Friday 17 July 2009

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya - Season 2 - Episode 6 (aka Episode 16)

In the latest episode of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya's Endless Eight arc, Kyon finally breaks the time loop in which the SOS Brigade have become trapped by bludgeoning Haruhi to death with a pickaxe.


At least, that's what I'd like to be writing here. Sadly, I can't be the bearer of such fortunate news, for yet again this episode of the series chooses simply to regale us with another recursion of the same old events that we've seen more times than I care to recollect now. I can only assume that KyoAni are hoping for some kind of anime equivalent of Stockholm Syndrome to have kicked in by now, leaving them with a loyal legion of fans happy to repeat this episode forever more (and, of course, buy all the DVDs) - Sorry guys, it's not working on this 'Blogger, and I've now reached a level of disinterest with this state of affairs that even Kyon would be proud of.

As per last episode, there are some smidgens of hope to be taken from this episode - Yet more air travel-based imagery (planes passing overhead and a butterfly namely), and as we reach those desperate moments of Kyon and Haruhi's final meeting we're greeted with numerous repetitions where Kyon gets to his feet but says nothing, which makes a change from it just happening the once. I suppose.

At least last week I felt a little tension and almost excitement as I hoped (albeit vainly) for Kyon to speak up and bring things to an end, but this time around I'm left, much like Nagato, feeling nothing - I simply don't care any more, I just want it to be over. While I'm sure KyoAni would be pleased to think of their fans associating themselves so closely with Nagato in this scenario, and they'd doubtless tout it as part of their grand artistic vision, I'm afraid boring the living daylights out of your viewers really isn't the best game plan no matter which way you look at it. So, does anyone out there care what happens next any more?

33 comments:

Anonymous said...

Damn, you got my hopes up with that first line.

The truth is, I stopped caring at the second recursion. Instead of watching, I've been using the aniblogosphere as my canary in the cave, waiting for the moment someone says "IT'S OVER! ENDLESS EIGHT IS OVER!"

But you have to admit, everybody's talking about this madness.

Anonymous said...

Why would they do this.

I mean, seriously. This kills both interest in the resolution and the series, and stops whatever dramatic tension it could build.

Doing something like this could've been great: Make what looks like a filler episode, repeat it(now we know something's up), resolve it. Or, if you want to go crazy, repeat it twice with the implicit hint that it's going to be resolved next time(Kyon saying something at the time he's always like "I must say something but what does she want aaaagh noooooo waaaaaait well, I guess I'll sit around today"). Boom. Done. Works. Is actually pretty awesome.

Why are they dragging it out? I honest to god just don't understand! Who thought this was a good idea? Who looked this over as an editor and said "Yeah, they'll love this." Who WROTE this and figured it would be good? It's just astounding!

Anonymous said...

i noticed the butterfly too!!
but, ughhh im really getting sick of it though...... what is this like the 4th endless eight?
i actually wanna see the statistics of all of the replays of time, like 15,521 right? probably every time since 15,499 the SOS brigade has been aware of it.... so... it just proves that kyon is a sissy who cant speak up for himself.

Anonymous said...

The anime is starting yo get me on my nerves.Why must they spend all this time and energy to make the same damned thing over and over,

Anonymous said...

The anticipation for this to end is killing me. And the Wiki episode list isn't helping either.

I really thought today would be the day, but alas...it seems that I too am caught in an endless cycle of summer. But instead of fun, it's full of repeating anime and soul crushing jobs.

For some strange reason I still love the series right now and even though by all appearances "Endless Eight" still won't end next week I will continue to watch this.

At least the repetitive dialogue is good for keeping up with my listening log for Japanese 201...

Anonymous said...

this is just garbage now. i really cant get enjoyment out of it except killing 20 minutes more of my day on anime. I think they are trying to lose fans. They must be. Why else would they repeat this over and over with very little changes. Like somoene said whatever suspense was being built up now barely matters, the resolve is going to be weak

Willuknight said...

You got my hopes up with your first sentance, god damm it.

Anonymous said...

Aside from how many times this will be further repeated, the resolve of the whole time circle is so weak, it will make many people be even more pissed. Those endless repetitions are tedious. Of course one realizes, that each repetition is slightly different and there are some hints and stuff, but it is by far not enough to keep me interested in the series. Guess I'll have to wait for this to be over and then continue watch. Anyway, this will leave many people with a bad impression.

Michael said...

The annoying thing is that this will chew up a large amount of the episodes allocated to this new season, we're getting what, 12 episodes, and five of them so far (and presumably at least a sixth) have been used up in this loop.

It'd be interesting to see what the japanese otakusphere is thinking of all this. 2chan must have an absolute field day with this. (I wonder if they even include the same ads on TV in Japan each week to make the illusion perfect.)

I must admit I just skipped through this episode to the end to see if we got out of it. When we didn't, I couldn't be bothered watching all of it.

Anonymous said...

