Tribe 14 (Spoilers apologize for last week)

ComicX6

I think after the shit-fest of Tribe 13, this episode is an apology.
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Hyde and Gori are trying to walk on the surface of a running river without much success. Jackie cheers them on as they are sucked down a waterfall.

Title Screen: OOPArts of the Ninja Mansion

Back at the dojo, Luna, Gonta, and Kizamaro are continuing to train by chucking shurikens at targets, but their aims really suck. Subaru's off to the side, talking to Orihime. She doesn't seem to be too into Subaru's whole ninja thing. He tells her that Yeti Blizzard and Phantom Black are there too. Orihime reminds him of the whole OOPArt quest and signs off. Warrock wonders where an OOPArt can be.

Jackie returns with Hyde and Gori, and both of them are pooped. Jackie mentions a Tiger Roll, and then lets slip the word 'Mu.' Gori asks where it is, but Jackie replies that it's a secret. Insert scene of everyone eating some kind of ninja cookie here.

Night falls, and it seems that Jackie has made the big mistake of rooming Hyde and Gori together. The two get up to scour the dojo for the OOPArt. Hyde and Ghost chat, and Hyde almost falls through a trap door. Gori and Yeti find a secret passage way, but they're going the wrong way!

Elsewhere, Subaru decides to get up and search for the OOPArt as well. And is freaked out by a samurai skeleton that drops down in front of him. Behind it is a ladder that leads to another floor. Gori and Hyde meanwhile, end up in the same room together, trying to make as little noise as possible. Subaru stumbles through a hanging scroll to reveal a cavern behind it. He transforms into Rockman, leaps through a wall, and finds another one of those wire cage things from Himanara.

Meanwhile, Jackie walks in on the other two searching a room. Angered, he chucks some shuriken at them, prompting them to transform into their wave forms. Thanks to his Ninjutsu, Jackie holds his own against them, but not when they double team him! The two UMAs then spot Subaru's tunnel, and leap through, getting stuck in the process.

Subaru discovers a large cavern with a treasure chest. Apologizing, he opens it. While we can't see the contents, the Shuriken OOPArt is inside. Right when Subaru's about to snatch it, Bly drops in through the ceiling. He charges forward and the two lock blades. This guy must have an OOPArt magnet or something.

Yeti Blizzard and Phantom Black stumble in around now, still struggling against each another. Subaru transfroms into Berserker Rockman. Bly grimaces and wisely leaps away. All three OOPArts begin to glow, and the room begins to shake.

Back in the dojo, Luna and co. discover Jackie on the floor. When the building begins to shake, the four hightail it out of there. Outside, a large explosion can be seen in the distance, and mysteriously materialized viruses descend on the grounds. So of course, turning the Star Carriers into ray guns is the only sensible solution. I smell a plothole.

Back in the cavern, it appears that the ceiling has been blown apart, and the sky is showing. A giant portal appears in the sky, and through it...is Mu! Bly floats into the air, and everyone else is immoblized. Phantom Balck uses his Phantom Claw to snatch the Shuriken OOPArt, and Bly taps the image of Mu with his sword, which unleases a wave of energy. Bly, with a puzzled expression on his face, is drawn through the portal, and vanishes along with it. Subaru is left alone in the chamber, unconscious.

When he awakes, Warrock informs him of Phantom Black's heist. Dejected, Subaru contacts Orihime to let her know. She gets visibly upset, and says something like she was a fool to trust him, and cuts off the transmission.

In the morning, everyone remaining has received a Spring Roll. Jackie isn't too perturbed about what went on last night, and says farewell before vanishing in a puff of smoke. Luna, Gonta, and Kizamaro cheerfully wave goodbye.

Subaru stands off to the side, a rejected look on his face.
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Preview: Orihime chews Subaru out, Yeti has the Dinosaur OOPArt grafted to his shoulder, Rockman stands atop a highway sign, Yeti Blizzard emerges from a cloud of smoke, Subaru is thrown to the ground, Gori smirks from his limo, we see each of the OOPArts, and Warrock looks startled as the senses something.
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Well, this made up for last week I'd say. Now all three OOPArts have been collected, two of them with the bad guys. The working relationship with Orihime and Subaru has been fractured, we had good art, and we had...Bly. Being sucked into Mu. Huh. Don't know what to make of that.

