Posted by OP Sequence
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OP: 「True Blue Traveler」 by 栗林みな実 (Kuribayashi Minami)
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「一夏(ひとなつ)の想いで」 (Ichi Natsu (Hito Natsu) no Omoi de)
“The Memory of Summer”
They’re baaaack! This episode mainly served as a reintroduction to the characters, though it also provided a little intrigue and plenty of fun with Butler Charlotte and Meido Laura.
Ichika is Still Dense
Not that there was any doubt. I’m not sure why the four girls were so mad when they found out Ichika invited all of them to the water park/festival–I would have been surprised if he didn’t do something unbelievably oblivious! I won’t say Ichika is the best harem protagonist ever – because he is not – but he’s so reliably and over-the-top oblivious that it passes through the annoyance zone and goes straight to ridiculous and funny (to me). Also, the girls are still top tier characters in every sense of the word, so that helps. That helps a lot.
Serious Business Afoot
When it comes to cryptic dreams and mysterious invaders, I must admit I’m the incurious type. I don’t see the use in wondering when they’ve given us so little information that any guess would be a crap shoot. Instead I’ll talk about how well they laid the groundwork and/or incited curiosity in others.
The answer is “pretty well”. The opening scene had a far different tone than I expected (even if the rest of the episode was all keikaku doori), which serves to initially grab your attention, while the other scene didn’t waste any time providing a reason why this mysterious M was invading the base, nor subtly insinuating that it was not totally her choice via her controller and her nanomachines. Okay, perhaps subtle isn’t the right word – they could have done more insinuating and less outright stating – but subtlety isn’t something I’ve come to expect from Infinite Stratos. I’m here for the girls, people. And the explosions.
Charlotte no Gotoku x Battle Maido Laura
Should they have spent half the episode on the Char x Laura daito? Perhaps not. Was the Char x Laura butler and meido crime-stopping show really necessary? Probably not. Was it smart to take on armed robbers while unarmed, especially when at least one of them can summon their IS arm (but didn’t)? Definitely not. Was it fun? Hellz yes!
I’m often willing to exchange realism for entertainment, and this is a prime example of why. Infinite Stratos long ago set a tone that says it will dip into unrealistic (but technically possible) plot points in order to have a good time. Is it realistic for a man as dense as Ichika to have so many girls fawning over him? Sure, he’s the only guy in school, which justifies it somewhat – and for that I’m grateful – but realistic it is not. Likewise, is it realistic that Laura and Char could take down three armed robbers with ice cubes and moxie? No, but it’s technically possible, so I’m willing to allow it. They’ve set that kind of tone, so as long as they don’t violate it too badly, I’m along for the ride.
In other news, since when did this show start shipping Char x Laura!? Refer to my twitter account for the full force of my fangirl-level reactions, but DAAAAAAAMN!! Char is the best girl, but maybe she’s better with Laura… *shakes head* No Stilts, stay the course! Stay the course. Don’t…get distracted…
Summer is Over
My main qualm with this episode was the weird pool park / summer festival scenes. It was odd how the characters’ dialogue didn’t synch up with what was happening on screen, and how they blasting through what could have been an entire OVA’s worth of material in a couple of minutes. It was the first part that struck me as a mistake, while the latter was just odd. It did get across the fact that their summer is ending, but it did it hamfistedly.
Looking Ahead
Next week will introduce us to this blue-haired beauty voiced by Saito Chiwa! More Saito Chiwa is always a good thing, and it looks like she’s toying with Ichika, which is good because the rest of his harem is starting to go full yandere or tsun. Except when they’re not, HNNNG~!
Alas, I will be out of town when the episode airs, as I’ll be attending a beerfest of truly epic proportions – I know, poor me right? Bwahaha! – so you’ll get to see it before I will. Luckily Zanibas has agreed to step in and cover for me, so the post should appear Thursday or Friday as usual. Treat him well, and I’ll see you all back here for more IS the week after!
tl;dr: @StiltsOutLoud – A reintroduction to the main cast + a few hints of what’s to come. Also, meido Laura x butler Char yuri shipping whaaaaaat!? #is_anime 01
Random thoughts:
- All the girls go yuri for Char x Laura. I know I do! Wait, what?
- Ufufu, Char still has some of her ikemen powers from when she was impersonating a boy. I want her to propose to me!
- Houki’s oppai got bigger? DAMN!
- Butler Char is pretty good, but I wanted to see meido Char.
- I’d totally watch a Hayate no Gotoku x Charlotte no Gotoku crossover. Who is the better butler x meido combo, Hayate & Maria or Char & Laura? I CAN’T DECIDE.
- Were the neko pajamas and the heavy petting necessary? Absolutely not. But they don’t need to be shut up and enjoy!
- I could have capped a full episode worth of screenshots out of just the final montage. Screw you 8bit, I don’t have the time for this!
- Remember everyone, no shipping flame-wars in the comments please. We’re all here to have some fun and talk about anime. Besides, Char is best girl anyway. Boku is best!
- But seriously, %^@& you Ichika. You lucky bastard you.
I’ve made a change on my blog to focus more on storytelling and the fantasy novel I’m writing, so check it out at stiltsoutloud.com.
Full-length images: 04, 08, 09, 10, 13, 14, 17, 19, 22, 27, 31, 41, 48.
ED Sequence
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ED: 「BEAUTIFUL SKY」 by 日笠陽子, ゆかな, 下田麻美, 花澤香菜, 井上麻里奈 (Hikasa Yoko, Yukana, Shimoda Asami, Hanazawa Kana, & Inoue Marina)
Preview
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TEAM CHAR!!!!
Char ship is the best ship.
It’s has and always will be since she first uttered the phrase, “Ichika no Ecchi”
I am a follower as well!
TQ
I was a Char supporter before it was even cool.
