I'm taking it easy this semester. I hated the last one, and am never doing that again. ..Or at least not until grad school.

But anyhow, I've managed to find more time to do shit like this. And while I have a number of CDs that I've wanted to review, this time of great freedom also clashes with the new season of anime, as well as the midseason point for those already running.

With that said...
Yeah, so.. Mai Otome's pretty popular, huh?
It's rare that I like an anime that's watched by so many people, I think. There's more than enough people blogging about it, as well. But before I totally negate this entry's purpose, I feel it's a little hard to ignore episodes that are this good.

..Especially considering the fact that I played with the idea of dropping this series earlier on.. ^^;

Granted, after a rather bumpy start, Mai Otome's finally starting to get itself together, and I haven't thought of any pre-7 episodes since.

Or maybe I'm just becoming numb to it all. Whichever.

As this episode starts off, we're given the impression that the students of Garderobe are left pretty ignorant to the happenings of the outside world. ..Or maybe just to matters regarding Otome. ..Or maybe Otome battles are kept secret from everyone except national officials. Oh which one is it? Either way, sibling nations Leticia-Romulus and Leticia-Remus are at it like cats (and I don't just mean their Otome). It hits home for Miya and Yayoi, however, who are from Remus and Romulus respectively. They try to brush off the "rumors" and continue being friends, but this dark future they all face is all a little much to simply ignore. It actually proves too much to Miya, who eventually lets go of her feelings onto a previously oblivious Arika.
..In a very nice scene, I think. Let's hope that was just scratching the surface of what she's capable of.

One of the funniest parts of the episode, I think, was probably Haruka's tirade of how she should just go over there and kick both of the battling Otomes' asses. Oh, Haruka, please make gratuitous cameos more often.

Also, I think I'm starting to miss energetic, annoying Arika. All this introspective stuff doesn't suit her at all -- I mean, her hair didn't even form one quotation mark. But what am I saying? This is character development, is it not? Something I most certainly said i wanted her to eventually undergo, earlier on.
Haaa, I'm such a flipflopper.

Anyhow, Arika eventually confides in Erstin's comforting arms (who I could tell was onto her since the end of episode 13 (haha!)) and begins to act a little more like herself once again. Not soon after, Arika learns from Erstin about Rena, the former owner of the Sapphire of the Clear Blue Sky, and the person she most likely believes to be her mother. And perhaps it's weird of me, but I find it rather suspicious that Erstin knows so much about Rena. ...I'm probably just crazy, though.

The episode ends with Arika running off and eventually finding herself in some very undesirable company.

...But not before Sergay finds out from Old Lady McHaggard that Arika is most likely the real princess.


And so there we have it. Though episode 14 didn't have as much action as episode 13 before it, I thought it was MUCH better. We get some very important plot and character developments, along with a little bit of nurturing some sub plots (including Miyu and the return of Childs), and of course, more of Tomoe.
...The more sinister she becomes, the more interesting and generally awesome she is to me. Oh God, please let her go out in an utter atomic burst of glory.

Oh and the previews!
Shame on you, Sunrise! Don't encourage the people! Lolicon is still a disease!

Labels: Mai Otome

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