Posted by OP Sequence
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OP: 「あなたの選んだこの時を」 (Anata no Eranda Kono Toki wo) by (Kanako Ito)
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「劇場版 シュタインズゲート 負荷領域のデジャヴ」 (Fuka Ryouiki no Déjà vu)
“Steins;Gate: Deja vu”
If great characters make a story, then any set in this mythology has a massive head start.
Fuka Ryouiki no Deja vu is neither indispensable to the Steins;Gate franchise, or a great story in its own right. That said, it’s mostly a massive pleasure to watch, so what’s the lesson here? It’s not that those things don’t matter – they do – but more than these characters are so indelible and relatable that they’re like family by now. And if you haven’t seen your family for a long time, it should be wonderful to spend time with them even if nothing all that memorable happens.
Steins;Gate was one of the very best series of 2011 – #3 on my year-end rankings – and one of the very rare occasions when my tastes largely overlapped with both the English-language anime fandom and the Japanese target market. It placed first in the readers poll both at LiA and at RC, Divine chose it as his #1 series of the year, and it was a massive success on Blu-ray. There’s a reason S;G was so appealing to such a diverse group of people, or rather many reasons: a massive and well-conceived sci-fi plot, fantastically culturally aware setting, great dialogue. Most of all, it presented one of the best casts in recent anime history, a group that managed the rare feat of becoming both archetypal and believable as real people.
It’s really that last part that carries through to the S;G movie more than the others. The plot here is pretty good, though in a sense it feels like an alternative track from a bonus CD more than anything, and the setting isn’t quite as fresh and exciting as it was when the series premiered. But the people are still the same. Okabe and Kurisu still have chemistry to burn, Mayuri is still heartbreakingly decent, Daru and Ruka and Suzuha and Moeka are just as interesting and charismatic now. Rather than adding anything really new to the mythology this indeed feels more like a family reunion, but there are far worse things that could be said about an anime film – and even if the premise isn’t as captivating as the TV series’, the cast all behaves in a way that feels very much true to themselves.
If we’re to describe the story of “Deja Vu” (needless to say spoilers are to follow, so stop here if you haven’t seen it), I think it boils down to Kurisu having the chance to experience what Okarin did during his long, lonely journey through a personal Hell the likes of which we’ve rarely seen depicted in anime (and even more rarely depicted so well). There are several problems with this, starting with the most obvious – good as it was, this is a story we’ve already seen Steins;Gate do. In addition, what made it’s brilliance possible was the length of the TV series – in a roughly 90-minute movie there simply isn’t going to be the time to either comparably build-up to Kurisu’s desperate attempts to change history or to give it the grisly detail of just how brutal the experience was.
So in the end, then, we have a premise that the series has already executed better re-created in condensed form. There might have been better choices if the goal was to create something of stature in its own right, but if you view S;G as a sort of homage to the power of friendship and love to transcend even time, Fuka Ryouiki no Deja vu makes a nice bookend to the TV series (and thus, the VN’s main route). Okabe and Kurisu is, quite simply, one of the best love stories in modern anime. There’s not as much of them actually together here as I would have liked – their dialogue was the highlight of the series for me, and it generated most of the best comic moments (comic moments, too, are sadly few and far between in the film). But Kurisu – and Imai Asami – is here in fine form, showing the qualities that made her such a vital part of the original’s success. She’s full of self-doubts but ultimately a lonely idealist who wants more than anything to believe unreservedly in another human being – and that turns out to be Okabe. It does seem fitting that she should understand a little (and it really is only a little) of what he went through in order to save her.
As for Okarin himself he, too, is less prominent in the movie than I would have liked. The larger part of the story is Kurisu trying to find a way to stop him from disappearing from the Steins Gate timeline because he has too many memories of the neighboring ones, and that means he’s physically absent for much of the narrative. This is a truly great character and one of the best seiyuu performances in years by Miyano Mamoru, and there is something lost by having so little of both for so much of the movie. In his place we do get a large dose of the supporting cast, especially Mayushi and Daru (who’s the founder of the lab once Okarin – and memories of him – disappear from the world line). That’s a fine thing (I’ve really missed “Tuturu!”) as these are really more like co-leads, with terrific performances by Seki Tomokazu and Hanazawa Kana (this is one of her very best roles, IMHO). But like the characters themselves, I think Steins;Gate really misses Okarin when he isn’t around.
