The Flowers of Evil
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Johnndergrosse said: Am I the only one who has fallen in love with Nakamura? You aren't, she is the best character in the manga - it's just not quite the same without her crazy troll antics. The anime doesn't quite do her justice, because she's supposed to be very pretty and pleasing to the eye behind her loner routine and completely unstable mind. |
RoNin-87May 12, 2013 4:42 PM
| Oh no, the girl I like wants to have sex with me, FUCK MY LIFE! |
SetsukoHara said: The bullying is not what I despice the most about Kasuga, it's more the way he overthinks everything just to take the worst decisions possible that annoys me the most. Kasuga has not done any overthinking at all. On the contrary, his train of thought is very simple, premised on literary thought in Europe in the 18th Century and continuing to the 19th. In his case, he's actually reliving the actual evolution of literary thought. Even though what he's reading at the start is from the 19th (and of the 'symbolist' and 'modernist' mold), at that point he's still at the ideal state of Romanticism (which also coincided with the emergence of 'liberal' political thought) which flourished during the 18th Century. Once the 19th Century came though Romanticism 'made way' to the Symbolist and Modernist movements (and in this case 'modernity' in general was brought about mostly by the Industrial Revolution - politically as well the start of socialism was during this period). And what historians also call the 'early' Modern period, when talking about the 19th Century, is notoriously dirty in different ways. The 'class struggle' comes into the fore, very bad working conditions in factories, detachment of the 'haves' from the 'have-nots', slavery, the 'Imperialism' of the European powers on the rest of the world...and even Jack the Ripper, quite representative of one of the 'evils' Kasuga is reading about. Oh yeah forgot to mention that erotic literature also encountered a boom of sorts, LOL. Most of the books were censored until the 1950s, iirc. Even now though he's still hanging on to his ideals, for better or for worse...even though all the 'dirt' around him is covering him up already. LOL |
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| I am really enjoying reading quite a number of comments on this thread which appear to have been written by people with a lot of (1) knowledge of the Social Sciences (2) knowledge of 19th-Century Literature (3) real-life experience. If other people are not always responding to your comments, please don't take that as a lack of interest. I am quite pleased to see that Aku no Hana is generating this kind of discussion. There was quite a lot of criticism of the quality of the animation, and so on. On the optimistic side, I guess this implies that they saved some money in terms of production costs. In that case, it should be economical to go on to make a second season. Let's hope. The actor for Kasuga (both voice and rotoscope) seems to have quite a lot of talent. He is brand new. He never did anything before at all. So it was a gamble to cast him in the role. In real life, he is 19 years old. It is quite impressive that he can convincingly portray a 14-year-old character. Let's watch for a very successful future career for him ! |
| Aaaand Kasuga spikes the ball at the one yard line. What does Saeki see in him? He answers all of her questions in gulps and shrieks. I did like how they slowed the pace down for the episode and allowed the characters some time to breath before sending them into the next effed up situation. Hopefully we'll get some back story on Nakamura soon, so she can stop being this motivation-less entity whose sole purpose is to drive the plot. |
| Let this be our little secret, no needs to know we're feeling HIGHER AND HIGHER AND HIGHER! |
ReasonDesu said: Johnndergrosse said: Am I the only one who has fallen in love with Nakamura? No, I was head over heel since SA SA SA SA SA SA SA SA SA! LOL... I like her character a lot, too.... so, I'm not the only one? |
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| Anyways, 'Aku no Hana' is definitely one of the best shows lately... Nakamura girl is epic. The script for her, the acting, and voicing is just..fior the Oscar. This episode, the scene when her, Saeki, Kasuga and Yamada had their tables together to eat lunch...Man, Nakamura speech was awesome. And from the last episode, the scene when Nakamura observed Saeki and Kasuga, as he confessed platonic love. Emotions on Nakamura's face..just amazing. She was all in disbelief and dissapointment. She couldn't believe Kasuga would ever be able to confess to Saeki. And Nakamura was dissapointed, because somewhere deep below she loves Kasuga and platonic love means she realized Kasuga would never kiss her on his own. And the bucket of water afterwards, and her running, jumping over that fence.. just epic... I really do want to know what kind of lousy childhod/home situation she has...drunk father psychologicaly abusing them at home, beating mom, shaming Nakamura? I hope anime shows that, cause I really want to know that. And in a way I feel sorry for Nakamura... =( |
