「犬と雷」 (Inu to kaminari)
“Dog and Thunder”

There’s no other way to say this – the latest episode of Kakumeiki Valvrave was simply astounding. It’s almost a shame that many of the anime critics have precipitately branded the show as a “train wreck” before giving it a fair chance. As it turns out, the first nine episodes have been a remarkably interesting take on the mecha genre and it’s truly a testament to what can happen when you go into a series with an open mind. In terms of sheer entertainment value, the thrills and mysteries presented here are probably second to none in this season and no question, the ubiquity of L-elf “Badass” Karlstein is the key underpinning for its recent run of excellence. It can’t come as a huge surprise to anyone that the prodigy has gotten his own way once again and every living soul on Module 77 has now been drafted into his army of amateur soldiers. L-elf’s prodigious intellect is more than apparent, but the fact that he was acceded to a leadership position that promptly shows just how capricious the human dynamics are in the face of war and terror. Aptly pointed out by the prophet himself, the death of Sakurai Aina was instrumental in pushing the passage of his mandatory conscription and L-elf was certainly not blind to the pronounced impact it had on Inuzuka Kyuuma – which in turn, made the love-crossed adolescent a prime candidate as the next Valvrave pilot.

The emergence of Inuzuka sempai as the man behind “Hiuchiba” (Valvrave-V) didn’t hit me like a curveball – after all, the stars were swiftly aligned to his favor the moment Aina’s demise was set in stone. It was, however, the revealing of the fourth pilot  that caught me off guard and even with the spoiler-heavy preview last week, to witness the introduction of two brand new Valvraves in a mere episode was nothing less than spectacular! There’s no denying it – Kakumeiki Valvrave is hard to beat when it goes all-in with the action-packed thrills and the sight of “Hikaminari” (Valvrave-III) working side by side with its blue counterpart certainly got my adrenaline pumping hard. I’m sure it’s to his own great delight that Yamada “Thunder” Raizou is now officially part of the front line and whether it was intentional or not, the stark contrast between the characterization of the newcomers could hardly be greater. Thunder is the wild child – fiery and reckless, but ultimately predictable – his desires are straightforward and he meant every word he said when he vowed revenge on the Dorssians, including staining his hands with bloodshed. Kyuuma, by comparison, is all about regrets and contemplations – he’s wary of the consequence of surrendering his humanity to the mysterious machine and perhaps more importantly, what would Aina think of him if she was still alive. But no matter how far apart their individual disposition is, they do share a common goal – that is to safeguard Module 77 from further carnage – and such objectives should mark the beginning of what looks like a fascinating correspondence and comradeship.

Of course, no one should be taken aback by the fact that it was L-elf’s plan all along that Kyuuma and Raizou would turn out to be the next Valvrave pilots. His brazenly manipulative ways has never been more conspicuous and such exploitation is obviously not going to sit well with Haruto. It remains to be seen how this uneasy partnership will evolve over time and while L-elf has been given the benefit of the doubt for now, their personal ideologies could not be further apart and I’m certain this will not be the last time we see an ensuing strife between those two. Then there’s the latest bombshells that were unveiled this week – the fact that the entire module 77 and almost everyone on board were created as part of the Valvrave project – and it goes without saying that Kibukawa Takumi is at the forefront of this conspiracy. What we were told this week was bang-on in line with L-elf’s prediction in episode six, but I suspect we’re merely scratching the surface of the unknowns and mysteries at hand. Who is this enigmatic Tokishima sensei and how does Colonel Cain fit into the picture – those are just some of the questions that have yet to be answered and as the first half of the series draws to a close, I have a certain suspicion we’ll be in for a roller-coaster ride of action and revelation in the next few weeks!

Random tidbits:

  • Is it just me or does “Hiuchiba” seem way too powerful. The IMP wing of shields is pretty much indestructible, not to mention the fact that it has multiple laser spamming weapons for long-range attacks!
  • I really like the mecha design for “Hikaminari”. The Armstronger Cannon, which can be split into eight arms, is somewhat similar to that of Gundam 00’s Seravee Gundam.
  • “I can’t take my eyes off you” – I don’t blame the kids for staring at Nanami sensei’s boobs. It’s an exquisitely fine pair!
  • I’m hungry!” – You shouldn’t starve your pet, Haruto. It’s time to feed her!
  • Once again, Shouko showed us just why she’s the perfect “waifu”. Those youkan were so delicious that it managed to evoke L-elf’s dere dere side for a split second!
  • Keikaku Doori!” – It’s too bad L-elf didn’t mutter those words out loud. He certainly has it written all over his face!
  • Just like Aina, I’m not a fan shiitake mushrooms. I can’t even bear the smell of it, keep them poles away from me!
  • Three hits and one missHaruto totally blew it with the last one. Then again, there’s nothing you can do when you’re up against L-elf!

tl;dr: @SeishunRC – #Valvrave 09: There’s no denying it – Kakumeiki Valvrave is hard to beat when it goes all-in with the action-packed thrills and to witness the introduction of two brand new Valvraves in a mere episode was nothing less than spectacular! #Anime

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210 Comments

  1. Is it just me or does “Hiuchiba” seem way too powerful. The IMP wing of shields is pretty much indestructible, not to mention the fact that it has multiple laser spamming weapons for long-range attacks!

    Lol, what’s not ridiculously overpowered about the mecha in this show…XP

    Zen
    1. That´s not entirely true, the Dorssian Army has been very capable of pushing the Valvarves to their limits with the correct tactics so they might powerful but not at all invencible. I think Jior develop them to fight together in order for each to cover the weakneses of its brother units, I bet that if put the 5 units in the battlefield with right comand it will be pure carnage!.

      haseo0408
    2. Is it just me or does “Hiuchiba” seem way too powerful. The IMP wing of shields is pretty much indestructible, not to mention the fact that it has multiple laser spamming weapons for long-range attacks!

      Actually, I don’t think it was too OP, like VVV3, VVV5 does have a weakness. It has extremely good defense and long range weapons, but it lacks in the close range and melee fighting department. This is the opposite of the other two primary color Valvraves (1 and 3) which are better close range/melee fighters with little defensive/long range. Valvrave 4 is good in the defense department and has adequate long range weapons, but the emerald fighter is the weakest of the 4 mechs thus far.

      Irenesharda
      1. Hiuchiba is equipped with fold sickles, just like Haruto’s Hito, so it does have melee fighting capabilities. To me, the indestructible shield is a game changer and as far as I can tell, the only weak spot it has is its back, but even then, it has access to long-range laser beam spams and with honed piloting skills, those blind spots can be covered pretty easily.
        I agree, Saki’s Carmilla does seem like the weakest Valvrave at this point. It only has the Spindle Knuckles as its offsensive weapon and the multi-leg spine hasn’t been proven to be particularly useful in long-range combat 😡

        Seishun
      2. Actually, I’d think Saki’s Carmilla would be perfect for taking down the Hiuchiba if it came down to it. Her Spindle Knuckles, particularly if coupled with that strange phasing ability we saw in the future preview a few episodes back, would be perfect for hitting it square in the back and scoring a one-hit KO.