Whatever buildup there is, the payoff is worthless. Endless Eight was not meant to be stratched out to an arc - it was meant to be a single chapter long. The end works fine enough in the novels, but 6-7 times as long? Forget about it. It doesn't work. It's awful.

Who the fuck knows why they're doing this. Definitely not budget problems since they've reanimated everything every time. Definitely not trolling since it's not trolling if the troll is the one who gets fucked up the most. Everyone's hating this thing.

God damnit, if they just did Bamboo Leaf, 6 episodes for the Dissapearance arc, and a few episodic chapters, it would be perfect. PERFECT. WHY DIDNT THEY DO THAT. WHAT KIND OF MORONS ARE THEY.

Anonymous said...

Hmmmn...
You know, I'm damn skeptical. Real skeptical. And my speculation might upset everyone, but it's a theory:

Since Haruhi (and all of us) doesn't want summer to end, the new animation company decided to animate the whole Endless Eight until Japan's end of summer. Then. AND THEN. They will have Kyon stop Haruhi, and this whole scenario will end. Until the end of summer.

Wishful thinking, of course. I don't expect the company to stop anytime soon. And the reason the episode wasn't put on Youtube was because the channels were BORED of it.
Come on, Haruhi, I had a much more enjoyable time watching Tsuruya moan "N~yoros" and your Chibi self wreath terror upon Mikuru and Kyon.

Whoever wrote that Haruhi Suzumiya episode list like two weeks ago is a lying ***. I just wanna yell "USODA!!! USODA USODA USODA!!!" to both that guy and the new animation company.

Wow...that's a lot of ranting. I'm sure the English voice cast of Lucky Star and 2006 Haruhi are gonna be BORED.

Anonymous said...

i would really like to hope, that it all has a meaning.
That ne next episode after this will be so good, that they just needed some weeks to work on it. That we will see a whole bunch of fresh, new material.
That it will be an artistic masterpiece, that was worth delaying the ongoing of this series 5 ***** weeks for.

...sounds too good to be true though...

naru@yume.se said...

SPOILER WARNING!

isnt there a chance that there's something we arent seeing?

somthing that is hidden so well that not even the otaku gods in japan can see.

of course im bored, but i get the feeling that this loop must have an explaination.

for example, in the first series there were the airing order and the "preferred" watching order.
depending on how you wathced it you would appreciate the series in different ways.

perhaps if you watched the second season in another order this would all make sense in a way we dont understand now?

also, why does koizumi in the first 2 repeats say that the loop is 11 - 31 august and in the last 2 following episodes say its the 17 - 31 august?

and last, could it have something to do with the first episode where haruhi made a tanabata wish to orihime that "the world was to revolve around her"?

Anonymous said...

Say as you wish, but I'd like some opinions on this, so since the title of these endless recursion is Endless Eight, would it be possible that it last for eight episodes?

As much as I would hate to watch through them all, and even though I likely will, just to try to figure out how he will solve the problem before they show those of us who haven't read the story on it. It gets a little monotonous seeing almost the same thing each episode but perhaps it'll play out sooner and save us the annoyance of going through this too much longer.
I guess I've made it through 5 parts of the possible 8(if I'm right) so 3 more shouldn't be too hard to sit through although I do believe it's disrespectful to the fans to say they're releasing new episodes and then repeat the same episode the way they have. Even if it does have a few things that differ in each episode, can you really call it a new episode if it's almost entirely the same thing as the 4 before it. Maybe the next few episodes can offer a little more than what the last few have, but I wouldn't hold my breath on it.

Thank you for any replies on this and I look forward to reading and seeing other opinions. Also to the OP, loved the opening of your post, would've hit me good if I hadn't read the reviews on it already on other sites.

Unknown said...

It really is killing the series. When I first watched the second season I enjoyed it so much I made sure my friends knew about it. And I really had my hopes up that this new season would be just as fantastic. But no, the littler bit of doubt I had in me turned out to be true. This is going to kill the show and all the reputation it's earned unless the makers do something, and FAST!

Naferius said...

a few things that are completely IMHO:

1) nobody is obliged to watch every episode. if you don't like it, don't watch it. or just wait for the arc to be over and pick up the story there.

2) kyoAni is not simply filled with a bunch of idiots. they already made an excellent first season. it definitely crossed their minds that this sequence of 8 episodes (8 is as good a guess as any, and there is NO FUCKING WAY they would make more than 8) could possibly bomb spectacularly, enrage 99% of viewers, and shame the fan community. which is exactly what happened. we have to appreciate the fact that these guys KNOW WHAT THEY'RE DOING, even if they did COMPLETELY miscalculate the patience and tolerance of the average anime watcher. the end of this story arc and the rest of the 2nd season is going to be good. we all know it (or want to believe it).

3) reading hanner's posts on episodes 3, 4, 5, and 6 in a row is really funny. :D

oh, and please don't flame me. i'm just trying to avoid this mob mentality madness that seems to have infected the entire anime world.

and again, if you don't like it, DON'T WATCH IT.

husky...busty said...

