descentintosiblingcon
Descent Into Sibling-Con
Live-reading .hack: Legend Of Twilight
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The whole story takes place in 2014, which means the Michael Bay TMNT reboot was in theaters when multiple people were falling into a coma.
Sanjuro was from the original .hack IMOQ games. He was a side character who required a non-plot related mission to recruit that you can skip over.
A Drama CD released only in Japan revealed that Hotaru is a crossplayer. Since she was referred to as female throughout the entire series with no objection from her, I will continue to refer to her as such.
Mireille is 4 goddamn years old. Ouka in real life is her tutor who's apparently super shy and lives out her power fantasies via .hack. So yeah...she's MMORPG She-Hulk.
Fuck it, group shot. Notice that Balmung's fave remains unrevealed. He could be Scorpion for all we know.
Thanks for playing, losers.
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#thanks for not bombing my house#despite how sucky this series is#i love blinking#i envy anyone stupid enough not to know what it is
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Final Thoughts
Manga's better for greater consistency in tone. Anime...has better music. Which it's impossible for manga to have so it cheated. Manga wins. This series is okay overall, nothing too overly offensive (unless you're triggered by incest in which case...yeah, avoid this entry.) Nothing special about Shugo, Rena's not breaking any glass ceilings, Balmung's only cool in the manga and everybody else is forgettable. The anime wasted its darker tone and the entire franchise feels like it could have been contained to a gaiden instead of a whole-ass series. Not much to say besides...that happened.
My final post on this blog will be the odds and ends I found out while researching the series. Check it out if you're interested.
Anime rating: 4.5/10
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#i hope i made the day worse of everyone in the anime tag#i think i've successfully scared everyone off the review tag by now#.hack fans#look upon your god#despair at your folly#this#this is what all of mankind's efforts amount to#this is what the big bang was for#this is what will be left after you expire
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Episode 12: The Legend Begins
And The Legend Is You!
youtube
Anyway, still fighting the AI. Everybody's using items and it's doing jack of shit. Everyone's doomed...but Kamiya's still there and Shugo runs into him. When Kamiya makes fun of Shugo for being infected, Shugo realizes that Kamiya is clean. Lightbulb...
The group is still fighting the monster but they are still going nowhere with their attempts. They're about to give up but Balmung and Shugo tell them to suck up. No items left? Time for the Data Drain. Oh, but Shugo's not using it on the monster: he's using it on him. See, because Kamiya was Data Drained before, he's immune to the effects of the virus due to the Data Drain's effect stopping his status in time. Maybe he'll fuck up and kill everyone but if he can't save his hero, what's his worth as a person? That's totally heroic and not a red flag for clinical depression. The group agrees to let him use on all of them so that he's not just facing the risk by himself.
Using the barrier as a mirror, Shugo lets himself and the group get hit with the Data Drain. It nearly kills everybody...but it works. They even gets their weapons back. Balmung, bitch that he is, is barely hanging on though and he can only give Shugo and his main group encourage as he pitfully dies on the ground. The group fucks shit up and the mysterious brunette from the real world watches over them. Yes, the same one I've barely been bringing up.
So while the virus is not affecting them anymore, Rena is another story altogether. Finally pushed to the wall, Shugo Data Drains the monster, using his Shonen Spirit to burst through the barrier, kill it and save his sister. All that's left is to get rid of the AI which Shugo also prepares to do with his dagger blast...only for the brunette's player character to jump in the way...and for the AI to block her from the blast, taking the blow intended for her in the first play.
So...that just makes the AI release a virus that threatens to destroy the entire World. That girl? A friend of the AI's. They were using the other three hackers for their own goals. Their goal? To discover if there is a life after death. Yup. This whole anime is Leapfrog's Altered States. Anyway, her one friend is dead, she's all alone, she's a nerd...the girl doesn't care if they all die. Balmung says nut up again and the heroes scramble to figure out how to save an entire World.
Using SIBLING POWER, Rena and Shugo use the bracelet to fly into the source of the virus.
Credits.
Epilogue: It worked. Everyone's fine.
THOUGHTS
Eh. Mediocre finale. Rena barely helped, Kamiya didn't get to do anything, everybody's just fine with each other all of a sudden...feels rushed at best. Anyway, it's done and no more incest! Hooray!
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Episode 11: The End Of The World
Ominous pre-finale title or endgame Kingdom Hearts world?
So the AI is fighting them. Shugo is ready to throw hands (or twin daggers) for his sister so the AI throws the entire group into a creepy mirror world with inverted colors and data-corrupted enemies. Given her powers over space, this may be the toughest battle humanity has taken against AI yet...
Reki is up to something...good? But fuck him, the group are being attacked by evil NPCs. Sanjuro fights them off and Shugo is ready to Data Drain the AI. Sanjuro stops him though, saying that defeating the AI now will cost them the only path to Rena forever. Reki talks to his ex Kamui about helping the group...and she stabs him. Break-ups...they used to be simple.
Back to the group, they're still fighting...but back to Reki and Kamui. Reki comes back because hey, it's just a game. Kamui points out the group may be in more trouble though...
As the AI absorbs the NPCs, Kamui points out that the AI is using the children in comas to understand how to make Full Death a thing. Apparently, games are about to get more real...whatever its goals, it's destroying the World in the process. Aura was holding her off this whole time and it's only recently that the AI has been running amok. That's why Shugo has the bracelet: to fight this thing.
