Desslock Theater Presents: Infinite Ryvius

[Leader Desslock]

I'd earlier pegged Infinite Ryvius as a basic allegory with a lot of narrative tropes, but it's proving to be a far more comprehensive treatment. I think the narrative tropes will be there, but they'll play second fiddle to the needs of the allegory. I've made a lot of Lord Of The Flies references so far, and that's because this is (in many ways so far) the same story.

And now, let's bite into the face of this allegory like a Florida tweaker...

The Student Body - I hadn't mentioned them, because I thought they'd be more or less background noise, but it turns out they play a role in the allegory. They're "the people", or more specifically, "the governed". Different philosophies will come to power to govern the population. The student body's reactions to the ruling power, its decisions, etc. will reflect the reaction of society to that style of government. The efficacy of the style of government will be reflected in how effectively the student body performs the tasks required to meet their needs and survive.

Immediately after the accident (as mentioned), the Zwei handed out 'suggestions' (not to be enforced) from the handbook to ensure cooperation and harmonious cohabitation until the student body could be rescued. Thus, our social laboratory experiment starts out with Egalitarianism - a system in which all of the survivors are equal.

Of course, not all of the survivors are equal. They perform different types of jobs, some of which are more important to the survival of the ship than others. But these differences are ignored at first, and while different students have different levels of ability, no social command hierarchy based on these differences exists.

Zwei - The Zwei are the school elites, and their actions have been largely responsible for saving everyone's lives. They're also the only people able to figure out the secrets of Ryvius at first, and because they were involved in events from the command center, they possess more knowledge about what actually happened in the accident. Because of this, several members (especially their 'captain' Lucson) tend to think of the Zwei as 'more equal than most people'. (This will be a recurring theme) The Zwei represent a form of Aristocracy / Meritocracy / Oligarchy - the rule of the masses by an elite few.

How does that play out? Well... pretty well, at first. Because the Zwei's elite status is widely acknowledged by the student body, the Zwei operate by The Consent Of The Governed. You hear minor grumbling from the student body about how the Zwei are a bit full of themselves or not as good as they claim to be, but by and large, everyone still does what the Zwei ask of them and Stuff Gets Done. People get fed in the cafeteria, cargo gets moved, people are housed, the ship is inspected and brought to safe working order - society hums along with everyone doing their part.

Of course, it's still not a perfect system. The Zwei (especially Lucson) are keen on withholding information and making decisions "in the best interests of everyone". Many of these are actaully good decisions, but the point is that nobody ever granted them the power to make decisions for anyone. They just do it because, being elites, they assume they know best what to do. This will come back to bite them in the *** as they continue to conceal more and more information about the Ryvius' true situation. And it's not just information - Lucson also makes decisions that affect lives, such as his decision not to move the saboteurs/prisoners from the Libel until it's too late to save them. He conceals this decision (and its consequences) even from some of the other elites (like Star Pupil).

The end of the Zwei's rule (and of the rule of Lucson, particularly) comes when The Delinquents (Team Blue, I think) discovers that the Zwei are hiding information and making life-or-death decisions that affect the others. Viewing the ruling social order to be: a) incompetent, b) weaker, and c) a potential threat, Airs Blue (the Mysterious Stranger, a.k.a.: Hachimaki) stages a coup and takes command of the Ryvius command bridge.

The Deilnquents' coup is very well planned and executed. They find and indoctrinate the weakest member of the Zwei (Charlie) in order to get the inside information they need. Their leader has the only handheld weapon on the ship, and they're among the strongest fighters. They're outnumbered, but they get Charlie to lock a portion of the Zwei out of the command bridge to even things up. They storm the bridge, claim control by force, and... that's pretty much it. The Aristocracy is tossed out by Authoritarian rule.

A couple of details about the Delinquents and their coup are worth noting:

1) The head of the Delinquents (Blue) has a personal life philosophy of "I'll do what I want" and he makes that very clear whenever anyone tries to give him an order. He uses this personal philosophy to legitimize his actions, encouraging everyone else to do whatever it is they want to do as well. This is merely a thinly veiled threat, however, as it's quite clear that doing anything other than what Blue suggests would be tantamount to suicide. He's a Dictator wrapping himself in the more acceptable trappings of Egalitarianism, with a pistol in the folds of his robes.

Interestingly, Blue is true to his philosophy in that he rarely gives direct orders. Unlike Lucson, who shouted commands every third sentence, Blue typically listens to all the options on the table, then nods to his lieutenants to carry out the suggestion he finds most beneficial.