So, we have plot next week. And a new art director. Shintetsu-somthing I forget. Has worked on Blood+ and xxxHOLiC. Will do the next two episodes. Will do a good job too, judging from the preview. Need to stop talking like this.
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JH24 · Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2008 12:10 pm Post subject:

How much I tried, I just didn't like this episode when I watched it. So much missed opportunities, there was a focus on several things that didn't matter as much, yet more important things were either ignored or rushed.

Seeing Subaru and the others throwing stars or eating something felt like a waste of time. The fight between that ninja and Gori and Hyde could have been nice in a 20-minute episode but felt unnecessary in this case. I'm sure Gori and Hyde could have just disappeared from the room after they transformed.

What also disappointed me a bit was the short fight (or lack of) between Bly and Rockman, and the one shot was drawn weirdly.

I can't put my finger on it, but the episode just felt empty, definitely not reaching it's fullest potential.

There were two things I liked though, the scene were Bly disappeared into that portal, (I have a feeling we won't see him again for a long time) and that Hyde was able to get the Shuriken Oopart. I was happy for that and it creates a more interesting storyline.

I was surprised by Orihime's harsh reaction towards Subaru at the end. I can understand she's disappointed but the kid still did his best. I felt sorry for Subaru at the end, especially seeing his reaction. Still, I like the twist that the villains have Ooparts too.

But IMHO, this episode didn't deliver. I was full of hope after seeing Tribe's intro for the first time weeks ago, hope that this season could be different from Ryuusei. While the season is still young, from what I've seen I'm not very hopeful that it will be.

I won't say I'm done with this series but I don't think I'll be actively following it anymore. I'll do try to check in from time to time just to see how the story progresses. But at this point, I more and less lost interest. Subaru's friends are still very shallow and it begins to annoy me more and more.

I realize that this is a kid's show, so I can't set high expectations regarding plot. I like the series premise, but not the way they are executing this. Just look at episode 26 and 27 from Ryuusei. To this date still my most favorite and darkest episodes of the series so far, including the best VA performance from Subaru's VA to date IMHO. Those eppie's were interesting and had character development, so I know the writer's can do it. But what exactly is holding them back I wonder. The second part of Ryuusei's first season was almost entirely filler, with more effort it could have been used to flesh out characters and explore new area's of the Ryuusei world. But they didn't....

>< I talk too much. Sorry for my depressive post. But currenty, this series just can't keep me interested anymore.
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Rock Miyabi · Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2008 12:16 pm Post subject:

Kinda figured it was Hyde's turn, but it just seemed a little rushed/cheap how he got the final OOPART. The actual battle was just severely lacking, regardless of the spooky resonating portal issue. I mean I'm glad this episode should be a launching point to a lot of plot issues in the near future, but it was so anti-climactic to me. They also needed to do more fighting in their ninja PJs. None of this whipping it off stuff! Which seemed odd as it was. Laughing

I also like how last week Luna had some accuracy when throwing shurikens against a tree, but now nobody can even come with a foot of a freakin' target. Rolling Eyes

Orihime didn't come across as that angry about the whole thing, either. Annoyed a little, but I don't think she was portrayed to be as angry as she should have been. Nowhere near the anger famous oekakier Napo made her look in his latest work. Now that, I'd have liked to see. Visually, she looked way too calm about the whole situation. Yeah, I know she essentially hung up on him, but I dunno, I just didn't feel it like I would expect.

*2/16 EDIT* PANS!! Being a ninja episode, the pans from last week all did a little kage bunshin and multiplied on me. Plenty, plenty, plenty...

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SeijinKage13 · Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2008 5:38 pm Post subject: wonder

Do you mean here?:
http://w6.oekakibbs.com/bbs/diaroid/oekakibbs.cgi
Always loved his work. I wonder.. nah.

My opinion, just enjoyed it, but I'm very disappointed that Orihime-san just cut him off like that. I smell deception...
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Shakai · Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2008 10:55 pm Post subject:

The first half of the episode was ....really wasted.

But....when stuff started starting, well..

Two weird things.

One: Why is it that Subaru/Gori/Hyde's pajama things didn't attach to their wave forms? Weird, their normal clothes don't act like that. Were they wearing their clothes underneath the pajamas too? Weirdness.

Two: Why were Luna, Gonta, Kizomaro, and Jackie NOT wearing those pajama things? O_o.

Hmm, weird how Jackie actually managed to hold his own against Yeti and Phantom Black (no matter how briefly), but still X_X;;

And...now the series is getting a bit more interesting. Now all three ooparts are in action. Let's hope Gori and Hyde actually USE them instead of holding them e.e (I'm sure they won't get transformations like Rock, but at least a boost in power or something)

As for Bly...umm...yeah, he's bitchy. :/

And Orihime is just pissed.

