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April 16, 2006

RahXephon Episode 5 (review) - "On Earth as it is in Heaven"

A lot of the screenshots have Ayato and Megumi in them - they were such a big part of the episode, it was hard to get anything else.

Summary:
The episode starts with Terra's leadership getting a report on D-1's destruction. In addition, the RahXephon is being petrified in its holding area and it cannot be stopped. Commander Kunagi has to go to a meeting with members of the Earth forces. Sunglasses/Hat man (Isshiki) gets pieces of D-1 for research by the Earth forces. Ayato is also being examined and it is noticed he has odd marks, almost like runes on the skin of his stomach and chest. Quon also has marks that are similar with different symbols.

The next day, Ayato is summoned by Souichi, who asks him how he is doing. Ayato does not answer. In Terra's command center, Ayato seems angry over the events of before. Terra members whisper about the situation. The Commander says that Ayato will have a temporary
residence. He orders Haruka to take Ayato there, but when Haruka tries to take Ayato's hand to lead him out, Ayato responds angrily for her not to touch him. One of the bridge officers comments to a girl with short-red hair that the situation is not good: that everyone seems to be on Ayato's bad side.

Luckily, the scientist in glasses (Itsuki Kisaragi) says that he
will take Ayato to his destination, with the implication that he's not in Terra (he says "Not one of these people", so I assume he means Terra since there are people on the bridge that haven't met Ayato). Haruka seems upset by Ayato's coldness to her. As Ayato leaves, Souichi tries to ask Haruka something, but she walks off distraught, all the while with the red-haired girl looking on. Souichi then
turns to the red-haired girl and says "Megumi, can we talk?" Off the bridge, he asks her for a favor. He whispers it into her ear, bringing a "WHAAAAAAT???" in response from her.

Ayato and Dr. Kisaragi talk on the way. He asks Ayato if he heard the Mu's song. Ayato is confused by the name Mu, and the Doctor explains it has a literary link. Quon is waiting downstairs for them. When Kisaragi asks her how her visit was, she says the doctor is stupid, that she wouldn't need to do so many tests if she
was fine. She asks the Itsuki to dress her (like she did with Ayato in last episode). Ayato seems to be jealous, but then Quon asks Itsuki if he's coming home today, and when he responds in the affirmative, she says "Thanks very much brother". Ayato is relieved by that revelation.

They ride a boat back across the bay of Nirai Kinai. Ayato asks if the name of the place is the same as the Okinawan name for "Utopia". Itsuki explains that Nirai is the island of the ruins, and Kinai is a floating manmade island alongside it. At the same time as their boat ride, Commander Kunagi is also flying off to his meeting. Itsuki notices his plane and says he'll have a hard time protecting the RX and the ruins on the island from others. He also says Ayato has wrong views about Kunagi. As they boat on to the other side, he points out Kunagi's house, and the cherry trees in the backyard,mentioning that they're of some interest because they have such beautiful blossoms.

At Itsuki's house, they meet another woman (Sayoko), who seems to be his assistant. Ayato asks if she's his wife, and while she seems happy by the implication, he says she's just his assistant, which aggravates her. He also says that he and his sister live alone in the house, so Ayato should feel free to visit anytime. He says he is going to take Ayato to another house to live.

Meanwhile, Haruka and the pilot (Elvy) are having lunch at a grill, drinking beer and fighting over pieces of food. Elvy teases Haruka about Ayato being mad at her. Elvy also says since Haruka can't pretend to be a good person, maybe she should be a good woman. All the while, Terra Command is monitoring Ayato's location, with Souichi saying that since they can't stop the petrification on their own, they need this to work.

As they get ready to leave Itsuki's house, Quon gives Ayato a pink suitcase with things for him. She points out some holes on the side of it and says to be sure not to block them. In the car with Sayoko and Itsuki, Ayato asks how long till they reach the "concentration camp", but Itsuki says that Terra is more considerate than that. They reach a point in the car where they can't really drive further, but just then, they notice the red-haired girl from before walking up the hill towards them. She sees them and seems aggravated.

She walks up to them and says to Ayato "I can't believe you're here already" and Ayato asks "What do you mean by that?" Itsuki explains that he's staying at her house, and she angrily replies that its her uncle's house. She says she lives next door, so Ayato shouldn't get too excited, he comments that shouldn't be a problem. They go back and forth for a bit, with Megumi noticing his pink suitcase and Ayato commenting on her need to comment, until the sci says "What a sweet couple you make." which aggravates them both.

At the house, Ayato is given lunch, but doesn't eat. Megumi's uncle says the change must be quite a difference from when he lived in Tokyo Jupiter, but says he hopes Ayato will adapt. He says Ayato should pretend he's staying with a relative and to relax. Ayato replies that he never had any relatives to visit.

