sola - Episode 10 Discussion / Poll

[Boukenxha]

I can see why you say "not serious" is wrongly used. You are also right that both Matsuri and Aono tried to play God. But my point of concern is now when it hasn't happen yet. Aono arguably has the defense of mental defect, Matsuri otoh is clear headed enough but clouded by her poor judgment. And we have to wonder if there are other motives when she asked Yorito to disappear together. Like you said however, maybe there are other measures which she could try first, something less drastic.

I think the reason why this one gets the most attention is because it's the most visible route with what little information we have. I'm not very supportive of it hence my criticism for it. But I can't pull a better one out of my head.

[Ice Climbers]

I WAS right HAHA

I said Yurito was a doll of some kind controlled by Aono, and that was not far off

[Ascaloth]

Okay, Episode 10...

1) I swear, I just want to rip Sae's throat out whenever I hear her voice.

2) Aono actually sounds quite a bit different during her face-off with Yorito; Nakahara actually sounds a bit more like how I would imagine her sounding as CLANNAD's Nagisa. Too bad it's a Kaede-type character she's portraying with that voice; it just doesn't mesh too perfectly.

3) So not only does Mana pack a pretty nice pair and a J-Lo class booty, and is the best possible friend one can have, we now see that she's an Olympian-class marathoner, too.
Now if only she had longer hair.....

4) 13:25-13:30 from the Lunar sub...

How I wish I were there to see her strike that pose...

5) The Revelation of Yorito: I swear I did NOT see that coming.

For the numerous failings that I've found in the Sola anime so far, it does have one of the better premises I've seen of any story. This plot twist is just one of those things that throw me off completely; Sola has earned itself a respectable minimum possible score from me for that. The trick here now, is whether it can go higher than that...

6) Now that we know who Matsuri and Yorito really are, respectively, the second kiss between them is so wrong on so many levels.

7) What I didn't like about this episode, however, is how Yorito mentions the return of his memories. Granted, there were plenty of flashbacks throughout the series, but not once was it hinted at that those were Yorito's memories; thus, when he mentions the memories returning to him piece by piece, it somehow doesn't mesh too well. Moreover, his reasoning seems to have quite a few logical holes in it; I have trouble understanding how he managed to come to that conclusion with so little information.


Therefore, a 9 for this episode.


And on another note, I'll like to mention something. While I've been rating individual Sola episodes quite highly, I'm actually starting to feel that Sola itself is starting to fall short of its possible potential. Which would be quite a pity, really, considering the good premise it is based on; animation and logical inconsistencies aside, the overall character development of Sola hasn't actually been that great. Maybe a 1-cour span just isn't enough time for it, but in any case, it's really starting to fall short of my expectations for it.

Take for example, Matsuri. What really bugs me is, how did she get to know the original Yorito in the first place, and how did she come to love him? By original Yorito, I mean the one from the feudal era; while we've got plenty of Matsuri-Yorito interaction in the present, we don't really see much of their feudal-era relationship, which leaves a gaping big hole as to Matsuri's motivations for falling for the present Yorito. There's still quite a bit more about Matsuri that we should know, and at this point in time, it's already kind of late for this. If they leave this out, that's a big minus.

Secondly, Aono. Personally, she has turned into little more than a Kaede-type for me; perhaps just a bit more, for her psychosis actually helps to drive the plot a lot. Still, the way I see it is that we're not seeing nearly enough of Aono's motivations; sure we scratch the surface, but I'll like to see a deeper treatment of the girl's character, please.

And thirdly, Yorito. Sadly, his development as a character pales very badly in comparison with the others; in fact, he's so paper-thin in his personality that it almost comes as cruelly apt that we discover that he's basically a paper doll, figuratively and literally. Good development of the main characters is one of the pillars on which a good story is based, and unfortunately, this particular pillar for Sola is so shaky it borders on the brink of collapsing.

