Integration

Pineapple924 · 07-14-2020, 09:17 PM

So considering the particular content of this episode, I actually decided to wait quite a while after I had seen the subs in order to sort of think about what I want to say before jumping on here and saying something.

But just as a quick disclaimer, some of the stuff I'm about to write will possibly still be sound dumb or scatter-brained anyway.
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Personally... I actually sort of like the twist (if you can call it that) with Dog-Thouser, its another one of this "Who is Gemn?" style twist where it makes more sense when you look back and notice how it all lines up.

Gai's odd decision to have all the personnel closest to him be wolf or canine themed (Vulan, Naki, even Yua's Raider form) all ties back to Dog-Thouser being the closest thing he had to a friend.
His extreme achievements (i.e graduating Stanford at 18 with a Masters in Business Administration) and narcissism stemming from his inferiority complex and toxic environment he had as a child.
His enforcement of a nonsensical ideology "100% is never enough" coming directly from what his dad enforced onto him.

I won't deny that this could've been foreshadowed and handled much better, especially if the writing and production crew had the time, but for the most part the pieces do sort of fall in place.

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As for the bigger question of "Did this episode really just try to redeem Gai and expect us to like him now because the Ark became the central villain?"

No.

Let's all be clear here, the whole reason the entire cast is even in this mess to begin with is because Gai corrupted the Ark in the first place.

The fact that Gai has basically pulled an Ebenezer Scrooge (god I hope that's how I'm supposed to spell that), doesn't automatically undo all the HumaGears he's scrapped or the fact that he did all of this just so he could play Arms Dealer with Hiden Intelligence's resources and technology

And I think/hope the writers do know that we (or rather the main audience in japan) know this, which is why they have that small moment with Gai acknowledging to Dog-Thouser just how bad he screwed everything up: "Even after everything I did... You'll still stand with me?"

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To me, all they've really done is finally give us the context to understand why Gai is the way he is, which I assume is supposed to be the final nail in the coffin for Gai's intimidation factor as a villain.

Gai's not some sneaky chess-master like he was in the competition arc anymore, he's not some wacky maniac constantly out for HumaGear blood (or Oil I guess?) like he was in the Hiden Manufacturing arc, he's just Gai now.

07-14-2020, 09:17 PM	#42
Pineapple924 Member Join Date: Jul 2016 Posts: 709	So considering the particular content of this episode, I actually decided to wait quite a while after I had seen the subs in order to sort of think about what I want to say before jumping on here and saying something. But just as a quick disclaimer, some of the stuff I'm about to write will possibly still be sound dumb or scatter-brained anyway. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Personally... I actually sort of like the twist (if you can call it that) with Dog-Thouser, its another one of this "Who is Gemn?" style twist where it makes more sense when you look back and notice how it all lines up. Gai's odd decision to have all the personnel closest to him be wolf or canine themed (Vulan, Naki, even Yua's Raider form) all ties back to Dog-Thouser being the closest thing he had to a friend. His extreme achievements (i.e graduating Stanford at 18 with a Masters in Business Administration) and narcissism stemming from his inferiority complex and toxic environment he had as a child. His enforcement of a nonsensical ideology "100% is never enough" coming directly from what his dad enforced onto him. I won't deny that this could've been foreshadowed and handled much better, especially if the writing and production crew had the time, but for the most part the pieces do sort of fall in place. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- As for the bigger question of "Did this episode really just try to redeem Gai and expect us to like him now because the Ark became the central villain?" No. Let's all be clear here, the whole reason the entire cast is even in this mess to begin with is because Gai corrupted the Ark in the first place. The fact that Gai has basically pulled an Ebenezer Scrooge (god I hope that's how I'm supposed to spell that), doesn't automatically undo all the HumaGears he's scrapped or the fact that he did all of this just so he could play Arms Dealer with Hiden Intelligence's resources and technology And I think/hope the writers do know that we (or rather the main audience in japan) know this, which is why they have that small moment with Gai acknowledging to Dog-Thouser just how bad he screwed everything up: "Even after everything I did... You'll still stand with me?" ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To me, all they've really done is finally give us the context to understand why Gai is the way he is, which I assume is supposed to be the final nail in the coffin for Gai's intimidation factor as a villain. Gai's not some sneaky chess-master like he was in the competition arc anymore, he's not some wacky maniac constantly out for HumaGear blood (or Oil I guess?) like he was in the Hiden Manufacturing arc, he's just Gai now.