Anyway, Kamui and Reki plans on attacking the AI with hundreds of viruses as Rena is taken from her area and held hostage right in front of Shugo. Yup, a lot happening...so everybody gets drained and the monster containing Rena fucks Shugo up something fierce. He's gonna die and everybody's gonna follow him. So it's Aura to the rescue as Balmung heals everyone. The monster then gets fought while the virus that got in everyone while they were drained weakens everyone. Shugo won't give up though: he's still fighting. Meanwhile, Reki and Kamui send the monster their viruses while putting their faith in Balmung (and Shugo, I guess...).
Their work is felt by...the group losing their weapons (Go team!). Shugo is tempted to use his Data Drain but Aura tells him if he does, Rena will be hit. So everyone is fucked. Kamui comes in to save the day for real this time and uses items against the monster, noting those can still hurt it. Bitch-slapped to god knows where, Shugo is confronted by a mysterious figure...
THOUGHTS
A lot of exposition that I had to sum up here. But at least it's ending...and Rena's back. To be rescued. Yay...
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#very underwhelming for a penultimate episode#all these ais#they really just do anything can they?#god mode
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Episode 10: Capitol Of Illusion
Ha ha, the hackers are hospitalized. Less ha ha, the doctors are talking about how the game seems to be a constant in the coma cases. But fuck them, onto Reki meeting his superiors. They encourage him to keep things on the hush hush while he's reporting on the incident...
But fuck all of them, back to the group. Apparently the whole incident has blown up across the World, resulting in rumors. Shugo is understandably bummed though...while Reki is too busy perving and complaining about how his life sucks. Sanjuro catches him and asks him what his fucking deal has been recently. All he says is that he's not gunning for Balmung's former spot before leaving. Sanjuro just points out he's weird...
Back to the group, Shugo wants to go after Rena again but everyone is reluctant due to the raised states, including the fact that a Wandering AI is hunting them now. All they know is that everything is up to Shugo and his magical bracelet...
We cut to Rena for a brief moment then back to the group training for their ultimate encounter. Shugo trains by first brooding then declaring his intention to save her, even he has to go alone...Sanjuro is with him until the end of the line though so he's not alone! And the group shows up! Yay!
A lady logs in...and Balmung plays Shogi by himself before Reki meets him. Apparently, Reki wants to talk to Balmung about the original [.hackers] compared to the current group. Balmung doesn't do much talking so Reki just gives him a master keycard to get to the forbidden area. Balmung runs off...instead of teleporting. Disaster hero.
The group are back in the root town and yet are somehow attacked by a monster. Rena is left to feel sad to J-pop as the others fight for their lives. Rena's about to give up but then, the Wandering AI spots her. Turns out the AI wants to transcend death but first, they must understand it...
Shugo and the group are still fighting off the monster which manages to even shrug off the Data Drain! As the battle goes on, the monster seems invulnerable to everything. So naturally Shugo thinks he can beat it one on one! He doesn't. It's then that Balmung jumps in and rallies the others into teaming up and attack it in a structured manner. After an Alpha Strike, Shugo tries the Data Drain again and it finally works, de-leveling the monster into a common mon.
Turns out the AI sent the monster and they hear their toy was broken. They then leave Rena behind, talking about transcending as they leave. The group themselves don't have time to catch their breath before they're confronted by the AI who ends the episode with HETEROCHROMIA!
THOUGHTS
Reki goes back to sucking, trying to be mysterious but just coming off as an ass. Xellos you are not, son. Rena remains useless while everyone just mopes...not a great episode. At least it's ending...
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#climax coming up#let's hope rena is allowed to do something#and reki dies#please let reki die...
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Episode 9: Footsteps Of Collapse
You got mail, Shugo! And it's from Rena. But fuck her, the Cobalt Knights are on the warpath. And they're after Shugo's ass. So he and Mireille are in disguise as a frog and a bunny, respectively.
Just a frog and a rabbit passing on through.
Shockingly, the Cobalt Knights are still able to recognize Shugo because his ingenious costume doesn't cover his extremely recognizable face. He and Mireille escape and regroup with their party to discuss how no one's making any progress whatsoever. But shock and awe, Reki is there to betray his girlfriend.
But fuck them, back to Rena depressingly searching the other dimension. BUT fuck her, the hackers are having trouble committing crimes in the current state of emergency. They have to use desperate measures...like luring adventures to dangerous areas to feed them to their monsters. The Cobalt Knights give chase but the hackers get away.
Magi reports the incident to Kamui who, shockingly enough, is about to excel at her actual goddamn job. But fuck all of them, Reki knows where Rena is. Can they trust them? Not the question. Do they have any other options? Better question. They have no choice but to follow his lead. So how do they get there? Sanjuro knows: gate-hacking. Reki leaves, everybody hating him as usual...which is ironically enough the most likeable he's been in the whole series.
Shugo is still pissed but he must stay with his rage blue balls because he's really in no position to chase anyone right now. Hotaru comes up with a plan to get them outside without getting arrested (fuck you, Kamiya in frog costume!) and the group makes their way to the gate. Shugo uses the bracelet to open up the blocked area and off they go!
The group is in the place and they bump into the hackers! Both groups figure out what the others are and it's fight time. But a new challenger approaches: the Cobalt Knights with Kamui! Accusing Shugo's group of helping the hackers, the Knights attack everyone. The hackers respond by summoning modified monsters. The knights respond by dying since the hackers are used to their formations. The knights press on though and Shugo gets involved to save them only for Kamui to fight him. His group has to contend with the knights themselves.
