VS Imaginator 2

For an episode named after the character(s) Imaginator, there was a surprising lack of Imaginator. Not only did we not see the “other” known as Imaginator at all, but we barely saw the person, Jin “Imaginator” Asukai, as well.

Instead, this week’s episode was a bit different from what we’ve seen before. The first half was taken up by a slice of life story involving some new characters, and the second introduced us to the next antagonist known as Spooky E.

Now that a decent number of the “others” have been revealed (and I’ll be continuing to use “others” when referencing the supernatural beings), I think it’s a good time to take a look at their names. Specifically, I want to talk about how stupid their names are.

Echoes and Manticore are fine names because they actually have meanings behind them which reflect their characters. But, Boogiepop, Imaginator, and Spooky E are pretty lame. I suppose an argument could be made for Imaginator’s name having to do with her ability, but not really.

But, this brings up the question of whether or not Japanese schools actually have “ghost stories” so to speak. And, if they do, do the monsters these stories are about have such crazy names like Boogiepop and Spooky E? My guess is that these sorts of rumors die out after elementary school, but if you attended school in Japan, I’d like to hear from you in the comments.

There are so many things that happen in Japanese schools in anime that clearly don’t happen in actual Japanese schools, so from a Western perspective it can sometimes be difficult to determine what is and isn’t fact. A popular example is the idea that the student council is basically equal to the justice system of the country, which is clearly false.

Slice of Life

Rather than following our regular, high school cast, this episode follows a cast of middle schoolers. Our protagonist for the episode is Masaki Taniguchi, who’s none other than the younger brother of Nagi Kirima, the high school troublemaker. I forget exactly how they’re related, but I think they’re half-siblings.

After moving back to Japan, Masaki found that his classmates seemed to dislike him because he stood out too much. However, as we later learn, it was mainly just Masaki’s male classmates who disliked him because he was getting the attention of all the girls.

Some boys then jumped Masaki in a back alley because they were jealous of him, but a strange girl appeared to rescue him. Her name is Aya Orihata, and she’s a strange one. To stop the other boys from beating up Masaki, she tears her shirt open and tells them they can have their way with her instead.

This is when their roles swap and Masaki then decides to protect Aya from the other boys. And, this is where the previous episode ended, with Jin “Imaginator” Asukai coming to their rescue and probably killing the aggressors. After this, Masaki and Aya begin dating.

However, the relationship between these two middle schoolers is anything but ordinary. Masaki is always the one who has to initiate contact between the two, and Aya lives a fairly mysterious life. She has no family, lives alone, and has rumors circulating about her being willing to have sex with anyone who asks her.

I’ll get to my thoughts on these aspects of Aya’s character in the next section, so for now let’s move onto the next important character of the episode, Shinjirou Annou. While he’s originally depicted as being one of the boys who’s jealous of Masaki, it turns out that he’s actually jealous of all the girls who hang around Masaki.

At this point it’s still unclear to me exactly what kind of relationship Shinjirou wants with Masaki, but I think it’s fairly safe to say that we’ve found our first gay character of the series. The real question is whether or not he’ll stay true to his feelings for Masaki or if he’ll settle for the girl who confessed her love for him in a letter.

Spooky E

While Jin “Imaginator” Asukai makes a couple of appearances throughout the episode, it’s clear that the true antagonist this time around is Spooky E. All we really know about Spooky E for now is that he’s either a creation or member of the Towa Organization and that he can overwrite the minds of anyone he touches.

I don’t remember if the Towa Organization was brought up in any earlier episodes, but if not, I’m willing to bet it’s the same organization that created Manticore. However, I’m assuming that Imaginator isn’t a product of the Towa Organization, but is rather an independent supernatural entity similar to Boogiepop.

And, this is where our friend Shinjirou comes back into the picture. After stalking Aya to find out her secrets, Shinjirou is confronted by Spooky E who erases his motivations and personality, turning him into what’s essentially a mindless slave. You can think of it as a better version of Manticore’s slave ability.

Interestingly, the order Spooky E gives to Shinjirou is to focus on getting accepted into Shinyou Academy, which I assume is the high school the rest of our main cast attends. This is also the high school which Aya applied and was accepted to only recently.

So, coming back around to Aya, why is she so strange? She has no family, lives alone, and, if the rumors are to be believed, is willing to do anything asked of her. My guess is that she too is under the influence of Spooky E, and that he was the one who ordered her to get accepted into Shinyou Academy as well.

As someone without any family to pry into her change in character, Aya seems to be the perfect person for Spooky E to convert into one of his slaves. I’m assuming the fact that Aya is so subservient is also a byproduct of Spooky E’s ability, and not actually how she would normally be.

