Another (generic discussion thread)

[ars89]

Spoiler for ep 2:

So now he knows that class 3 is cursed. The librarian was more weird than creepy, wonder if he can see Mei. So Akazawa got upset over what happened while she was gone. I wonder why she thinks she's met Sakakibara before. Wonder what she's going to do about the situation. Still don't get why they don't tell him.

Did he cut the phone call or was it Mizuno who cut the call. Didn't quite get what he was asking about in the hospital. Did he ask if a girl died that day while he was in a hospital? Of course he doesn't know that Mei died a long time ago, but why would there be a record of her dying recently?

Was that some sort of show at midnight? The doll shop wasn't that creepy. I get more creeped out when they show the quick glimpses of that blond doll. Why did they have to stop there. I want to know what's under the eyepatch. Also wonder what she meant at the beginning that it's already started happening. I wonder what It is.

[Ray]

I love this series so far. It's not down right scary, but the eerie atmosphere keeps me interested. I want moar, and I want it now. ;_;

How mean; we have to wait a whole week to find out what's under her eye-patch.

[Kanon]

The second episode was just as eerie as the first one They're taking their time building the suspense up and I'm loving it. The only thing I disliked is how everytime one of Kouichi's classmates was about to spill the beans (happened at least two times), he/she was eventually dissuaded from doing so. How frustrating. So was the end of the episode, by the way. I'm not expecting anything earth-shattering to be under that eyepatch but I WANT TO SEE, DAMNIT!

Not a lot of clues in this episode, other than the fact everybody can see Mei but are ignoring her for some reason. I suspect she was designated by the rest of the class/school as the stand-in for the Mei from 26 years ago as a way to keep the curse at bay. As for what's under her eyepatch, I'm betting for a green eye.

Now to wait another week.

Originally Posted by konart

It's second episode and it's second time I catch myself thinking I wanna play with Mei's hair...

It's not that wrong, is it?

No. No, it's not. It's because of that strand of hair sticking out. It really makes you want to play with it...

Originally Posted by ars89

Spoiler for ep 2:

Did he cut the phone call or was it Mizuno who cut the call. Didn't quite get what he was asking about in the hospital. Did he ask if a girl died that day while he was in a hospital? Of course he doesn't know that Mei died a long time ago, but why would there be a record of her dying recently?

Yep, he asked about whether a girl died on the day he saw Misaki at the hospital. As for why there'd be a record of her dying recently... beats me. The mystery thickens.

[Haak]

It's a good thing that this MC is smart enough to realise Misaki is a ghost without anyone having to spell it out for him. Unfortunatley that Genre Savvyness doesn't extend to not going into dark and creepy places all alone.

[Kanon]

^I... don't think she's a ghost though. Does that make me dumber than the main character?

Mei being a ghost is too obvious to be true imo.

[TurkeyPotPie]

This show is still not particularly scary or creepy, more like a mystery, which works for me. I got a laugh out of Kouichi just bluntly asking Mei what happened to her eye. He barely knows her, it's like meeting a legless guy and blurting out "Nice to meet you, WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR LEGS!?" And the nurse was pretty free with the info on someone dying that day, I guess patient confidentiality is not a big deal.

BTW, looks like Sentai licensed Another including Blu-ray rights.

[Haak]

@ Kanon - Not if you're saying all those hints are a red herring. I've considered that myself aswell.

[EDIT]

Edit ninja'd

[hyl]

Personally i agree with TurkeyPotPie that the first 2 episodes does not seem creepy enough for me to be called a horror serie. It does have a nice eerie atmosphere, but i will give it a few more episodes a try before deciding if i want to wtahc this serie untill the end.
And i think that's way too obvious that the serie is trying to make you believe that she is a ghost, while there has been not concrete evidence for it. Also i am sure in episode 2 that Koichi saw her in a traffic mirror. Unless Koichi can even see ghosts indirectly, i don't believ that Mei is a ghost.

