First Impressions / Little Busters!

「あなたの大切なもののために」 (Anata no Taisetsu na Mono no Tame ni)
“For What You Find Important”

Ah, Kud-o – superficially you may seem like a moeblob at first glance, but there’s no one else quite like you. Kudryavka strike box!!

I had some forewarning (not through any choice of my own, mind you) that the Kud arc was going to be a pretty dramatic tonal shift from a series that’s already proved itself capable of some jarring ones. The extent to which that was true started to become apparent last week and even more so this, as Kud’s arc came to a generally satisfying conclusion.

In a way Kud’s arc had to do some serious heavy lifting, because while I know there were earlier hints that will seem obvious if I re-watch the series after the second season, this was the arc were the work of rolling out the “secret of this world” really started. Among the things that seemed odd this week:

  • Haruka and Mio were back with the group at the start of the episode, as if nothing had happened. I refuse to believe their disappearance (this has happened twice with Mio that I’ve noticed) was a coincidence.
  • On a related note: the comment that Kud had used the Little Busters as a way to adjust to her new world, and “If any of us were missing, that world would cease to exist.” I don’t know exactly what it means, but it means something.
  • Kyousuke’s comment that “terrible things don’t just happen in places that are very far away.” He could have been talking about events along the lines of Komari and her brother – or then again, he might not…
  • Kud, while chained in prison, said very specifically that she had to get back “to help Riki and Rin”. Why help Riki and Rin specifically?
  • The more I consider Riki’s statement that his comment to Kud about not running away was “really talking to himself”, the more I think he’s referring to his narcolepsy being a form of running away from reality. I have no proof, but I can’t find any other obvious connection either for the statement itself or the narcolepsy.

It does seem that Kud is somehow more directly connected to the secret of the world than any of the other characters who have been in focus thus far – she’s certainly had more suspicious conversations with Kyousuke than anyone else, and he’s obviously in the know – but her own arc still provided probably the best drama of any thus far. To say it was a stylistic change from the rest of the series would be a massive understatement – we jumped directly into civil war. Automatic weapons fire as a lullaby, mortal shells exploding, and prison – Kud chained half-naked in an underground cell by the rebels who saw her as a symbol of the regime they loathed. LB obviously didn’t go deeply into the politics of the thing – this isn’t that sort of show – but the issue of ethnic tension between native peoples and the Russian descendants who retained power after the collapse of the Soviet Union is a very real one in many former Soviet Republics.

I don’t think there’s any way to describe Kud’s escape without using the term Deux ex Machina – a psychic connection between she and Riki using the gear from her mother’s ship, which magically teleports from Riki’s hands into hers? Well, this is Key after all and magical realism is the not-so-secret of any Key world. And I get the sense that this sort of thing is going to prove to be par for the course once the cat is out of the big and we go into magical mode at full-speed, not to mention that this development presumably was taken directly from the VN. It’s a bit of a head-slapper but it does raise the rather charming notion that there’s a special thread connecting Riki and Kud-o. I couldn’t help but notice that when she arrived back in Japan, it was Riki who she went to immediately.

We have two three episodes left of this season, and presumably an announcement about what form S2 will take will come shortly thereafter. Episode 24 appears to focus on another mysterious letter tied to a cat’s tail (you really shouldn’t do that, seriously) but being able to do more than guess, it seems unlikely to me that LB is going to undertake anything really major in these last two episodes as far as the larger mystery is concerned (of course the letters are obviously connected to it, but so far those stories have been pretty low-key on the “secret” front). I could be wrong and the season might end on a major revelation or cliffhanger, but it feels more likely that the Kud arc was the dramatic peak, with the final two eps more about a soft landing and stage setting. I’m also curious to see if anything is going to develop with Kengo, whose role may be the most mysterious of all in that, as of now, he doesn’t really seem to have a compelling reason to exist at all. I haven’t figured out yet if he’s somehow the lynchpin to everything or we just haven’t gotten to his storyline yet, but there are enough extended shots of his sitting at a distance from the rest of the group to really make me wonder.

 

It’s that time of year again: the Spring 2013 Preview and Poll is online at Lost in America. Please stop by for a read and share your most anticipated series for the upcoming season.

 

ED4 Sequence

ED4: エンディングテーマ3「Alicemagic」 by (Rita)

Preview

73 Comments

  1. I really loved the way, how JC Staff animated Kud’s route.
    There are some missing things, but there isn’t enough time for everything.
    The Deus ex Machina will be explained with the “Secret of the World”, so there is nothing to complain.
    The first time I played Kud’s route in the VN, I was also surprised (negativ), but the replay after “Refrain” makes it clear.
    Show Spoiler ▼

    Pictures of the Week:
    http://i.imgur.com/d73cHZ0.jpg
    http://i.imgur.com/9ioMfif.jpg

    Miep :3
    Reply

    1. That´s right! All will be explained with the secret of the world so for those that are dissapointed because of the “deus ex machina” don´t have nothing to worry about because all have an explanation!

