I'm so pissed off that she never got a proper acknowledgement after episode 4.
I mean geez I wanted at the very most, a cameo of her in the Battle Fields Trip (since, you know, it would actually make sense for her to appear in the one of the last few schools not under Satsuki's control) but nooo, instead they had that stupid leech Nui taking her ruses (and taking Nonon's cute but bitchy personality, and trying but failing to be evil Mako)
I'm so pissed off that she never got a proper acknowledgement after episode 4.
I mean geez I wanted at the very most, a cameo of her in the Battle Fields Trip (since, you know, it would actually make sense for her to appear in the one of the last few schools not under Satsuki's control) but nooo, instead they had that stupid leech Nui taking her ruses (and taking Nonon's cute but bitchy personality, and trying but failing to be evil Mako)
Edit: Hm?? Ah I'm not sure why the picture isn't showing but it's just another great pixiv art, Satsuki and Ryuuko. Its still veiwable if you open in new tab.
Maiko was fun, but I'm not too upset about her not showing up later. I didn't even care much about Takarada at first, but he really grew on me. The Loadsamoney videos helped.
A character with knowledge of the inner workings of Honnouji would have (should have) been an important plot point, especially given that the other schools were desperate enough to try and have spies infiltrate the school. The potential was definitely there.
Unfortunately Trigger was too busy throwing crap at the wall and seeing what would stick in terms of writing.
I have to admit, the relationship between those two made me a lot more sentimental than I thought it could. For such a sort time they were allowed to develop a real sisterly relationship, I thought Trigger somehow managed to pull it off pretty well for what they were given. Those last scenes from the finale damn near melted my heart. Maybe I'm a sucker for stuff like that but it would usually take a lot more time to warrant a reaction out of me.
Marathoned through the show this week since I had been waiting (in hot anticipation) for it to finish before I watched it. Was really feeling a 9/10 even halfway through based on the characters, style, animation, and music alone, but it reached the climax for me when
Satsuki reveals her true intentions
, then mostly went downhill from there.
While the plot wasn't anything amazing I was okay with it continuing on the way it did because of the aforementioned outstanding aspects. 2/3rds of the way through though the whole tone of the show started to feel different and the plot really seemed to drag and feel out of place. This might not make sense but I feel the entire Ragyo character and original life fiber really threw off the style the series had built up up to that point (although I loved the way they used her theme music). I almost would say they feel like they belonged to a different anime if you had shown them to me during the first half of the show.
Part of this was how erotic the fanservice got, which I really didn't like (and not because I don't like fanservice). While the nudity and fanservice were normally tongue-in-cheek, in good taste, or used for comedic effect/style, all of Ragyo's feeling up of Satsuki, that Ragyo x Ryuuko x Nui kupaa scene, and the Nui kiss felt incredibly out of place to me. How earnestly sexualized it got felt completely removed from the unique and cool style the show had.
Also maybe it's just me but while the animation was superb, the actual direction and choreography of the fight scenes felt really lackluster (especially the disappointing final fight). I can't really put it into words but they felt really simple(?) and sort of tedious. As if most fights were decided with a single blow or completely one sided with the weaker character bouncing off of the stronger until they either unlocked a new power or escaped, often feeling more like a formality than an exciting scene.
Show feels like a 7/10 overall for me right now but I still like it a lot more than any other show I would normally give a 7/10 for some reason.
Maybe. All I can guess is at some point they must've had way too many people directly related to Ryuuko, hence her one statement at Nui (this family is big enough already!)
That abandoned plot point probably also co-existed with Ryuuko's streak of red hair being genetic (hence Tsumugu's streak of red) and would give more weight to the scene where the guy in the five star uniform goes insane during Iori's test.
So I wrote this quick and dirty literary analysis on /a/ when someone posted:
The worst part of KLK for me is even now I don't know the point. Gurren Lagann was obviously about manly spirit and pushing forward until you hit your goals no matter what.
Kill La Kill is about...being confusing? How is that a positive trait?
Is this suppose to be the message for women? That it doesn't matter how nonsensical and fallible your logic is, as long as you keep saying you're right, you're right.
