(L+CR) Akatsuki no Yona

[Irenesharda]

Pretty good episode, and I liked Yona's resolve.

Jeaha is getting more fleshed out and we're beginning to see him more as a character and what he will be like on the team. He keeps trying to fight his destiny, and looking at his life in the Green Dragon village, I can kind of see why. However, we all know he's going to give in, it's just a matter of time.
And then there is poor Hak, he's struggled for so long and Yona still seems as clueless as ever, though she might have gotten a bit of a wake up call from that "sticky" situation.

Honestly, I kind of thought that the dragons and Hak would have had more to say about Yona being in such a dangerous situation. In fact, Yun was the one that put up the most fuss. I mean, I understand her resolve and everything, but how the heck does that help you when you're dead? I mean, come on Yona, don't you realize your importance to these dragons? What your death would mean to them? Think a little girl. I know you want to prove yourself, but getting help when you need it is a better show of strength than trying to stick it out alone.

Well, looks like battle will begin next episode, so we'll see where that goes. Honestly, this arc so far is just okay, I like Jeaha, but really nothing else is sticking out for me. We'll see if they can ramp it up a little bit.

[Flower]

Originally Posted by ChainLegacy

I actually like the fact that the dragons have an instinctual urge to serve Yona. I think it goes both ways, though. As they said in an earlier episode, Hiryuu was a dragon himself - one of the dragons' siblings, most likely a red dragon. I believe Yona too has a great instinctual urge to help and protect the dragons, as she alluded to in this episode, because she is the incarnation of Hiryuu, the red dragon.

Yes - I was mulling over the same thing as I was watching the ep and would not be surprised if it were so ... not to deflate Yona's inherent good qualities and all that any more than those of the dragons, of course.

This interactions between the dragons and Yona has been one of my absolute favorite parts of the story thus far, and Jae-ha and Yona is no exception. In the process we are given great glimpses into Ki-ja, Sin-ha and Jae-ha as well. There is yet another dragon to come too - the yellow one, who shows up in the OP as rather ... free spirited and fun loving, though back in ep 2 seems to be rather skilled in using a shield? It was mentioned some time ago that the yellow dragon has a "strong body that can not be injured" or some such? The combination of his "power" and what we have seen of his personality could be interesting....

The ED is indeed in Japanese for the record.

To be honest I rather like the fact that a series with a shoujo label and hastily dismissed (Treebeard would be shocked, I am sure) because "it is just another reverse harem" or whatever is in fact catalysting such thoughts as death of main characters and, as White Manju Bun pointed out, may be heading towards the subject of trafficking in humans. In other words - there is a whole lot more to the story here! If only more viewers would give the series more of a chance.... :\

For the record my money is on Hak either outright dying or being kidnapped or on the brink of death - could easily see that bringing the inner dragon out of our dear red-headed princess ... and even driving her to kill even Su-Won should he have done the deed.

[Random Wanderer]

Originally Posted by ChainLegacy

I actually like the fact that the dragons have an instinctual urge to serve Yona. I think it goes both ways, though. As they said in an earlier episode, Hiryuu was a dragon himself - one of the dragons' siblings, most likely a red dragon. I believe Yona too has a great instinctual urge to help and protect the dragons, as she alluded to in this episode, because she is the incarnation of Hiryuu, the red dragon.

Oh, I would say most certainly. This is not the first time that she's indicated that she feels a connection with one of them, even though they'd just met. Yona may not understand or believe that she is Hiryuu (which I feel may be one of the reasons why her connection to the others seems weaker than their connection to each other), yet the instant she sees one of them she recognizes him as a trusted companion.

PS: There's no question about the color of dragon Yona is, either. Leaving aside her hair, there's the simple fact of the name the previous incarnation was known by. Just as the four dragons have "dragon names" (Hakuryuu = white dragon, Seiryuu = blue dragon, Rokuryuu = green dragon, etc.), so Yona has Hiryuu, meaning "red ragon."

[BPD Renegade]

Originally Posted by Irenesharda

Pretty good episode, and I liked Yona's resolve.

Jeaha is getting more fleshed out and we're beginning to see him more as a character and what he will be like on the team. He keeps trying to fight his destiny, and looking at his life in the Green Dragon village, I can kind of see why. However, we all know he's going to give in, it's just a matter of time.

Yeah, the OP doesn't leave much to the imagination regarding who joins the group does it? Scratch that, the first minutes of episode one doesn't leave much.

And then there is poor Hak, he's struggled for so long and Yona still seems as clueless as ever, though she might have gotten a bit of a wake up call from that "sticky" situation.

You know, every time someone mentions the honey scene, all I see is Ao with his head in the honey pot. My priorities clearly don't align with everyone else's.

[PreSage]

Originally Posted by Psyco Diver

Yea they have been showing him off alot this episode plus the big battle next week, I smell death flags, poor Ao we all liked you the best

...wha...ar...nnn...gah...

*throws nuts at you!*

Originally Posted by kk2extreme

The cruelest thing they can do is to kill Ao

...it would certainly be a good way to make Shin-ah go berserk!

