Posted by  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
「サングラードの白薔薇」 (Sanguraado no Shirobara)
“The White Rose of Sangrad”
I’m starting to think maybe I had Tsuki to Laika labelled wrong. Maybe this wasn’t meant to exactly be a story about finding comradeship and love in the face of brutal living and heightened international tensions. Maybe it wasn’t supposed to tackle all those intricacies we infamously remember the Soviet Union for. Maybe it just to be a fun little tale about cute vampires doing historical feats. Well, mostly; as we all know, some things never change.
Much as delved into during the previous weeks, what keeps me confused (pleasantly mind you) is how almost lackadaisical Tsuki to Laika has become with its not-Soviet space struggles. It was probably a given Lev would’ve wound up back in the running for example, but damn was it almost an effortless walk in the park. Kid does a few tests, passes all the exercises, even finds time to save the damsel in distress, and lo and behold space beckons. I would honestly criticize the ease at which Lev is jumping through all the hoops, but in truth I don’t really mind it. When you have such an upbeat personality and honest appreciation and love for those around you, it’s hard finding fault with whatever comes your way.
Part of my enjoyment for the moment in particular stems from that attitude of Lev’s. His rescue of Rosa for example highlights just how important mindset can be for these high stress situations. Lev wants to go to space, but it’s not the sole purpose defining his existence; if he fails he will be incredibly depressed (as he certainly was before), but it won’t break him as for him it’s first and foremost a dream. Compare this to Rosa who very much has staked her purpose on getting to space as the first woman, enough so that the weight of such burden eventually got to her. It’s a situation where calmness overcomes brute determination, a sign of a strong mind and arguably the most important part of any such mission. Lev was chose not so much because of his success helping Irina, but because of his ability to act in ways appropriate for life and death situations. You save your comrades if able because they may be the only ones capable of doing the same for you later on.
As for the vampire cutie pie herself, well, I think the results speak for themselves. Irina will soon be departing for greener (redder?) fields – and most certainly more attempts on her life – however not before confirming those feelings for Lev and potentially setting up a later reunion. I don’t expect any actual confessions to come out during next episode’s date (especially when Lev suffers from male protagonist syndrome) – but damn am I hoping this little vampire finds a way to lock in a relationship she most definitely deserves.
Preview
 |
Can we spare a moment of appreciation for Anya, the best wingwoman?
Also, thank god there are those in not-KGB who want to keep Irina alive. Not from any sense of charity, but as valuable asset to space program due to her experience in-flight.
Real world trivia: US indeed has sent a chimpanzee into space as part of their manned space flight program. Soviets were first to introduce women into space , with Roza evidently based off Valentina Tereshkova….
Agreed that this episode really contrasted Lev’s mindset to Rosa. Looking at their society and being the only woman probably intensified her feelings. Probably explains why she’s so harsh to Irina too. Her animosity for Irina always felt different compared to the others. Having met her limit, it’s good to see her getting a load off her shoulders.
Rosa’s apology and Victor’s appreciation of Lev’s actions really cements this show’s feels good atmosphere. Even with all those other things going on in the background.
Looking at how Natalia deals with things, RIP Franz?
On a final note, seeing how hands on Lev has been in training Irina, I don’t think it’s that strange that he got selected into the final 3.
This anime is kinda unique, not everyone can suddenly decide to make something like “how about we make a story about a Slavic country sending A FCKING VAMPIRE TO THE FCKING MOON” that’s something I would never imagine,even when im drunk or something, next why don’t we just make a story about an ogre living in mars.
But jokes aside,they executed the story really well, though the point of the story is sending a vampire to the moon, we also see the struggle behind the mission, the discrimination that our main heroine gets is kinda disturbing, we learn from each episode that they consider our MH as nothing more than an animal