Gokukoku No Brynhildr

I guess it must be very hard to forget those memories. Especially the kind when you watch a friend of yours die during your younger days. It stays with you for the rest of your life. Regret. Remorse. Guilt. Trauma. Harem. Eh? What suddenly?! Gokukoku No Brynhildr at first may sound like a dark sci-fi horror genre but I guess the reason why I started watching this is because of the harem factor. This show might not be intended to be one but as far as there are girls flocking around a single guy due to circumstantial reasons rather than romantic reasons (like I would believe that), that is already a harem genre in my books. Never mind the dark conspiracy about aliens, the magical powers that the girls can use, the melting girls, the ultimate horrifying truth about what awaits humanity if a certain event is allowed to happen. All I’m here for is the harem! Yeah. I’m the worst, right? Hey wait a minute. Melting girls? That’s scary…

Episode 1
10 years ago Ryouta Murakami had a childhood friend he liked named Kuroneko. He made 2 mistakes that led to her death. First, they should have turned back when they were trying to cross the dangerous dam. Second, when he slipped, he pulled her along. Ever since he has been looking at the stars alone and longs to see her. His goal is to become a scientist in NASA to prove there are aliens as this was something Kuroneko never got to do. Because Kuroneko believed aliens existed and Ryouta didn’t. So she was going to show him the place. She brought him there but the accident happened. Miraculously Ryouta survived and was hospitalized. He thought Kuroneko was admitted to a different hospital but when he was discharged, he was told the truth she died. He was sad. Even sadder, he knew nothing much of her. He never knew her real name and had 3 moles near her armpit. WTF. And now back to the present. He gets this eerie surprise because here Kuroneko is, a new transfer student in his class! She calls herself Neko Kuroha. The first thing he did is to shout from the top of his voice that she is still alive. Neko asserts she doesn’t know him but he won’t take any of this crap and believes he can prove it! Show your moles under your armpit!!! WTF???!!! He got a slap and an infamous reputation… During pool lessons, one of the girls got her leg stuck below in the pump and is going to die. Neko predicted 2 students would die today. And then some sort of crater just cracks the ground and frees her. She lives. Ryouta goes back to his star gazing in his club’s observatory (he is the only member left as the rest have graduated). Surprisingly Neko is here. She tells him the prophecy that 2 students are to die today. The other is him. To prevent this, he must board the last bus home he usually takes.

Ryouta is further suspicious of Neko because she doesn’t know her simple multiplication tables well. Well, she’s good at making puns at the questions he throws… How the heck did she get into school anyway? Maybe she sucks at maths but she can beat him in physical strength. Ryouta instantly loses to her in arm wrestling. Then he fondles her arms and checks her biceps and couldn’t believe how he could lose to those squishy arms! Neko gets a call from her friend, Kana Tachibana that the prediction has change. So Ryouta has permission to miss the bus. Actually, don’t even go outside and stay here. Like he is going to believe that. Neko leaves and believes she has saved 2 lives today. She remembers there was this accident and the truck she was in overturned. Akane told her to take some package and run because she is the only one who can save this world from ruin. Neko receives another call from Kana. Another changed prediction? Yeah. Because stubborn Ryouta although he missed the bus, he continues to walk home in the rain. This is what happens when you don’t listen. Suddenly there is an avalanche! Not only he is caught and stuck in it, there is a boulder going to crush him! What a way to die. Suddenly here comes Neko with her super powers to split the boulder in half. At least he still has life. They realize the changed prediction. Had Ryouta got on the bus, it would have put it right in the path of the avalanche because Ryouta’s boarding delayed its journey. If that happened, everyone on the bus would have died too. So now you believe her? But as for what she is, she is a magician and hopes he would keep this a secret. The source of her power comes from a harness embedded behind her neck. While she is showing it to him, he didn’t see the moles under her armpit and concludes she isn’t Kuroneko.

Episode 2
Ryouta still has nightmares over Kuroneko’s death. Next day in class, Neko is absent. He is tasked to bring her the guidebook for the upcoming summer trip since her address is close to the observatory. Along the way he sees military trucks passing by. Ryouta thinks something amiss when the address turns out to be a viewing platform. But he realizes an abandoned village below (it was flooded but reconstruction was put on hold). She may be down there. True enough he finds her but catches her singing an embarrassing song. She declines the guidebook as she views her job is done. She only transferred in because she was curious to see what school is like (she spent 10 years in a lab!). She wants him to stay out of this because if the lab people find him, they’ll kill him too. Ryouta swore he could hear a person crying for help inside the house. He wants to help but Neko unleashes some warning craters and tells him to go away. Sure, he did. Then he changes his mind and comes back. He hears Neko talking to Kana that they don’t have very long to live. When Neko goes to get some water, Ryouta is shocked to see Kana in a vegetative state. She’s alive and not moving. Just like a doll. Neko returns and no use hiding it. She explains Kana obtained a very great power in an experiment. She can predict the future but as a result she became paralyzed. Only her left hand is movable and is used to type into some device that converts words into voice (how convenient). Sometimes the device becomes cranky. Kana mentions that the lab guys got Kanade. It’s too late for her. They don’t even know where the lab is. Kana suggests Neko to enjoy her final days.

Therefore she returns to school the next day and wants to go for the summer trip. Neko is in a pinch since the teacher calls her to read. She can’t even read! Ryouta saves her by taking her to the infirmary, citing she is not well. Kana calls again and mentions an old woman in red is going to be run over soon. Ryouta and Neko make haste and almost collided with a woman on a bicycle at the school gates. They run as fast as they can and when they reach there, the accident has already happened. However they heard no one died. That bicycle woman was supposed to be the victim. Because they bumped into her, that delayed her and threw off the timing. Yeah, now she’s taking photos of the accident with her handphone. Meanwhile the lab guys are interrogating Kanade. They won’t listen to her plea to spare Maki as she has witnessed her magic. Kanade doesn’t know where the rest ran to because they scattered in different directions after the accident. She pleads she will be a good girl and won’t runaway again but the heartless bastards press her harness and she melts away! Kana is throwing a tantrum she can’t have wild grass for food anymore! That’s how poor they are but thankfully here comes Ryouta the saviour as he bought cakes for them. But how is Kana going to eat? Neko puts it in a blender to turn them into liquid and pour it down her mouth… Gross… Ryouta can’t understand why he is being so nice either. Is it because Neko looks a lot like Kuroneko? Is this how much he still likes her? When he leaves, he is surprised to see Neko starting to bleed. She brushes it off it is nothing but the next day, she is absent.

Episode 3
She attends school the next day but is all covered in bandages! What happened?! A cold did this? Yeah, right. And just like playing musical chairs, she is absent the next day. When Ryouta goes to visit her, he sees her bleeding like hell. She tells him to take the pills from the drawer. As explained. They have to take them in 30 hours or their skin will start falling apart and blood pouring out from every hole. By 35 hours, their organs melt and they die. They’ll be fine and their wounds regenerate after taking it. They have only 10 pills left. Five days each the most. She wanted to go for the summer trip and was trying to stretch it. Ryouta, don’t you just feel guilty for asking her to come? While Ryouta is thinking of a way to get more pills, Neko’s carelessness in boiling water causes the house to be on fire. Ryouta carries Kana out but even more bad news: All the pills are burnt. The last time Kana took her pill was yesterday. Oh no. Here’s that little bleed as reminder… Kana doesn’t want her to be sad and tells her to kill her before that happens. Make it a painless and swift death. Ryouta has an idea. They can go to the factory making the pills and get more. How does he know it is Dresden Pharmaceuticals? He has a good memory and memorized the pill’s serial number. I suppose you can say his special ability is to remember everything he sees once. That’s why there are certain bad memories he want to forget, he can’t because he’ll always remember them. Taking refuge at the observatory, Ryouta searches online for the factory. There is the address but no mention of that sort of pill. The girls think Kazumi Schlierenzauer can help but this hacker girl will charge a hefty price. As she is like them, they can share some pills they plunder as payment. They call her and make a deal. She wants half of what they got and this upsets Ryouta. Kazumi realizes they got an outsider involved and warns he’ll be killed if caught. Kazumi agrees to do it and disabling the security will be easy. Kana suddenly gets a vision. She sees Neko dying and doesn’t want her to go. Their call has been tracked by the lab guys but since it is masked with proxies and such, they’ll need time to decipher it. In the mean time, they will unleash Saori to exterminate the deserters.

