Exactly people think he is a edgy super smart solves everything gets all the girls type of protagonist but if you just look a bit deeper he is a flawed and extremely interesting and understandable character
Damn, witnessing Aqua's psyche was something I wasn't prepared for. Aqua getting constantly haunted about the moment his mother Ai dying reminds me of how Bruce Wayne always be reminded about losing his parents Martha and Thomas Wayne in order to become Batman.
There was a subtle indication that Aqua had given his life completely over to revenge and wasn't going to allow any other purpose in his life. In the car, just before he has the revelation about his father being responsible for Ai's death, he's thinking how Ruby will probably bounce back, but then goes on "But I've already died once already...", implying that he's preparing to die again, since Ai is gone (as a doctor, I'm certain he knows a surefire way to make that happen) but that's overridden when he realizes who's responsible and forms this new life's purpose to take revenge. So at that point, his only reason for living was taking revenge. Although this makes it much more clear while also calling back to the questions Aqua was asking himself while he was playing catch with Kana, questions about how much of him was the doctor and how much was Aqua. Is there a part of him that doesn't want to throw his life away on revenge, but the doctor's consciousness is maintaining that purpose with an iron fist?
About the folders in Gotanda’s computer: Hajimari is the name of the first movie Aqua was with Kana and Ai, the full name is Sore Ga Hajimari Hoshino are Ai’s separate recordings from the BKomachi bio they were recording before Ai’s death, that movie supposedly were finished with the recordings of the dome concert the day Ai died; now why he kept Ai’s recordings apart has a meaning that would explain later Hikaru is the most interesting one for us, manga readers; without many spoilers that word is important so keep it in mind for later developments
Alane: I will fix him! Aqua becomes momentarily happy for a few weeks *spoiler event happens and he realizes something* Proceeds to break double star eyed
Akane piecing together Aqua's familial connection to Ai like Sherlock Holmes does with his mystery solving. In another world, she would have been a great detective. I'm calling it right now, Akane is going to be Aqua's accomplice on his revenge seeking journey once this season is over
She can still be a great detective in the "Oshi No Ko" world. I would love a spinoff series that follows her using her research skills & method acting to solve mysteries. I forking love when she does her rapid fire deductions. I would love to see that in a spinoff series.
Watching her put all the pieces together was so cool. That looks like his previous self telling him he does not deserve being happy. He feels like he failed her because he was not alive to see her through the birth. He thinks that after he finds and kills his father he will die as well.
7:50 Does the director guy know about Aqua's secret, though? As far as I remember from season 1, the events in the story and his interactions with Aqua never showed him knowing Ai was Aqua's mom (just that Aqua idolized her and that he was close to her because of Miyako). But I feel like with how the folders are arranged as "Hoshino Aqua", it could be a sign that he is also about to connect the dots soon to learn Aqua's secret.
he was never specifically aware but ai always showed up with two kids that seemed to be obsessed with her. he could probably put two and two together. on top of that, after Ai's death, the two kids became incredibly depressed.
He was close to Aqua growing up, so he had a connection there. Not to mention he would frequently see the pair with Ai and the ichigo production staff. ( Example: He was at a lost for words during the funeral) That what you can gather from episode 1 and in this episode. So he knows a few things especially since he helped Aqua learn about the entertainment scene and whatnot.
it's funny how very few people seem to put the two and two together when Ruby is a splitting image of Ai lol So far only Kana and the old school fan "Store manager" (from the final episode of s1) recognized their resemblance
My thoughts exactly, this is the first time we get confirmation of someone outside the family that knows Ai and the twins's secret. I though Gotanda might have suspicions, but this episode really points to him knowing. Maybe he figured it out on his own like Akane without Miyako and the twins knowing hw knows, or maybe he was told by them straight up at some point in the past. What's also new is the revelation of Aqua going through a lot of therapy for his PTSD and him hiding from his family that he's still not fully recovered. Big piece of info
I always assumed he knew from the begining, bcs of how he interacted with Aqua after the funeral ceremony in ep 1... The way he chose words and tone of his voice really convinced me that he wants to properly pay respects to a grieving family member.