I was a Char supporter before it was revealed that she was a girl and everyone thought Char was a trap 😀
Char best girl!
Char is the best.
It does me heart good to see so many people on the right ship *wipes away a tear*
Char-ship rear-admiral reporting for duty! It may sink but I will never abandon ship! /brofists… It’s been soo loooong!!
Team Char FTW!..
Char x Laura cat suit pajamas – super cute!
Realizing how unbelievably dense MC is I reminded why I hate IS so much. But seeing Charlotte and Laura so close to each other and all other girls seemingly tightening their relations together in the amusement park let me to remind why I love this so even more. Great episode.
It makes you wonder, would IS be even better with a strong, more interesting male lead, or would it shatter the entire dynamic and tank the show completely? I honestly have no idea.
kyann~! Stilts, you need to update your Char profile icon!
shironeko!Char ftw! \(^w^)/
i dont know for IS, but for other show, i do enjoy a more interesting harem MC whose reaction to boobs is not just covering his eyes
@calytrix
Ahaha, I may have to! I’m going to wait a bit, though. I don’t want to have to update my gravatar every time Char is amazing. I’d have to change it every week!
I would not be opposed to boring Ichika just being pushed aside and breaking the harem genre apart by just making this a full on yuri show.
I prefer interesting MC like Charlotte.
That is an interesting question. Right now I’m trying to imagine a “fun rouge” type like Akatsuki Ousawa from Hagure Yuusha as the MC. Probably too “unrealistic”, but I do think it would be funny to see Hikigaya Hachiman from Yahari Ore no Seishun thrown into this situation.
I think we’ll be getting an entirely different sort of anime than this Infinite Stratos if we had a truly strong male lead who had an interesting and relatable personality. If done well, I would prefer a harem with a strong, interesting lead, but Infinite Stratos is more a fun show than a serious one. Either way, I’m content with what it is. Though… Where is Chifuyu-nee ;_;
Hmmm,I’m trying to picture someone like Issei as the MC of IS.Seeing as how there are no Rias & Akeno onee-san types around,he’d probably end up getting hit most of the time.These girls wouldn’t be ready for someone like that,they’re too innocent!Same goes for someone like Akatsuki from Hagure Yuusha no Estetica,although they wouldn’t get to hit him at all since that guy’s a Gary Stu.Someone like 8man would really be out of place here as he’d make every one of them hate him(Charlotte might still be hanging in there for a while though).That leaves someone such as the prince charming Ichika from their dreams,a character taken from a shoujo/reverse harem anime which I’m personally not in to but it’s hard to see how that would turn out.
Eh,all in all,I think someone as dense as Ichika is exactly who these innocent girls need to try out different ways of snatching his heart(good luck ladies,you’ll need it…) which is a big part of IS.
@MgMaster, strong characters don’t have to cynical to be interesting or relatable. 8man is a great male lead, but there are different types of characters that could make harem series like this even better. A good interesting male character that I have never seen in harem is a guy with real issues that anime writers/directors focus on and use as a core element to the anime. For example, we could have a guy that is very forgiving and kind, but to shake it up, give him actual issues that could give be quite problematic. The main lead could have anger problems, or serious problems with depression. That way, people can relate and see that the person is like. It helps develop attachment to the character, and that way we can have a growing interest towards the person. Imagine how that harem anime would be? Sure, harems are usually perceived as shows that are more fun than serious. I’m thinking that the harem genre should branch off and see how it’s really like if four girls like one guy. Backstabbing, arguing, making mistakes, and showing characters flaws would make a really great show in my opinion. Just don’t overdo it on the drama department. Leave room for the romance and cute moments that traditional harems have.
Nisekoi (winter 2014) should bring a bit of freshness to anime harems, with quite nice MC being fake boyfriend of one girl, in love with another, and sharing a complicated childhood mystery with nobody knows which of his harem girls (not to spoil anything further than chapter 1 of manga).
There’s no dynamic to shatter whatsoever. As a character, Ichika is a bland piece of nothing that managed to turn the girls into brain dead zombies starving for his questionable manhood by simply existing. Unless you were to replace Ichika by Kirito, it’s unlikely things could get worse.
I think he’s just faking it. He wants everyone to be happy so he choose to love everyone. The dense act was just him trying to maintain the status quo.
TQ
Ichika’s denseness is pretty much just sheer stupidity at this point. He couldn’t even take a damn hint from Laura’s ‘warning”. The Charl / Laura moments on the other hand were awesome. This series would be so much more tolerable if it were just all-female with a bunch of yuri subtext, no harem or male protag and more focus aimed at character dynamic between the main 5 than shenanigans like this.
You have to at least give him some credit. He’s pretty much a sis-con and Chifuyu is leagues ahead of any of the girls. He probably just doesn’t care to notice.
At least he’s conscious of Houki’s chest though. He must be a boobs man. The bigger the better.
Kuntzy, with the recent Houki’s… let’s call it character development, she’s finally getting ready to beat Chifuyu. 🙂
Boobs are nothing but fake asses.
@Shimakaze
LOL, I like it. Very true to character.
I agree with you, people forget that Ichika is a 100% sis-con, he only loves Chifuyu, and who wouldn’t? I mean look at the final shot in the ED sequence, it’s a picture if him and his sister, where are the other girls? pfft, it’s all about chifuyu for him tbh, so he’s being stupid with the others and not picking one.
Still, as in many other series (with OreShura being this year’s best example probably), it’s that idiot guy because of who they were able to get in touch so well. This way I’m with Stilts here – it really lets one wonder if any change wouldn’t destroy the group dynamic.
True, but at the same time, it wouldn’t hurt to make Ichika at least a little more aware.
The huge difference between this and OreShura is that, unlike Ichika, Eita was hardly dense/stupid, but chose himself to not get involved in any romantic relationships (at least at the time), but was far more aware of things too. It actually made things a bit more interesting like that as it broke the typical male harem lead trope.