Shugo tells Kamui that fighting is pointless but Kamui presses on, cop and all. The hackers planned for that, knowing Shugo is the only actual threat to the monsters with his Data Drain so Kamui was baited to keep him at bay. Then, the hackers summon their trump card: a wandering AI who begins to delete the whole world. Meanwhile, Rena finds out her world is disappearing too...
No one can teleport, everybody is screwed. The hackers are betrayed by the AI which sics itself on them to, to the shock of no one. Sanjuro tells Shugo to use his bracelet. He hesitates for some reason as the knights (and Magi, to the horror of Kamui) die in front of him. Finally, he uses it as finally, Rena tries to escape her dimension through the open door of light. The twins finally see each other...just long enough for the manual exit to keep each other out of their hands reach as the world is destroyed.
The hackers are put into comas and...episode over.
THOUGHTS
Okay, good episode. I'm legitimately excited about what happens next. We finally grew the beard with only three episodes left. Let's see if we can pull it off.
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#poor magi#hidden yuri?#doubtful#but it's good to know kamui and her are close in this universe too
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Episode 8: The Solitary Knight
The Cobalt Knights have become the Gestapo, tracking down a man for...wanting to fuck a Grunty, apparently. And the guy is modding is swords so he, along with others, get their accounts banned publicly (I wonder how much they were paying a month for this game...). It's a whole ass spectacle too with Kamui having them shot while they're strapped to a slot machine, saying only "luck" can save them.
It doesn't.
Shugo's group, sans Shugo, discuss how the Knights are bad news and Sanjuro even says Shugo is looking like their next target. The Twilight Bracelet is an unregistered item, after all. Shugo hears them though and isn't too happy about Sanjuro's suggestion to lay low considering the situation. Shugo just runs out and nearly drowns like the tool he is. The World's Greatest Hope, everyone.
Balmung is getting chewed out by his bosses who implicitly say they are ready to throw his ass out. Reki, who's there for some fucking reason, tries to reason with him but Balmung calls him out for being a buttfucking traitor who's buttfucking his ex. He leaves and Reki is somehow surprised by his reaction.
Shugo is killing monsters left and right while looking for a clue, his group keeping a clandestine eye on him. At the gate, he happens to be in the same area as the hackers who are promptly surprised with info that Rena has awakened somewhere. We check in on her who is still lost with Aura. One of the hackers manage to get to her location...
Now it's time for Kamui and Magi (finally). Turns out she arrested Kamiya, whose face has been corrupted worse than it was in the manga. He's under suspicion for nothing and Kamui interrogates him on Shugo when he slips up about him (far from his snitching in the manga...but not too far, considering he trades personal information about him without much prompting). Kamui recognizes Shugo from the last episode...and smiles.
Back to Rena! The hacker plays dumb, saying he doesn't know how he got there (but he totally does!). He informs the others that Rena is with Aura. Aura knows something is up but the hacker logs out before she can read his data. Aura can only tell Rena they are in the Japanese server so...that's not worth anything.
Shugo is accosted by the Knights for kidnapping his own sister (most likely bullshit fed to them by Kamui) only for him to be rescued by THE MOTHERFUCKING SILVER KNIGHT FROM .HACK SIGN!
(Glad that after being such a dick in that show he's chilled out for this one.)
Shugo scares them off with a Data Drain and everything is hunky dory.
The hackers are planning on fighting Aura by modding their points to be stronger.
And the whiplash stops with Silver Knight being arrested and publicly executed. All he says is that "Those who stand above others, must have noble ideals along with the most noble intentions; anyone that cannot manage the will of the masses is not meant to be the leader of the knights. That type of justice is a lie."
He shit talks them some more before he is promptly shot to death. Next, Balmung is called by his bosses so that they can bitch him out for searching for the missing players. It wasn't his assignment so he's bad for doing it. Anyway, he's fired. Kamui herself finds out and is only disappointed that she couldn't delete him herself due to his connection to Shugo. Turns out Reki sold him out himself despite his whole "oh, why don't you trust me, eskimo brother?" spiel earlier. Pay dispute, apparently.
Rena and Aura are preparing to leave only for Aura to suddenly fade away, no doubt the work of the hackers. Now Rena is alone...
THOUGHTS
Finally, a bearable episode. Reki has become a cunt but I expected that anyway. I like the shifting focuses so I don't get too sick of anyone too quick. Four episodes left, let's wrap it up.
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#magi's here!#but she just seems to be Kamui's underling#their legitimately interesting dynamic from the manga has been swallowed up by the het#for eskimo brothers#just in case
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Episode 7: Twilight Moon
So, Rena's in the hospital. The doctor, who I can already tell is not being paid enough, discovers that her vitals indicate she is still logged into the game. Then Moon Rabbit...
Then Rena wakes up. Aura is with her and she monitors her (can't kiss her awake, huh?) But fuck her, back to the group. Shugo shares Rena's condition with the group, saying that Rena's game demise and her condition in the real world must be related. Traveling away, they bump into (and Shugo is promptly stomped by) Balmung, right before Sanjuro joins them.
They go back to the haunted house to search and Reki shows up out of seemingly nowhere...only for Shugo to mistake him for Rena, run over, slip and...
That happens.
Reki then reports that, given his own investigation, Rena was teleported to another location. Balmung is pissed...admin pissed.