As for why Shinjirou was then also made into one of Spooky E’s slaves, it would simply be due to the fact that his stalking of Aya would have revealed her secret connection to Spooky E if nothing was done. Basically, if he just minded his own business, he never would have had a run-in with Spooky E.

Conclusion

At the end of the episode, Boogiepop rescues Shinjirou from Spooky E’s clutches, but Spooky E unfortunately escapes. Since this arc is about Imaginator and not Spooky E, I wouldn’t be surprised if we don’t see him again until later on in the series. I feel like this was simply an introduction to tie him into the current events.

So, what are your thoughts on this week’s episode of Boogiepop and Others? Although this episode was a bit different from the others so far, I thought it was still good. Though, I’d rather watch the high school students or Jin “Imaginator” Asukai than these middle schoolers.

Also, although I’m enjoying this series overall, I think this will be the last week it’s part of my episodic review schedule, at least for a few weeks. I have a decent amount of other content I want to get out to you all, and I think Boogiepop is the series to cut from my current schedule to do so.

This means that along with Thursdays, Saturdays will be considered a “miscellaneous” day for irregularly scheduled content. Boogiepop may come back at some point, or perhaps even SAO: Alicization will make a return instead. Leave your thoughts on this matter down in the comments as well.

If you enjoyed this potentially final Boogiepop episode review, then be sure to click the like button ❤ down below. And, as always, go give me a follow over on Twitter @DoubleSama. Even something as simple as following helps out a lot.

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VS Imaginator 1

The second arc of the Boogiepop and Others anime is here, and with it we’re introduced to the next antagonist(s), Imaginator. While the previous enemy, Manticore, represented a corruption of the evolution of humanity, Imaginator represents the alternate futures any one person might have.

I’ll be explaining what exactly that means in a later section of this review, but for now I want to focus on Boogiepop’s relation to Imaginator, as well as to the “others” in general because I didn’t feel like this was explained well in the first arc.

Boogiepop is a shinigami, which is to say an angel of death. For those of you who have seen Death Note (which is probably everyone), think of Ryuk. However, although she’s a shinigami and there are rumors that she’s the one who killed the missing girls from the Manticore arc, she’s not the kind of shinigami we typically think of.

Boogiepop doesn’t go around deciding when the lives of people are over, but that doesn’t mean she’s a hero either. As you may have figured out from the first arc, she serves to keep the world in check by defeating the various monsters which threaten humanity.

Now, I know that makes it sound like she’s a hero, but remember, she’s not, she’s a shinigami. Yes, Boogiepop saves the world, which is heroic, but she does so in a very unheroic way, which is by killing those who threaten the peace she keeps, and not bothering to save those who are essentially deemed unnecessary.

In her first encounter with Imaginator, Imaginator is controlling the body of a girl by the name of Suiko Minahoshi. During this encounter, Imaginator forces Suiko off the edge of a building, and then leaves her body to return to the rooftop to continue her talk with Boogiepop.

So, how does this show that Boogiepop isn’t a hero? Imaginator informs Boogiepop that there’s still time to save Suiko before she hits the ground, however, Boogiepop makes no attempt to save her. Boogiepop later tells Suiko’s friend that she was actually the one that killed her and that Suiko’s death wasn’t a suicide.

But, why didn’t Boogiepop save Suiko? Was it because she actually couldn’t make it in time? Was it because she’s a shinigami and there’s some rule against saving people? Was it because she truly didn’t care about whether or not she died? Or, was there another reason which we have yet to learn?

Asukai-Sensei

The next part of the episode introduces us to a new character, Jin Asukai. Jin works as a teacher and guidance counselor at a prep school for art students, and has a special ability which allows him to see into the hearts of others and determine what their lives are missing.

I should mention, however, that despite having this ability, he doesn’t seem to be one of the “others” like Imaginator, Manticore, or Echoes. Yes, he has a strange power, but he doesn’t yet seem to be considered non-human. Of course, this designation could change in the future.

Now, I’ll be honest, when we were first introduced to Jin I assumed he was going to be some sort of pedophile because his inner monologue was talking about how one of his students was still just a “bud” and hadn’t “bloomed” yet while the camera (his point of view) slowly zoomed in on her chest.

But, we later learn that he doesn’t just figuratively “see” what’s in people’s hearts, he can literally see their hearts in the form of plants inside their chests. Some people don’t have roots, some have thorns, and some are even missing flower buds, which is implied to be an important component.