I would agree with that. That’s one of the (many) reasons I liked OreShura – there was a substantive reason why the main character wasn’t–well, no, that’s not right. He was with Masuzu, just not wholeheartedly. Either way, there was a reason why it wasn’t all resolved.
Great to see IS again, Ichika maintains his role as one of the most dense protagonists of a harem anime. THOSE NEKO PAJAMAS ARE SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO CUTE. I sat squealing like an excited little schoolgirl, BUT WOW, MORE CHARL X LAURA PLEASE!!! I HAVE TO SAY AGAIN, THOSE NEKO PAJAMAS <3 <3 <3 Also I think that pool scene is being saved for the OVA that is coming out for IS just to round up the summer before they arrive back at IS Academy.
I considered that, but then I was like “why did they ruin a bunch of what was going to happen?” I mean, now I’d rather not see all of that at length (as opposed to something entirely new) because they already showed me the cliff notes.
Apparently the technical term for “Neko Pajamas” is Kigurumi. Which I only know because I pay attention to Polaris occasionally…
*The More You Know*
Char-chan! She really is the best girl character in the whole show. 😉
From what I remember, Ichika in the LN is much more bearable, since he just seems like a normal ‘the hell is up with these girls?’ kinda guy, rather than how oblivious he seems in the anime. (I still hold that Natsuru from Kampfer is the worst male protagonist EVER.)
Really? Huh. If that’s so, I wonder why it never comes through in the adaptation.
Err… no, not that I recall from the novel. I’d say he is somewhat worst in the novel.
In the novel is comes of more as willful ignorance. He seems to subconsciously realize he shouldn’t take things to far with any of the girls, but its obvious he isn’t oblivious to their intentions.
It probably helps he has a huge sister complex on top of that.
He doesn’t advance with any of the girls because deep down he really <3s Chifuyu, the dude just loves his sister more than the other girls. I thought it was quite clear from early on in season 1.
Seriously, the whole “Ichika is the most dense guy ever” thing is just 8bit holding the idiot ball, since they never bothered to explain his thought process like in the LN.
Yes, he is rather dense but he tries to please all the girls around him to avoid the potential “blood-spill” hence the denseness. Ichika “noticed” the girls at least a few times for each (as in, women and not just friends/classmates), although he is a pretty big siscon, that’s true 🙂
Germany draws first blood! Germany annexes France! Russia is forced to intervene!
I see what you did there!
That Char x Laura yuri shipping came out of nowhere.
Ichika still dense as a brick I see, totally knew what he was gona do the moment Laura gave him the flyer, lol.
The doujin market has long been into Char x Laura.
Houki: “My boobs got bigger again…”
Even funnier once you remember Houki shares the same voice with another busty bishoujo–Rias Gremory. XD
“She may be French, but she packs more punch than your pistol…”
Is She not from England? Laura is Germany
https://randomc.net/image/Infinite%20Stratos/Infinite%20Stratos%202%20-%20OP%20-%20Large%2002.jpg
She is the “French” Hime-sama
Sry, i was wrong…
https://randomc.net/image/Infinite%20Stratos/Infinite%20Stratos%20-%2001%20-%20Large%2024.jpg
Excited that we’re going to get more plot this time around, and I for one wholeheartedly ship Char/Laura.
Ichika is WAY too dense for a harem protagonist, it’s kinda annoying… But hey, Houki already ‘won’ right? Referring to the OVA, and the fact that you see her smiling and none of the other girls seems to indicate that the ship actually did sail… (I’ve been on board it since day one because I’m a sucker for the tsundere, so totally okay with it)
And no Stilts, Laura is the best girl- search your feelings, you know it to be true.
IS has never given us any reason to think they weren’t going to follow the old first girl wins trope, and I doubt they’ll subvert it. That doesn’t mean Houki is the best girl though, nor do I think that ship has sailed yet. It’ll be a while before we get conformation on any of them, if ever.
Its the return of one of the densest MC’s in the anime history! Ichika’s denseness makes Iridium look like a potato chip XD.
And its great to see all the girls back once again. Although Char certainly is probably the most popular one out there, i’m personally on the Houki ship :D. Any Houki supporters feel free to join me!
“Houki! Houki! Houki! Osananajimi saikou!”
“Its the return of one of the densest MC’s in the anime history! Ichika’s denseness makes Iridium look like a potato chip XD. ”
I still give that trophy to Natsuru Senou of Kampfer. Seriously, the guy had Shizuku (best girl of them, IMO) practically raping him several times, and even on an actual date, and he STILL didn’t get the message; just Sakura on the brain.
*Croos adds more 【FULL LENGTH】.
Heil mein freund!
More full-length images is always good!
I think 一夏 in the title means “Ichika”. It’s a double play on the title which can also mean “The Memory of Ichika(Ichika no Omoi de)”. And they did make memories with Ichika here.
Best girl next episode.
Man im going to go and see this. Also for those who read the novel. Is by any chance that girl that looks like Chifuyu, is she Chifuyu or Madoka?
If anyone who knows decides to reply to this, please remember to use spoiler tags. Thanks.
I haven’t read the LN, but I think,,,
Show Spoiler ▼
Anyways. Finally more Char! My life has meaning again.
I’m more surprised that the maid Laura appeared first episode. I thought maid Laura was just a figure version goodie, since I bought a maid Laura in same exact clothing last month in Akiba. Apparently the figure came before the anime? This is a first for me…
Maid Laura and Butler Charl is from volume 4 of the LN.
All that HNNNNNNNNNNNNG from Char and Laura…
They are quite the interesting pair, although that cream lick threw me off, Laura has really changed that its pretty interesting to see ever since season 1.
wait; Laura and Char are now a possibility? Where the hell have i been? i guess they got tired of Ichika being so dense
I honestly can’t understand when they got so close and comfortable with each other. I remember Char “introducing” Laura’s mizuki to Ichika back in season 1 but that was it. Perhaps they got closer in the LN, something we anime viewers missed?
