(L) Mashiro-iro Symphony

[hyl]

[kanataX3]

Originally Posted by relentlessflame

Yup, the fact of the matter is that the anime has created a unique "super-route" that combines a lot of things that were never presented in this way in the game. So even game players aren't really at any sort of advantage in terms of knowing how the anime will go. All it does is help you see the possibilities, but in some ways that's a liability (since the anime writers may be "messing" with the game players to make them think they're heading down paths they really aren't). All the elements are canon, but the blend makes this an anime-original path.

yeh you may be right..........but just hope it doesnt end up like shuffle!...

[hyl]

Spoiler for preview images episode 8:

Shingo is getting abused and some of Sana

edit: i got my pannya plush in the mail today

[Marina2]

Originally Posted by hyl

Spoiler for preview images episode 8:

Shingo is getting abused and some of Sana

edit: i got my pannya plush in the mail today

Spoiler for ep.8 preview:

LOL Shingo's diplomatic skill works on every girl except Sana, the force user.

@hyl thank for your answer in another topic. I got it^^

[vio5555]

Originally Posted by kanataX3

yeh you may be right..........but just hope it doesnt end up like shuffle!...

I don't see the similarities to Shuffle at all. The story in Mashiro-iro is far more constrained at this point. Here it's a misunderstanding and the realistic tendency of friends to assume that two people are dating if they're as close as the two appear to be.

Shuffle on the other hand was presented as a multi-route scenario that kept jumping to different routes. There's just one route though in Mashiro-iro, and it's pretty clear where the story is going.

Thus far, the anime has done a much better job than some other dating sim->anime productions that either ignore or short-change the other girls' routes as a way of keeping the focus on the main route. This approach is more realistic, especially given that if a guy is as close to a girl as Sana and Shingo appear to be here, the rest of the girls are going to assume they're dating and back off. It comes off a lot more naturally than what happens in some other anime of the same genre where the action is more forced.

[kanataX3]

Originally Posted by vio5555

I don't see the similarities to Shuffle at all. The story in Mashiro-iro is far more constrained at this point. Here it's a misunderstanding and the realistic tendency of friends to assume that two people are dating if they're as close as the two appear to be.

Shuffle on the other hand was presented as a multi-route scenario that kept jumping to different routes. There's just one route though in Mashiro-iro, and it's pretty clear where the story is going.

Thus far, the anime has done a much better job than some other dating sim->anime productions that either ignore or short-change the other girls' routes as a way of keeping the focus on the main route. This approach is more realistic, especially given that if a guy is as close to a girl as Sana and Shingo appear to be here, the rest of the girls are going to assume they're dating and back off. It comes off a lot more naturally than what happens in some other anime of the same genre where the action is more forced.

yeh true... but since is going smoothly too a route or 2 separate one.... just scared that it would end up too a diff random scenerio....

[amoirsp]

You can never go wrong with more Sana allocation. Looking forward to episode 8. Doesn't seem like route shifting will take place yet, though we best wait and see.

[NoemiChan]

The only thing that confuses me is "who among the girls would be The ONE?".

Ok, I just excluded the SISTER.

I'm clueless... No hint!!!

[hyl]

Spoiler for spoiler episode 8:

This episode is continuing from the last episode and it still revolves around the nuko club and the characters that seem to focussed on this week are both Sana and Miu.
I liked this episode alot, even more than the previous episode. Because it adds some drama to the story and after this episode it's most likely that Shingo is going for Miu at the end. The 2 stray kittens introduced in this episode are very symbolic for Sana and it pains me little to see Sana in this episode. Her reactions in this episode says really alot about how she feels about Shingo, but the problem is that she is being not honest with herself and the other problem is that she knows that Miu and Shingo also seems to like eachother.
Shingo does seem to actively persue Miu at the end, so i think that the anime seems to go for the Miu route. With 4 episodes left and the next episode is still about Miu, i don't think that shingo is going for someone else with only 3 episodes.


edit: normally i didn't think the bgm in this anime stood out that much, but the piano music in this episode worked very well for most of the scenes and i especially liked the music (and the dramatic) at the end of this episode.

