So as I mentioned earlier yesterday in my latest episodic of Sora wo Kakeru Shoujo episode 7 (which I will link to later if you have not seen it), here is a deeper look at how the series is so far for me. Take note that of course, all of this is largely my own opinion. Then again, enjoying this show could not be possible without the added and varied views of people that enjoy and/or blog about the show. And since this series is rather…controversial in a way, taking a look at it now, whether it be halfway through the series already or just about a quarter, might be beneficial to those who may wish to start viewing this series, or to those who debate whether or not it may be worth it to continue.
The Story So Far
Alright, it is quite obvious that this part will contain spoilers. You are free to skip this section if you so wish, I separated the next section with a screenshot of Shishidou Takane below. However, even if you spoil yourself on the story, you are not going to lose out, because the story is one of the controversial parts of the show, and quite the mess.
Shishidou Akiha is a very typical girl, an “ojou-sama” of the Shishidou conglomerate, which is currently headed by her eldest sister, Kazane. She has two other elder sisters, Takane and Nami in order, and one younger sister, Sakura. She leads what you may call a normal life in a space colony that is largely supported in all of its economic aspects by the conglomerate, while the Intercolony Police or ICP for short keep order. One day Akiha wants to escape from the reins of her eldest sister who wants to force her into an arranged marriage, but in the process gets caught up in the appearance of a huge colony ship, headed by a brain robot known as LEOPARD.
LEOPARD chooses her as the Sora wo Kakeru Shoujo (The Girl that Leaps through Space), and she also meets up with Kawai Honoka, a mysterious nekomimi type girl that has some gravitational manipulative powers. In the ICP front, the Mystery Department sends Kannagi Itsuki, who is similar to Kawai Honoka in one respect, to investigate the colony ship’s sudden appearance and disappearance, and in the process, all three girls get caught up together. It also turns out the Shishidou Conglomerate is also involved in a slightly different way, knowing of LEOPARD and his colony ship as well as his archenemy, Nerval.
The story thus far has evolved to the point where Akiha is now placed the burden of being a heroine without any special notes to her personality or talents, unlike her sisters. For a full look at all the 7 episodes so far, here are the links to the combined collaborative effort between me, Chong Mizunaga, and Yamcha.
Episode 1 – Impressions
Episode 2 (Chong)
Episode 3 – Leopard’s Fabulous Golden Balls (Yamcha)
Episode 4 – Leopard the Hentai
Episode 5 (Chong)
Episode 6 – Space Lelouch’s Talk Radio Hour (Yamcha)
Episode 7 – OMG Takane! <3
My Views on The Story So Far
Quite frankly, the story is not that engaging right now, at least not that much. I might even go so far as to say the story might be bordering on crap, but as I mentioned in the first episodic, this show may have signs of promise in that the story might actually become decent later on in the series, but if they are going at this pace, I am hoping that the series will go for a full 26 episodes or so. Sunrise does have enough potential in the story to make it so, and I would hate to see it end at 13. Half the time I hardly care much about the story anyway.
If you were to take an objective look at it, a girl becomes a heroine, and is thrust into that position by both circumstances and close friends/relatives. She must now take on the burden of being that heroine without any special talents and try to find out the best in her personality that can allow her to take on the task of saving mankind. Generic, is it not?
I really only watch this show so far for its action, Leopard (who he himself is intended to be the major joke in Sunrise’s recent anime series) and Takane. <3
The Cast
Despite its dubious story, the cast is a really strong one, as I only found out some episodes into the show. I would like to take the opportunity to show you the voices behind the show, as they are probably half the reason you watch it for. I am dividing the cast into what I consider to be the veterans and those who are newer relative to these vets that I recognize. My knowledge of these veterans are limited to shows I have watched before, so be forewarned.
Veterans
Tamura Yukari (Shishidou Kazane) – For a start, I must admit I thought Kazane was voiced by Yukana (see below) at first. It comes as a surprise that veteran Yukarin is doing the head sister, considering how she always go for those younger roles with her rather unique voice. Those who have watched Solty Rei (Yayoi Celica) and the currently airing Asu no Yoichi! (Ikaruga Chihaya) will be more familiar with this unique voice I am talking about. Thus, it comes as a surprise for me to hear her in another kind of voice role. This must be why her fans tout her as one of those who have been in the line quite some time.