Megumi goes to leave, but her uncle asks her to show Ayato around town before dinner. She gets upset...

... but he reminds her "Remember what I always tell you", and she disgruntedly agrees to give him a tour.

Ayato is shown the island's various windmills, and then the seaside. Ayato asks what her uncle always tells her, but she doesn't answer and says angrily how she can't believe Ayato is living at her house. Ayato gets angry and walks away, but Megumi goes to stop him (falling off the wall she is sitting on). She says that even if Ayato gets mad at her, he can't leave - that he shouldn't try to go away.

As Ayato is still aggravated, it starts to rain, so they run to a store where Megumi goes to buy a ramune soda drink. She catches Ayato staring at her at one point so she chastises him, then tells him that her big sister lives in her part of the house with her, so he shouldn't think of sneaking in that side. As they bicker, two young women of their age walk by, commenting on how the "local school-phobic is out on a date." Megumi grows sad, and Ayato asks her why she's not in school and if that's why she's in the military. He tries to offer her a handkerchief, but she just grows angrier and angrier at his attempts to be nice. He angrily comments "At least you have someplace you belong." and she seems saddened by his comment. She then notices Ayato framing things with his fingers, and he explains he was going to be a painter after high school. She realizes that the inside of Tokyo Jupiter must be like outside, with schools and such and how Ayato can't get back. She tries to apologize for not getting him a ramune soda, and realizes that he's never had one. She gives him hers to try a sip, but he can't drink the soda around the marble in it. She starts laughing, explaining you have to hook the marble in place to drink it. As Ayato laughs, the skies clear up and the sun comes out all of the sudden, leaving one to wonder if there's a link or not. (he comments "It's getting cooler).

At the house, Ayato opens the suitcase, wondering about the things inside. As he looks at the clothes, wondering who would wear any of it, Buchi (the cat) peeks out of the suitcase. Ayato realizes the holes were for him. Buchi runs off. Haruka and Elvy come in front door, and we realize that Haruka lives there. She sees Buchi, and just then Ayato comes up. He realizes that Megumi's sister must be Haruka. He holds out his hands (ostensibly to take Buchi) and says
"Welcome home." which cheers Haruka up. Elvy decides to stay for dinner, demanding that Megumi get her more beer.

Elvy is drunk and acts attracted to Ayato (very amusing), but the uncle asks Ayato for a favor in the other room. Ayato asks the uncle what the thing he always tells Megumi is, and he tells Ayato a version of the Golden Rule. He gives Ayato a name plaque (of his name) to hang by the entrance.

Back at the base, Souichi is near the RX and he comments "It's getting cooler" When he turns around, we see the petrification on the RX is gone, and says that using Megumi was the right move.

We flash back to Megumi who is looking at a photo of herself and the people at Terra Command. She turns to look out the window, only to notice Ayato using his fingers (like he did earlier) to frame her
like he was going to take a picture. She closes the curtains on him
Uncle Rikudoh gets a call from Kunagi and he says that taking care of Ayato is no problem.

At Itsuki's house, Quon is playing piano while Itsuki has a drink. As he combs her hair (in an odd scene), he mentions about how cherry blossoms have a legend about why they're red (first ones on a grave site, blood seeped into roots to make red blossoms). He says Kunagi's trees blossom blue, and wonders what kinds of people are buried in his yard.

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There's a lot of setup and hidden meaning in this episode. Some of it might even be red herrings for the series.

1) The blue blossoms.
2) The "It's getting cooler" with the weather changes timing themselves with Ayato's mood.
3) The runes on Ayato and Quon's bodies.

The writers use subtlety in referring to some of these instances, so in many cases, you can't be sure of what the implication is, or in the case of the weather, if there even is a connection. We're still left feeling out many of the character interactions, piecing together the tapestry of Nirai Kinai and TERRA.

Ayato and Megumi have several amusing scenes which I cannot fully describe. They irritate each other greatly, and their attitudes go back and forth, but in the end, we're left with the potential for more character development. The writers leave Megumi's age slightly ambiguous, but without looking it up in the RX bible, I would say she's probably a year or two younger than Ayato.

There are a number of great sets of paired personalities - Ayato and Megumi, Kunagi and Souichi, Itsuki and Quon, Itsuki and Sayoko, Kim and Megumi. It'll be interesting to see how these groups mix in future interactions. Of course, since we have the classic "We all live together" setup, we'll get a great deal of our development out of Professor Rikudoh, Megumi, Ayato, and Haruka in the same house, and Quon and Itsuki will also fit into this puzzle.

Quon and Itsuki make one disturbing pair though...

Posted by Drylnn at 04:16 PM | Comments (0)