Fate/stay night - 16

フェイト／ステイナイト Ep 16
Fate/stay night episode 16

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis: With Rin in danger of being crushed by Berserker, Saber attacks, but does no damage and takes damage instead. Shirou launches a weaponless attack and gets beaten back as a result. With Shirou acting reckless, Saber activates her Nobel Phantasm which forces Shirou to use one of his command spells to stop her. Instead, Shirou thinks of Archer's words and decides to form the sword he saw Saber with in her past. After creating it, he attacks Berserker and manages to cut off the arm holding Rin. However, the sword is not perfect and is destroyed in the process. So Shirou constructs a second sword and with the help of Saber, they run Berserker through to Ilya's astonishment.

As Berserker dies, he regains his sanity as Heracles remarks on the illusionary sword that Shirou created, a replication of the sword Caliburn. However, despite only being a recreation, Shirou's Caliburn was powerful enough to take Berserker's remaining seven lives. With Berserker dissolved, Rin is now free of the giant hand and can breathe freely again. Shirou is in pain but notices the depressed look on Ilya's face as she mourns the loss of Berserker. Saber is about to take out Ilya but is stopped by Shirou, who considers her to just be a little girl now.

After returning to Shirou's home and getting some much needed sleep, Saber is not happy to learn that Ilya was sleeping in the same futon as Shirou. He doesn't see the big deal about this since she's just a little girl but when Rin gets up, both protest Ilya's being there, citing the fact that she's still a master, even if Berserker is dead. Ilya arrives and informs them that Berserker is the only servant she wanted. As such, Ilya will not try to grab another servant unless Shirou dies and Saber becomes free, something Saber opposes. However, Rin sees an advantage in keeping Ilya close at hand so she changes her mind and back's Shirou's decision to keep Ilya on site.

During the morning sword training session, Ilya remarks on how Saber seems to be going easy on Shirou. Saber denies this but Shirou feels she went easy as well and asks her not to. Saber is worried about their bodies coming in contact in a man-to-woman fashion, but this goes over Shirou's head. At lunch, Saber shows that she's accepted Shirou's decision regarding Ilya and after lunch, she has a bath. Shirou decides to take one and accidentally walks in on her. Unlike before, both are now embarrassed by the situation with Saber feeling that Shirou wouldn't want to look at her body, which is not as feminine as Rin's.

Rin decides to have a talk with Shirou about his ability to create items, which is part of Shirou's tracing ability. Since it is impossible to perfectly recreate an object, such magic is not very highly thought of. She warns him against using it, since recreating Saber's sword would take more magic than Shirou apparently has. Rin and Shirou then talk about Saber's sword Excalibur, where Rin informs Shirou that more important than the sword is the scabbard that held it. Were Saber to get that, she would be nigh invincible. However, since the scabbard was supposedly stolen, Rin's thoughts on the subject get flushed.

That night, Saber finds Shirou in the storeroom practicing his creation magic. She mentions seeing one of his dreams now that they are connected. As such, she feels closer to Shirou and understands him more, seeing that they are very much alike. With that, Saber feels that Shirou's attempts to be a hero of justice is not the right thing to do. Since both need the Holy Grail for their wish to be granted, Saber believes that Shirou summoning her was inevitable.

Elsewhere, the witch talks her plans to force-summon the Holy Grail, using a mage as a container. She considers Rin but decides the best choice is Sakura.

Thoughts/Review: I mentioned last episode that I thought that Berserker would be killed this episode. What I didn't expect was that it would take Saber and Shirou piercing Berserker midsection only once to kill him. I really didn't expect Berserker to regain his sanity as Heracles before disappearing. That makes the creation of Caliburn by Shirou even more impressive in my opinion since it took the final seven lives of Berserker.

As I understand it, Caliburn and Excalibur are in fact the same sword but with different names. Since Saber is already using a sword that I assume is Excalibur, then I'm guessing the anime is making Caliburn and Excalibur different blades.

Also of interest is Ilya now being with Shirou, Rin, and Saber. I'd forgotten that a servantless master still has the ability to take a new masterless servant. However, it seems that Ilya has some sort of special relationship with Berserker. Too bad we only got a glimpse of that. However, it would explain how Ilya can control Berserker because by nature, a berserker is at best, hard to control.

Anyway, if Rin and Saber were worried about Ilya still being a master, I'm confused. After all, Rin would then still be a master without a servant and could easily take another one if avaiable. That aside, why couldn't Rin or Ilya simply transfer their command spells to Shirou? Would that nullify them forever as being part of the Holy Grail War? I just don't know.

Moving to Shirou's ability to create artifacts, now we have the explanation of sorts as to the objects that Rin and Saber found a few episodes back. Still, with Shirou having such an ability, I do find it interesting that Rin would warn him about using such an ability while Archer seemed to encourage it.