So while I may have a glass floor where the rating of Sola is concerned, it's also happened that I also have a glass ceiling. On which point between the floor and the ceiling Sola will eventually lie, will come to rest on the remaining episodes; I certainly hope it ends up on the higher portion, for Sola is a story that began with a great deal of potential. I would hate to see it fall to a low at the very end.

[Skyfall]

Originally Posted by Ascaloth

Take for example, Matsuri. What really bugs me is, how did she get to know the original Yorito in the first place, and how did she come to love him? By original Yorito, I mean the one from the feudal era; while we've got plenty of Matsuri-Yorito interaction in the present, we don't really see much of their feudal-era relationship, which leaves a gaping big hole as to Matsuri's motivations for falling for the present Yorito. There's still quite a bit more about Matsuri that we should know, and at this point in time, it's already kind of late for this. If they leave this out, that's a big minus.

While the story of how their past relationship came to be remains untold, i don't see that as anything too important. Matsuri herself says that it is the present Yorito she loves, and she loves him for who he is, not because of what he used to be. According to her she has even forgotten the past Yorito (Ok, i didn't buy that even for a second ).

Overall it is not hard to imagine how she came to love the past Yorito - he, probably, was the only (or one of the very very few) people who wasn't turned away (scared) of what she actually was, and treated her like a normal human being, which possibly was a first for her. Not very surprising she fell for the guy

The reason seems pretty much the same this time around (Ignoring the fact that "logic" doesn't really apply to love and feelings anyway). But whether Matsuri does remember the past Yorito or not, i agree with her that it is not important - it is the present that matters. (Looks like she finally chose to let go of the past ... lets see how this will affect things in the future ).

I agree on the notion that Sola is lacking in the character depth department and we don't know that much about them beyond the surface level, which is indeed a flaw this late in to the series.

That aside, this fact only seems to bother me when i sit down and try to analyze the situation, not while actually watching the episode itself. When i rate a show i use my enjoyment of it as the main reference point, not a through technical analysis of it. While the later affects my rating as well, it is the former that is far more important to me. In the case of Sola, i am enjoying it immensely for whatever reasons, so i am willing to turn a blind eye to a few technical glitches here and there.

After all - i am watching the anime for enjoyment, not to see how many technical nitpicks i can come across, and thus i base my opinion about the show on the enjoyment factor, which happens to be rather high for Sola. (For example, Seirei no Moribito. No doubt the production values of the show are high. But - ancient japan settings tend to bore me to death, and i found that to be the case there as well, and thus i dropped the show. All the high production values and technical perfection (too strong of a word) counts for nothing if the show fails to entertain me, whatever the reason behind the failure, and i sure as hell won't keep watching simply because the execution is good).

Cheers.

[Ascaloth]

Originally Posted by Skyfall

While the story of how their past relationship came to be remains untold, i don't see that as anything too important. Matsuri herself says that it is the present Yorito she loves, and she loves him for who he is, not because of what he used to be. According to her she has even forgotten the past Yorito (Ok, i didn't buy that even for a second ).

Overall it is not hard to imagine how she came to love the past Yorito - he, probably, was the only (or one of the very very few) people who wasn't turned away (scared) of what she actually was, and treated her like a normal human being, which possibly was a first for her. Not very surprising she fell for the guy

The reason seems pretty much the same this time around (Ignoring the fact that "logic" doesn't really apply to love and feelings anyway). But whether Matsuri does remember the past Yorito or not, i agree with her that it is not important - it is the present that matters. (Looks like she finally chose to let go of the past ... lets see how this will affect things in the future ).

Agreed, but personally, I would really have liked to see the story from the feudal period told in full detail, rather than alluded to. It's just a personal preference, however.

Actually, I'm starting to think that's what the DVD-exclusive episodes are for....if that is so, well, it wouldn't help my final rating for Sola, but at least I'll be well satisfied post-series.

Originally Posted by Skyfall

I agree on the notion that Sola is lacking in the character depth department and we don't know that much about them beyond the surface level, which is indeed a flaw this late in to the series.