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| Kasuga makes it too easy for Nakamura. He's got the backbone of a jellyfish. I get the feeling that both him and Saeki are going to get hurt bad soon. |
| "Perhaps there is a universal, absolute truth. Perhaps it justifies every question. But that's beyond the reach of these small hands." Mamoru Oshii There is a cult of ignorance (...) nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that “my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.” Isaac Asimov |
| Perpetually uncomfortable, woot. But oh man, that lunch time together. I was just laughing and feeling so terrible when Nakamura was talking. I also laughed when she showed up behind him at Saeki's place, haha. |
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| And so Kasuga's adventure of being socially retarded continues, i mean you hate him in the manga for being so awkward, a hypocrite and for elitist behaviour (or rather thinking) but in the anime it's just too much man. All the wimpy sounds he makes, all the awkard silence moments and the billion "huh?"'s and "what?"'s it's almost unbearable to watch. After all this is supposed to be a realistic story but with a character like Kasuga that just doesn't work. |
| I really like Takuan_soho's interpretation of Nakamura in the story. In conventional story telling, we know before the story starts that there is going to be a "good guy" and a "bad guy". Whether they are good or bad will be made clear as soon as the story first mentions them. After that, there will be a big fight, guns, explosions and car chases. In the end, the "good guy" wins and gets the girl. I don't want to "spoil" Aku no Hana by revealing what happens later in the manga. However, it appears that AnH is not quite so simple. A lot of people here have more insightful and nuanced descriptions of Nakamura which I have enjoyed reading. I'll make some more technical black-and-white observations: 1. Nakamura does not have a mental illness. If she was sent to a psychiatrist, she would not be diagnosed with anything. The words "psychopath" and "sociopath" have specific definitions. She isn't one. 2. Nakamura is not a criminal. I assume that we are not going to get too picky here. 3. Nakamura has not hurt anyone. When I say "hurt", I am talking about injury that would have civil or criminal legal recourse. 4. Nakamura consistently exhibits very high intelligence, especially interpersonally. 5. Nakamura seems to be in touch with reality. She does not live in an impractical dream world. She is not a "chuunibyou". In summary, Nakamura is not sick and Nakamura is not bad. |
Huriya said: And so Kasuga's adventure of being socially retarded continues, i mean you hate him in the manga for being so awkward, a hypocrite and for elitist behaviour (or rather thinking) but in the anime it's just too much man. All the wimpy sounds he makes, all the awkard silence moments and the billion "huh?"'s and "what?"'s it's almost unbearable to watch. After all this is supposed to be a realistic story but with a character like Kasuga that just doesn't work. does for me, there's nothing glaringly unrealistic about him. |
Jaimes said: RoNin-87 said: Johnndergrosse said: Am I the only one who has fallen in love with Nakamura? You aren't, she is the best character in the manga - it's just not quite the same without her crazy troll antics. The anime doesn't quite do her justice, because she's supposed to be very pretty and pleasing to the eye behind her loner routine and completely unstable mind. Actually is just the contrary. The manga paints her in that "cute", "adorable" color that sperglords love to faw all over it. In the manga she's popular not because she's a good character with really interesting flaws, but because she's an "edgy moe". The manga makes her a masturbatory masochist fantasy, in the way that Nakamura is crazy, but "welp she's hot enought and soooo cute that i wouldn't mind". And that's why Nakamura shines in rotoscope. She's...normal looking *shock*. You see the person, not the fantasy. You can see that not all is quite right in this girl's mind. She's batshit insane, and the anime forces you to take a *really* close look on what Nakamura really is. She's not hot, or cute, or beatifull. She's a normal looking girl with a shitload of problems just waiting to prey on the weak-minded, like Kasuga and Saeki. That's why Nakamura is the best vilain in this entire season. Her looks don't factor AT ALL on why she's awesome. More like, and that's why anime's plot falls apart at the seams and will make zero fucking sense when Kasuga starts making the decisions he'll make. And she's definately not "normal" looking in the anime, because the animation quality on Nakamura varies wildly from mildly pretty to rampant truck driver. |
| for some reason... im not surprised at saeki's intentions. well, i'm not sure if they're true or not, but i don't think i'd be surprised if they were true. she does seem like the character who would be too good to be true... but then again, those intentions are too good to be true... except for kasuga i guess. |
