Forum - View topicUndead Unluck (TV).
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Harleyquin
Posts: 2860 |
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#6
Andy might have asked for the toughest possible quest for the hell of it, but the reward is coincidentally what he's been looking for. If Fuuko's guess is right, the whereabouts of the UMA Fuchi will be a huge step to killing Andy for good; after all it's Japanese for "Unhealable" which is exactly what Andy is looking for. That's if the current quest doesn't kill him first, although Andy's confident he's not going to be killed by the decay UMA Spoil. Andy being Andy, he fully intends to finish the job without relying on Chen and Fuuko. The trio won't be rewarded if the target is KILLED, but Andy doesn't seem to care which is a shame because it would all be for nothing if they don't finish the quest as specified. Perhaps Fuuko and Chen underground might be able to contribute in a different way to the quest completion while Andy does the heavy lifting. He's got little time as well, since both of them seem to have crossed some kind of invisible tripwire which gives them the same decay countdown Andy did and neither of them have his regeneration to keep the zombification process stalled. Chen is effectively the voice of reason and the character in charge of exposition for this week. We don't really know what UMAs are capable of, so Chen does us a huge favour by explaining what makes them so unique and dangerous. It's done in the series's typical off-the-wall manner, as is Andy's frankly ridiculous frontal approach to the walled enclosure and zombies beyond. Not sure what the zombie hordes are going to do even if Andy exhorts them to take on their tyrannical master under his lead, but it's going to be visually entertaining whatever happens. |
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smurky turkey
Posts: 1969 |
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Man, I have seen some dysfunctional groups in anime, but our crew of heroes is about as chaotic as they come. One tries to be the voice of reason, one just blows things up whenever he wants and the last one also acts without thinking, though in a less over the top action kind of way. I like how the episode switched between dumb jokes, action and sad moments on the drop of a hat.
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Harleyquin
Posts: 2860 |
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#7
This series has its quirky way of getting the audience to feel empathy for its characters, even if they're ensemble and not intended to survive the arc. The background to Longing's current state was not what I expected: 1. It was very recent. 2. Andy's "bride" not being fully corrupted and the correlation with individual aspiration. 3. The connection between the surviving kids and the bride. 4. The episode title vis a vis this week's episode. The episode's heavy emphasis on sunflowers and its opposition to Spoil's decay as well as the final run of the bride having fulfilled her dream (even if it was just for show) certainly affected Fuuko, possibly many viewers as well. The previous arc with Geena was no fluke: this series has the writing to keep viewers interested without always resorting to its signature blend of outlandish action and the occasional emphasis on censored Andy. As for the ensuing battle, it's as viewers might expect. When Fuuko gets involved, just what form her misfortune manifests is part of the fun. Although it didn't do much damage despite the pyrotechnics due to Spoil removing the crowd element from the equation, at least the trio have forced Spoil to transform and being "Phase 2". Chen hasn't given up on completing the quest though, good thing Fuuko and Chen figured out a method of extending the zombification countdown as it's already clear Andy can't finish the job alone. Not sure if it's a deliberate misspelling for next week's episode title, but it's anybody's game on how phase 2 will play out. Even if the outcome is Andy and co. snatching victory, I'm not willing to bet on them actually fulfilling the quest conditions because their opponent is in no mood to be caught alive. Like them, he too is set a quest by the monster book which is intriguing if explored later on in this adaptation. |
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smurky turkey
Posts: 1969 |
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Oh boy, I severely underestimated how powerful and dangerous a UMA can be, especially with a second form enhancing its abilities. I have no idea if every UMA is as dangerous as Spoil is, yet a few of those running around and you have the risk of humanity being wiped out completely. I get that the overarching battle is against the god imposing his rules, before worrying about that you will need to make sure that humanity it still a thing though.
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smurky turkey
Posts: 1969 |
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Well, episode 8 sure went a bit different than expected. I thought that the team would work together and use some smart tactics now knowing enough about the enemy's ability to then happily leave together while cracking jokes in victorious bliss. The reality is Andy removing the card in his head, going into a different personality and turning super saiyan 4. Beating spoil after that was easy, yet his different personality is not nice and now the entire round table has to stop him.
