I quite like the mysterious feel of it, though turning suddenly into a mage with power to fight even guns is just a bit cliche. But somehow, I don't find that annoying. and the BGM is really emotionally evocative. Very nice BGM, and of course, not to mention the top-notch animation... so I'll be following this unless the plot and the characters bore me.

i hope yoshino also learns how to use magic, would be a bore of mahiro to have all the spotlight

I won't be surprised if Yoshino turns out to be the killer :heh:

Wow. I might actually end up enjoying something by Bones in what seems like forever.

Though, the Japanese never fail to amaze me in their efforts to castrate their men in anime. Hair clips? :heh: I'd love to be a fly on the wall for the brainstorming sessions behind decisions like that.

While it'd certainly make for a great plot, I doubt it. Presumably, the sister's murder will be a plot hook throughout most of the show, to complement the more ADD battles of the week between mages. I think the whole interplay between the sister and Yoshino was just one big red herring. Sometimes things really are what they appear, and I don't think it was anything more than the two of them having a concealed romance going on.

I'm totally confused with the interplay between the three (siblings and Yoshino), where the sister started talking about Yoshino preventing the police from capturing/killing...um...her brother? Or was she just being a tsundere over Yoshino empowering her brother to do stupid things in a slightly extreme manner? :/

Lastly, while I've certainly been down on BONES over the last year or two, I'm still surprised that this thread has so few pages/views. :p Based on this first episode, I can't see it being possible that this show can be as stupid as Star Driver, or as filled with moe loli-bait as Ao. ie: It's got to be better than what they've been pumping out lately. :D

I think it was more the latter. She was accusing Yoshino of being the reason her brother is always in trouble is how I took it. Of course on the other hand with how they seemed to have concealed their relationship, I wonder how much of that was an act to keep from seeming like she cared about Yoshino getting hurt too?

Oh no, not this crap again...

I'm sorry, I must have missed the memo that said that men weren't allowed to do anything with their hair.

Given that hair in anime seldom bears resemblance to hair in reality, I thought that was a pretty stylish attempt to do something different and give a character a unique look.

I find myself getting increasingly tired of the same old cries of 'emasculation' any time a male character doesn't come across as some macho jerk.

Actually I think Yoshino's hairstyle is a real life hairstyle.

Without giving too much away, its how they hid their relationship from the everyone else. Aika herself though was very blunt, and very mature, and more aware than most characters in this series, she isn't a Tsundere at all.

Also that wasn't a red herring that was how Aika and Yoshino behave around each other when Mahiro, hence why Mahiro thinks that Aika hated Yoshino.

And the funny thing is (and I'm being sarcastic) that it's always male characters. I don't remember seeing anyone complaining about female characters who are not the epitome of traditional feminine virtues. (A girl wearing trousers? drinking heavily? not being able to cook well?! GOING OFF TO FIGHT IN A WAR?!! Oh my god!! *faints*)

By the way, I wonder why Yoshino and Aika felt the need to hide their relationship from Mahiro, to the point that they pretended not to like each other. Was Mahiro that much of a siscon? Or so insecure?

was giving this a try since it is bones, and luckily i did

eps 1 is good, only complain is why that guy has to use hairpin...

Michiru Oshima Michiru Oshima Michiru Oshima!
Those were the only words constantly echoing in my mind throughout the whole episode :D
Though sometimes it did feel a little over-the-top dramatic but given that this series seems like some sci-fi, fantasy thriller, it was still acceptable. And hey! I'm a sucker for great soundtracks! The main characters haven't really drawn me in yet but the princess is an interesting character!
The animation was gorgeous, it's BONES ofc! Seems like there's a lot more to come so I'm definitely staying to see how it folds out.

The first episode had some interesting direction and an absolutely outstanding soundtrack to go with it, but I still don't trust Bones lately and feel that the true test is still going to come in the 2nd month of it's airing not the first. Their shows of late have a tendency to start really strong and pull you in only to meander around and/or launch of in wild directions of increasingly dubious interest and narrative flow after whatever the intro arc is. If it can avoid then then I'll start to feel more comfortable.

I thought the hairpins were weird too.

Upcoming episode credits:

Episode 2
Script: Mari Okada
Episode Director: Yoshiyuki Asai
Storyboard: Yoshimitsu Ohashi
Animation Director: Nobuhiro Arai

Episode 3
Script: Hiroshi Yamaguchi
Episode Director: Kenji Takahashi
Storyboard: Masahiro Ando
Animation Director: Chiyomi Tsukomoto, Masahiro Suwa

Episode 4
Script: Mari Okada
Episode Director: Tatsuya Abe
Storyboard: Masahiro Ando
Animation Director: Hiromi Okazaki, Eri Nagata

Episode 5
Script: Shinsuke Onishi
Episode Director: Shinpei Miyashita
Storyboard: Shinji Ishihira
Animation Director: Saishi Suzuki

Episode 6
Script: Shinsuke Onishi
Episode Director: Hideki Ito
Storyboard: Yoshiyuki Asai
Animation Director: Hideki Ito

Hum ...
Ok ... That was ... basic ? Didn't liked, didn't hated.
It's just "normal". I don't think it's special anyways.
Really like a "normal" shonen for me.

My take on the Shakespearean analogies.

Aika is the dead King Hamlet. Mahiro is the younger Hamlet, the one who's born in spiteful times to set things right, the one who's avenging the death of a loved one. Now the question in my mind is who is Yashiro? On the surface, I would say Gertrude, the one who's gotten a new lover in such a short time after the death of the first lover, the person who younger Hamlet likes. But there are all these hints that Yashiro is not all that he seems to be. So is Yashiro also Claudius, the killer of King Hamlet & thus Aika? Or is the show truly following the Hamlet quadrangle? In that case, Mahiro's new girlfriend, whoever she is, would be Aika's killer.

I agree that the sorceress exiled to the island by her brother represent Prospero and his brother. The connection between The Tempest's situation and the word "tempest" in the title is too close not to be intentional. But I haven't worked out any other connections. Are we going to meet Caliban, Ariel, and/or Miranda on the island too?

I'm a bit of a Shakespeare fan, so I hope the show keeps on with this second layer. I'd love to see how it plays out as the show goes on.

Disclaimer: Not a manga reader.

And who's at a loss over who his enemy is. And who's receiving supernatural guidance.

Absolutely! :D

I have a few more thoughts to share.

I realized that there's a third Hamlet (the play) character that Yashiro could be representing. He could be Horatio, the one who's young Hamlet's confidante and conspirator.

So who does Yashiro represent? Gertrude, the disrespecting but innocent of the crime widow? Claudius, the scheming murderer? Horatio, the best friend and all around helpmate? More episodes are needed to solve the mystery of who Yashiro represents.

Finally, although I'm reluctant to step into the quagmire of the hairpins, I will take a small step into it nonetheless. In my manga and anime experience, male characters who wear hairpins are generally the younger in spirit, genki, gullible, trusting types. I have always thought hairpins on male character were a visual representation of that type of personality.

Assuming that the hairpins serve the same function here, then maybe they're a clue that Yashiro is likely Gertrude or Horatio. Which is fine with me because I really don't want him to be Claudius. I like him. :uhoh:

About the hairpins: Aika warned you. He's a liar. And she should know.

^Which would mean he is prob Claudius.

Why does Yoshino have to have a new girlfriend, Mahiro only heard about it after he left, aka it could likely be old information from someone out of town that saw Mahiro together with Aika but didn't know Aika. Also the fact that he was dumbfounded for a second when Mahiro asked him about a girlfriend before replying that she isn't here and that he apparently has kept visiting Aika's grave.