[Dop]

I have this theory that Mei is not a ghost but a scapegoat. What if the cursed class 3 is really cursed, and in order to protect the class someone has to take the role of Mei Misaki to protect everyone else.
The girl in the morgue was the previous Mei, and eyepatch girl is the new Mei, who was paying respects to her predecessor. Everyone pretends she isn't there as part of the anti-curse measures.

That's my guess, for what it's worth. No doubt I'll have to come back and edit this post when I'm proved wrong!

[Kanon]

Originally Posted by Haak

@ Kanon - Not if you're saying all those hints are a red herring. I've considered that myself aswell.

I have a tendency to pick rational explanations over supernatural ones no matter how far-fetched they might be as long as it hasn't been made clear that something supernatural is at work. It's done me well overall. Most supernatural series tend to establish the presence of supernatural forces from the get-go, while mysteries like to mislead the readers/viewers into thinking they are not simple mysteries.

[Guardian Enzo]

The dominant clue so far is duality. Mei herself has made many references to it, and the "Studio M" scene was full of them. There's some sort of dual-nature at the heart of her mystery, though whether it's symbolic or literal I can't say. I agree the straight-up ghost thing is too obvious.

I love this series as well. It's not super-horrifying, but that's not a minus for me, it's a plus. I see this as very much a psychological thriller in the mold of Ghost Hound (another P.A./I.G. collaboration) with which it also shares unbelievably brilliant sound design. The overwhelming vibe I get from both the series and Mei herself isn't terror, but sadness.

[Flower]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

....It's not super-horrifying, but that's not a minus for me, it's a plus.

I see this as very much a psychological thriller in the mold of Ghost Hound (another P.A./I.G. collaboration) with which it also shares unbelievably brilliant sound design.

The overwhelming vibe I get from both the series and Mei herself isn't terror, but sadness.

Yes, but curiously the feel is not quite as "heavy" as tragedy, if you get my meaning....

[Xellos-_^]

interesting the anime mention John Saul

don't know if anyone else here read his books but Saul's books are usually about a seemingly supernatural mystery set in a small town in the middle of nowhere. The Supernatural elements are usually a part of the background in the stories but the Monster is almost always human. The authority is usually well aware of what is going on, most likely the whole town as well.

if the author was inspire by John Saul i am guessing the medical condition of the Students in Class 3 are not the result of a curse or something supernatural but something cause by humans. In John Saul's books, there are no bigger monster then Humans.

[Kirarakim]

Originally Posted by Kanon

^I... don't think she's a ghost though. Does that make me dumber than the main character?

Mei being a ghost is too obvious to be true imo.

I also don't think Mei is a ghost. I mean that is obviously what they want us to think but since they are beating us on the head with that idea, I think it is obviously something else.

[Slick_rick]

I think the more interesting mystery has to do with the main character and not Mei. He seems to have some sort of past with the town and school, especially the twin-tails girl. Why can't he or they remember if they did have some kind of past together?

He's kind of creepy himself too with his stalking Mei and following her home. Being a horror fan he's also getting a lot of weird ideas in his head about her but what does he really know about his own past? I wonder who his mother was and if she has anything to do with this too? She went to the school and could have something to do with the original story told.

[Arya]

Another intriguing episode. I'm enjoying this series so far. I agree too that the atmosphere is unsettling with a very good use of the music.

Usually I don't pay much attention to the op, but reading all the complaining about it I listened it and I could say that the music is really out of place.
I muted it and played a minute of some creepy music found randomly on youtube (like /watch?v=WwlMnX_u6kE) . It looks far better

Each time I see the parrot I get the feeling that he's mispronouncing rei-chan, but he is saying mei-chan

Spoiler for ep. 2:

So, doesn't Kouichi look a bit obsessed by mei? He just saw mei and he suddenly stopped chatting with his schoolmates and got into that room, and later abruptly he asked about her eye. Again, outside the school he started following/stalking her to that "shop". he have to have some connections, as Akazawa indirectly pointed at too.

