Mai-Otome Episode 18

Japanese Title: ホワイトアウト (Whiteout)
English Translation: Whiteout


First of all, I’d like to apologize for the really late entry as I’ve been ill for the past few days. Had a high fever, and spent most of my time curled up in bed sleeping. Furthermore, I’m having a bad cold (GAH!! Blocked nose... But at least I have nasal spray in my arsenal. Nasal spray is always a necessity and it’s better than negi :p). A bit of the fever has already left me, but the cough and flu are just as nasty as ever, and it will be a while before I can get back to full health. This is kind of a rushed review from me and I am still feeling rather unwell, so pardon me if I sounded off in specific comments ^^;. That aside, what do we have for Mai-Otome Episode 18? Clearly this is more like an aftermath sub-plot which is very nostalgic of Mai-HiME’s Episode 21. There’s the sudden misunderstood blow-up between two of the protagonists in the previous episode, and now the rest of the supporting cast more or less suffer the consequences. After Arika and Nina went at each other à la Mai and Mikoto, everything is pretty much a mess with the important escapees separated from each other. There’s no doubt they will be reunited again and from the looks of Episode 20’s preview, I’d say quite soon. As for the contents of 18, they’re not particularly poignant like the previous ep’s where some of us (Ers-chan fans especially) were pelted hard with that horrible incident, but it still has its fair share of “shocking” unexpected events. Sunrise seems to be working hard, I suppose.....


~Highlights of The Episode~

Old rivalries

Nothing has changed a single bit between these two. Fans should know how Natsuki and Nao were at each other’s throat most of the time in Mai-HiME although it seems they have taken a much “safer” and “friendlier” approach in Otome. It’s hilarious seeing the Gakuenchou being bullied by a mere Pearl student who has yet to harness the same level of power as she does, albeit Nao has already been chosen as the fourth. I do enjoy watching Nao display her rebellious “no mercy” attitude most of the time because that’s her trademark personality but I honestly felt sympathetic towards Natsuki. She was so defenseless in her attempts at countering the younger girl’s blatant teasing. Too sheltered by Shizuru perhaps :p? As much as I love Nao, I was kind of wishing Natsuki would shove her insults right back into her face. Maybe something along the lines of “Oh yeah? If Shinso-sama wasn’t stuck in a malfunctioned goldfish bowl, I’d been damned well pleased if she had a chance to witness you sneaking away and revoke your Pillar privileges!!”


Natsuki loves roasted snakes

Chiba Saeko’s acting is definitely something to be commended on. As cool and bad@$$ she makes Natsuki sound most of the time, it’s brilliant in the way she brings out the Gakuenchou’s subtle feminine side. Erm... Yeah, it’s Natsuki’s girlie scream which made me write a comment for this scene. I thought it deserved a mention no matter how weird the situation was. :p


Shizuru will never decamp from Natsuki’s mind

Is it just me or do I find Natsuki thinking about Shizuru A LOT? I suppose it’s only natural for her to be worried about her Oneesama ever since she had to leave Shizuru in handling Schwarz alone but hey, Yohko was there too. Keep the love love hints coming, and dang I hope it gets physical between them two SOON!!


The most effective way of handling a gung ho woman

Yukino knows how Haruka operates very well ^^. All it takes is a rock on the head and Haruka is on her way of dreaming about yellow chicks. I’m amazed at how hard her head can be. It split the rock into half instead of the other way around!


Miyu’s intentions

Besides her snazzy coin-throwing skills, Miyu’s ulterior motives certainly brought about some interesting thought-provoking questions. Why is she so intent on searching for Arika, and only for Arika? We know Miyu may genuinely care for her because she treats her with utmost respect but I wonder if that has implications for anything else. Maybe she wants Arika to be as intact (or unharmed) as possible for some role or agenda? Miyu also seems to have heard of the Shikkoku no Kongouseki and possibly its notorious purpose in the past but as of now, I’m assuming she couldn’t care less other than the fact that the person who possesses it has hurt Arika. I’m looking forward to see where she would go from now, besides searching for her friend. She still hasn’t revealed who she really is apart from being an android.


What Schwarz are after

So their ultimate goal is to get the Harmonium cranking for their evil evil plans? I guess all of us are puzzled as to what the Harmonium is actually capable of (Please, anything but a reset); after witnessing Arika having a shot at it, it looks like it packs some seriously powerful stuff. Furthermore, Schwarz has been trying to access whatever secrets that are hidden deep within Fumi’s mausoleum, in other words, what Garderobe has. I presume it’s the Data Bank they’re after if Erstin has leaked info about its existence to them. She was in there before after all but I’m glad she didn’t tell them the password to open the door. Then again, they would need the key. After watching Episode 19, I can safely say that Schwarz and the Aswad Knights are pursuing the same thing i.e. some sort of technology but entirely different objects all together. Schwarz seems to prioritize the Harmonium whereas Midori and gang look keen on obtaining what Garderobe has buried from them. There’s no doubt they will have distinguished uses for the things they would acquire later, and right now the race is on.


Farewell Aoi.....

No!! NO!!!! NOT AOI!!!! Damn, Sunrise is serious about going on a killing spree! While Erstin’s death can be detected from miles away, I totally didn’t expect this! Even though those refugees have every right to be angry at Mashiro’s selfish and ignorant attitude before, it’s inhumane of them to take it out on Aoi like this. In fact, I find their behavior towards her to be extremely unreasonable and unjust. Sure, rage can blind you but what they did to her was really shallow and cruel. They actually enjoy watching her die! Unfair? I bloody heck think so! I guess this is the Sunrise way of killing two birds with one stone. They ax one character, and this in turn destroys another as a consequence. Mashiro already has her share of heart-wrenching dilemma with people who downright hate her guts and witnessing Aoi’s death was the final straw for her. As illogical as it may sound, I seriously hope Aoi is actually still alive. The typical thing with Anime cliff deaths is that characters don’t usually die unless solid evidence is shown. No body in a pool of blood... No green sparklie... Here’s wishing she would appear later on, alive and well, although I do trust Sunrise would come up with a goooood explanation for it. They’d better :p. And what’s gonna happen to Chie now, dammit! ><


All in all, still a strong episode although it has yet to achieve the same level of dramatic impact which HiME delivered at this stage. I believe Sunrise may fix that up soon although it looks like it may take a while for it to happen. Right, it is time for me to get back to sleeping again... Really need the rest. Thanks for waiting for this review, everyone! Until the next... *ZzZz*


~Entry by Dav~