Forum - View topicMawaru Penguindrum (TV).
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Yttrbio
 Posts: 3670 |
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Mawaru Penguindrum Genres: drama , mystery , psychological , supernatural Themes: conspiracy , destiny , penguins , resurrection , tragedy Plot Summary: Himari Takakura passes away after going out on a trip with her brothers, twins Kanba and Shōma. She was, however, miraculously saved by a spirit in a penguin-shaped hat. In return for her extended life, the twins must search for an item known as the Penguin Drum with the aid of three penguins, which are visible only to the siblings. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ You know, for years, I've heard people insist that Utena was totally awesome, but their explanations for why it was awesome were so ambiguous and unconvincing that it never occurred to me to be interested. Then I saw this episode, and thought "Ahhhhhhh... Now I see." Who knows if that understanding actually translates into an interest in Utena, but I'm probably going to find out, now. {Edited to standards set by Stark700. ~nobahn} |
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Aylinn
 Posts: 1684 |
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I have just watched the first episode and, oh boy, it is awesome. It is a wonderfully wacky series just like Utena. And just like Utena it uses tropes and subverts them. In Mawaru Penguindrum's case, it is spoiler[‘kill a cute girl in the first episode.']
It reminded me that it’s good to know some classic stories, at least I were able to notice the allusion to Night on the Galactic Railroad. Besides, these penguins are cool, I want a penguin like that. They seem to be very useful. 
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Blood-
 Bargain Hunter Posts: 24155 |
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Sigh. Aylinn, I wish you had thought to use spoiler tags earlier, before I first came in here. In any case, thanks for adding them for the benefit of others.
eta: okay, so I've actually seen the eppie now. Loooooved it. Very happy this is a two cours show. Visually awesome, whimsical, poignant, funny, intriguing and a little bit sexy. I'm in. |
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Divineking
 Posts: 1298 |
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This seems very interesting so far. While I haven;t seen Utena yet, I can sort of see that style in there. Probably lots of sexuality and innuendo if whatI saw in Star Driver was close enough to Utena's style. There are a lot of questions to be raised about the Penguins but I think the mecha's take more of them considering I;m still trying to figure out what the hell that scene was.
The incest thing at the end was a bit creepy though, especially since the younger brother seemed more likely to do it. All in all this has my interest so far, and is the best new thing I saw this season. |
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yamata no orochi
Posts: 137 |
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After seeing the first episode, I am now so excited about this show that I've literally been walking circles around my house since I have nobody to talk to about it. It's pretty exciting!
Not sure if it's going to be as good as Utena--could go either way at this point--but the promise is definitely there. |
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stinknasty344
Posts: 39 |
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I saw the first episode and I still don't know what to make of this show. Visually it's stunning, but this show just tossed up a whole bunch of questions at us. It is exciting and admittedly has got me thinking about it for awhile now.
I wonder if spoiler[ The older brother kanba (I believe that was his name), always loved his little sister that way or was somehow influenced by what the Queen did to him. Both brothers seem to like their sister in a more romantic way, with both of them showing it in a completely different way. So I ask, is this really their sister? They showed a picture of all three of them with their parents an awful lot, is there a sign somewhere there?] Right now it's just the beginning, but it's quirky and fun, and whatever the plot is right now, it sure does look interesting. This show is for now (Dantalia(sp?) GAINAX may take it) number one. |
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EmbraceMe
 Posts: 2017 Location: Growing old and jaded. |
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I disliked the art style so I couldn't last through the whole episode. I do agree that it is beautiful, it's very detailed and has vivid colors. I found the monologues to be very interesting, the one in the beginning and the end.
