Maria Sama ga Miteru Season 4: Episode 13 (FINAL) and review

Gokigenyo, Captain Obvious

Marimite season 4 could've been ended more obviously. Yea yea yea we've got Touko spilling the beans to Yumi, that she's a fake Matsudaira and that she's just some little helpless mouse picked up from the sidewalk, by her second mom who actually needed no pointing from her in the pic. (Captain Obvious) Yea yea yea... and Yumi goes and plays along with the naivete of a second-grade kid because that's what she wanted--to have Touko fondle her rosary for her.

Okay, that aside. Who ever thought that Yumi's card just lay there underneath her bunghole? She might have taken a page from the Great Cornholio, but the fundamental difference is that she isn't supposed to be as barbaric as he is and more importantly, that thing was not a TP, but a perfumed stationery card. Ok, some may say that the most holy divine almighty bunghole emits an immesurably repugnant scent of its own, but does anyone here want to hold a bunghole-smelling card? I don't think so. Unless you're a freak, of course.

Frankly, I don't love the series as much as I did for the previous seasons. Hell, I won't even watch it again. Unlike the first two seasons, which were excellently executed slice-of-life tales about a group of school girls, this fourth one was mainly a story about two adolescents who were too weak for a little honesty. I mean, while we all had fun with arcs such as Sei's love affair with Shiori, Eriko's umbrella man-lover or Shimako and Noriko's "Juzu" affair, all we got for the most part in season 4 was the Tantrums of some girl with drill hair, and how it tormented this Statue of Naivete.

One more thing. What made the first two series' a thing of beauty is that it tried to push the boundaries of things unsettling. While the first two may have had an advantage because by now lesbianism is considered a given in this series, they made it nice by pumping it full with sexual tension. Back then we got girls kissing and fondling each other. Now, what? Nothing. The only thing about the series I reckon that pushed the boundaries was Kanako's episode where her dad had a child with her senior. At that time my expectations were still high (look at my entry about it) but as the series progressed, Touko took over and it gradually turned sour for me.

What exactly transpired that Marimite turned from something that really tried to break norms into someting family friendly. What? Did the producers think that being PG13 was more important than being real with their art and portraying GL with the agressiveness of passion while balancing it with elegance? Are our beloved producers aware of the Dionysian-Apollonian synthesis? Maybe not. It could've been a lot lot lot more Dionysian, the destructive beauty of chaos, conflict and passion. Yes! Passion. Not the half-baked emoshit they provided us. Probably it was because the character that made the most impact, Sei, was absent from this series but Season 4 itself lacked the X-factor that made Marimite a classic. In all honesty. The elegance has gone. Gone are the days when repressed, violent passion between two girl lovers blended perfectly with the prim and proper setting of the atmosphere itself. Lilian has turned into a playground for pre-teens with PMS issues. Just look at the OP. It turned into a poppy tune suited only for 12 year olds. Blah!!! :P

If a season 5 happens, please do not make it a grand narrative about the red roses. I want Sei back and I want more passion... Just like the one Sei and Shiori had between them.

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To the folks of Yasashii sekai:

It's been a good 5 weeks. I wished I could've started sooner. Thanks for jacking up my hit counter by a handful and for providing comments (though it was also me most of the time). I had fun discussing my issues with the series with you all.

Maria Sama ga Miteru Season 4: Episode 12

Too late the hero? Red roses suck. Yellow roses rock.

Okay, this is what the episode was... A repeat performance of the old "find-my-card" game plus Touko's cruelly wrenching pseudo-drama which does not get any sympathy from me. Symbolisms dot the story, such as Touko's search for Yumi's card in a small room, which reflects her narrow state of mind. Though she apparently is wider down there (see episode 11) than up in her head, she took away most of the airtime with flashbacks and rushed to the outside world after an epiphany. I'm getting tired of the Red family and this must just end. Too much poorly made "drama". Getting tired of Touko is an understatement.

Ever since the previous seasons, I said that the Yellow roses are my favorite among the three because there are a lot of unspoken bonds among them (Yoshino and Rei) that transcends spoken words. It showed today, as it just oozed out of Rei and Yoshino's actions than their words. Hehehe, I thought Rei really had Yoshino's card and was surprised at her face wich had "meh, Yoshino's card" written all over it. It's kinda hard to explain in words but if you saw their backstory (Yoshino's heart operation arc, Rei leaving the rosary to her in the hospital)Their undramatic approach as soeurs) then you'll get what I am trying to say. It's like they know each other too well that they are already beyond the passion stage. Damn, why aren't they the main characters?

