(Not so) Weekly Reactions: Elfen Lied [Episode 5]

After an unexpected hiatus due to work and laziness, I am back on the blog ready to get back on track with my Weekly Reactions!

So we continue on with episode five of Elfen Lied!

And oh GOD is this one a doozy

Like I usually try to do, I will leave out as many of the big game changing moments of the episode as possible so that you can get shocked by them yourself! Yaaaay~

And good news everyone, unlike episode four, this one doesn't feature any over-the-top gore/blood parties! Though I wouldn't hold my breath if you are actually planning on watching the rest of the episodes because I don't remember too many episodes this clean the first time I watched. (Clean is a relative term... very relative)

Before I actually say anything about the episode, I want to say that I like the anime. I thought it was good, but this is just a sum of all the emotions I felt and my... well my reactions as I watched the episode.

So let's get to it!

(NOTE: I will be referencing previous episodes. If you do not want any of the previous episodes spoiled, go watch them)

Weekly Reactions: Elfen Lied [Episode 4] (Reboot get!)

Ah, well met! We meet again Elfen Lied!

It's a... pleasure to be back within your innocence-crushing and sadness-inducing embrace?

But seriously, I enjoyed this anime very very much with my previous viewings. Though I can definitely say with security that this anime and manga are definitely not for everyone.

I like box openers

I can honestly see why Alice dropped the anime. It becomes quite hard to watch at some moments and, admittedly, the characters don't SEEM to undergo much change nor are they quite interesting at the very beginning.

I am looking at you Kohta...

Anyway, if you need a little synopsis before we dive into episode four, hopefully Alice's previous episode reactions will suffice.

Episode 1   Episode 2   Episode 3

With that out of the way, let's get this reboot started!

Elfen Lied: Dropped

It's official: I have dropped Elfen Lied. Why? It's not that I dislike gore or limbs being ripped off, but I dislike it when it's done unnecessarily. And trust me, it happens a lot in this anime. Every sentence if followed with a shriek then a limb being pulled off. The first episode is a brilliant example of this flaw. Literally, the only thing that was going through my mind was, "boobs...ow...ooohhh ripped off! Um, where's your shirt? Oh, another limb. Uhuh...ok I get it she hates limbs."
Other than the unnecessary decapitations and mutilations of limbs, I found the storyline a bit dull as well. Well, not dull persay, but...predictable. From the beginning you could tell that Kohta and his cousin (um...weird much?) would get together. That Nana would be saved by her "papa" and eventually find her way back to Nyuu. That Kohta and Nyuu/Lucy had some kind of past together (I won't say any spoilers for those of you who plan to continue watching it). It was just...boring.
I've dropped a few animes in my time, but usually after the first or second episode. This was a first for me, having watched up to episode 10 or 11. I even tried to go back and watch episode 12 today but couldn't bring myself into getting into it. It may also be the characters, each of which is pretty monochromic (yes, even Nyuu/Lucy). This had huge potential, but sadly it just didn't work.

Elfen Lied: Episode 3

Meet Nana: She loves the Papa who does
cruel experiments to her :)

I don't know about you guys, but I'd be crapping myself
if I saw that...

Oh Nyuu! You do the silliest things

"I'm here to take you home"
Ya, not expecting her answer to be too amiable there -_-

Ok, so here's what happened:

So, as for the beginning of this episode...it was awkward. An obviously jealous Yuka smacks Kouta on the cheek for being a perverted alien (Kaichou wa Maid Sama reference ^_-). The next morning Kouta has a fever, and is forced to rely on Nyuu to make him better. She proves to be absoultely helpless. It isn't until Yuka comes back that he finally gets the care he needs, in exchange for a living space. Well, after moving in, she forces Kouta to wash the floors, and Nyuu tried to help as well. While cleaning, Kouta knocked into Nyuu's boob, and for some reason she liked it. Of course, Yuka walks in! However, when the two leave to talk, Nyuu slips and knocks her head, waking up Lucy in the process. If it wasn't for a flashback of a young Kouta and Lucy, she would have killed all the people in that house. She then storms out of the house...as for the flashback, I'm starting to think that Lucy is Kouta's "dead" sister. hhmm. Another weird thing? Yuka asks Kouta if, "he also wants to fondle her breast like he did to Nyuu." Umm...ok?