With Ilya having spent the night at Shirou's house, I thought for sure that Sakura or Fujimura-sensei would arrive to have a comedy scene about a little girl now living with Shirou. Then I remembered that Fujimura-sensei is likely still in the hospital and Sakura may well be mourning the loss of her brother.

Interesting that the witch appears to have targeted Sakura for her plans. So I guess rescuing Sakura will be on the menu.

So there an unexpected ease at killing Berserker and an unexpected new resident at Shirou's estate. *lol* Who's next?

Negima! Chapter 253 SPOILER Images

Negima! 253 SPOILER Images
魔法先生 ネギま！Chapter 253 (Images)

Here's what I know many of you have been waiting for -- the original-sized, sneak-peek images for Mahou Sensei Negima! 253 as brought to you buy anonymous Japanese fans (click pic to make bigger, y'all).


While Negi is blowing away the knight's clothing and Setsuna goes on a date with Konoka, Paru is doing what? *lol*

Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood - 08

Hagane no Renkinjutsushi - Fullmetal Alchemist Ep. 08
鋼の錬金術師 FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST Episode 08

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis: Al squares off with an armored suit that introduces itself as Number 66. Inside, Ed finds a transmutation circle and theorizes this must be where Philosopher Stone research is done. Another living suit of armor emerges (known as "Number 48") and confirms Ed's belief. Number 48 goes so far as to even reveal the location of his blood mark because before his official execution, he was a murderer known as "Slicer." So he wants to make things more entertaining when he fights Ed. As they battle, Ed finds the use of his arm not as good as it had previously been. Further, he's taken some damage from Number 48 and that's weakened him somewhat. Number 48 remarks on how good Ed is but he reckons the fight will soon be over and that his companion should have dealt with Al by now. Ed laughs since Number 48 says his companion is weaker and Ed has never defeated Al in combat.

Outside, Al and Number 66 continue to fight. Number 66 takes time to explain that he'd been a meat butcher named Barry in his previous life, but then took to butchering humans and was sentenced to death as "Barry the Chopper." He reveals that he is a living suit of armor and is dismayed that Al doesn't freak out over his being a suit of living armor. Al reveals his own living armor status which causes Number 66 to freak out. When Number 66 learns that Al and Ed are brothers, he questions Al on whether he's really who he thinks he is or if his memories and everything are just an invention, thereby meaning no soul is attached to the armor. Al denies this, but the words strike just the same.

Inside, Ed thinks he has a victory when he takes Number 48's head off. However, Number 48 has a secret -- Slicer's soul was attached to the helmet but his brother's soul is attached to the body, meaning the fight is not won. Ed is forced to use the technique Scar used on him and Al in order to take out Number 48. Now defeated, in thanks for being treated as human, Slicer is going to give some answers to Ed but is prevented when Lust's extended fingers pierce his blood mark, eventually killing him. Envy takes care of Slicer's brother. Since Ed can't fight any more, Envy knocks him out. Lust and Envy set about destroying the lab.

Outside, Lt. Ross and Sgt. Brosh to bring Al and Number 66's fight to a stop. The destruction of the lab building causes Number 66 to flee. Al wants to go in and rescue Ed, but Ross wants him clear of the area for his own safety. Envy emerges with the unconscious and bloody Ed, instructing them to take Ed to the hospital. Envy disappears in the confusion, leaving Brosh to carry Ed on his back as they escape the destructing lab. Meanwhile next door in the prison, Kimbley is excited over hearing the sounds of detonations coming from the lab.

In East City, Col. Mustang takes a call from Lt. Col. Hughes. After putting up with Hughes going on about his cute daughter and wife, Hughes and Mustang discuss the possibility that Scar may be dead. Further, Hughes informs Mustang that Mustang may soon be brought to Central City thanks to a shortage of personal. This is an opportunity for Mustang to gain advancement and Hughes informs him that should he rise in the ranks, Mustang will make many enemies. As such, Hughes advises that Mustang bring over trusted people and to get married.

Thoughts/Review: As I've mentioned, I've forgotten a lot about the first Fullmetal Alchemist series, though when things happen, I go, "Oh yeah! Now I remember." Such was my reaction when Number 48 "Slicer" turned out to be two people instead of one. However for some reason, I don't remember Lust or Envy being at Research Lab 5, nor do I remember them killing Number 48, nor do I remember them saving Ed. Strange, isn't it? So now I'm left to wonder why they'd keep someone clearly a danger to them or their goal alive. Now, if this were the original anime, it would be because of Ed's father. However, I'm told that won't be the case here, but I guess I'll learn more in time.

I do remember Al being question about his humanity and that this episode starts his journey of self discovery. I do know the issue will be resolved but I just don't remember how. *lol* Bad memory, eh?