[Midonin]

Spoiler for Iroiro 08 - The Origin of Pannya:

Apparently Miu turned into the center heroine while I wasn't looking. Airi's presence is still there, but it's far diminished compared to the first half of the series. That those kittens answer to "Shingo" and "Miu" is interesting. Not in the least because there's now two Shingos and Mius in the cast. Seeing Pannya's backstory was pretty fun, too. She was always the catball she is now, but wasn't very fond of humans at first.

And again, Sana continues to be, in some respects, similar to a character archetype that's been widely despised throughout the year, but she's not getting that much hatred. I'm not sure how much of it has to do with the show and how much the viewers, but the possibility most certainly does exist.

Things are now getting very melodramatic (again), so I don't know how much I'll be able to add in the coming weeks. I will try, at least.

[relentlessflame]

Spoiler for Episode 8:

So this episode is basically the continuation of the last one, and to be totally honest, I'm not sure if it actually resolves our on-going debate, although it seems like it might (though I can't preclude other possibilities even still). The one thing it basically does do, though, is close the door on Sana x Shingo with that final scene, and her wish to see him happy. The scene where Sana was basically begging the kitten to respond to her name instead said an awful lot. The key point of the episode is the alignment of Shingo and Miu's feelings about each other, hence the title of the next episode being (roughly) "The two of the same colour". Given the title of the show and the theme in the opening narration, obviously this title is very important... but I'm not exactly sure if it must mean what it seems to mean.

Airi, for her part, continues in much the same way as last episode: observing what's going on with Shingo and with Sana. If Airi's falling/fallen in love with Shingo and wants him to look her way instead... well, she'll have to make her move pretty darn soon. Right now, she's standing on the sidelines observing him, and the fact that the anime keeps emphasizing this means that clearly her role in the story is not over. But, by the same token, it's getting harder and harder to see how they're going to transition this story smoothly away from Miu and towards Airi, if that's indeed where they're heading. The dramatic ending of this episode helps add considerable weight to this story arc.

At this point, my mind is only filled with speculation about where this could go next, but there's no really much I can think to say here at the moment. Overall, though, I like this episode a lot. Sana's development continues to be sympathetic, and the theme of the similarity between Miu and Shingo is very well portrayed (both through the plot developments, and the illustration of the two cats). The reason they're attracted to each other is because of how similar they really are, so in a way you could say they need/deserve each other. At the same time, being so similar doesn't always make for a good match either. We'll see what the show has to say about that next week...

Edit:

Spoiler for Episode 8 more thoughts:

One thing I didn't notice the first time is the parallel between Sana's admiration of Miu and her own decision about Shingo. At the swing scene, Sana comments that Miu's the sort of person who puts the happiness of others above her own. So it's no surprise when Miu asks Sana how she feels about Shingo, she answers that she wants for him to be happy. By the end of the episode it becomes clearer that, indeed, she has to put his happiness above her own too. Imitation is the greatest form of flattery... even though it's painful for her too, just like all those bites and scratches Miu endured. Also, note the parallel here between the bites/scratches on Miu's hand, and a few episodes ago where Shingo's own hand was bandaged up. In that episode, Airi concluded that Shingo was "the kind of person" who put the good of others above his own (which was illustrated by the shot of his bandaged hand), and now we see that come full circle with Sana's observation of Miu (illustrated by her scratches and bite marks). The symbolism and parallels here run very deep.

Also, as a small aside, in that swing scene, after expressing her admiration for Miu's selfless nature, Sana looks back at Shingo and makes a comment alluding to the fact that she's not like Miu, and I think she was hoping he'd interject (tsukkomi) like "that's not true!", but instead he ignored that comeback opportunity and emphasized his admiration of Miu. Hence she looks away a bit disappointed and decides to ask how he feels about her. In the context of the "sacrifice" above, it's all the more potent.

Edit 2: Oh yeah, and more: Sana's comments that she can't live up to Miu's thoughtfulness (both at the swings, and also in the principal's office) also echo the comments of both Airi and Ange regarding Shingo in episode 5.

[Vena]

I feel like I might be a bit too harsh on this episode, someone tell me if I am as I don't really intend it to sound overly harsh and am aiming more towards constructive criticism on pacing/mood/thematics and such.

