Forum - View topicEP. REVIEW: Heavenly Delusion
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L'Imperatore
 Posts: 941 |
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Between Bleach, Summer Time Rendering, and now this... those people at Disney sure pick their licensing wisely, don't they?
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Theozilla
 Posts: 150 Location: Oakland, California |
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The production quality of this anime is really good so far. The character animation, backgrounds, and staging are all fantastic.
For those who are in interested reading along with the original manga, these first four episodes adapt all of the first 11 chapters, the first 23 pages of chapter 12 (23/28 pages), and the second half of chapter 13 (16/32 pages). Masakazu Ishiguro stated in an August 2022 interview that this first season cour will end somewhere in the equivalent of takōbon volume 6 (which means around chapters 34-37). Thus the remaining 9 episodes of season 1 will adapt around ~2.4-2.75 chapters of manga per episode on average. This anime/manga is perfect for tons of speculation and theorizing and has so many subtle details and foreshadowing in it. Especially on rereads if one has kept up with the manga (it currently has 53 chapters published), which Masakazu Ishiguro himself encourages. Some trivia, the name of the laser-gun Kiruko wields is a funny bit of word-play, the name "Kiru-Beam", is like a double-pun since not only are they naming it after themselves, it's also meant to sound like "Kill-Beam" (or more literally in Japanese sounds like/translates as Murder-Beam). Some stuff to clear up, when Man-Eaters/Hiruko eat humans, they don’t absorb the eaten individual’s personality/mind, the inn-keeper in episode 2 was just deluding herself (and the Man-Eater likely hung around her because the inn attracted other people and thus potential prey). I also personally like how the story leaves it up to the audience’s interpretation as to whether or not the inn-keeper may have fed past guests to the Man-Eater or not. Also I have to say If I had a nickel for every time I’ve watched a post-apocalyptic/disaster anime with music composed by Kensuke Ushio that also involved a community that grew and smoked marijuana, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice (the other anime is Japan Sinks 2020 for those who are curious). Also the reason why Kiruko in the present goes by the name “Kiruko”, is because it is formed from a combination of the Japanese characters from Haruki and Kiriko’s names. Also if one keeps an eye out for details during episode 3, they may have noticed during the scene where Kiruko is looking at themselves in the mirror (and we can see the surgery scars encircling their skull) one may notice a separate smaller surgery scar on the upper back part of Kiruko's skull, could that possibly be related to the gunshot-like sound we heard earlier when Haruki lost consciousness? Also after Haruki blacks-out around the half-way point of episode 3, we are treated to an intense sequence/montage (that includes quick cuts of the brain transplant surgery being performed). That particular sequence was a nearly completely anime original scene with the small of exception of a shot (which occurs immediately after Haruki narrates “My head…it’s so hot”) of what is presumably a POV memory from Kiriko looking at a sleeping Haruki, this was adapted from a similar single out-of-context panel from chapter 33 of the manga. Also immediately after the memory shot of Haruki sleeping, we quickly see what is presumably another POV memory shot of Kiriko, where we see her hands intimately intertwined with another person’s hands, most likely it is a past memory of Kiriko having sex with someone (as to who Kiriko was being intimate with I will leave that to speculation, but I can guarantee it was NOT Haruki, Kiriko did not reciprocate and was unaware of Haruki’s incestuous feelings towards her). Also another neat detail is that starting with episode 3, the ED is slightly modified compared to it in episodes 1 and 2, specifically the part where we see a reflection in a puddle of Kiruko brushing their teeth. Now it starts out as a reflection of Haruki before transforming into Kiruko. And those with a keen eye for details may have noticed that at the beginning of episode 3 we saw a banner/billboard stating that the date is September 12, 2034; and below it is text stating that it has been 10 years since “the calamity”. So we can infer that the year during Maru and Kiruko’s present time is 2039 and that the Calamity took place in 2024 (which is apparently the same year Maru was born). If anyone is confused to why Kiruko said they were out of ammo/battery after only firing one shot of the Kiru-Beam during the fight with the fish-like Man-Eater in episode 4 (and the gun’s battery had been presumably fully recharged at the inn in episode 2), this is due to the anime abridging the fight with the fish-like Man-Eater somewhat. In the manga’s version of the fight, after Kiruko first shot at the fish-like Man-Eater, their next strategy was to shoot the Man-Eater with a succession of rapid-fire shots (which used up the remaining 2-3 shots of the Kiru-Beam), which actually did result in the piercing of the Man-Eater’s protective film/suit of water and blew a hole through its side (though it wasn’t enough to take it out of commission). Basically the anime accidentally made one of its lines of dialogue seem like a plot-hole/inconsistency due to the cutting of that scene from the manga. And for anyone still confused, “Tomato Heaven” refers to the commune/farm that the marijuana was grown at and shipped from. It was called “Tomato Heaven” in the past because the first main crop the farm grew (before they diversified) was tomatoes. The facility where Tokio and the other weird kids are located at is still currently unnamed in the anime. In addition to the facility’s video surveillance cameras being unable to see Tokio and/or Kuku (for some reason) whenever the cameras were directed at them, those with an eye for detail may have noticed that the surveillance footage date (stamped over the lower-right-hand corner of the video footage) during this episode