The Q & A of Haruhi Suzumiya

[VentAileron]

Since when is Madoka omnipotent?

[Kyuu]

Originally Posted by VentAileron

Since when is Madoka omnipotent?

When she became the manifestation of the universe itself. Did you not see the last episode?

[VentAileron]

Haha. I know there are enough interpretations of the ending, but I doubt that's one of them. Someone scream if this is considered to be off-topic and not relevant to the original question, I'll comply without asking.

Spoiler for Madoka Magica Ending:

Madoka only became the symbol of hope, battling despair in the whole time-space continuum. She's by no means omnipotent. If she was, why would she apologize to Sayaka that the scene before them was the only one of the two endings possible? The other ending being erasing Sayaka's wish. If she was omnipotent, why is the world still kind of messed up in the end? If she was omnipotent, why didn't she erase the whole magical girl concept and the need for energy from the face of the universe?

[bhl88]

Did Hirano Aya quit for good?

In the Weiss Schwarz Portable PSP game, Haruhi's voice sounds like another person (or Hirano who caught a cold)

[GDB]

Sounds like Hirano. Compare that to her Katja voice from Seikon no Qwaser. They're nearly identical as far as I can tell. She just doesn't sound as energetic as usual, that's all.

[vrz]

hey guys about to get this series.
wanna know 2 things

1)with the endless 8 episodes, are the EXACTLY the same?
or do they differ somewhere, should i bother getting the ones that repeat?

2) what order should i watch this in?

[Goggen]

Originally Posted by vrz

1)with the endless 8 episodes, are the EXACTLY the same?

No. Script wise, they are almost identical but the direction/animation is different each time. (Of course, the first and the last one differ significantly)

Originally Posted by vrz

2) what order should i watch this in?

If you're watching the first season only, there are several possible orders, but if you are watching both seasons there is one and only one official order, that being the chronological as seen here. Anything other than that is just obsessive fans making things needlessly complicated in a misguided attempt to preserve the original airing order of season 1 which does not apply when all 28 episodes are included.

[vrz]

Originally Posted by Goggen

No. Script wise, they are almost identical but the direction/animation is different each time. (Of course, the first and the last one differ significantly)


If you're watching the first season only, there are several possible orders, but if you are watching both seasons there is one and only one official order, that being the chronological as seen here. Anything other than that is just obsessive fans making things needlessly complicated in a misguided attempt to preserve the original airing order of season 1 which does not apply when all 28 episodes are included.

when u say direction/animation is different. how different are we talking?
is there a point for me to get them? or should i just watch one and skip ahead

[Gamer_2k4]

Originally Posted by vrz

when u say direction/animation is different. how different are we talking?
is there a point for me to get them? or should i just watch one and skip ahead

The dialogue is going to get very old, very fast. The direction/animation is completely new each time, but it's the same people in the same locations doing the same things. The camera angle might be different, the gestures might be a little different, the lighting might be different, and the clothing might be different, but it's really the same scenes.

When watching, I just go for the first and last ones (the most complete one and the one with the resolution) and skip the six in between.

[Ithekro]

Animation and art are completely different in each episode. Different clothing for each episode. Styles are a little different in each one, and so on. The actual scene and conversations are almost exactly the same each time from two to six. There are little differences, variations of what was seen in the first one, since there took some stuff out for the main explaination scene each time. And sometimes they add something newish (like one time it is raining when it hadn't been raining the other times).

A lot of it seems like experimentation by the art directors to see who could make it look best. Some have really awesome levels of background art. Others have really detailed clothing and character art. Some have fanservicey artwork...others don't.

Each episode....on its own, is fine. Taken together...can be annoying just for being repetitive. Ending is "Awesome" though. It feels more awesome after waiting for it for eight weeks.

[Gamer_2k4]

Originally Posted by Ithekro

Ending is "Awesome" though. It feels more awesome after waiting for it for eight weeks.

Or one heck of a letdown. My reaction was, "Really? THIS is how you're resolving things? After all you put is through, this is the best you can give us?"