I'll give the show another try because it does intrigue me but the art style is just not my taste. |
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Aylinn
Posts: 1684 |
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I think she is. Apparently Ikuhara, the director, likes to make incestuous relationships. In his previous anime, Utena, there are two implied incestuous relationships and one that is obvious. I'm sorry for the spoiler Blood- I hope I didn’t ruin it for you. |
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter Posts: 24155 |
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No problem, Aylinn. As you can tell from my comments on the episode itself, I quite liked it so nothing was ruined in that regard. True, I would have preferred not to know right from the start, but ultimately it's small potatoes. It's funny, I normally have a strict rule about not opening discussion threads until I have seen the relevant episode(s) and the only reason why I made an exception this morning is that I knew absolutely nothing about the show and even the ANN Encyclopedia was wildly unhelpful in terms of providing a description, so I was hoping just to get a general sense of the premise. And, of course, Murphy's Law was in full effect.
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yamata no orochi
Posts: 137 |
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For everybody else's benefit: just because Utena and Penguindrum includes incest, that doesn't mean that it's glorified or portrayed in a positive light like in a couple of other anime I won't deign to mention. For specifics: spoiler[The relationship between Akio and Anthy is quite obviously unhealthy, while it becomes pretty clear that while Nanami really loves Touga, her feelings aren't sexual (as is quickly indicated by her look of horror when she sees Anthy and Akio making out)] It's there, but it's a lot more complex and negative then how it's portrayed in, say, Angel Sanctuary (which still wasn't quite as bad as it can be, but anyway) As for Mawaru Penguindrum, I have a feeling that before the series is over, the brothers's relationships with their sister are going to plunge into tragedy before long. spoiler[I mean, the blue-haired guy goes out and states it while at school, saying something along the lines of "We thought that her revival was a miracle, etc." Evidently the narrative voice is looking back from the future, and things didn't end up well.] On the other hand, if you want to see an idea portrayed pretty positively in Ikuhara's stuff, just look at the portrayal of lesbianism--Juri and Shiori, Utena and Anthy (especially in the movie), etc. That comes off much more favorably in Utena than incest. Also, regarding Penguindrum, the point's been made that the two girls opposite the sister in the ED sequence have the same-colored hair as her brothers, so maybe we're in for lesbian incest? Or something? Sorry if I sound kind of defensive; I was just worried that people would be turned off this show thinking that it glorified incest or something while Ikuhara's always been a lot more subtle and complicated than that. This isn't Yosuga no Sora, or anything! On another note: train imagery. The reference to Night on the Galactic Railroad. The fact that episodes are called stations. The railway transitions. The announcement board flashback sequences. The mascot girls in the train station, whose plushies can be found around the house of the main characters. Thoughts? |
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter Posts: 24155 |
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You don't know us very well, do you? What gave you the idea a show that glorified incest would be a turn off?  I kid, I kid. As for the train imagery: I got nothing except for the usual symbolic interpretation of powerful, fast trains tearing through moist tunnels...
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BakaOnna
Posts: 14 |
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The most likely one that I've read is train/public transportation is a metaphor for fate. A train has a predetermined track, which is similar to how fate, especially described in this episode, is already predetermined. Also, the girl with the short hair that Shouma meets briefly is called Ringo, which means "apple" in Japanese. Also, I rewatched the episode and if you notice in the family pictures and drawings, there's penguins in them. One family photo in particular has a small blue penguin (similar to the ones they have) on the sister's head. And these pictures are obviously taken before they got theirs. There's probably loads of other symbols I missed since I also missed most of the imagery and symbolism in Utena until I looked them up. 
+EDIT+ Oh look, how nice. I found a site that points out the imagery used in the episode and references them. http://penguindrum.livejournal.com/6282.html#cutid1 |
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Aylinn
Posts: 1684 |
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It is hard to say anything for certain at this point, but I suppose that, like in Night on the Galactic Railroad, in Mawaru Penguindrum death may be a major theme. There is a reference to death in the children's discussion. ‘The world Campanella and other passangers are heading to.’ The passengers who board the train in Night on the Galactic Railroad are heavily implied to be dead, except for spoiler[Giovanni, who has a special ticket.] The road, which the train in NotGR covers, seems to be the passage between life and death. |
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garfield15
 Posts: 1534 |
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This was everything I expected it to be.
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter Posts: 24155 |
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Is that a good or bad thing?
(Are posts where you actually explain what you like or don't like about a show not "cool" anymore?) |
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