As for the ending, well – I won’t say I didn’t see it coming as soon as we heard Suzuha say the best plan was to create a strong memory in the 2005 Okabe Rintarou. The Hououin Kyouma story was nice, but what better way is there to implant a strong memory in a 13 year-old boy than the one Kurisu chose? Still, predictable or not it had a sort of poetry to it, and framed the storybook romance between the two leads in a very nice way. I think the fundamental questions about time travel – which after his own experience Okabe believes more strongly than ever is something humans should never attempt – are largely kicked to the curb in favor of a generic “follow your heart” message. If there’s a true sequel to Steins;Gate I’d like to see it take that subject on in a meatier way, but that really wasn’t the point of Fuka Ryouiki – that was to give us one more chance to spend time with this cast, and celebrate the bond between Okabe and Kurisu. On those terms, at least, it’s a solid success.
ED Sequence
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ED: 「いつもこの場所で」 (Itsumo Kono Basho de) by (Ayane)
Vielen Dank! Enzo.
El Psy Congroo
El Psy Congroo
Actually, Reading Steiner(The translator of this and many other S;G related media) pointed out that it should actually be “El Psy Kongroo”, as the C was a mistranslation.
El Psy Kongroo
El Psy Kongroo
El psy kongroo
Seems to have set itself as an iconic phrase from a sci-fi show
Alongside “may the Force be with you”
Felt like an another episode, not a movie. I expected more science, but instead they decided to show the power of love. Oh well, good old S;G. Liked it.
I personally thought it was a very good way to close the book on S;G. Tied up the loose ends that we didn’t get with the TV series and got to see the issues Okarin had during the main series from a different perspective.
Tutturu! It’s so much better to see Okarin around.
eheh you can’t read Tutturu! without hearing Mayushi’s beautiful voice …
i havent finished S;G visual novel yet, is this movie really on the game?
No. The game and the anime are for all intents and purposes the same thing, as they cover the same material(Though the anime in much less depth). Then there is episode 25, the OVA, which is set after the end of the game’s True End and the anime. The movie is set after the OVA.
Interestingly enough, the movie does indeed flash back to Show Spoiler ▼
while the anime skips forward without addressing Show Spoiler ▼
I thought that they skipped Nae’s part was because it might be too much for the viewers to see such a loli doing something like that, then again we see blood lolis everywhere like Higurashi, Madoka, etc. so I’m just guessing that was their reason for it?
Incredibly nice.
The feels, man.
I’ll be honest: This movie was pretty close to the label “totally unnecessary”. I’m a sucker when it comes to this show, but this movie was one hell of a huge mess.
The Achilles-point was none other than the story itself. Am I the only one who started counting all the inconsistencies which turned against the rules of the TV series? (Why did they force the psycho-loli part when the series had skipped this whole sub-plot [thank goodness]? What was the deal with the time-leap machine and the new 48+ hours limit? Mayuri did become a lab member thx to Okabe, so his disappearance should have changed the timeline where she is not a labmem anymore, amirite?)
The climax and the final conclusion were also pretty weak, lackluster and they made little to no sense. And where is that professional directing what the series had?
The characterization, however, was pretty great and well-written. I especially liked this duality what Kurisu’s character got: the scientist/rational self versus her feelings.
Overall, a weak 6/10 from me. And here is a wholehearted advice for White Fox: No more milking. Please!
I think you forgot about attractor fields. They don’t just apply to a person’s death you know. Heck, most of the movie is spent with characters going through motions they themselves don’t quite understand. The S;G Worldline is a weird one, so it’s natural that some odd things are going to happen. I think perhaps your expectations were a bit too raised going in.
I think there were a couple of us (myself included) who expected more concrete exposition on the original concepts brought up in the series, of which were pretty well thought out themselves. I don’t think we should have expected any less from this movie in terms of consistency in logic.
Unnecessary, but a nice additional content nonetheless
As for the inconsistencies, you’re not the only one, but I gave up on thinking about the possible answers because the ideas of worldlines and timelines makes things complicated.
I’ll be honest: The “Comment” i replied to was pretty close to the label “totally unnecessary”!
