Sailor Moon Crystal: Episode 5 Chatlog

Sorry this is going up so late. Should be back on schedule starting tomorrow.

Also Saturday's post has been updated with the Kill la Kill liveblog.

01[14:45] <Froborr> Okay, SMC queueing up and I'm past the pre-watching ad.
01[14:46] <Froborr> Also I learned that just because something looks like a red pepper flake doesn't mean it isn't a small, flat piece of Thai pepper, roughly 2-7 times as spicy.
01[14:47] <Froborr> (The Scoville scale is... not precise.)
[14:50] <Arrlaari> That's rough, buddy
[14:51] <Arrlaari> ("That's rough, buddy" is my favorite line in Avatar: the Last Airbender)
01[14:54] <Froborr> It's good, but "I can't believe the captain remembered my birthday!" is even better.
01[14:54] <Froborr> Less widely applicable, though.
[14:54] <Arrlaari> Froborr, after SMC will you have time to continue the conversation from last week, or will you have somewhere to be in short order?
01[14:54] <Froborr> Afraid not, sorry.
01[14:55] <Froborr> Next time?
[14:55] <Arrlaari> I suppose so
[14:55] <FoME> Bad news: Hulu did not offer the ad-skip option this time.
01[14:55] <Froborr> I've got ads too.
[14:56] <Arrlaari> Crunchroll ads
[14:56] <@Sylocat> Alrighty then... lemme know when you hit them, &c.
[14:56] <Arrlaari> Which are both provided by and advertising for Crunchyroll
01[14:57] <Froborr> I've never understood that.
01[14:57] <Froborr> Why would you advertise your own service to people who are alrady using the service?
[14:57] <FoME> I switched to Crunchy. Hopefully Arrlaari and I will be somewhat synchronized.
[14:57] <Arrlaari> They're advertising the subscription
01[14:58] <Froborr> Oh, that sort of makes sense, I guess.
[14:58] <Arrlaari> Generally the overt feature profferred is access on mobile devices, but the implicit feature offer is no advertisements
[14:58] <Arrlaari> Also, higher resolution streams
[14:59] <@Sylocat> Ready?
01[14:59] <Froborr> Yep.
[14:59] <FoME> Whenever you are.
[14:59] <@Sylocat> Click
[15:00] <@Sylocat> So, judging from the episode title, here is where we meet Sailor Jupiter
[15:00] <FoME> And the last bit of the last episode.
[15:00] <@Sylocat> Usagi zaps her back!
[15:00] <@Sylocat> Wow
01[15:01] <Froborr> Annnd Usagi has another crush.
01[15:01] <Froborr> ...Did she just steal her umbrella?
[15:01] <FoME> Nope. Roses, not rabbits.
[15:01] <Arrlaari> No, they each have their own umbrella
[15:01] <@Sylocat> No, her umbrella was red
[15:01] <FoME> Also, "smelled nice?" Really, Usagi?
[15:01] <Arrlaari> Speaking of roses, remember the brief close up on Mysterious New Girl's earrings
01[15:02] <Froborr> Arrlaari, STOP.
01[15:02] <Froborr> DON'T TELL US WHAT IS IMPORTANT, THAT IS A SPOILER
[15:02] <@Sylocat> I like how in the opening credits, they distract her from staring at Tuxedo Jerk
[15:02] <FoME> Ties in with the theme of not needing to be saved.
[15:03] <@Sylocat> Which is good
[15:03] <FoME> Ad.
[15:03] <Arrlaari> ad
01[15:03] <Froborr> Me too.
[15:03] <@Sylocat> Gotcha
[15:03] <Arrlaari> ad ended
[15:03] <FoME> I'm done.
01[15:03] <Froborr> I'm still going.
01[15:03] <Froborr> I had a second ad.
[15:03] <@Sylocat> Ouch
01[15:04] <Froborr> You know, Tuxedo Fedora is a giant creeper, but Usagi going around sniffing people is a bit... uhh...
01[15:04] <Froborr> BackQ!
[15:04] <FoME> Ah, that strange human emotion called love.
01[15:04] <Froborr> That is not how fittings work, Naru!
[15:05] <@Sylocat> Uh oh...
01[15:05] <Froborr> That is not how logic works, Naru!
[15:05] <FoME> Pretty sure logic doesn't enter into it.
[15:06] <@Sylocat> Of course not, they're teenage girls taking about weddings (amirite guys)
01[15:06] <Froborr> Ah, I knew Buffy had to show up sooner or later.
[15:06] <@Sylocat> Hmm, Makoto's a bit harsh in this one
[15:06] <FoME> Makoto the Vampire Slayer? I'd watch it.
[15:07] <@Sylocat> Usagi the stalker
01[15:07] <Froborr> ...Damn, Makoto.
[15:07] <@Sylocat> Ooh, Ninja Makoto
01[15:07] <Froborr> They weren't kidding about the super-strength, I like her.
01[15:08] <Froborr> So she's basically a cross between Sakaki and Chiyo-chan.
01[15:09] <Froborr> So Usagi's just gonna eat part of her lunch without offering anything in return?