        RyanAshlight
    3. That’s hardly true. It’s like what haseo0408 said, the Dorssians have proven themselves to be very formidable opponents – driving Hito and Carmilla to their brinks on multiple occasions. In fact, the enemies are usually trying to capture them alive, Haruto and Saki might not be standing if it was an actual fight-to-the-death battle 😡

      Seishun
    1. Wait, how did Yamada develop? Ever since they found they found the other mechs he’s just been “dude let me pilot it” and everyone said no. The only difference this time is that he just took it by force when there was a power outage. He’s seems more focused on beating everyone up than avenging Aina.

      Da5id
      1. He wasn’t avenging Aina but his friend Nobu who died in the Dorssian’s first attack. I don’t know if he’s really developed much though, he seems to be the same as he’s always been.

        He always reminds me of Kuwabara from YYH though, right down to being a school delinquent with red hair and a blue uniform. lol

        Irenesharda
      2. Yamada’s development was small admittedly: his take on what it means to be happy. There’s more to him than simply thug. He still makes a rather crude philosopher, though…

        kylone
    2. Admittedly, I didn’t quite take Raizou seriously as a character until this episode, but he did score some huge points with me this week. The conversation he had with Kyuuma was pretty insightful – how you should always take your “self-interest” into account when making a group decision. It might seem like something that is plain obvious, but believe me when I say this, that “self-interest” component is very often underestimated in a group effort – and more often than not, that’s the reason why members of the team burn out. Raizou was also the one who motivated Kyuuma to hop into a Valvrave, not to mention piloting one himself and kicking some serious ass – that definitely counts as character development for me, however minute it may be 😉

      Seishun
      1. Yeah, it’s character development for INAZUKA. Yamada is like Saki in that he just took the mech with no concern for the consequences, the only difference between then in now is that no one was around to stop him. Except unlike Saki, he STILL doesn’t give them any concern by the end of the battle.

        And speaking of development, can we please get some that isn’t at the cost of another character’s life? So far 3 of the pilots of have taken up arms because someone they knew died (or they at least thought they died), and the other one (Saki) only did it because she wanted attention.

        Da5id
    1. Haruto – 666 Suicide attack, Balanced mech, original Valvrave engine
      Saki – Focuses on speed
      Inu – Focuses on defense
      Thunder – Focuses on offense

      Something like this.

      TheMoondoggie
    2. It’s like what TheMoondoggie said, Haruto’s Hito is probably the most powerful Valvrave, it has the widest range of armaments and the original engine – which probably explains the presence of OS-tan in his machine and the “vampire-attack” that he keeps getting.

      Seishun
      1. I find it odd that the other mechs don’t have OS-Tans. Also, Saki’s been “cursed/blessed” for a few episodes now, but she hasn’t gone “berserk” once yet, so I don’t think either of the other two will either. I wonder if those are both something unique to Unit 1?

        Captain Sunshine
      2. Could be, but it’s still strange, IMO, particularly in light of the fact that that strange body transfer ability isn’t selective to Haruto alone either.

        Mayhaps it’s actually an unintended consequence of the Hito though and something that was corrected in the other Valvrave models. Could be that that’s why we haven’t seen Saki gone berserk.

        RyanAshlight
    1. Easy guess… Just look at the mech’s design, it looks like a super support type unit with all those green glowing radars on it’s body. There’s one person capable of such great support is the cast right?
      I said this 2 eps ago as well. :p
      I pretty much want myself to be wrong because the pilots introduced this episode was waay too predictable.

      MrRei
      1. I was said in the Valvrave site that it’s for information disruption and gathering, a hacking/strategy Valvrave.

        Similar to one of the MJP mechs that is used to gather information.

        TheMoondoggie
    2. I agree with Mr Rei, it does seem like Akira is the perfect fit for the indigo Valvrave, “Hiasobi” – which has sensor nerves all over its body. I suspect Satomi or Shouko will provide the motivation she needs to hop into the last one :3

      Seishun
      1. I think the “computer girl” will be the last pilot of the five. If you watch the opening theme song, it totally gives away all the pilots in order minus L-elf. The opening theme song starts off with some action scenes of the red Valvrave then Haruto comes out first being the main character and the first pilot. Next is L-elf mainly because he is also the main character and the imposed leader of JIOR. Here’s where it gets interesting. After showing L-elf, the next series of characters shown are the next four Valvrave pilots in order of when they became a pilot. The series of characters being shown starts with Saki, the second pilot to emerge then Inuzaka is shown after her being the third pilot. Next in line after Inuzaka is Yamada “Thunder” being the fourth pilot to emerge. And to my surprise, the computer girl with magenta colored hair (Akira is her name right?) is next after Yamada. These 4 characters got little screen time prior to their emergence as pilots of Valvrave. So why the hell are they shown first than Shouko, the princess-like yellow haired character or even the student council president who by the way have way more screening time than the 4 pilots? So my speculation is that Akira will be the last pilot of the Valvrave considering they only showed 5 Valvraves in the theme song.

        boomboomboomers
      2. I had also considered the “show the cast” segment of the OP, though I didn’t pay attention to the order, and my conclusions were similar to those of boomboom(etc.) – that segment shows 12 characters, 2 of which are teachers, 3 of which are already pilots, and 1 of which is dead. That leaves the blonde girl, the student council president, Marie (Shouko’s friend), Akira, the male nerd, and Shouko. The first 3 can probably be eliminated, leaving Akira, Shouko, and the male nerd as the remaining candidates. Of course, from the beginning I considered L-Elf and Shouko candidates based on their main character status.
        That was all before learning about the purple Valvrave’s design, though. I’ve like Akira from the beginning, so I wholeheartedly support this potential development!

        mythnut
  2. Now that Thunder and Kyuuma have claimed the yellow and blue Valvraves the candidate for the final purple Valvrave should be one of this people:

    1.-President Satomi: the dorssian inavasion and the election of Shouko as the first president of New Jior have left him feeling completely impotent, if sum it up with the fact her sister is opening up to some one besides him sohould be a nice incentive to try to gain more power to restore his shattered ego.

    2.-Shouko: I find it a little hard to belive but there is always the posibility that she joins the fight to protect her dear friends but given her personality I think is a long shot she´ll agree to kill people, even if they are dorssian soldiers.

    3.-Takahi: the main reason for her is that I think is unfair to let Saki alone in a team full of guys, so either her or Shouko should the final chosen ones in my opinion.