Again, I'll mention that I like the humor moments that are injected into the series from time-to-time. It would be so easy to forget those and just go with the traditional action scenes and no humor, but having humor placed into tense moments (such as Number 66 freaking out when he saw that Al was the same as he -- a suit of living armor) works pretty well in my opinion.

The animation seemed much better this episode, which is good considering it was mostly fighting scenes.

While I didn't have a lot to say this time around, I still enjoyed the episode quite a bit.

Fate/stay night - 15

フェイト／ステイナイト Ep 15
Fate/stay night episode 15

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis: Shirou carries Saber as they and Rin continue to flee. However, they still have a long way to go and aren't moving very fast, so ignoring Saber's request to leave her behind, they continue on to an abandoned house that Archer had previously scouted out. With Saber so weak, Rin says that they will have to transfer Shirou's magic circuit into Saber, and this is accomplished through pseudo-sexual means. After the transfer is complete, Saber has returned to normal, though still limited by a lack of a constant power supply. Rin strategizes that they will need to take Ilya and Berserker by surprise and Rin will be that surprise element since she can hide her presence. Shirou thinks of Archer's final words to him, so he takes a tree branch and transforms it into a bow to help support Saber from a distance.

Outside, Saber and Shirou are soon found by Ilya and Berserker as Rin hides in a nearby tree. Shirou explains that Rin took off but Ilya isn't concerned since she knows Rin has not left the woods and she can track Rin down later. Berserker and Saber clash with it clear that Berserker outpowers Saber. All Saber can do is be on the defensive. Shirou forms arrows and while his shot hits Berserker, it does no damage. Ilya instructs Berserker to ignore Shirou for now and take out Saber. Berserker attacks again, shattering Saber's armor.

That's Rin's cue to attack by throwing several gems at Berserker. He deflects most but some do hit. He catches Rin, which allows her to throw more gems at his face with enough power to blow Berserkers head off. However, Berserker is not dead and is regenerating, which Ilya explains is because he still has seven lives left, based on the legend of Heracles as Heracles achieved immortality. Ilya is impressed that Rin had the power to kill a Servant but now orders Berserker to kill Rin.

Thoughts/Review: I see the hints at the hentai elements of the original visual novel in this episode with Rin first kissing Shirou, then performing some mostly implied yuri action on Saber before having Shirou get on top of Saber for the transfer via a tunnel of sorts. ^_^; I don't know what a dragon would have to do with this process but I'm guessing something had to be done in order to remove the hentai without removing the transfer element. ^_^; Still, this doesn't seem like it will work again unless Shirou can somehow give her more power. That might be accomplished with that sword he keeps thinking of.

Archer and Shirou -- OK, now I'm really starting to think that they have to be connected somehow. After all, Shirou created a bow and arrows in much the same way that Archer did, which is very interesting to me. How could they be the same person? I don't know -- I may be running down an empty rabbit hole but sometimes these things just scream out at me. So I may be reading too much into things or I may have something, I just never know which until things play out. If Archer and Shirou were the same person somehow, that would explain a great deal though.

Rin -- wow. Granted, her attack came from her gems, but still it is impressive that she was able to kill Berserker, even though he's able to regenerate to be killed again. If Rin can kill Berserker, then it may be possible for Shirou to do the same. Again, I go back to that sword and whether he uses it or Saber uses it, I get the feeling that this may end the Berserker piece of the story, which would then leave us with Lancer and Assassin. OK, killing Berserker seven more times seems a stretch, but I bet Archer killed Berserker a few times so it theoretically could be done.

Ilya having magic marks all over her body seems to not only show her impressive power, but could it also be that she has more than three command spells? I wonder.

This anime really does fly along though with the end of recent episodes seemingly coming out of nowhere and a cliffhanger of a story still to be resolved. *lol* However, that's the mark of good storytelling IMO when time seems to move faster than it really is.

Japanese Dog Does Squats With His Master

Just when you think you've seen everything...*lol*

And if that weren't enough, here's another.



*lol* What can I say except, "woo hoo!" ^_^

Natsu no Arashi! - 08

夏のあらし！ Episode 08
(Summer Storm)

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis: Hajime walks in on Jun and Kaja changing and teases Jun for being a girly man. After Jun changes, Master decides she wants some watermelons that are currently on sale and sends Hajime to get them. Hajime drafts fellow "male" Jun to assist since this is man work. Coming back, Hajime is amazed at how weak Jun is since Jun can only carry one watermelon and Hajime carries five. He decides to help by taking a short cut but that means climbing the steps of a nearby shrine. Reaching the top, both are parched and only have enough money for one beverage from the vending machine. Hajime has Jun drink first, then he takes a swig. When offering Jun a second drink, she declines (indirect kissing) and when he insists, Jun loses her balances and falls. Hajime attempts to grab Jun and the two tumble down the stairs and discover they've swapped bodies.