I’d like to nip a potential argument against this film in the bud. Naturally spoilers follow, but I’ll put this warning anyway. Spoilers.
So, a lot of people are going to be going “She had to give Okabe his Kyouma persona, so that’s a plothole since she only does that on one timeline!” but that’s not the case. Remember the scene before it, when Suzuha and Kurisu are talking about causality? How even after getting hit by a fucking truck, Okabe won’t die, because attractor fields won’t let him die before his time. Same concept here. There is likely an attractor field that causes him to, at that moment, become Kyouma. What Kurisu does here is smart though. She does what Okabe did in the last episode of the anime. ‘Change the past without changing anything’. She inserts herself as the cause of Kyouma, which is different. Now instead of Okabe becoming Kyouma because of something he thought up on the spot, it’s because of her. It’s an anchor. It’s different. Now, if he ever starts to slip to the R line, he just has to think about that major difference. No plot hole, the rules of time travel are still solid. It’s a surprisingly well thought out loophole for an add on movie.
Great post. Serves as a good refresher for the TV series
The entire movie is a series of callbacks. It’s fanservice in a way. A lot of the confusing parts can be explained if you equate them to things that happened in the series.
You nailed the coffin.
A bit confused at some parts…I thought Okabe is the only one who can jump between world lines & have memories of them as his Reading Steiner ability? The part where Suzuha congratulated Kurisu for jumping to another world line AND remembering the differences had me going “Eh??” for a while..I know the movie mentions the “Deja Vu” as a weaker version of Reading Steiner or something, but well…..
On another scene;
O: That’s not my labcoat. That’s Daru’s undies.
Kurisu going into obsessive cleaning mode right after has to be the most hilarious scene in the series so far, other than Okabe getting detained by airport security in the OVA Ep25..
At the trainstop scene;
oh wowwwwwwwwwww a younger, kid Kurisu!! (even if its just for a few seconds)
Kurisu kawaiiiiii.
Kurisu only jumped back to the past timeline.
The movie blatantly explains that the Reading Steiner ability isn’t exclusive to Okabe, rather it’s actually what people have come to know as “deja vu”, except in his case, due to all the time-leaping he has developed a huge self-awareness of it. I’m glad they went with that, I remember there being zero explanation for the Reading Steiner ability in the original series beyond simply being Okabe’s exclusive ability and nothing else. This was something that a lot of reviewers criticized in the original series, so I’m glad that this pretty much explained it here without ruining any of the series’ lore (not to mention it makes Okabe seem more down-to-earth….in a good way I mean)
this was actually teased a little bit in the original series, by the end of it the characters actually do remember bits and pieces of alternate timelines, though it isn’t blatantly explained as it was in this movie.
A decent movie. Enzo summed his thoughts just right on what the movie is about and for. The loss of Okabe for almost half of the movie was unfortunately palpable, the reason why Steins;Gate the series was so emotionally perceptible was because he could enliven any kind of a situation he was in. Kurisu simply didn’t have it in her (Even if she tried). That’s not to say she didn’t make a good lead though. We could have had a worse movie in the hands of other characters. She held her own just fine.
And i do think they actually have a good story in their hands IMO. 90 minutes just wasn’t enough time to flesh it all out. It really could have benefitted from a miniseries run.
All in all, despite some nitpicking and reservations, it’s just nice to be back after all.
I gotta admit, despite the underdevelopment of the story, the movie did manage to recreate the old-fashioned tension of the series when Okabe resented Kurisu for making the time leap. My heart jumped a bit. You could see in his eyes the accumulation of all that trauma in the other timelines before he made the S;G one.
The S;G movie does justice and is consistent with the anime in all aspects. it manages not only just to restore the complexity of what we have seen in the anime, but even extend us some more things.
In that matter, I think what worked so well for S;G movie is the fact that it’s direct chronological continuation of the anime .
I mean..this isn’t a recap or another view of the same events. there is integration of what has happened in the past as we’ve seen in this series (and during the movie we got lots of glimpses and reminders to that long and difficult road we passed in the series), with new implications and developments as reflected in the film – Makise comes to the “front” as her mind experiencing a bit of what Okarin suffered. Speaking of Okarin, we also see implications on him. Poor guy. And of course the rest of the characters are expressed in their own uniqueness.
all of this is executed throughout the film in the same way we love so much back then.
we got some new aspects to the complexity without destroying it. In fact, it’s associated to the complexity very well.