Jin is then confronted by Imaginator out on the street, but he seems to be the only one who can see her. As it turns out, she too has a special ability (beyond that of being a potential future of a person) which is that she can see the burst of energy that occurs when a life ends.

Later that night, Imaginator appears before Jin once again, but this time she’s controlling Jin’s young neighbor. It’s at this point that a seed is planted within Jin that will change the course of his life. Imaginator shows him a vision of one possible route his future could take in which he becomes a serial killer who rips out the hearts of his victims (or at least that’s the imagery he’s shown).

A Killer is Born

Initially Jin rejects the possible future version of himself which he was shown by Imaginator, but he then begins to find himself thinking about it more and more. He has the ability to see into people’s hearts, but not the ability to solve the problems he sees within them, so is this his true calling?

However, he doesn’t come to a conclusion regarding this question until he runs into a former student of his who attempts to rob him. He recalls that he was unable to help her when she needed him most back when she was a student, and now she’s doing and selling drugs on the street.

This alone wasn’t enough to push him over the edge, but then Imaginator appears once again, this time taking control of Jin’s former student. Imaginator then proceeds to cut her own throat and leaves Jin to desperately attempt to save his former student.

In the end she succumbs to her injuries in Jin’s arms, and after he’s questioned by the police who say they knew about her criminal activities for some time, decides on his new life path. For now it’s unclear exactly what Jin’s motivations are, but my guess is that he’s attempting to clean up the streets of crime in his own twisted way.

He also hasn’t actually killed anyone yet, but he does capture three hoodlum boys and tells them that they’re going to become his guinea pigs, so we can assume they won’t be alive for much longer. It’s at this point that he also takes on the name of Imaginator.

It’s important to note here that while he takes on this name, he is not the same as the original Imaginator. His body isn’t being manipulated by her, but he’s instead serving as her proxy or disciple of sorts. Because having two characters called Imaginator may get confusing, for future reviews I’ll continue to refer to him as Jin.

Conclusion

Overall I think this arc is going to be much more interesting than the first one. The first arc included aliens, military experiments, and supernatural beings, and was pretty convoluted overall. While this arc still does have supernatural beings, the main focus seems to be on Jin and his role as a serial killer.

Honestly, I know this would fundamentally change the Boogiepop and Others series, but I really wouldn’t have minded if Boogiepop was the only supernatural being. I just find a crazed serial killer to be a more compelling antagonist than, say, a man-made reproduction of an alien that escapes from the military.

But, what did you think of this first episode of the second Boogiepop and Others arc? I’m sure a decent amount of people dropped this anime after the first three episodes, but if you’re still watching, do you think this arc is going to be better than the first?

If you enjoyed this review, then be sure to let me know by clicking the like button ❤ down below. Also give me a follow over on Twitter @DoubleSama so you don’t miss out on any future content. I tweet out every time a new post goes live, so it’s the best way to stay up to date.

Finally, if you’d like to help support DoubleSama.com then check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama for more information on the various tiers and their respective benefits. I’ve just added a new tier to the list and updated the benefits for the original three.

And, speaking of patrons, I’d like to thank HeavyROMAN for his contribution at the Heika tier!

My review of the next episode is available here.

Boogiepop and Others 3

I’m hoping that this series starts giving the episodes different titles, because I’ll be pretty disappointed if we make it all the way to the end of the series and the title is still simply, “Boogiepop and Others 18.” I have hope though that now that the intro arc is complete we’ll start getting different titles.

They still may be numbered within arcs, but I at least want the different arcs of the series to have different titles like the Monogatari series. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.

But, as I mentioned, this week’s episode seems to conclude the introductory arc of the series involving Echoes and the Manticore. As a disclaimer, I probably won’t use the names for a decent amount of characters in this post because they all seem to be throw-aways other than the main duo, and so learning their names isn’t important to me.

With that said, the girl who discovered Echoes has gone missing, killed by the Manticore as we saw in the previous episode. However, she may have been the wrong person for the Manticore and her human subordinate to kill, because she has friends who are actually worried about her.

One of those friends is Nagi Kirirma, the girl who appears to be the protagonist of the series. Another is the girl’s boyfriend, Shirou Tanaka, and the final of the trio searching for her is the class president or something.

The only reason I know Shirou’s name is because I had to look it up for the picture in the section below, and I even had to look up Nagi’s name. That’s how much the characters in this series blend together. I honestly only knew Boogiepop, Echoes, and Manticore when I started writing this post.

And, that’s one of my issues with this series so far, all of the characters seemingly blend together. There are a lot of supporting characters who look almost exactly the same, and whose names I’ll never know, even by the end of the 18 episodes if they last that long.