The hackers are still after Shugo but are forced to lay low considering the heat is on due to their actions. Fuck them, Sanjuro and Shugo are talking. Sanjuro informs Shugo that a similar incident happened to several players a few years ago so this isn't an isolated incident. At he group hut, Sanjuro reveals that he knows about the incident because he and Balmung were both members of the original [.hackers]...
Sanjuro knows that Shugo is being stalked and says the only thing that keeps the hackers at bay is Shugo's Data Drain bracelet. Otherwise, no one has confidence in Shugo's abilities...but who would? Either way, he sad his sister hurt. Break.
Rena wakes up and is greeted by Aura who tries to keep her calm when Rena discovers she cannot log out. Aura explains that when Rena "died", apparently she was given a suggestion that put her body in a trance, hence her real life coma. Rena is worried but she realizes only one thing can save her (also Aura says she only has one hope)...the Moon Rabbit!
Shugo is still looking for Rena...alone, so the hackers are ready to send a monster to get his bracelet. Shugo is indeed ambushed...but the group follows him so he lives. Sanjuro fights it off but Shugo stops him for...confusing reasons (He knows the enemy sent it to him to kill him but he thinks that by capturing it, the enemy will send him to Rena...what...). After a long fight (also Balmung shows up!), the Cobalt Knights appear and kill the monster lickeity-split. Shugo and Balmung try to stop them but Kamui brushes them off. The hackers are annoyed but impressed at the Knights' might. Meanwhile, our heroes have to deal with Kamui...
In this anime, apparently Kamui and Balmung had a "past" (they used to fuck) and surprise time! Reki's working for her...and is her new boyfriend. Reki and Kamui leave leaving Shugo and Balmung bitter. Shugo gets so pissed off at Balmung's incel behavior over his ex he actually causes a goddamn explosion and the episode ends.
THOUGHTS
God, the unnecessary het of the Kamui/Balmung/Reki triangle. Where's Magi? Fuck her, apparently. This series is more disappointing than the manga and it's starting to show. Nobody is interesting and these reviews are becoming a legitimate chore...and nobody's making me do it! Stupid completionist complex...
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#what about the guy she used to work with in the manga?#maybe he'll show up later#still#there was no explicit romance in the manga#why is it in this show?#and why is 90% of it incest?!#geez#i regret so much
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Episode 6: Trap Of The Steaming Hot Water
Shugo is still searching the house looking for his sister. Though that oddly enough doesn't stop him from remembering his kiss with Aura and blushing about it...
Anyway, the group reconvene after searching all day. Shugo reveals he called her in real life but she won't pick up her phone. It's then that Mireille gives the assumption that the whole thing is a special event. Regardless, the group decides to search The World in order to find her. Despite the rarity of Rena's character type, Shugo can't find anyone who's seen her. Hotaru does find one person who might have seen her in the park so the group goes there.
Hotaru offers to let Grunty use his nose to search for Rena's scent. The group gives it a shot and Grunty sniffs around, finding...a resting place to sleep. It's then that Shugo asks Ouka to sniff her out but she refuses, saying "a werewolf is not a dog" (and thus, they share no familiar characteristics or skills.).
Sanjuro meets up with Balmung and Reki to inform them of the situation. They're confused but fuck them because it's back to the group. They're still looking and getting nowhere. Shugo then remembers how often Rena used to get lost when they were kids. Shugo would always have to find her and cheer her up. He then has a montage of her, which is someone awkward because it's only been six episodes...
Either way, he gets tracked by the PKers who think he's easy pickings because he lost his partner and therefore, he is in despair (who the fuck thinks like this playing an MMORPG?). Do they attack? No, Shugo goes off with the group back to the headquarters. While reviewing, Shugo gets an email with no known sender that leads them to an unknown location. While suspicious, the group decides to go because it's the closest thing they have to a lead on Rena's whereabouts.
Upon going there, they find out two things. One: it's cold. Two: there's a hot spring there. Shugo understandably wants to keep searching but everyone else wants to bathe because...fuck Rena apparently. The group including Shugo go over to bathe (seriously?) before...Rena shows up?!
The twins have a tearful reunion while naked and the show ends...nah. Naked hugging sister aside, that thing ain't Rena. Even Shugo wasn't stupid enough to fall for that. "Rena" turns into a creepy old man, taking the hot springs along with his guise. The old man is a modified monster who proceeds to battle the group. Shugo Data Drains him and the group lives to be lackadasical assholes for another day.
Balmung shows up, revealing he knows about Rena's disappearance. Reki reveals that he and Balmung are system administrators and this whole event is deadass serious. To make matters worse, when Shugo logs out, he gets a call from his mom that informs him that Rena is in a coma in the real world...
THOUGHTS
God, that part with the hot springs was fucking stupid. You're looking for a missing friend and you get naked in the middle of nowhere? Blatant fanservice for no reason, it's dumb as hell. The series is already getting crushed under the weight of its own grimdarkness because it can't pick a tone.
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#not looking good#this series need to pick it up#or shut it up#and it's already halfway over
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Episode 5: Mansion of Terror
Posting opening, we see a bunch of nerds dorks kids talk about a player being able to Data Drain, correctly guessing he's using Kite's model. We then overhear them planning on luring him out to a secluded area to snatch his bracelet...