....yeah, it really is a wild ride. |
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Harleyquin
Posts: 2860 |
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#8
I never thought I'd see Sun Wukong's favourite weapon in another franchise, but here we are. Considering Chen's denying ability, it makes sense he's using the one weapon which exploits his abilities to their maximum. Just like its literary counterpart, his weapon is quite capable of literally reaching the heavens, which combined with Fuuko's unexpected insight after Andy's comment gives the trio the opening they needed to finish off Spoil. Although supernatural powers are a focus for this franchise, there's a lot of analytical reasoning trying to figure out the secret behind the individual's powers and the best way to counter them. Chen's abilities were fully fleshed out this episode despite only being hinted at in previous episodes, so it stands to reason he gets countered because Victhor has it in him to overturn the denying power through brute force. As for Victhor, it seems Andy only wishes to die if his memories are sealed. So the chip serves as a way to maintain his regular split personality so that his goal can be achieved at the cost of limiting his regeneration powers. He's much faster in thought and stronger in body when his limiter is removed, so Chen made the right call in getting the rest of the Table to rein Victhor in. It's still very much in the balance, as Victhor knows ways around conventional means to restrain Andy in his regular white-haired state and he's doing everything he can to live up to his unrestrained state's name. With the rest of the Table involved, we get to see what they're capable of even if it's almost certain their powers will remain undeciphered by Victhor. They've got the upper hand for now, but if Victhor starts figuring them out he's not going to hesitate to open up a few vacancies for applicants. |
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smurky turkey
Posts: 1969 |
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Man, talk about Victor being an annoying guy to fight. He reminds me of edo tensei Madara from Naruto in that he can't be killed, can summon a lot of copies of himself and uses the time fought to learn more about his opponents and their abilities/tactics. Nearing the end of the fight the roundtable was having an increasingly more difficult time and sooner or later they would have collapsed.
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Harleyquin
Posts: 2860 |
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#9
Victhor certainly lived up to his name: As strong as Thor and always striving for victory whatever the odds. Unlike Andy, he had virtually no limiters on his blood ability and would eventually have ground down the Table without Fuuko's intervention. Viewers would be used to the outlandish nature of the action scenes by now, while this week's nod to the sleaze was surprisingly low-key, and with the precedent already set it wasn't just to showcase Fuuko's physique for the sake of it. As cheesy as his partial recovery was, the kiss scene was surprisingly lacking in sleaze given the circumstances. Although she had only been travelling and living together with him, Fuuko once again delivers with her mixture of reckless bravery and improvisation exploiting her misfortune. The only complaint I had about this week's grand spectacle of misfortune is its lack of originality. Because she stuck to him like a limpet for a good ten minutes or so, the only thing the universe could come up with taking into account the terrain and surroundings was a multiple meteor shower/ satellite disintegration over Andy's head. We already had the meteor from episode one, so rehashing the same idea to delay Victhor enough for Fuuko to finish the job was more cliched than anything else. As for the aftermath, Andy hasn't quite succeeded in getting Fuuko to fall in love with him. What he HAS done is make her reliant on Andy as the only dependable person she has to prevent loneliness from controlling her life again. Even if she resides and works together with the Table, the only person she truly trusts is Andy and even the Table members acknowledge it with the "dumb couple" quip. Did the trio do enough to satisfy the Apocalypse Book? Before this week's sideshow they were supposed to capture Spoil alive as part of the quest requirements. Assuming the handover went well, they should be rewarded with the location of the Denier who in theory can nullify Andy's regeneration and grant him the death he craves. My bet is something is going to come up and things won't be so simple. |
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Harleyquin
Posts: 2860 |
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#10
The franchise prides itself on how outlandish it is at setting up scenarios to showcase Andy and Fuuko doing what they do best. Turns out even the world they live in isn't quite what viewers expect compared to the real world: depending on their quest rewards the very fabric of reality is rewritten according to the whims of the apocalypse book. Whether it's the Tower of Babel done in reverse, the night sky being repopulated by a galaxy UMA or even alien invasions as a penalty for failing to complete all quests, the creator has certainly let the imagination run wild for world exposition and setup. The setup episode from prior to the Spoil arc now makes more sense. The reason the occupier of seat I is so hell-bent on completing quests is because of the deadline and the consequences looming with each deadline instalment missed. Even more so now that there is literally zero room for error with the latest setback. Despite their powers and organization, even the Round Table cannot prevent Armageddon if they don't work together to finish the quests imposed on them within the very tight deadline. Did the distraction provided by Victhor lead to the failure of the Round Table to secure the final UMA? Or was the job too difficult anyway because all leads were captured and slain before they could pinpoint the location? Perhaps viewers will find out once the next arc gets going. For this week's action, Injustice actually shows her hand to prevent the alien invasion from getting off the ground. It's not a good matchup for Andy, since even Victhor wasn't able to get going against her even without the denial ability in play. Trying to overtake her on the achievements leaderboard is almost impossible; she participated in all but the Spoil arc so most likely has a huge lead over everyone else. Fuuko's challenge to dethrone her and change the direction of the Round Table as the new lead looks virtually insurmountable for now. Anyway, Unrepair is up next and if it's true he can bleed opponents to death by preventing blood from clotting Andy is literally doomed as his blood abilities are perfectly countered. It would bring him the death he desires, but is it going to be so simple as dying from septic shock? |
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smurky turkey
Posts: 1969 |
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The bigger question is how they are possibly going to ever defeat the god that is inflicting the rules upon them. Considering the reality bending feats that said god can do on the drop of a hat......how do you ever stand to do anything against that?