There have been hints that Char was looking our for Laura for a bit now (the swimsuit bit being the most notable one), but yeah, they did lurch forward a little bit. I think. I’m not entirely sure on that, since I didn’t go back and skim s1 before this one. It coulda been foreshadowed more and I just forgot.
Oh God, I knew this day would come. I knew this piece of shit harem show would come back to haunt me. No Shit it came back, It did extremely well in bluray sales. Not Even Charlotte can save this show. The cliches are strong with this one. Always has been. God. I know Light Novels have shitty writing but this is one of the worst for not even trying. Can’t wait for Zac on Anime News Network to rip this apart in a review again. Otaku standards have never been this low. Lol.
You could… you know… not watch?
When I see posts like this all I really get out of them is:
“Look at me and my superior opinion. Everything I love is a gift from God and everything I dislike is a steaming pile of donkey crap. There’s no possible way that I’m wrong.”
If it’s the fact that it’s popular that ruffles your jimmies, you got some control issues there bro. I mean, I certainly don’t think it’s an A tier show… but that doesn’t mean it’s completely without its own charm.
I have to agree with Kuntzy’s reply to you.
No doubt we’re receptive to contrary opinions, but to bash it off without sharing reasons why you hate it is just childish IMO. You’d also pass yourself off as an attention seeker IMHO.
So before you go off to profess your intense hate or disgust to a other series, kindly explain your reasons for it
There’s a pretty easy route to take if you want to properly complain about this show. Take this blog for instance. There are about 2 to 1 comments about the dense MC to the harem girls. That literally means the people in this viewer pool are actually paying more attention to the cache of uranium than the girls. THAT is a BIG NO-NO in any harem, unless THAT is what the show wants you to do.
There are several reasons for that but the main one involves the girls not being interesting enough to detract the annoyance from the MC – so if the girls can’t do it, that leaves the plot or the MC being struck by lightning into an epiphany. Last season, the plot accomplished that for the most part in the latter half of the show & I see history repeating itself this season as well.
Take me now oh don’t you see
I can’t get laid in Germany (c)
Char will always be the best girl
I haven’t rewatched the first season at all, but do the girls’ voices sound a little different to anybody? Ichika’s sound the same to me, but everyone else sounds a little different. It’s just been awhile I guess. First season came out some years ago.
It still baffles me how some guys can find dense male protagonists in Harem anime’s to be funny….well at least Laura and Char saved the pilot for me.
I’m still wondering why they started off with an OVA worthy episode. Not that I don’t mind but the pool scene and summer festival felt rushed. Totally ruined it.
That aside, Franco-German relations have never been so blood inducingly cute and that scene of Houki and the dolphin float…. Reminds me of the beach episode in SYD
Yar, I’m not sure either. If anything they could have done the festival only, which would have functioned in a slideshow manner fairly well, and would have gotten across the “summer is ending” idea a lot better. Or at the very least don’t narrate over the events and show things we’re interested in happening (don’t show those–it makes me want to see them at length!).
Indeed. At least the pool scenes should have been full. I mean, we are here for the opp… PLOT. I was gonna say plot!
There’s an OVA that’s an extended version of the pool and festival parts that were rushed.
That said, I still don’t get why they showed that in this episode. Oh well.
Char & Laura, best girl ever nyaa~.
^^
Part of me wonders if maybe Ichika is putting on a bonehead act in order to avoid an extremely violent death at the hands of his bro-con sister should he choose another girl. (She’d do it. He’s her wife, anyway.) Not to mention that everyone else would grind up whatever she left behind into sawdust in a jealous fury over not being picked.
Nah, he couldn’t be that smart. He’s dumber than a bag of sis-con hammers.
In my IS world, Laura is the best girl, because she’s got the best dere side, and she likes naked rasslin’. Which reminds me: going back to season 1, you’re going to toss her out of bed for coming in naked??? I hate you so much, Orimura Ichika. I was rooting for the mysterious person at the beginning of this episode to finish you off. Shortest second season ever. I’d take it for justice’s sake.
Char is a close second. Boku-ko is something to be feared for its power to overwhelm good judgment.
The other three are too shrill and annoying for me to stand. I’d fake a headache.
Of course I’m going to watch. As long as there’s Laura and Char, I’m going to watch.
More likely he’s trying to hide the fact that he’s a giant siscon, which would result in all the girls AND Chifuyu burying him alive. With a bunch of angry snakes. And then lighting him on fire!
I approve of doing any of that to him. I can even help get the snakes.
In my honest to god opinion, i believe that Infinite Stratos draws its strength from the uniqueness of the harem babes, coz Ichika is a horrible MC in my book. That idiotic nice guy denseness is the main reason why i surrendered reading the light novels.
I wish the writer of IS would take a lesson or two from Highschool DxD. Now THAT had a very interesting MC.
Thats my 2 cents atleast.
PS: Am I still the only one who think Laura is the best girl?
I don’t know if Laura’s the best one (still working on my “rankings”), but she’s definitely a strong candidate IMO.
It does thrive because of the haremettes. Ichika may be third-tier, but they’re top-tier bar none.
About Ichika, I disagree about what you said. There ARE actually 3 stereotypes of the Male Harem Lead(MHL):
1. Active Pervert – Like the DxD hero, these leads WANTS it. Harem Seeker.
2. Neutral Hero – Ichika falls into this category. These are the leads who really can’t tell and are denser than Iridium. Totally Oblivious to Love.
3. The Repellant – Keima was once the king of this as he really doesn’t care about girls and loves games instead. Gets the Unwanted Harem even after all the measures he takes.
And these can mix up sometimes: take Akihisa(BakaTest) for example. He’s The Repellant and the Neutral Hero at the same time.