Kana saw Saori killing Neko. She is class AA-rank magician and wields 2 special abilities. Neko and the rest are B-rank. Ryouta thinks the pills have moved since they are sending Saori and suggests Kazumi to share some of hers. She tells him off she won’t. Kana is sure the pills are in that factory as they are confident they won’t survive and thus there is no need to move it. One of Saori’s abilities is that she can slash anything apart in 6 metre radius. But there is a way to disable her magic. The harness has 3 buttons. One of them hangs up the magician’s abilities. The other is an eject button that kills the magician outright. The third one is unknown but is believed to be something more terrifying than death. Kana is still worried as the future has not changed. Neko asks if Ryouta will die. Probably he won’t. Neko is sure the plan will work. Kana tells Ryouta not to let Neko too much of her magic or she will get hung up too and lose something important. Kazumi wishes luck to them. It seems she herself is bleeding and has no more pills. At midnight, the duo sneak into the factory. The plan is for Neko to distract Saori while Ryouta sneaks up on her and press her harness. Prior to this, she left Ryouta with a letter. He realizes she plans on sacrificing herself and doesn’t want him to save her. Take the pills and leave. Of course Ryouta isn’t going to let this happen. And because of that, Kana sees a new vision. Ryouta is going to die too. Neko tries to buy some time but gets hung up and pounded. Ryouta closes in on Saori. Then he sees the all important moles on Neko. They’re on her breasts. This is the logic. When she grew up, the moles must have moved. Really? Did it move that far? I mean, it’s not like Neko had very voluptuous boobs either. Ryouta is so glad Kuroneko is alive and the reason she doesn’t remember him is because each time she uses her magic, she loses some of her memories. He doesn’t care if she doesn’t remember him. They just have to make more memories in the future. Probably he was taking his time shedding tears of joy because Saori cuts Kuroneko (who realized the idiot didn’t go ahead with her plan). The bloodied wall. I think this guy is going crazy knowing the fact he lost Kuroneko again.

Episode 4
Ryouta stabs Saori and wants her to turn back time. This is her other ability although it will only be for the last 1 minute. Saori kills him since he is in her radius but is in a dilemma whether to turn back time or not otherwise she will die. Eventually she does. It resets to where Ryouta just came into the scene and Neko is cornered. Saori now hangs up and the duo capture her. When she turns back time, only Saori has memories of what happened during that 1 minute so this means Ryouta couldn’t remember he saw Neko’s moles, though he feels he is forgetting something important. Saori knows her time is up since she failed so the rest tell her to escape with them. Not possible. There is a tracker in her harness and if she escapes, it will be ejected remotely. Saori isn’t going to give up and will kill them when she has the chance. However her harness gets ejected and she melts. Then there is this creepy little alien parasite crawling up to retrieve her harness. So freaky that Ryouta gets freaked out and steps on it. When they return, Kana is bleeding all over. Thankfully Kazumi is here. She only had 1 pill left and shared half with hers. Kana is baffled because she saw her vision of them dying. Ryouta deduces that they had indeed died but Saori turned back time. Ryouta allows them to stay here for the time being. He is so happy when Neko calls him by his name that he cried. WTF… Neko goes on the school trip and is happy she gets to see the ocean. She also excels in class as she learns fast. No more a dunce in maths. Ryouta advises her to register to join the astronomy club since she will be allowed to stay at the club. I mean, they’re going to watch the stars, right?

One the way back, Neko hands him a couple of things. A terminal and an alien embryo. The proof you need that aliens exist, right? Kazumi seems to be visiting the club often. As it was raining and they’re wet, Ryouta mentions there are hotsprings nearby. That smirk on Kazumi’s face… One careless note from Ryouta about wanting to see Neko’s boobs, and Kazumi is all over him. Trying to tempt him to see hers. He accidentally sees more than that and is now charged a boob fee. Worse, he accidentally got his hands over Neko’s boobs. He was so flustering and distracted that he forgot to check her moles. Kazumi will be also staying here as part of his repayment. She beats him up when he whispers her boobs weren’t probably worth that much. I didn’t know he could joke like that. She has another surprise in store for him tomorrow. You might have guessed it. She’s a new transfer student in his class and will join his club. I guess hacking the details is just child’s play for her. Meanwhile another witch sees one of the head scientists, Chisato Ichijiku. She is bleeding and pleading for a pill and will reveal the location of the other witches in exchange. But do you think this evil guy will keep his word? Empty promises. Poor girl… Ichijiku is then summoned by the council to answer about the danger of letting witches run free. 27 escaped during that transport. 8 were already captured and disposed while 5 were found dead from lack of pills. However they grill him over a bunch of pills stolen recently and what more an AA-rank failed to eliminate a single one of them. They remind him of his duties that go beyond just supervising the witches. He assures there is no delay in the updated plan and is underway. He has already sent an AA+ witch to deal with it instead of dispatching multiple witches together to decrease the chance of rebellion. Ryouta receives a surprise when another new transfer student, Kotori Takatori wants to join his club. Looks like a pretty nice girl. But… See that harness at the back of her neck? Yup.

Episode 5
Kazumi is prodding Kotori’s humungous boobs. Best of worst comeback by Ryouta: Those are the kind of boobs he’d pay boob fees for. Kazumi’s pack a punch enough for him to bleed. So Ryouta introduces Kotori to the other members and especially Kana who is a mascot because she doesn’t move, right? Ryouta suggests for everyone to come for a stargazing event tomorrow. I don’t know why but Kazumi rather flirts and teases him. He notices her dirty talk ever since and figures out she must be a virgin. He asks about them losing their memories. She isn’t sure. They lose random memories. The worst ones are losing the important ones. Neko has undergone so many experiments that she barely remembers her childhood or parents. At the stargazing site, Ryouta asks Kotori’s intention to join this club. She wants to meet aliens. When he spots her harness, Kana sees a vision that Neko is dead and Kotori smiling by her corpse. Ryouta confronts her but Kotori seems like an airhead. She is super surprised that he knows about magicians and couldn’t believe the other girls are magicians too. What a big coincidence! Playing dumb or what? So she’s not here to kill them? As proof, she shows her teleportation ability. But right after that she hangs up. The rest remains suspicious since she may hide a hidden ability. But since she can’t use her magic for now, it’s back to stargazing. Kana sees another vision but won’t tell. Not until they walk back that she tells Ryouta about the changed forecast. She saw him die instead by Kotori’s hands. Meanwhile Shino is taking refuge and trying to escape from an AA+ magician, Kikako in hot pursuit of her. She already has a couple of harness in her hand.