[vrz]

Originally Posted by Gamer_2k4

The dialogue is going to get very old, very fast. The direction/animation is completely new each time, but it's the same people in the same locations doing the same things. The camera angle might be different, the gestures might be a little different, the lighting might be different, and the clothing might be different, but it's really the same scenes.

When watching, I just go for the first and last ones (the most complete one and the one with the resolution) and skip the six in between.

this prob seems like a good idea.
However, it seems ppl are saying if u watch it in the chronological order, the series ends at ep6, and the rest are fillers? hence suggesting the TV broadcast order

Is this the case?

8 eps of the same thing is pretty damn long, almost 1/3 of the anime series

[Gamer_2k4]

Originally Posted by vrz

this prob seems like a good idea.
However, it seems ppl are saying if u watch it in the chronological order, the series ends at ep6, and the rest are fillers? hence suggesting the TV broadcast order

Is this the case?

Yes, it's very much the case. However, I still recommend watching it in chronological order. (This means starting at Melancholy I, not Adventures of Mikuru 00.) The first six episodes are exciting, funny, tightly plotted, and don't waste any time at all bringing you through a fun adventure with a fantastic conclusion.

The rest? Yeah, it's filler (in a sense), but by this point you'll love the characters and anything they do is going to be entertaining to some degree, even if it doesn't have the same punch as the original story.

The TV broadcast order was such BECAUSE the real story only took six episodes, so they had to artificially extend it. It's a gimmick, and far from the best way to tell the story. Because of that, I think you'll appreciate the anime much more if you watch the episodes in order and finish with the movie (which, if your hope was waning after seeing the second season, will totally and completely restore your faith in the series).

[Goggen]

Originally Posted by vrz

However, it seems ppl are saying if u watch it in the chronological order, the series ends at ep6, and the rest are fillers?

Depends on what you mean by "filler". It's true that after the first six, episodes that significantly move the plot forward are few and far between. However every story (except one) is taken directly from the original light novels, so it's not like they were created to be "padding" until they could adapt the next "real" story... It's just that the best one, or at least the only one with a real climax, came first. But now that the movie is out, that doesn't really matter anymore since the movie has to be watched last anyway (and kind of works as a climax on its own).

[Ithekro]

There are basically long stories and short stories. The only thing that could claim to be filler would be most of Endless Eight. If one takes all 28 episodes and the movie, there are three long stories, nine short stories and five-seven episodes of filler (depending on how one things E8 should be presented).

Defining things based on what moves the plot farther depends greatly on what one considers to be the plot.

[ijuinkun]

Originally Posted by Gamer_2k4

Or one heck of a letdown. My reaction was, "Really? THIS is how you're resolving things? After all you put is through, this is the best you can give us?"

Well, if by that you mean the solution to breaking the time loop being "get everyone together to do their homework as a group", then that's how it went in the book. And yes, it's stupid that it took Kyon six hundred years to even try that. Personally, what I think was really happening was that Haruhi wanted Kyon to suggest "something that she's never thought of doing before". It didn't have to be homework; it just had to be a novelty and come from Kyon.

Originally Posted by Ithekro

Defining things based on what moves the plot farther depends greatly on what one considers to be the plot.

For "plot development", I'd say "anything that matters in later episodes in any way beyond a few offhand remarks/references". In other words, any episode that would leave any sort of gap in the story if it were removed entirely.

[Gamer_2k4]

Originally Posted by ijuinkun

Well, if by that you mean the solution to breaking the time loop being REDACTED, then that's how it went in the book. And yes, it's stupid that it took Kyon six hundred years to even try that. Personally, what I think was really happening was that Haruhi wanted Kyon to suggest "something that she's never thought of doing before". It didn't have to be REDACTED; it just had to be a novelty and come from Kyon.

It's not a spoiler to us, but remember that we ARE talking about this in response to a question asked by someone who has never seen the show. And I know that's what happened in the book. Everything except "Someday in the Rain" happened in the books (with a few very minor exceptions). Doesn't change my opinion of it.

