Winter 2020

Another week, another seasonal show down! As much as I enjoy doing these episode reviews, and I do! I’m looking forward to the little between season break. Whatever else I might have to say about In/Spectre, it did renew my love of both mysteries and Yokai. I hope there’s another show like it coming up next season. And that’s actually saying a lot.

This particular episode wrapped things up exactly as anyone would expect. Kuro and Kotoko defeated the Steel Lady in the manner we saw last week. Rikka backed off, erased the wiki and disappeared for now. Saki and Kuro put their past behind them and he explained that he still loves Rikka and she’s trying to create a god that would bring her back to normal.

Then we finally got a few scenes of Kuro and Kotoko together. It was mostly relationship fanservice where we got to see that Kuro does in fact care for Kotoko a lot. It was very sweet. Anyone who was hoping for a bit of romance should be happy with this.

The season did a great job ending on a note that felt final and warped up all the immediate points nicely so that if it never continues, we still get a proper sense of closure and it feels like a complete story. But it also left enough questions unanswered and doors opened for a second season to easily get made without feeling redundant.

As a series, I must say I don’t think I’ve seen anything with this much exposition since A Certain Magical Index. The adaptation from novel to anime was rather minimal and it sometimes felt like I was playing a visual novel with no choice options. That sounds a bit harsh. You should know that I love visual novels and I can certainly enjoy one with minimal interaction. And I think a lot of viewers can enjoy In/Spectre. I just don’t think the production really took full advantage of the potential of the medium. Or any advantage really.

Also, for me personally, I think In/Spectre was one of the shows that suffered the most from me experiencing it once a week instead of in a continuous flow. It made more repetitive episodes particularly annoying to sit through and broke my connection with the characters too much. This is one of the shows I tended to put off watching the most.

Yest in spite of all this, I consistently enjoyed it. The worst I could say was that some episodes got a bit boring. But when it worked it was great and it made me smile more than once. For a random little show I had no expectations of, I think it did great. I would watch a second season. I would also get a Kotoko figure!

What did you guys think of In/Spectre. Would you watch a second season? Was it your favourite show of the winter? Do you want a cute Pokemon yokai to follow you around?

Thanks for Reading From
Irina and Karandi

We are now at episode 11 of In/Spectre and you will never guess what happened. OK spoilers so go watch Kotoko and friends if you’re not caught up with episode 11 and I’ll be right here. You’re all good now? No fear of spoilers? I can lay it all out? Good! This week, Kotoko monologued in a car while Saki made a few comments and Kuro fought with Nanase getting killed in some gruesome ways. I know! Who would have seen that one comming?

Ok, so I’m being a smart arse. I once again didn’t in fact dislike this episode but I reiterate my stance that one of the most delightful aspects of In/Spectre is the chemistry between Kuro and Kotoko and to me, it’s a shame that we didn’t get to see it for the past month or so.

Otherwise, the episode was pretty much a rinse repeat of the last two. Just like the last two, I’m going to say right now that I didn’t hate but I’m also going to spend the rest of the post nitpicking so it might not be obvious. I’ll try to go the compliment sandwich route… So let’s start with some nitpick bread.

A while ago, I read from a movie critic that I quite like, that there will never bee a good realistic movie about hackers. Because the act of hacking is interesting in concept, it’s quite exciting to learn about or read about, but it’s rather boring to watch. In essence it’s simply watching someone type with nothing much going on on the screen. The only way to properly adapt it to a visual medium such as movies, is to inject some magical realism and try to illustrate the act in some way. Unfortunately, that is easier said than done is is often disblief hindering. I have a similar comment to make about Kotoko’s creepy pasta creation. Not to mention that everything needs to be narrated in order for it to make sense to the audience so by the end of it all, I felt like I would have enjoyed it more as a Light Novel. These particular scenes, which are the bulk of the latest episodes, just seem unsuited for adaptation, to me.

I do like a lot of elements of Kotoko’s 4th solution, and specifically the detail of the body double having a different face. The most salient bit of information about Nanase’s murder is that her face was bashed in beyond recognition or identification. It’s so important that the missing face is a prominent feature of the Steel Lady. Picking a solution that makes this gruesome detail a key factor is a great idea and makes it more likely to stick in people’s heads.