Next morning, Ryouta comes in early to find out more details of Kana’s visions. In both visions, they die at a lake at evening and since her predictions cannot deviate far, there is only a lake nearby. Whatever they do, they need to stay away from that lake. Kana doesn’t want him to tell Neko about his death as she will be worried and go save him. Not that Kana cares about him but if he dies, Neko will be sad and she doesn’t want that. Ryouta knows she is just not honest and it’s her way of caring for him. If she doesn’t, she wouldn’t have told him. When the other girls come in, they talk about Chie, Kotori’s friend. Seems she died recently and Kazumi thinks she stole her pills. Kotori won’t do that, right? Ryouta believes if Kotori’s mission is to kill them, there was no need for her to transfer here in the first place. Kazumi gets a call from Shino to save her. Where is she? At the lake. Neko will not hesitate to go save her. Not even Ryouta can stop her. Looks like he has to go after her. With Kazumi hacking the cameras to give them visual, they arrive but Kikako is already in sight. Kazumi warns them of her bombardment magic. Despite she only has 1 ability, this means she packs lots of power in her attack. Yeah, the half the boathouse got blasted away. Ryouta wonders if Neko is seriously going to fight her. She tells him that all B-rank magicians are weak and the lab is hunting them down. That’s why they have to help each other out. Everyone understands this even if they don’t admit it. Now you understand why Ryouta has his unofficial harem staying at his club? Shino tries to run away from Kikako’s blast but she couldn’t make it in time. I guess they were too late.

Episode 6
Now that Shino is dead, Neko will have no reason to face Kikako since she is not her target. However after seeing Kikako rip out Shino’s harness, she feels angry. Ryouta presses her harness and tells her to calm down. They must have forgotten about Kotori since she is still out there looking for Shino. The plan is for Ryouta to bring Kotori away while Neko distracts Kikako. Kazumi thought he sent her to her death but as Ryouta explains, Neko wants to try some diplomacy first. He has figured out Kikako’s magic flaw. It takes time for her to shoot her beams as well as recharge it so Neko is able to dodge. Then he’ll approach Kikako and press her harness. But during this, Kotori goes missing. She is tying herself to a post? Ryouta figures she will teleport with Neko and switch places (as seen in Kana’s vision). She doesn’t mind dying because her last day is tomorrow. Oh. There’s the bleeding from her mouth as cue. When Ryouta figures out something, Kana sees a change in prediction. Neko is pinned down by Kikako. She’s going to fire her beam point blank. Suddenly Kikako finds herself tied to the pole. It was just simple. Kotori just needs to switch places with Kikako. Ryouta interrogates her but she says nothing. Neko points out it is because she doesn’t know. They have to leave since the crowd is gathering. They can’t take Kikako since as a killer it will be hard for her to switch sides and just let her be. But now Kotori is missing. Ryouta and Neko know where to find her since she wrote her address in the club registration form. She is bleeding like hell and refuses to take pills from others. Oh, today is her birthday. Death day too? Sorry for the joke. Anyway she reveals Chie’s birthday is only a week after hers and Chie wanted her to live on by giving her pills. Of course Kotori won’t have that so Chie stopped taking her pills so that Kotori can live longer. As her birthday present, Chie had rigged something for her to attend school. Oh, one last thing. Happy birthday.

So Kotori promised she will keep smiling no matter how tough things are (that’s why she has this dumb smiling look on her face all the time). Ryouta won’t allow it and makes her take the pills. Because it will be bad if his club gets disbanded just when he got a new member. Also, I thought it would be sad to see his harem girl killed off. Haha! Oh, one more thing from Ryouta. Happy birthday. A week later, Kotori pays respects to Chie’s grave and starts crying because it’s just painful to hold it in. Oh, one more thing. Happy birthday, Chie. Ryouta notices the news reporting Kikako’s incident as some minor explosion. He thinks somebody must be pulling strings to cover up the events. Not to mention Kana’s prediction threw them off this time and made them suspect Kotori. He thought something happened to the girls when they are not in the observatory. Actually they’re all cooling themselves outside spraying water. And Ryouta saw them taking off their clothes… Sure he doesn’t need to pay some fee for that? He talks to them about this guy whom he believes can get more pills for them. His personality is questionable but he won’t betray them. So Ryouta goes to see Hashiratani Kogorou for help. This scientist hopes Ryouta has been popular… With boys. This guy turned down some offer by the Americans to come study at their lab and is happy with what he is doing in this university. Ryouta prefaces his request and warns he might be killed or get turned in and that Ryouta has seen a couple of people killed before his eyes. So why does Kogorou need to risk his life for him? As he doesn’t believe in magic or fairytales, Ryouta is going to prove it to him right now. He has brought a magician with him and wants him to name anything and he will tell Neko (sitting outside the lab) to blow it up. At first Kogorou doesn’t believe and thinks he pre-planted the bombs. But after blowing up a few personal stuffs, he is convinced this is worth risking his life for.

Episode 7
Ryouta wants Kogorou to make replicas of the pill. He can’t just make it like that, right? He needs information! Yeah… I guess Ryouta is going into flashback mode from his days of Kuroneko and how Neko saved him. Spare us the details, please… However Kogorou has some bad news. If they’re lucky, the fastest he can make is in 6 months. Otherwise it will take years. The girls only have 1 month of pills left so it is no surprise he is rushing for it. Kogorou thinks there is a way and something about pooling his resources to test whether it is viable to replicate. Another request Ryouta wants him to do is to take a look inside the alien embryo. Neko’s friends invite her to karaoke. Of course she has no confidence since she had never sing before. What about that song when Ryouta first heard her? It wasn’t too bad… She’s still embarrassed about it. She wants him to come with her but he can’t since everybody knows him and it’s not right to just go uninvited. At the karaoke joint, a guy tries to hit on her and he thought it is his lucky day since she touches his hand. However she notes her heart didn’t go racing. Rejected! Meanwhile Ryouta finishes tutoring somebody and leaves, leaving that girl jealous thinking that he is out on a date while she had to continue reviewing her work. Girls wanna have fun too… When Neko leaves, Ryouta just came in. He sounds like a tsundere saying he came here by himself and not for her. It’s not like he was worried about her or anything. Yeah, right. Even he thinks he is a stalker. When he gets back, he gets a call from Kogorou. The results are negative. He cannot make the pills in a month. Impossible.

Ryouta of course won’t give up because it means giving up on their lives. Because the observatory is so hot, the girls are in their bikini. Now I understand why he isn’t giving up on them :). Ryouta’s interest piques when Kotori mentions she heard about why the lab was built 100 years ago. Aliens were found then. So now you know why she believes in aliens? The council summons Ichijiku again as he updates them about the progress of killing witches is going steady. Kikako also met her fate and had observed number 1107. However the council views the recovery of Grani is utmost important. They believe Ichijiku will do the job since he is a great scientist and it won’t be long before their ambitions are realized. Ichijiku decides to use Nanami for this mission. Kotori describes the alien which is a blob of meat. That multi-eye amoeba wasn’t it. There is also rumour the lab houses the strongest witch of the strongest S-rank grade called Valkyria. Yeah. Enough to destroy mankind. Neko reflects on Akane’s words to save the world. The girls ask about the pills replication. It is killing Ryouta to tell them the bad news. They don’t sound disappointed since they weren’t putting up high hopes. Except for Kazumi. She is crying quietly. Because a computer part is broken, Ryouta agrees to accompany Kazumi to Akihabara to get its replacement. She’s like a country bumpkin saying out loud all the otakus around. Especially all those who are buying eroges must be virgins! Everyone turn their heads so it could mean… Kazumi is happy Ryouta agrees to take her to a maid café. But there is another reason why he wants to come here. He feared turning on the terminal would expose their location. Because Akihabara has lots of people with similar gadgets, he hopes it will lose them here. Upon turning it on, there is an unknown language and a map. Kazumi is not happy. She recognizes the language as German. It says to kill all witches immediately and then the truth will be told.