Spoiler for After burners... someone turned them on:

Someone turned on the rocket engines on this show as we've now gone into an entirely different route/main heroine trajectory. Now, while I don't mind the direction we're headed I'm going to use the words "breakneck speed" almost as if it were literal because I feel like a few necks may have been broken by how fast and hard the turn has been these last two episodes. Which is something of a gripe I have developed in a sort of inconsistency in timing that has been building up little by little, coming out in full bloom this episode. I enjoyed (considerably more) the first few episodes where the pace was gradual, steady, and *slow*, but now I feel like those days are far behind us. It was forgivable in Angie's episode as it seemed like a one-time thing to get her character solved (and to be fair, it did in a way fit her aloof characterization) and the show did return to its normal pace after that one episode... now, I'm not so sure what the future holds. I really had enjoyed the basics of how the story began as a slow and focused love story, but now we're teetering on the edge of triangular (pentagon?) cliche.

That having been said, the episode was still good and the conclusion was emotional to say the least, and it really makes you feel sorry for Sana (and the rest of what I could say has already been said by relentlessflame, so just scroll up a little to read that), but I'm really not sure where the show is going with this. I had figured development with Miu was inevitable, and rightfully it would be necessary to end in her route, but the episodes have been blazing forward as if there were no tomorrow to establish Miu as the *new* main heroine. Its almost as if this show only had nine episodes and the next would be the last, but since we know it isn't the end I'm left wondering what the last five are going to be for. I had expected either a refocus on Airi or a gradual shift towards Miu over the course of a few episodes to compensate/adjust for the time spent on developing Airi earlier in the show, and which would have allowed for a graceful conclusion to Airi's feelings and some time to delve into Sakano's character. Unfortunately, I was given neither and got whipped right onto Miu's route, Airi's still showing up in the background of every other scene *observing*, Sana's heart was broken (I'll admit, that one could be seen coming from a mile away after last episode), and Sakuno/Angie have more or less fallen by the way side somewhere along this roller-coaster of the last couple episodes.

And, frankly, I'm not a fan of such heavy handed symbolism. I prefer subtle symbolic clues, not Chekhov's Gun pointed at my head and the size of a train.

[Chaos2Frozen]

On a more light hearted note, just 30 seconds into the episode I went- "So there are normal cats in this show "

Also, as sweet as Miu is, after watching a few episodes of Dog Whisper, I can say it's not good to not take action when an animal does something inappropriate like biting I wonder if she got herself checked out for rabies often

Hm what? Oh right the show! As an Airi-supporter this episode is making me VERY nervous, but putting aside my personal bias-ness this really was melodrama at it's finest for me, not too heavy but just enough to feel it naturally (if that makes any sense). Sana is a good tsundere, any other show she would definitely be a favorite of mine, but unfortunately the competition in this show is too strong

Originally Posted by Midonin

And again, Sana continues to be, in some respects, similar to a character archetype that's been widely despised throughout the year, but she's not getting that much hatred. I'm not sure how much of it has to do with the show and how much the viewers, but the possibility most certainly does exist.

Simply put, there's just not alot of people watching this show, so the usual haters aren't around

But another reason is that her tsun behavior is very moderate, and her dere side easily covers it up so nothing feels excessive.

EDIT: Oh, you mean man-haters? Well same thing applies, she never really behaved too excessively and is mostly reasonable. Plus her dere side covers it up nicely.

[relentlessflame]

Originally Posted by Vena

Spoiler for After burners... someone turned them on:

Someone turned on the rocket engines on this show as we've now gone into an entirely different route/main heroine trajectory. Now, while I don't mind the direction we're headed I'm going to use the words "breakneck speed" almost as if it were literal because I feel like a few necks may have been broken by how fast and hard the turn has been these last two episodes. Which is something of a gripe I have developed in a sort of inconsistency in timing that has been building up little by little, coming out in full bloom this episode. I enjoyed (considerably more) the first few episodes where the pace was gradual, steady, and *slow*, but now I feel like those days are far behind us. It was forgivable in Angie's episode as it seemed like a one-time thing to get her character solved (and to be fair, it did in a way fit her aloof characterization) and the show did return to its normal pace after that one episode... now, I'm not so sure what the future holds. I really had enjoyed the basics of how the story began as a slow and focused love story, but now we're teetering on the edge of triangular (pentagon?) cliche.