Now, you may be thinking, “well, the main cast don’t look all that similar.” You’re right to think that to an extent, but they still look pretty similar to some of the background characters. In fact, when they were going around asking people if they’d seen the missing girl, they asked a girl who looked exactly like the one who was missing.

Also, as we’ll see, even the characters who appear to be main characters can be killed off at any moment without warning. So is it even worth learning their names either?

It’s a Trap!

While Shirou and the class president are searching for Shirou’s missing girlfriend, the subordinate of the Manticore offers to help them find Nagi because he claims she would know where the missing girl is as she’s one of her friends. However, he’s really just using them as bait to lure Nagi out of hiding.

If he had attempted to lure out Nagi on his own, she would have gotten suspicious of him. But since it’s a group of students looking for her, and at least two of them have a reason to be searching for the missing girl, Shirou and the class president, Nagi is more likely to show herself.

But, despite knowing the students who are trying to find her, Nagi still knows that she’s probably going into a trap. So, she takes the offensive and strikes first to capture the three students and have Echoes make sure none of them are being controlled by the Manticore.

However, just because none of these students are the Manticore or are being controlled directly by the Manticore doesn’t mean they still aren’t threats. Later on in the episode, after Nagi sets them free, the Manticore’s subordinate slits her throat with a packaging knife after stabbing Echoes in the collar with a poison-laced pen.

Echoes and the Manticore

Once Nagi is taken down by the Manticore’s subordinate, the final battle between Echoes and the Manticore begins. During this fight, Shirou runs away, as he probably should, because this fight is no place for mere humans.

After being stomped on by the Manticore, Echoes grabs Nagi’s body and carries her up to the rooftop where she’ll be safe from the rest of the fight. During this time he also apparently gives some of his life force to her in order to keep her alive.

However, this means that Echoes is no longer at his full strength while going up against the Manticore. Normally Echoes would be the stronger of the two, but him giving up his life force for Nagi, and the poison that was injected into him, leaves the Manticore feeling as though the battle was too easily won.

Before the Manticore can finish Echoes off, the class president steps in and yells at her, because what else is she supposed to do when confronted with such a monstrosity? Echoes then decides to give up his life in order to send his knowledge back to his home world (or something).

He beams himself up towards the stars in the direction of the Manticore, attempting to take her down with him. But, the Manticore’s subordinate pushes her out of the way and is disintegrated in her place by Echoes.

Now the only two left standing on the battlefield are the Manticore and class president.

Helpless, the class president tries to run away, only to have her escape cut off by the Manticore. However, just before the Manticore deals the final blow, Boogiepop saves the class president by ensnaring the Mainticore in wires, cutting off one of her arms.

And now, the true hero of the series reveals himself, Shirou Emiya Tanaka. Wielding his bow, Shirou returns to fire a single arrow through the head of the ensnared Manticore, killing her once and for all. But seriously, Shirou being an archer can’t possibly be a coincidence, right?

With that, both the Manticore and Echoes are gone, and I can only assume the next arc will focus on some other antagonist or supernatural creature. Though, it is possible that Echoes could make a return since he’s an alien of some sort and it’s not completely out of the question that he’s still alive.

Conclusion

The first two episodes of this anime were definitely all over the place and hard to follow at times, but I enjoyed them overall. In this third episode, however, I started to see more of the downfalls of this series. As mentioned before, the fact that none of the characters really stand out besides the protagonist is one thing, but that’s not all.

The fight scene between the Manticore and Echoes wasn’t the best, to put it nicely. It felt like there was little effort put into the fight choreography, the art was minimal, and the animation looked fairly choppy. These are the kinds of scenes in which the animation and overall quality of the series should be improved and shine, but this wasn’t the case here.

In all honesty, the best parts of the Boogiepop and Others anime are the OP and ED songs. “shadowgraph” by MYTH & ROID and “Whiteout” by Riko Azuna are, as the kids would say, bangers. And, the reason I wanted to even watch this series in the first place was because MYTH & ROID were doing the OP, I love all of their songs and can’t wait for a second album.

So, what are your thoughts on this series so far and this week’s episode in particular? Do you find some of the characters hard to remember and tell apart, or is that just me? Also, what did you think of the animation quality in this episode? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoyed this post or found it interesting in any way, be sure to click the like button ❤ down below and follow me over on Twitter @DoubleSama so you don’t miss out on any upcoming content. I tweet out every time a new post is uploaded.

Finally, if you’d like to help support DoubleSama.com then check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama for more details about the various tiers of patronage and their respective benefits. I’m also in the process of improving the current benefits for patrons, so if you have any ideas, just send them my way.

My review of the next episode is available here.