    What about L-Elf? Why would he need a Valvarave? The guy is way overpower as it is now! He´s master military tactician, a soldier that go toe to toe with Big Boss of all people and is a manipulator that would make His Majesty Lealoch pround. But there is also the thing of the price to be paid, the Vampilot might hve crazy regenerative abilitis but as the flshfoward of Saki shor thaey also seem to be inmortal in all the sense of the word, meaning that L-Elf will have to see her beolved princess die at some point he agrees with the contract and that´s that´s the one thing I belive he is not willing to do.

    haseo0408
    1. Actually, it’s more likely that it will be Akira as the last pilot. The last VVV is pretty feminine looking from the start, plus she is a hacker which is VVV6’s specialty. Also, all of the Valvraves reflect their pilots in some way. VVV1 is totally a samurai mech that reflects the honor that Haruto has. VVV3 is a very blunt, strongarm fighter just like Raizo. VVV4 is fast, lithe, and moves like a dancer, which goes into Saki’s background. VVV5 has the best defense of all of them and seems to have a weapon close to a splitting longbow, this reflects with Kyuma’s constant desire to protect others, as well as his background in archery (his bio).

      And even if you don’t go by that, there’s a big clue in the OP itself. It first shows the two MCs Haruto and L-11 and then shows Saki, Kyuma, Raizo,(seeing a pattern?) and then Akira. After that is Aina, Marie, Yusuke, Takahi, Satomi, Takumi-sensei, Rion-san, and Shoko…you can interpret that as you will.

      Irenesharda
    2. I really do hope L-elf gets a Valvrave of his own – probably not this season, but the next. A badass mecha for a badass pilot, now that’s how you bring the show to a whole new level. L-elf embodies the best of both Lelouch and Suzaku, he’s the brains and brawn of this show, all in one place 😉

      Seishun
      1. I can just see it now,L-elf & his Valvrare:

        V: So what do you want to do tonight L-elf?
        L-elf: Same thing I’ve been trying to do every night V,try to take over the world galaxy!

        MgMaster
  3. So in terms of pilots, so far we’ve got:

    -A really hesitant teenager who IS getting better at fighting, but still overreacts about the use of these mechs for no given reason. (“WE’RE CUUUUURSED GAIS.”)

    -A former idol who is all about getting attention and only seems to slow everyone down.

    -An otherwise bland guy whose character revolves completely around revenge (and we know how these stories go in mecha shows).

    -And Kanji Tatsumi minus any sort of identifiable character.

    That said, my current favorite character, L-Elf is certainly good at taking charge and putting them to good use as soldiers. We’ve gone through a lot of crazy stuff to get here, (and all of that is still questionable as hell) but we finally seem to be reaching stable ground.

    Da5id
      1. Haha, yep! And really, isn’t that all you need? 🙂

        It also helps that he’s in a position of power and his backstory isn’t driven by high school antics and misunderstandings. And as with most mecha shows, the designs and fighting styles of the mechs are really nice, if just a bit overcomplicated for my tastes.

        See, I can be appreciative of stuff sometimes! 😛

        Da5id
  4. YES! I was hoping that Three and Five would both be activated this episode! But wow, I didn’t expect them to be do this much damage. You know, in response to episode 6, there were people worrying that the previous pilots would job anytime a new one was activated, so it was good that they avoided that by having 2 fleets (and now we know that the regular Ideals have a blue trim), which sadly pretty much cut out Haruto and Saki from this week’s battle. It’s especially sad for the latter, as she got hardly any screentime, so here’s hoping she gets a better showing next episode.

    And wow, pretty much everyone in Module 77 was in the military and in on the Valvrave project. I wonder how the kids are going to react to that.

    With a name like “Campaign of Love”, I find it hard to know what to expect.

    P.S. I’m guess that Three and Five work best as a team: Five has AMAZING defence, while Three has some good close combat ability with it’s 8 (Dorssian Soldier Lady: “10 if you count the original 2, sir!”) arms. Kyuma and Thunder went from decking each other in the face to almost Combination Attack-level synchonization. I wish our previous 2 VVV Magius(es? Magii? Magi?) had that.

    P.S.S. After thinking it over a while, I’ve decided: I’m on board the HarutoXSaki ship.

    starqo
      1. It’s still a speculah Silver. At any rate, a guy ending up naked with a girl in some forest setting isn’t really doing much favor to the guy in question.

        TheMoondoggie
      2. I fully agree, Moondoggie. If the images are indeed real Haruto’s got a serious problem now. Show Spoiler ▼

        This all %100 percent speculation based off of three frames of animation that may or may be photoshopped. *Grins.*

    1. Hooray, we have another one on board of Saki’s ship. Looks like things will be getting steamy next week :3
      Hikaminari (Valvrave-III) is actually a long-range bombardment unit, but as you said, its melee capabilities are very impressive too. Raizou nabbed himself a pretty sweet mecha :3

      Seishun
  5. Aina-chan + that bun on her mouth if you know what i mean

    Last week, Croos posted about something…
    1:08 to 2:14
    A suspicious activity at night. A barely closed door enough for someone to peek. A gun cocking while shown. A hand falling down in window ala titanic. L-Elf hands fast presses. A serious talk. Haruto’s desire coming out. L-Elf knocking him up. Thus the night is spent together… (And OS-tan is hungry for more!)

    There’s too much gayness in this show and I’m still watching it.

    Ungas123
  6. I hope in the next episode they get to explain the Valrave. The twist was revealed at the end though I recall what pres said that JIOR that were no military force but in end we found out all military people are in module 77. As for captain Cain knows more than any one.

    On the other note there only 1 pilot left I wonder who it will be & I think Haruto & gang should inform Thunder about the effects of the Valrave to pilot he might be shock when he got shoot & finds out he still alive or he bit some & change bodies without knowing!

    lune
  7. Interesting how Haruto have no problem sleeping in the same room with guy that used as target practice, stabbed him through the heart and use him as human shield to top it out, talk about trust.

    haseo0408
      1. Still a long ways to go of course, but I think Haruto’s coming along just fine.

        If nothing else, let’s be thankful he hasn’t gone down the Kira “I’m gonna be a crybaby about every single person I kill” Yamato route.

        RyanAshlight
      2. LOL I highly doubt so, nobody cries as much Kira-tan! I didn’t even see Haruto shed tears when he thought Shouko was blown to pieces – instead, he hopped into a giant mecha and kicked some serious ass. He’s more badass than you guys give him credit for 😉

        Seishun
  8. The Valvrave ep 9 review by Hakotoshokan makes some interesting points re the Valvrave pilots and the 7 Christian sins:
    http://hakotoshokan.wordpress.com/2013/06/07/anime-review-kakumeki-valvrave-9/

    Basically:
    Show Spoiler ▼

    zztop
      1. considering how shoko seems to be shown around food a lot (that sandwich eating contest in the opening ep, the cooking episode in 7, and that deal with the rations and l-elf in the hangar) i am guessing she corresponds to gluttony (so she will eventually get her own unit if we go by that logic). as for envy, student council president seems to be going down that route.

        flamerounin
  9. Awesome episode. I really liked how they built-up Inuzuka Jewbro-sempai on being a pilot. He isn’t as angsty like the other “my love interest died” pilots from other Sunrise mech series and he was able to come into terms with her death shortly after.