2) Blue believes strongly in the power of the Individual to determine his own course of action (he does, after all). He respects strength and ability (he has both). Because of this, he's just as apt to take advice from a former adversary as he is from his most trusted lieutenants - but at a price. He takes advice from the best source at his disposal, but always making it known that the onus for success is on the advisor (failure would indicate weakness, which Blue detests). In that sense, he uses the people around him like pawns, but then... in some situations (i.e.: combat), this is a better approach than Lucson, who is prone to dismiss a good idea if it didn't come from the lips of a fellow Elite. Blue might be brutal, but he's a more effective leader than Lucson in several respects.

3) The very first action of the Delinquents is revealing - they broadcast the truth of the Ryvius and its situation to the student body in order to discredit the previous leadership. They play the "them vs. us" card, fanning the tiny sparks of petty discontent into full-scale resentment of the Zwei. And by bringing up the fate of the saboteurs on the Liebel, he additionally paints the Zwei's actions (particularly Lucson's) as criminal. The Delinquents (and Blue especially) realize that the key to dislodging the Zwei's Rule By Consent Of The Governed is to get the Governed to remove their Consent. Which they do, as the remarks from the Student Body indicate. This has a double effect of splintering Lucson's support among the Zwei themselves, preventing any future attempt at reestablishing the Zwei's order.

The specific reactions of several characters to the Delinquents' coup are interesting, in that they reveal aspects of the philosophies they represent:

- Stein (the smart guy who was second in command under Lucson) is a Zwei, so he believes in the rule of an elite few, but... he's a bit more pragmatic about it than Lucson. Stein isn't hung up on the whole "inherent right" to rule that Lucson seems to have (making Lucson a Monarchist, in a sense). Rather, Stein realizes that at the end of the day, stuff needs to get done and somebody's gotta be in charge to make it happen. He doesn't really care who sits in the Big Chair or why. He just knows that someone's gotta sit there, and it's his job to make sure that the orders of the Big Chair get carried out. If Lucson's in the chair, he supports Lucson. The moment Blue sits in the chair, Stein supports Blue. He's not betraying Lucson so much as fulfilling his role in the prevalent social order.

- Juli (Star Pupil) begrudgingly assents to the new rule for a couple of reasons: First, she's disillusioned in Lucson's rule already. She is the most shocked to learn of the prisoners' fate upon the Liebel, and when she confronts Lucson about it, he (unwisely) dismisses her concerns by saying "they're criminals; what does their fate matter?" Second, and most importantly, she realizes that capitulating the Blue's rule is the only way to protect everyone from further harm (by Blue, granted). She's an Aristocrat in the true (finest) sense of the word - she truly views leadership as a responsibility to care for her charges, and if that requires swallowing her pride to protect them, she will do it.

Interestingly, she's not afraid to tell Blue exactly what she thinks, and he seems to respect her for doing so. He recognizes her as a useful ally (or pawn), and will follow her advice if it's the best given. I don't know whether you'd call this a mutual understanding or a truce, or just a begrudged wartime alliance, but it works for them at first.

- Charlie makes no bones about the fact he's helped the Delinquents, and that he supports Blue's rule. This makes sense, because even though he's a member of the formerly elite Zwei, he was treated as a non-elite among them. Jumping on Blue's coattails might seem opportunistic, but it gives him an "in" with the new ruling party that even Lucson no longer has. He wants to be a part of the elite not for the sake of altruism or leadership, but simply for the sake of being part of the elite.

[Leader Desslock]

- Kouji could be labeled a Collaborator during the Delinquents' coup; he didn't support it, but he didn't do anything to try and stop it, and once it became inevitable that the coup would succeed, he worked quite hard on Blue's behalf. He did this ostensibly to save his brother from Blue's wrath, but even if Yuki hadn't been there, he probably would've done exactly the same thing.

Even so, I don't think I'd consider Kouji a Collaborator. His actions are almost always altruistic, and his reasons for ending the conflict and getting back to business quickly were sound. because of that, I was almost ready to label him the Voice Of Reason, but... he's not quite that, either. And it's too simplistic to simply label him "the everyman" who has to navigate the allegorical social options laid before him. Aoi specifically calls attention to Kouji's one remarkable ability: "The ability to make people like him."