Spoiler for Episode 8:

To me, I honestly don't feel that the pacing itself has changed all that much. Even this episode still felt very even-paced and introspective. The Airi arc actually developed over the course of about the same number of episodes, and covered about the same amount of material. However, the difference is that, before, there was the perception/possibility that the whole show was going to ultimately revolve around Airi, so the pace of the developments in episodes 2-4 (where she basically went from enemy to close friend) seemed to fit if you imagined that it was just part of a larger progress towards an Airi-centric love story. But instead, we see now that the Airi arc was developing themes that were later going to be developed further in the Sana arc, with Ange's block serving both for emphasis and as a transition. The only thing is that the Sana arc adds a little bit more weight because they're approaching the end and broaching the subject of who Shingo has feelings for, which is currently pointing us towards Miu.

So as they go forward, they are adding more "layers" to the story, which makes it more intricate. Whereas the early episodes really focused exclusively on Shingo and Airi, they then introduced Ange, then Sana, and now Miu. They've done this so far without formally closing any of the previous story arcs, so the different story threads overlap (as hinted in both the OP and ED, I guess?): Airi's presumed developing feelings for Shingo are left open-ended as she observes first Ange and then Sana get closer to him, while Shingo himself is being drawn closer to Miu. The story is thus getting a lot of "weight" and some of that weight needs to eventually start shedding so they can move the focus towards the show's closing theme/message. The title of next week's episode suggests to me that they are progressing towards that theme. So again, I'm not sure that it's "pacing" so much here, as it is the "cacophony" of all that's going on that's adding tension -- tension that wasn't there when you saw it as a more straightforward romance than what it ended up being.

That aside, I guess I have to admit that I don't mind the love triangle here; it was one of the most endearing parts of the game to me, and I was happy to see them develop Sana this way in the anime... even though it's painful to watch for her. I also like the use of symbolism here, though I grant that some of it is more heavy-handed than others (I only point it out because it's been my experience that a lot of people don't notice it or miss it, even if it seems heavy-handed to others).

I should also say that your not liking where the story seems to be heading is a totally legitimate complaint, and I'm not trying to dismiss that by any means, even though I'm personally not sure if the issue is pacing per se. All we can really do, I guess, is see where they go from here, and decide in the end if they way they executed this journey made sense.

Originally Posted by Chaos2Frozen

Simply put, there's just not alot of people watching this show, so the usual haters aren't around

But another reason is that her tsun behavior is very moderate, and her dere side easily covers it up so nothing feels excessive.

Well think of it this way: People who despise the tsundere archetype largely gave up on this show after the first episode because they rushed to a conclusion about Airi. They figured they had her totally pegged as a stereotypical tsundere, despite the episode's hints to the contrary. As those who stuck around found out, Airi actually wasn't what she seemed, and though she has her issues, she's definitely a likable person. So then the show "re-introduces" Sana, and by this point we in the audience are already on to the show's methods. Although Sana acts like a more typical tsundere in a lot of ways, they really spend so much more emphasizing the process of her falling in love, and developing her character. So as with Airi, we in the audience know that the point is to look past the front, and see the real person and sympathize with their plight. Even if you don't like Sana all that much, it becomes increasingly clear where all this is heading for her. So I think, all in all, there are a lot of reasons why the (more limited) audience here is more likely to give her a chance. I don't think this show is quite as suited to the sort of rash overreactions and character hatred/fanboyism we sometimes see (though, of course, I'm sure we all still have our favourites).

[Chaos2Frozen]

Actually before the tsundere-thing, I'm certain most of the people who gave up early was because of how it was very VN-adaptation-ish, meaning it's exactly as people thought it would be, I myself had that thought initially as well.

In all honesty when I wrote my Fall expectation, I never thought I would still be following this show after the 3rd-4th episode, and to do so on my own free will without feeling forced

[Midonin]

Originally Posted by Chaos2Frozen

EDIT: Oh, you mean man-haters? Well same thing applies, she never really behaved too excessively and is mostly reasonable. Plus her dere side covers it up nicely.

Not really "man-haters", I tend to think of them more of the archetype of the girl who's a member of a harem love triangle, except they're in love with one of the heroines and not the lead. It's a bit wordier, sure, and probably also exposes my biases. (Girl-on-girl affection is such a touchy subject around here.)

True, everyone in this show is toned down, but the broader, more comedic examples... in short, I wish Ume could get the kind of respect Sana's getting in here. It would make things so much better.