Back at the Ark, Master discovers a carton of unopened milk is way passed its expiration date. Since she hates the waste, she has a brilliant idea -- send Arashi and/or Kaja back in time to a date prior to the expiration date on the milk carton. Kaja tries to explain that this won't solve the problem of the milk being spoiled but Master says that if the milk is taken back into the past before the expiration date on the carton, everything is fine. Arashi sees the logic in that and agrees that this should be done, which frustrates Kaja as she can't make Master or Arashi understand that this won't actually solve any problems.

Jun-Hajime and Hajime-Jun arrive and try to explain that they've swapped bodies. Arashi thinks they are just pretending to be each other, so she does a good imitation of Master. Jun-Hajime and Hajime-Jun protest that this isn't what they are trying to do, but even Kaja doesn't believe their story and does her own imitation of Master, which Master finds very annoying.

Its lunch time and Hajime-Jun is scarfing out to Jun-Hajime's dismay. Hajime-Jun feels that Jun needs to put on some weight and since Jun's stomach is too small, eating a lot will expand it. Hajime-Jun realizes he needs to take a wiz to the horror of Jun-Hajime. As such, Jun-Hajime pleads with Hajime-Jun as a friend to never go to the bathroom in her body. Hajime-Jun isn't down with that and goes to the bathroom, only to find he has no penis or balls. Hajime-Jun is horrified and demands to check Jun-Hajime to make sure his body still has all its equipment, which Jun refuses to allow. In the end, Jun-Hajime whacks Hajime-Jun on the head to allow her body to take a leak.

Hajime and Jun attempt to decide what to do next and how they will live if they can't swap back. Neither is happy with the performance of the other. Master wants to resolve the milk issue so she wants someone to go back in time and drink the milk in the past to see who's right and who's not. Neither Jun nor Hajime are down for this especially since it could make them stay in their current bodies or they may actually be forced to drink spoiled milk. The two flee with the milk on a bicycle and when Master gives pursuit on her scooter-bike, Jun-Hajime tosses the expired milk back, hitting Master in the face and forcing her to crash. Jun and Hajime arrive back at the temple grounds and share a beverage again. An angry Master soon arrives and when they try to flee, all three end up tumbling down the steps and land with the detective -- all four swapping bodies.

Thoughts/Review: This episode will likely get added into my top-20 funniest anime episodes of all time (that I've seen of course). First, the absurd logic bit with Master trying to get Kaja and Arashi to take expired, spoiled milk back in time so that its not expired any more was funny. Arashi totally bought into the absurd logic that if you take an unopened milk carton with an expired date stamp into the past prior to its expiration date, it has to be OK because not expired any more -- that was very funny, especially with how frustrated Kaja got trying to get them bot to see the wrongness of this thought concept. Of course, Jun and Hajime had their own share of absurd logic considering their situation. Absurd logic -- gotta love it (except when it come from our hideous elected leaders, but that's something for a different platform).

What made this so funny and a potential top-20 candidate is Hajime's and Jun's body-switch and the events that happened thereafter. Arashi and Kaja not understanding what Hajime and Jun experienced and thus performing an imitation of Master made me laugh. It got better with Jun desperate to keep Hajime from discovering "he's" a "she" when Hajime suddenly needed to take a leak. Hajime's freaking out over losing Jun's balls and penis nearly had me falling out of my chair, as did his frequent come back to what he considered a terrible problem. *LOL* Lucky for Jun, Hajime is so thick and didn't catch on the Jun's body is in fact a girl's body. So I have to give it to SHAFT for creating something so very wrong and oh so funny. ^_^

On the negative front, I'm really starting to get annoyed with SHAFT's hideous jokes that are run so deeply into the ground, they've pass through the Earth's core and are now boring their way through to the crust on the other side of the planet. *_* Seriously, how did these boring joke sequences get here in the first place? I imagine someone in charge at SHAFT saw the first one with Yayoi and Kanako and the book reading and laughed until they crapped their pants. So the production team said, "If the boss laughs that hard, we have to put more and more of these into each episode, right?" *_* Well, at least they changed up the salt joke this time.

Amazingly though, this episode is the best and worst that SHAFT can bring to a table. At times, SHAFT can be amazingly funny and at times so stupid and pointless, one wonders what the heck they were smoking when they produced the tripe.

Despite the episode ending the the 4-way body swap, I rather doubt that the next episode touches on this aspect. After all, that is generally how these things go in comedy anime tales -- have a nutty comedy ending and then move on next week with everything back to normal. We'll see what happens though.

So through eight episodes, I still like this series well enough despite those terrible Yayoi-Kanako segments.

Here's a bonus image of Jun as a girl. Scary, isn't it? ^_^