I think Kouji is one half of a broken coin, and Yuki's the other half. Both of them broke at one point in the past (resulting in a scar on Kouji's shoulder, by the look of it), and they're both stuck there (as Ferret Girl points out). Kouji ended up being the Adult side, while Yuki remains the Child. On the Adult side are responsibility, altruism, respect, an acknowledgement of social order, reason and all those other things that go with maturity. On the Child side are recklessness, selfishness, irreverence, disdain for social order, impulsiveness and all the other things that go with adolesence. They both need what the other has to make a whole person. They both would deny this consciously, but on a subconscious level, they both seem to understand that they're too far away from the center of the same spectrum.


Okay, so with the Delinquent coup a success and the second governing philosophy on stage, how does it play out? Well... better in some ways, worse in others. On the one hand, under the Authoritarian Rule of the Blues, the Ryvius is prepped and ready for battle in time for it to matter. The Blues understand the need for strength in a way that idealistic Aristocrats never would, and under Lucson's rule, the Ryvius would've been stopped at Mars, no question. So it looks like the Authoritarian system of using force to assign people to tasks based on ability works for War Preparations. In other areas, the Authoritarian system breaks down quite heavily. On a ship with enough food to feed thousands for months, the cafeterias are unstaffed and the Student Body is growing hungry and dissatisfied.

"From each, according to his ability..." wasn't that one of Karl Marx's favorite lines? Blue's Authoritarian Rule has strong echoes of the past in that regard, which tells you what's going to happen next. Marx's quote ends "...to each, according to his needs", so it's only a matter of time before things like merit-based rationing of resources as a system of rewards and punishment pop up. Of course, Blue and his cadre won't be subject to such restrictions, so Orwell's "Some animals are more equal than others" system is going to work its way in as well. It hasn't happened by Episode Eleven, but I'll lay odds that I'll see the end of Blue's rule in the next few episodes. The Student Body will rally around the fed-up proletariat and Blue's revolt will come to a swift end.


Having been fed up with the rule of Elites and Thugs, I expect the next ruler to be... either Democratic or Idealistic. If I had to pick a representative of those philosophies, it'd be either Star Pupil or Ikumi, respectively. It frankly doesn't matter which one takes the stage next; both systems have their own flaws, and they'll be exposed as easily as Lucson's or Blue's philosophies.

One other character I'd like to mention is Ferret Girl, who seems to be the voice of either Fatalism or Faith, or perhaps both at this point. She'll play a bigger part.

[Leader Desslock]

Ah, didn't expect a recap so soon. You're supposed to save that for Episode 13, damn you!

I've just got a couple of notes for this one:

- Ironically (but not coincidentally), Blue's bridge crew is contemplating lying to the Student Body in order to get them to go along with their escape plan. Star Pupil actually calls Stein a Realist for his agreement, but declines the philosophical debate on the matter he suggests she's starting. The reason it's ironic that the bridge crew is lying to the student body is... that's what the bad guys in control of the Solar System government are doing in regards to Ryvius. When I said that everything on Ryvius is being echoed by the Big Government, I wasn't joking.

- Yuki correctly calls it. When asked for his opinion, he says, "It doesn't matter what I say, this guy [Blue] is going to do what he wants anyway." He's still rebelling, but he's learned the pecking order, at least.

- When asked for his opinion, Blue ... doesn't have one. He lets everyone else decide. This is outside his area of expertise, so it doesn't interest him. Granted, the fact that he lets them decide means that he's still in absolute control...

- Kouji objects to the plan to lie to the Student Body on purely practical grounds ("it'll come out, and when it does..."), rather than moral grounds. And still he acts as The Adult, both for Yuki and Ikumi.

- The Ferret Priestess of Uranus consoled Kouji with scripture. I'll be interested to see where they go with her, because I have a feeling that Faith isn't going to mix well with one of the philosophies coming up, and traditionally, that's Authoritarianism.

- Ha! The food shortages and hoarding are already showing up.

- It sounds like Creepy Geduldian (I think a Space Squid called it Neya?) is the little sister to the Big Dreadnaught coming in from outside the solar system. Let's hope they get along better than Kouji and Yuki. I'll bet they don't because I'll bet the Kouji/Yuki resolution is going to be reflected in the conflicts between Neya and her siblings.

[Arnold]

You know, several years ago I picked up the first volume of this seris on DVD because it was cheap and I had a couple of bucks to spare. After this thread, maybe it'll be worth finally giving it a shot.

[KT Kore]

Ryvius is one of the best blind purchases I ever made.