@HenshinFanatic these people are busy it's 4 people not just the 2 who are writing all night it's not easy to set up it's much more efficient and easier to just do the telephone
Usually, this tends to be a failure cause a lot of authors do not want their work altered and when it happens in real time, genuine friction happens between the author and the screenplay writer cause the author can be too protective or the screenplay writer can be too dismissive of the OG work. This communication was only successful because Aqua asked the author to watch the play first and make her challenge her own misconceptions about the theatre industry. The author backed down by a lot and the screenplay writer was desperate to work it out, that's why this communication was successful.
Reminds me of Dissney when they couldn't properly adapted a Marvel character Blade into the screen because of constant creative conflicts from all sides. Meanwhile Tokyo Blade is moving forward. Coincidence!?
The right to integrity is a thing in Japan by their copyright laws. It’s a moral right and thus cannot be overwritten by contract, all authors keep their moral copyrights including the right to integrity. On the contrary, commercial copyright can be sold via a contract.
Under Japan's copyright laws, the original creator has final say over the use of their works, and there is the legal requirement to ensure that any secondary works maintain the same character (as in essence) of the original work, unless the original creators waives that requirement.
For example, company A wants to colab with this anime, the IP owner can say no if the company's design of aqua/ruby is way off and loses it's consistency with original character design.
At 12:21, his prediction is that GOA was going to rewrite the script and present it to Abiko and in the script, the romance with the princess is not cut out because GOA wants to show his understanding of the author’s true intent right? Am I correct? Was that his prediction? Or was it GOA rewrite the script so that the princess is more true to the manga version where she feels conflicted between harming others like Akane suggested? Which one is correct please tell me
I’m gonna be completely honest, I’m not really the Biggest fan of Aqua in general, but I can still relate to the guy to some degree. I mean Hell, I still get flashbacks every now and then of me being in the Hospital for a WEEK getting ready to have surgery for the first time in order to remove my Appendix last year for New Years. And I still have the Scars from the surgery to this day!!! Also, I don’t see a lot of people talking about the season AT ALL, granted I’ve only seen posts get 10s of Thousands of views on Twitter, but that’s about it. I’ve been wondering if A lot of people have been talking about it on OTHER platforms though.
Aka ruined the hype for this series with all the AquRuby bullshit in the manga. so people don't care about oshi no ko anymore (in the west, bc in japan the show is still pretty popular).
Roshidere releases at the same time as this. Plus people got the attention span of a goldfish, therefore they don't want to learn about the entertainment industry and only want to see Aqua finding Ai's killer.
While Akane has deeeefinitely figured out Aqua and Ruby are Ai's secret children, I'd like to share a theory of my own... one I posted in your Discord 3 weeks ago. And with Akane's revelation, seems like a good time to share it here. My theory doesn't come from any of the plots occurring in the new season, but from the new OP itself. Ai... is reincarnated! Mothers Basement did a deep dive into season 1's OP and how much foreshadowing was in it. And some of the imagery in season 2 OP really got my attention. Namely the appearances of Ai, especially at the end where she's in the audience, applauding Aqua. I'm sure we've all assumed this is a representation of her memory, and it's her ghost/spirit in the crowd, looking upon her children from the afterlife. BUT... what if it's a CLUE? Foreshadowing that she really IS there, not as a spectral apparition invisible to everyone (audience and actors) but LITERALLY attending, completely unrecognized **in a new body** ?? The visual of Ai is a representation of her having her old memories, that within some child, it's Ai inside. Only thing I can't figure out is who Ai's new life is. If it's someone we've already met, or someone yet to be introduced. Only detail we have to go is it would have to be someone 3 years younger than Aqua and Ruby. But that's my idea.
She's not. Someone's going to tell you why later on in season 3. You'll see them near the end of the season. I won't go too much but they are in the opening.
No, I think this is a stretch, since the wish of Ai was for her children to pursue their dreams and ambitions. Ruby is already doing that, so the opening scene in the theater is more coinned towards Aqua starting to realize his ambition to become an actor. Something Ai wished for him and where she longed to see them both reach their potential. In my personal opinion it is a hint of Aqua developing more towards a happier future, where revenge has taken a background role, because he is radiating joy from acting on stage.