Episode 8
Ryouta believes it is the only lead for him to find more pills so he wants to go alone as he thinks if the girls go, they will be killed. What if it’s a trap? He’s willing to take the risk. Neko is very concerned. So much so she hints to him that she will be really sad if he dies. Don’t worry. He’s the hero. Ryouta goes home to try and find the location of the map. Here comes Kazumi to help. The greatest hacker knows where he lives. And all the porn sites he went… She manages to find the place that matches the map (he has good memory so he can remember it without turning on the terminal again). From now on, Ryouta will go there alone because he fears if their pursuers find the same type of magician there, they might notice her doing this research. We get distracted for a while when Kazumi takes off her panties and wants him to have sex with her!!! Since when did this show turn borderline hentai???!!! Ryouta you lucky bastard!!! She’s doing a lot of teasing that normal guys won’t tolerate and would have done her in. For Ryouta to tolerate all this is going to prove that he is just gay… He wants to tug in early since he has to wake up early tomorrow. But how can he sleep when a girl sleeps next to you. In her underwear. Hugging your body. Can he really wake up early? Miraculously he did. So here he is at this place. The church is decimated and the rubbles show that it is recently destroyed. He tried asking a nearby stall lady but she didn’t give much info. He returns to the site and sees some German lines on a broken wall. That’s when the police arrest him for trespassing and trying to resist arrest. Ryouta is in a dilemma. Should he break out? Who knows how long he’ll be imprisoned if gets turned in. Suddenly the police car is crushed. Neko in a mask? She shows off some of her super powers, destroying the bullets (I thought she was going to stop it like The Matrix) and destroying their gun. The captain thinks she is part of some terrorist as she has that ring (harness). When she hangs up, it’s time to run. But the police captain is going to take down Ryouta with his bare hands. Suddenly he switches place with Kotori (also in a mask?). He is now tied to a tree. See, her teleportation is useful.

Ryouta gets reprimanded by them for trying to go alone. Kana’s prediction saw him got killed. The police shot him when he tried to run away. Of course the girls won’t sit back and let this happen. The point is, they can help him out. So don’t leave them out in the cold and try to be a hero. Kogorou gets a call and is impressed that the alien embryo is getting some leads. Ichijiku’s assistant, Kurofuku shows him the report from the local police. He thinks number 1107 and 7620 have been spotted. Ichijiku approves the deployment of Nanami to look for them. Kana is scolding Kazumi for mentioning Valkyria. Kazumi gets cheeky and tries to violate her boobs. That’s when the rest came back and since Kazumi doesn’t want to risk Neko’s wrath, she pretends that they are good friends and even gives her pudding. That’s Kotori’s by the way. All that pudding will make her fat so it’s best to share? Anyway, Ryouta thinks the underlined German words may be the clue and password to the terminal. That’s a very big assumption. Of course he now needs to find a place that is safe for the girls so he can turn it on. Kurofuku sees the local police and it seems he is pestering them for details although the captain keeps telling him to read the report. It’s all there. Besides, they want an explanation about the supernatural thing they saw. Kurofuku brings in Nanami (in a strait jacket) and lets her look at her face. They seem so shocked… After they leave, it seems Nanami has the power to look into their memories and saw a boy and a girl with mask. Kurofuku lets her loose, reminding her about her mission to find number 1107. In a place where there are lots of people, she gets their attention by lifting up her skirt. All eyes are on her now. Time to look into theirs.

Episode 9
Nanami is able to scan their memories as long as she can see their eyes. Then she requests some ice cream citing her powers need lots of sugary stuffs. Sure she’s not making that up? The search and scan process continues. Each time she lifts her skirt to get attention and then Kurofuku had to buy her more treats. Since the small town is making no leads, they head to the city where she takes off her dress. Definitely will make heads turn but she’s not in her underwear. At least she has a skimpier dress underneath. This of course attracts a couple of punks who want to hit on her. However she erases their memory. Now they’re acting like a little kid! Better keep those sunglasses on. One of Ryouta’s classmates, Kikka passes by. Nanami is able to scan and see Ryouta. Nanami wants a day off but Kurofuku won’t have it. She reminds him she can also rewrite memories. Seems she has rewritten the memories of all the guys around. They think Kurofuku did something bad to them and they all gang up to beat him up. This in turn causes his sunglasses to break and Nanami scans his memories. She sees the hideous experiments and then rewrites his memories. Nanami then uses Kikka to bring Ryouta to him. When she realizes his harem’s location, his sharp observation makes him know what her power is. Because Kikka isn’t a person who likes magicians and by having her calling Nanami as a friend, it is proof she must have altered her memories. He tries to persuade her to join their side because he wants them to be friends. Will her one day reward of freedom satisfy her? Nanami doesn’t believe him since he is shielding his eyes. He takes a gamble but unfortunately Nanami lied and erased all his memories. Now he has no memories at all and is a newborn baby. After she leaves, Ryouta gets back up. He was just acting like one to convince her. He thinks her magic didn’t work due to his permanent memory. He goes back to report to the girls but why does he have to stumble them taking a bath? Now it’s not the time for fanservice! Then they decide what they are going to do. Fight her or flee?

Nanami vows to use this single day of freedom without using her magic. Can she? I mean she used her power to alter the hotel staff’s memory to make it seem she had paid her stay. Hungry and knowing she needs money, she heads to Kurofuku (he believes his duty is to observe some castle). She asks for 500 yen. So cheap! He will give her a thousand if she shows her boobs. Though embarrassed, she has seen worst things and shows it. She then sees a couple of friends fighting because one messed up a rare card. Nanami gives her money to him. Her conclusion: Her boobs saved a friendship! No money? Go back to Kurofuku for more. How much for showing her belly? He has already seen that… So for the first time she tastes all the good food (although she realizes it all costs a bomb). So good such life, she doesn’t want to go back to that lonely depressing lab. When Ryouta, Neko and Kotori find her, she is surprised that Ryouta still has his memories. Again they try to persuade her but she still doesn’t believe. Neko takes of her sunglasses to show she is sincere in saving her. But Nanami alters her memory to make Neko protect her so she unleashes her power on Ryouta. When Nanami looks into Ryouta’s eyes again, she sees them discussing that they truly want to save her and be friends. She restores Nanami’s memories (since she had them stored in hers) and feels touched. She really doesn’t want to go back to that lab. Kurofuku returns to his car. Neko hugs her and assures they will find a way to save her if they put their heads together. He reads his journal (detailing the activities and events before his memory alteration) and discovers something amazing.

Episode 10
Nanami is brought back to the observatory and since Kogorou is here, he hopes he can remove Nanami’s beacon so that those lab guys can’t remotely eject her. They can’t forcefully remove it as there is some censor that will send out some signal to the lab guys. You know what will happen then. Once done, she can live here with them (and add to the harem, f*ck yeah!). Kogorou has his doubts since he has not seen the structure before although he suggests the risky move of liquid nitrogen. Nanami is sure she won’t die either way. She believes a person won’t die as long as he/she is not forgotten. As she can alter memories, she is kept separated from other magicians and always wanted a friend. As long as they don’t forget her, she will be more alive even after she dies. Of course the rest won’t have it that way. They’ll be sad. They really want to be her friend. Just as Nanami feels touched, Kana sees a vision too late. Nanami starts melting! That Kurofuku guy must have remembered and pressed the eject button. Freaking sh*t! Nanami! NOOO!!! And here I thought there would be one more to the harem! Nanami melts away and she couldn’t be happier because she has friends. Suddenly the girls couldn’t bear to see this garbage and wants this cleaned up. They don’t remember who Nanami is. Ryouta realizes that she must have altered their memories in her dying moments. Why would she do that? Wasn’t she the one who wanted friends badly? Then he realizes. It is because it will make them sad when they remember. She was willing to sacrifice her dream for her friends. He starts crying. The girls confused. He might be going paranoid because he is seeing Nanami’s ghost! Actually she has written herself into part of his memories so you can say she still lives within him. Now he has knowledge about the lab and such.