OMG...

i just watched ep 06 and i was screaming like these kid's on youtube when they die on Halo or WOW.

I screamed so loud when Harumi left: " KYON u MF grab ur nutsack an say something just SOMETHING"

And then the scene where kyon say's: " homework i don't care" and went to his bed...i screamed the second time:" U MF idiot how can u just say (i don't care) just grab ur phone and send a text to harumi you f**** SOB"

im so afraid of the next ep but I have to watch it

Anonymous said...

The writers have a very simple message:

It's summer and one should not watch anime. We're supposed to have fun outside and away from screens as much as possible.

So let's stop moaning and start enjoying the summer holidays. Because it's not like we miss out on any new story development, not until the summer is over anyway.

This whole thing is soooo uber-meta, that i can not help myself, but like it. Very much. Not in an entertaining sort of way, though.

Anonymous said...

****SPOILER WARNING!!****

Guys, iam sorry to tell you this but Episode of Season 2 is out but still RAW.

ANd the bad news is that the loop is still unbroken. Even if the episode wasn't subbed, I still figured out what they were talking about due to many times of watching the same loops over and over again, I know you guys would understand it too.

Iam just saying this to warn you guys and to prevent you from wasting 20 mins of your lives...

Right now iam RAGING my ass off and I feel like killing myself. I think the Endless 8 isn't a joke. Maybe They are really making the loop last until episode 8 or upto 8 episodes. Lets just hope not.

Again, Iam sorry to tell all of you this but Episode 7 is still a loop.

That is all...

Anonymous said...

Ep 7, 8 and 9 are also time loops!
Sry guys!!!

Anonymous said...

watched those eps with fast forward X 2.. enjoyed the pool scenes but.. what's wrong with this series.. seriously..

Anonymous said...

when this arc's gonna end? i don't have the patience to wait till end of summer in japan..

Anonymous said...

In a few years some morons will look at this second season and call it "artistic" and "ingenious" just for the fact, that so many people were raging over it. I bet many people who complain will continue to watch, because they want to see the end of that damn loop and check, if it was worth the wait. Meanwhile this cycle of endless agony will damage the reputation of the series tremendously and (maybe) having a surprising resolve (which won't happen) will not make the viewers go like "Oh yeah, you crafty bastards, you did that for a hidden reason and now, that you gave us the solution we love you again". Many people will turn their backs on the series now.

Wow, what an excessive comment, but at least I'm not that affected by this ruckus, because I'm not a great fan of the series anyway (mostly beacuse I don't like Kyon commenting on every damn thing someone does or says).

Anonymous said...

Oh my God.. that one didn't even have any development, new clothes only... This beginning to feel like pushing a pin into my finger slowly for half an hour every time I watch this. Its beyond uninteresting.

Julz said...

UGHHH. I absolutly hate this it just feels like a chore now. Are they trying to make people not watch the show. And i agree in a few years they will call this ingenious and a "work of art", but in my personal opinion its just boring. When I saw episode 3 i was like "oh this sounds like fun, i wonder what the resolution is?", but when i saw episode 5 i wanted to throw my computer at the wall.

Anonymous said...

i just can't believe this
i've been watching all the episodes
(well more like scanning thru now-a-days). It's unbelievably frustrating. I used to think of this as the perfect anime ever. My favorite of all time... then season two came along. I keep thinking : "Ok this time for sure the loop will be broken" but it just doesn't happen. I'm sure that most of the fans are just as disappointed and annoyed as we are.

Anonymous said...

I'm completely done with this series and Kyoto Animatio forever. I had planned to buy season one and lucky star, but no way. Not a chance.

Anonymous said...

Guys! There will be 15,521 episodes at Haruhi season 2.

It'll be repeated 15,521 times with the same plot and seems to be 15,521 episodes. So yeah goodluck. LOL

Unknown said...

I have figured Out EXACTLY what theyre doing!

They are stalling for more time! they have no creativity left after the brilliant first season and now they are stalling and hoping for some form of inspiration..

=/

Anonymous said...

They will do 8 episodes with this shit, and the ninth episode will be something absolutely random, that has nothing to do with the loop.
No resolution, no "breaking the loop".

I basically can see this coming, for they just seem to try something, no one would have expected with this loop. So in the same attitude, why not ending it in a way no one has expected?

this sucks....

Anonymous said...

this is a joke.

Anonymous said...

I think the series will continue on AUGUST 31 LOL

Anonymous said...

it is really getting all the fans tired of some freaking episode, it is not the same one over and over but how many times has kyon gotten up and then he just thinks he doesn't even say something to haruhi not even her name and then the flashbacks but even though i might be really mad anyways i will keep on watching the rest hoping to see finally some end to it or see that kyon finally says something to haruhi and ends all the craziness because seriously i even feel bad for nagato who has to repeat it all over once more.