It's a bunch of metaphorical stuff for female puberty that can be made slightly more understandable using over the top shonen and mecha stuff.
The Life Fibers/Kamuis are sexuality. Specifically, wearing Life Fibers represents sexuality. They need a blood sample (period) to be activated which allows them to transform in to a form that emphasizes the hips 'n boobs (puberty). Ryuko specifically struggles with the embarrassment and shame that this sexuality brings upon her.
Junketsu explores the hypocrisy in the dichotomy between sexuality and purity, where typically men want to have a healthy sexual relationship but simultaneously want a pure and virginal woman.
Ragyo and REVOCS represent the media at large and how it attempts to spread sexuality for its own devices, confusing the fuck out of girls in puberty. Ragyo specifically remarks about how pleasurable it is to wear Life Fibers and is constantly wearing the most clothes out of anyone in the cast. The more Life Fibers you're wearing the more gratification you get
(Shinra Kouketsu completely envelopes the body, for instance) to the point that Ragyo orgasms in to space. She molests Satsuki
because she's completely one dimensional in her desire to spread sexualization/Life Fibers and the pleasure that they bring.
Harime Nui is hormones, constantly keeping Ryuko teetering on the border between adulthood and adolescence. The first time she appears Ryuko
becomes a super powerful, furious, blood leaking Life Fiber monster.
This is her experiencing the metaphorical equivalent of PMS.
Ryuko
wearing Junketsu
is Ryuko giving in to the media's portrayal of overly sexualized women, to the point that she actually
wears more of Junketsu than Ragyo does (the leg skirts envelope the boots, meaning that she's creating more Life Fibers for the sake of having more Life Fibers, which as we've mentioned before is the metaphorical equivalent of sexuality).
The whole bit about being "Incomprehensible" is about how girls going through puberty essentially have to ignore everything and become their own person without the influence of others or the media. It's a concession that the current situation is so fucked up for them that it can't really be fixed and has to be ignored completely in order to function properly in puberty. The fact that
Ragyo emphasizes that Life Fibers will always come back reinforces this.
Life Fibers will continue their march across the galaxy until the end of time because sex will always sell, meaning that girls will have to keep ignoring the messages of the media.
As Ryuko says, people will have to keep being people and clothing will have to keep being clothing.
Fantastic write-up! Your analysis of the show demonstrates part of why I enjoyed the series so much. A friend similarly likened Kill la Kill to Gurren Lagann in that KLK is the "female version". As for it being "for men" specifically? Not sure, but as a woman I certainly appreciated the (rare) focus on female characters.
Honestly fascinating read. I love how you deconstruct REVOCS and Ragyo's appearences. The over the top entrances and Shinra just leave me in agreement. I'd read any other thoughts on KLK, though I'm more interested in Satsuki.
I know this show is done done, save for 25 on blu ray, and understand it shouldn't come back probably, but another selfish part of me doesn't give a flip and wants to see Makagoori's kids slicin' up life fibers
Fantastic write-up! Your analysis of the show demonstrates part of why I enjoyed the series so much. A friend similarly likened Kill la Kill to Gurren Lagann in that KLK is the "female version". As for it being "for men" specifically? Not sure, but as a woman I certainly appreciated the (rare) focus on female characters.
Yeah, I see what you're saying for sure, but I want to think that the heavy reliance on awesome over the top badass shonen and mecha tropes was meant to make the plight of the average teenage girl more relatable to for men. Could be wrong there, though.
And if you think KILL la KILL is like Gurren Lagann you should really watch FLCL. Good shit there. More Imaishi puberty hijinks.
One thing that I noticed after the write-up was how Nudist Beach, wearing the least clothing, is representative of adults trying to defend children from the sexualization prevalent in the media. They strut around entirely in the nude (meaning that they aren't entirely sexualized metaphorically despite being clearly sexual on a surface level) and they're the most understanding and consoling of Ryuko during the course of the show.
