How to neutralize an otome?
 

If contact with semen kills their nanomachines, how much - and where - is enough to do so?

Would it work if people loaded waterpistols and shot them on the face? Or does it have to be "fresh"? Would bukkake work?

Or does it have to be actual intercourse?

I take it you have been reading William S. Burroughs' Naked Lunch, have you not?

Anyways, Natsuki stated explicitly that the substance in question had to be directly inducted inside the system of the Otome in question.

Ergo, short of intercourse or syringe, mere contact is not enough to terminate an Otome's abilities.

Oh. OK.

How about aiming for the mouth or something? Or semen coated darts?

Not necessarily semen, mind you.

PSA (Prostate Specific Agent) or the Y-Chromosome are the actual catalyst, not the semen itself.

So any items coated in those would do.

So if the people in the Otome world had any brains it would take just a bit of sharp objects action (darts, arrows or whatever) and no more Otomes? Well, I guess this happens when you use stupid plot devices in order to promote lesbianism among the Otomes. I guess Aswawd and Shwarz are really stupid for not figuring out what weapons to use. :)

I think you're all taking this a bit too literally. In Mai HiME, people powered each other's summons through emotions. Why are emotions any less dangerous in Mai Otome?

So, Sunrise took the concept and threw some technobabble onto it. At the very least, I would hope it would take the emotions of love PLUS contact with their deadly weakness to have any effects.

I'd like that too but it wouldn't make much sense considering that the nanomachines are, you know, machines and as such would have a hard time figuring out whether the person they are inside of is in love or not.

No, I don't. I can buy some machines giving people superpowers but I would have hard time buying machines which can recognize when people are in love. If it was some kind of magic - then yes. I don't expect too much realism but such machines would really stretch the concept of suspension of disbelief, as far as I am concerned.
Not to mention that it's implied that love isn't the major factor, sex is. If not being in love saved the otomes from losing the nanomachines Nao could easily marry secretly to some rich guy and stay an Otome. :)

You simply cannot be too logical when watching heroic fantasy, otherwise you won't be able to enjoy humane and toucing stories like Terminator 2: Judgement Day, in which a machine earns his soul by learning to love and value life. :(

I wasn't even suggesting that love was a factor in influencing the nanos. What I was saying was how I can't get how you accept a bunch of magical nanomachines giving people superhuman powers, and then say you wouldn't accept them working from love.

That was kind of the point I was trying to make.. Please don't think I was being so dense as to say that Terminator was a bad film because it had very unrealistic plot points, quite the contrary, I applaud and enjoy the film. I was just using it as an example.

The nanomachines aren't exactly magical, I view Mai Otome more as sci-fi than fantasy. I could buy future nanomachines that gives people the ability to fly and so on but not machines who understand when person is in love. And sure, my opinion is quite subjective, feel free to disagree.

Okay, fine. But the idea of purely mechanical nanomachines which can exist indefinitely inside the human body but are destroyed by semen isn't exactly sensible science fiction either. Why would semen (which, by the way, doesn't enter the bloodstream where nanomachines live unless you're doing something REALLY kinky) have any negative effect on the tiny machines that countless other microscopic particles don't?

If you're going to be selective about which scientific improbabilities you choose to disbelieve, try to at least not let it interfere with your enjoyment of the series.

Hardly, sir/madame/miss. I was supporting your previous point.

To this day, 13 years and 25 viewings later, I still cry each and every single time The Terminator hugs John for the very last time. :(

Man I love the First Two movies. ;)

I already said that the semen destroying the nanomachines is in my opinion a stupid plot device. I just think it's a bit more sensible from a scientific point of view than the destruction of the nanomachines being triggered by feelings of love. But if we throw reason out of the window and suspend disbelief, the second option would be preferable since it doesn't portray the opponents of the Otome system as total idiots and it actually puts the otomes in difficult position as opposed to them simply using condoms.

Believe me, I am trying not to let my love of finding plot holes interfere with my enjoyment of the series but it's hard.

Wow... I really didn't expect this thread to turn into anything similar to a serious discussion when I first read it.

My take on this subject would be: Yeah, semen-darts or whatever would work. (Good luck on actually getting a hit though, those otomes are pretty darn fast, and who knows how much those robes works as armor...) But... It would make a pretty stupid/boring/weird story. Just like the whole "then why don't they use condoms!?"-thing. It's a plot device. Let's not take it too seriously. ;)

Because while they have super nano fighting, they don't have rubber? :D :D

why not load your 'gun' and just shoot off the target >.>

Condoms break. And I'm also going to assume that Otome are chosen, among other things, for their self-discipline, and aren't going to frivolously risk losing their powers.

You know the H-doujins are gonna have a field day with that ^^