Also, the scientific side keeps “frying” (in a good way) our brains in the way S;G knows to bring out so well – on the Steins;Gate (as a world line), the deja vu ,the brain and mind, time travel etc. I love good reasonable science!
Overall, the film definitely manages to not just recover and/or be in the shadow of the series, it’s integral part of the whole thing called Steins;Gate. it has drama, science, dilemmas , time travel and of course our beloved characters. All of this is connected and suits in atmosphere and performance for one of the best series in anime world.
indeed, it was a little short. But for 90 minutes (standard time) film, it did great job with something complicated enough like S;G. it’s not trivial to carry out 90 min movie in the standard of S;G. and hell it’s succeeded.
maybe it’s not film of the year since it came out pretty late, and there are such good candidates this year (Ookami kodomo and gardens of words – Hosoda vs Shinkai. great year in movies) but for sure it’s one of the best, not only of this year, but in general. It’s a very great film. A lot of films trying to recapture the success of a series fail. But S;G succeeded big-time!
Truly the bearer of the Best Anime of 2011
I’ll be honest: I’m still unsure as to what exactly was happening to Okabe, and how exactly Kurisu’s actions were carried out within the limitations of time travel. Could someone help make things a little clearer for me? And I’m guessing any discussion from this point on will have to be spoilered…
I don’t think this needs to be spoilered since I haven’t played the VN and thus, anything I say is either directly from what’s already aired or a guess. That said, someone who has played the VN could probably answer (in spoiler tags) better than I.
As I understand it, the problem is that Okabe’s Reading Steiner means that he remembers everything that happened to him on the neighboring world lines (like the R line) to the Steins Gate line. Kurisu’s reseatch indicates that the concept of strong memories are intimately tied in with the question of time travel and world lines. Okabe’s memories are so strong and the other world lines so close that he shifts between them because of the pull of those memories. The only way to fix it would be to implant such a strong memory in the Steins Gate world line Okabe that it would “anchor” him there, acting as a sort of ballast.
As for Kurisu’s traveling, I took it to be roughly the same as what the gang was doing in the original series, using the same basic technology.
I was confused with what was going on and to be honest didn’t find this movie to be all that good. May have been the poor subbing, still, it was hard to appreciate. Example, Amane’s role just seemed forced in the movie, what was the point of showing her exactly? Just to have the whole cast in the movie?
I thought it was interesting watching Kurisu kissing a young Okabe. What a turn on hehehe…
Hell yeah!!!
My Ever Favorite Anime comes back!
Oh God I need time to read this whole thing!
The kiss was something unexpected. How did 13 year old Okabe Rintarou reacted to the kiss was also kinda unusual. Was left kinda puzzled there.
Now I have to find my copy of S;G and watch it again.
It’ll be nice if what they were trying to accomplish makes any reasonable sense.
still the best~!!!
El psy kongroo
The Kuris-TIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINA is back!
Compared to the original anime Deja Vu felt superfluous. If anything personally this felt like a testing of the waters to see how well further Steins;Gate stories will sell. Now with that said the movie wasn’t bad. Wasn’t all that “good”, but not bad. Not enough of the science for me personally, but that’s a moot point when it was clear this was all about the relationship between Okarin and Kurisu and having her try to rediscover it. The problem is the time constraint–unlike the original series there simply isn’t enough for the character build up. Basically it’s there to give the fans more Steins;Gate, but as others have said it’s more of a b-sides track on an album than a true sequel.
I’ll have to rewatch it once the English dubs come out to see if that changes anything. I personally liked Steins;Gate more in English than in Nihongo, the dub catches a lot of what is lost in translation and IMO features better dialogue between Okarin and Kurisu. One of the few dubs i’d argue is better than the original.
I don’t really have much to add, because you summed up my feelings for me already, Guardian Enzo. The movie was pure fanservice, in a way, another adventure with the characters we know and love. Steins;Gate was my favourite show of 2011, and ranks highly amongst my favourite anime in general. Every snippet is welcome.