    But that doesn’t mean he isn’t angry over her death anymore. He’d probably continue to fight until he get his hands on Q-Vier.

    As for “the reveal” this week, we were hinted with this before when LElf muttered something about the school being “part of the plan”. Who would have thought that JIOR, a neutral nation with no recognized army, actually has one, organized in secret(not secret anymore), and was in the process of making super robots?

    If that isn’t much for you guys this week, 4chan reveals that leaks of the story came from a company outsourced by Sunrise to animate Valvrave. I won’t be posting them here, but they’re big enough a topic that one Google search can help you.

    Episode scored a 10/10.

    TheMoondoggie
    1. So, essentially, his whole character is about another person’s death?

      And the JIOR thing isn’t that big of a surprise. EVERY country needs an army in order to defend themselves from attackers…although somehow none of them displayed any sort of military prowess when they were being attacked in the first few episodes, which is kinda inconsistent with this recent revelation.

      Captain Sunshine
      1. >although somehow none of them displayed any sort of military prowess when they were being attacked in the first few episodes

        They did, but they never went launching the Valvraves because they’re trying to keep it a secret. When the module, which is the JIOR secret military base was attacked, it seems Cain is the only one who knows what the module was for.

        TheMoondoggie
      2. >So, essentially, his whole character is about another person’s death?

        No, but I won’t spoonfeed you with the information. You have to listen and watch the show.

        TheMoondoggie
      3. But an army in a mecha show isn’t that much use without actual mechs. They could’ve at least had some grunt soldier mechs ready for use. Not much point in keeping their military secret when common sense dictates that a country would have one.

        And I think you might be seeing things that are just not there. Besides his that small thing about money, all of his character development so far has been about Aina. That’s not to say it can’t expand from there, but it just hasn’t yet.

        Captain Sunshine
      4. The reason they don’t have a proper army because they’re on path of demilitarization as a neutral country. A good example is Orb in GSD. They pay Dorssia not to be attacked as well.

        And you answered your own question really. Most of the time, he was with Aina or talks about money. Obviously he likes Aina and probably means to tell her. When Aina died he wasn’t able to take it at first not just because he lost chance to tell her but because he doesn’t know what will be her answer. His small search for vendetta made him realize Aina won’t like it if he continued to think of revenge and that Aina probably loved him as well(see recent episode). If you can’t consider that a development then it’s your problem.

        Aw, now look at the horrendous thing you made me do. Considered yourself spoonfed, you baby. And next time, watch the show.

        TheMoondoggie
      5. Oh and BTW, just to be clear, looking like you ARE on path of demilitarization doesn’t mean that you can’t dev more WOMD secretly.

        Yes, JIOR is a troll(“Hue, hue, we are neutral and we have no proper army…” *secretly builds Valvaraves*). And not a very good one.

        TheMoondoggie
      6. …do you really need to resort to name-calling just because others don’t have the same interpretation as you? I’m not a mindreader, you know.

        ORB in GS still had their own army which was hardly a secret. And isn’t paying a country to NOT attack the same thing as paying “protection money” to the mafia?

        And I never said that I didn’t consider that development, in fact I acknowledged that he still has room to grow. I was only pointing out that it seems to be solely placed around one person’s death, and that doesn’t help him to stand out.

        Captain Sunshine
      7. >ORB in GS still had their own army which was hardly a secret.

        That’s because Cagalli left. If she didn’t and there was no marriage plots behind her, she would have dismantled the army herself.

        >And isn’t paying a country to NOT attack the same thing as paying “protection money” to the mafia?

        Yes, but that looks like a ruse so that JIOR won’t be disturbed with their Valvrave development.

        TheMoondoggie
      8. Then apparently you have more confidence in her as a leader than I did, because aside from punching that purple haired guy in the face (which was quite satisfying since that guy was an asshole), she was pretty ineffectual throughout both series. And I don’t remember her being for completely dismantling their army because leaving a nation completely defenseless is not a smart move by any means.

        As for JIOR’s deal with Dorssia, that may well be the case, but we don’t know that yet. I guess we’ll have to find out.

        Captain Sunshine
      9. >leaving a nation completely defenseless is not a smart move by any means.

        That’s the purpose of demilitarization, my boy. It’s an agreement between allies. The goal here s to create world peace though dismantlement of combat able/ combat reay armies to show unwillingness to go to war.

        And Cagalli was on that path, It was said in episode 1 of GSD that they’re already dismantling the navy when she was on ZAFT to meet the Chairman.

        But ZAFT had other ideas and you know how it went from there. So the navy was rebuilt in alliance with EAF, blah, blah, blah, fight at the Mediterranean and gets wiped out by Shinn.

        TheMoondoggie
      10. But usually demilitarized countries have at least SOME form of defense force, whether their own or a paramilitary entity. JIOR may have had their own secret army (apparently), but why keep it secret? Did Dorssia not allow them to be able to put up a fight in case a third party attacked them? It all just seems rather arbitrary. And NO WAY is that going to lead to world peace because some country is always going to looking to expand its backyard or resources by force if they have to. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

        Speaking of GSD, the amount of irrational and unrealistic political ideas (“we’ll force everyone to take jobs WE want them to have so they won’t have any say in the matter!”) in that series pretty much shows why you can’t take a page from it when talking politics.

        Captain Sunshine
      11. Yeah, I saw your theory and then I saw the reply beneath it…which made a lot more sense than the theory.

        Also, when people say “unrealistic” when talking about these kinds of shows, it usually means it’s unrealistic even within the context of the story. And wouldn’t the fact that something is untested mean that it’s not credible?

        Captain Sunshine
      12. Look, I’m going now as far as to say that our reality =/= anime reality. No matter how much you put your own reality as judgement of an anime’s lore and universe, any argument that says “anime reality is false, our reality says this will happen instead” is false.

        Since there is no real example of a situation then, how can one draw an unbiased judgement on that?

        Let’s be honest: “you just want to say that this show is a trainwreck and has shitty writing because it doesn’t follow your notion of reality like (trash)slice-of-life animes would”. In that case please go. I have no more intention of arguing with idiots who still believe in judging anime through real life examples. Anime is anime, and anime isn’t real. Those worlds can present situations untested and to criticize that is abhorrently biased.

