“BRAINS&HEARTS”

Memenpuu and the multipurpose Tony.

I think more than anything this episode was trying really hard to give Memenpuu a reason to humble herself a few steps down. Maybe I was distracted by the shiny newness of Sakugan or the fact I was trying to fully immerse myself in its world. But this episode Memenpuu was turned up to eleven. Her constant over-the-top confidence without a second of doubt made for bits that wronged me the wrong way with her character. There is a fine line between confidence and pure recklessness, but never did she stop to consider if what she was doing was the right thing, or if the course of action she was setting was the right one, instead she felt betrayed by her dad for not believing in her. And takes the reigns for herself, thinking she knows exactly what to do and how to do it. I get the show is really trying to push this overconfident kid that has a college degree and is always the smartest in the room. Memenpuu not only had to study, but she also had to take care of her dad because apparently, he is unable to bring himself to clean anything or maintain his house in a semi-clean state. Thus relinquishing all house duties to Memenpuu, she doesn’t have too but I bet she feels like she has to either way. I get that some people probably dumb her down because of her age. And how at such a young age you will always choose fun over everything else, with blind faith and overconfidence to boost. It was a little bit displeasing to me, she was constantly veneering Gagumber into more dangerous routes, all for the sake of getting deeper faster. Even locking him out of the controls. She dives headfirst into danger without listening to reason or thinking things through, just because it’s the shortest path, doesn’t mean it’s the right path.

But because of her recklessness, they meet with a Kaiju after a somewhat shaky earthquake, Memenpuu points out that the river should have a cavern inside of it because of how it was moving into the rock slide caused by the earthquake. She dives headfirst, and if not because of Tony being a multipurpose doll, she wouldn’t have survived. After some exploring, she meets with some crustacean looking creatures but they are way too many, so she runs away, and finds a container where she is able to hide, trying not to fall asleep because she didn’t sleep the night before, even though her father told her to get some sleep. If she does, complications could arise with the cold, so she stays awake, and just at the last moment, Gagumber is on the scene! And he beats up the crustacean party. But even after that, she is still over her head. That moment did nothing to humble her, only make her realize she might not be able to do some stuff, without her partner in crime. I like that this show is trying really hard to sell us the child genius thing, but with her reckless attitude, it’s hard to make heads or tails of Memenpuu.

I’m getting the sense Memenpuu hates being ignored by adults, because they think they’re better than her, or know more than her, she get’s mad when Gagumber tells her she has no real experience in the field, everything she knows is theoretical. So in that same line, she disrespects Gagumber when he doesn’t give her a proper place as an adult and continues to treat her as a child. It’s an interesting analysis the anime is trying to convey, and it’s doing it through subtle hints in body language, in expression, and familial bonds. It’s going to be interesting to see how and if Memenpuu changes in any way shape or form, She’s an interesting character, and an eccentric one at that too. She’s quick to retort to Gagumber with shallow remarks and get’s mad when he doubts her. She knows she can do it, and only needs that little extra push from adults. If only they were able to trust her more. In the final moments of the episode, Gagumber does kinda change a little bit and starts trusting her just a smidge. His overprotectiveness as a father still stands, even if it’s something Memenpuu fails to understand because she compartmentalizes it as a personal attack. She’s unable to see more than the one outcome in front of her, and when she’s decided, it’s go time! There’s no way you’re taking her out of her personal reason once she set her mind to something. So yeah, what exactly will become of this father-daughter duo? This was the start of their adventure and it’s already off to a rocky start.

At the end of the episode, we meet a new character, who is waiting in arms apparently, for Memenpuu and Gegumber, his name not yet known. However, he seems like the boss to the next stratum, if you ask me. I’m looking forward to seeing how this journey will change them emotionally, the upcoming challenges, and learning more about this world and its inhabitants.

Preview

7 Comments

  1. Memenpuu being what—9 years old and has a college degree, give her a break, she hasn’t learned humility yet.

    Memenpuu has lots to learn and no degree is ever a substitute for growing up.

    RenaSayers
    1. I am with the reviewer on this as i think the hope is that she does go through some decent development that makes her more appreciative of experience and less recklessness. I thought the recklessness would chill after her friends dearh right in front of her eyes and the situation in this episode but nope. So that’s the concern for me. Also, how have they not realised they are being targeted since getting the stone?

      Kurik
    2. idk, I just think at this point she should have been a little bit more careful, she was reckless all the way and didn’t even want to listen to her father, all because of ego. There was no table for discussion, her way was the way because if it wasn’t her ego couldn’t take it. It’s selfish spoiled and bratty (might be an overstretch), it’s the type of behavior that puts lives at risk. And for what all in the name of adventure? To get there faster? It’s weird she’s not applying miner’s logic to the adventure. She could have died in the cold, yet she dove headfirst unprepared because it was her way or the highway, she left Gagumber to deal with the Kaiju, out of spite. She’s a handful, that’s for sure. On the other hand, Gagumber didn’t exactly try to stop her, he just kinda gave up. The child genius plays the adult and the adult plays the child, opposite’s of the same coin.

  2. I believe that this episode wanted to highlight the fact that the genius forgets about the *child* in “child-genius”. She’s a typical kid whose intelligence boosts her ego and maybe a hint of superman complex who downplays her young age and augments her desire to grow up faster than she is.

    Personally I find her character rather well-defined and realistic -given her super-intelligence-.

    Gagumber however oozes the “I have a past I want to hide in a parody of a behaviour for a person of my age” that is not uncommon in anime.

    tsirrus
  3. I get being annoyed by the character but the writing of a child genius without an authority figure that she see’s above herself makes sense.

    You can even bring in stuff like child psychology or biology (i don’t know what field of study it falls under) impulse control is still something kids at that age are still developing.

    Again perfectly reasonable to be annoyed by such a character. one that’s smart enough to understand what’s being said to her and choosing to disobey. It would be frustrating for any adult. hell in Asian culture, it would be an acceptable time for a smack.
    But that would probably strain their relationship worse than it would smacking a normal 9 year old.

    Things worked out thanks to the magic of plot. So all good.

    spades111
    1. That’s exactly what I was thinking. She needed a good smack after all that. Unfortunately nothing even close to that happened. They didn’t even give her time for some self reflection.

      We;ll I can’t risk wasting my time with this show if they don’t seem to be giving this character any development. 3 episode rule.

      sealouse

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