Tsumugu forcing Ryuko to remove Senketsu in episode 5 is like having dad come home and finding your pair of sexy panties or first low-cut top. He knows what could happen next and, being entirely unready for his daughter to take those first confusing steps in to adulthood forces her to give them to him. He rejects her attempts to sexualize because he's afraid of what it might do to her. He's afraid that Life Fibers/Sex will consume her. Ryuko's reluctance and Senketsu stepping in are metaphorically representative of her wanting to continue down a sexualized path in an attempt to find her sexual identity. At that point she doesn't want to become beholden to the media or anyone else but doesn't want to become completely chaste like Nudist Beach.
Imaishi's always had a thing for drills; it's especially obvious if you've seen his earlier work Dead Leaves, where a character literally has a drill for a penis. As he demonstrates in practically all his work, he loves his phallic symbols.
Your interpretation of the series is honestly one of the more interesting I've read so far. I generally try not to interpret everything in a series as symbolism, but you've raised some very interesting points! Maybe I would have enjoyed the show a bit more had I gone in with that sort of mindset. I liked it, but the execution seemed a bit sloppy.
Edit: I don't think FLCL was directed by Imaishi, though he was one of the staff members involved.
Tsumugu forcing Ryuko to remove Senketsu in episode 5 is like having dad come home and finding your pair of sexy panties or first low-cut top. He knows what could happen next and, being entirely unready for his daughter to take those first confusing steps in to adulthood forces her to give them to him.
Overall it was a decent series with some good moments. But overall it felt weaker too Gurren in every way, animation, characters, motivations, story, tension etc. Hopefully if there's a movie they'll cut out all the fat from the series, add more animation and hire an actual good screenwriter this time. Personally I would put Hajime no Ippo, Gundam Build Fighters and HXH for action anime above this series. 7/10 for KLK.
I feel like there are some holes in this, because of how muddy the idea of life fibers becomes.
For example, consider the Two-Star uniforms. Each uniform is specialized for a particular purpose. The boxing club's uniform has special gloves. The tennis club's uniform has lots of extra tennis balls. They are Life Fibers, but they have nothing to do with sexuality. Only the Kamui expose the wearer in a sexually provocative way, and mastering the Kamui (getting over one's embarrassment) reduces how the wearer is objectified in the outfit.
I feel like these ideas suggest to me that the normal Goku uniforms represent control and hierarchy, tying into the authoritarian nature of Honnouji Academy. Those who wear the uniforms are working towards a purpose that comes from above them. Their individual will is irrelevant. Satsuki, notably, never wears a Goku uniform. Wearers of the Kamui are free individuals, choosing their own destiny. They control how they're perceived, and they act for whatever they wish. They have the power to rule and change the hierarchy. Senketsu, fiery red, represents freedom, individuality, and autonomy. Junketsu, cool blue, represents the forces of authority and control.
This makes sense in the early going, but the idea becomes confused as time passes. Nudists are part of an organization, but forego clothing. Is their freedom different from that of Honnouji? What does the unique friendship between Ryuuko and Senketsu represent? Given that the greatest expressions of sexual lust come from the "blue" faction (despite being mostly covered in clothes), and given that the "nudists" of the "red" faction act asexually despite their suggestive outfits, should sexuality be seen as a positive or a negative? If a character is part life fiber, do they have more or less autonomy? What would the success of Ragyo's plan (
The destruction of the world and all its individuals to spread life fibers through the universe like a virus
) represent, and why is she in thrall to it?
The basic message feels to me like one of individuality (throwing off the shackles of societal expectation and hierarchy represented by clothing and being covered), but the theme of ruling and power gets confused once the life fibers have a will of their own. In some ways it makes the metaphor more literal, but it also removes humans from the equation entirely, making Satsuki's role early on difficult to understand.
I think the change in direction is a bit of a shame, because there are some potentially interesting themes early on that go fairly unexplored because of how the conflict between two human wills becomes a conflict of elemental ideas. Satsuki's maxims in episode 1 are never really addressed.
Just regarding your first point, sonic, athleticism is frequently associated with teenage sex and sexuality. Being an athlete, an enforcer (gamagoori) or an artist (in the case of nonons non athletic group) are all factors that contribute to a teen's sexual identity.
