Kill la Kill
Episode 13: Crazy for You
Well Kill la Kill is back and boy did it come back strong. Following from the previous episode‘s emotional chaos and torment comes the aftermath. The time when some characters mope, some plot and others just go on their merry way, oblivious to a majority of the world…See if you can guess who the latter is.
With Naturals Election ending in a awe inspiring display of malice, it would appear that Satsuki can now unvail her true plan: the Tri-City Schools Raid Trip. We’ve known for a long while now that Satsuki’s desires dominion over the world, so this cross region display of force should come as no surprise. What may come as a shock however is the newly developed passificity of one Ryuko Matoi. After her brief, but still too long, descent into madness, it would seem that our rambunctious delinquent is in no mind to raise a fist to anyone, let alone don Senketsu. Fearing her own uncontrollable temperament, she holes herself up at home and spends her time focusing on just what might have happened were it not for the timely appearance of Mako. This proves to be yet another of those all too uncommon times that we get to see the heart wrenching vulnerability that Ryuko carries. Stripped of all bravado and combativeness, she is just another scared person in a world ruled by fear.
The previous events also show in Senketsu who was just as, if not more, affected by the rampage. When he asks Ryuko if she fears him now, she expresses that she knows the truth about their transformation: it was her fault. Though Nudist Beach despises the power of the Kamui and Tsumugu blames them for his dark past, they are not inherently evil, but rather amplifiers for their wearer. When Ryuko’s blood boiled and her rage broke free, Senketsu was forced to absorb all of her hatred and fury against his will. Unable to contain her raw emotion and meet her desires, she forced power out of him that he was not ready to give. Ryuko also remembers another thing, she recalls that during the mutation Senketsu was doing something. He was crying. As she succumbed to her feelings, he sat helpless as his only friend began to destroy them both from within, helpless to stop her. While this further expresses Senketsu’s nature as a sentient being, it also presents his unwavering care for Ryuko and the pain he feels when something happens to her, even if that something is herself.
Whilst Ryuko and Senketsu explore their strained relationship, Hannouji is buzzing with anticipation for their plans to systematically bring Kansai under Lady Satsuki’s control…look, they don’t have a lot to look forward to normally, you’ve seen the school. Anyway, it would seem that despite the events previous, the Naturals Election allowed the Sewing Club to create new Goku Uniforms specifically tailored to each of the still Elite Four members, along with new Raid Trip tracksuits for the students. I mean, the students have to look presentable while they’re taking over the region. Jumping back a sentence, the fact that the Elite Four remain unchanged after the whole Election debacle serves to once again call into question Satsuki’s entire world view. Though she claims to respect only strength and determination, which the Four possess I’ll admit, she continues to overlook their many losses. She even says that there’s no shame in losing to Ryuko and Nui as they had no chance to succeed. I understand that she respects their devotion to her and her principles, but it seems like she might be showing a little bit of favouritism to the Four. They are after all the one’s she chose from a young age. Might Satsuki have a heart? Who can say, one thing she does have however is one hell of a mother…not necessarily in a good way, but still.
Not only do we see more of the dark magnificence that is Ragyo Kiryuin, but also her relationship with her daughter. When the two finally talk it is a very formal affair. They calmly discuss the events of the Naturals Election, with Satsuki noting that she filed a report about the situation. Not the most open and loving relationship ever, but a lot less openly combative than you would expect from Satsuki, who normally entertains no one. At one point when Ragyo was “inspecting” Junketsu, Satsuki even thanked her mother for complimenting her. Even evil has standards I guess. However, that may stem from the revelation that the stalwart leader of Hannouji is actually part of a group herself, the mysterious COVERS Children. I’m personally going to go out on a limb here and say that the group may have something to do with the reflectively named REVOCS…though that’s just pure speculation at this point. Apparently as long as Satsuki acts as a Child of COVERS, the world will be her ally. Again, just going to speculate that this has something to do with REVOCS, though I’m only about 99% sure. Though for all her unquestioned, yet still somehow mysterious, power, even Ragyo cannot control the whims of Nui Harime. Hence her interference in a world that was left unto Satsuki.
Meanwhile, Mako finds herself drawn into the plot of a rather bombastic editorialist named Nagita, who was banned from Hannouji for attempting to write the truth of the school. You know, that it’s horrible. He befriends Mako in the hopes of reinvigorating Ryuko’s fighting spirit, so that she may once again stand against Satsuki. His desire to bring the old Ryuko back serves to show just how much of a spanner she was in the works of Hannouji. Without her boisterous personality and rarely matched power, the school reverts to how it always was. Fortunately for Satsuki, Ryuko’s absnce just so happened to coincide with the fragile set up phase of her invasion. If Ryuko was there, I’m sure some vehicles would have exploded. But alas, that was not the case and her preparations went unheeded. La vie est drole.
Well that’s about it for the episode, but I can’t help feeling I forgot something…oh yeah, Nagita was actually Nui in disguise using her powers of manipulation to force Ryuko out of her sadness and return to her combative ways. It worked to an extent, but Ryuko still feared herself and restrained her power. So she lost. Also Senketsu got SLICED TO FREAKING RIBBONS! What the hell Kill la Kill? You give us like fifteen minutes to get back into the swing of the series and then you kill one of the main characters? Not cool. Also Satsuki, after showing her in question compassion by covering the exposed Ryuko with a sheet, took said ribbons of Senketsu and gave them to the Sewing Club. So now there are a number of students who will be empowered by our lost deutoragonist. Luckily, I guess, Ryuko managed to latch on to one piece of her friend, which I’m positive will factor into what is hopefully the Senketsu Retrieval Arc.
Well, you can’t say Kill la Kill doesn’t pack a punch when it comes to story. I guess we’ll have to wait and see if a Kamui can be resown or if the Senketsu we know is lost. Kazuki Nakashima, the writer, isn’t exactly opposed to killing of major characters at any point in an anime series. Stay strong Ryuko! I’m sure it’ll all work out somehow…at least I hope it will.Â
Check out more Kill la Kill Impressions HERE.