There seems to be a disconnect between my observation of how internet culture evolves and what these writer’s think. First the attention span that would be needed for people (let’s call them fans) to follow along 4 different permutations of the Nanase myth, the equivalent of hours of reading, without loosing interest seems really unlikely to me. And no third party has injected their own theories? No super popular fanfic with Lady Nanase kidnapping an innocent schoolgirl and ending up in a twisted love story? That doesn’t sound like the internet I know! From my observation, the quickest and easiest way to kill the Steel Lady myth would have been to come up with the next pasta. How about a handsome young man killer with a tutored soul. Young ladies are great for creating online fandoms! Heck, they could have just slightly modified Kuro’s story and there you go…

On the other hand, going with the notion that a celebrity that supposed to be dead is actually still alive is a tested and true classic. People love to believe in some form of immortality and I bet a lot of fans would have latched on to any story that makes a young, beautiful idol alive and living a crazy twisted double life, rather than just sadly gone forever. As an aside, whether Nanase is alive or dead, Kotoko has just painted her as a cold blooded murderer, staining her memory forever. Stone cold!

I’m not sure how changing the ghost to a beautiful idol serial killer would make the monster disappear. Flesh and blood serial killers have been a staple of horror stories and creepy pastas just as much as ghosts have been. And this one is full of fanservice. I would have thought that Kotoko’s story would have made the Steel Lady even stronger or maybe created a second one with a face. That would have been funny.

One thing I can’t deny, it’s that this episode obviously made me think about the story and what’s going on. That’s always a sign the there was something there. Did you guys like it?

Thanks for Reading From
Irina and Karandi

You guys are going to have to bear with me a little bit longer. We’re all sending Karandi happy vibes and hope she gets well soon. I’m also playing catch up on my end so I might get closer to that 100 word mark in the upcoming reviews. Let’s see what we can do!

Last week I speculated that the following episodes of In/Spectre could turn out to be more or less repeats. That is, Kotoko has 4 stories to spin and she’s essentially doing so by speed writing creepy pasta in a parked car with Saki while Kuro fights Nanase.

That’s all episode 9 was (there was a lot more talking than fighting), and Kotoko only managed to get through a single story so I wondered if we were just going to rinse repeat for the rest of the season.

And I still wonder that. This week really was more of the same, except that Kotoko managed to get through 2 stories…sort of. I’ll get back to it. Although I did like this week’s episode, I also sort of wandered away from the tv to get a snack without even really thinking about it. It became background noise at some point even though I wasn’t doing anything else. The characters and core premise are interesting and enjoyable enough to keep me coming back for more, and I would not hesitate to recommend In/Spectre to someone but I found the last two episodes less captivating and I think I know why.

First I think the universe of In/Spectre itself is far more interesting than the creepy pastas Kotoko is coming up with so I would rather they do an investigation or something. Second the episode really are getting repetitive. But mostly, for me at least. I think this specific format is wasting one of the series’ greatest strengths.

What I mean is that in practice, Kuro is simply a background element. We cut to him a few times throughout the episodes to inject some movement as the other characters are completely stationary but they are really just transition scenes and he has no lines. Saki is staring at the scene and occasionally asks questions to drive the exposition just a bit more naturally but honestly it would make very little difference if she wasn’t there.

Kotoko for her part is sitting in the back seat and narrating her “solutions”. Sometimes we get a visual representation of her in the web but it’s a fairly flat visual without much variation or creativity so really what we’re meant to care about id the monologue. And that’s my issue, it’s a monologue. As in, it’s not a dialogue.

To me, one of the things In/Spectre does particularly well is creating chemistry between the characters. Particularly Kuro and Kotoko. As lovely as Kotoko is, and she is bestest girl, don’t get me wrong, she’s way more fun when she has someone else to play off of. I just miss the banter.

Towards the end of the episode we did get something a bit different in the form of Rikka coming in to dispute Kotoko’s solutions. I get what they were going for here. A clash of titans. Two masterminds outwitting each other for an audience to marvel at their genius. The problem I have with this is that all of Kotoko’s stories immediately fall apart under scrutiny. The show itself admits this. So having someone poke holes at the theories really isn’t all that impressive or anything. It’s just sort of, well duh…

However, like I said, I didn’t dislike the episode so much as it didn’t grab my attention. It was a pleasant enough and I guess I could call it filler. I am still looking forward to the next episode but I am starting to get a touch impatient for the ladies to get out of that car already…

Thanks for Reading From
Irina and Karandi