[Vena]

Originally Posted by relentlessflame

Spoiler for Episode 8:

To me, I honestly don't feel that the pacing itself has changed all that much. Even this episode still felt very even-paced and introspective. The Airi arc actually developed over the course of about the same number of episodes, and covered about the same amount of material. However, the difference is that, before, there was the perception/possibility that the whole show was going to ultimately revolve around Airi, so the pace of the developments in episodes 2-4 (where she basically went from enemy to close friend) seemed to fit if you imagined that it was just part of a larger progress towards an Airi-centric love story. But instead, we see now that the Airi arc was developing themes that were later going to be developed further in the Sana arc, with Ange's block serving both for emphasis and as a transition. The only thing is that the Sana arc adds a little bit more weight because they're approaching the end and broaching the subject of who Shingo has feelings for, which is currently pointing us towards Miu.

So as they go forward, they are adding more "layers" to the story, which makes it more intricate. Whereas the early episodes really focused exclusively on Shingo and Airi, they then introduced Ange, then Sana, and now Miu. They've done this so far without formally closing any of the previous story arcs, so the different story threads overlap (as hinted in both the OP and ED, I guess?): Airi's presumed developing feelings for Shingo are left open-ended as she observes first Ange and then Sana get closer to him, while Shingo himself is being drawn closer to Miu. The story is thus getting a lot of "weight" and some of that weight needs to eventually start shedding so they can move the focus towards the show's closing theme/message. The title of next week's episode suggests to me that they are progressing towards that theme. So again, I'm not sure that it's "pacing" so much here, as it is the "cacophony" of all that's going on that's adding tension -- tension that wasn't there when you saw it as a more straightforward romance than what it ended up being.

That aside, I guess I have to admit that I don't mind the love triangle here; it was one of the most endearing parts of the game to me, and I was happy to see them develop Sana this way in the anime... even though it's painful to watch for her. I also like the use of symbolism here, though I grant that some of it is more heavy-handed than others (I only point it out because it's been my experience that a lot of people don't notice it or miss it, even if it seems heavy-handed to others).

I should also say that your not liking where the story seems to be heading is a totally legitimate complaint, and I'm not trying to dismiss that by any means, even though I'm personally not sure if the issue is pacing per se. All we can really do, I guess, is see where they go from here, and decide in the end if they way they executed this journey made sense.

Spoiler for Allow me to better elaborate:

If I were to be more specific with what I mean by pacing, which I probably should have been from the get go, its the *hard turn* as I called it in my previous post. That is to say that the overall pacing of the story itself isn't changing, but that the direction of the show is whipping around at breakneck speeds. Because you are most certainly right that the story has not actually changed its general pace all that much. (Though, I'd still say these last few episodes have been considerably faster paced than the first three or four. Specifically, we've been going faster since Angie's episode.) To be perfectly accurate, this show is experiencing very jarring directional changes which are *standard for a harem show* but that feel out of place in a show that started off on a seemingly simple and straightforward route that focused more on two people, than on the melodrama that evolves from including every cast member crushing hard on one central character. So it isn't just one thing but a combination of sudden changes that are in a seemingly rather strong contrast to the basis laid out in the show.

Put simply: there is a choppiness/jerkiness in progression.

It's like I said, what I expected and what I got were very different because my expectations were based on the subtle or not past developments of the show, which I do not think can really be said to apply anymore (or so it seems). The amount of time spent on a character is not itself what is important in deciding if the pacing/timing about that character was well orchestrated, but the initiation and then *jump into* said character's story. In that sense, the way we have effectively been catapulted into Miu's arc over Sana's broken heart is *jarring* considering what we'd been shown over the previous six episodes. I had expected not such a catapult but a development independent of Sana (similar to how Airi was handled, and how Miu was being handled in the background in previous episodes). Previously, we had characters coming closer together through friendly events and generally very happy feelings, and that is what I had come to expect from this show. Today's episode, however, was completely different in polarity.

This is what I mean by pacing/timing/thematics. And it brings me to ask: Where is the show headed? I understand that my opinion and analysis are my own but I am very honestly confused by what just happened even if it wasn't hard to see coming from the previous episode (and as such my complaint isn't only against one episode but the combination of two episodes). Effectively, I am left wondering what might have been going through Miu's head to put Sana in the situation she ended up... and, really, how it ended up.

