First Impressions / Medaka Box

「黒神めだかは私が潰します!!」 (Kurokami Medaka wa Watashi ga Tsubushimasu!!)
“I Will Crush Kurokami Medaka!!”

We’re on a roll! For the second week in a row we’ve been introduced to a new character I can only really describe as ‘adorable.’ And adorable she is. There’s something I find really entertaining about characters with a somewhat sadistic side who can still be pushed to embarrassment and retaining a conscience. Onigase Harigane (Ohashi Ayuru) certainly fits these criteria. While she’s not afraid to use violence to solve problems (and in fact seems to relish doing so), she still upholds her own sense of justice and views (and sucks at lying). I’d say she’s perfectly suited for the disciplinary committee at Sandbox Academy – capable of being reasonable, yet apparently able to match up against the specials should it come to that.

I’m both surprised and not surprised by the fact that the student council’s opponents for this arc will be the disciplinary committee. Surprised in the sense that two school bodies with similar purposes are going head to head, but also not surprised given Medaka’s slightly unreasonable views on rules. Both Harigane and Medaka make fair points on the subject – all are equal before the law and exceptions should not be made just for the elite, yet rules without merit are pointless. I, however, am more inclined to side with Harigane on this one (n-n-not because she’s kawaii or anything I swear!). While I can understand Medaka’s point of view – that there is no point to the restrictions on uniform when they don’t actually benefit anyone (not entirely true, but more on that in a moment) – rules are rules, regardless of the reasoning (or lack thereof) behind their enforcement. If, as she implies, she has the power to alter those rules and disagrees with them, then she should do so instead of breaking them.

In a sense, restrictions on uniform do have a function beyond merely ensuring that everyone is smartly dressed, representing their school, and ‘fostering a sense of pride.’ They also serve the additional purpose of helping to abolish social ranks within the school – by ensuring that everyone is dressed the same, in theory fewer people will be segregated based on their inability to shell out for absurdly priced clothing. Of course Medaka being Medaka, she’s probably entirely unaware of this possibility, especially when she has seven spare uniforms and sees no value in her own material possessions!

At this point, I have some suspicions about how Harigane will act in the coming conflict. While her reasons for wanting to crush Medaka are evident (and I don’t blame her!), the events of the second half of the episode allowed her to see the good Medaka does for the student body, despite her choice to break certain rules. It feels as though she may have warmed more towards the members of the student council and her sense of justice meant that she was willing to protect them when it came down to a fight. While I know nothing about the other members of the disciplinary committee beyond what was shown in the short epilogue (which pretty much just screamed eeeeeeeevil), it wouldn’t surprise me one bit if Harigane ended up with conflicting emotions when the battles begin. Then again, maybe I’m just biased because I like her character!

Random thoughts:

Full-length images: 02, 04, 05, 06, 07, 09, 13, 17, 19, 21, 23, 24, 26.

Epilogue:

 

Preview

20 Comments

  3. This is getting much better, I was foreseeing a darker plot due to the preview, turn out to be so light-heart and funny like funny. Want the next episode now!!! Shiranui still beat everyone hands down with her scheming mind yet innocent face!!!

    Tingster013
    Reply

  4. YEAH! the manga just shifted gears in like a single chapter and im like… WAIT! So was anything that was done before really relevant that couldn’t have been explained in a small narration?!

    omeganx
    Reply

  5. Still don’t like Medaka’s voice. Ugh.
    And Paku Romi as Unzen. Can’t say she’s a good pick but she has a reputation for playing shotas I guess. And Koshimizu Ami is that other girl.
    Disciplinary arc incoming. Gonna get messy now.

    belatkuro
    Reply

  7. While I’m not too fond of megane character, I found Kikaijima really adorable in this episode.

    Offtopic: Moomba, I just realized that your gravatar is Vlad Tepes from Eiyuu*Senki VN. Have you finished playing that VN?

    Kusabi
    Reply

  8. 8 episodes and this show is still fun. Impressive. These very shouneish comedy shows usually get boring pretty fast, but Medaka is still 100% fun (maybe because they’re always introducing new characters and stuff).

    André
    Reply

    2. Sure, give season 2 24 or 36 Episodes.

      Unless you want Gainax to butcher the Minus Arc. And you forgot the Flask Plan arc. That’s already one Cour in itself.

      The ominous thing here, in my view though, is that the animators seem to be skipping over and rushing through all those scenes like the kick- of which is just a foretaste of the direction the plot is taking.

      At this rate, they just might be able to do the impossible, and compress the Show Spoiler ▼

      Andmeuths
      Reply

  12. Why didn’t Onigase just wear the school uniform that she was going to make Medaka put on?
    Let’s see if next week the characters will just go back to wearing their own fashion-style of clothing.

    random viewer
    Reply

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