said t17/07/01, while back in episode 2 the surveillance footage date was t17/06/23. This evidence tells us that the facility most likely uses a YY/MM/DD dating format for its surveillance system, with “t17” likely being some type of unique calendar year dating system. Also if anyone is confused as to why Tokio and Kuku weren’t discovered, the alarm that went off was saying that there was an intruder inside “The Sanctum” (the room where The Director and the A.I./robot “Mina” were located in). Because the alarm went off, it actually locked-down access to “Incubator Room 1” (which is the room that Tokio and Kuku were in to see “the babies”), and that lock-down actually prevented the pudgy glasses-wearing facility staff guy from entering said Incubator Room and discovering Tokio still in it. Basically the alarm going off actually gave Tokio and Kuku time to escape without being detected by the staff. And if anyone needs a refresher on the facility kids’ ages, the approximate ages of Tokio, Shiro (the white-silver haired teen who was sent the nude photo), Mimihime (the subject of said photo), Taka (the super strong/durable kid), and Anzu (the black haired girl often seen with Taka) are all 14 years old. The approximate ages of Nanaki & Iwa (the two kissing girls), Kuku (the frog-like girl) and Tarao (the sick kid) are all 10 years old. And Kona’s (the kid who draws strange drawings) approximate age is 17 years old. And if anyone is interested in starting the manga after this season is finished, I personally would still recommend starting the manga from the beginning regardless, as in addition to the standard cutting of extra dialogue and scenes from the anime for run-time and cinematic pacing, the chapter titles and cover pages of the manga also play a role in experiencing the foreshadowing of the story that the anime can’t quite replicate (due to the inherent difference in mediums). The mangaka of Heavenly Delusion, Masakazu Ishiguro (who is active on Twitter), in addition to their previous “And Yet the Town Moves” (also known as Soremachi) series, which was serialized from 2005-2016. He has also done a number of other single volume manga and short stories collections. Two of them "Skygrazer" and "Present for Me" have been released officially in English, the former just last fall of 2022, while the latter was released only digitally and can be purchased on sites like Bookwalker cheaply. Ishiguro's has also stated that the major influences for the Heavenly Delusion series, include the works Akira, Armored Trooper Votoms, and an old Japanese science-fiction novel titled "Dogra Magra" that was written Kyūsaku Yumeno (who appears as a character in Bungo Stray Dogs) and published in 1935. |
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anii23
Posts: 8 |
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Kiruko is my spirit animal!
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moozooh
Posts: 151 |
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Damn, Theozilla went above and beyond listing the small tidbits. I'd actually missed the toothbrush scene; much appreciated!
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myfairx
 Posts: 87 |
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really appreciate the lengthy bonus explanation. I'm a fan of Soredemo myself. I used to wonder if the author is genuinely a genius, and Heavenly Delusion proves that he's the real deal.
@Theozilla Does anybody actually do a complete Soredemo chapter timeline yet? I'd love to see that. I wanted to do it myself someday if nobody did |
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#Synaesthesia
Posts: 159 |
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ughh.. I really wish they didn't pick a reviewer who's also read the manga.. but yeah so far this is one of the better anime I've seen all year
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tintor2
 Posts: 2181 |
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I'm so lost here... which I somehow enjoy. The "school" where the kids are somehow being studied is giving me LOST memories due to how confusing the narrative can be. The ending vid gives more hints to the identities of these kids but I'm still not sure.
I like the relationship between the two leads but I'm sure confused with what's their names as the boy always calls his partner sis even after learning she is actually male. The animation is also insane. |
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moozooh
Posts: 151 |
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It's actually addressed at the end of episode 3 (IIRC) when Maru, after hearing Kiruko's backstory, asks if it's alright that he's been calling them "Sis", to which Kiruko gives a go-ahead. To be fair, Maru is still 15 and Kiruko's story itself is completely bonkers, so it'd obviously take him some time to process how to deal with it on his end. You can't expect him to make the least offensive decision you have in mind as an adult outside observer; however, the fact that properly addressing Kiruko was one of his first concerns after he'd heard the story shows that he cares, and Kiruko is also willing to accommodate. I honestly really enjoy that the characters are so well-matched and are able to quickly find a common ground even in sensitive and confusing situations despite being having different personalities, backgrounds, motivations, and goals. It takes a lot to write a relationship like that. |
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Angel M Cazares
 Posts: 5514 Location: Iscandar |
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So, more people are convinced that Disney licensed the new Bleach anime? I feel a bit sorry for Viz Media (the company that actually licensed the new Bleach anime) |
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MysticGon
Posts: 44 |
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It really is a crying shame the executives at the production companies chose Disney for distribution rights. I think in a few years time they might look back at the decision as a mistake. It's not great for exposure or preservation. I only hope the large sum of money they received somehow makes it's way to the people doing the hard work.