Note: I don't think anything is too open anymore, its either Miu or Airi. The symbolism at the end, while poignant, was heavy (maybe only to me) and pretty blatant in meaning. Which brings me to that problem but I'll keep it short. The show has in the past highlighted and stressed the subtleties of expressions and actions, even the smallest, (and which were rightfully hard to see but quite meaningful) while this episode delved into a symbolic gesture that was quite similar to slapping you across the face.

And fear not, I enjoy these discussions even if our opinions do not always agree. And, I have to say, that many of my complaints may not have anything to do with Manglobe but be an issue with the source itself. As I've said before, I've never played the game and so cannot say whether or not I'd have had the same issues then.

[Chaos2Frozen]

Originally Posted by Midonin

Not really "man-haters", I tend to think of them more of the archetype of the girl who's a member of a harem love triangle, except they're in love with one of the heroines and not the lead. It's a bit wordier, sure, and probably also exposes my biases. (Girl-on-girl affection is such a touchy subject around here.)

If that's all there is then trust me, if I had a dollar every time someone jumps to a yuri conclusion in any series... =_= Basically, there's no shortage for support >.>

The thing is, the guys here in AS-forums are a very sensitive group, they don't like it when the guy is being beaten up for comedy sake and nothing more

Originally Posted by Midonin

True, everyone in this show is toned down, but the broader, more comedic examples... in short, I wish Ume could get the kind of respect Sana's getting in here. It would make things so much better.

Very difficult, Ume doesn't help her case.

[hyl]

Originally Posted by Vena

I feel like I might be a bit too harsh on this episode, someone tell me if I am as I don't really intend it to sound overly harsh and am aiming more towards constructive criticism on pacing/mood/thematics and such.

Spoiler for After burners... someone turned them on:

Someone turned on the rocket engines on this show as we've now gone into an entirely different route/main heroine trajectory. Now, while I don't mind the direction we're headed I'm going to use the words "breakneck speed" almost as if it were literal because I feel like a few necks may have been broken by how fast and hard the turn has been these last two episodes. Which is something of a gripe I have developed in a sort of inconsistency in timing that has been building up little by little, coming out in full bloom this episode. I enjoyed (considerably more) the first few episodes where the pace was gradual, steady, and *slow*, but now I feel like those days are far behind us. It was forgivable in Angie's episode as it seemed like a one-time thing to get her character solved (and to be fair, it did in a way fit her aloof characterization) and the show did return to its normal pace after that one episode... now, I'm not so sure what the future holds. I really had enjoyed the basics of how the story began as a slow and focused love story, but now we're teetering on the edge of triangular (pentagon?) cliche.

That having been said, the episode was still good and the conclusion was emotional to say the least, and it really makes you feel sorry for Sana (and the rest of what I could say has already been said by relentlessflame, so just scroll up a little to read that), but I'm really not sure where the show is going with this. I had figured development with Miu was inevitable, and rightfully it would be necessary to end in her route, but the episodes have been blazing forward as if there were no tomorrow to establish Miu as the *new* main heroine. Its almost as if this show only had nine episodes and the next would be the last, but since we know it isn't the end I'm left wondering what the last five are going to be for. I had expected either a refocus on Airi or a gradual shift towards Miu over the course of a few episodes to compensate/adjust for the time spent on developing Airi earlier in the show, and which would have allowed for a graceful conclusion to Airi's feelings and some time to delve into Sakano's character. Unfortunately, I was given neither and got whipped right onto Miu's route, Airi's still showing up in the background of every other scene *observing*, Sana's heart was broken (I'll admit, that one could be seen coming from a mile away after last episode), and Sakuno/Angie have more or less fallen by the way side somewhere along this roller-coaster of the last couple episodes.

And, frankly, I'm not a fan of such heavy handed symbolism. I prefer subtle symbolic clues, not Chekhov's Gun pointed at my head and the size of a train.

Originally Posted by Vena

Spoiler for Allow me to better elaborate:

If I were to be more specific with what I mean by pacing, which I probably should have been from the get go, its the *hard turn* as I called it in my previous post. That is to say that the overall pacing of the story itself isn't changing, but that the direction of the show is whipping around at breakneck speeds. Because you are most certainly right that the story has not actually changed its general pace all that much. (Though, I'd still say these last few episodes have been considerably faster paced than the first three or four. Specifically, we've been going faster since Angie's episode.) To be perfectly accurate, this show is experiencing very jarring directional changes which are *standard for a harem show* but that feel out of place in a show that started off on a seemingly simple and straightforward route that focused more on two people, than on the melodrama that evolves from including every cast member crushing hard on one central character. So it isn't just one thing but a combination of sudden changes that are in a seemingly rather strong contrast to the basis laid out in the show.