[Leader Desslock]

Well, I called those episodes more precisely than I expected. The Delinquent coup came to an end due to worker discontent at the privileged ruling class. Resource shortages were extreme, a merit-based system of rationing resources was introduced, Blue and his gang were exempt from the restrictions and it all came crashing down in a few episodes. Authoritarianism was replaced with Democracy, and the newly elected (without her knowledge) leader is Star Pupil.

Creepy Geduldian's counterpart in another powerful warship is a spiky blob in an aquarium. It seems to respond to its crew (and especially its captain) in the same way Creepy does, the difference being that the thoughts of the enemy warship (the Blue Impulse) are full of bloodlust. And his ship responds to that bloodlust, echoing thoughts like "hurt, feel fear, be frightened, give up...".

When I saw the spiky blob in the tank, I assumed that Creepy's girl form was a mental projection, while her body was a similar blob in a tank inside the Vital Guarder. But Creepy's girl form is evidently a tangible form - she passed out from pain and was brought back to one of the Survivor's quarters. She also uttered the first words I've heard that weren't merely echolalic - she complained that she hurt from the battle, then asked if hurting and not giving up was what it meant to be human.

I find it interesting that Blue tossed his headband to Yuki upon fleeing the revolt. I think he sees Yuki as a spiritual successor - someone who lives to fight. Yuki has shown that he understands Blue's actions better than most, but... I think Yuki's more than that, and I don't think Yuki's salvation will come about by him walking down Blue's path.

So... what comes next?

Stein will fall in line behind Star Pupil's regime without skipping a beat. He seems to have engineered Blue's downfall (without the knowledge of Star Pupil). If he similarly engineers Star Pupil's downfall, then I'm going to upgrade him to The Power Behind The Throne.

Star Pupil will be a good president of the new Democracy. Stuff will get done again, but... this is a warship in a combat situation, and Democracy will ultimately prove to be an ineffective form of government. It won't be responsive enough to defend the ship against external threats in combat, which means Star Pupil and the bridge crew will have to make decisions on their own, based on their best judgement. But that's just the original Aristocracy they had, and Star Pupil will know it.

That won't be what tears apart the Democracy, however. The Student Body will. As resources grow scarce, they'll stop voting for "what's best for all" and start voting for "what's best for me". Tribal mentality will kick in and fracture what little unity there might be left among The Governed.

Star Pupil's regime will be replaced by... Hmmm... I called Ikumi earlier, right? An idealistic, utopian rule? I could be quite wrong, but I think I'll stick with that, for now.

Originally Posted by Arnold

You know, several years ago I picked up the first volume of this seris on DVD because it was cheap and I had a couple of bucks to spare. After this thread, maybe it'll be worth finally giving it a shot.

From what I know of your tastes, you will like it.

[Leader Desslock]

The cracks are starting to show in Star Pupil's regime already.

Stuff is once again Getting Done under the Democratic Star Pupil regime - repair crews are working on the outside of the ship, normal functions like feeding people, transporting goods and doing laundry are happening. But worker efficiency has dropped 30%. Decisions take longer to get made, largely due to Star Pupil's inability to delegate tasks effectively. She also lacks a strong command presence, requesting people perform certain tasks and visibly expressing self-doubt. This causes the people around her to waver as well, as Stein points out (he functions in an advisory capacity). Without the kick in the backside from Blue's thugs, The Student Body is unmotivated.

In the power vacuum created by the collapse of Blue's Authoritarian regime, something else has popped up - crime. Theft, gambling, gang violence. The new Democratic regime doesn't seem as prepared to handle social aberrations from The Order Of Things - when things are reported, Star Pupil orders investigations and reports to be written, rather than swift action.

A lot more paperwork seems to be getting done these days, too.

On the military front, the ship appears to have walked straight into a trap set by... a bunch of old Valkyries ... in command of another one of Creepy's sibling vessels.

Interestingly, the Blue Impulse's commander seems to have become completely unhinged (he's in a straitjacket and padded cell) which leads me to wonder: Does operating one of these ships eventually drive the operator mad, or is being slightly insane one of the prerequisites for operating one? Several of the commanders thus far have seen a bit... quirky.

Creepy visibly responds not just to Kouji in this episode, but to both Kouji and Yuki equally. That lends weight to my earlier guess that they're two halves of a whole. Once they're united (Responsibility and Spirit), I expect they'll be able to really unleash the power of Ryvius. I don't think they've tapped into more than a fraction of what it can do yet.