The exams are coming up and morale is low because their pills will only last for more weeks. Kotori suggests that there would be some reward as motivation. How does going to the beach again sound? Kazumi’s dirty talk riles the girls. When she hints she has kissed Ryouta, you don’t know how many trees Neko uprooted. Actually at Akihabara, it was more of an indirect kiss. She ate from his spoon. Kazumi was happy that day but apparently to her disappointment he didn’t feel the same way. Now Ryouta has got to find Neko who has ran off somewhere. Not too far. The observation platform. She’s singing a weird song she is not bothered by it. Oh, she’s definitely bothered. She gets embarrassed to discover he heard her. All that yelling made her thirsty and she drinks from his bottle. Indirect kiss? Kazumi’s perverted intention didn’t stop there. If she ranks second overall in the exam, she wants to take his virginity!!! So what he’ll eventually lose it? Might as well lose it to her?! Thankfully his chastity is safe when Kazumi ranks third. Surprisingly Neko ranks tops and dethrones our man. So Neko wants his virginity too. Like she understands what that means. So everyone gets to go to the beach. Including Kotori because she failed. They have fun in the sun and wish this happiness would really last. Yeah. Enjoy every bit of it because… Ichijiku has an audience with the council and wants to use Valkyria to retrieve 1107. They view her too dangerous and refuse. He assures all the steps and several A-rank magicians to observe her and under control, etc. But they still won’t approve this. Too bad. He already let her out. He will take full responsibility but they note this is something he cannot atone even with his life. And here is Valkyria (hmm… She looks a lot like Neko) is out in the open and it feels so good to be back outside. Yeah. She just slaughtered everyone. Feels good alright.

Episode 11
The police are going to arrest Valkyria for murder but guess what? She uses her anti-matter and blows up the entire mountain!!! Holy sh*t!!! News of this reaches Ryouta and the girls and they know it is Valkyria. Hell is coming if they don’t do something now. Because she is an ultimate hybrid that can use 8 different types of magic! One of the magicians who was slaughtered by her, Hatsuna is still alive because her power is regeneration. She notices her beacon is dropped off and quietly runs away. While faking her death, she heard Valkyria could sense magicians in an observatory and thus the reason she makes her way there. To her horror, Ryouta and the girls are massacred! Covered in blood! Then it turns out to be a ruse. If Valkyria walks in and sees them dead from lack of pills, she will lose interest and leave. Ryouta had to play along since Valkyria would just kill everybody. Hatsuna tells them about her mission to assist Valkyria retrieve 1107 although she has no idea what that is and for now Valkyria has run off somewhere. The girls go to the hotspring to clean themselves up while Ryouta has the honour of cleaning this mess up. During the bath, Hatsuna learns the girls really trust Ryouta because he saved them. She is going to test him. On pretence she is stuck on a tower and too scared to climb down, she is surprised Ryouta actually came to get her down. Suddenly she slips. This is not part of the act. Ryouta grabs her with a hand and the other holding on to the pole. Why must such poles have loose screws? She wants him to drop him as she won’t die from a fall (although she is not immune to the ejection and lack of pills). However Ryouta doesn’t believe her. He thinks she is lying to let him save himself. So he is not letting her go. The plan is to swing her to a nearby platform and then use both hands to climb back up. The chances are slim but it is better than letting her go. Hatsuna is able to grab the platform but Ryouta falls. Thankfully Kotori switches place with him for a soft landing. Hatsuna returns and apologizes for doing something dangerous. She believes him now. He doesn’t mind since they’re both alive. Well, Hatsuna didn’t fall from that height, but she has sure fallen for him! She even asks him to go out with her and kisses him right in front of the girls! Hell, yeah! Another girl into his harem and Nanami’s replacement! The tower explodes and Neko runs away. The girls start chasing him and Hatsuna understands the social map now.

Ryouta sees Kogorou and the latter still remembers about Nanami as he stayed out of her vision. His research shows that the melting mechanism seems to be something like of a digestive enzyme called proteases. It is possible the pill inhibits that secretion. Based on a thesis of an ex-colleague, he is able to speed up the process of making the pill. The soonest is a month. But that’s not going to cut it since there is only a week of supply left for the 5 girls. In that case, he must choose. After Ryouta leaves, it seems Kogorou’s ex-colleague is Ichijiku and he wrote that thesis. He wonders where that genius is now. Speaking of which, he meets Mako Fujisaki or now known as Valkyria. He is not scared despite she threatens to kill him for vengeance for taking away her humanity. Then he slaps her! She starts crying and apologizing! She doesn’t want to be hated and loves him! Woah. I don’t really understand this dangerous girl. When Ryouta returns to the girls and tells them what happen, the girls soon realize that given that amount of time and remaining pills, only one of them can live. It is decided to draw straws and the losers will die tomorrow. Hatsuna wants to sit this out. But unknown to them all, she secretly has 20 over pills she stole from those dead magicians. She came here thinking they had more but apparently they’re as poor as her. Neko, Kotori and Kana also want to sit this out and agree for Kazumi to live on their behalf. WTF?! Trying to be heroes?! Kazumi doesn’t agree to this because it makes her sound desperate. She hates to lose her friends and wants to enjoy the last summer vacation with them. Because it’s meaningless without them. So as not to waste time, she calls for a party now. Clumsy Kotori spills drinks on Neko. She tries to clean it up but takes off her dress?! That’s when Ryouta sees her moles. That flashback again. He is so happy Kuroneko is alive that he starts crying so loud. No heart to tease that… Talking with her alone, he is glad that she is still alive after all these years. She might not remember anything but that’s okay. Ryouta remembers everything like it was yesterday. Even if she forgets, he’ll remember it all. So let’s make new memories and he’ll remember it for her. Suddenly a helicopter is heading straight for them. Then Valkyria pops up before them. Hi. Long time no see.

Episode 11.5 (OVA)
Taking place right after Hatsuna’s confession and kiss stealing scene, this of course leaves a bad taste in Kazumi’s mouth (although literally speaking she wasn’t the one who kissed him). She needs to get back at the usurper b*tch and her first step is to confront Ryouta to ask if he likes anybody. Sure, he does. That childhood friend named Kuroneko. What about now? It’s none of her business. Suddenly Kazumi slips down the grass and Ryouta the hero also comes tumbling down to save her. When she wakes up, she is in the observatory and seeing that she is fine, Hatsuna blatantly starts flirting with Ryouta right before everybody’s eyes. Yeah. She hints she can give something even better than kissing. Therefore Kazumi suggests making it clear now. Who is going to be Ryouta’s wife! Kazumi volunteers herself thinking nobody would say yes. Surprisingly Kotori wants to be his bride. One of her goal is to marry before she dies. Oh, Neko too wants a piece of this? She just wants to stay by his side. Technically that’s the same, right? Kana wants the girls to stop because she saw a horrifying vision of everyone dead. Kazumi brushes her off thinking she is just jealous that she has no chance of winning. And off the girls go to do their challenge. Ryouta’s feelings ignored… The first test is cooking and since Kotori is so skilled, Kazumi adds a rule that they must cook in a naked apron! Although this has Kotori and Neko sitting out, Kazumi has to face Hatsuna. In the end, what the heck is this abomination food?! Ryouta is going to die! He vomits both their dish and the duo are more concerned which one he prefers! NEITHER!!! Next is the hotspring endurance contest. Real tits! If you think about it, don’t you think Kana is going to win this one? All the able bodied girls pass out so Kana shouts for help. Ryouta comes in to do that but is labelled a pervert. So to save or not to save? Oh, free tits show…