      Wherethecowsfly
      Reply

  2. I want to find out whether or not I am in the minority here.

    I think Kurugaya is the most interesting character in the group. And I was sort of enduring all of these other arcs because I wanted to get to her arc. And it turns out that there won’t be one. She got shafted big time and I feel like I got shafted big time.

    Is she a popular character? Or am I the only one that likes her?

    Rukia
    Reply

    1. I don’t find her the most interesting in the group, but I like her fine and I know there are some others who agree with you. As for her getting shafted, while I don’t know the source material well enough to do more than guess, I would think there’s a very good chance her arc will be covered in the second season. We’ll know more when we get the announcement with specifics about the schedule for S2.

      Guardian Enzo
      Reply

    3. I don’t think (and hope) she’s going to have a route in the second season. If anything I’d hope for an OVA so they can keep the plot line intact.

      Show Spoiler ▼

      I wouldn’t know about popularity, but she’s definitely my favorite female character. So here’s hoping for a proper route.

      Crystalinsanity
      Reply

      1. Show Spoiler ▼

        Wherethecowsfly
        Reply

  3. Okay, first of all I have few questions;
    1. What’s the meaning of that tattoo in Kud’s face?
    2. Why is Kud just only wearing her cloak? Did the rebels did something to her?
    and
    3. With only 3 episodes left will they show Yuiko’s arc? or did I just missed it?

    I only have a grudge with Kud’s grandfather why the hell did she left Kud alone with the rebels lurking everywhere? Why didn’t he just let her come along.

    And that ending song “Ame nochi Hare (雨のち晴れ)” by Rita, wow just nice and fits perfectly.

    baseone
    Reply

    1. 1. I think it a signal for the rebels that she is a prisoner or something like that. xD
      2. Well, I didn’t played “Kud Wafter” (the Eroge-bonusgame for Kud), but I read that…
      Show Spoiler ▼

      3. Kurugaya’s route is the one, that has the strongest bond with the “Secret of the World”, so her route will be most likely in the second season.
      –
      This season will most likely end with the big baseball-game (japanese TV-magazines ftw! \(°w°)/ ).
      Maybe it’ll be like this:
      Show Spoiler ▼

      Miep :3
      Reply

    2. There’s no such kind of complicated thing behind it.If I’m not remembering it incorrectly, these are because they want to use her as sacrifice to a ritual which they believe will save the land (remove pollution due to the chemical during the explosion and other causes to the war…)
      Kud is willingly to be sacrificed at 1st b’coz … (If my death could save this land from war, i’ll play my role as a small gear which may benefit the others)
      She regretted of it after hearing the voice of her friends and Riki…

      tt
      Reply

    3. 1 – Just tevua traditions I think. How she was a prisioner, I think they would mark her somehow
      2 – For what I remember I read in the vn, she was raped.
      3 – Show Spoiler ▼

      The ending song is too the ending song of her route. It´s simply beautiful, just like kud <3

      Wherethecowsfly
      Reply

      1. Oh, a translator just confirmed hours ago that kud was not raped when she was chained (because there were a lot of people like me that think the worst hahaha). In my opinion, it would be weird if that were the case, and totally anticlimatic.

        Wherethecowsfly
        Reply

    4. Well, she was hung there to Die…

      Legs into Water to bring you Body temperature down. If you Sleep in, you would not wake up.

      And.. i dont want to think this to the end, why they hung there naked. No, i reject reality (or something)

      Germanguy
      Reply

  4. First off this LOL
    https://randomc.net/image/Little%20Busters/Little%20Busters%20-%2023%20-%20Large%2022.jpg
    I wonder what scene it came from
    second I’ve never been so conflicted while watching anime in my life… honestly I both hated this adaption of my favorite VN route(though not favorite character) and loved it.
    – I liked the placement of the music a lot actually (except for when they played the “title” music in a totally inappropriate place -.-)
    – I hated how kud suffered for all of 5 seconds when in the VN it was all more played out. If i remember correctly she had been in that cave for days..
    – I felt so so about the Secret of the world forshadowing because Show Spoiler ▼

    – I wanna know why the heck Mio and Haruka magically reappeared…
    – I still feel like going for the “friendship is magic” approach in Kud’s route just doesn’t work out like the more romantic one from the source.. plus cutting out the scene where Show Spoiler ▼

    was a little disappointing
    – I did like how they showed a bit of tebua/tevua though. and i felt like the ending was satisfying.
    Despite all of this however I still liked this episode which is why Im so conflicted.. :S

    TL;DR I’m super conflicted as to whether or not this was a good or bad episode. Subtle changes hint at a possible Secret of the world change and deliver a so-so ending for kud’s route.

