Summary:
The address on the passport leads to a large mall (with a movie theater and a dog, Mameshiba) in a practically deserted section of town. There are security cameras everywhere, and Akira realizes the photograph of himself in front of the 20,000 missing NEETs was taken at the mall. Saki figures that Akira was a theater manager, and requests The Cold Blue because someone she always liked happened to like the movie; unfortunately, Akira never shows up to the movie date, so Saki watches the movie by herself and then leaves a note for Akira when she exits.
Although Yuusei (Selecao #4) succeeded in tracking Akira down and stealing Akira’s phone, it turns out that the remaining 8 billion yen cannot be accessed because the phones have fingerprint protection. Yuusei has no choice but to meet Akira to get his badge back, but Yuusei’s wife Misae shows up first. Yuusei accidentally sent a text message meant for his mistress to Misae, and so she stabs him to death. When Akira shows up, Yuusei reveals that there are 10 other candidates in the Selecao, and all were given 10 billion yen to play a social game. When your funds run out, the Supporter kills you, and Yuusei doubts that any of the other Selecao will want to meet up with the notorious Akira. Also, you can use your phone to check the purchase history of the other Selecao.
Reaction:
The first thought I had, in an “I would wish for more wishes” kind of way, was that I would invest a portion of the funds so that I wouldn’t need Juiz to buy me malls or theaters. I wonder if perhaps the phone’s bank account cannot be refilled, however, to prevent this sort of loophole. This episode was mysterious, but I think we are being fed a bunch of red herrings here, especially since it is noted that Akira is a very interesting subject. I highly doubt that Akira killed the 20k NEETs, and I almost wonder if he forced them to work or he shipped them off somewhere after some kind of education. Why else would he need a mall? If he just wanted to hold that many people, a warehouse would have been cheaper. It would be intriguing if Akira used his first amount of money to give a bunch of NEET some forced job training (no wonder they are so angry!) and then realized that this plan was not financially viable.
I was impressed at how Akira had to use that change from the coffee purchase to call Yuusei, and at how Akira had the phone numbers written on the wrist from when Saki wanted to have the Ground Zero photo sent to her. I feel like nothing in this show is done haphazardly, and so I was especially mystified at Yuusei’s death. I suspect that Yuusei’s funds ran out (should have paid for overdraft protection) and the Supporter rerouted his text message to Misae. I also have a theory that Akira set up a brazen plan that would result in some unpleasant deaths (including his own) and realized that the only way to summon the courage to carry the plan out was to brainwash himself. Akira would rely on knowing how he would react to clues and then unknowingly carry out his plan without getting a chance to chicken out.
This post was written by...
Kabitzin – who has written 1971 posts on Sea Slugs! Anime Blog.
One of the founders of Sea Slugs, I handle most of the blog admin tasks while wearing my I AM BOSS shirt. I like my action series well choreographed, and my romance series extra trashy. I also have a soft spot for puns.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
That is indeed an interesting way to look at it. I mean everyone would believe based on Kondou’s words alone that he would have killed the NEETs, but yeah, now that you mention it, why not? It all depends on how the story unfolds at this point. The part about him brainwashing himself in order to set the game system on fire is good too. I would hardly mind if it went down such a path.
Too true. It’s impossible to doubt anything a show does when it’s this well planned
This show so far is very well done, and i have a feeling it is planned out well.. This show is directed and written by the guy who directed Ghost in the Shell. Which i can see the similarities in how they give you just the information you need or what should be shown.
I honestly can’t make any assumptions yet. It seems the NEETS ended up hating Akira. They blocked the door with there cell phones, which doesn’t seem like he killed them. It seems that he abandoned them after probably saving them and giving them a place to stay. Even the photo showed that he was liked by them. This makes sense if he got the phone and the funds to execute his plan, and if he left, but i think its more plausible that he was brainwashed. If that one person can wipe out memory, why not change memories or mind control. Not sure though, must wait for more, but its going very well so far.
This is why I love this show, the finer details are handled with such finesse that you’d really want to pay attention in order to grasp the plot.
Sounds a bit too death note-ish, but still plausible. The question now is, “why?”
Unlike Death Note’s “memory restore” mechanic, there’s no way he can be sure that his brainwashed self would react the same way, or even be the same person he once was. You could almost say that by doing so he’s basically committing mental suicide. Sorta….
Well, the memory wipe was not a complete wipe, though, as Akira still remembers a lot about movies and even a few details about his past. If not for the great attention to detail, I wouldn’t suspect such a complicated plan.