First Impressions / Zetsuen no Tempest

「魔女を断つ、時間」 (Majo wo Tatsu, Jikan)
“The Hour of the Princess’ Suppression”

Gosh darn. I knew that it seemed a bit too soon for the final confrontation and I was right. But despite the fact that many of the revelations this episode were hinted at beforehand, I never expected anything like this. They might not celebrate Thanksgiving over in Japan, but with this episode… they might as well have, because the things we got this week were equivalent to a fully stuffed turkey in terms of content.

First off, let’s talk a bit about Hakaze’s plan of action. As it turns out, the gun given to Mahiro contained the full might of her magical powers, which make it possible for him to destroy the magical barrier from inside. With the full military bombardment underway, the subsequent result would be the disturbance of the summon ritual, the ultimate failure to properly revive the Tree of Zetsuen and most importantly, require that Samon bring Hakaze back. It’s a sound strategy to say the least, but there was just something about this moment that made me feel quite uneasy, as there was definitely something sinister about the way Hakaze went about it…

Admittedly, the above might’ve been only something I felt… but at the same time, the next reveal seemed to put more credence into that thought—because as the second major reveal tells us, it’s quite possible that the Tree of Genesis might end up being the cause of the world’s destruction instead. As Samon and Jun explain, the world arose during the Tree of Genesis’ slumber. Thus, the world was created in an incomplete form. With the Tree’s revival, the world would finally be completed—but notably at the expense of the current one. Considering the fact that it already takes high-level products of civilization to grant magical powers to the clan and it does suddenly makes a whole lot of sense that this might indeed be a possibility. Notably, I had mentioned a similar prediction linking this product of civilization bit earlier, but it also leaves the question: who’s in the right here?

The answer? It’s just impossible to know, and it just highlights what a darn good job Zetsuen has done to get us to this point in time. Either way, I have to say, it’s darn interesting the scenario that develops as a result.

On one side, we have a side that believes in free-will and the fact that the Tree of Genesis will lead to the world’s destruction. On the other we have Hakaze, who believes more so in the logic of the world and the fact that the Tree of Exodus is the one that will lead them to doom. In between, you have our protagonists: the rag tag pair made up of one who struggles to debate between the two sides and one who doesn’t give a darn about which side is correct. Not only is it darn intriguing that the wild card turns out to be the normal humans rather than the mages, it’s quite interesting when you realize that every single person involved here has vastly contrasting and mutually exclusive views with one another. It just makes you wonder how exactly will this sort out, and as preview shows, it doesn’t look like it’ll end up pretty.

Quite something so far isn’t it? Already went through quite a bit, yet there’s even more! We finally revisit the discussion about Hakaze “being dead” as the last major thing this episode, as Samon reveals that he actually dumped Hakaze on the island two years ago. As a result, we suddenly get yet another oddly plausible scenario where she is in fact dead. Whether she merely succumbed to the elements or something of the sort during those two years, this reveal throws quite the wrench in things, as even Hakaze finds herself shocked by the fact she thinks only four months have passed. Once again though, it’s impossible to know whether this is just an elaborate farce created on Samon’s part… or if Hakaze is indeed dead. Either way, it makes for some pretty exciting future developments, and I’m pretty glad at this point that I decided to pick this series up with BakaMochi.

Post is getting a bit long at this point, so I’ll round things off here’s with some quick bullet points:

  • The reveal that Hakaze and Mahiro both actually knew the possibility of the Tree of Genesis being the cause of the world’s destruction was another big thing. It felt a bit odd that Mahiro ended up being the one to know this (and that he managed to keep it a secret until now)… but at the same time, the reasoning does make some sense. In addition, it felt like that despite the fact that it’s Yoshino who we’ve come to expect as the person that was hard to read and full of secrets, it makes sense that even Mahiro would have a few secrets up his sleeve too. Either way, this does add some more support toward my slight suspicions toward Hakaze, as she seems to be willing to do whatever she wants to return to power…
  • ”Do you think anything will change starting today?” I felt was a pretty darn important quote. The reply from Mahiro (“Doesn’t matter.”) just highlights the differences between our protagonists and also notably hinted at some of the developments at the end of this episode.
  • The beginning portions of the episode felt a little bit like Evangelion for some odd reason. All of that military might targeting something that’s pretty much invulnerable to conventional weaponry… does ring a bell does it?
  • Nice wooden phone, Samon.

    • **EDITED. Rephrased some of the stuff regarding the time aspect.

    Full-length images: 19, 20, 21.