Yukana (Shishidou Takane) – If this keeps up and Yukana keeps showing me her voice talent in a variety of roles with just one voice I might just put her in my top ten list. She currently voices the female character I like most in the show, Shishidou Takane, the second sister of the Shishidou group and a woman that can fight in space unaided by a spacesuit of sorts, and is generally the brokest human character in the show till now. She is most famous as C.C. from the Code Geass series, another one by Sunrise, which everyone probably knows by now, and the biggest reason why they chose Lelouch from the same series as the voice actor for Leopard (see below). She was however also in Sekirei as No. 3 Kazehana, where I first heard another side of her, as well as Kotetsu Isane, the Vice-Captain of the 4th Squad in Bleach. Two other current series that she is in are Soul Eater as the Death Scythe Yumi Azusa, and a minor role as the Succubus in the Tower of Druaga series.
Fukuyama Jun (LEOPARD) – Though not technically that much of a veteran, Fukuyama Jun has come into his own league. I first heard of him, same for Yukana, in Bleach, where he played pretty boy Ayasegawa Yumichika, the 5th Seat of the 11th Squad (and still does). Fukuyama then went on to play the role he is still most famous for, Lelouch Lamperouge in the Code Geass series. Doubtless his transition from serious Lelouch to dickhead robot was a reversal on the part of Sunrise, a conspiracy in order to bring out Fukuyama’s other side of his voice. He was also in Spice & Wolf a year ago, where he cast as the traveling merchant Craft Lawrence, and Sekirei as Mikogami Hayato, the rich Ashikabi with a hell lot of Sekirei under his command. However his role as Mikogami was mild compared to LEOPARD.
Ishida Akira (Emilio Surre) – Anyone who denies Ishida as a veteran should be shot. His extensive roles in various anime series so far are too much to list out here, but in this case, he is playing only a somewhat minor role, as the younger brother of the director of the school Akiha is in. Emilio has a complex for Kazane it seems. He is also seemingly not very efficient in certain roles, but we do not know enough about the character yet since he might even have a shady past, though it seems unlikely. In any case, Ishida’s addition to the cast is quite the summation, considering the likes of the seiyuu mentioned thus far.
Further mentions – Tanake Rie is listed as being in the show, as a certain “Xanthippe”. If I am right, this “Xanthippe” is the little critter shown in episode 7. Tanake Rie probably needs no introduction however, considering her fame as a seiyuu surpasses any I mentioned so far.
The Newer Ones
Some of them have been in the line quite some time while others are relatively new, but in any case it is obvious these new folks are being given a chance since most of them are in major or at least more important side characters. This is probably a strategy on the part of anime studios though I am not sure – push some relatively known seiyuu by making them the main characters of series, backed up by a powerful veteran/newbie combined cast. Whatever it is, the newer seiyuu fill up the list of characters in Sorakake in abundance, so this will be quite the list.
Mako (Shishidou Akiha) – The only other role I have probably heard her in is Ichijou Karen in both School Rumble Nigakki and Sangakki (yes, not the first term, an explanation is provided later below). As Akiha, MAKO detracts from the shy Ichijou in School Rumble and takes on a teenage role. So far, she has been doing an average job. I do not feel much about her prowess as a seiyuu behind Akiha, but she can probably do better.
Endou Aya (Kannagi Itsuki) – As I mentioned before, Endou is one of those I am actually rather familiar with in the past year, due to her appearances as Mei Feng in Blassreiter, a serious role, and Sekirei as No. 2 Matsu. She returns to a serious role in Sorakake, and has been doing fine so far, probably improving on her experience as Mei Feng. Kannagi is a stick-in-the-mud, and Endou reflects this rather well in her portrayal of Kannagi’s voice most of the time.