| I am so irritated with this episode. It's like I want to jump in the screen and slap that chick for him. What a freakin stalker, she is everywhere he is and is constantly messing things up for him. I believe this eps. was just too much of it for me. I'm really getting tired of his inept ability to stand up and say, "shut the fuck up" and not let a psycho affect him. I'm truly hoping that this isn't an every eps. occurrence because I'd really like to see other parts of this story. |
| "People die if they get killed" who knew. |
lovelydeath said: It's like I want to jump in the screen and slap that chick for him. I was really expecting him to slap her at the end or something... actually, when he raised his hand at the end before she got all nice again, was he pointing like saying "go away" or was he really thinking about hitting her? It didn't look clear to me what that meant. |
JaksserMay 15, 2013 4:18 PM
| Kasuga needs to man up his insecurity pissing me off |
| "I hate all of you." - Squidward |
| The classmates make this episode much better. |
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Jaksser said: lovelydeath said: It's like I want to jump in the screen and slap that chick for him. I was really expecting him to slap her at the end or something... actually, when he raised his hand at the end before she got all nice again, was he pointing like saying "go away" or was he really thinking about hitting her? It didn't look clear to me what that meant. I did too! And I know what you mean. Mixed signals. |
| "People die if they get killed" who knew. |
| Damn, that was cool. I can't wait for the next episode! |
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| Damn, Kasuga is such a socially awkward whimp that it hurts me to watch him. Saeki isn't any better... Her actions are totally illogical. She annoys me every time she appears on screen. Seems like Nakamura is the only decent character in this anime. Yeah, she's bat-shit crazy, but heck, at least she's got some sort of personality, unlike those other two dorks. |
| Wow what a great episode ... Nakamura is actually such a great character O_O When they were eating lunch I can't believe she asked and said that! Although I have to say Kasuga's a little unrealistic in thinking about Saeki as this pure angel ... so much second-hand embarrassment when they were walking home together! Although it was pretty cute :P Ah so she catches him and Nakamura in the library ... although to be fair it didn't seem like they were doing much (he was struggling in her grip?) so I wonder what she thought about it. Nakamura's confrontation at her house too ... I thought she was gonna go visit with him and make it even MORE awkward, but guess she just rang the doorbell. Although I suppose Kasuga kind of told her off ... well, looks like we'll have more on that next episode! Seems like that's going to be a good one as well :O |
| Kasuga is realistic enough, he just has a "3D" target of unrealistic expectations as opposed to a "2D" one. We are talking about Japan here where a guy married a fictional character, and where there is a severe backlash if there is even a hint of one of their "idols" dating someone IRL. (note: the western world isn't much better here) Saeki is a "Japanese Idol" to Kasuga, that is why he doesn't like the idea of her being a sexual person. Why Saeki likes Kasuga will be revealed later btw |
| hopefully kasuga will awaken his "deviant" soon |
| Nice episode over all. AnH keeps getting better :D |
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| Lol, Nakamura keeps pushing the pussy all day long, without her the pace would be 500 times slower for sure. |
I almost never read discussions after I made my post, if you want to reply PM me or post on my profile page. |
| I have a love/hate relation with the slow pacing. I want to know how this will end, damn. |
| Kasuga's obsession with Saeki's purity is odd seeing as he gave her a copy of Flowers of Evil. |
| I am important. I have a girlfriend. Check out my podcast |
| You know I'm getting rather bored. Despite the attempt of being creepy it feels forced. Really feeling no tension. 'Sides, Nakamura should have been told off long ago, she can say whatever she wants, it can be played off as the weird girl spreading rumors. |
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| Some trouble in paradise! This is going to be one fucked up romance story! |
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xxshiawase said: I have a love/hate relation with the slow pacing. Same. I don't like how he has that unhealthy "virgin mary"/"purity" view about Saeki. Bleh. Saeki is adorable and that crazy Nakamura is always entertaining. |
MusashiRoseSep 25, 2013 10:04 PM
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| i can only hope that this will not end how my own twisted mind expects it to end nakamura is making me twisted aswell now,lol |
Sayonara,papa! "Just how a mirror reflects you,people will also reflect your heart." ~Athena Glory,Aria "Whatever happens,happens" ~Spike Spiegel's thoughts on dying(Cowboy Bebop) |
| Nakamura is being a cunt. |
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| "Saeki is wet as an otter's pocket" xD |