[Utsuro no Hako]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

The overwhelming vibe I get from both the series and Mei herself isn't terror, but sadness.

The ED certainly points that way, what with the characters appearing one by one a la Angel Beats, except for Mei who's there the whole time then fades away. But then, J-horror can mix both effectively -- Sadako from Ringu and Mitsuko from Dark Water are both sympathetic characters but that doesn't make them any less scary, and the ghosts from Kairo are scary precisely because they're full of despair.

Originally Posted by Xellos-_^

interesting the anime mention John Saul

don't know if anyone else here read his books but Saul's books are usually about a seemingly supernatural mystery set in a small town in the middle of nowhere. The Supernatural elements are usually a part of the background in the stories but the Monster is almost always human. The authority is usually well aware of what is going on, most likely the whole town as well.

if the author was inspire by John Saul i am guessing the medical condition of the Students in Class 3 are not the result of a curse or something supernatural but something cause by humans. In John Saul's books, there are no bigger monster then Humans.

Sakakibara is a horror fan, hence the nurse's nickname for him. Last week they mentioned Stephen King and someone earlier in this thread said there are a ton of references in the novel. I don't think Saul was brought up as a clue, just a shout-out to one of the more popular horror novelists.

[ThereminVox]

I'm really enjoying Another, but I have to admit that the start of episode 2 kind of took me out of it. Episode 1 ends with "Don't get close to me" and episode 2 starts with our MC being all "'Sup?" Then things get eerie again, until... cut to the jaunty pirate jig OP.

Spoiler for image:

When the strike through the middle of the "A" is removed "An" can kind of look like an "M". Relevant? Probably not. Creepy? To me, a little, given the subject matter.

The doll imagery is less affecting than I had originally expected, and I think I've figured out why. Dolls are inherently creepy because they inhabit the uncanny valley. Some of the effect is lost when all the characters are animated anyway since there's less to compare them to in order to make them feel "off". Still, there are some really powerful designs in that old lady's shop.

The dialogue is so tantalizing. I really hope it's going to pay off. Everyone, from Mei to the damn bird, every time they talk I want to try to remember exactly what they said, in case it becomes important later. This may turn out to be a series I have to go dark on, and then watch all at once after it's finished airing. In this particular episode, two real artists are referenced: Edvard Munch, of course, who painted The Scream, and John Saul, who wrote the Blackstone Chronicles, and other American horror novels.

I too would like to believe Mei is not a ghost. The implications of how everyone ignores her would be much more disturbing if she's completely human. It would scan with the theory that she's ritualistically inhabiting the role. Could Mei herself be a "countermeasure"? I find the sterility of that term unnerving.

[haguruma]

Originally Posted by Utsuro no Hako

Sakakibara is a horror fan, hence the nurse's nickname for him. Last week they mentioned Stephen King and someone earlier in this thread said there are a ton of references in the novel. I don't think Saul was brought up as a clue, just a shout-out to one of the more popular horror novelists.

Go decide yourself if you want to consider it a clue or not, maybe it is one and maybe it isn't. I'd say some of the references are there to throw you off by just telling you which work he cited merely by structure, some are actually pretty big hints because he took integral parts of them.

You could also think about whether King's 'Salem's Lot and Pet Semetary or Queen's Tragedy of X was a hint. I'm only saying you should consider considering them, because Ayatsuji Yukito likes to reference countless obscure works...he even wrote an homage to Dario Argento's Profondo Rosso and Suspiria with his Scarlet Whispering (Hiiro no Sasayaki). I read that one a while ago and reviewed it, if anybody's interested...

[djmaca]

Are they trying the "cursed" angle or something? So who cursed them? There are many types of curses that can be applied here: Curse the people in the class individually, meaning the MC isn't cursed, or that the Class as a collection is cursed, meaning any new member will be cursed upon recognition that he belongs to this class.