(L) Ghost Hound

[Onizuka-GTO]

Tarou, Tarou.....

you give me such mixed messages, on one hand you are such an refreshing character, innocent, kind-hearted, so very very Japanese.

But on the other hand, your naive attitude, the timidness, the stuttering and general non-confrontational personality, really really really gets to me.

arrgghhh.

Now i know what a love-hate feeling feels like.

i could strangle Tarou.

oh yeah, what type of accent are they using? i find it very very hard to understand them only, especially when that shrine girls speak to her dad, (with the tokyo mainstream accent) it becomes very obvious.

but talking about the episode, (17) wow, bioroids, organ havests, didn't know they would have souls too, but then again this is Shintoism, in that all existing things in the world has a soul.

but you play God, they have to face the consequences, i think putting the bio-lab on a holy mountain is akin to building on an American Indian cemetery.

[Guardian Enzo]

Wow, harshness for Taro around here. Considering what he's been through, I think it's remarkable he's not more messed-up than he is. No, his choice of words for breaking his theory to Miyako probably weren't the best - but then, he's obviously about as inexperienced in talking to girls as it's possible to be. I tend to ascribe to the theory that he's invented the reincarnation thing as a way to rationalize his irrational feelings for a girl too young for him. And as a result of that, he's even more confused about his emotions that he was when this all started. Give the kid a break.

[Khaos]

I'm not watching the raws, so I don't know, what happened in the eps after 17, but I have a very strong feeling that...

Spoiler for thoughts:

Miyako will be kidnapped by that sect and Tarou gets somehow involved, propably being kidnapped too, so the drama from 11 years ago will be repeated.

[orion]

Thanks for the subs Shinsen. Those were some tragic episodes.

So the kidnapping 10 years ago was really...

Spoiler for ep. 18 and 19:

about the illegal organ trade. Makoto was the first victim of the child abduction ring that was procuring organs. Makoto's grandma bargained for his release and thus insured that 11 other children would die by keeping silent. She also pointed the kidnappers in the direction of Mizuki, the heir, as being more valuable for ransoming and was indirectly involved with the kidnapping.

The kidnappers went for Mizuki because she was the real heir and took Tarou because he was a witness.

Makoto's dad commited suicide after learning about the details. Makoto's mom left the family house and Makoto behind.

Makoto's mom tries to commit suicide and someone else burns the house down to ensure that she dies so that she doesn't reveal the details. Then when she wasn't successful became 17 yo ago so as not to face the facts of how her life went to hell 10 years ago and again now. Makoto's visit brought her back.

Her boyfriend for other reasons commits suicide and thus verifies that he was not a hologram.

So in the end Makoto's dad wasn't cursed at all.

[Shiroth]

Spoiler for Episode 19:

My favorite part about this series right from the start, has been the development of Makoto, so episode 19 was the best episode i've seen to date. Seems like the story shall move onto the OTHER MYSTERY'S of the series, though i can say i'm very happy with how the relationship between Makoto, what happened in the past and his mother was nicely done in this episode.

& god damn, the music in this episode hit me hard. I've heard some genius's pieces from this show, though nothing compares to piece used for the last two scenes.

[Joachim]

ghost hound... one of the most underrated series in this season, man this series is so damn good, and i think it can draw many discussion, but why people seem to ignore this anime?

constant good animation, great story telling, many philosophical aspects

i could rate this baby on top with mushi-shi

[SuperKnuckles]

I like Taro quite a lot as well. Despite having PTSD, he seems to be one of the most grounded characters in the show. Him acting out occasionally makes sense since he DID go through a quite a number of traumas.

But in the end, I'm not quite sure what to make of the more real-life-centric aspect of the conspiracy.

I was hoping all along that they'd play up the supernatural stuff more. In that one sense, I'm disappointed with the show. Just about everything including the pacing, music, suspense are all good, but I just think they dropped the ball as far as correlating the ghosts/supernatural-phenomena is concerned. That is, of course, unless the final eps explain everything, which I doubt.

[orion]

Well they do have 3 episodes left to bring those aspects together. It prob has to do with that research. I'm loving the character interactions. Makoto's character turned out to be the best one so far.

Does anyone think that Makoto's grandma was assassinated instead because of those events 10 years ago potentially coming out and hurting the sect and others?

[Shiroth]

Originally Posted by Joachim

ghost hound... one of the most underrated series in this season, man this series is so damn good, and i think it can draw many discussion, but why people seem to ignore this anime?

At the end of the day, Ghost Hound is just one of those shows that isn't for everyone. A huge shame i know, i mean i rate this as one of the best shows i'm watching at the moment --- and because of recent events in the show that have made me grow closer to it, it'll be one that'll rank high up in my favorites.