But fuck that, to the beach. Shugo is hit on by a gay guy in the least cringiest scene so far before the rest of his group come over in their bikinis (save Ouka, who shows up in her wolf form to troll). Sanjuro shows up (in full uniform) to talk to the twins. At a table, he asks them a good question: why they on this damn game all the time? In real life, this would be a perfectly sensible question. Sadly, Sanjuro has an ulterior motive: Balmung has instructed him to tell the twins to quit the game due to events making the game legitimately not fun for noobs. The twins are reluctant but Sanjuro insists, even compromising to just stop playing for a while instead of quitting altogether. The twins hold fast but Shugo does tell Sanjuro about the origin of his bracelet and his meeting with Aura, which stuns Sanjuro. Giving up, Sanjuro tells the twins to tell him if anything weird comes up, contact him. And stay out of unknown areas. And don't accept back rubs from strangers. He leaves the confused twins behind.
The two then stop some bullies from messing with a little girl (and Shugo gets fucked up). While returning the girl's ball to her, Shugo is unknowingly tagged due to that girl being one of the players we saw in the beginning!
Later on, the group gets a SOS from the girl and go off to save her. Using the gate, they go to the murder house from the manga, the same inconsequential mansion that freaked out Rena. Sanjuro shows up with them and the game is afoot!
Meanwhile, Balmung and Reki are chatting before they are accosted by the Cobalt (Cereulean in the anime but I will use Cobalt because I am not spelling Cerulean every fucking time) Knights. Reki has to bitch them away before Kamui shows up to call them off. Kamui backs off but Balmung knows that's not the last time they're seeing her...
Back to the mansion, the group looks for the girl. Things go according to beat: Rena's scared, Kamiya is there to perv, Rena fucks Kamiya up, etc. The group gets ambushed by monsters while Rena is lost somewhere, eventually finding a room. Getting locked in, she is ambushed by a ethereal girl who reveals herself to be the players who were trying to lure out Shugo. Back at the monsters, Sanjuro tells Shugo to go and get Rena who is probably more screwed than they are. Shugo does go to get her and Rena is currently being attacked by an invulnerable Reaper who deals her a mortal wound. Shugo Data Drains it but our poor Rena can't be healed...or rezzed. Fading away, Rena is dragged into the walls of the mansion, Shugo crying her name as the two futilely reach for each other...
The episode ends with the reveal Rena has been comaed in real life.
So yeah...this is where the canon diverges for the anime.
THOUGHTS
And there it is. From here on out, we're flying blind. This is where the series set itself apart from the manga by getting fucking grimdark. Let's see if they can pull it off.
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#this arc is going to be long#and the anime is only 12 episodes#so don't go anywhere
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Episode 4: Tanabata Night
So Shugo is being chased by goblins...
Nope (thank god). Sanjuro is training him, being the typical hardass about it. Rena comes over and complains about Shugo playing without her only for Stop Having Fun In This Literal Game Designed For Fun Guy Sanjuro to tell her to fuck off. Shugo tries to assure that he wants to be stronger so that he can have more fun and protect her but Rena drags him off regardless, stating the game is no fun without the two hanging out together.
This debate is interrupted by Anime!Kamiya, who shows up, introduces himself and reveals himself as their classmate. He swoons for Rena, gets beaten by Shugo and the twins go off somewhere.
Reki and Balmung investigate a haunted house which is haunted because of the TWILIGHT. Time to fix up the game...
Back to the group. Everybody's in yukatas except for Shugo who is promptly asked by his sister to compliment her outfit. Then he's asked the same by Ouka which pisses Rena off. Grit and bear it. Surely this must patter out eventually, like in the manga...
So they go off to do the wish tree thing (Look back in the manga reviews for an explanation) and are interrupted by Kamiya. But fuck him, it's time for the festival. Reki MCs the event again and offers, instead of a whole ass girl, the opportunity for the player's wish to come true. That makes more sense and is less cringey. Rena still gets picked as the "princess" for whatever fucking reason (most likely because they still need someone to catch for the event.).
So the event starts and things proceed pretty close to how it is in the manga (except Balmung doesn't participate). Also, the girls join in due to the prize actually making sense so that makes things ever more difficult for our blue haired hero. Despite his own difficulty, Shugo goes to save Hotaru who stupidly joined in while not knowing how to swim...all in front of Rena. So he's way behind while Kamiya is jetting to nail his sister. But the shark appears...and Mireille and Ouka fight it for the item and the glory, respectively.
Alas, they are too weak and the shark then heads straight for Shugo. Sanjuro saves him but the shark overpowers him, forcing Balmung to save him. The shark then evolves and poses a threat to everyone, leaving only Shugo to take it down with his Data Drain. Everyone is safe and Mireille gets her dumb fish items.
It ends the same as last time, with Balmung winning (despite not participating) and wins a kiss from Rena. But due to photo finish, Shugo won! Mind you, what the fuck happened to the wish? Reki insists on the kiss despite Shugo telling him they are fucking siblings and Rena settles to kiss him on the cheek...which they are agonizing slow about which makes it even weirder. Thankfully, an unscheduled rain shower interrupts them. The two leave, possibly scarred from the experience.
THOUGHTS
What the fuck was that ending? The manga was less upfront than the anime. And where did Balmung a kiss was the prize? That goes against the wish thing, doesn't it? And why was Reki creepily insistent on it when Shugo and Rena revealed they were siblings? The whole climax leaves a bad taste in my mouth and stinks up the entire episode.
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#tw: incest#geez#i remember not liking reki the first time i watched this#i wonder if it's shit like this that made him so hateable
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Episode 3: The Phoenix Feather
Woo! Anime Hotaru! Let's hope she makes a better first impression than her manga counterpart. She starts out taking care of a stranger's grunty by her request, giving her a better introduction already.