I am going to assume that you have not read the manga, because in the manga it is a lot more clear that the director does not know that Aqua and Ruby are Ai's children, just that they are part of the same agency and have a strong attachment to Ai through Strawberry Productions. MANGA SPOILERS BELOW Later on it is revealed that the director knew the whole time that Aqua was Ai's son, but at this point in the anime you should not be aware that the director knows.
I have to admit that my empathy towards him is limited. He had therapy but dropped out by acting like everything is alright. It's one thing if it just doesn't work, but actively lying about symptoms to avoid medical care is something that a former medical doctor should know not to do. And when the trauma rears it's head again he again refuses to seek professional help and instead tries to work around the symptoms. Sorry, but in that case it's completely on him. I know that it's probably done as a literary device, but still
Well you also have to remember that Aqua is no longer Gorou, not just physically, but mentally as well. He's a completely different person now with memories of this life taking over his past life's memories. In season one Aqua says that lines between him and his old self is growing more and more blurry. With this episode and his shadow self, it shows us that he's essentially fully transitiond into his new life, with his past life only being a remnant of himself, manifested in the form of PTSD. It's not an adult in a kids body situation anymore, he's just a teenager with mental health problems now and a destructive obsession with finding Ai's killer. People pretending everything is ok when it's not is a very common thing.
@@ohthisguyagain5386 The question for me is how long you're supposed to have sympathy with people actively refusing help. Yes, people pretending to be okay when they're not is pretty common. And if they're afraid of others finding out and have never been to therapy that's understandable. But everyone in his family is aware of his trauma and he lied to get out of therapy. To me it feels like people are using his trauma as an excuse for some of the things he does, in which case I would expect him to do something about it at some point, especially since the opportunities are there. You can't use the same excuse time and time again without at least trying to do something about it
@@marvinwolf8360 but that's the thing, Aqua himself is not using it as an excuse. In fact, he tries to keep everyone he cares out of it. The only people who use his trauma as an excuse are the viewers who defend him from other viewers who call out Aqua's manipulation. But that's from a meta standpoint, it has nothing to do with the actual story and hasn't been brought up yet, so as of now it's a non issue. What Akasaka does is show us 'why Aqua is the way he is, but never tries to justify it. Understanding does not equate to justification.
@@ohthisguyagain5386 True. But that's why I said that I don't really feel any sympathy towards him. And to be honest the whole thing is probably one of the reasons why I don't really vibe with him. I've read until the beginning of the movie arc in the manga but I don't really have any motivation to pick it up again
Well, getting help means having heart to heart with your therapist. How is he supposed to explain he's got the memories of a doctor from his previous life? That's why his self-blame runs deeper than most kids in his situation, he can't just tell anybody willy nilly that he's actually a doctor inside. Which renders the concept of therapy useless. He could have saved Ai unlike most kids in his situation, if only he had an adult's body and had the first aid kit on his hand. Plus, he's an orphan. Miyako is literally adopted the kids and therapy is expensive. Aqua knows his PTSD will be cleared only when Ai's killer is found and killed. That's the only way he can make amends towards Ai.
Many people say that the main character Aqua is boring and a huge edge lord, but this episode explains why, which was done very well
he is a massive edge lord tho.
@@boboyo3140 and today’s episode shows exactly why, he can’t show any emotion due to his ptsd
Exactly people think he is a edgy super smart solves everything gets all the girls type of protagonist but if you just look a bit deeper he is a flawed and extremely interesting and understandable character
>folder named Hikaru
Oh sh-
Damn, witnessing Aqua's psyche was something I wasn't prepared for. Aqua getting constantly haunted about the moment his mother Ai dying reminds me of how Bruce Wayne always be reminded about losing his parents Martha and Thomas Wayne in order to become Batman.
There was a subtle indication that Aqua had given his life completely over to revenge and wasn't going to allow any other purpose in his life. In the car, just before he has the revelation about his father being responsible for Ai's death, he's thinking how Ruby will probably bounce back, but then goes on "But I've already died once already...", implying that he's preparing to die again, since Ai is gone (as a doctor, I'm certain he knows a surefire way to make that happen) but that's overridden when he realizes who's responsible and forms this new life's purpose to take revenge. So at that point, his only reason for living was taking revenge. Although this makes it much more clear while also calling back to the questions Aqua was asking himself while he was playing catch with Kana, questions about how much of him was the doctor and how much was Aqua. Is there a part of him that doesn't want to throw his life away on revenge, but the doctor's consciousness is maintaining that purpose with an iron fist?