        TheMoondoggie
      13. Okay, we might be getting into the territory of projecting here. I wouldn’t say this show is shitty, in fact I’m actually really getting into it now, but you seem to want to believe you know exactly what I’m thinking, so you’re the boss. But you know where all these stories, including anime, come from? Reality. They’re all made by real people who get real life inspiration to create these stories. And the stories that are usually enjoyed more are ones with some grounding in reality and/or with realistic characters that the audience can form a connection to. Without that grounding or connection, they turn into the kind of stuff that requires you to “turn your brain off”, as in the stuff that is holding creativity back.

        It’s a bit early to say what kind of story Valvrave is just yet, but here’s hoping it’ll land on its feet.

        And I would love to believe you are done arguing. I really would. But it is simply human nature to have differing opinions. Doesn’t mean they’re any more or any less intelligent, it just means they think differently, they interpret things differently, and they enjoy things differently or just enjoy different things altogether. You have no reason to think less of someone just because they think differently, nor lash out at them like you’re doing now.

        Also, apparently being objective is being biased? lol wut?

        Da5id
      14. So you’re saying that SnK have semblance of reality? Where in the fuck of modern time has humanity been pushed back to the brink of extinction, you twit.

        All you think about is connect, connect. Like you’re trying to self-insert yourself into the anime. You then judge the whole thing with concepts from OUR reality. How fucked up can you get?

        Also, no one actually turns of their brains when actually watching anime. Maybe you, since there are some points of the anime you failed to get, do that. But then I already proved your so called “intelligence” is AWOL, so some might forgive you on that.

        As for creativity, try making up a plot that doesn’t resemble anything in the past 15 years. Tropes have been troped. Even SnK’s end of the world ploy stinks of zombie apocalypse. You just make the zombies evolve into Titans.

        TheMoondoggie
      15. Well, to be fair, the fear of dying is enough for anyone to relate or form a connection to moment where a character might die. That’s why people can get scared in horror movies or apocalypse movies even if they’ve never been in danger of dying in real life. The originality isn’t an issue as long as you can mix it up and keep people engrossed in the story. Also, you’d be surprised how much anime is about self-insertion.

        But I think we all need to calm down now…

        Captain Sunshine
    2. The bigger question here is,

      Why would a nation completely committed to a pacifist, no-war stance even develop the Valvraves in the first place?

      The decision to have Module 77 and the school serve as a covert recruitment and Valvrave manufacturing facility certainly points back to involvement by the highest echelons of JIOR. But why?

      zztop
      1. That’s the thing: My guess is they weren’t! JOIR was bidding it’s time to enter the war as a more powerful nation able to take on both ARUS and Dorssia with Valvrave weapons.

        Why would a country with that much power would just go and pay not to be attacked? It doesn’t make sense until you realize the truth about module 77.

        TheMoondoggie
      2. Because I don’t care how pacifistic or neutral your nation is, you might not want to attack others but you had better darn well defend yourself and your citizens. And this show has already made consistency errors when it comes to JIOR. First there was the “Does JIOR have a President or Prime Minister?” thing. Then they say they’re neutral and then later say they are allied with one side of the conflict. And in this episode, Satomi says that JIOR has no military, however we know they very obviously do (EVERY country has a military of some kind) since not only do they have military grade weaponry, mechs and battleships lying all around this one module but we also find that everyone except Rion and the students were all soldiers. Even if you’re the most notoriously neutral nation on Earth (Switzerland for example) you have to have a military and weapons to defend yourself as well as to enforce your neutrality during wartime.

        Irenesharda
      3. Good point Irenesharda.

        Now we just need to see if the Valvraves were only made strictly for JIOR’s defense, or whether JIOR had more sinister plans for the Valvraves.

        zztop
      4. @Irene:
        Concerning your other points, they are neutral and sided only with ARUS after they were attacked.

        They do have an army for defensive purposes(like we saw in episode 1), but the main of their army IS being kept secret afterall, because of the development of the Valvraves. If the existence of the Valvraves were exposed very early, ARUS and Dorssia will gang up on JIOR.

        TheMoondoggie
  10. L-11: What happened to the (rations) recipe I gave you?
    Shoko: People’ll prefer it [in a better-tasting form (of red bean jelly)!]

    Conclusion:Shoko is the proverbial monkey wrench to L-11’s well-oiled military machine.

    zztop
      1. I actually think L-Elf pretends to be cold and actually likes sweet things.

        >Sweet things
        >sugar is sweet
        >Haruto is the sugar to L-Elf’s bitter coffee

        Oh my…

        TheMoondoggie
  11. Wow, talk about one of the best episodes yet! So much happened, we got character development, some great humor, and awesome fight sequences to boot. (Yellow is ridiculous, I thought it had four arms, and then bam! Ten arms total. That model kit is going to be a pain to build, I tell you. Blue is pretty cool, was hoping that it used a real bow instead of crossbows though, but there is always the 666 attack…

    Not surprised Thunder got a Valvrave, hope they develop his character more though, as right now he’s just a very angry dude who cusses like a sailor.
    Kyuuma’s motivation was obvious from the start, but it appears that he’s accepted the fact that Aina is gone and is much more calm than most characters who lose love interests and are only fighting for the sake of revenge. (Hope he kills Q-Vier later though, I hate that guy)
    Sorta saw that twist in the end coming minus the whole part about everyone being the military… The other thing, what does cute OS-tan mean when she’s “hungry”?

    Anyways, I’m still standing by the theory that the one in the tube waiting to activate is the midseries upgrade, maybe it just needs that special “something” to activate. (Like how in season 2 of Gundam 00 only Exia’s GN Drive was compatible with 00 Gundam)
    My only complaint this episode was the lack of Saki, but that aside, this episode was fantastic.

    katsudon
    1. OS-tan feeds on the victim’s soul? LOL
      L-elf has switched bodies with Haruto on multiple occasion, but there isn’t any noticeable side-effects that we’re aware of. Let’s see what Okouchi sensei has in store for us :3

      Seishun
  12. We were speculating last time, about which of the 2 anguished youngsters striving for vegeanance would join the ranks of the Valvrave pilots. Answer: “BOTH!”
    Valvrave Blue seems in particular extremely powerful when it’s “wing-shields” manage to deflect Biggest Friggin Gun Dorssian fleet has.
    L-11 is becoming something of a gold standard of badass, from easily assuming leadership position, to extremely effectively training students in the art of war (they were resisiting Dorssians quite effectively, for a bunch of students with hastily installed guns and provisional shields, Valvraves notwithstanding), to inducing events leading to the recruitment of next 2 Valvrave pilots – and managing to get compatible ones selected! – to finally catching another wild card agent onboard the Module 77.
    And between col.Cain raising even more suspicions in Kriemhild, and OS-tan getting HUNGRY I am sure we’re in for more epic entertainment soon!

    ewok40k
  13. Lack of Saki this week makes me sad…

    But we got Haxorz Hiuchiba and Goro x2.5 Hikaminari. Was pretty cool seeing them wreck an entire fleet. Plus we got this line.