Finally there is this massaging contest. Hatsuna goes first because the first one doing the massage will have the biggest advantage. Not wanting to lose to her, Kazumi orders Kotori to use her teleport trick on Hatsuna. Now she is tied up around a pillar. Kotori’s boobs suffocate Ryouta. Kazumi disqualifies her. When it is Neko’s turn, she applies too much pressure that I think she broke his bones!!! Disqualified! Kazumi comments she is not competent to be his wife. This causes Neko to be sad that she can’t be with him anymore. Then her powers go berserk and start destroying everything in the observatory. The premonition that Kana has been warning everyone about? When the telescope is about to crush Neko and Ryouta, Kazumi dives to the rescue and is pinned under it. OMG! Kazumi dead?! But she died with a smile?! Yeah. Probably she realized her feelings will never be requited. Guess what? Turns out this is all a big dream right after that slip and tumble. Guess what too? Ryouta and Kazumi’s lips are in contact! Does this kiss count? It serves as further motivation that Kazumi isn’t going to give up on him yet. But now they have to deal with yandere Neko who is furious thinking that Ryouta is now trying to kiss Kazumi. She’s really rocking the place, literally.

Episode 12
Valkyria is sad Neko doesn’t recognize her. But here comes Ichijiku. He wants 1107 who is no other than Kotori to come with him! Ryouta is not going to let him do that. When he sees Hatsuna behind, he instantly starts begging for his life. This is to let Hatsuna enough time to press Valkyria’s harness. However her harness is different! Eh? Where to press? She gets cut down. Don’t worry, she’ll revive. Ryouta argues about killing the girls. Ichijiku mentions about something dangerous hidden within them. But have you thought about their feelings when you kill them? Have you thought about an insect’s feelings when you squish it? Humans aren’t insects. All human lives are equally valuable. Ichijiku disagrees and views one’s life is most important. He won’t hear more of this and orders Valkyria to kill everyone. But she is reluctant because the deal was to spare Neko. He doesn’t care. Do it! Kotori restrains Valkyria so Neko goes into attack mode. When Valkyria attacks back, Ryouta saves Neko and takes the hit. Oh sh*t. Main guy is dead? He sees Nanami before his eyes. She programmed herself to appear when he is on the verge of death. She reveals that the lab guys fear 2 greatest magicians: Kotori and Neko. Neko is believed to have powers surpassing Valkyria. That is what the lab fears her and never used her unstable power. She will tell Ryouta how to release it. By pressing the top button of her harness, it will unleash her power but there is a 99.9% chance of failure she will melt and die. This is only chance to survive. He can’t do it knowing she will die and passes out. Valkyria is going to finish them off when suddenly her power is nullified. Enter a group of father, nun, Mormon cosplayers… Thanks to Ryouta’s terminal, they manage to track Ichijiku here and want him to hand over Kotori. However Ichijiku shoots one of them as distraction (short of killing him) and escapes with Valkyria and Kotori. The girls are crying over Ryouta’s death. There is no more reason to live! In some ways I agree with that. But Hatsuna knows a way to revive him. She can heal his wounds but at the expense of her life. She does so and although is struggling, she manages to heal it and eventually melts away. The others do CPR to revive him. He is sad Hatsuna sacrificed her life. Yeah… And I thought the harem would have been added by another.

Miki of this Hexenjagd reveals they are a resistance organization against the lab and their goal is also to kill all the witches. Because the longer they live, the Drasil (that hideous blob) in their harness grows. Eventually it will hatch and consume the witch and turn into a killing monster. They are not concerned with small fries like them and Kotori is the more worrying one. Kotori wakes up in Ichijiku’s lab. He calls her by her original name, Rena. Who? His sister. She was dying and he tried hard to save her by saving her mind and soul. He thought hard how to give her a second life. Then he met the council whose goal is to create humanity fit to rule this planet. There is a one in several thousand chance a Drasil incubated in a witch’s body will become a Grani, a key factor in creation of a new ideal life form. Life on this planet was created by extraterrestrial life and the aliens encoded a mechanism to reset the planet in humanity’s DNA. Kotori is the switch that initiates that destruction. So when the Grani in her hatches, all cells of living things will fuse and turn Earth into a lifeless rock. Miki further explains that they targeted to kill Kotori but accidentally attacked other transport vehicles containing other witches. The witches then scattered and Hexenjagd lost a member of theirs (Akane). Ryouta sees no reason to kill the girls as they will be just like Ichijiku. But they remember their priority is Kotori and they need to find her. Ryouta knows he will be in his lab and Kazumi can do the hacking trick. In exchange of telling them the location, they must bring them along. However Miki still insists in killing Kotori. Kazumi hacks her way and before she hung up, she discovers his location, near the lake where they fought Kikako. Everyone makes haste (Kana has to stay behind obviously) but it seems the Drasil is growing out of Hatsuna’s harness! Ichijiku is going to kill Kotori and believes Rena’s soul is inside that Grani. He will do what it takes to revive Rena, no matter how many lives it costs. She asks about Valkyria because she is fond of him. Ichijiku once saved her and she may feel indebted. However she is vital in his plan and does not feel anything for her. What are the chances Valkyria heard that? Yeah, and she can’t help but still love him. Suddenly a bright light bursts from Kotori’s harness. The light that governs life, Ain Soph Aur starts covering Earth. Too late?

Episode 13
Hexenjagd is reduced to praying to God. Yeah. Oh Lord, we’re comin’ home! It’s up to Ryouta and the girls. However they knock him out. For the best? Ichijiku mentions about the council’s plan to reset life on this planet and create to new breed. However he doesn’t care for all that and is just interested in using Grani to revive Rena. However Kotori will press her harness and sacrifice herself. Think she will not do it? She does and Ain Soph Aur recedes. When Neko and Kazumi enter the building, they see Ichijiku and Valkyria. They are told she melted and died in vain. Ichijiku isn’t interested in those failed subjects and orders Valkyria to dispose them. However she still wants to save Neko and Kazumi wonders why she is so obsessed with her. She’s her sister. I figure it was something along this line. Actually, I thought she was her clone. Anyway Valkyria blasts Kazumi. Ryouta isn’t going to sleep forever so he wakes up and with Nanami’s guidance, he makes his way in. Then he sees Kotori melting! Still in the midst of melting?! She is willing to sacrifice her life to let others live. Of course there is no meaning to the word harem if she’s dead! She wants him to stop her brother and relay a message to him. Please don’t cause anyone anymore sadness. Then she melts for good. Holy sh*t! What about the harem?! It’s not over yet because now to his horror, he finds Kazumi close to dead! No way! His harem cannot end this way! She tells him to go on. He is the only one who can save Neko. Even in death she can joke about dying a virgin. But she is happy to have spent time with them and glad to have fallen in love. Life’s not so bad after all. Just short of confessing to him. Valkyria is in a dilemma to kill Neko and follow Ichijiku’s orders. Ever since that incident, she dedicated her life to him. The experiment she was in failed and she was melting but Ichijiku came in, not caring whatever radiation that would affect him and saved her.