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tintor2
Posts: 2181 |
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I like how nice is the relationship between the two leads travelling. Despite the frustration the guy had, it's notable that Maru still likes Kiruko. Still, I don't really find the series that homophobic so I praise it. I remember that the artist from the school basically said that people shouldn't be scared of their growth which seems a major theme in the story has. Still, I couldn't stop laughing at the boner joke especially for how it clashed with the comfort moment. Really feels like a seinen manga despite everybody's age
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Aerdra
Posts: 427 |
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Lots of interesting developments this week on both sides of the story.
In Hell, we get a summary of Maru's background, and what made him the way he is today. Then we get to see how important he's become to Kiruko, who panics at the thought of losing him and being alone again. In Heaven, we get to eavesdrop on conversations between the scientists, who understand more about the mysteries of this setting than any other characters. Their conversations assume a shared knowledge among them that we lack. They leave hints about what is happening, but the overall picture remains hidden. This show contains lots of little moments and lines that feel like they may or may not foreshadow something, but there's no way to be sure in the moment, and I can't remember them all, so this story is probably worth rewatching once its finished. My favorite anime this season, looking forward to it each week. |
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Theozilla
Posts: 150 Location: Oakland, California |
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For those interested in keeping up with the manga, Episode 5 adapted the remaining parts of chapters 12 (its last 5 pages) and 13 (its first 16 pages), and then all of chapters 14 and 15 were basically completely adapted (which is equivalent to about ~2.68 chapters worth of manga adapted for this episode). With the remaining 8 episodes of the season adapting anywhere between 19-22 chapters of manga (the season has been stated to be adapting up to somewhere in tankōbon volume 6), the pacing of those episodes will on average range from 2⅜-2¾ chapters adapted per episode.
So the beginning of this episode kept a fun easter egg (that was also present in the original manga) to one of Masakazu Ishiguro’s (the mangaka of Heavenly Delusion) other older works, specifically the single-volume manga called “Nemurubaka”. The easter egg itself was the CD Kiruko was trying to test (and sell), as it was an album from the fictional band “Peat Moth”. Members of said fictional band are actually some of the main characters of Ishiguro’s “Nemurubaka” manga. So it was neat to see that they kept that reference in the anime. If people didn’t understand from this episode, the reason why Kiruko had such an agitated reaction to Maru potentially disappearing is because Kiruko essentially has a fear of abandonment/being left alone, which likely developed due to the events and trauma surrounding Kiruko’s backstory (as depicted in episode 3). Watchers with an eye (and ear) for detail may notice that the “t17” that made up part of the dates shown in the video camera footage from previous episodes is revealed to stand for the calendar year dating system “Ten’ei”, with the current year at the facility being Ten’ei 17 (and Tarao having died on October 16th). This is likely similar to to the imperial dating system that Japan uses (the current real life imperial era being Reiwa, and the previous one having been Heisei). In fact in Japanese history there was a brief Imperial Era that was called Ten’ei (天永), and was when Emperor Toba ruled, his reign lasting from July 1110 through July 1113. The kanji making up said Imperial era meant (for 永) “eternity, long, lengthy” and (for 天) “heavens, sky, imperial”. However in the anime, the facility is apparently using slightly different kanji, with it being "天栄" instead of "天永". And "天栄" can apparently be translated as something like “Heavenly Glory", as the kanji “栄” can translate to mean like “flourish, prosperity, honor, glory, splendor”. Also the object that was left behind in Tarao’s ashes (after his body was cremated) appears similar to the things that Maru apparently crushes (inside of Man-Eaters) when he uses his “Maru-Touch” powers to kill Man-Eaters. |
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Keen Fox
Posts: 147 |
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@Theozilla
Please, enlighten us with these pieces of info, keep it up! <3 |
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tintor2
Posts: 2181 |
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Episode 6. I think we could easily link the two stories now. Tokio is quite similar to Maru to the point in ep 1 they thought he was a girl. Tokio has potential of being Maru's mother especially when watching the postcredit scene. It could also explain why Maru is so skilled physically. All the students seem to have been tested on.
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