(L) Kokoro Connect [anime]

[Utsuro no Hako]

Originally Posted by exs120

I guess Inaba will be acting out her desires in ways she has mentioned before (ep4)

She's going to start masturbating in the middle of class?

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[Haak]

I really hope Taichi doesn't end up seriously hurting his little sister. That would just be too depressing.

But yeah, this was a good set up. I really want to see how it pans out from here.

Also, it has to be said: The BGM is hilariously awesome.

[Kanon]

Heartseed is now making them act on their desires, huh. It's definitely more troublesome than the body switching since they have no control over their own actions. It should provide a lot of interesting situations. Hell, it already has! The best scene was of course Inaba trying to seduce Taichi, or rather, rape him (it didn't like she was willing to give him any choice lol). It was already obvious but at least now it's confirmed she's in love with Taichi. I wonder if Taichi bought her pitiful excuse to explain why she behaved this way... he probably did.

As she said herself, this ordeal might be a good thing for Iori. Finding out about her own desires should help her solve her identity crisis.

The ones that will be troubled the most will probably be Inaba and Yui. I'm not too worried about Taichi and Aoki though.

Originally Posted by Haak

I really hope Taichi doesn't end up seriously hurting his little sister. That would just be too depressing.

Why would he hurt his sister?

They seem to be getting along rather well.

[ZGMF-X10A]

another great episode. I really like the Nagase and Taichi couple. Inaban and Taichi couple is also interesting. I just don't know which one is better = =;;

[exs120]

The stress for Inaba regarding Taichi has been steadily growing even before this new arc. With her continuing to push him towards Iori, it's really taking a toll on her mentally and physically.

She's seeping with sexual tension now. First she finds out Taichi finds her attractive enough to wank to. Next she learns that her body was used by Iori to kiss him. I'm sure deep down she's been asking herself "When is it my turn?" So I don't find it so surprising that she put the moves on Taichi this episode. Her feelings will be amplified especially when trying so hard to keep them bottled up.

She gets what she wants! GO INABA!

[Haak]

Originally Posted by Kanon

Why would he hurt his sister?

They seem to be getting along rather well.

They're siblings. It's not hard to imagine them getting into an argument out of nowhere. And it's certainly not hard to imagine this "Uncontrolled Desires" business kicking in at the wrong moment for Taichi.

Though of course, I do think it's unlikely. Heartseed is pretty much assured to only do things that have a net benefit to them. So he probably won't go as far as cause permanent damage to Taichi's relationship with his sister.

[mayumi]

hmm, there was lot more funny dialogue in the novel when inaba was stripping than that was shown in the anime.

Spoiler:

like the line where taichi says
"this is not your home, why are you stripping"
"this is a school, what are you doing here? if you want to do something. pick appropriate location"
"no no no, what am i saying. i am thinking of strange things."

taichi was rather fun through the whole thing. felt anime cut it a bit short. cause taichi was interested like a normal guy.

[Guardian Enzo]

I have to say, the notion of Taichi hurting his sister seems completely out of left field for me. I see no basis to suspect that at all.

My sense is that the common thread in these experiments is that they're designed to break down the kids' belief that they're in control of their lives, which fits in with the hints that this arc is going to focus on Inaba having an existential crisis.

[JediNight]

Yeah, this arc is going to wreck Inaba IMHO. Since her entire personality is built around keeping things bottled up and lying about her true feelings. Her sarcastic venting is pretty much her only stress release. You can see by the end of the episode that she's already barely holding it together.

The best way to combat this situation by Heartseed is to trust/confide in others and support each other. Both are things that go directly against Inaba's personality. (Doesn't trust anyone. Doesn't share her true feelings on anything.)

[chaos_alfa]

This will be a difficult situation for Inaba, because she has to put her trust in the others to restrain/stop her when she acts on her excessive desires.

Edit: Ninjaed

[Sumeragi]

Anyone noticed the color change of "Kokoro Connect" in the OP?

[Flower]

Hmm ... well. I was wondering what "unexpected chaotic element" Heartseed would "activate" in their lives after the body switching focus....

While it is true that Inaban is going to go through it (is already going through it?) pretty badly it seems that this mini-arc focuses more squarely on the girls of the group of 5 - the ones that will be "hit" the strongest will be Inaban and Yui, but I agree with Kanon that Iori may find out more about herself in the process.

At least that is what seems the most "obvious" to me atm. I wonder if the series will pull some unexpected ... umm ... hmm ... issues out of it's hat for Aoki, though? I would kinda like to see him get a more complete treatment/sketching out of his character than he has received thus far.

[blaze0041]

Originally Posted by Sumeragi

Anyone noticed the color change of "Kokoro Connect" in the OP?

It's the start of a new arc, "Kizu Random" (the second light novel), whereas the previous one was "Hito Random" (the first light novel).
Speaking of which, if "Hito" means "people" in Japanese, what does "Kizu" mean? Would it possibly be short for "Kizuna" (meaning "bonds")?

[Sumeragi]

Wound (傷/疵). I think it would be about the wounds that they have, which might imply quite a bit about the characters.

[creb]

All I got out of this was that Taichi lied about masturbating to Inaba, because if he's using her to wank off, then I'd think he'd have reacted in a slightly different matter when she was getting all hot and heavy on him.

Either that, or it was an off-hand way of letting us know that Taichi would get far more pleasure wanking off to someone other than Inaba.