Anyway, Mireille is showing the group her secret room. She uses the opportunity to appraise Shugo's bracelet, pointing out it's a high-level item. When Shugo wonders why the item fucked up on him in the last episode, Ouka points out that since the item is high level, the player who uses it needs to be high level too. Shugo's low level keeps the item from being 100% effective. The girls then decide to go out with Shugo to grind, kicking ass as he gets his ass kicked. But not to worry! Because he's in a group, their points are shared with him so he levels up anyway.
Reki reports to Balmung about the twins and vague shit is discussed. Then we're back to the gang where they're still grinding. Due to Ouka's tutelage, Rena's allowed to be an effective fighter before Shugo (which makes more sense when you think about it) which is a considerable improvement over the manga where she is weak all throughout. She even levels up faster than him because she's the one who goes off to train when he's not around. Anyway, this is all a moot point because Shugo's dumbass opens a level down chest (Hello, bitch-ass Reaper from Gauntlet: Dark Legacy...I haven't forgotten you.) and he's back down to level one. Furious, he ports out and sulks off in town. There, he meets Hotaru and her Grunty.
The Grunty is sick because of course it is and the two take it to a doctor. The only way to cure it is through the Phoenix Feather (Get it?) and it's located in a dangerous location. But not to worry! Shugo's group is hella strong, right? See, the thing is...Rena's whole gung-honess about getting stronger is affecting her real life, namely her schoolwork. Her mom's not happy so no game for her for a while. When he has trouble contacting Rena, Shugo decides that Hotaru and he will track down the Phoenix Feather themselves.
After preparing (including getting several items to ensure their escape should they run into strong monsters) Shugo is off with his healer buddy. It's a difficult trek but, against all odds...they managed to get trapped by monsters in a hallway. Shugo wants to use the bracelet but the risks with it stops him. Hotaru tries to bargain with the monsters (stupid but makes more sense here since a) they have no way of fighting them and b) she doesn't stop Shugo from fighting them; it was a last resort) but it looks like they're screwed...until that old samurai guy from the episode shows up to save them. His name's Sanjuro (Who I now realize it voiced by Steve Blum) and with his help, they get the Phoenix Feather and save the grunty.
The owner shows up to get the grunty back despite the hell the trio went through to save it but soon Rena and the rest show up to...beat the owner into compliance? Heroism? Anyway, Sanjuro goes off to meet with Balmung who instructs him to watch over Shugo. Why? Because...he's the key to Twilight.
THOUGHTS
First off, LOVE that Hotaru is more tolerable this time around. I also like Shugo being less of a wimp in this adaptation without it having to come at Rena's expense who is allowed to be a more skilled player based on the fact that she's simply been playing games for longer. The ending turned me off a bit (Why did the grunty owner have to be such a bitch all of a sudden? And why was justice an implied beating?) but overall, I'm happy with the changes to the manga.
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#they don't fuck around in the World#that's for sure#treat pets like objects#you get smashed like junk#and not in the fun way
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Episode 2: Kite's Bracelet
Agh, everyone's faces are so dolly...
So in the anime, we get to see the twin's dad, who's currently living with Shugo. His whole demeanor screams "defeat"...yeah, the divorce got him good. But fuck him, back to the escape game! The twins run away from Mireille because Rena wants to keep the adventure in the family (and with whatever silver-haired hunk manages to rescue her) and join a new event where they do stuff with hammerhead sharks. Shugo checks out his sister when she gets wet. I lose 1 SAN point.
Later, the two sit under the tree and flashback to when their parents were still together and the world was blurry and happy. Then, a dog (Ouka) shows up! Unlike in the manga where she was more hostile, Rena is happy to see him happy, noting they don't have a dog in real life because their mom is allergic. Balmung comes over and, after some reintroductions, investigates Shugo's bracelet. Mireille looks for treasure and gets her dumb ass attacked by a monster, drawing the trio's attention. Again, the monster wasn't supposed to be there but unlike last time, Balmung gets rid of it and fights the rest that follow it.
Again, Shugo uses the bracelet to data drain the monster...and again, it doesn't work but it does give random status effects which include making his sister charmed with him. Yup, the kids show gets explicit incest so that's something we gotta deal with. Enough whining, Ouka transforms into her humanoid form and destroys the monster. She also gets a saxophone letimotif so that's something. Shugo solves the event problem and Balmung drinks sake while watching the blossoms bloom. The treasure is not cosplay costumes but a dog collar which Ouka uses as an excuse to flirt with Shugo and make Rena jealous. The episode ends with Shugo eating reheated pizza for dinner alone.
THOUGHTS
Couple of things I've noticed: Balmung is portrayed in a far more serious light here than he is in the manga, where he's basically King Shit of Troll Mountain. By contrast, Mireille acts more like a little kid than a simply excited treasure hunter, wanting to snatch items from others and being a complete weakling that others are in a hurry to ditch. Last but not least, Ouka is not her flirt-accepting but ultimately fight happy self from the manga but a flirtacious shewolf who just happens to be strong. I wonder why these changes had to be made especially since they made my boy Balmung significantly less tolerable as a character but if I had to guess, it was to appeal to the demographic who watches the anime. Balmung had to be cool to give the boys someone to look up to (they sure as fuck ain't finding a hero in Shugo), Mireille's personality was scrambled so not too much attention was taken away from Rena and Ouka was given Hot Babysitter overtones to draw in the hornier teens. It sucks but it's show business.
