I loved every scene (Kyoko never looked more beautiful), but my favorite was when Kyoko refused to leave, saying, “I won’t stand up until the guest does.” I have never heard anyone shake their voice as well as Marina Inoue did that moment.

I find that if there is really a character flaw that I must proclaim against the goddess, it is the exact thing you mention at the first paragraph of your comment. It seems that the anime/manga seems to focus a lot about her hatred of Dicktaro and how she is shaped by her, but her most hideous issues came from her mother. This sheer foolhardy behavior is due to her need to

I don’t think that Kyoko would have been allowed to win (not because of the director) by the mangaka. It will be too easy a ride, and the best way to build up a character like Kyoko would be to let her fail at least once or twice at the start in order for her to fly eventually. It’s a standard plot style that always works.

@Twilight: I don’t know. I just feel that he needs to look better, since I am a terrible whiner! Heh. OH YA, I FORGOT completely about that little part because it actually shows that scary part of Ren that can be so awesome.

I think that this arc actually displays how much of her life has been twisted by Dicktaro and her mother. It’s kinda scary and sad at the same time.

@Kreb: Glad to hear that.

@Chro: WAHHH. you are just like me when I read the manga for the first time. Yes, you hear it right, I read the manga more than once. More than twice. More than thrice. Actually, never mind, I should stop scaring people.

Yes, her mouth gaping wide is just so hilarious and the blank look is just so great in the anime compared to the manga. There are some quips I have with the animation at times (cough Ren cough), but there are extremely brilliant touches too.

Also, at about ch. 51 of the manga, and trying to figure out exactly how far the anime is going to go with the series. I might read a little more later tonight ^_^

I read the manga so that is no spoiler for :p

But if Kyoko never won against this issue the show wouldn’t have a point. Sure its something that has to be done closer to the end of the source material. But as you said above the point of the section is to learn how to love. I don’t think she can do that unless she overcomes her issues with Shotaro and the person she used to be. If she can’t do that the section has no meaning. The show would lose meaning in my view if she wasn’t able to grow. And that direction is where her growth is most necessary. Its not going to happen in one episode, but step by step she has to learn to accept her old self.

While it would be incredibly hard I don’t think its impossible to fight against Ren. Kyoko has shown plenty of strength to this point. Its another thing that won’t be easy to accomplish. But all she needs to do is work herself up to having a strong enough aura that can go right against Ren’s. Someone with determination on her level probably will accomplish it.

@Flareknight: Well, I think that Kyoko’s determination is really foolhardy at times. In this case, Kyoko’s pride due to her history (and her need to be perfect) made her endure it onto the very end. I will say on the good side that it means that she is very determined at what she does. On the bad side, she is so driven that she forsakes her own body in order to complete her task. She is clearly not loving herself enough. Remember, she went into LOVE me section in order to learn how to love, and loving others. She is only doing the “loving others” for now.

I think that it is to be expected at the end that Kyoko would never win this battle. In a way, it makes the show grounded because if Kyoko won, it would probably derail the whole show into shallow drama. That’s just me though.

I do not think that it is really possible to fight against Ren when he is serious about his acting. The thing is that someone often leads in the acting, and Ren’s forceful acting makes it hard for someone not to be attracted by his mere aura. That’s how awesome he is.

@Maura: LOL, I bet Kyoko’s spirits are thinking of ways to swallow Ren up into a wave of evilness. I mean Ren is really detesting now in Kyoko’s sights even though he meant well because he is simply prideful of his work as an actor. No one will like Kyoko if they knew her motivation to be an actress.

Yes, the chibis!

@Elva: \O/

Feel bad for Kyoko since she never had a shot to win. Was almost a good thing for the Director that she ended up fainting. If she had kept going still giving the job to Ruriko would have made him look bad.

Kyoko is an interesting character. She has great skills she can’t accept because of where they came from. Ironic how the way for her to get to the top will have to be overcoming her revenge toward Shotaro and stop hating her old self. Those skills are still good no matter how they came about. Like the director though I’m looking forward to her reaching a level where she can act without being affected by Ren.

Kyoko is really funny at many scenes in this episode. It’s just so exciting!