So IMO they did Ichika’s role as the NH pretty well. I would have been so appalled if they failed, since being dense must be the easiest thing to do as the typical MHL.
Nope, You’re not the only one who thinks Laura is best. Just look a couple of posts above you. 😀
Crazy improbable character background aside, she’s lethally cute.
Sort of new the series in that I didn’t watch the first season when it aired (not really into mecha), but decided to give a shot and marathoned season one before watching the first episode. The show definitely has its share of “Huh?” moments, but like Stitls “I’m here for the girls, people. And the explosions”… and the girls XD.
JMO, but I while I wouldn’t put the show forth as AOTY, it is entertaining IMO, and that, after all, is why I watch anime in the first place.
@ Stilts – I must disagree on one point: Were the neko pajamas and the heavy petting necessary?
Yes, yes they were. After seeing that, it’s hard to avoid going down the Laura Route.
As for Ichika, he is the quintessential definition of a romantically oblivious male lead (*sigh* shouldn’t that have its own trope by now?). Even Yuuki Rito figured out something was going on by Season 2. Still, rather than question how “realistic” it is, I think a better question is whether its simply a necessary function of maintaining the “harem route”. If Ichika did notice the girls interest in him, then it would be kind of hard to maintain the status quo (this isn’t HS DxD where that sort of thing is “common place”).
By “Laura route” you mean the “Franco-German yuri pairing” and not “German-Japanese relations”?
If you’re reffering to the Franco-German yuri pair, than its swiftly approved
Well, I meant a “German-Japanese treaty” if you will, but have no problem with seeing a marked improvement in Franco-German relationships either ;). Perhaps a tri-lateral agreement between all three parties is the answer.
Lets amp it up to Ruso-Franco-German-Japanese relations shall we?
There is a trope for that. Several of them really, but that’s probably the most relevant one.
FINALLY!!!!!
So much Charlotte and Laura, w00t! <3<3<3 And the others were just as great as always. Too bad no Chifuyu or Maya, but much more Tatenashi next! <3<3<3
Obviously, ‘M’ stands for ‘Mini-Chifuyu’… >.> … Who did not know this? :p
That said, if ‘Mini-Chifuyu’ is that OP… just how much more OP is the bigger version…?
*dusts off my flag from last season* CHIFUYU-NEE!!! Don’t disappoint us now!
Too many happenings on a single episode. I love it.
We got a morning kick (instead of Morning Wood) with Mizugi Laura.
Chelsea Blackett with barely any screen time.
Cecilia still delusional and going full Dere-Dere after being invited.
Laura and Charl deito start!
Lingyin licking an icedrop and giving Ichika, after seeing her in a skimpy clothes, a full blown head… err… head punch!!
Laura kawaii-doll-modo strikes!!
Houki’s oppai is still getting bigger!! O.OMG!!
Laura strikes again with Charl as Meido and Shitsujin!!
Here’s your order: “1 Action for meals and 1 Yuri for desert!” for dine in and “1 Neko Fun Nights” for take out!
We get a preview for Ichika’s evil twin sister! (She ain’t Chifuyu, got different voice actress)
AND EVERYONE THOUGHT THEY GET A PRIVATE TIME WITH ICHIKA!!! Wahahahaha! Ichika’s denseness is what makes IS comedy!!! Look at their reaction being 5 timed without Ichika knowing he’s 5 timing them!!!
We got 5 hot chicks on a swimsuit and single guy… (and he’s still getting more!!)
“Ichika no Ecchi”, that’s what you get for touching Char’s boobs in the slide.
Yukata Festival and Mini Fireworks Festival only for Ichika…
Next EP: “Ane” Tatenashi and her provocative advances on Ichika.
Will always be on team Char ^_^
Nothing like the happiness you get from seeing the harem again, along with the rage that is educed by Ichika.
Ah, IS, welcome back.
Ichika is not dense he simply wants a harem
I for one welcome Stilt’s post on this. \o/
Considering his twitter feed, he had the same reactions I did when I started my blog. And much like his post, I saw the same things…
1) As my friend has noted, if he discovered a material that was denser than anything known to man at this point, he would name it Ichikanim.
2) The fate of the security personnel no doubt will set the tone for the rest of the series, I’m hyped. While this newcomer took care to not outright kill the soldiers/security, I doubt the same can be said about their female counterparts in the IS units. Although the thought that crosses my mind is “WHY DON’T YOU SHOOT WOMAN?!”
–I did kinda go lol at the FN SCAR/EGL that was drawn. I know the SCAR is huge but that looked like XM29 OICW huge.
3) I for one support getting rid of Ichika and focusing on improving Franco-German relations. \o/
4)And yes, after the amazing first and middle part of the show, jumping into the summer festival scene, even though that was the major Ichika plot point this episode, still felt wrong when just moments before, we saw a bunch of soldiers/security personnel taken down brutally (yet finesse)
As usual made a blog post on this.
Hah! I laughed at #1
Montage…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFrMLRQIT_k
The moment I watched the first scene of Ichika with Laura and I thought…
“The King of Dense is BACK!!!”
cute pouty laura is best laura
did orimura ichika change VA? coz he sounded different.
Anyone else feel that the editing during the pool montage seems off? I almost think that it was the usual “jikkai” since the dialogue doesn’t follow the depicted scenes.
Wa-wait… machine guns aside, a SUICIDE VEST. These are the most hardcore robbers ever. And they weren’t even robbing a bank, it was a meido cafe.
Yeah, that was a little bit head-shaking, but there’s no such thing as a Maid Bank, so what are you going to do? Clearly just having them serve tea and make girls swoon wasn’t going to be enough action!
So the robbers had to come to steal… their… recipe for omurice with a ketchup heart on top?
Hmm… a Maid Bank… now I’d bank there!