Ichijiku still wants Neko dead. If she won’t do it, he will. Before he can, here comes Ryouta with his flying kick! Yeah. He’ll never forgive him for messing with his harem. And don’t you dare take Neko away. He relays Kotori’s message and although surprised he knows about Rena (because her soul was inside Kotori’s) but he starts laughing. Because now he knows it has succeeded, all he needs to do is repeat the process as Rena’s brain is still preserved. Valkyria restrains Ryouta and Neko so Ryouta tries to make Valkyria realize Ichijiku is just using her. When Ichijiku confirms it without hesitation, Valkyria loves it! Masochist? Neko tries to press her harness but Valkyria won’t let her. But suddenly here comes Kana into the scene! How the f*ck can she move?! Okay, so she explains ever since Neko saved her life, she dedicated to using her forecasting power to protect her. In exchange, she lost her ability to move. But now she throws away that power, she is able to move. WTF?! Is this possible?! This gives enough time for Neko to press her harness and unleash some super protective barrier. It even restores her memories! She remembers everything as Kuroneko. I’m sure Ichijiku must me damn annoyed seeing this drama so save it for later. She faces off with her sister and her powers are much greater. Of course she weakens eventually and now Valkyria is no more nice big sister and is going to kill her for good. Suddenly she can’t use her powers. A Hexenjagd member nullifies it temporarily so that the rest could pump bullets into her. However Ichijiku uses his body to protect her! Surprised?! His body is riddled with holes! Ichijiku’s last words are that he hates humans because they act on sentiments instead of logic. Human hearts are foolish things. Well, it proves he is still a human.

With Ichijiku dead, Valkyria couldn’t care less what happens to the world. It can die for all she cares! No Ichijiku, no life. She’s going to destroy it with anti-matter! Neko can stop it by creating a micro black hole. But before that, there is enough time for Neko to kiss him! Enough time to thank him! Enough to time to confess she loves him! Why? Because it’s goodbye. Don’t forget about her. How could he? Neko goes to Valkyria and uses the black hole on her. I don’t think Valkyria minded failing and dying too. Neko falls back down but falls off the ledge. Ryouta grabs her and won’t let history repeat itself. Good news: She is saved. Bad news: Who are you? Oh God… As good as dead… The only girl left in his harem is… I don’t know if Ryouta is crying tears of joy or sadness. Or both. During all that action, Kogorou left a message on Ryouta’s phone that he had found something incredible in developing the drug. Bring everyone to see him. Too late. Everyone’s dead. In the closing scenes, we see Ryouta carrying on life as normal. He prays at the grave, Kogorou continues to investigate the alien embryo, the lab is still continuing with its experiments, the council guys are still around bidding their time and most important of all, Ryouta’s harem isn’t dead yet! Kazumi and Hatsuna are still alive! Kana back to her wheelchair and everyone goes stargazing.

Gokuraku Harem Koku No Brynhildr
WTF?! What the hell is this unsatisfying and rushed ending???!!! So much more at stake (and I’m not talking just about the harem) and suddenly it ends like this?! I can’t believe it. Can’t they extend it for another season? Really can’t believe this crappy ending. Hell, no. This is not happening. Yeah, blame me for putting a lot of expectations and hopes only for it to be crushed with such a disappointing end. Oh, and I supposed that showing us in the final clips that Ryouta’s harem is still alive is supposed to appease my anger and dissatisfaction? Well, only a tiny bit. Because Kotori is no longer around. Oh yeah. Harem. The word you’ll be spammed and hearing the most for the rest of the blog. H-A-R-E-M!

Because of the rushed final episode, it brings forth lots of questions like Kana’s ability to move. Can she forgo her power just like that? Okay, maybe that is what the third button on the harness is for. Is this really terrifying? Because if Kana knew about this would bring about her moving again, why doesn’t she do it sometimes? I mean, it’s not like she can receive predictions all the time, right? Is it you lose your memories for good? But as seen in Neko’s case, she got all her memories back and this proves that she didn’t lose them but was merely lying dormant somewhere in her brain. So now that she has no more memories, is this just temporary? Did Kana also lose her memories? Besides, who was the one who pressed Kana’s harness? Big hint to Hatsuna. That’s her shadow before Kana in that scene. It’s her that Kana was addressing to press it. And speaking about Hatsuna, how come she is still alive?! Wasn’t she supposed to be dead? Wasn’t something bursting out from her? Oh God… These questions… How could you do this to me? Otherwise, this series could have been surprisingly interesting and pleasant. Aside the harem part, that is. Of course harem is the best part and icing on the cake. But seriously, I would have enjoyed this show if not for this ending that sucked so badly. It takes the kick out of everything. The harem part can only save so much.

Just like many other shows, this one had potential. Every anime does. Personally I think the flow of the story, balancing with the harem parts and unravelling the mystery behind it all is done at a decent pace. It is quite interesting actually and it makes you want to know more. Usually sci-fi terms turn me off but surprisingly this one doesn’t have many or at least it doesn’t sound complicating (maybe because my mind is more focused on the harem). Heck, does Grani sound sci-fi? Even odder if you think about the storyline for this season is about Ryouta and the girls trying to survive but at the same time enjoy to the fullest of their lives. You can’t always live your life on full alert, can’t you? Gotta have some fun from time to time. Sometimes girls just wanna have fun. Life is so short for them that in terms of lifespan, they are like human version of insects. Though it boggles me why the lab wanted to get rid of them in the first place. Sure, failed experiments, no longer useful. Kill them all. So what is the harm of letting them live anyway? I mean, some monster will break out like Aliens, won’t it? That’s why they have the pills in the first place, no? To suppress it. What’s wrong with giving them that? All they want is to live. Let them lose and they’ll run wild with their powers or tell the authorities? Maybe. The girls I believe previously had normal lives before this experiment. How did they end up as experiments in the first place? Ah, I’ve got to stop asking such questions from now on.

Character wise, it depends. You either love them or hate them. Because like Ryouta as the main protagonist, he is also important in the harem factor. It was pretty cool that aside from being a smart guy, he has this photographic memory and that his brain cells are better than the best computer processing memory chips ever because he never forgets. Heck, I thought there was going to be some twist like he also came from some sort of experiment. Just my imagination. Just like any other nice guys, he must help the girls, put his life on the line, doesn’t like people sacrificing their lives for others even if it means either you save the girl or save the world and he’ll have it no other way because he wants both. Greedy. Yeah well, good thing he got his Charlie’s Angel girls doing some butt kicking too since he lacks any martial arts training. Then there is Neko who is acting cold and distant at first just because she’s being amnesiac. And then when she temporarily gets them back, it’s like she turned into a childhood friend who has always been in love with him ever since. Yeah. That says a lot. Because despite caring a lot for her fellow magicians, she can’t stand those who get too close to Ryouta and is very evident when she becomes short tempered. And Kazumi? Two sentences: Genius hacker. Noob seducer/lover.

Something about Kana really bugs me. Something that makes her feel unreal. You know how she types into a device to ‘speak’? The most mind boggling fact is not how fast she can type so much so it can match what she says (I guess it is a good thing she isn’t speaking English because you know how some words are pronounced differently so if she is typing so fast and saying it at the same time, you know how many words she will mispronounce? Thank God there is no auto correct), but rather the emotions and tones of her voice of the device. If it was just a device, shouldn’t it be some monotonous computer voice? I mean, it’s okay if they put a human female voice, that’s fine. But how the heck does she type in words to scream?! How should she type in to indicate the level of screaming she wants to make? How does she type in the level of emotions while she is speaking? Is there a special key for it? Because of that, Kana feels unreal and not by the fact she looks like some porcelain doll confined to her seat. It feels like there is some smaller person hiding inside her (or somewhere nearby) speaking via a microphone to convey her thoughts.