Originally Posted by BPD Renegade

Oh, Ao. We all know this is really your show. The animators must really be getting kicks out of animating him.

Seriously! I'm quite surprised by the small details they include just for Ao! (Kind of reminds me of the tanuki parody in Nozaki-kun series)

Originally Posted by BPD Renegade

I'm pretty sure it's in Japanese. It might be the autotune, but I can definitely hear Japanese words.

Yeah, I can catch some Japanese words in there but then at times the pronunciation sounded different. Meh, must be my ears. >_<

Originally Posted by Irenesharda

I mean, I understand her resolve and everything, but how the heck does that help you when you're dead? I mean, come on Yona, don't you realize your importance to these dragons? What your death would mean to them? Think a little girl. I know you want to prove yourself, but getting help when you need it is a better show of strength than trying to stick it out alone.

Plus, climbing a windy mountain cliff with a cape wasn't a very good idea either.

Originally Posted by BPD Renegade

You know, every time someone mentions the honey scene, all I see is Ao with his head in the honey pot. My priorities clearly don't align with everyone else's.

You and me, both. Hak was sitting there in all his hotness and angstiness but where was I looking?...at Ao struggling with the honey pot. ... ...

(...and we find out the darn squirrel is a carnivore! ...or omnivore if you want to be precise about it.)

[Irenesharda]

Originally Posted by ChainLegacy

I actually like the fact that the dragons have an instinctual urge to serve Yona. I think it goes both ways, though. As they said in an earlier episode, Hiryuu was a dragon himself - one of the dragons' siblings, most likely a red dragon. I believe Yona too has a great instinctual urge to help and protect the dragons, as she alluded to in this episode, because she is the incarnation of Hiryuu, the red dragon.

I think a lot of people forget that. They call Hiryuu king and master, but they keep forgetting that Hiryuu used to be the red dragon. There were 5 original dragons, not just 4. She feels as much of a connection to them as they do to her. Yona might not have dragon powers (since Hiryuu gave his up) but she still carries a connection, as the other dragons were still Hiryuu's brothers, so are the 4 dragons in a way, 4 older brothers to her.

Originally Posted by PreSage

On a more serious note, Jaeha keeps believing that all he feels towards Yona is because of the dragon blood but I think it's more than that. For him, Sin-ha, and even Ki-ja, they are attracted toward her because of her kindness and loyalty to them. I don't think the dragons would feel such an intense attachment if Yona had been an arrogant power-grabbing warlord -- dragon blood or no dragon blood, they would most likely abandon such a person. So I think their initial attraction was due to their dragon blood heritage but the final decision and continual loyalty is of their own choosing.

...and we also caught a glimpse of Jae-ha's sad past. Looks like his village kept him locked up in chains. At least Sin-ha had the freedom to move around, but Jae-ha seemed to have been imprisoned indefinitely.

I don't know if they could abandon any Hiryuu vessel once they are given the contract, considering part of it is "you will love him and never betray him". However, I doubt that the person who was Hiryuu's reincarnation would ever be "arrogant and power-grabbing", the person who is his descendant would most likely be just like him in spirit, whether female or male. If their brother wasn't worth protecting or could take care of himself, the other dragons wouldn't have bothered creating these human warrior protectors for him. Hiryuu was probably the weakest of the dragons physically, but the strongest of spirit.

As for what Jea-ha is feeling, I think its a mixture of both. The blood of both human and dragon is so intertwined that you can't really tell where one ends and the other begins. Consider that he's only met her for a day or so, he's pull to her in a normal situation wouldn't be that high or that complete (that part is the dragon). However, he himself IS drawn to her personality and spirit as well. It's a mix of both.

I think when I was looking back at the legend again, even the original warriors could never tell which emotions were their own and which were that of the dragons. However, I don't think it really mattered in the end, just like I don't think it will matter here.

There is a supernatural, divine pull that is guiding them toward Yona and her to them, and that gives them feelings of love and loyalty towards her, and I doubt they could ever betray her even if they wanted to. However, I'm betting that the dragons find vessels that fit their own personalities and spirit, just like Yona is like Hiryuu, so it won't be that strange a fit.

Also, I didn't even see the chains until you pointed them out. I just thought the place he lived looked like crap. No wonder he's got a thing about being free, poor thing. However, somehow, I still can't find it as bad as how Sinha grew up for some reason. You can see that in their personalities. Jeaha wasn't broken by his experience, where as Sinha was. At least Jeaha was named and his own person. Sinha was stripped of any identity even at the point of his birth.

[Guardian Enzo]

Ao and Yoon in a bitter struggle for cuteness crown. But you knew that moment in the PV was going to happen sooner or later...

[thundrakkon]

Originally Posted by kk2extreme

The cruelest thing they can do is to kill Ao

Well, a squirrel's life expectancy is not that long, so he could die on the journey due to natural causes.

Originally Posted by PreSage

...and we also caught a glimpse of Jae-ha's sad past. Looks like his village kept him locked up in chains. At least Sin-ha had the freedom to move around, but Jae-ha seemed to have been imprisoned indefinitely

We haven't touched much on his past, but couldn't he possibly be chained down because he kept trying to run away? The older green dragon was free.