Interesting note: The Ferret Priestess Of Uranus appears to be quietly gathering a flock of the faithful in her quarters. (right around the time Ryvius is attacked by Valkyries... hmm...) That means I might be wrong about the next regime being Ikumi's Idealism. If she garners enough power, the Democracy might be swept aside for a Theocracy of some kind, under the Priestess' rule.

Following the antics of Blue In Exile, we can see that he had a run-in with Creepy that he definitely found... creepy. Scared him enough to empty his clip into the wall, by the looks of it. Blue's got a hunted animal look about him now.

[Leader Desslock]

Our Democratically Elected Star Pupil acknowledges her limitations to Stein - that she can't be entrusted with the responsibility of saving lives. The Vital Guarder crew saves the ship from death at the Valkyries' hands, but not without a cost this time - the Valkyries manage to inflict damage to the Ryvius and there are casualties.

This causes stress on the Student Body, which gradually falls into despair and hopelessness. People don't see the point in working, because nothing they do will ultimately help their situation. The Student Body drifts further into chaos, anarchy, lawlessness and violence, to the point where it's not safe for a woman to walk alone in the corridors (or Kouji, or Pat, or Lucson...). This increases over these episodes as their society unravels.

The focus of these episodes shifts strongly toward the motives and actions of The Individual. These play out in all of the little interpersonal dramas that have been simmering since the beginning of the show. Kouji falls into conflict with practically everyone at some point - Yuki (repeatedly), Ikumi, Aoi, The Ferret Priestess. Quite a lot of the longstanding friendships unravel as well.

Oddly enough, Kouji seems to have made peace with Blue, to whom he gives food and information. Blue turns over his gun to Kouji, not as repayment, but seemingly because it amuses Blue. He wants to see what a guy like Kouji would do if given real power, but Kouji proves (so far) immune to the temptation to use it, even in his own defense.

Star Pupil resigns her office when confronted by members of the Student Body. She does take full responsibility for the events during her tenure, but when that doesn't seem to be enough for the public (who wants blood), she throws it back in their faces by asking "What should I have done?" They don't have an answer for her - nobody does. But even though she quits, she still seems to stick around the command center, and her feedback is still given on decisions affecting the ship's operations. She specifically states that she opposes the use of force to curb the social problems on the Ryvius, even though she doesn't have another plan.

While Ikumi was defending the ship on the Vital Guarder, he certainly "saved" his girlfriend, but he was unable to "protect" her from harm. She gets badly beaten by some other girls who resent her earlier status. Ikumi pretty much snaps at that point. He blames himself exclusively for the beating and falls into despair at his own powerlessness. This is just a reopening of the old would he evidently suffered in the past, when he was unable to protect his sister, who died. He obsessively guards his girlfriend in Officer's quarters, then roams the ship as a quasi-vigilate. Whenever he stumbles across anyone engaged in senseless violence, he beats them senseless. He confronts the bridge crew about the problems on the ship, but when he realizes how ineffective they are, he storms off. He reflects fondly for a moment about how things were most stable on the ship when Blue was in command, and then... he realizes what he needs to do. He launches alone in the Vital Guarder, grabs the Ryvius, and mandates peace and cooperation on the ship under threat of force.

Ikumi's attempting to create his utopian/ideal society - one in which everyone will be safe. While I'm kinda glad I predicted that one, this is absolutely not how I imagined it would play out.

There are a few very important scenes in these episodes:

- After the battle, Yuki gets social acknowledgement for the first time. He feels like a team member, even though he won't admit it openly. He's getting recognized for his abilities, which allows him to start making ties to the others on his team.

- Kouji dumps the Ferret Priestess of Uranus, who turns out to be a little bit creepy and obsessive about it. I'm not entirely certain she won't try to kill Aoi in the next few episodes, quite honestly. Anyway, in rejecting her, Kouji is also rejecting her philosophy of "walk away from the past". He specifically tells her that walking away from his past is the thing he shouldn't do; he has to come to terms with and accept his past. She does not take this well - a point that's underscored by the quick justapositions of a) her hurt expression and b) her ferret savaging Kouji's lunch.

- Aoi gets called on her BS (not unfairly) for leading on both brothers. This causes her to have a bit of a crisis in regards to them, in that she's not sure if stopping their fights is motivated by a desire for their reconciliation, or for a desire to have them both.