    “It has eight arms!?”

    “Ten if you count the original two.”

    “I know!” <— ORLY?

    Kuntzy
  14. the valvrave 3 is simply awesome. i love how the large arms can turn into eight more arms (too bad that feature is not included in the model kit. oh well, i could just modify mine).

    still, my problem is that thunder is really not that interesting of a character, as say saki. the whole “prideful pilot becoming humble after having his ass handed to him” is oh so predictable, considering how his character has been shown so far. and he dosn’t have a really interesting backstory. in my opinion, takahi would have been a more interesting pilot for valvrave 3 storywise.

    oh, and basing from the promotions, akira is already an obvious one to pilot valvrave 6. l-elf and shoko would probably get their own units by the next season (again, going by the promotions).

    flamerounin
  15. I guess when you’re in a Valvrave and choose to become a vampire, you get all the necessary training instantly downloaded to your brain as if you were jacked into the matrix, otherwise I don’t understand how these new pilots just operate the mech like they’ve been doing it all along.It’s complete bullshit, but it’s still nice to look at and entertaining.

    How come Haruto’s the only one getting rabid tendencies?When does Saki begin to exhibit similar behaviour?

    And I liked that twist, all the students were basically test subjects for the Valvraves, oh humanity, so creative in how you screw yourselves over.

    Magoiichi
    1. I would imagine it’s because Haruto’s the only one with a Valvrave-tan.

      As for the piloting thing… heck if I know. I could see if they took awhile to get used to it, like testing out the weapons or something, but they’re using all their weapons pretty efficiently right from the get go.

      I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt since they have limited episodes to work with though.

      Kuntzy
      1. It’s a two season split-cour series, you are correct. Most mechas I’ve seen that involve the characters getting used to the machines tended to be 50+ though, so a show with half of that has to cut corners a bit. I mean, they’ve only got a few episodes to go for the first half and we still have one more Valvrave (That’s been introduced) to go.

        Essentially this entire first season has been one giant introductory phase and the main plot will probably kick in for season 2. So would you really want them to cut stuff out from an already tight schedule just to have the pilots get used to their machines?

        Kuntzy
    2. “I guess when you’re in a Valvrave and choose to become a vampire, you get all the necessary training instantly downloaded to your brain as if you were jacked into the matrix”

      I can’t remember where it was revealed (maybe in the manga version?), that’s pretty much what happened to Haruto (or at least it was something very similar to what you wrote).

      shadowblack
  16. Oh sh*t! I just saw a picture of what Raizou’s suit’s gonna look like. It’s actually orange rather than the yellow I was hoping for dreading. You called that one like a boss Seishun.

    Kuntzy
  17. “Go Suck A Dick, Like Right Now” and “Your Back is Wide Open Just Like Your Mom’s Legs”
    Well this show has officially grown on me now that L-elf has finally taken control over the school and made them not act like a bunch of clueless teenagers when they battle, I already love that barrier system he set up, it looks cool (plus it gives the “school bitches” something worthy to do during all of this). Truthfully shows like this are only fun as soon as you introduce more than 2 characters that constantly fight, we need some variety! Which we have now.

    SDFSDG
    1. You have gg’s extremely liberal subs to thank for those lines. You’ll notice during the “mother’s legs” line, there was no okaa-san or any way of referencing Kyuuma’s mother at all. gg messes around with lines to make them sound funny which ticks off the purist types and gives them a bad rep (deserved though).

      Kuntzy
      1. Yeah, I also noticed that too because I was thinking during those lines, at least the mother part, “Valvrave may be a random show, but I highly doubt they would have a solider that’s not part of the bishie 4 say a line like that” plus I went and rewatched it, you’re right they didn’t say anything about a mom in there (listening to the japanese audio)…kind of sad how many people eat up that stuff like its true -_-

        SDFSDG
    2. Interesting. The lines certainly didn’t come off like that in the Crunchyroll subs. They were: “Stupid amateur! Your back is wide open!” and “Take that, you Dorssian Dick!”

      Perhaps that is closer to the original Japanese. Though the art of translation *and* localization can be subjective. Personally, from what I’ve seen of GG subs I think I’m going to stick with CR. I’m not knocking the group, I simply use fansubs *if* a show hasn’t been picked up by an official source. I also prefer a blander translation over the more colorful ones. XD

      1. @zztop

        Ack. What SherrisLok said. The only downside of the official source is that they can’t get the licensing rights to every country. If you want to access CR you might have to use a proxy server or some other method to spoof your IP address. =/

    3. Gosh… I can understand certain liberties in translation to make the characters/situations more amusing, but spicing up the lines like that is just plain horrible… I’m disgusted, honestly.

      SherrisLok
  18. The thing bugging me the most about this episode is the VVV OS saying its hungry. It may be me but that OS has done alot of things that puzzled me.
    -Like killing the JIOR pilot (though that did make sense for the most part)
    -Asking what Haruto and Saki was doing was sex
    -Then lastly that “I’m Hungry” statement
    I almost wanna say its behaving like a living machine, but that’s…..well still pondering that

    Arcad
  19. In the subs, Cain said the Valvraves had been successfully ‘reproduced’. Does he mean in terms of ‘technical reproduction'(ie. JIOR successfully copied the original Valvrave tech), or does he mean ‘biological reproduction'(ie. the Valvraves were biologically grown)?

    I’m not sure if Cain’s original Japanese dialogue regarding the above had some kind of double meaning that was lost in fansub translation.

    zztop
  20. Favorite Valvrave Quote of the Week:
    “8 arms!?”
    “10 if you count the first two!”
    Thank you dead female assistant that was very helpful.

    My old friend, the Beam Spam, its my favorite style of mecha combat! So I really do dig Valvrave V especially since it can take shots as good as it can shoot them. Its “crossbows” remind me alot of the Beam Harmonica from Gundam X. Kyuuma is at least appropriate for it, since he seems to be the calmest on the battle.

    Didn’t Expect Valvrave III to make its debut though. And appropriately its for Yamada and the Valvarave is pretty strong effensively especially its extra arms. Asura’s Wrath anyone? I enjoyed how the two were perfect bros in battle actually complementing their strengths together to make them uneatable.

    Judging from what we have so far, my theory is that the Valvrave are actually alive and “grown” in those vats. So it basically means there is a symbiotic relationship with their pilots.

    fragb85
    1. Seriously that female assistant, she sure knows how to deliver lines. I don’t care if it defies logic, I would love it if she somehow survived, to deliver more lines.