    Naske
    Reply

    1. Discussing your first question in your first spoiler tag, here are some of my own thoughts in spoiler tags

      Show Spoiler ▼

      To answer your second question about why Mio and Haruka “reappeared”, again here are my thoughts in spoiler tags

      Show Spoiler ▼

      Suomynona
      Reply

  7. “Given enough small actions we should be able to gradually change the world.”
    This one line carried more meaning than it appears to have. It is not only significant to this one arc but important throughout the latter part of the story. Never forget this line.

    rasone0104
    Reply

  8. Wow! Part of me can’t believe they went that far. But if there is one thing I know, it’s that only Key that could make this and (mostly) get away with it. As for why Kud was naked, well I probably don’t want to think about that.

    All in all Kud’s story was pretty damn good. It was evenly paced, mysterious and melodramatic (But not tremendously so). If I were to really level a complaint, it was that the ending was deus ex machina, but I’ve been told that Refrain answers why magic is able to happen. Can’t be sure they aren’t saying things to justify everything, but I can give LB the benefit of the doubt. Nothing much more to say really. Kud was a much better character then Komari. Her seiyuu could actually get her voice to be sad and she was pretty much unconventional as a Moe Kyun girl. And I guess I am a sucker for Japanese spoken English. At the very least, there was a lot of main plot that kept me interested. Haruka and Mio were back. Definitely interesting. I give Kud’s route an 8/10.

    It looks like they saved the best stories for last, since the last three episodes will mostly focus on the first baseball game. That will leave Kurugaya, Rin and Refrain for next season. My favorite character and the stories that Maeda wrote. Could be a nine. As for the first season as a whole, I’m stuck between a six and a seven. Depends on how the last episodes are I guess.

    This is Kud’s bad end for those who can handle it (It’s that bad!): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9QZWPYyXSU

    MCAL
    Reply

  9. So the supernatural stuff finally takes part in the story! It seems random that every problem the main characters faced was solved by an unexplained phenomenon (Kud’s gear suddenly teleporting from Riki’s hands to her’s over thousands of miles) so I trust this episode will feel very unsatisfying to some with such a deus ex machina.

    starss
    Reply

    1. Everything. It´s awesome how j.c could adapt an extremely delicated route like kud´s and make it the best of the anime!
      The only thing that is different is that the vn make it seem that kud was prisioners by days and in the anime feels just like 10 minuts! anyway still epic!

      Wherethecowsfly
      Reply

  12. epic!
    Just awesome how they adapted one of the more heartbreaking parts of the vn delivering a whole new perspective of the events!
    Loved also how they animated the bests cgs like this https://randomc.net/image/Little%20Busters/Little%20Busters%20-%2023%20-%20Large%2030.jpg
    and specially this https://randomc.net/image/Little%20Busters/Little%20Busters%20-%2023%20-%20Large%2032.jpg (I could not help but cry because I was waiting all my life to see that scene animated, and it was perfect).
    In my opinion this was the best episode to date because it mix all what makes little busters! be an awesome series!
    Thanks for the post, enzo!

    Wherethecowsfly
    Reply

  13. To the VN readers (specifically Wafter readers) Show Spoiler ▼

    HakumeiJin
    Reply

  14. I admit tears formed when watching this episode. Kudo being an adorable and sweet girl, events in this episode made me sad/angry:
    1- aiming a gun at a child.
    2- leaving her hang like this as torture and possible way to die.
    3- how Kudo must have felt so alone.
    4- what was suggested in the spoilers above.
    Maybe I’m being overly sensitive (knowing also those things can still happen in real life), I just felt so powerless. Nonetheless, I am glad the episode ended with a sweeter note. Kudo is not a worthless gear in my eyes.

    Shinji
    Reply

    1. I think the ending felt way too quickly resolved, aside from the deux ex machina. I mean, it felt like this should’ve been two episodes. There is a friggin civil war going on even if it only lasted a few days! How did her grandfather react when she wasn’t where he left her? How did her visit with her mother go? All that was off-screen!

      starss
      Reply

      1. I would concede that it all went rather quickly, but I think a lot of time was given to other development, especially for Rin. Hell, even Riki and his neutral personality got some. The overarching plot and some thematic elements also got some attention. I think this development is quite important, and in our limited time frame most of the routes could have used more time, but had secondary priority. Could things have been juggled better? Probably. But this late in the game I think setting up for the future is the better decision.