Put simply: there is a choppiness/jerkiness in progression.

It's like I said, what I expected and what I got were very different because my expectations were based on the subtle or not past developments of the show, which I do not think can really be said to apply anymore (or so it seems). The amount of time spent on a character is not itself what is important in deciding if the pacing/timing about that character was well orchestrated, but the initiation and then *jump into* said character's story. In that sense, the way we have effectively been catapulted into Miu's arc over Sana's broken heart is *jarring* considering what we'd been shown over the previous six episodes. I had expected not such a catapult but a development independent of Sana (similar to how Airi was handled, and how Miu was being handled in the background in previous episodes). Previously, we had characters coming closer together through friendly events and generally very happy feelings, and that is what I had come to expect from this show. Today's episode, however, was completely different in polarity.

This is what I mean by pacing/timing/thematics. And it brings me to ask: Where is the show headed? I understand that my opinion and analysis are my own but I am very honestly confused by what just happened even if it wasn't hard to see coming from the previous episode (and as such my complaint isn't only against one episode but the combination of two episodes). Effectively, I am left wondering what might have been going through Miu's head to put Sana in the situation she ended up... and, really, how it ended up.

Note: I don't think anything is too open anymore, its either Miu or Airi. The symbolism at the end, while poignant, was heavy (maybe only to me) and pretty blatant in meaning. Which brings me to that problem but I'll keep it short. The show has in the past highlighted and stressed the subtleties of expressions and actions, even the smallest, (and which were rightfully hard to see but quite meaningful) while this episode delved into a symbolic gesture that was quite similar to slapping you across the face.

And fear not, I enjoy these discussions even if our opinions do not always agree. And, I have to say, that many of my complaints may not have anything to do with Manglobe but be an issue with the source itself. As I've said before, I've never played the game and so cannot say whether or not I'd have had the same issues then.

Spoiler for spoilers ep 8 and the game:

This episode is very faithfull to the Miu story in the VN. Manglobe did not change much. All the symbolism, melodrama etc. were all in the game.
Also Sana is my opinion at her best in the Miu story. But i can't say too much about it, because that's related to the VN and the anime has not reached that point yet. I think you should look at why Sana is conflicted to understand her, instead of focusing on the the melodrama and the change of (in your words)"pacing". About your comment about expression, well i still think that this episode emphasizes alot on expressions.
The newest episodes may seem different from the first 6, but that's because the orignal VN had different writers for each of the heroine's story.
As from what i can see the anime has only hinted that Airi would be the possible end girl from her developments from the first 5 episodes. But unfortunately those episodes only covered the main route of the VN.

[amoirsp]

I'll try to keep thoughts simple again.

Spoiler:

Well that was quite a bit in the episode. Sure a lot of emphasis as people say.

On the preview I'm like yes, we can see Amaha.

If this weren't the 8th episode, I would be inclined to think Miu is the main. One random hint which isn't relevant is that she had her own BGM it felt like. Also other routes we've seen are encounter based in the sense that I felt it came upon him, as opposed to him actively discovering it. Miu's cases felt more like active discovery.

Also on a game notation, although I didn't play the game, I would figure you would want to have Miu's route run quite a bit because it has quite a bit of content you can run, and based on the club incentive flow, there's a lot of integration that you can do.

Not sure if this is going 12 or 13 episodes but I find Airi still a possibility. As others have said though, the more Miu's route runs the less convincing Airi will be. There are only a few factors I can think of.

Miu's *game spoiler*
Sakuno pointing out something (not sure the term, as Shingo has been in character)
Airi initiating something. Confession, activity, something.
[Insert something about Airi's mom] <- the only plot point I can think of since it was specified the first 4 episodes was more or less a common route.

I mean seriously, Sakuno has been unused. Something seems cooking (or not).

However that's the only way I can think of it, because when thinking about Airi's calendar, finals come up? (no it says midterms)

Eh nevermind. For Manglobe to basically nullify the speculation despite maintaining some accuracy is pretty interesting.

Better off looking forward to the next episode.