Quote:
Originally Posted by Kanon
Actually, now that I think about it, what you're saying fits perfectly. There are 30 desks and 30 students each year, so when an extra 31 student comes in, they are short one desk (listen to Misaki's explanation in episode 5, there is a desk and even books missing when there is an extra student among them). Unfortunately, that doesn't explain why they started to freak out when Kouichi was added in, since the number should have been right...
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I think it's because, as both Mei and Izumi had separately mentioned, they only half-believed in the phenomenon to begin with, especially since nothing happened to their seniors the year before.
Whenever it was that they started using "29 students" as a counter-measure, it had become so effective that the student body now take it for granted. Hence, the addition of Kouichi to the roster of 29 for the Class of 98 was a rude shock.
It meant that, for the first time in a number of years, they would have to make someone "non-existent" again, which is understandably not a pleasant prospect for everyone involved.
Actually, scratch that, because come to think of it, there is always someone volunteered to be "non-existent" every year, since they always manage to have exactly 30 students to begin with. The shock for the Class of 98, it seems, would be that they expected to have one empty desk, only to see it suddenly occupied by a late transfer, meaning that they would have to go through the whole rigmarole of pretending someone doesn't exist, only they were one month late, without realising it.
EDIT:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kanon
Yes! That's exactly what I'm saying. Mami's name is not on the roster anymore and there is no blank spot as far as I can tell, so the number was decreased when she was erased at the end of the year.
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Also, I'm under the impression that the phenomenon simply erases all traces of the Other's previous existence while it is in effect, to prevent the extra's identification during the year. Which is to say, unless Mami happens to be the Other this year (she is not), there is no reason for her name to be absent in the roster of the Class of 96. Chibiki's note at the bottom is simply, as I said, meant to be a reminder to him that she was the "extra" student for the year.
In case people are wondering why we are talking about class rosters all over again, it's because it affects how
Kanon's theory plays out, that it is Ms Mikami who is the Other, and not one of the students. If the phenomenon was triggered despite the number of students being "just right", it would mean that the teacher is the One, according to
Kanon. I say it's not true because, depending on how you interpret the phenomenon to work, it's still one of the students who is an "extra", not the teacher.