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Harleyquin
Posts: 2860 |
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#11
This is a setup episode, so besides an obligatory bout of Fuuko giving Andy bad luck to (temporarily) kill him and Andy once again doing the motions with the censors, there's not a lot of action to be had compared to previous weeks. That's to be expected, after all non-stop action without any build-up tends to cheapen the value of the action-heavy episodes. This arc brings in an opposing faction, and seeing Andy and Fuuko take them on looks to be the highlight of the arc. Because it's a setup episode, there's not a lot going on and the episode is padded up with the franchise brand of fanservice and toilet humour. Dressing up Fuuko in something other than her uniform or casual wear is fun purely because her reactions to Andy's high exposure choices are humorous. As for Andy, I'm not sure why he didn't just ask the UMA to give him the suit he wanted. Only explanation would be if he was satisfied the UMA would possess him and the mission would fail. On the other hand, exposition heavy episodes with lots of dialogue mean more character development. For a franchise that relies so heavily on its outlandish world setting and over the top characters it's not bad having quiet time to look into the mindsets of Fuuko, Andy and the opposing faction. Fuuko has changed of course since she met Andy and joined Union, but will her newfound courage be enough to take on fellow Deniers who have no hesitation killing everyone in their way? The trailer doesn't look good since the Denier who stops blood clotting should kill Andy (in theory) and Fuuko if injured enough to bleed will probably die from shock in short order. The main pair have backup, but I'm not expecting much from the sphere so it's 2 vs 4 in an environment hostile to both factions. New OP and ED all round for the next quarter, and I'm hoping the entertainment comes in thick and fast. It's been a fun series to watch and it's a shame its home market doesn't give it more attention (although unsurprising given the level of competition this quarter). |
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Harleyquin
Posts: 2860 |
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#12
The showdown between Andy and Unrepair is as outlandish as viewers have come to expect for this franchise. The latter appears to provide the death the former has been searching for, but analysis of his abilities reveals to Andy that there are loopholes which can be exploited preventing Andy from simply bleeding to death. Unrepair's companions are not there to make up the numbers either; Andy failed to figure out the female's gimmick and until he does he can't physically attack Unrepair while she stays by his side. We don't find out much about the hooded fighter and the mini gunner, but there's another quarter of adaptation to come and I'm confident it isn't the last time we see them on screen. The hapless Denier everyone is after has his own issues, which Fuuko can easily relate to as she had much in common with him before she met Andy. Despite his lack of control, his determination to save Fuuko for taking the attack meant to kill him has bought Andy a few seconds to overcome the mess they find themselves in. The trailer indicates Fuuko somehow survives the bleeding inflicted by Unrepair, but how she's treated given the specifics of his denial ability is going to be interesting. Unrepair is definitely not going to join Union as its eleventh member as things stand, but will the new Denier be an adequate substitute? Story is still as unpredictable as ever, so chances are good the next quarter will deliver more of the same in entertainment value. |
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Harleyquin
Posts: 2860 |
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#13
Interesting, I had wondered how they were going to save Fuuko since Unrepair has inflicted an injury on her which Andy under certain circumstances can negate. Turns out it's specific to him only, and the only way to save Fuuko before she dies from shock is to kill Unrepair. Easier said than done since his companion acts like some kind of shield and deflects all attacks aimed at him. Regardless, the episode delays the showdown with Unrepair and instead devotes the airtime to the other team member on this mission, Tatiana. Not a bad background episode either, since Tatiana's role so far has been limited to attacking Andy in some form or another. Although not related, she was close to fellow Russian national Grandma Geena who our main pairing killed to assume their places on the table together. Accordingly, she's not happy with Andy and tries to kill him anyway using practice duels as a pretext. Andy being Andy, he uses the franchise tried and tested tactic of frontal nudity to stop the fight, but it is Fuuko once again who averts disaster thanks to her usual mixture of spontaneous bravery and earnest reconciliation. Now that her new found friend is close to death's door, it is Tatiana's turn to show what she's capable of. Turns out she's in that mechanical contraption for a reason, and now that she's released it the stage is set for one big showdown before both sides drown or one side escapes. If Unrepair and companion escape, Fuuko is surely going to die so Andy needs to find something unexpected to get past the Denier's abilities and land a fatal hit. The series hasn't failed to surprise with its duels, so I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of outcome could allow Fuuko to survive and for the new Denier to somehow join the ranks of Union (either as the new member or as support?). |
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zfunk
Posts: 253 |
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I have a question, do you think the narrator is going to be a character introduced latter in the story? If so manga readers, do you have any idea of who it could be?
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killjoy_the
 Posts: 2460 |
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I know I tend to get a bit too annoyed by recaps in general, but man Undead Unluck's been testing me. The 3 minutes of recap at the start of every episode - the pre-OP being straight up just the last moments of the last episode, and the post-OP being a recap of the entire last episode in narration at least I feel like I can outright skip since they're well placed, but then in the middle of the episode we get the narrator describing what JUST happened through 1 minute of recap. Maybe it's like that in the manga but I feel like it could've been easily worked into the action scene itself instead of having to go that route
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