That said, the movie is basically a rehash of the series’ story from Kurisu’s perspective. Storywise it isn’t anything we haven’t already seen before, the lack of Okarin hurts the movie because we lack the chemistry he had with the cast that made the series so enjoyable, and there just isn’t enough time in the movie to really make the events have an impact. Not to mention that certain parts of it kind of felt forced, and it felt like the movie’s direction in general was just about playing it safe and pleasing the fans instead of actually telling another great story.
So, y’know, I enjoyed it, but I wouldn’t call this a quintessential viewing experience like I do with the anime. Kind of a missed opportunity, in a way.
Other than this movie, a subbed version of the Steins Gate Drama CD can be found if you know where to look..Story there is quite interesting, general timeline seems to be set back when Okabe was leaping through world lines in the series, but the story presents itself as Okabe being in one of those world lines that wasn’t shown/elaborated.
Very interesting plot development concerning Moeka too. :p
You are talking about the Gamma CD. There is also the Alpha and Beta CDs that have also been translated by Steiner. WhyNot is working on adding graphics to the other two, and Steiner is going to be translating the new Drama CD that came with the movie. Also Steiner is translating various side story manga, including one set in the Beta timeline following the Okabe that failed to save Kurisu.
I don’t get why people say this is an unnecessary entry, if anything this actually cleared up A LOT of issues and criticisms that people have leveled against the series, in which this actually seems more like an extended epilogue than just a random side-story or even a proper film. Now get ready for a TLDR post.
Before I praise it with the positives, I’ll go for my main criticisms first. This isn’t a movie. Yes I know that “it’s a movie”, but the presentation of it all was anything but. Lots of still images, little animation, heck the finale of the original series was more cinematic in the way it presented the climax. Even more alarming when you consider how this was released in the cinemas, where it just feels weird in comparison to other big-budget anime films. Considering how the stuff being dealt here was something crucial, you’d think they’d spice it up a bit more in terms of imagery and presentation. It’s more suitable as an OVA-type material, an epilogue to give to the fans: both to complete Okabe and Kurisu’s character arc and to nicely close off the series.
NOW with all that said, story-wise (or rather character-writing-wise) I absolutely LOVED this. I think that a lot of people remember the original series so fondly that they’re willing to overlook some issues it had. First was how the original series essentially rendered Kurisu’s overall development back to a certain point with no memories of her past experiences. As the (arguably) second main character (and practically the mascot of the series), it felt like a huge stab in the back to just leave it at that and chalk up those missing memories to “she’ll create new ones”. This was easily fixed by including the idea that Kurisu seemed to have a bit of deja vu with her memories (further confirmed in the OVA that preceded this film) but then that leads to another unresolved loose thread (this time we get the full explanation of that which I’ll get to in a minute). Second, is the Reading Steiner ability. As I mentioned before, this was a huge oversight on the part of the creators, something that many reviewers have actually come to criticize because of its level of exclusivity on the part of Okabe, in which there was literally no concrete explanation for said exclusivity within the original series. Third was the ambiguity of whether or not Okabe simply returned to the most “undamaged” world line by undoing everything he did to get to that starting point to save Kurisu. This makes no logical sense when you consider the random nature of world lines where going by the series’ lore, it means that should actually be in an entirely new world line considering how everything can’t be perfectly replicated to match the original world line he was going for.
So let’s have a look at how this film came to tie up those loose ends (at least in my eyes):
First, we have Kurisu’s memories. This was finally dealt with by literally expanding on the amount of memories resurfacing within her. They finally put her on equal footing with Okabe, and it felt much more complete by actually allowing her to go through this emotional journey so that she’s finally able to distinguish herself as a main character alongside Okabe.
Second we have the Reading Steiner ability. I’ve already explained about this in one of my replies, so I’ll copy-paste the same stuff I had written:
Not only does this add a bit more fun and spice to an everyday concept for viewers (giving their own explanation for deja vu in this instance), it also serves to clear up what the series never got to explain.
