey chracter. It'd be great to see more of Maomao's feelings towards her parents and who she is at the core. I doubt they'll show anything of the sort in the next episode thoug, especially since the title suggests that it's going to be about Maomao and Jinshi's relationship. Nothing to do but hope for season 2 |
| Fantastic episode. At last we could see Lakan's backstory. It appears that his smart relative who made him kind of believe in himself was, in fact, Maomao's adopted father. Maomao is quite a gambler, not gonna lie. Her plan was risky, even if she learned beforehand how weak Lakan's head is when it comes to drinking alcohol. Fengxian was a humble and beautiful courtesan. It's a shame that life can be so tricky. Several months turned into three years, and love turned into hatred. I bet Lakan doesn't even realize how close the love of his life is. Knowing his personality, I doubt he'd be interested in taking care of her. Even despite everything that happened. It seems the next episode, the final one, will be a recap. I didn't expect such unconventional way to conclude a season, but whatever. The whole anime is fantastic and I don't mind treating ep. 23 as the final episode, and ep. 24 as a compilation of many awesome Jinshi and Maomao scenes happening throughout all these episodes. |
AdnashMar 23, 12:35 AM
Reply to Fentastic
I love how this show just casually introduced infant mutilation and doesn't even spend time on it. geez, this show deals with some heavy themes in such a light-hearted way, I can't think of any show like this.
| @Fentastic I don't think there was a need to elaborate on it. It was just a form of cursing someone, sending a message. What can be shocking for us, living in the modern times, wasn't that much shocking for people living in China centuries ago. Also, I don't think the presentation of it was lighthearted. The show depicted Lakan's surprised and curious reaction, that suddenly turned into shock and panic after he realized that those items in a pouch weren't dried plants, but fingers. And that those fingers had a certain meaning, corresponding well with the pile of letters on the table. |
| Damn I really was convinced he was evil but the whole time he was just a careless flake whose thoughtlessness destroyed the woman he loved. |
| Lakan's background makes him a character I can sympathise with now. I thought he was just a pragmatic, cold person with an aloof facade suddenly taking an interesting in his daughter. But it turns out it was more tragic than that. That was pretty sad. But why does he think Fengxian is "gone"? She's still there, just an empty shell of her old self. Maomao's mom was also so beautiful back then! And she had brains too. No wonder our Maomao is very intelligent. Both her parents were exceptionally intelligent. And is Lakan's uncle the Old Man that raised Maomao? I think so. A physician in the rear palace that got exiled, after all. I wonder what the last episode has in store for us. I hope this isn't the end of this storyline with Lakan, Fengxian, and Maomao. |
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Reply to Gasaraki-
@Noelle43
That's not really what happened.
That's not really what happened.
| @Gasaraki- oh really? because that's the impression I got. how did you take it? |
can't yuck my yum |
| I knew it was gonna be something tragic and yet it still felt so sad to watch. Fengxian was beautiful, breathtakingly beautiful. Wish she could find her happiness with Lakan, if only he wasn't so dumb back then. |
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| Lakan's backstory was really interesting loved it, that's a terrible fate for Maomao's mother though, but it explains a lot |
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| So, now we know more about Lakan, and he came to meet Maomao's mother. One more episode left for this season. I can't wait to see it. |
 |
| I think I would have liked this episode a lot more if there wasn't so many source material readers "hinting" that Lakan was really not that bad. It was still nice to see how everything tied together but I just wasn't expecting to see a sob story in this anime tbh |
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| What? So that sickly woman that Maomao was caring for a few episodes ago was actually her mom? |
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| Ok the back story is revealed and when we were first hinted with clues I immediately thought of the worst. He's conniving looking, spoke about how he devauled a courtesan, maomao says a way to do so is by pregnancy and then she takes care of a woman we haven't seen all banged up and barely hanging on. So I thought he forced himself on her. Instead it's more like ignorant abandonenment. |
| now how can i possibly hate lakan now after hearing his backstory? did what happen to him before made him the weirdo he is now? still, tragic. |
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