Trapped in another dream…
…can you hear me calling your name?
Summary:
Insane Black★Rock Shooter activates and Kuroi withdraws into herself to sustain the fight. By taking on the pain of others, the “real selves” are saved, but how much can she take before the destroys the entire Other world? Saya-sensei (Black★Gold Saw) tries to convince Kuroi to come back while Yuu looks on. Flashbacks reveal Saya and Yuu’s friendship, and in the process, Black★Gold Saw is defeated. Now it’s up to Strength to take down Black★Rock Shooter?
Impressions:
Saya Irino’s relationship with Yuu is revealed, and it helps explain a lot of things, but at the same time, it opens up a whole new set of questions. What is “Other” World exactly, and why is Black★Rock Shooter so important? The plot twist that Black★Gold Saw isn’t the bad guy in the story was definitely interesting enough to keep up the level of drama and development in the story. How come Black★Rock ShooterBRS takes on all the pain, and why did she go “insane”?
Back to last week’s comment that Yuu doesn’t have a shadow- she might actually be too invested in the Other world, and that’s why she doesn’t really exist in one, or the other. Yuu was originally a down-trodden child in school, bearing the brunt of the worst things in childhood. From bullies at school, to an ignorant family, no friends: she was empty until the then-Saya decided to get to know her. You felt a lot of sympathy for Yuu than any of the other characters that have been introduced so far, including Kuroi. Why? Probably because she’s the most normal, the most vulnerable, but at the same time, the strongest- STRENGTH.
I felt this was really good in continuing the analysis of “friendship” in people’s lives. I’ve had friends, and not-friends, choose other people over me, and I know it hurts. It hurts a lot, and you don’t have any choice but to keep smiling when all you want to do is take out your anger on the source of the pain.
But we don’t. We hold in the pain. We smile and nod. If someone is trapped in a nightmare, we just keep calling their name and reach out towards them, and hope they reach back. Those kinds of dreams where you’re trapped in the in-between state, when you know you’re dreaming, but you can’t change your actions, you see almost-familiar faces, and you can’t wake up from. The writers of the show really dig deep to pull this off. Black★Rock Shooter is so much more than just beautifully choreographed fights, or brilliantly designed outfits.
If you’re wondering how I labelled Black★Rock Shooter “insane,” it’s because the figma is being bundled with the DVD release of the season. THEY’RE SO PREPARED TO RIP A NEW HOLE IN YOUR WALLET MIND. But, yeah, BRS turns heavy-metal and breaks out the huge gun-sword to battle BGS. I knew that BGS calling Kuroi back from the Other side wasn’t going to work because there’s almost no connection between the two, and out of them, Saya is the one that hurt Kuroi and her friends the most, even though most of the handiwork was by Yuu. Yuu plays a big part in everything, almost like the architect of the whole dream world, innocently drawing others in and trying to “save” them by downloading the real life pain into the Other selves. She’s both really innocent and dangerously powerful by being unaware of the bigger consequences of her actions.
And Yuu. She’s amazing in this episode, even though she doesn’t do much. She’s protected by Saya, but at the end, reverses and Yuu/Strength stands up for herself. That leaves the issue- what is Yuu? Is she a ghost? A mirage? A spirit? She’s going to take on BRS in the next episode, but which friendship is more important to her- Saya’s continued loyalty or Kuroi’s innocent learning curve?
Geez, have to wait another week. Damn cliff-hanger endings.
Sweet melancholy while your mind is balanced on the edge of a blade.
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