[Irenesharda]

Originally Posted by thundrakkon

We haven't touched much on his past, but couldn't he possibly be chained down because he kept trying to run away? The older green dragon was free.

That's no less horrible.
There is a reason a child wants to run away if that was indeed the case, and there's a reason that he treasures freedom so much.

Why is it the warm colored dragons were all treated like human beings (red, yellow (I'm guessing considering his happy-go-lucky style), and white), and the cool colored dragons(blue and green) all got treated like dirt? At least Jeaha didn't grow up completely introverted because of the abuse like Sinha.

Also, remember that once the new dragon is born, the old dragon loses their power, either all at once like with the White Dragon, or a little at at time, like with the Blue Dragon. So the older dragon probably doesn't have his powers anymore.

[Benigmatica]

Episode 19:
Wow Hak, licking Yona's wounds is so damn lewd! I'm sure Ki-ja is gonna get pissed when he saw that!

Meanwhile, what a surprise now that this shoujo anime is dealing with human trafficking. Of course, it won't dig deeper as Yona's party and Gi-gan's pirate crew are gonna ruin Kum-ji and his fleet.

[thundrakkon]

Originally Posted by Irenesharda

That's no less horrible.
There is a reason a child wants to run away if that was indeed the case, and there's a reason that he treasures freedom so much.

We really don't know the story yet. The point was, it might not have been malice by the village people. He could have been running away to irk his responsibilities (the villager's point of view), so they had to restrain him. Heck, he could have committed a crime (hopefully not). We really don't know yet.

[PreSage]

Originally Posted by Irenesharda

Also, I didn't even see the chains until you pointed them out. I just thought the place he lived looked like crap. No wonder he's got a thing about being free, poor thing. However, somehow, I still can't find it as bad as how Sinha grew up for some reason. You can see that in their personalities. Jeaha wasn't broken by his experience, where as Sinha was. At least Jeaha was named and his own person. Sinha was stripped of any identity even at the point of his birth.

I don't think Sin-ha's passive nature is entirely due to how he was treated by his village. For one thing, even as a child, Sin-ha was already soft-spoken and on the gentle /quiet side. But the main factor that shapes his personality is his fear of his own power. It is a power that he cannot control and one that even attacks him when he uses it. Sin-ha's introverted personality stems from this fear of his power hurting others. Ao, the previous Blue Dragon, was not introverted and "broken" like him despite receiving the same discrimination from the villagers.

By the way, I don't think there are eye-holes in Sin-ha's mask. Apparently, his dragon eyes can "see" without the need to actually be open...his mind's eyes, sort of speak.

It was funny when Yun pulled at his eyes to imitate Sin-ha's eyes when he tried to spot Yona coming back from the cliff at a distance.

Also, back to death flags, wasn't Hiryuu killed by his own people? I wonder if history will repeat itself?

[thundrakkon]

Originally Posted by PreSage

Also, back to death flags, wasn't Hiryuu killed by his own people? I wonder if history will repeat itself?

I don't think he was. Initially, when the people turned against him, the dragons came down and the dragon warriors were formed to protect him. He died later. As far as I can remember, it never stated why king Hiryuu died. I always thought it was death due to natural causes, but you did bring up a good point that he could have been killed in some way.

[MurkyMuse]

I believe the legend stated that Hiryuu grew tired of fighting and went "to sleep", or something like that. So basically natural causes.

[BBOvenGuy]

Originally Posted by thundrakkon

Well, a squirrel's life expectancy is not that long, so he could die on the journey due to natural causes.

Nah, he probably got his lifespan extended from chomping on that healing plant.

[janipani]

I liked how this anime started, but now it is slowly becoming an average reversed harem anime. Well, but with my standards average means still better than 75% of anything produced after 2000.

[GDiddy]

Are the ratings for this that bad?!

That actually shocks me. I'd think the fujioshi would be all over the male cast in a heartbeat(at least Hak, Jey and Gija...whom I've seen fanart of the most)

[PreSage]

Originally Posted by GDiddy

Are the ratings for this that bad?!

Well, there goes my hope for another season.

Where did you see the ratings for this?

[thundrakkon]

Originally Posted by GDiddy

Are the ratings for this that bad?!

That actually shocks me. I'd think the fujioshi would be all over the male cast in a heartbeat(at least Hak, Jey and Gija...whom I've seen fanart of the most)

There are no BluRay sales yet, so I'm not sure. I don't even think they were planning on it. The manga did increase from last year. Volume 13 had 60 k sales in December of 2013, while volume 16 had 100 k sales in December of 2014.

When referring to ratings, the only ones I can find are the so called "anime reviewers" who bashed it after episode 1.

[Guardian Enzo]

If by ratings you mean TV ratings, they don't much matter for late-night anime these days. As thunderakkon says, manga sales are often the key needle a shoujo adaptation has to move, and they look pretty good - a bump of somewhere between 50-75%. Normally disc sales are the key financial driver, but that's not often the case with shoujo. If this does decently on DVD it's pretty much gravy (and Blu-ray would be a miracle).