[Lantern]

Originally Posted by blaze0041

It's the start of a new arc, "Kizu Random" (the second light novel), whereas the previous one was "Hito Random" (the first light novel).
Speaking of which, if "Hito" means "people" in Japanese, what does "Kizu" mean? Would it possibly be short for "Kizuna" (meaning "bonds")?

Originally Posted by Sumeragi

Wound (傷/疵). I think it would be about the wounds that they have, which might imply quite a bit about the characters.

Sumeragi sums it up pretty nicely. Think about the nature of being "human" in addition to what's being shown in the episode and you'll understand.

Originally Posted by creb

All I got out of this was that Taichi lied about masturbating to Inaba, because if he's using her to wank off, then I'd think he'd have reacted in a slightly different matter when she was getting all hot and heavy on him.

Either that, or it was an off-hand way of letting us know that Taichi would get far more pleasure wanking off to someone other than Inaba.

Or maybe he's just being fairly level headed in public environment
At least I wouldn't take the offer while fully aware of the fact that people WILL be coming in within minutes.

[Kirito]

So we've gone from body swapping to inner most desires being unleashed...fascinating. This show never ceases to bring new issues and drama to the plate, and I certainly like where this is going. Look likes this time things could get a little messy considering that this time around when the body swapping was random, the inner desire play tends to be a bit more situational and Yui's and Aoki's case in this episode was proof of this. I could be wrong but need to rewatch the episode to reconfirm my statement.

Either way a great start to a new arc, and Himeko wearing a sexy black bra "nosebleeds". She's just so awesome!

Originally Posted by bastek66

This is gonna be good.

Spoiler:

I'm so stealing that! Someone needs to make a gif or avatar of this. Himeko is pure win!

[Triple_R]

Episode 6 of Kokoro Connect was my favorite episode of this anime so far.

What I particularly liked about this episode was two things:

1. It demonstrates how there is good narrative consistency/development to everything. Plot points that call for substantial follow-up actually get substantial follow-up.

2. The characters are similarly consistent. I think I now have a pretty good feel for Inaba, Iori, and Taichi. I'm starting to really get their characters, and a lot of that is because their respective personalities and personal issues are consistent. Yui, and especially Aoki, are less well-developed at this point, but at least they do have certain defining character traits that the narrative adheres to from one arc to the next.


Some people may have been disappointed that Taichi and Iori agreed to "status quo" everything, but I'm just pleased that their Episode 5 confessions were actually picked back up on in Episode 6, and given the screen-time that they frankly deserved. Their confessions weren't just completely ignored or even swept under the rug with a casual line or two, and the status quo agreement wasn't arrived at in a cheap and easy way but as a perfectly understandable response to the new situation caused by Heartseed.

I'll grant you that Taichi and Iori not having much chance to talk to each other alone over the course of three weeks is a bit hard to swallow, but on the other hand I like how nothing terribly important is happening "off-camera" either. To put it another way, if Tachi and Iori do get more serious with each other, I want to see that transition from friendship to romance, and not merely have the narrative bring me up to speed on it after it happens "off-camera".


Kokoro Connect obviously has its titillating scenes, but I'm not sure if I'd call them fanservice, because they actually do have both plot and character relevance. These scenes say something about the characters as much as any of the other scenes do, and they seem to build upon each other. I like how these titillating scenes are being used to develop increased tension and drama between the characters, particularly as it pertains to the Inaba/Taichi/Iori love triangle. And I have to say that this love triangle has become the most compelling one I've seen in anime in a long, long time.


The dialogue in this episode toned down the Joss Whedon-esque quality that it's had in recent episodes, and I think it hit just the right balance between sophisticated and naturalistic. It was sophisticated enough to be interesting, but naturalistic enough to never feel overly long-winded. It was thought-provoking, and it also flowed very well.

I also felt that the comedy moments in this episode hit a bit better than most comedy moments did in previous episodes. Inaba's more... theatrical side, shall we say... came across really well here, and I found it genuinely amusing. And when she got angry with Taichi and punched him, I could truly feel and understand the emotion of that scene, and hence it worked as good slapstick comedy for me (i.e. Taichi really was being foolish in saying what he did, and he kind of had that punch to the gut coming to him ).


I also love the new ED, and I really like where the characters are going right now. So a great and very enjoyable and fulfilling episode this week. I'm hoping that Kokoro Connect's 2nd arc can keep this up.

[creb]

Originally Posted by Lantern

Or maybe he's just being fairly level headed in public environment
At least I wouldn't take the offer while fully aware of the fact that people WILL be coming in within minutes.

Did you miss the entire point of this new experiment by Heartseed?

His acting rational really just shows he's got zero actual interest in Inaba. That Taichi is one cold player! Jerking off to someone he's got no interest in!

[Lantern]

Originally Posted by creb

Did you miss the entire point of this new experiment by Heartseed?

His acting rational really just shows he's got zero actual interest in Inaba. That Taichi is one cold player! Jerking off to someone he's got no interest in!

The gimmick isn't on 100% of the time. It's random occasions just like the body swapping incident.

Originally Posted by Kirito

Either way a great start to a new arc, and Himeko wearing a sexy black bra "nosebleeds". She's just so awesome!

That reminds me.
When people were posting Inaban fanarts/doujins before this episode aired, I have to constrain myself because it would be spoiler. Now that the secret is finally out...

*looks back at fanarts with Inaban wearing white undergarments*

This is madness... BLASPHEMY!!!! HERESY!!!!
Inaban ONLY wears BLACK!!!!!



I refuse to acknowledge any Inaban fanarts with white undergarments.