Something about Kotori has always been bugging me and I feel that she has something hidden and more sinister. Because the big clue is that nobody knows who she is. Notice the fact that all the magicians know each other? Heck, they know who this A-rank magician is. They know who that babe is trying to kill them is. Yeah. It’s like they know everybody in the lab. So when Kotori came into the picture and nobody (or at least most of them) knows anything about her, it feels something is odd. Something fishy. It keeps you wondering if that ditzy act of hers is just all an act and there would be a twist somewhere. And true enough, she might be a good girl, she still harbours the most dangerous thing ever. The saddest fact that she is no longer around. Her ditzy character makes her annoying because it is like as though she is just bumming around in the group and she lacks a lot of development compared to the rest. What about Kana you say? Well, she can’t move like as though she’s part of the furniture so I guess that’s forgivable XD. I was hoping that with the mysterious case of Hatsuna reviving (aside her power to resurrect), something would be done for Kotori too. Oh God. Can’t believe Kotori is gone.

Ichijiku plays well as an antagonist and he is a person whom you would really love to hate. At the same time he could be the coolest person considering the generic characteristics of Ryouta and his harem. Ichijiku is merciless, uncompromising and goes all out to get what he wants at any cost without taking into account others except his own. I suppose that is why it makes him a fearsome character not to be played with and probably this has gotten him as far as he is now. Something along the lines of ‘you have to be cruel to be kind’? Even though he has his own reasons and in that sense alone you want to sympathize with him, overall it still makes him a bad apple with his questionable ways because you know, he is like trying to play God or something. He is not afraid to admit things in your face and because so, sometimes he has one of the best quips in the series like when Ryouta won’t forgive him for messing with his girls. Fine. He doesn’t need his forgiveness. Because he killed many humans in his life too. Woah. Right in your face! So true. So brutally honest. So is it a sad or good thing that he eventually meets his fate? Well, I don’t know what’s going to happen to Rena now that he is no longer around. Her brain will rot away, I suppose. As for Valkyria, I thought it was pretty interesting for her to be the yandere type. Ah well, there goes the fun. Kogorou’s role feels under-utilized. Because most of his time is spent in trying to make the drug, you won’t hear most of him. And the biggest slap in the face is when he finally announced something big, only not to tell us what it is. What is it about the drug that he has discovered? Say something, please?! I don’t need such cliff-hangers!

Despite the plot and details revealing at a decent pace, I guess like I said the more interesting part to me is the harem. I know I need to talk about this eventually. Some people might find this a turn off for this kind of sci-fi genre and the reason why this series started great and then spiralled into disappointment at the end. But to me, it is more fun to see Ryouta and the girls engage in some cheap folly and interaction with each other rather than trying to find a clue for their next move to get more pills or take out the enemy. And we all know that the girls one way or another have a thing for Ryouta despite their pride will not admit it. Especially with Kazumi being a surprise because I didn’t expect her to ask for sex! Or does it indicate she is just being desperate? Teasing him is one thing but why do I get the feeling it is more than that? And with Neko’s explosions after seeing such flirting, that makes her jealous, right? Just too bad that Nanami and Hatsuna who are great potentials to be part of his magician harem, they have to die. Why couldn’t they make it more the merrier? The odd part is that the duo are somewhat included in the subsequent ending credits animation. I know Nanami is somewhat a ghost but Hatsuna? Hatsuna could have been a great front runner for Ryouta and giving Kazumi a run for her money. But sighs… If Ryouta had saved more girls in time, I guess it is safe to say they will be added to his harem. So it was a tad ‘sad’ that some of the minor ones had to die. Even sadder because Kotori… Kana may seem like the least she likes him but I believe she’s being tsundere. Her speeches about not caring for him, don’t care if he dies make it sound so tsundere-like.

What is a harem without some fanservice? There are a few scenes here but that of course feels like a small distraction to the main events. Just like the harem. A small distraction overall but something I look forward to ;p. In fact all of Ryouta’s harem girls have some sort of sex appeal. Kazumi being a pervert with her dirty talk (like it’s the norm for her), Kotori with her humongous boobs, Neko coming in next for her bust size but the moles on her boobs enhance her sexy effect (I don’t know, maybe some people do find it sexy) while Kana looks like a defenceless porcelain doll that it makes beasts lose the urge to restrain themselves (okay, maybe I’m just exaggerating but really, don’t you find girls who don’t move or talk much to be a turn on?). I don’t know if Nanami as a ghost girl would be some kind of a new harem trope.

Art and drawing seems pretty decent although there are some scenes that are dark. Be warned although that there are gore and blood aplenty in this anime. Though, they are censored out in the TV version, I am not sure if all that will be censored in the DVDs. The gruesomeness of the action makes it a little realistic because if you are fighting with all those super powers, there is bound to be a high amount of splattered blood and damage. And of course the spooky factor of the girls melting which I sometimes find it unpalatable as well as those creepy little blob monsters. It’s just scary even though they’re just 2D animation since I am quite averse to the horror genre. But other than this, the character designs and the backgrounds are decent and look pretty normal.

The voice acting seems rather okay. Nothing much to shout about except that perhaps the only notable one is Mamiko Noto as Valkyria. Yeah. Despite her late and limited appearance, I guess she still rocks. However I thought it was Tomokazu Sugita (Gintoki in Gintama) behind the voice of Ichijiku but it turned out to be Hiroki Touchi (Panther Lily in Fairy Tail). The other casts are Ryota Ohsaka as Ryouta (Haruto in Valvrave The Liberator), Risa Taneda as Neko/Kuroneko (Mirai in Kyoukai No Kanata), Aya Suzaki as Kana (Tamako in Tamako Market), Mao as Kazumi (Renge in Seikai Seifuku: Bouryaku No Zvezda), Azusa Tadokoro as Kotori (Fino in Yuushibu), Manami Numakura as Nanami (Riko in Love Lab), Yumi Uchiyama as Hatsuna (Nagi in A Channel), Rina Satou as Miki (Misaka in To Aru Kagaku No Railgun), Kentarou Ito as Kogorou (Renji in Bleach) and Tatsuhisa Suzuki as Kurofuku (Eishirou in Sora No Otoshimono).

The opening theme is unique. Why? Because it is entirely an instrumental piece! Entitled Brynhildr In The Darkness Version Ejected by Nao Tokisawa, it has this sci-fi, techno and dramatic feel to it (especially the strings and background voices enhancing the overall effect). It doesn’t feel bad actually and quite refreshing because 99.9% of all the anime opening themes are sung. Not many are instrumental (Trigun and Baccano are the only ones I could name). However I don’t know why they changed the opening after 2/3 of the series. Although it is another instrumental, Virtue And Vice by Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas (oh, these names of bands these days…) resembles more like hard punk rock! There is this dissonance ‘interference’ sound that I dislike so much and to make things worse, there is some rocker guy screaming in the background of this cacophony techno rock beat. And worse still, it suddenly ends abruptly. The ending theme turns into a generic anime pop. Ichiban Hoshi by Ryouta’s main harem quartet (Neko, Kana, Kazumi and Kotori) sounds rather okay.

Overall, this anime is interesting in its own right. Dark but yet entertaining. Just beware about the rushed ending and to those who do not like the ‘dumb’ fanservice and harem elements, it will be even more distasteful. The concept about rewriting the world to a new one based on one’s ideals after eliminating existing life isn’t necessarily something original but it is still fascinating and given the chance if there should be a sequel, I’d definitely want to find out more (and more harem too). And it would be interesting just to think that if you don’t like a person anymore and had enough, all you could do is press a button at the back of the neck and watch him/her melt away. If only real humans have that kind of option. Dispose of your annoyance with a push of a button! On second thought, it is a good thing we don’t. Earth would have become one big giant melting pot. Yeesh! Not my kind of way to die!