[15:09] <@Sylocat> Ooh, she's the female equivalent of the broody dangerous loner
[15:09] <@Sylocat> No wonder Usagi is crushing on her
[15:09] <FoME> Usagi offers self-esteem.
[15:10] <@Sylocat> Ami is jealous of her video game skills
01[15:10] <Froborr> Ami's all, "No way, there's only room for one video game prodigy in this town."
[15:10] <@Sylocat> Huh?
[15:10] <@Sylocat> Ah, so Makoto has a crush
[15:10] <@Sylocat> "Mako"
01[15:10] <Froborr> Oh, crap, I dunno.
[15:10] <@Sylocat> Please, Naru is Mako
[15:11] <FoME> I thought it was Usagi.
01[15:11] <Froborr> I'm pretty sure I'm legally required to hate animated characters named Mako.
[15:11] <@Sylocat> Ew
[15:11] <@Sylocat> Oh, Makoto was just giving the shy, awkward answer, rather than actually believing that
[15:12] <@Sylocat> Wait, what?
[15:12] <Arrlaari> ad
01[15:12] <Froborr> Yeah, that was kinda gross.
01[15:12] <Froborr> Ad.
[15:12] <FoME> Ad.
[15:12] <@Sylocat> Ew, some major social commentary on there
[15:12] <Arrlaari> ended
[15:12] <FoME> I'm good.
01[15:12] <Froborr> I got a second ad again.
01[15:13] <Froborr> Why is David Tennant or a lookalike in an American show?
01[15:13] <Froborr> back
[15:13] <Arrlaari> We're all getting two runs of a much shorter ad than Froborr is
01[15:13] <Froborr> Rei senses tingling!
[15:13] <@Sylocat> Ooh, Rei can detect the others?
[15:13] <FoME> "No scientific proof" says the magical girl...
[15:13] <@Sylocat> "Scientific proof?" She's a sailor scout
01[15:14] <Froborr> Sure, so there's empirical evidence of magical girls.
01[15:14] <Froborr> That dosen't mean there's evidence of ghosts.
[15:14] <@Sylocat> Good point, Froborr
[15:14] <FoME> Indeed.
[15:14] <@Sylocat> Ouch
[15:14] <FoME> Not a happy sound, that.
01[15:14] <Froborr> Evil mannequin is creepy.
[15:14] <@Sylocat> Now, if this were Buffy, the grooms abducted would already be dead, except for one recent one
01[15:15] <Froborr> Is this the first time the villains have targeted men?
[15:15] <@Sylocat> But this is Sailor Moon, so presumably they're just being held in stasis
[15:15] <FoME> Same rationale as the Matrix, I suppose.
01[15:15] <Froborr> Ah, she has a Past.
[15:15] <@Sylocat> Oh... I see
[15:16] <@Sylocat> This is... wow
[15:16] <@Sylocat> Oh no... is he going to rescue HER now?
01[15:16] <Froborr> There is so much psychosexual stuff going on in this episode I can barely even start to unpack it.
[15:16] <FoME> No, you're not dreaming. Your stalker knows your secret identity.
01[15:17] <Froborr> Yes, Usagi, go with the strange man at your window, that's not a COMPLETELY TERRIBLE IDEA.
[15:17] <@Sylocat> Usagi thinks she's dreaming, I think
01[15:17] <Froborr> No seriously, the stuff going on here with gender roles and sexual anxieties is ridiculously warped.
[15:17] <@Sylocat> Which does itself carry some disturbing
[15:17] <@Sylocat> Holy shit...
[15:18] <@Sylocat> This is horror-movie-caliber stuff
[15:18] <@Sylocat> "Loving words?" The mannequin skipped straight past the loving words
01[15:19] <Froborr> Yeah, no coincidence the one scout for whom we have evidence of past romantic/sexual experience is the one playing the victim.
[15:19] <@Sylocat> Wow... that's an OP attack right there
[15:19] <Arrlaari> Is sylocat ahead of us?
[15:19] <@Sylocat> Am I? I'm on 17:15 right now
01[15:19] <Froborr> No, he's behind us.
[15:19] <Arrlaari> Huh
[15:19] <@Sylocat> Where's everyone else?
01[15:19] <Froborr> But only by about 10 seconds or so.
[15:20] <FoME> Ah. The fire. Well, the petals are kind of flammable.
[15:20] <FoME> 17:55
[15:20] <@Sylocat> Ah... only 6 seconds behind
[15:20] <@Sylocat> Ooh, a Heroic BSOD
[15:20] <@Sylocat> Ew
[15:21] <@Sylocat> "We all have someone we're destined to be with?"
01[15:21] <Froborr> "I believe in love, which is why I'm collecting the Sailor Scouts as my personal harem!"
[15:21] <@Sylocat> Heheh
[15:21] <@Sylocat> So, I take it they're setting up the Naru/Nephlite romance arc? (don't answer that)
[15:21] <FoME> She didn't even need prompting.
[15:21] <@Sylocat> Wait, how did she know what to say?
01[15:22] <Froborr> Ooh, lightning effects are nice.
[15:22] <@Sylocat> She DOES have a Past
[15:22] <FoME> Huh. That's a new one.