- Kouji has an a conversation with Creepy Neya Geduldian and in fact introduces himself to her. She converses quite naturally about what Kouji wants, and since he's starting to finally wrap his head around the whole "do what you want" thing, he's able to answer her. He's got a lot of work before he can put the "do what's best" thing into proper perspective (just as Yuki has as much work to do before he'll be able to put the "do what I want" thing in perspective), but it's a start.

[Leader Desslock]

Ikumi's utopian society takes shape: His ideals of Peace and Justice are implemented absolutely, with no infractions permitted. He has a private force dubbed "The Guardians" whose job it is to find and deal with infractions. Unlike Blue, Ikumi demands that his Guardians follow the same ideals they're enforcing.

The result? The ship is definitely safer. Crime drops to three percent of its previous level.

I'm still not sure whether Stein is The Power Behind The Throne, but it's quite likely. I doubt the Vital Guarder could've launched without his knowledge, and possibly his assistance. Whether he had a direct hand in it, he certainly jumps on the Ikumi bandwagon when it arrives, egging on Ikumi to demonstrate a show of force to ensure compliance. He appears rapturously happy at the change of rule.

The Ferret Priestess of Uranus supports Ikumi as well, feeling that his actions will show them the way to their future. In fact, she prevents Kouji from even talking to Ikumi, for fear Kouji will remind him of his past.

Also of note - it didn't even take one whole episode for the Ferret Priestess of Uranus to make an attempt on Aoi's life. She really believes in cutting ties with the past.

Aoi, for her part, comes unhinged a bit, but not so unhinged as Ikumi, Ikumi's girlfriend, the Ferret Priestess of Uranus, Stein, and several other people on board the ship. Kouji and Aoi end up having a simul-breakdown and bawling in each others' arms.

And the feel of life in Ikumi's utopian society? Tense. Things are getting done more than they were under Star Pupil, but the Student Body is even more tense than it was under Blue's rule. People feel watched all the time ('cause they are).

There's an interesting contrast between Ikumi and Yuki here - Ikumi is genuinely doing this out of desperation, for everyone's benefit. He's discouraged that people have to be threatened just to act civilly to one another, but he still feels that people are worth saving. Yuki simply dismisses what he views as "human trash" for being the useless lot they are.

[superplough]

Jeez Dess you watch this way too fast. I cant keep up.

[Leader Desslock]

It's a Two-Part Space Squid Exposition Spectacular!

Part 1: Interview With A Space Squid

Part 2: Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Space Squids, But Couldn't Ask Because Of The Neutrino Burst

Really, I could've saved myself a ton of thinking by just waiting until Episode 22, where it's all explained for me.

So now we FINALLY find out why the Captain of the Space Submarine is so hell-bent to take down Bratica (which I assume is a corruption of "Black" for "Black Ryvius", since the other ships are named after colors as well). We also find out why Naya was able to bond with Kouji and the rest of the Ryvius crew (she is an immature Space Squid who hasn't yet crystallized and thus, like a child, is more open to ideas than adults). We find out why Maya ships are so important to humankind, and all sorts of other fun stuff.

We also find out (via Naya's reflections) the primary motivation of everyone on board the Ryvius, saving ourselves from thinking at all.

At this point, I think it's "sit back and watch the fight" time, 'cause the existential excrement's gonna hit the fan. Near Uranus, ironically. Don't laugh.

[Leader Desslock]

Ah, Stein really is the Power Behind The Throne, although I think I'd prefer to call him the Grand Vizier at the moment. Everyone knows that Grand Viziers are crazy. It's part of the job description.

I guess we really did have time for one more philosophy after all. Under the guise of Ikumi's Utopian Society of Peace And Justice, Stein's tainted the waters with his own implementation of Totalitarianism. And unfortunately for the Student Body, Stein's very good at whatever he does.

Ikumi, still the blind idealist, shoots Kouji for disagreeing with him. He's going a bit nuts, with shades of Light Yagami's god complex shining through. Yuki needs a beating from Blue to show him that all he's doing is being a pawn of the system.

And just in case we all missed it, the Ferret Princess of Uranus is Totally Bat**** Insane.

[Jon]

Originally Posted by Leader Desslock

And just in case we all missed it, the Ferret Princess of Uranus is Totally Bat**** Insane.

That threw me off, I was not prepared for that when I originally watched the show.

Good series though, looks like you marathoned it...Best way to do it!

[Leader Desslock]

And I'm done.

Damned good show. Let the spoilerful discussion commence.

[Arch-Defender]

Well I guess my first question is now that you've seen the show to the end, what do you think of the characters, bet you got a few surprise near the end