Third, we have the dilemma of the Steins;Gate world line itself. The series leaves this ambiguous and it almost gave the impression that Okabe was simply “returning” to his original world line all while changing the starting outcome of Kurisu’s death in a manner that would allow the world line to go smoothly. As shown in this film, this is not entirely the case. Okabe explains that time-leaping is simply a case of finding the most “convenient” world line to suit one’s own mental desires. In this regard, Okabe managed to find a world line “undamaged” enough and intervene in one of its main starting scenarios (Kurisu’s death) to allow himself into a convenient new world line. Is this selfish? I don’t think so. Okabe is only human, and if anything this is the best one could hope to do to find a truly “happy” ending when you factor in the tone of the series that glorifies the special moments of human interactions over the science-based lore.
Now finally, and not necessarily addressing any particular blatant issue of the original series, I love how the film finally completed Okabe and Kurisu’s character arc. We see the result of the implications left by the series, in which all of Okabe’ past experience are actually creeping up inside him, even to the point of doubting the reality around him and viewing it as something superficial in comparison to everything he’s experienced. It goes to show that Okabe is only human, and that he truly enjoyed the time spent in all his time-leaping adventures, especially when he actually got to know the lab members better throughout those lost experiences. Then we have Kurisu, who was closest to Okabe in all those harsh times. She’s given a full character arc, and instead of being treated as a bystander in the end, she’s depicted as actually wanting to acknowledge those memories and share the knowledge together with Okabe (even if in secret between the two), all while showing initiative on her own to save Okabe from fading out of the Steins;Gate world line.
The ending was perfect. I recognize that some may argue the logic behind it, though one could also argue that this event had already happened across all other world lines and that Kurisu doing what she did is actually what kickstarts the other world lines in regards to the person that is Okabe. You could even argue that it’s why each Okabe is so attached to the concept of Hououin Kyouma until the one that’s stuck in “R” world line finally realizes this once again, allowing both Kurisu and Okabe to share the knowledge and ability of “Reading Steiner” all while viewing the current world line as something real (basically Okabe just needed a helping hand in sharing such a burden, and Kurisu did just that by reminding him of the “starting point” of it all). I guess doing so in this new world line, allowed everyone else to fully “materialize” (to put it loosely) into the happy ending that Okabe was looking for all while allowing Okabe to finally recognize it as his own reality. It made for a nice way of creating a bookend to the series by literally having Kurisu introduce the concept of Hououin Kyouma to the little Okabe thus motivating him. It reminded me of the original Terminator film where the actions of the future are what actually set off the events in the past that would lead to creating said future in the first place. It creates a nice balance that plays with the concept of destiny and free will by tying it all together in a cyclical manner. Honestly I laughed when she kissed the young Okabe though. Imagine being depressed a kid on a rainy day until you met this pretty lady who told you a weird story about a crazy scientist to cheer you up and then she suddenly (and affectionately) kisses you. Okabe’s grown recognition of that “first kiss” in the ending along with Kurisu’s playful attitude towards it was the cherry on top.
El Psy Kongroo.
This movie just further proves how much a MASTERPIECE of an anime/visual novel/manga Steins;Gate really is! Beautiful characters, setting, plot, art, voice actors and soundtracks!
I rewatched the entire anime series in bluray as well before watching this movie and man it still invokes such powerful emotions from me. You can really feel Okabe’s despair and failures he went through that you will truly understand why in this movie he forbids Kurisu to use the time machine/time leap to continue to save him, as he doesnt want her to go through the same suffering he did.
Minor tidbits I realize in the movie that relates to the anime:
Each time machine is named by the one who developed it:
– In the Alpha world line where the convergence point is a dystopia due to SERN and Mayuri dies, Daru invented the time machine alone while Okabe founded the resistance, so Daru named it FG204 2nd Edition Ver.2.31, FG which means a Future Gadget. Problem is that this time machine only goes back to the past, so its one way trip.
– In the Beta world line where the convergence point is the World War III and Kurisu dies, which fueled Okabe’s obsession in developing a proper time machine, where the time machine can go back to the past and future, he named it C204, C for Christina.
– In the Steins;Gate world line where the convergence point is that Okabe Rintarou will cease to exist, but Kurisu will remember him thus fueling her desire to see him again and change the past to save him, building a time machine she named OR204, OR for Okabe Rintarou.