      Goodwill.Wright
    2. Those two are indeed pretty hilarious – it seemed like they did manage to escape just before the bridge was blown up. I wouldn’t mind seeing more of them, especially the female commanding officer :3

      Seishun
  21. Was I the only one that giggled at the entire fight scene starting when the Blue Ranger showed up? With the timely “Protect the Bridge from Giant Lazer shot” and the Commodore’s sudden “It’s an order!” death flag sequence?

    L-Elf and Saki are really the highlight of this show. There was an awkward feeling (despite a double dose of Valraves) when Saki only had one line in the episode. Students breaking into the command center role was pretty entertaining though.

    Jello
  22. I knew Thunder and Valvrave 3 would be great combination. I never imagined that the Valvrave 3 would be a mix of the best features of Tieria Erde Gundam units. It has big claws-cannons as the Raphael Gundam. These are split into 8 arms as the Seravee Gundam.

    Inuzuca was great, it is very sad that he has lost to Ania. Of the four pilots so far it is the most serious has taken his training and his mind seems more focused.

    I had my deductions on module 77 and Valvraves. It is frightening to know exactly what is the origin of the robots and that is what they have done with students.

    Nanami sensei is shocking, I can not take my eyes off the screen when she appears LOL XD.

    I want to see the new pilot for Valvrave violet. But I see that take an episode or two more. I hope to see you new Valvrave post the next week Seishun XD

    Shadow74
  23. I really liked A-Drei’s beam weapons this episode, they looked really powerful. I hope we’ll see another IDEAl vs VVV duel in the coming episodes, like in episode 6. I’m also sad we didn’t get to see what the IDEAL Valvrave 3 destroyed instantly did when fired (why does it have claws?).

    Also, to those believing Saki has the lamest unit, you should take in account she has the highest speed and acceleration, and is the best close combat unit. Despite the Valvrave 3 and 5 destroying multiple IDEALs and a battleship, I believe Valvrave 4 never gets to do as much because she is facing X-Eins and H-Neun, which are much better pilots than the IDEAL pilots seen this episode.

    Finally, we need more L-Elf in his beautiful white Splicer Z type. In fact, the remaining cast not piloting a Valvrave should make a Splicer squad, honestly, this thing doesn’t get enough attention IMO.

    Chirisazame
    1. +50 Seishun Points!
      I love to see the splicers in action too, but I’m still hoping L-elf would get a more prominent mecha of this own – it doesn’t look like he’s going to get a Valvrave, but he should at least get one that has comparable fighting abilities :3

      Seishun
  24. No one has noticed/mentioned that the movable pin-point shields protecting Module 77 were a shout-out/tribute to the original SDF-1 Macross carrier’s original energy shield (which was also handled by the bridge bunnies) before the refit? *man, I feel so old*

    Haruto: “you planned this all along, didn’t you?!?”

    L-Elf: *sings* “boku ja nai, boku ja nai, boku ja nai~ …”

    foureyeszerosoul
      1. -50 Seishun Points!
        I’m guessing you didn’t read my Intro Post, Croos 😛
        SDF Macross is one of the very first anime that I watched as a kid, I’ve also listed the recent Macross Frontier as one of my favorites from 2006-2012 – not to mention the fact that I was an active commenter when the show was blogged in RandomC 😉

        Seishun
    1. +50 Seishun Points!
      I actually did make a mention of the barrier system in one of my “Random Tidbits” – it didn’t make the final cut though 😛
      As much as I love old-school mecha, I try to avoid making unnecessary references – considering the demographic of our readers. The last time I did that, there were only two commeters who caught the mention I made for SRW and Mugen no Ryvius XD

      Seishun
  25. Haruto and Saki Show Spoiler ▼

    There’s something about H Neun. . . . Oh the worried expression of Shouko. . . . . Takahi nice. . . . No gun. . . alright election. . . Bastard Haruto. . . . L Elf grinned. . .

    wmo
    1. For those that have read this, the Saki and Haruto part is unconfirmed and is highly suspected to be a very good job with image editing.

      Either way, we’ll see next week.

      Kuntzy
  26. VVV-tan is getting hungry… Which means we are close to the Big Revelation on the space vampires! Are they aliens? Did the hidden military of JIOR intend to create an army of teenage vampires? They were really bad people as it turns out.

    L-Elf and Haruto being roommates! All the wasted potential of showing their full of misunderstandings room-sharing ! Sunrise should make a spin-off series dedicated to comic moments of Valvrave. With the school festival episode being a must.

    I’m pretty much sure at this point that L-Elf’s keikaku is all according to Cain’s keikaku and that L11 will not manage to outsmart his former commander in the end.

    SherrisLok
  27. Not one, but two Valvraves get their debut in this great and surprisingly character focused episode.

    Valvraves III and V finally get some action and prove to be major powerhouses for JIOR, and surprisingly make a pretty good team. Valvrave III is obviously the raw power specialist of the Valvraves, fitting for its pilot, and if it’s pure physical power isn’t enough its got multiple arms and weapons with vast potential in combat. Valvrave V on the other hand is more defensive and specializes in very effective long range attacks, with the only flaw in its seemingly perfect defense being its unprotected back. All in all, some great Giant Robot action from cool new mechs. The Golden Seven are shaping up nicely.

    But as a whole this was much more of a Kyuma character episode, focusing on his reasons to fight and his regret over Aina’s death. I can’t say that I ever thought of him before this episode as anything other than Haruto’s cool older guy friend who might like Aina, but his heartfelt feelings for Aina and dedication to her memory pretty much won me over. I kinda wish they had spent more time developing the two together instead of just killing Aina off, but what’s done is done. I only feel bad that, considering how Aina interacted with Haruto, that his love for her may have been unrequited.

    Raizo, or “Thunder,” on the other hand got less character focus despite being a major player in the episode. But then again, compared to Kyuma, Raizo’s has had plenty of focus in past episodes. All around I’ll say he’s a pretty cool guy. He’s got a bad attitude, but beneath that I think he’s a pretty good guy, if a little temperamental and dumb. I just hope he’s able to take the reality of the “Rejecting Humanity” part of becoming a Magius well once he finds out about it.

    Already one episode into their partnership and Haruto and L-Elf are coming to blows. It serves as a reminder that even though L-Elf is helping JIOR and providing support to reduce casualties, he’s still only serving out his interests and manipulating people how he sees fit. I wouldn’t say at this point that, even with how people like Haruto and Shoko are slowly breaking down his defenses, he really cares at all about anyone at JIOR and would gladly sacrifice any of them if it meant furthering his plans. It really has me excited to see how things might end for him and Haruto by the season finale.