About the folders in Gotanda’s computer:
Hajimari is the name of the first movie Aqua was with Kana and Ai, the full name is Sore Ga Hajimari
Hoshino are Ai’s separate recordings from the BKomachi bio they were recording before Ai’s death, that movie supposedly were finished with the recordings of the dome concert the day Ai died; now why he kept Ai’s recordings apart has a meaning that would explain later
Hikaru is the most interesting one for us, manga readers; without many spoilers that word is important so keep it in mind for later developments
Alane: I will fix him!
Aqua becomes momentarily happy for a few weeks
*spoiler event happens and he realizes something*
Proceeds to break double star eyed
Akane piecing together Aqua's familial connection to Ai like Sherlock Holmes does with his mystery solving. In another world, she would have been a great detective. I'm calling it right now, Akane is going to be Aqua's accomplice on his revenge seeking journey once this season is over
She can still be a great detective in the "Oshi No Ko" world. I would love a spinoff series that follows her using her research skills & method acting to solve mysteries. I forking love when she does her rapid fire deductions. I would love to see that in a spinoff series.
@@WinterGirlRules I too agree with this idea.
Yeah you re going to get really warm.
Watching her put all the pieces together was so cool. That looks like his previous self telling him he does not deserve being happy. He feels like he failed her because he was not alive to see her through the birth. He thinks that after he finds and kills his father he will die as well.
7:50 Does the director guy know about Aqua's secret, though? As far as I remember from season 1, the events in the story and his interactions with Aqua never showed him knowing Ai was Aqua's mom (just that Aqua idolized her and that he was close to her because of Miyako). But I feel like with how the folders are arranged as "Hoshino Aqua", it could be a sign that he is also about to connect the dots soon to learn Aqua's secret.
he was never specifically aware but ai always showed up with two kids that seemed to be obsessed with her. he could probably put two and two together. on top of that, after Ai's death, the two kids became incredibly depressed.
He was close to Aqua growing up, so he had a connection there.
Not to mention he would frequently see the pair with Ai and the ichigo production staff. ( Example: He was at a lost for words during the funeral)
That what you can gather from episode 1 and in this episode. So he knows a few things especially since he helped Aqua learn about the entertainment scene and whatnot.
it's funny how very few people seem to put the two and two together when Ruby is a splitting image of Ai lol
So far only Kana and the old school fan "Store manager" (from the final episode of s1) recognized their resemblance
My thoughts exactly, this is the first time we get confirmation of someone outside the family that knows Ai and the twins's secret. I though Gotanda might have suspicions, but this episode really points to him knowing. Maybe he figured it out on his own like Akane without Miyako and the twins knowing hw knows, or maybe he was told by them straight up at some point in the past.
What's also new is the revelation of Aqua going through a lot of therapy for his PTSD and him hiding from his family that he's still not fully recovered. Big piece of info
I always assumed he knew from the begining, bcs of how he interacted with Aqua after the funeral ceremony in ep 1... The way he chose words and tone of his voice really convinced me that he wants to properly pay respects to a grieving family member.
This was the best episode of season 2 so far.
I really got to commend the way the dark entity of Aqua's past self had been presented in the form of his representation of PTSD and trauma. 😢
Seen you post a clip online, such a dark scene, definitely have to start buying the manga.
Go for GOA and Abiko resolving the whole sitch regarding the script for the 2.5D Stage Play regarding Tokyo Blade. Proper communication successful
And for some reason, that wasn't plan A, instead getting relegated to plan Z.
@@HenshinFanatic Yup, it was a roundabout way of getting that problem resolved.
@HenshinFanatic these people are busy it's 4 people not just the 2 who are writing all night it's not easy to set up it's much more efficient and easier to just do the telephone
Usually, this tends to be a failure cause a lot of authors do not want their work altered and when it happens in real time, genuine friction happens between the author and the screenplay writer cause the author can be too protective or the screenplay writer can be too dismissive of the OG work. This communication was only successful because Aqua asked the author to watch the play first and make her challenge her own misconceptions about the theatre industry. The author backed down by a lot and the screenplay writer was desperate to work it out, that's why this communication was successful.