Makino Yui (Kawai Honoka) – Now quite frankly I cannot remember if I heard of her before this, since several around me seem to be crazy about her. Makino Yui casts her voice as the mysterious ex-QT Kawai Honoka, who has a monotonous voice most of the time, talking as though she were a robot. This is a far cry from her other current role that I am also watching, Tsubame Tsubasa in Asu no Yoichi!, where she has to play a shy, rather socially inept girl who excels in martial arts. The switch between each role each week is something that many seiyuu have undergone, so I hope that she will adapt to it well and become someone with her own standing later on in the seiyuu industry. Thus far, as Honoka, I doubt if she had much difficulty, since Honoka uses the same tone throughout the show, and is largely predictable.
Koshimizu Ami (Mintao) – Ami is probably among the most well-known seiyuu right now, thanks to her role as Kallen Stadtfeld in the Code Geass series, and before that, her role as Tsukamoto Tenma in the School Rumble series. She also worked alongside Fukuyama Jun in Spice & Wolf as the Wise Wolf Horo, bringing another side of her voice into play. Quite a variety of well-rounded voice types, and she herself is lively off the set, reminiscent of the first character that I know her as, Tenma (though I hate Tenma). Here, she plays Mintao, one of the two ditzy ninjas hired by the brass of the ICP. Mintao can be best described as a cross between a serious role and a humorous one, considering how the two ninjas cannot even live up to the sight of blood. Ami brings her Kallen voice into play here though, not her usual one.
Shimono Hiro (Julio Surre) – Now I know why that male kid that is Akiha’s close friend in class sounds so familiar. I am not sure how many of you know him, but Shimono Hiro voiced Yuko K Steel, the mechanic who was all gaga over Solty in Solty Rei, though a more familiar role of more recent note would be the male lead Touhouin Ikuto in Nagasarete Airantou. He and male seiyuu Kakihara Tetsuya (Fujioka in Minami-ke series, Hayase Koichi in Kurogane no Linebarrels), I feel, have a unique voice that is more suited towards playing teenage male roles, especially in anime that are not meant to be serious. In any case, Shimono has been in the industry for some time, and he only plays a minor side character this time round, but we can expect at least that he will do a rather good job as Julio.
Nanri Yuuka (Shishidou Nami) – Trivia question: what do Mako and Nanri have in common? Answer: They both voiced the same character. Yes, Nanri Yuuka was the original voice of Ichijou Karen in the first season of School Rumble. I have no idea why they switched later, and Nanri all but dropped out of the seiyuu industry till I learned she was going to be in this show. It is quite interesting to see her return as Mako’s elder sister though, a cold and distant personality at that. She was also Sawatari Sayuri in the acclaimed movie, Kumo no Mukou, Yakusoku no Basho.
Ono Daisuke (Emilio Surre) – Ya, you heard right. Hosaka (from Minami-ke series) is in this show. Ono Daisuke has come into his own, though I still probably do not prefer his voice to be used in somewhat non-serious roles, like the one he is playing here, Shigure Shinguchi, whom I believe to be the President of the Student Council. Another recent role he played was the oni (demon) Kishi Kyousuke in Yozakura Quartet.
Saito Momoko (Shishidou Sakura) – I am also pretty sure few know of this seiyuu. She has hardly appeared in any other anime I watched except for the one I know her best for – as Solty Revant in Solty Rei. Back then, certain parts of her voice acting was off for me, though this time round she has taken a loli role with a cute voice, which is quite a change from Solty. It remains to be seen if she can pull this off as Sakura.
Further mentions – Sawashiro Miyuki (Isone Kotoha in Y-Quartet) and Kitamura Eri (Uchida, Minami-ke series) are listed in the show, but their names are unfamiliar to me, though I believe Lily, the character she voices, to be the junior that looks up to Akiha and is always in her class talking with Akiha and Julio. Finally, Yahagi Sayuri (Satchan/Erika) I mistook for Xanthippe, but she seems to be playing the student council president’s assistant, whose name might be Erika. She was recently mentioned in an episodic I did for Asu no Yoichi.
Parodies, Memes & Incredible Physics
From the very start, we were given various obvious hints that this show was not meant to be taken seriously. Throughout the show, parodies of certain stuff, such as the dropping of debris from our time in the various scenes where Leopard was blasting his colony ship through hyperspace, as well as memes such as “I HAVE CONTROL”, suggesting a perverted side to the phrase (Feidamu once described it in IRC as the possibility of a doujin appearing with Leopard “docking” and shouting “I HAVE CONTROL!”) and the various seiyuu’s roles as cast relative to the other series in Sunrise they were in…all this point to the show being something of a joke that is meant to be taken in a light-hearted manner.