So Touko opens the door and unless she has the card with her, she's gonna get more flak from me. Touko comes across as an immature bitch who needs to grow up. I'm sure that leaving her blindfolded, gagged and chained inside a barracks full of Russian Soldiers would do more to make her grow up, even more so than having the Jigsaw killer abduct her and put her on his magnificent contraption and making her chop a limb if she wants to escape death.

In any case, this episode (and this season) attacts unfavorable impressions vis-a-vis the first "Find-my-card and eat-my-chocolate" event. While the previous one was a hilarious laugh trip when Sei was still around (Damn, I remember the good old days) . This one is just a cacophony of the inferior actions of spoiled, immature babies who need at least one more year in middle school.

Thingle Out.

Maria Sama ga Miteru Season 4: Episode 11

If you thought Sei was a BAD driver, Suguru is WORSE.

Wohohohoho! What did we get this week? It's the Touko show! This week, we are shown how she systematically burns bridges and makes life hard for herself with her epic denial. She's so good at lying to herself that her mask has gotten so thick, you need a Bunker Buster to crack it.

Good thing Suguru delivered just the right load to deliver the first wave of Bunker busting. Touko gets wet at high speeds, so even he's gay as fuck, he still succeeded in getting her wet enough to plead for him to stop (Bathroom? Bull****!). However, she's got a lot of hang-ups to begin with. First is her delusions about people knowing she's a bastardess and second, her mad, convulted and perverse desire for Yumi.

There is one simple rule I follow in dealing with other people, and it's "be frank everytime." The purpose is twofold. To avoid giving people false hope and to avoid inconvenience on my part. Touko does neither, as she goes from denial to denial until she breaks down.

As immature as Touko was, Yumi was the opposite. She handled the situation very dominantly. Making touko count to one-hundred is a psychological power play, if you don't know why, watch it again. I don't know where and how she grew 10 years in 4 weeks, but heh, I think someone took offense when I typed the words "mental midget", heck it might even be Yumi who read it (she's getting revenge?).

Girl of the week? Noriko. For the 4th time in 11 weeks. Her character is a solid, stable rock devoid of the instability of the other girls.

Stay tuned.

Maria Sama ga Miteru Season 4: Episode 10

I want to find your card... But I must defer it to give way to people who are NOT rushing at all!!!

Note 1: Marimite is one tame piece for a story with an all girls school setting, so tame that it scores a zero in the erotic category. I've just read something that kept Mr.Woody awake all night so I just wanted to share what I think about Marimite.

Note 2: Contrary to what Sleepy said, there aren't any ShimakoXNoriko action in this episode. The farthest I saw was just some hand-clasping before the entire group.


Just for how long will we be forced to watch Yumi's protracted effort to win Touko's heart? Episode 10 was a perfect opportunity for the producers to initiate some plot turns to keep this shit from dragging too long. For instance, they should've done the "Find my card" game this week, instead of postponing it. Noriko and Shimako could've developed their characters more if that happens, and I would've been content.

Well, the finding cards game was I believe done during the earlier seasons. I think this is done during the time when Yumi made the infamous chocolates of death for Sei, correct me if I'm mistaken. But that was an awesome display of scriptwriting fireworks. I am not sure if that will be matched anytime soon. In short, the things that are happening aren't anything new. It's just a new cycle but with the youngins taking the helm. This is also a good opportunity if this season could compare to its predecessors.

Yumi said it so herself, she's not hurrying. She doesn't want Touko to be her soeur ASAP, therefore we need not gorge ourselves with a per week update on Yumi's hunt for Touko's heart. Well, this isn't bad per se, but this has been the trend this whole season. Character development is hurt by this over-emphasis on the Red Roses.. I want to see more C/D, especially from the other rose families. This season had some, but the inequality is still glaring.

Also seen in this episode is the confirmation that Suguru is indeed gay and the love he feels towards the girls is not of the romantic kind. If not romantic, then platonic maybe, but at the same time, if not romantic, then he doesn't desire Sachiko's pure, soft flesh. Did anyone notice that Sachiko's mom didn't suspect some fucking at the toilet? That's the telltale sign, though I'd take Sachiko ANYDAY! (Sachiko looked good this week, haven't you noticed? Motivated animators, maybe.)

This is my take. Disagree if you wish.