Originally Posted by ijuinkun

For "plot development", I'd say "anything that matters in later episodes in any way beyond a few offhand remarks/references". In other words, any episode that would leave any sort of gap in the story if it were removed entirely.

So...that would be Adventures of Mikuru Asahina, Boredom of Haruhi Suzumiya, Mystérique Sign, Remote Island Syndrome, and Someday in the Rain? Because, if that's the criteria, then 12 of the 26 episodes (counting 6 of Endless Eight) are filler. Do they use the laptops later on? Because otherwise we can add Day of Sagittarius to the list. Does Live Alive do anything for the story besides referencing (not causing) some character development for Haruhi? If not, we're up to 14. That's half of the episodes total, and two-thirds of the non-Melancholy episodes. Does it count as filler to have Sighs stretching out for five episodes (or a full light novel, if you like)? Time to up the count even more.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, because after listing this, I'm now of the honest opinion that very little that happens in the series actually matters. It seems that you could get the full story just by watching Melancholy, Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody, Endless Eight (the last one), and Disappearance.

[Ithekro]

Sighs - provides ample evidence of Haruhi's powers and development (turning point) in Kyon and Haruhi's relationship. Introduces the cat.

Adventures of Mikuru Asahina - End result of Sighs, provides character insight...somewhat...plus it provides us with a lot of Kyon's snark that is relevent to knowing him better. Also has a few scenes that are not seen in Sighs itself (the entire talk between Itsuki and Yuki over the unconscience Mikuru is not in Sighs and give a little hint into relations between the factions (peace talks perhaps).

Boredom of Haruhi Suzumiya - Introduces Tsuruya. Gives an aftermath to how things are after Melancholy that sets up things for later.

Mystérique Sign - Provides more evidence of individual powers (Haruhi, Yuki, and Itsuki). Also provides evidence that Haruhi's powers can be used by someone that is not her (the Cave Cricket used the power of her sign to expand via the internet). Introduces Emiri.

Remote Island Syndrome - Will be referenced later. Introduces Mori and Arkawa, and the two brothers from the Agency.

Someday in the Rain - Gives us hints about what is to come in Disappearance. Gives evidence of advancement of relationship between Haruhi and Kyon, but also hints of Yuki's relationship with Kyon. Also the only story not competely told from Kyon's point of view.

Day of Sagittarius - character development for Yuki and shows off Haruhi and Kyon's trust of each other (Haruhi trusts Kyon will have them win somehow, and Kyon trusts Haruhi won't end the world if she starts losing)...also a really fun episode.

Live Alive - Character development for Haruhi and evidence of advancement of relationship between Haruhi and Kyon.

The sequence of Melancholy, Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody, Endless Eight (the last one), and Disappearance, is only considerd the main plot if you ignore anything that doesn't involve the original story, time travel and Yuki's developments that result in Disappearance. Other plots do exist.

[VentAileron]

Like Ithekro neatly summarized, each short story has its own developments that will lead to future events later on. Although for the people who haven't read the novels, some points Ithekro mentioned might not be relevant somewhere post-Disappearance.

Also, the word 'filler' sounds so negative. Most of the short stories in Haruhi are actually very enjoyable. I never considered them fillers, even Someday In The Rain. There isn't anything wrong with them if they're enjoyable. Besides, I always considered the Haruhi-series 50% the SOS Brigade doing wacky stuff and 50% time-traveling mayhem. Overall, all the short stories are worth watching. You can skip Endless Eight and only watch the last one though.

[Gamer_2k4]

Originally Posted by Ithekro

Other plots do exist.

Indeed, but the definition of non-filler that I used was "any episode that would leave any sort of gap in the story if it were removed entirely." To make a claim like that, you have to have some sort of idea of what the "story" is. If the story is simply the sum of all canon works, then nothing is truly filler, and the question is meaningless.

As you said yourself, "Defining things based on what moves the plot farther depends greatly on what one considers to be the plot." So what does one consider to be the plot?