Nana, a diclonius introduced in the previous episode, is sent to search for Nyuu/Lucy. For some reason she calls Mr. Bossman "papa" and seems to be quite humane and innocent for a mutant made to anniliate mankind. She finds the recently woken up Lucy and says it's time to go home. 

Elfen Lied: Episode 2

Ok, so there was a lot less gore and guts in this one, but still enough to satisfy the common slasher fanatic. In this episode, Kouta finds the lost Lucy/Nyuu at the beach, apparently looking for a shell to replace the one she broke. He then finds Mr. Ima Asshole at the beach with a huge machine gun and an idiot partner. Kouta gets smashed in the face and they take Nyuu away from him.

Mr. Ima Asshole really showed his true assholeness in this episode. He starts beating up and innocent Nyuu, saying that he's waiting for the "fun part" but doesn't get it...Until Nyuu is hit in the head and Lucy comes out. Skipping forward a bit, Lucy kills the idiot parnter, and slowly rips off Mr. Ima Asshole's limbs (he got it comin'). It wasn't until she saw the shell that she was going to give Kouta that she turned  back to Nyuu. As she runs away, a young girl approaches him, ties up his arms, and calls an ambulance.

After being released from the hospital, Kouta finds Nyuu at the Inn, and the most hilarious scene goes down: Kouta is forced to dress Nyuu, head to toe with his eyes closed. His cousin then walks in on them in the most awkward manner.

So, it looks like Nyuu seems to have a split personality that comes out only when she's hit on the head or in danger. That'll add some fun to the anime! And I'm pretty statisfied with the asshole's fight scene. I'm positive that he won't be gone, but for now we'll just enjoy the sight of his limbless body. It's said that she's the only Diclonious who can reproduce, and that she's the "Eve of a new species." By that, it kind of sounds like they want her alive...I'm also curious to see how the next episode is going to begin, seeing as how it left off with Kouta taking off Nyuu's pants and Yuka walking in on them. Oh ya, and I think Yuka may have feelings for Kouta...even though they're cousins. I find that pretty weird, but who knows! It is Japan!

Elfen Lied: Episode 1

Blood, guts, boobs, guns, and assholes. This anime certainly knows how to make an appearence. Jesus, this was incredibly gory. I have never experienced such an awesome amount of cut off limbs, exploded bodies, or pencil pierced heads...until now. I'm going to deem this anime the Kill Bill of the anime world. I think I'm really going to enjoy this. If you have a weak stomach, I wouldn't click the continue post button in my next posts (hopefully it'll be a screenshot gore fest!) but since this is episode 1, I think I'll treat you to an image of a poor, idiotic secretary's head....with no body ;)

In the first episode we see a woman strapped down and bonded, much like how Misa was in Death Note. Next, an epic explosion of blood. And I don't mean a slow drip...I mean an explosion...boom! Dead! We then witness the woman, whose head is protected by some metal contraption, brutally (may I stress that word, brutally) maul, cut, explode, and kill 25 or more police officers...and a poor innocent secretary :(. We learn that her name is Lucy. Lucy managed to escape the facility, but was shot in the head before she reached complete safety. After being badly injured, not dead, she jumped into the ocean. To put it lightly, the people in charge of this security facility were sh**ing their pants. 

Next we meet Kohta, who moved to Kamakura for college, and his cousin Yuka. While walking along the beach, they encounter an injured and naked Lucy, who has no recollection of who she is. Since she only knows how to say Nyu the decide to name her Nyu-chan. From the looks of it, it seems like Lucy is a totally different person. She's almost like a little girl, not knowing how to eat or where to pee. Kohta has no choice but to take her in. She also seems to care a lot about Kohta, breaking a seashell that his (implied) dead sister gave him after seeing that it made him look sad. However, this makes him mad, and he throws her out, leaving her open to the police force.

Back at the security facility we meet with the boss man again and meet our new antagonist, Mr. I'ma Asshole. He's a big, brute guy, with absolutely no respect for anyone. Seriously, he his a girl just for "sneaking up on him." Asshole...anyway! The boss man mumbles something about the end of mankind and orders Mr. I'ma Asshole to find and eliminate Lucy.

Overall, I think this anime looks really promising. Even right now I'm losing my patience. I seriously want to stop blogging and watch episode 2 already! But before I go, here are some screen shots of episode 1: 

Killed them without even touching them...like a boss

Meet Kohta and Yuka

Um...What would you do in that situation?