Subtle hints such as LEOPARD MAE were also given. A little explanation is necessary here. If you return to take a look at episode 1, the part where LEOPARD MAE first shows actually writes the character “mae” as “front”. I have checked with people who have studied Japanese, and “mae” can also mean “station”. This must have caused confusion in my first episodic. In fact, in later episodes, I happen to see that they have changed the character to “station” in Japanese. The funny part about the first episode is that when written as LEOPARD MAE (Leopard in front), the arrow was actually pointing backwards, hence the joke, which was doubtless lost on quite a few people due to my oversight at the time.
However, the thing that breaks this anime and makes it on the same level of “incredulous” is the breaking of the very laws of anime physics. Now we all know anime operates on a whole different set of physical laws, but this series has just taken it to a whole new level. Colony ships 1.6 km (a mile) long in length able to do motions as fast as those you would be able to do here on Earth, in the vacuum of space? LOLWUT? Takane able to fight in space unaided by a spacesuit or spaceship of sorts (like the QT-ARMS) and then whistling in space where sound cannot travel to call her ship? WTF?
Finally, the phallic representations that have been present throughout the show, including LEOPARD’s fabulous golden balls orbs. Oh how subtle the sexual innuendo is in this show. I am banking on the DVD releases of this show to include nude filters of that particular scene in episode 4 where LEOPARD takes off part of the QT suits of both Kannagi and Akiha. In fact, a fan has already did it, you can view the results on Sankaku Complex (NSFW).
There are many other instances, as people who have watched the series so far already know. Then again, this is also what could make or break the anime for quite a few people. But I must say, incredulous as it is, once you know it is not meant to be taken seriously, then all of it will invoke a laugh instead of feelings of ridicule.
Mecha & Animation Quality
It goes without saying that despite its lulz, Sorakake has some really good animation quality. The standard has been consistent throughout the series especially in the animation of the colony ships and big stuff like the colony, alongside the QT-ARMS design, which I actually like. In episode 7 too, the iceberg was animated pretty nicely in CG.
Of course, the mecha are also probably one of the biggest reasons to watch the show. Honda’s ASIMO leaves quite the impression in the minds of many, no doubt, once you have seen what Mr. Black Belt in this anime is capable of. And all it wants to do, is “Tomodachi ni narimashou” (Let’s be friends). This robot is beyond awesome. So is LEOPARD in a sort of way, but that is because of his relation to Lelouch. His colony ship’s design is rather phallic in nature, but so far the colony ships, aside from their amazingly fast rate of movement which I am sure breaks all known laws of physics, have quite some designs that I am in favor of.
Music
I dislike the OP, it being Ali Project, a group whose songs I never liked. The ED’s full single however surprised me in that it was better than I thought, for a combined seiyuu song (Endou Aya, Makino Yui and Mako). Other than that, the music throughout the show so far has been rather generic stuff, nothing that is much above or below average, I would say.
Where do we go from here?
Quite frankly, despite everything going for it, I am still wondering how the story will go from here. But so far, Sorakake has been providing lulz and entertainment for the better part of the winter series alongside Asu no Yoichi!, and I foresee no intention to stop making fun of and blogging on this light-hearted series that puts in a combined dash of everything and hopes to get results out of it by sheer relation to not just other series, but also through the blogosphere that talks about it. Certainly, if you felt winter was a season of fail, then watch Sorakake. You might just change your mind…if you take it in a light manner, that is.
PS: Here the following episodes’ order list in terms of who will do what. It has been somewhat nearly confirmed, thanks to this post by j|m0ne, that the series will be 26 episodes, so I am including all episodes beyond the originally suspected 13. It has also been agreed that the last episode will be done by all three of us, whether it ends at 13 or 26 or some other number.
Chong – 8, 11, 14, 17, 20, 23, 26
Yamcha – 9, 12, 15, 18, 21, 24
Panther – 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 25
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