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| Yes... All the dilema going on in the anime... This is so well done! |
| *licks your eyeball* |
| It's pretty interesting how Kasuga reacted to what Nakamura said especially since Kasuga stole her gym clothes...lol Normally, a guy would go nuts if he heard that his gf wants to fuck him. I don't know why Kasuga doesn't just throw the gym clothes. Even if a rumor spreads, he can always deny it since Nakamura doesn't have proof and she is also an outcast. Then again, if that were to happen, the anime would have a quick ending. (no pun intended lol) |
 "And if, there were so many people in the world, there had to be someone living an interesting life that wasn't ordinary. I was sure of it. Why wasn't that person me?" - The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Part V [/center] |
| Nakamura keeps getting creepier and creepier and I love every second of it. She is the freakiest deviant I have ever seen. |
| Cartoons and anime is my reality. |
ellou said: "Saeki is wet as an otter's pocket" xD |
| The way that he was answering the house voice box thing was really awkward. I'm surprised the mother opened the door. |
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| The abundance of awkwardness in this show and the lack of characters acknowledging it is killing it for me to be honest. If someone asks me out and randomly yells "No! I'm not a deviant!", I won't respond lowly of myself saying that I don't think I'm good enough for the weirdo. Please show, just stop letting awkwardness pass by, because if you do that what do you have left? I now don't care at all about the main character failing since Saeki clearly isn't as better off and more successful a person than Kasuga as he was led to believe. However, I don't doubt the show will also fail to acknowledge the lowliness in Saeki's actions and words and we end up learning she's really successful and a well-rounded person. The lack of consistency is a thing. And I really do hate Nakamura. Her character is the epitome of edgy. And I can get behind the whole idea that Kasuga is weak and can get pushed around easily, but he's finally got what he wants and Nakamura has very little holding power over him - yell at her damnit! Kasuga should at least have a frail fishbone for a back that he can use now, but apparently he's just loose jelly. I have no character to support, and honestly this show is getting more and more cliche'd by the minute. And why doesn't Nakamura just become the deviant herself? If I were Kasuga, I'd be pointing out that all she's being right now is a stalker and a coward, either get her to be a deviant or tell her all this fetish crap is getting old. The art is great though and the visual directing is really good. However, I HATE it when the staff decides a character should gasp aloud at every moment their face changes and when they continually voice their thoughts to try and push intensity, it's just stupid and I don't dig it. TL;DR: I'm not digging it |
| Kasuga is getting on my nerves. What is wrong with him? Don't be so anxious, LOL. |
| Rely on nothing under heaven |
| Of all the fucked up things that are happening, I'm inclined to believe that Nakamura is the most normal person, not hiding behind any false personality that the rest of the people are hiding behind in order to appear good in the eyes of the others; she sees the things as they are, and Kasuga and Saeki are even more fucked up in the mind than Nakamura is, especially a person that yells randomly that they're not a pervert and then the other acting as if that is not fucked up at all. And what Kasuga does, or thinks is mentally fucked up, creating non-existing problems in your head without knowing the situation and making even a bigger problem when there is none to be had. One of the reasons why this is happening, or why I think this is happening, is because he's insecure about himself, thus, creating such problems himself without seeing the situation at hand, altho, it can be excused depending on how old are you, but it is still something that needs to be dealt with. With this said, I am pretty sure that many of us have gone through such things, creating fake problems in our minds, but not to the level of how Kasuga creates his fictitious problems. A side note to my first passage, about Saeki and Kasuga being more fucked up; despite knowing and being afraid that Nakamura might do something, there's no reason, even as a child to act in a way that Kasuga acts. Edit; I forgot one more thing, what's even more fucked up, is how much he idolises Saeki. |
ourielJun 24, 2016 9:42 AM
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| LMFAO at the faces when Saeki told the class about their relationship. Nakamura, keep pushing his buttons ... I'm thinking you're the only one that's sane of the three. |
PrOxAntoJul 17, 2016 1:08 PM
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| I am calling bullshit on Saeki and Nakamura only "just" becoming friends. |
| It's intriguing that Saeki suddenly got "sick" just after she saw Nakamura and Kasuga talk about her and the sex stuff... It's all a coincidence, I'm sure :v |
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