It’s been a while since I’ve read the LN where this takes place, but it looked like they had already robbed a bank and were on the run already. They were shown with a bag of money before they ever entered the cafe.
I’m pretty sure they robbed a bank beforehand, yes. A robber willing to blow himself up is still seriously hardcore though…realistically he’d either blow his head off or, far more likely, go to jail. People like to live.
As if they took an not aired or Unfinished OVA and put them a Animation (20min) in Front, and air it as Episode 1 of the Second Season. Of Course, the OVA Fan-service (Bikini Time & End of Summer) was shorten… BOOOOOOHHHHHHH!!!!!
And, let me Guess. How is behind the “Sound only” Master. The same, that make Ichika the only Male Pilot of this Mechas? Why no one, go after her. She is still the Creator of this Units after all. But no, Slice of Life Harem is better to sell
Just what i found….
So think you saw this Picture before?
https://randomc.net/image/Infinite%20Stratos/Infinite%20Stratos%20-%2010%20-%20Large%2033.jpg
This type of Sky?
https://randomc.net/image/Infinite%20Stratos/Infinite%20Stratos%20-%2012%20-%20Large%2001.jpg
Nice sunset, oh and of course this Shadow
https://randomc.net/image/Infinite%20Stratos/Infinite%20Stratos%20-%2012%20-%20Large%2002.jpg
https://randomc.net/image/Infinite%20Stratos/Infinite%20Stratos%20-%2012%20-%20Large%2005.jpg
Just an Reminder, how is the “Creator” of this Mechas…
https://randomc.net/image/Infinite%20Stratos/Infinite%20Stratos%20-%2010%20-%20Large%2015.jpg
Tabane is the best, I hope she has more screentime.
Seconded! More TAmura Yukari is always appreciated.
Yup…Ichika still annoys the hell out of me. I know this is a harem series, but I have never encountered a lead character who is THIS DENSE. But seriously, who really watches the show for Ichika? Everyone knows that the highlight of this show are the girls. Char X Laura for the win! In fact I think ditching Ichika as the lead and turning this to a Yuri show will actually work quite well to be honest. In fact, its almost as if this was what they were trying to do with shortening the pool scene in favour for Char X Laura action.
When the pool and festival scene came around, I thought it was a preview for the next episode. To be honest, this episode more or less failed to reintroduce the characters to us. We did manage to see all the main girls, but for those who have never watched this show, they would not have known anything about the girl’s background. I must say, it is a strange approach they took in this episode. Definitely something which would have fitted an OVA better. Hopefully they get their act together and get back on track next week.
As for his Defense, i can only say. That he is so in “Sis” love Type. That he threaten every Girl like they are his Sisters. Siblings Love is not the same as “Date” love.But yeah, i know that there are many Bro and Sis Hentais….
You haven’t seen BakaTest yet. You’ll be desensitized by that show so much, when you see a dense male harem lead after that you’d think they’re Akihisa’s rip-offs.
Sure, but Akihisa is way, waaaay funnier than Ichika. Still waiting for another season of that show…
Or (re-)watch Kampfer for Natsuru Senou. You think Ichika is headdesk-worthy? You’d break a steel desk in half with one blow with how hard you’d headdesk at Natsuru.
I’ve seen Kampfer. Totally worth it for Shizuku (and a bit Mikoto). Natsuru is a totally tosser though, you are correct.
I have seen BakaTest, but while Akihisa was somewhat clueless to the advances of the girls, I didn’t find him that annoying. Its probably due to him actually hitting on Hideyoshi half the time, which to be honest I think majority of viewers would have too.
And regarding Kampfer, I can sort of understand Natsuru, considering that a large chunk of the advances (i.e. groping and borderline molestation) on him was when he was in female form, which would have been really awkward for a guy…
*finishes watching episode*
ARGHHH… THIS SHOW IS SOOO FARGGIN’ STUPID.
Why can’t I stop watching this!?
Because of the newFranco-German relations
“Next week will introduce us to this blue-haired beauty voiced by Saito Chiwa!”
Looks like she is the Adult Version of this one…
https://randomc.net/image/Infinite%20Stratos/Infinite%20Stratos%20-%2012%20-%20Large%2001.jpg
Looking forward to it. When I read the novels, she passes off as someone that’s in the same league of Hitagi and Yukinon.
She’s certainly going to fill up the current lack of a certain crab girl
“Next week will introduce us to this blue-haired beauty voiced by Saito Chiwa! More Saito Chiwa is always a good thing, and it looks like she’s toying with Ichika, which is good because the rest of his harem is starting to go full yandere or tsun. Except when they’re not, HNNNG~!”
I’m waiting for the other girl that is voiced by Suzuko Mimori
…I’ll preface this by saying that the original season was actually very nearly the tipping point to me losing faith in anime as a worthwhile medium before Madoka Magica restored it. Not that it was at all the worst of its season, but it was bad enough – paper-thin plot, a supposedly distinct setting that was no different from any other in practice – and it sold well enough. I was actually glad when the original novel line was cancelled, so there’s my bias on display for all to see.
That being said, I believe in second chances. Symphogear’s second season managed to surprise me positively, after all, and I’d heard the new novels were a bit of a reboot. So what did I get out of this?
…well, there’s hints of a plot, now. Otherwise not terribly different. This show lives and dies by whether one can switch off one’s brain and like the girls. But at least there’s hints of a plot, so I can give it a few more episodes – despite the highly questionable direction, like spending a minor eternity on Ichika being Ichika, then skipping clumsily through an entire day out through two distinct venues. And when someone puts on a mecha suit and starts materializing a BFG, the correct response really isn’t to not shoot and instead lower your guns. Hopefully the plot actually doesn’t disintegrate in water this time – but we’ll see.