Reminds me of Dissney when they couldn't properly adapted a Marvel character Blade into the screen because of constant creative conflicts from all sides. Meanwhile Tokyo Blade is moving forward. Coincidence!?
New few episodes going to hit you in the feels. Also detective Akane is on the case. Plus she will know ALMOST everything.
Aqua x Ruby is very based indeed!
That flashback got me.... oh my gosh....
Ugh..... that scared me so bad.... I've literally cried right now...
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the reason why Akane is the best girl
Team akane les goooo
Watch out, Frieren.
"Oshi no Ko" season 2 has the potential to be "Anime of the Year".
Nah, Frieren is better. Oshi no Ko is good but anime of the year is impossible
It really depends, frieren and oshi no ko are completely different takes on slice of life.
But then again re zero is coming too this year.
If it ends where it should it definitely will
The right to integrity is a thing in Japan by their copyright laws. It’s a moral right and thus cannot be overwritten by contract, all authors keep their moral copyrights including the right to integrity. On the contrary, commercial copyright can be sold via a contract.
Under Japan's copyright laws, the original creator has final say over the use of their works, and there is the legal requirement to ensure that any secondary works maintain the same character (as in essence) of the original work, unless the original creators waives that requirement.
For example, company A wants to colab with this anime, the IP owner can say no if the company's design of aqua/ruby is way off and loses it's consistency with original character design.
The Ruby reference 😅😅😅
At 12:21, his prediction is that GOA was going to rewrite the script and present it to Abiko and in the script, the romance with the princess is not cut out because GOA wants to show his understanding of the author’s true intent right? Am I correct? Was that his prediction? Or was it GOA rewrite the script so that the princess is more true to the manga version where she feels conflicted between harming others like Akane suggested? Which one is correct please tell me
At 12:31, did he say Kana or Akane because wasn’t Akane the one that came up with the idea about the princess? Please let me know
I’m gonna be completely honest, I’m not really the Biggest fan of Aqua in general, but I can still relate to the guy to some degree. I mean Hell, I still get flashbacks every now and then of me being in the Hospital for a WEEK getting ready to have surgery for the first time in order to remove my Appendix last year for New Years. And I still have the Scars from the surgery to this day!!!
Also, I don’t see a lot of people talking about the season AT ALL, granted I’ve only seen posts get 10s of Thousands of views on Twitter, but that’s about it. I’ve been wondering if A lot of people have been talking about it on OTHER platforms though.
Aka ruined the hype for this series with all the AquRuby bullshit in the manga. so people don't care about oshi no ko anymore (in the west, bc in japan the show is still pretty popular).
Roshidere releases at the same time as this. Plus people got the attention span of a goldfish, therefore they don't want to learn about the entertainment industry and only want to see Aqua finding Ai's killer.
Hajimaru means that was the start
While Akane has deeeefinitely figured out Aqua and Ruby are Ai's secret children, I'd like to share a theory of my own... one I posted in your Discord 3 weeks ago. And with Akane's revelation, seems like a good time to share it here. My theory doesn't come from any of the plots occurring in the new season, but from the new OP itself.
Ai... is reincarnated! Mothers Basement did a deep dive into season 1's OP and how much foreshadowing was in it. And some of the imagery in season 2 OP really got my attention. Namely the appearances of Ai, especially at the end where she's in the audience, applauding Aqua. I'm sure we've all assumed this is a representation of her memory, and it's her ghost/spirit in the crowd, looking upon her children from the afterlife.
BUT... what if it's a CLUE? Foreshadowing that she really IS there, not as a spectral apparition invisible to everyone (audience and actors) but LITERALLY attending, completely unrecognized **in a new body** ?? The visual of Ai is a representation of her having her old memories, that within some child, it's Ai inside. Only thing I can't figure out is who Ai's new life is. If it's someone we've already met, or someone yet to be introduced. Only detail we have to go is it would have to be someone 3 years younger than Aqua and Ruby.
But that's my idea.
She's not. Someone's going to tell you why later on in season 3. You'll see them near the end of the season. I won't go too much but they are in the opening.
No, we'll know why in Season 3.