I'm actually somewhat interested in buying the second game now ._.;
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cccd-erckie · Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2008 9:14 am Post subject:

JH24 · Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2008 11:00 am Post subject:

ComicX6 · Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2008 5:55 pm Post subject:

Well, from what I've heard, Exe lost a good chunk of its popularity overseas in Japan around Stream. This would explain Beast being only 25 episodes before the timeslot got cut. The series just wasn't drawing in the viewers like it once was, for perfectly legit reasons.

My secret is to keep my expectations low. As I said earlier, Exe and Ryuusei aren't the greatest anime in the world, and never will be. If you approach the series with this mindset, you can enjoy episodes like this one, despite its flaws. I watch these little ten minutes of hit or miss not because I'm expecting something mindblowing, but because Ryuusei is, most of the time, a fun little series that's a nice respite after watching an over the top series like say, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, or something a bit more mature like Neon Genesis Evangelion (watching this RAW is probably asking for trouble).

Well, if there is something that Ryuusei has right, it's that when the big moments come, the art delivers. Just compare Takahashi's Gori with Shintetsu's in the preview, and you'll see what I mean. As for the big 'plot twist', I don't see what point is in spoilering it etc, since the opening gives it away.
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' I don't care if the buzz isn't real- I can roleplay being drunk!'

- Balmung, .hack vol. 1

I now have a site! Web page rather: http://www.fanfiction.net/u/1048042/

Shakai · Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2008 7:40 pm Post subject:

cccd-erckie · Posted: Mon Feb 11, 2008 2:01 pm Post subject:

TheWebbuilder · Posted: Mon Feb 11, 2008 3:30 pm Post subject:

ComicX6 · Posted: Mon Feb 11, 2008 3:59 pm Post subject:

Well, an arc about Bly going on some bizarre mind trip as he embarks on his Mu Portal Adventures may not be a bad thing. Nevertheless, I do want to know about that portal, since it wasn't explained. At all. And Bly looked confused about it too.

Here's something I have to get off of my chest right now. I've seen on other sites (actually, just On-Air) that some think that the series is wrapping up. I find that funny because didn't we go through the exact same thing when the Andromeda Arc rolled around last year? People thinking that the series was going to end? Well, they were proven wrong then, and the same is definitely going to happen here. Subaru still needs to recover the two OOPArts and get the transformations, Empty needs to be explained, Bly needs more than three lines and an assortment of grunts, and we need to know what exactly Mu's 'Ultimate Lifeform' is in the context of the anime. Hell, we need more info on Mu itself and the significance of Bly's mark. There's still plenty of stuff to cover.

With the action shifting back to the city, I'm desperately hoping that Goyoda returns in some capacity, if only to see if his voice is back to normal.
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' I don't care if the buzz isn't real- I can roleplay being drunk!'

- Balmung, .hack vol. 1

I now have a site! Web page rather: http://www.fanfiction.net/u/1048042/

TheWebbuilder · Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2008 9:58 am Post subject:

Aquaman OS · Net Police Joined: 17 Mar 2005 Posts: 448

It's all the 10 min running times fault I think. Between keeping the plot running and throwing in the weekly quota of action there just isn't any time for character development anymore.

They need to cut this 10 min crap out NOW and get back to regular running time or the Rockman animes are doomed.

TheWebbuilder · Posted: Wed Feb 13, 2008 5:25 am Post subject:

Here we go 'round the mulberry bush, the mulberry bush, the mulberry bush... here we go 'round the mulberry bush...

It's not impossible for a 10 minute timeslot to generate good storytelling. More difficult, maybe, but definitely doable. Just look at the first 31 eps of Ryuusei, they were flawed, yes, but they were bearable. With a little more work and planning, great things could come from Tribe.

Another idea for consideration would be to just stop trying to produce stand-alone arcs and serialize the entire thing... that might give the writers more liberty. Instead of trying to cram six minutes of plot and then three minutes of action into every single episode, they could spend two or three episodes developing and fleshing out the plot, then one big finale that goes all out.

But hey, we don't know where the problem with Tribe lies. It could be just that the writer's are overworked and so they shaft a 10 minute production like Tribe, or it could be that Capcom's just decided that it's time to try something else, so they're cutting the money supply. Who really knows?
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