(France x Germany, FTW, BTW)
The first episode is quite dry for me. For starters, Charlotte is not very cute anymore T_T. But, the development is very fast, the coming of new characters, focus on two characters and an immediate fan service episode. But, I will still see if this would equate to its prestige during the first season.
I’m on the Char x Laura ship. Dump the dunce; this is best pair!
Well, when Charlotte(I’m not gonna call her Char, only the Red Comet will be called that) is teasing Laura, the only character in my mind was Pururut(Or Plutia) from Hyperdimensional Neptunia…
Their pajamas look cute~ And Laura is moe when she says “nyaa”.
http://funnymama.com/post/222137
I don’t remember IS being this bad. I know and they know that the MC is not the best, but they just full-on exploited the girls here and came up with weak excuses to put them into as many cliché scenes as possible.
I think this episode was supposed to be two episodes, but the director realised the festival and pool scenes were too void of content to pull a full-lengther. However, they still wanted to use the material they already created.
Anyway, I’ll stick around for another episode only because the first season was infinitely better than this.
1/10. Heavy-handed, exploitative and cliché-rich. The episode progression didn’t even make sense.
LOL
IS currently with more comments than Kyoukai no Kanata 😛
Girls should just abandon Ichika at this point and set up a full yuri-harem among themselves. 😛
Where’s Seishun and the Houki Brigade when you need them? I’m lonely here. XD
I took care of them. France-tan is best tan! >:D
I rather enjoy the whole United Nations myself, lol.
France…
Country-side French-maid Mistress character pls. Nothing beats Houki’s houkis. Japan stronk!
Houki: I think my breast got bigger
And the best PLOT keeps expanding.
We all agree that Ichika is a big, dense idiot! So we need Hyoudou Issei to teach this idiot on how to be a MAN, and I mean ERO-MAN.
Looks like they completely removed Natasha Fairs’ existence in this adaptation. She was suppose to be the one to intercept M’s attack in that facility. And the one M is searching there is suppose to be Silver Gospel, the IS that attacked in the last arc of the previous season, in which Natasha is the previous pilot that got trapped in there before(they made that suit unmanned in the previous season). And to make it worse, that part was suppose to be in volume 6. That’s why it felt so out of place. Ah well, with them rushing that pool and festival parts, this is but a small complaint.
Just a change of pace in the comments since everyone’s been gushing at the yuri pairing. I’ll take care of complaining about the more technical things.
Houki looks so good in the opening I just can’t-
I couldn’t move on to watch the episode because I wouldn’t stop replaying her scene in the opening theme. Team Houki all the way for me <3
Char and Laura ensued a river a blood from me, and many other viewers. It was insane how much I fangirled this episode…
Charlotte still is best girl<3
Charlotte X Laura was far more entertaining than it had any right to be.
they should get a new protagonist who has brains like Sunohara yohei
I’m pretty sure no one has ever said this before. They should though! Sunohara was fun.
But only in duo with his sis.
@Stilts gotta ask is the VA for ichika still the same cause he sure does sounds different
The VA cast is still the same for all. It’s still Uchiyama Kouki who’s doing Ichika.
And it’s not just him, everyone sounds a bit different.
Well, AFA Ichika goes (yes, Ichikaium is the proper name for the densest material in existence), he did try to have a romantic interlude with Houki and got chased by the rest of the girls in their mecha’s. Neutrality is probably the safest course for him.
Char seemed to have the biggest following as I remember it, but it looks like Laura is gaining traction. Poor Houki, friendzoned by the viewers at least. ;_;
Why do I need an explanation for the show? Season 1 already speaks for itself. MY POINT IS THE SHOW DOESN’T EVEN TRY TO SHOW US SOMETHING NEW!!
Just two things…
1.Char X Laura… I am boarding this ship immediately. After all they DID eat the mixed berry crepes…
2.Reports from CERN are they are naming the newly discovered ultra-dense element Ichikium. It is twice as dense as Uranium, and Depleted Ichikium core ammo is reported to be capable of piercing any girls romantic armor.
Charlotte with that butler uniform made me lose it. I came for my Charlotte fix and I get that plus more!
I love this season.
Sorry for having to say this but I’M STILL ON HOUKI’S SHIP!!!!!!!!!!
But I do have to admit that Char comes in at a close second. Saw key-chains of all 5 of the girls had to get both Houki and Char.
As for the dense Ichika, I don’t mind it since it leads to very funny scenes later on. Besides after seeing Seitokai no Ichizon and Kampfer I can get use to any kind of MC in the harem show.
Are you maligning Ken? Ken was a great harem lead! Such that the girls would ever allow him the illusion that they were his haremettes, heh. He undoubtedly cared for each of them wholeheartedly though, which is more than can be said for many harem leads.
Oh no I’m not. Ken is a great MC, just different then your normal harem MC. Since he full out declares that he wants the harem, as to not hurt them by picking one over the other. Ichika and Ken are like polar opposites when it comes to loving, but the same when it comes to caring about them.
Infinite Stratos returns for the end of summer in this enjoyable episode!
Infinite Stratos isn’t going to be winning any prizes for anime of the year, but for what it is, a harem/comedy action show with some pretty ladies and some nice fanservice, it’s certainly a treat.
I found the opening and ending to be pretty good, and serviceable successors to Straight Jet and Super Stream respectively.
Ichika is still… Ichika. His main defining character trait of being as dense as possible was on full display here, in case anyone had forgotten from season one. At least he learned from what happened with Rin to knock before entering a girl’s room. Not that I believe for one second that it will deter his harem from doing the very same thing to him…
It was nice to see Charlotte and Laura’s relationship develop, especially since out of the entire harem I feel Laura’s had the least interaction with her fellow haremettes. And it does wonders for Charlotte’s character, showing that despite having been enemies during the tournament in season one and their status as love rivals, she’s still willing to be genuine friends with Laura and the feelings mutual. And overall their little “date” was quite cute and humorous. Is it evidence that the show would be ten times more enjoyable if it just got rid of Ichika and focused exclusively on the girls? Maybe, but I’m quite fine with the show as is. Girls in love are the cutest after all.