     

    Preview

    37 Comments

    2. I hope you meant that Samon sent Hakaze to the island 2 years prior to the events here and that the “information” was able to travel forwards in time.

      This would also mean that Aika’s death was brought about from the Logic of the Tree of Genesis to preserve the logic of the world.

      Cybersteel
      Reply

    6. I think there’s some misunderstanding here. No one traveled back in time. What Samon meant was that he dumped Hakaze on the island two years ago. She made that communication doll and threw it into the sea. From her point of view, the doll reached Mahiro in just a few days, but it actually took over 2 years. She is communicating with Mahiro who is 2 years in the future (from her point of view), where she is already dead.

      Reinou
      Reply

        1. The show is supposed to explain it later. But if you really want to know (only read ahead if you’re sure you want to be spoiled on whether Hakaze is dead or not). Show Spoiler ▼

          Nic
          Reply

      4. @Zephyr no need to apologize, the way it was explained in the anime was kind of confusing

        @mugi haha, pretty much 😛

        @hoh No. The time in the manga isn’t really specified as far as I can remember, but let’s say that it’s 2012 for Mahiro and the others. In 2010, there’s a dispute between Hakaze and the rest of the clan and Samon dumps Hakaze on the island. She creates two magic dolls used for communication and throws one in the sea, hoping that someone will find. It’s activated when Mahiro picks it up…and this is where it gets complicated.

        Mahiro starts talking to her through the doll a few days after she threw it into the sea, but Mahiro actually found the doll in 2012. Since it’s a magic device, normal rules don’t apply to it. When Mahiro picked the doll up, it created a magical link to Hakaze’s doll in the past, which allows them to communicate. No one really knows why something like that happened…Hakaze has a theory, which will be probably revealed later. (or read Nic’s spoiler if you want to know now)

        As for how Samon knew about this, it’s because he has her bones. Sometime between 2010 and 2012 he came back to the island to check on Hakaze, but found only her bones. Since he knows she is dead and yet she communicates with people in the present, he deduced that the doll allows her to talk through time. So basically, it was just a guess. 😀

        Of course, this is only what we know so far…expect more revelations and plot twists in the upcoming episodes. 😀

        Reinou
        Reply

      3. Thank goodness I wasn’t the only one who thought that. It was really getting on my nerves. If it was to prove a ‘point’ it was executed poorly, the first time was clearly enough.

        Solara
        Reply

    9. Mmmm, ok. Here are my predictions:

      – She is not dead. The bones were a decoy she planted, imparting them with enough of her magic to fool everyone into thinking they were hers.

      – She was the one who killed Mahiro’s sister. She only haven’t done it yet (in the past).

      – And, finally, a far fetched one: Hakaze’s bones are actually Mahiro’s sister’s.

      Fluca
      Reply

      1. I also think the bones are NOT Hakaze but Aika’s. It would be a nice wway to tie em in there.
        Either way her death has smt to do with all this, but they haven’t reached there yet so I’m suspecting things here.
        In this universe where magic follows some path of logic, there is no way Hakaze can exist as a ghost. Dead is Dead so they said. therefore the bones are not her. Also that neutral guy Hoshimura Junichirou, isn’t also completely honest.

        about Aika. Her killing by the hands of Samon’s flunkies however might even be something entirely different, but it will be of note. Since Aika isn’t Mahiro’s blood relative it gives chance to reason.
        For the time i say it’s Aika’s bones they use/dug up.

        Mike4DOA
        Reply

    15. Wooden Doll phones, brought to you by OKARIN INC.
      Features:
      > Send voice mails from past to present and vice versa
      > Withstands extreme cold temperatures
      > Shockproof
      > Waterproof (floats on water)
      > Battery: ∞
      > Comes with a neck-strap
      > Other thinks I can’t think of right now.

      Approved by Okabe Rintarou, making time-travel phones since Steins;Gate aired.

      MrRei
      Reply

    18. definitely a WHAM! episode, and I am not referring to artillery fire on the barrier…
      so magic can transcend time. actually, it is not so much surprise to someone who witnessed light of stars that nearest of them was shining years ago…
      I am baffled as to which side is right in their estimates of results of the siding with either of the 2 trees, but I am sure Mahiro doesnt care who is right. And that is a point that Samon can leverage – give Mahiro his revenge and take over Hakaze’s living weapon.
      also, we have literal tempest raging over Hakaze’s island… kinda in-show pun?

      ewok40k
      Reply

    19. Now that they’ve introduced time travel / manipulation, I have to wonder about 2 things (I used spoiler tags just in case I’m right):

      Show Spoiler ▼

      Marc
      Reply

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