[15:23] <@Sylocat> Wait, she can immobilize him with a Flower Hurricane?
01[15:23] <Froborr> Wow, okay, so we know who the DPS character is.
[15:23] <@Sylocat> Eeyup... now all we need is the Tank
[15:23] <@Sylocat> Ooh, can Tuxedo Jerk be the Tank?
[15:24] <FoME> Jupiter and Thunder and Courage. Quite the portfolio.
01[15:24] <Froborr> Huh, just noticed Ami's costume is sleeveless.
[15:24] <Arrlaari> ad
01[15:24] <Froborr> Ad.
[15:24] <FoME> Ad.
[15:25] <@Sylocat> It's the end of the episode, though, so it's okay
[15:25] <FoME> Thought as much.
01[15:25] <Froborr> She's presumably got Wood as well, given Flower Hurricane and the fact that that's the element associated with Jupiter in Chinese alchemy.
[15:25] <@Sylocat> So, yeah... some very weird sexual undertones in this one
01[15:25] <Froborr> Back.
01[15:26] <Froborr> But switching off because I'm not bothering with the ending credits of suck.
[15:26] <@Sylocat> Yeah, the ending credits are horrible
01[15:27] <Froborr> So, the way I'm choosing to read this is that the sexually predatory women were actually illusions, created by a man to further his scheme.
[15:27] <@Sylocat> Uh oh... next episode looks like bad news
[15:27] <@Sylocat> I agree... and to be fair, there is some definite textual evidence for that reading
01[15:27] <Froborr> They thus acted out the typical horror movie scenario of targeting the sexually active girl (or closest thing there is to one, the girl willing to express a sexuality).
[15:28] <Arrlaari> And then at least one man ensnared by that illusion became a sexually predatory puppet of that scheme
01[15:28] <Froborr> Yep.
[15:28] <@Sylocat> Ooh, good point
01[15:28] <Froborr> And keep in mind that Nephrite is an alien presence, not a real human man.
[15:28] <FoME> Sounds better than the "Nephlite the cynical pimp" reading, that's for sure.
[15:29] <@Sylocat> It might even have been intentional
[15:29] <Arrlaari> Also, Tuxedo Mask notices trouble and his go-to solution is "get Sailor Moon to come and fix it"
01[15:30] <Froborr> I think there's even more evidence for it, too: it's only when Makoto's willingness to express her sexuality is validated by another woman that she gains the strength to break free of the puppet-of-the-patriarchy holding her.
[15:30] <FoME> Tuxedo Mask is Princess Celestia. Usagi is Twilight Sparkle. It all makes snese.
01[15:30] <Froborr> True, although Tuxedo Ass remains a problematic figure given his stalker-like behavior and outright sexual assault last episode.
[15:30] <@Sylocat> Heh... suddenly I have hope for this show
[15:30] <Arrlaari> Celestia did way more than Tuxedo Mask
[15:30] <FoME> Not sense, mind you. Snese.
[15:30] <@Sylocat> Yeah... don't compare Tuxedo Fedora to Celestia
[15:31] <FoME> My apologies.
[15:31] <Arrlaari> TBH so far this Tuxedo Mask is even more passive than the famously useless old anime Tuxedo Mask
01[15:31] <Froborr> Lol, that's pretty funny Arrlaari.
[15:31] <@Sylocat> I prefer him passive to having to swoop in every episode to rescue her
01[15:31] <Froborr> Yeah, that would definitly be worse, I have to say.
[15:32] <Arrlaari> Old anime Tux had a once-per-encounter interrupt that he used pretty regularly. This guy just watches from the shadows
[15:32] <@Sylocat> Maybe I'm remembering it wrong, but in the old anime, didn't he have to swoop in basically every episode? I remember that rose landing on the battlefield being a recurring icon
[15:32] <FoME> No, that was part of the episode formula.
[15:33] <@Sylocat> Even when he'd been brainwashed and was evil.
[15:33] <FoME> Which is to say, no, you're not misremembering it.
[15:33] <@Sylocat> (or, a "bad boy," as some fans termed it)
01[15:33] <Froborr> So, I've got to jet, but, final thoughts?
[15:33] <FoME> I've noticed something, but explaining it would be a massive spoiler.
[15:33] <@Sylocat> I assume we've all seen Nostalgia Chick's "list of 10 hottest animated guys (as voted by viewers)?"
01[15:34] <Froborr> Hold onto it until it's no longer spoiler-y then?
[15:34] <Arrlaari> I haven't heard of Nostalgia Chick
[15:34] <FoME> Will do.
01[15:34] <Froborr> Sylocat: It seems likely that I would have, but I have no recollection of doing so.
[15:34] <@Sylocat> I do look forward to reading it once it's no longer a spoiler, FoME, don't worry
01[15:34] <Froborr> Arrlaari: You need to watch Nostalgia Chick, she's great.
[15:34] <@Sylocat> Hang on, I'll link it
[15:35] <@Sylocat> http://blip.tv/nostalgia-chick/nostalgia-chick-top-ten-hottest-animated-guys-5953324
[15:35] <@Sylocat> It says a lot about how our society socializes young women