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#these are all guesses#but still#i can't help but wonder how their original selves would have fared in a darker setting#guess we won't know
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Episode 1: The Legendary Hero
(I'm watching the dubbed version because life is meaningless and nothing matters and the fact that this shit was dubbed at all never ceases to amuse me and I need to see how they got away with shit in English.)
Ah, the opening is giving me the nostalgias. Things were so much simpler when I was young. All anime was cool, subtext was needed, CN still had the city bumpers...
So...some dude straight up dies in the first few minutes (he goes into a coma but come on, the implications.) The beginning of the manga is expanded a bit, with Shugo and Rena being revealed to be living separately (possibly due to a parents' divorce) and that Rena literally fucked with Shugo's computer so that it can run Crysis The World.
Things proceed as according to the manga from there but with a twist: we have a new character, some creepy eyepatched old dude with a sword. He's in the opening and we do not get his name, just that he's devoted to protecting some random girl (probably Hotaru?). The plot keeps going normally until the scene where Shugo get cuts down (by a completely different enemy, no less). He seems to fall victim to the same thing that comaed the guy from earlier as Rena is left to deal with the pig monster. He gets rescued by Aura who heals him, gives him the bracelet, kisses him, yadda yadda and he goes back to save Rena with the Data Drain. Broad Strokes.
They meet up with Mireille later and she averts from canon by immediately telling them the guy who saved Rena was Balmung (so not only do they know his identity from the beginning here, it seems like it's common knowledge.). The episode ends with him chatting with Reki about the twins.
After the preview, oh god...I forgot how fucking GOOD the ending theme was. Really brings back the childhood feels. Am I going to be a grown adult crying over the incest anime? I can take somber solace in knowing that I won't be the first.
THOUGHTS
Not excited about the newcomer but the other changes I'm perfectly fine with. Seems to be trimming the fat a bit. Alright, let's get the other eleven over with...
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#anime#remember#this series is supposed to be darker than the manga#that explains the opening and it might affect the plot going forward#i remember the twist but i never finished the whole series#or it never aired in full on cartoon network#so it's very much wait and see here
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Bonus Comics
First up! We get a bonus chapter with Mireille who runs into a player with wings. Being a rare hunter, she goes gaga. She acts like a full on creep about it, jumping him and rubbing her face against his wings. Luckily, the player is more amused than disturbed at her molestery antics and introduces himself as Luke after she gives her name as Mireille. Then he decides to give her the wings...yup, just like that. She got wings now.
Being a bit freaked out by his generosity, Mireille offers to trade him something in return, like a solid gold Grunty. He refuses because the wings caused him nothing: he made them himself. They're a cheat item, you see. He programmed them based on the prize item from a recent event, saying participating in stuff like that is for suckers. Disgusted, Mireille gives them back, much to Luke's confusion. Mireille takes her status as a hunter seriously so accepting cheat items is a disgrace to her profession. She then heads off to a tough dungeon despite Luke's warnings. She don't care: you can't get the best stuff without taking risks.
Luke just follows her anyway (...) and keeps bugging her to take his items. He keeps whining about going back but Mireille presses forward. Luke is just befuddled: it's just a game after all so honor doesn't really factor in and people treat him better when he creates rare items. So what's her problem? He then spots a giant monster and warns Mireille, allowing her to take it down. She then thanks him: for a scoundrel, he makes a good scout.
The two arrive at the door to the treasure, exhausted and spent. Luke bitterly points out how much work it took to get them there but Mireille happily points out they had fun doing it. Luke notes this is the first time he's sweated playing a game...Mireille gets a Staff of Timidity which doesn't impress Luke any because he made a ton of those already. She gratefully thanks him though which is where our chapter with her ends. Luke notes that while her way of playing is exhausting, it's a lot more fun than how he does it.
He empties his inventory and becomes a Rare Hunter himself.
Next story! Reki meets Balmung for the first time. Balmung immediately goes The Major on him and goes on and on about how much he loves The World. Reki is understandably freaked out but, after spending a few years with him, he gets used to his...eccentricities. Reki loves history and got a degree in it in college. That helped him about as well as you'd expect so he admires Balmung for knowing what he wants to do and not giving up on his dreams. Balmung may have freaky ideas but Reki recognizes that he loves the World more than anyone else. Maybe that's why he can track him more easily than others...
Next up are the short comics: Rei Izumi (the artist) talks about visiting a con, Balmung investigates sis-con as a fetish (he thankfully doesn't get it), Balmung and Kamui freak out their co-workers and the authors talk about how the manga was made into an anime. That's all I feel like talking about.
FINAL THOUGHTS
...Eh...
The series is...okay. Nothing spectacular, nothing offensively bad but I struggle to even call it "decent". It's super 2000s in the worst ways and the whole incest "subtext" makes it an uncomfortable read. It starts out annoying and, when it gets interesting, it advances at a breakneck pace with broken characters bailing everybody out of things (Looking at you, Zafie...yeah, I read the part about how Kamui's spear wasn't supposed to be broken.) I guess it's okay this exists, it's technically the lead-in for the rest of the franchise, after all; although I do wish we had more stories in this universe to flesh out the characters more, not just a light novel with some tool named Shank.
Series Rating (Manga): 5.5/10
Tomorrow, I'll start on the anime. Trust me, the nostalgia ain't gonna save anyone.
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#still#glad i got through a whole series#also seriously excited about the next one#but that's a story for another time...
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Chapter 21
Some chick named Helena has the final email of the series, getting ready to explain the reason behind all of the mysteries...