No, I think this is a stretch, since the wish of Ai was for her children to pursue their dreams and ambitions. Ruby is already doing that, so the opening scene in the theater is more coinned towards Aqua starting to realize his ambition to become an actor. Something Ai wished for him and where she longed to see them both reach their potential.
In my personal opinion it is a hint of Aqua developing more towards a happier future, where revenge has taken a background role, because he is radiating joy from acting on stage.
Wait one of the folders said Hikaru! Oh shit!
Foreshadowing
solid episode
Moral rights is standard law in countries that are members of WIPO.
Is there anyone else like me who suspects that Akane is the reincarnated Ai but without her previous life memories?
Akane was born before AI died. 😑
you gonna be disappointed, there's so much going on that the stage play will be the entire season
No it won't. We CLEARLY see the two new characters not from the Tokyo Blade arc in the opening.
Is there anyone else like me who suspects that Akane is the reincarnated Ai. But without her previous memories?
Except, you know, Akane was already a child when Ai died. You know she's older than the twins right?
@aohige okay, wow. Didn't know that. Well, I guess that debunks that idea. Thanks for the heads up.
I am going to assume that you have not read the manga, because in the manga it is a lot more clear that the director does not know that Aqua and Ruby are Ai's children, just that they are part of the same agency and have a strong attachment to Ai through Strawberry Productions.
MANGA SPOILERS BELOW
Later on it is revealed that the director knew the whole time that Aqua was Ai's son, but at this point in the anime you should not be aware that the director knows.
I have to admit that my empathy towards him is limited. He had therapy but dropped out by acting like everything is alright. It's one thing if it just doesn't work, but actively lying about symptoms to avoid medical care is something that a former medical doctor should know not to do. And when the trauma rears it's head again he again refuses to seek professional help and instead tries to work around the symptoms. Sorry, but in that case it's completely on him. I know that it's probably done as a literary device, but still
Well you also have to remember that Aqua is no longer Gorou, not just physically, but mentally as well. He's a completely different person now with memories of this life taking over his past life's memories. In season one Aqua says that lines between him and his old self is growing more and more blurry. With this episode and his shadow self, it shows us that he's essentially fully transitiond into his new life, with his past life only being a remnant of himself, manifested in the form of PTSD. It's not an adult in a kids body situation anymore, he's just a teenager with mental health problems now and a destructive obsession with finding Ai's killer. People pretending everything is ok when it's not is a very common thing.
@@ohthisguyagain5386 The question for me is how long you're supposed to have sympathy with people actively refusing help. Yes, people pretending to be okay when they're not is pretty common. And if they're afraid of others finding out and have never been to therapy that's understandable. But everyone in his family is aware of his trauma and he lied to get out of therapy.
To me it feels like people are using his trauma as an excuse for some of the things he does, in which case I would expect him to do something about it at some point, especially since the opportunities are there. You can't use the same excuse time and time again without at least trying to do something about it
@@marvinwolf8360 but that's the thing, Aqua himself is not using it as an excuse. In fact, he tries to keep everyone he cares out of it. The only people who use his trauma as an excuse are the viewers who defend him from other viewers who call out Aqua's manipulation. But that's from a meta standpoint, it has nothing to do with the actual story and hasn't been brought up yet, so as of now it's a non issue. What Akasaka does is show us 'why Aqua is the way he is, but never tries to justify it. Understanding does not equate to justification.
@@ohthisguyagain5386 True. But that's why I said that I don't really feel any sympathy towards him. And to be honest the whole thing is probably one of the reasons why I don't really vibe with him. I've read until the beginning of the movie arc in the manga but I don't really have any motivation to pick it up again
Well, getting help means having heart to heart with your therapist. How is he supposed to explain he's got the memories of a doctor from his previous life? That's why his self-blame runs deeper than most kids in his situation, he can't just tell anybody willy nilly that he's actually a doctor inside. Which renders the concept of therapy useless. He could have saved Ai unlike most kids in his situation, if only he had an adult's body and had the first aid kit on his hand. Plus, he's an orphan. Miyako is literally adopted the kids and therapy is expensive. Aqua knows his PTSD will be cleared only when Ai's killer is found and killed. That's the only way he can make amends towards Ai.