That aside, this fact only seems to bother me when i sit down and try to analyze the situation, not while actually watching the episode itself. When i rate a show i use my enjoyment of it as the main reference point, not a through technical analysis of it. While the later affects my rating as well, it is the former that is far more important to me. In the case of Sola, i am enjoying it immensely for whatever reasons, so i am willing to turn a blind eye to a few technical glitches here and there.

After all - i am watching the anime for enjoyment, not to see how many technical nitpicks i can come across, and thus i base my opinion about the show on the enjoyment factor, which happens to be rather high for Sola. (For example, Seirei no Moribito. No doubt the production values of the show are high. But - ancient japan settings tend to bore me to death, and i found that to be the case there as well, and thus i dropped the show. All the high production values and technical perfection (too strong of a word) counts for nothing if the show fails to entertain me, whatever the reason behind the failure, and i sure as hell won't keep watching simply because the execution is good).

Agreed, and really, I didn't mean to nitpick so negatively either. Earlier I mentioned my usage of a 'glass floor' and a 'glass ceiling' where doing a final rating for a series is concerned; in my case, how much I enjoyed it defines the 'glass floor', and my sole reason for nitpicking, in all honesty, is to define the 'glass ceiling'. Sola by itself has satisfied me quite well as a series, and what I'm really hoping for is that it'll break the barrier between a good anime, and a great one.

To put it simply, this is the time to cue the obligatory facetious bait-Kaioshin-into-ranting quote:

Spoiler for facetious bait-Kaioshin-into-ranting quote:

"Sola would be so much better if it were remade by KyoAni."

Originally Posted by Skyfall

Cheers.

And you're creeping me out, Sora-san, doing the Skane-sama gig like that.

[Skane]

The following is based on [Doremi]'s fansub.

Random Thoughts On Ep10:
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• Thankfully, with no murder-compelling screams from Yorito's VA this time, I have no complaints about the voice-work and I dare say that the VAs were at the top of their game in this episode. Even Sae's VA was somehow less annoying in this episode. Takeshi's VA as usual, takes the cake with ease for best VA-work in sola.
  .
• Mayuko is quite sharp-minded when it comes to the workings of Matsuri's behaviour, but her lack of real-life experiences hinders her from helping Matsuri's self-destructive behaviour.
  .
• Speaking of which, Matsuri has a rather self-destructive mindset. Ironic when you consider that she has eternal life. Aono-haters will note at this point that Aono was the epitome of being self-destructive since she committed suicide, but that has not been the case after she got her second life. More on this in the later episode write-ups.
  .
• People have been commenting that Mana is the most well-developed character in sola. I call bullcrap on that one. Mana is a side-character in sola, and as side-characters go, she IS one of the most well-developed ones around; but could she compete with the main characters (Aono, Matsuri and Yorito) in terms of plot depth and such? Heck no.
  
  Mana's role in this anime series is to support the other characters and help develop them in ways that the other characters may not be able to. In Yorito's case, as his best friend; in Aono's case, as Koyori's sister; and in Matsuri's case, as Yorito's buddy.
  
  We know nothing of her past, her background story is zilch at this point, and her future is on shaky ground amongst other points.
  
  With the series still ongoing, we can still look forward to experiencing more of the main trio, but Mana's contribution has more or less stagnated. It is in my opinion that people are missing the forest for the tree when they claim that Mana is the most developed character in sola. The points just do not add up.
  .
• Aono was rather pitiful when she started pleading with Yorito. It also gave her more sympathy points since she actually tried to reason with Yorito instead of pushing his reset button.
  
  This is actually one of the more compelling points about Aono's character. Despite her power over Yorito, she has never really forced her will on him, and the stabbing of Matsuri is still ambiguous on whether it was intentional on her part or unintentional.
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• The "preview" just cracks me up with Koyori chopping Mana.

Cheers.