    Ah, Kibukawa Sensei… here I was hoping you were just a genuinely good, honest, competent Physics Teacher. Well, I guess this makes more sense especially considering his knowledge of the Valvraves. I hope the good points about him, like helping Nanami Sensei or caring about the students well being, were’t all just some facade. And then there’s the revelation that everyone in Module 77, aside from Nanami Sensei, were in on the Valvrave project. The projects goal: to create an army of Valvraves and cultivate their pilots. I’m very interested in the implications this holds for the students and their families, and just how this project came about. And why Nanami Sensei!?

    I feel bad for Haruto that he’s the only Magius suffering from making the contract with the Valvrave, and it appears his episodes are getting more and more frequent to where there doesn’t even need to be a catalyst for it to happen. This could be attributed to the fact that his situation and Valvrave are fundamentally different from the rest. He’s actually died, and his Valvrave is the only one with an artificial intelligence. And the fact that its saying it’s hungry just as Haruto has an episode may be very telling. I just find it odd though, that there doesn’t seem to be any real drawback for the other Magius’ “Rejecting Humanity” other than outliving everyone around them. Considering how positively the Magius’ are taking their power, not keeping in mind Haruto’s situation, makes me think that they’re all in for a rude awakening soon enough.

    With Valvrave VI left to appear, I have to wonder how Dorssia is going to put up any fight against the assembled might of all the Valvraves and L-Elf. Unless Cain has Valvrave II lying in wait and its major powerhouse, though his reactions to the rest imply otherwise. But without a threat that can really push them to their limits, what much of a climactic final fight can we have for a season finale? And then there’s the mystery numbered Valvrave in the glass, which I’m betting is an unfinished Valvrave VII instead of II. After all, why number your units in sequential order if you’re just going to skip one? Which means Valvrave II is out there somewhere just not necessarily on JIOR.

    Frontier
    1. IDK about Dorssia at large, but my bet is col.Cain wants to wait until all the Valvraves are active and THEN snatch them together with pilots – which might or might not involve L-11…

      ewok40k
    2. Thanks for your enthusiasm, I’m glad there’s someone out there who’s as big a fan of Valvrave as I am 😉
      This is merely a speculation. Haruto’s Hito is the only Valvrave that has the original engine equipped and that could explain why he’s the only one who’s suffering from the “Vampire-attacks” – the presence of OS-tan in his mecha sets it apart from the rest.

      Seishun
      1. It should be noted that Haruto’s episodes (meaning his attacks of vampire-ish tendencies) still seem to have no actual consequence tied to them outside of switching bodies, which has already been proven to be easily reversible. So there’s still no real reason to feel that worried about them.

        Captain Sunshine
      2. True – I doubt that will last for long though. OS-tan is hungry and she has shown us what she’s capable of when she’s not pleased – that was episode 4, I believe :3

        Seishun
      1. I don’t really think there was a vampire named Cain in any story until Trinity Blood a few years back. However in Trinity Blood, all three of the Crushniks were named after the children of Adam from Genesis: Cain, Abel, and Seth.

        More than likely, Valvrave also has its Cain based off of the Cain of Genesis at least in part. After all, in certain versions of Genesis, after having murdered his brother Abel Cain is cast out of the Garden of Eden by God and cursed to walk the earth until the end of days. In addition, Cain is given a mark from God, aka “the mark of Cain”. This mark is meant by God as a protective charm of sorts for Cain, offering him divine protection from premature death and specifically to prevent anyone from killing him. At the very least they drew inspiration with at least giving Cain in Valvrave a mark and implying that he is indeed immortal.

        I guess another twist they could always add to the mix would be to actually make Cain the same Cain from Genesis, could lead to all sorts of craziness as to what his motivations for obtaining the Valvraves actually are.

        Wouldn’t be the first time it has happened in a SciFi type series of some sort where the main villain was the KANE of the Genesis story. Kudos to those in the Random Curiosity BROTHERHOOD who know what series I am giving a NOD to with the previous statement.

        El Guapo13
  28. Why does i patch guy say reproduced? Is V1 the original and what about V2.
    Takumi Kibukawa is talking about not moving and it has it’s own number. Is that unit 2? why does it have to move?
    I’m in love with this story and the Mech’s.

    NarujiRD
    1. Haruto’s Hito (Valvrave 1) is the only one with the original engine, Raizou’s Hikaminari (VVV 3), Saki’s Hinowa (VVV 4) and Kyuuma’s Hiuchiba (VVV 5) are all equipped with the mirror engines of the original – I suspect that’s what Cain was referring to when he said “reproduced”.
      The Valvrave 2 has not been revealed – nobody knows what it looks like.
      Hope that helps 😉

      Seishun
  29. I’m not a Shouko fan, but she feeding L-Elf was priceless.

    Screw the HarutoxShouko, HarutoxSaki and HarutoxL-Elf ships. I want the L-ElfxShouko ship. The seed was already planted when she owned his plans, mistaked his name and now feeding him.

    Skllhrt00
    1. Well, it is 200 years later after all, someone’s definitely dead – at least those who are not vampires 😡
      I’m very curious to see who’s in Saki’s locket – it could be Aina or maybe even Shouko, if she’s not a Valvrave pilot, that is.

      Seishun
  30. My favorite part of this episode: Shoko stuffing a bean jelly in L-Elf’s mouth and effectively silencing him on the food. I loved his expression when he had no choice but to drop the argument with the food after clearly showing it tasted good.

    My least favorite part: Saki doesn’t appear until she and Haruto set off in their Valvrave’s, and even then her only appearance in this episode was in the cockpit the whole time.

    As much as I would love for either Shoko or L-Elf to pilot the last Valvrave, I don’t think it’ll be either of them. My theory is that, in the opening, after Haruto and L-Elf are shown, it then shows the other characters, starting with Ruki, then Kyuma, and finally Raizo, all of whom became Valvrave Pilots in that order. And who appears next…it’s Akira! Now that I think about it, it would make total sense if she became the last pilot as it would give her some character development. Plus…the last Valvrave is purple and has a wand! It really needs a female pilot.

    Plus, L-Elf looks like he’s content with working behind the scenes right nows, and it’s usually those type’s of people who have the most power.

    Jackpot2121
    1. A dere dere L-elf is indeed pretty moe :3
      I do believe Akira will be the next pilot, she’s the perfect fit for the indigo Valvrave – which has sensor nerves all over its body!

      Seishun
    1. Just watched the RAW for episode 10 an hour ago and DAAAAAAAAAMNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now I am going really nuts waiting for it to be subbed. And also to get home so I can watch with the volume on instead of off. …In retrospect maybe watching Anime during my lunch break at work is not all that smart….Meh, like I give a fuck.

      El Guapo13
  31. What I want for the 2 remaining episodes.
    Haruto hijacked -> Shoko makes a decision and becomes vampire -> Shoko saves Haruto -> Shoko realises why Haruto was distancing from her since the beginning -> Shoko confesses -> virus attack ->Haruto Score 2 goals~……
    Not going to happen by a long shot haha

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