But screw her, four years ago, a young noob named Shugo plays his friend Kaz's game without permission to see what all the fuss is about this new game involving the World. He runs into a random ethereal girl and tries the slickest of moves that his ten year old self can muster: "Hi". She answers and he engages her in conversation. He eventually asks her to play with him and she agrees, both introducing themselves. He's Shugo and she's...
Aura stands before the three in the present day, Shugo dumbfounded by the sheer number of questions that he wants to ask her. He's cut off by Zafie rushing off past him, eager to see her mother. Aura embraces her in a heartwarming moment, asking Zafie if she had fun. Zafie responds in the affirmative and Shugo basks in his heroism. Even Aura tells him "Ya did good, kid". It's then that Shugo recognizes Aura as the girl he met when he was ten, the first person he ever met from the World. You see, Shugo wanted to grow up to be a hero but he was teased for it. His dreams crushed, Shugo decided "fuck it" and wanted to coast through life, focusing more on being cool than being someone worth looking up to. Grateful to Aura for reminding him of his dream, he moves over with Rena to talk to her...
Back to Balmung! He explains that four years ago, Aura was born. She's the program that created the World and is in herself, a part of the World she created. The CC Corp? Didn't create shit. They just run the events and support users. Balmung explains to Mistral (Mireille's fallen asleep) that Aura grows through her interactions with the players. The event that gave out the limited edition characters and the bracelet? All attempts to gather more data. I mean, she's a mom now. She needs to know more. She's practically a human herself now.
How does the story ultimately end? With Aura and Zafie kissing Shugo on both cheeks.
Rena punches him.
Eh.
THOUGHTS
A bit underwhelming but I've seen worse endings. Kind of hoped for a denounement but no, looks like this is all we're getting. Maybe the bonus chapters I'll look over tomorrow will be interesting? Who knows?
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#no kamui/magi#i feel betrayed#just more subtext#maybe the anime will have a better ending?#i remember it being darker but we'll see
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Chapter 20: Attributes Of A Hero
Balmung sends an email to someone named Orca, gushing about Shugo's group and their adventure. He ends it by saying he wants to introduce her to someone, someone whose mere existence will amuse Aura...
FIGHT! And, as expected, Shugo can't even touch Balmung. Seeing how he can't beat Balmung at his current level, Shugo is forced to rely on every Shonen Protagonist's secret weapon: The Flashback. He remembers chatting with Ouka who straight up tells him that he's weak. Specifically, his level is low and that means his HP is low. Therefore, if he faces a stronger enemy, he has to try to lower their attack power to his level. In the present day, Shugo figures this means don't get hit: less time healing, more time hurting. But first! Ouka's suggestion: he uses a spell called Warrior's Bane to reduce Balmung's attack and another called Hunter's Bane to lower his accuracy. Balmung cleverly responds by speeding up to compensate which forces Shugo to reach down for...Another Flashback!
Shugo remembers lagging behind a speedy Mireille who reveals she's using a charm to up her speed. He still can't catch him so Fuck You, Another Flashback! Hotaru reveals she's slow so she uses tarot cards to freeze her enemies. Shugo whips one of his own in the present and catches up to Balmung, nearly nicking him. He whip out another spell called Tarot Of The Moon, which doesn't work. Then he whips out Tarot Of The Hanged Man, which does work. Shugo stabs at him but Balmung parries his attack...but then congratulates him on using his brain in combat finally. Alas, Shugo is nowhere near his level and Balmung is getting bored. It's time to wrap this up...
Shugo is understandably dismotivated, noting the gap between his and Balmung's abilities and the fact that simply playing as a hero doesn't mean he actually is one. However, an unexpected (if you saw the end of the last chapter) voice rings in his corner: Rena. He has One Final Flashback to himself asking her what she thinks makes a hero. She answers while it helps to be really strong and really cool, a true hero is someone willing to risk everything to protect what they love. It's then that Shugo realizes that while he may not be the hero, he's Rena's hero and that's more important than anything to him. Using his Yamato-damashii (Japanese Spirit; I dickishly refuse to elaborate further), he takes his best shot at Balmung...and nicks his cheek. With his best move, he could take down one of his Hit Points...then he passes out.
After watching Shugo's group heal him up, Balmung declares he is satisfied. Shugo has passed the test. He gives Shugo called "virus cores" to get him to see Aura which, if used with the bracelet at the gate, will perform a special transfer that will allow him to see Aura. The whole group wants to go but Balmung clarifies that only three of them can go due to the virus cores being based on the old World's data where the party size was limited to three people. The twins throw a fit but Hotaru and Mireille offer to remain behind, stating that since the twins are the [.hackers]' models, they're the ones that should see it through to the end. They leave and the twins prepare to leave with Zafie, the chapter ending with Balmung entering the code for them to meet Aura...
THOUGHTS
I enjoyed the fight and the fact that Shugo couldn't even come close to defeating a high-level beast like Balmung, though I would have preferred if we saw Shugo interacting with the girls in the way we saw in the flashbacks in the actual previous chapter. Doesn't ruin the fight for me. Love "Fight Smarter, Not Harder (Until The Very Last Minute When You Need A Boost Because This Is Still The Early 2000s And This Is Still Shonen)". See you guys for the finale.
#.hack#.hack//legend of the twilight#review#curb stomp cushion#except the cushion is a toy pillow from a dollhouse#imagine if a boss in an actual video game would only let you pass if you managed to get them down a single hit point#wouldn't you be pissed?#fun thing to think about
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