I’d concur with the Yuri aspect of the episode if I didn’t half believe that people were just continually mistaking Charlotte for a guy… which resulted in the butler, and is her main problem with Ichika.
Poor Houki. She seemed so excited that Ichika had finally taken the initiative, and just as she had made an improvement in the chest department! Then again, Stilts has a point that they should all know better by now. Well, at least Houki kinda saw it coming.
It looks like they’ll be an actual main plot underscoring the usual harem antics, and I’m very interested to find out more about this mysterious M and why she looks so much like Chifuyu which likely relates to the vision Ichika had at the beginning. And I’ve heard a lot of good things about the Chiwa Saito character so I’ll be looking forward to properly meeting her in the next episode.
I don’t know what to say about the ending there. It’s one thing to advertise an OVA that’ll have swimsuits and yukatas, but it’s another to basically show off everything before you actually release it. At first I thought it was the next episode preview, but when I realized it was a preview for the OVA I was like “Why the heck are they blowing through the OVA? What’s the point of watching it then!?”
All in all, I was entertained and that was all I was looking for. Here’s hoping Infinite Stratos can keep up the enjoyable harem antics for the rest of the season!
I REALLY want Ichika to meet Issei from dxd and learn from him. He has so much freaking potential. Also, a good mixture of plot and fanserive?! Seems like harem shows are learning!
Oh wow, I was just thinking about how much more participation the real United Nations hell, even their localized national governments, would receive if they went the way of moe and were represented by our IS girls. I mean, look at this entry alone!
Although, I would feel sorry for the poor sap that made any of the reps cry on national tv. >.>
I would watch that UN televised debate, ifyouknowwhatimean
Laura meido … who would have thought that a one-eyed white-hair maid would be so cute!
And that French butler ……
Honestly, I wish those amusement park scenes would be a bit longer. Sigh*
Btw, I’m just wondering whether who’s on Team Russia here. 🙂
I actually think Ichika has a good reason for his obliviousness . He’s the only guy in the world that can control the IS and that already pressures him to focus on it. Aside from that, his sister is a world-famous pilot and him having this guilt feeling to her for saving him, makes him even more pressured. Topple that he is the only guy on a all-female school, I can see that he maybe doesn’t want to romance and focus on what can do best.
If so, they should be conveying that to us in the story. We shouldn’t have to make up motivations whole-cloth to excuse the protagonist’s actions.
Country Wars 2.
The considerable amount of Laura and Charlotte, the lack of Ichika and Houki, all these point out as this episode being the best one of this second season. It’s all downhill from here. Unless Russia proves me wrong.
Show Spoiler ▼
I may be in the minority here, but I don’t really care about Ichika being dense and whatnot. I watch this show (and other harems) for entertainment. This one happens to have heroines I enjoy and explosions mixed with some comedy. I try to not look for something more from a show like this. It lets me shut my brain off and have fun for twenty minutes.
I understand the writers wanting to follow the light novel and all, but really, for a mecha show where the combat scenes are fun to watch it’s just surprising to see a first episode with barely any mecha. I watched every high/moderately high recommended show here, and this has , IMO, by far the worse animation so far when it comes to dialogue and even combat scenes. Not like that’s the main reason why people watch it though.
I think they should’ve putten more importance to the IS jacking, and since the butler/maid scene is completely plot unrelated, they could’ve inserted it later. But whatever.
Still can’t wait to see how they’ll animate the rest of it, especially how they’ll design Tatenashi’s and Kanzashi’s units.
yeah, as if they dont have enough Material to do the 1st Episode, and took some unfinished Bonus OAVs and clue them together for Episode 1
Looks like the real Fun, begins with Episode 2
https://randomc.net/image/Infinite%20Stratos/Infinite%20Stratos%202%20-%20OP%20-%20Large%2006.jpg
“Sekirei” someone? The Water Element Tsunade? 🙂
So in this season 2 we will watch Ichika twin sister, Madoka as his arc-nemesis( the girl in OP song with scar in her face and wears scarf), or the member of Silver Gospel. But why she opposes her own brother?
Another question is why Chifuyu haven’t aware that her younger sister was the member of silver gospel?
I will forever cheer for the underdog and that is Lingyin Huang.
Twin-tails, pettanko, spunky personality, what is there not to love?
The preview with Chiwa Saito giggling for 20 seconds or so really sets up the atmosphere for her tease of a character.
I am ready for the Russian flag to fly.
Looks like you may get your OVA after all Stilts:
http://myanimelist.net/anime/20045/IS:_Infinite_Stratos_2_-_Hitonatsu_no_Omoide
Maybe they meant montage as a teaser to this.
Also that blue-haired girl reminds me of Yarizui Sen…oh man I miss Ben-to.
Only in this anime that I’ll see France invading/conquering Germany
You should have read a little bit of history, it is called Napoleonic period.
Depends on your definitions. Germany didn’t exist as a state in Napoleonic times.
Anyone else a little disappointed with this first ep? Really uneven (especially, as Stilts says, the weird water park montage) and far too much generic stuff. And what the heck happened to Laura?? Really hoping they get back to the formula that made the first season so much fun.
Muchas gracias, thank a lot.
So basically Chifuyu’s mine!
Kuroko no basket update?
I want kuroko no basuke season 2 update
I want to lick Charles’s feet and say “want punishment!” She trample my head with gorgeous feet insulting me as pig!! It felt so magnificent that I felt an indescribable zest
OH GOD…*nosebleed*
Not to resurrect a now old thread, but seems like there’s an OVA out now that turns the summer activity montages into animated scenes…bringing the original episode up until 40 minutes in total :p
Thanks for the update. 😀