– Okabe’s first kiss is indeed with Kurisu, he mentions this in the alpha world line in Ep.22 of the anime, where that kiss he did with Kurisu wasnt his first, and that his first kiss wasnt romantic at all. This indicates that his kiss here in the movie in the Steins;Gate world line was supposed to happen.
– Origin of Hououin Kyouma was in fact caused by Kurisu encouraging Okabe to adopt such a personality in order to cheer up Mayuri
– Also answered one of my lingering questions in the anime series, that when a person sends a D-Mail and shifts to a different world line, what happens to that person in the current world line? Kurisu theorizes in the ep.22 of the anime that the person could disappear or switch memories with the other person in the different world line kinda like what Time Leap machine does.
This movie answered it, that person’s existence will disappear in that world line causing everyone who knew that person to forget or for the whole world to reset as if that person never existed in the first place. That’s why as Okabe shifted from Steins;Gate world line to R world line, everyone doesnt know him as his existence was in fact erased.
Though this does confuses me, because if this was the case then Okabe’s existence in both alpha and beta world line shouldve been erased as well, which means that there will be no resistance group in alpha world line since Okabe was the one who founded it, ugh my head hurts, but this is the beauty of time travelling setting that is Steins;Gate it’s just sooo dam interesting!
Good catch on the naming conventions and spotting the blatantly subtle references to S;G
I think Enzo put it very nicely. S;G Movie didn’t really add so much to the mythology of S;G rather it was more a revisiting of things with a cast that we all know and love. Kirisu finding a bit about the sufferings Okabe had to go though, as well as an exploration of what happened to “the other world lines he left” I think was meant more to complete the picture.
The TV series focused on Okabe’s long and lonely journey while the movie seems to focus more on the rest of the cast as lead by Kirisu. I think they did a fine job given the time constraints imposed. I don’t think it was ever about adding something new but more on exploring the other side of things.
I have to agree though with Enzo that the “Time Travel is something that must not be done” kicked to the curb by “follow you heart” is a bit of selfishness exemplified but the hopeless romantic in me can’t help but approve to it at times.
All in all I think it was a good chance to see the characters in action agin. If there was anything I would have wanted to see, it might have been a scene similar to Okabe (future) telling Okabe (present) mirrored in Kurisu at first adhering to the “wish of Okabe” to not change the past. That might have given the decision to “follow your heart” a bit more of a solid foundation
El Psy Kongroo
Until now, I don’t fully understand the anime but the characters are just lovable 🙂
i dont see female character crying like kurisu.Kurisu face crying is so~ freaking cute =D
Since I just made a scathing, vicious, and completely horrible comment on Samurai Flamenco I feel I should balance the scales and say something here. The review above is spot on and really very well thought out, but I think it misses something. I needed this movie to feel closure for Steins;Gate, and actually I need another but I’ll get to that in a moment.
Basically at the end of the show I found myself wondering how this all began. I felt that Okarin never got a good explanation for how he got into this state of being, and I had a hard time accepting that he just “has always been Okarin”. Now this fills that gap, and gives me closure in an otherwise perfect show.
For the next movie the question that remains is obvious to me. The part timer soldier from the future is the one missing link, we can only speculate at her story. If that story was explored in another movie I’d wager it would sell. Go my animation fairies, go and make this happen now.
wait a minute, at the ending, i didn’t understand it. why she implanted a strong memory and did okabe came back to the steins gate world?
wait a minute, at the ending, i didn’t understand it. why she implanted a strong memory and did okabe came back to the steins gate world?
The scene at the train stop transitions back and forth to shots with a younger and differently dressed version of Kurisu, which strongly implies that it’s always been her who inspired Okabe’s Kyouma persona.
That scene, in the context of a younger Kurisu and her short monologue before it, may also imply that Hououin Kyouma was created as an idealized image of her father to cope with her lonely adolescence.
That said, Hououin Kyouma was inspired by our villain Doctor Nakabachi.
The scenario as described would also throw in a familiar/childhood-love-interest spin to their already wonderful relationship dynamic. Win-win.
I just finished watching this movie.If only I watched this before,I would voted for it to be best movie of 2013.In last ten years,Steins;Gate is the best anime for me.S;G OVA (Egoistic Poriomania) suck so badly but S;G Movie is as great as S;G anime.
For user arekusu,The strong memory is ‘First kiss’.