Originally Posted by SuperKnuckles

I was hoping all along that they'd play up the supernatural stuff more. In that one sense, I'm disappointed with the show. Just about everything including the pacing, music, suspense are all good, but I just think they dropped the ball as far as correlating the ghosts/supernatural-phenomena is concerned. That is, of course, unless the final eps explain everything, which I doubt.

I can understand where you're getting at, though personally i'm quite fine with the recent turn of events, and less supernatural events. Yeah it's pretty strange when you look at how much the first half of the series was centered around them, and now it's basically a character development series.

[orion]

But wasn't that what the original source was about? I seem to remember Shirow saying that the source was about the loss of control that the characters experience as they go to maturity but the anime is about the gaining of control. So character development was prob more important than the supernatural stuff.

[SeijiSensei]

Did anyone else find it odd that children were being used as the "donors?" The premise seemed a bit far-fetched to me. Can childrens' organs be transplanted into adults and function effectively even though they're smaller and, perhaps, less developed? I'd imagine my liver is quite a bit larger than Miyuki's, for instance. Perhaps smaller organs like kidneys might work? Then again my ignorance about organ transplantation is on par with my ignorance about brain science. I suppose the organ recipients could be children, too, but the adult market is certainly a lot larger and a lot more lucrative.

In one sense I'm glad the show has come somewhat down to earth, but like others I'm still trying to puzzle out the links between the supernatural and the scientific in this show. Perhaps in the end we'll discover that all of the ghosts and projections are just neurological phenomena without any supernatural explanations. I just hope they spend enough time giving us these explanations; if they cover this material with the speed-of-light pacing of episode 18, my brain will definitely be frazzled.

[Vulcannis]

Originally Posted by Joachim

ghost hound... one of the most underrated series in this season, man this series is so damn good, and i think it can draw many discussion, but why people seem to ignore this anime?

constant good animation, great story telling, many philosophical aspects

i could rate this baby on top with mushi-shi

While I mostly agree, I'm going to have to take exception to "constant." In episodes 14 (IIRC), 18 and 19 the character animation was terrible. Real distracting.

Masayuki's infatuation with the scientist sure plays out amusingly. Guess it runs in the family.

I must say, I've come across the whole kidnapping-for-organs plot enough times in anime/manga/j-games to wonder if the Japanese have some kind of phobia about it.

[orion]

Well here's a story about the organ trade from 2006 and 2007 so this is topical in Japan.

Edit: And another one from 2006. International organ trading is a controversial and moral topic.

CNN even did a video report in 2006. (Not for the squeamish.)

[golthin]

Originally Posted by Vulcannis

While I mostly agree, I'm going to have to take exception to "constant." In episodes 14 (IIRC), 18 and 19 the character animation was terrible. Real distracting.

Masayuki's infatuation with the scientist sure plays out amusingly. Guess it runs in the family.

I must say, I've come across the whole kidnapping-for-organs plot enough times in anime/manga/j-games to wonder if the Japanese have some kind of phobia about it.

i guess he wants what the father wants. it is kind of a displaced Oedipus complex .

[Kaoru Chujo]

Originally Posted by Joachim

ghost hound... one of the most underrated series in this season, man this series is so damn good, and i think it can draw many discussion, but why people seem to ignore this anime?....

Maybe the comparatively slow development? Or the fact that it started last fall a couple of weeks after other shows did? I agree: it's a very good show. Makoto gets more and more interesting. Tarou is being played beautifully. And Fukuyama Jun is making Masayuki fairly riveting, as well. And the more I see of Miyako (and hear of Yajima Akiko voicing her) the better. Even the psychologist and Miyako's father are striking characters.

[Guardian Enzo]

Originally Posted by Kaoru Chujo

Maybe the comparatively slow development? Or the fact that it started last fall a couple of weeks after other shows did? I agree: it's a very good show. Makoto gets more and more interesting. Tarou is being played beautifully. And Fukuyama Jun is making Masayuki fairly riveting, as well. And the more I see of Miyako (and hear of Yajima Akiko voicing her) the better. Even the psychologist and Miyako's father are striking characters.

The young VA playing Tarou hasn't had a lot of experience, as far as I can tell, but he did play Harry Potter! He brings tremendous authenticity to the role, I think - very good work.

[ginko51]

What should I as a Kino no Tabi fan expect from this?

[grey_moon]

The scenes with Taro, Makoto and his mum crying were very moving. So much emotion conveyed over without the need to over do it. Very touching *sniffle*

[orion]

Originally Posted by Endow

What should I as a Kino no Tabi fan expect from this?

No relation whatsoever. Just remember that the pieces of the puzzle finally come together at around episode 19. Don't forget to watch it in a dark room with speakers turned up for maximum effect. Knowing some psychology stuff is definitely a must but the fansubs help us out a lot with explaining the theories.

[ginko51]

I just mentioned because the director Ryūtarō Nakamura is the same as Kino no Tabi.