        Passerby
        Reply

  15. Kud’s route takes the biggest departure from the VN source of all the routes so far, which is not necessarily a bad thing. JC Staff used the opportunity to, for one, do a lot foreshadowing for later events–even if a lot of it was shameless clue dropping–which is good. They also tried to flesh out the whole Tevua/Tebwa/Whateverthisfictionalexsovietislandrepublicis debacle out from a different perspective, which is commendable since in the original Kud’s route was a rather fast paced disaster-phon that shock and awed into emotional submission. Not to say that the anime doesn’t go along rather hurriedly as well, but changes like this, if done well, are key to all good adaptations.

    I’d love to answer all of Enzo’s wondering-out-louds, but I think letting them hang for a while will be more interesting for all parties involved. Instead I’ll note some differences from the VN. Only minor ones which are relatively safe to talk about; these are only minor spoilers for the VN and harmless for the anime-only viewer:

    Show Spoiler ▼

    I haven’t read Kud Wafter, so I of course have no idea what gets told there. But now it’s clear why Kud’s route was relatively long; they actually get a lot of development (both thematic and otherwise) done. This may have been at the expense of Kud herself, but I don’t think it was very damaging. The integration was fairly good. So though Kud’s route was not one of my most enjoyable routes when playing the original VN, thumbs up to the adaptation.

    tl;dr: a lot of development has been done. Look forward to later episodes.

    Passerby
    Reply

    1. Looks like Riki has been/will get broken.

      Ah, Little Busters. Beneath your cutsie, moe saturated, innocuous exterior is a great load of darkness. Has anyone posted a “What I watched, What I expected, What I got” poster of Little Busters yet?

      Andmeuths
      Reply

      1. What I watched: An adaptation of the best key work to date
        What I expected: An adaptation of the best key work to date
        What I got: An adaptation of the best key work to date
        Why people complains about little things? In my opinion, and if you just take what they adapted, you get a very solid anime, with interesting routes, and very dramatics moments, I don´t know, why people hate it so much? I just want a reason.

        wherethecowsfly
        Reply

      2. I don’t think Andmeuths was talking about how the VN was adapted. I believe he is talking about what happened in the story. I mean did you see Civil War and little girls being chained naked in a damp cave comming? Irreardless to answer why people generally are annoyed at the adaption is it is not perfect, forgetting that the adaptions by Kyo-ani weren’t perfect and took out romance for some girls too.

        MCAL
        Reply

      3. Oh, my bad, I have not read well what he say and how english is not my languaje I wasnt´t able to understand what he was trying to say. Sorry.
        But now that I read well: I like how Andmeuths is exposing his thoughts about the show Based on what the show want to delivere. But I think there is a lot of people who will complain about that. I don´t know if i´expressing well but he is one of few people what see what is key trying to deliver, and i´m happy that there is still people that not complain about details and can enjoy a show for what is.

        wherethecowsfly
        Reply

  17. In contrary to most of other regulars, I’m not really fond of this episode, individually.

    Mostly because of my confusion about Kud’s personal conflict. Mostly she seems to have a personal conflict upon meeting with her mother, but I was wondering the whole time : “did she get her priority right?”. I think she should have been happier that her mother was miraculously saved, or probably she is supposed to worry since “she remembered her own future”. Or probably her mind is too messed up so her mind is unpredictable? Also,the music placement of that title bgm is totally unfitting.

    Despites of that, in grander scale of things this serves a great buildup for later events. I can’t wait for the kurugaya, rin and refrain!

    zeroyuki92
    Reply

  19. “Haruka and Mio were back with the group at the start of the episode, as if nothing had happened. I refuse to believe their disappearance (this has happened twice with Mio that I’ve noticed) was a coincidence.”

    They never disappeared. The scene was more like Riki being left alone, disconnected from everybody else. They don’t show it, but I assume that he tried calling everyone, not just Haruka and Mio.

    Raw
    Reply

    2. I actually just finished her route (I’ve been playing them after the anime finishes them). The pacing was actually pretty inconsistant. Short story: Most of the pacing was better in the anime, but the events in this episode were done better in the VN.

      MCAL
      Reply

      1. That´s right. 1/2 of her route was kud studying for the tests and the other half was prety weird. The only thing that the vn done better is the cave scene. But I could say that is way epic in the anime. The song that played fits perfectly <3

        wherethecowsfly
        Reply

  22. All those guesses about Mio and Haruka dissapearances are wrong XD
    I really do hope writers explain this annoying little detail in the
    anime, as many newcomers have no access to the VN material. And even
    so it is not exactly obvious why they dissapeared.

    Helvetica Standard
    Reply

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