AnimeSuki Forum - View Single Post - Shakugan no SHANA Anime Season 1 Discussion

CarpeDiem · 2005-12-21, 07:57

I started watching Shakugan no Shana yesterday (well, two days ago since it's morning right now, technically) and finished catching up with it today. I have to say that this series has far more depth than I initially gave it credit for. This particularly lies in Shana's development. The following is my analysis, for those who would like my view on this. Beware of the spoilers.

Spoiler for Shana Analysis and Some Others:

Shana: I can honestly say that, at first, I didn't really like her character too much. She was very arrogant that I almost couldn't handle it. However, I learned later that she doesn't have much experience with human interaction, as made clear from her initial idea of what a kiss is and what it signifies. Another example is that she didn't even use a name to refer to herself as a person. She didn't even consider herself a person ("I'm just a Flame Haze"). She seemed to be okay with shielding herself from others and to just do her duty as a Flame Haze. This explains her haughty attitude and insecurities when she does interact in a social environment. A truly lonely soul, and she didn't seem to mind that fact up until she met Yuji. Only then did she realize the pain of being alone, as expressed in episode 10 with her line: "It hurts, Yuji. Being alone hurts.." She is only now truly beginning to understand what it means to be a girl. This is quite a change, and she doesn't know how to handle her situation at times. Often, this ends up with her shouting "Shut up, shut up, shut up!" in an attempt to distance herself away from her problem. She can't interact well with other people. In that scene in episode 11 where she gave a loaf of melon bread to Yuji, she was clearly jealous of Kazumi giving a boxed lunch to Yuji. I can't say for sure that she is in love with Yuji at this point - I say "at this point" because it'll probably develop into romantic love later on - because, as I see it, she is confused with her emotions. Prior to meeting Yuji, she didn't seem to have experienced human relationships of any kind. One thing I can say for sure is that Shana was jealous because of her desire for companionship. Yuji is the closest person to Shana - except for maybe Alastor, but I don't think he is enough to fill that void of loneliness that Shana now feels - and she clearly doesn't want her closest friend to be taken from her. We, or at least the anime-watchers, don't know much about Shana's past other than that she, at one point, chose to become a Flame Haze. Prior to that event, we are oblivious as to what kind of environment she was raised in, but we can infer that she's led a lonely and isolated life. At any rate, I really like her as a character now because of how much depth she has as well as the realism of her personality and behavior as a result of how she grew up. She is perhaps my favorite character of the series now. Oh, and she can really kick some butt while looking extremely cute when doing so!

Other than Shana, there isn't much to say about the other characters. Yuji is a very typical character that we see a lot of nowadays. However, he does have a redeeming quality in the aspect that he does try to help Shana in her battles in any way that he can. I also admire his desire to become stronger for Shana's sake. Other than that, he's a pretty bland character, but I do like him better than... Kouta from Elfen Lied. Alastor plays a fairly interesting "father" figure to Shana. His logic clearly does not take human values into account, since he did say he would kill Yuji because he was an obstacle. I really like Yuji's mom, Chigusa, because of her wisdom and the fact that she successfully reasoned with Alastor in a very mature fashion. She's also very cute. Kazumi is your shy girl who has a crush on the male lead - reminds me of Honoka from Suzuka too, in this sense. Ike, another minor character, doesn't get much depth, but we can see that he does mean well in his attempts to help Kazumi with her efforts to get together with Yuji.

I'm really liking the series thus far. The animation and character designs are awesome. I love the music, and the story is original. I like how it dives into the concept of existence and being. It's a philosophy I enjoy thinking about and debating with other people. It's one of the better series of 2005, I'd say.

2005-12-21, 07:57	Link #48
CarpeDiem Oha-Lucky~! Join Date: Dec 2005	I started watching Shakugan no Shana yesterday (well, two days ago since it's morning right now, technically) and finished catching up with it today. I have to say that this series has far more depth than I initially gave it credit for. This particularly lies in Shana's development. The following is my analysis, for those who would like my view on this. Beware of the spoilers. Spoiler for Shana Analysis and Some Others: Shana: I can honestly say that, at first, I didn't really like her character too much. She was very arrogant that I almost couldn't handle it. However, I learned later that she doesn't have much experience with human interaction, as made clear from her initial idea of what a kiss is and what it signifies. Another example is that she didn't even use a name to refer to herself as a person. She didn't even consider herself a person ("I'm just a Flame Haze"). She seemed to be okay with shielding herself from others and to just do her duty as a Flame Haze. This explains her haughty attitude and insecurities when she does interact in a social environment. A truly lonely soul, and she didn't seem to mind that fact up until she met Yuji. Only then did she realize the pain of being alone, as expressed in episode 10 with her line: "It hurts, Yuji. Being alone hurts.." She is only now truly beginning to understand what it means to be a girl. This is quite a change, and she doesn't know how to handle her situation at times. Often, this ends up with her shouting "Shut up, shut up, shut up!" in an attempt to distance herself away from her problem. She can't interact well with other people. In that scene in episode 11 where she gave a loaf of melon bread to Yuji, she was clearly jealous of Kazumi giving a boxed lunch to Yuji. I can't say for sure that she is in love with Yuji at this point - I say "at this point" because it'll probably develop into romantic love later on - because, as I see it, she is confused with her emotions. Prior to meeting Yuji, she didn't seem to have experienced human relationships of any kind. One thing I can say for sure is that Shana was jealous because of her desire for companionship. Yuji is the closest person to Shana - except for maybe Alastor, but I don't think he is enough to fill that void of loneliness that Shana now feels - and she clearly doesn't want her closest friend to be taken from her. We, or at least the anime-watchers, don't know much about Shana's past other than that she, at one point, chose to become a Flame Haze. Prior to that event, we are oblivious as to what kind of environment she was raised in, but we can infer that she's led a lonely and isolated life. At any rate, I really like her as a character now because of how much depth she has as well as the realism of her personality and behavior as a result of how she grew up. She is perhaps my favorite character of the series now. Oh, and she can really kick some butt while looking extremely cute when doing so! Other than Shana, there isn't much to say about the other characters. Yuji is a very typical character that we see a lot of nowadays. However, he does have a redeeming quality in the aspect that he does try to help Shana in her battles in any way that he can. I also admire his desire to become stronger for Shana's sake. Other than that, he's a pretty bland character, but I do like him better than... Kouta from Elfen Lied. Alastor plays a fairly interesting "father" figure to Shana. His logic clearly does not take human values into account, since he did say he would kill Yuji because he was an obstacle. I really like Yuji's mom, Chigusa, because of her wisdom and the fact that she successfully reasoned with Alastor in a very mature fashion. She's also very cute. Kazumi is your shy girl who has a crush on the male lead - reminds me of Honoka from Suzuka too, in this sense. Ike, another minor character, doesn't get much depth, but we can see that he does mean well in his attempts to help Kazumi with her efforts to get together with Yuji. I'm really liking the series thus far. The animation and character designs are awesome. I love the music, and the story is original. I like how it dives into the concept of existence and being. It's a philosophy I enjoy thinking about and debating with other people. It's one of the better series of 2005, I'd say.