The manga actually puts less emphasis on the psychological and social aspects. It's still there and thematically important but compared to the anime there is a lot more focus on physical and immediate problems the girls face. Also from the Yellow Knife part onwards the manga explores humanity in a Ship Of Theseus sort of way. It begins to tackle more philosophical Sci-fi themes rather than relatable everyday ones. It's not completely different, just noticeable enough that you can tell the writers have different goals for what they wanted to say.
I would say that the examination of the traumas of adolescence are still pretty prominent in the manga, and that question of embodiment and self plays very directly into it, especially with how Kumi's story plays out. While the anime is more direct about her feelings toward Yuri earlier in the narrative than the manga, the way that the manga uses the development of those feelings and plays it off Kumi's uncertainty surrounding her own humanity and authenticity of self, for lack of a better way of putting it, is really interesting and, honestly, heartbreaking. The scene shortly after the extent of her transformation is revealed where she embraces Kasumi only to be told, "It's not me you want, is it?" is utterly devastating in a very simple and understated way.
I love this series. It’s a metaphor. For growing up and facing the changes the body goes through and how intrusive and scary they can be. The manga was interesting as well
@@heysaladdaze yeah, like the mc had probably the most logical reaction to the thought of killing aliens while having a creepy alien on top of her unlike the other girl who just kept telling her to shut it or ponytails girl who was actively _enjoying_ her job and that it took some sort of a telepathic connection to make them realize that how much fear she had felt when she was cornered by those three dudes was just absurd not to mention the sus doctor didn't care about the fact that an elementary school kid was traumatized and was more sad that all of her captured aliens were killed, like seriously, if I were the mc, I would have just punched her in the face the second time she asked me to wear that thing on my head
Ehhhhhhh, I don't really get that vibe besides the surreal nature of this series, and the psychological elements. The characters are also a lot more basic, but that might have to do with the length.
The anime specials for this-technically not an OVA, interestingly, as it originally aired on TV-are one of my favourite anime series of all time, and I'm honestly really bummed out that they never got to adapt the rest of the manga because not only is it short enough to fit in a single cour, but it gets *absolutely insane* as it goes on, particularly the sequel mini-series Emulators, the contents of which I really think would have benefitted from the anime's more relaxed pacing (although the main manga's ending would probably be more fitting).
My interpretation was a bit different, colored by my experiences as an adolescent. I think there's a lot of metaphors for puberty and how the way girls are treated changes during that time. Lots of unwanted body horror, that scene with all the male students, and the fact that ultimately our protagonist has no choice in anything. I think this anime is about the horrific side of growing up, deliberately as a contrast to other magical girls series that are about the positive aspects and changes. For me puberty was unwanted body horror; I'm agender and asexual, and genuinely felt betrayed by my body as it changed. I didn't have the same innate understanding of sexual desire as a lot of the other kids, so it was also abrupt and horrifying when I noticed the reactions to my new body, especially with how many of them were from men my father's age. Sexuality was also pushed on me by my peers as I grew up, to the point where I was bullied and labeled a bad person for not wanting to sleep with the person I was dating at the time by people outside of our relationship. This was a near constant. It didn't matter that my partner at the time was fine with the fact I didn't want to have sex. Even medical professionals pressured me or treated me like I was lying, which reminds me a great deal of the teachers from Alien Nine.
I think the monsters are great as metaphors for how grotesque the biological changes of growing up can seem. And the way none of the adults will freely share information or give actual support to any of the alien party girls is also part of that message. The adults who have already fused with their Borgs dont see it as a big deal and rush the girls unsympathetically. The story also definitely deals with sexual assault allegory with the aliens. The only adult men we see are Kasumi's dad and her brother as Yellowknife. A monster that preys on her insecurities at home, consumes her adolescense, and shoots her past her peers in the symbiote timeline, literally changing her into a different person. My bf read the anime's theme as "If young girls knew the conditions of womanhood were permanent they would kill themselves, so adults keep that from them."
The responsibility and loneliness themes I think should be taken as part of the greater narrative of biological and social puberty. The girls each feel isolated in their experience from the rest of their peers, from the adults in their lives, and from their own bodies. All while everyone expects them to step up and be more adultlike without giving them the support or knowledge they need to perform those duties without falling victim to assault. When I was their age I spent a solid week crying because everyone else was excited to go to middle school while I was mourning all of our childhoods. So Yuri was a familiar state of mind.
i got weirdly hyperfixated on this series for a couple months, and it's SO FUCKING IRRITATING!!!!!!!!!! because there's so much cool stuff in there but i have NO idea how to sell it to people, it really IS like what would happen if you put kids into this scenario! it makes me think of how a lot of older people nowadays will talk about what "the next generation" has to deal with like it doesn't affect them, but simultaneously bemoan anything that'll go on in their lifetime! the kids are there to be that "next generation", to shoulder all the responsibilities, while the adults mostly just watch on and complain rather than actually stepping in. also just. the fight scenes are so cool. i want to see some of the later manga stuff adapted into anime so bad i hope it happens.. i love how otani's best friend is actually aa big figure in the manga who's there for her.. i just wanna hug them all so bad and awawawawawaw i could talk about this shit for hours but i will cap off with like. that last manga was ASS *AND* IT ENDED HALFWAY THROUGH??? the pain . the pain is real. i pretend Next does not exist.
Good video but I wish it discussed the sexual elements relating to womanhood instead of the more broadly front facing "coming of age" aspects. It is ofc still that but much of the intrigue to this OVA is how well it articulates the discomfort with bodily changes, feeling aliented from everyone and even one's own body. Really pleased a lot of commenters here pointed all this out though, rare to find a hot pot of such accurate analysis, even more rewarding when it's on a relatively underdiscussed series. Personally I did not care at all to see more of this world and have its backstory and mechanics explained in such a "literal" way, it's not really important to understanding the psychosis of this series and its characters and that's the most engaging part about it to me, delivered with such striking direction, it's one of the most empathetic and atmospheric works I've seen, a close favourite of mine that I love revisiting even in just thoughts. I think the ending scene to the OVA does an excellent job at wrapping things up and does instill in me its own unique sense of "warmness". Kumi calls her mother and Yuri cries together with her after everything that's transpired. It manages to peel back all the trauma of the show to this very simple and touching moment about girls connecting with each other and their mothers through something they've all experienced growing up. There's so much to say about this show, how it portrays the age divide between children growing accustomed to their changing bodies and the adults who've fully assimilated the borg and act indifferent to the trauma the girls are facing. The overt use of bodily fluids to create this constant discomfort in their own skin, the phallic and flowery imagery, yuri beginning to be perceived by the boys in her class as something desirable, the aliens themselves functionally feeling less "alien" than their own teachers, etc. It is a corrupt system that everyone, including the teachers are prisoners of, they only look after themselves because of the fear of losing their livelihood, so no one ever tries to change it. Yet, we all possess empathy. You see the teacher's perspective shaken somewhat by the end from what she's seen, as if finally being reminded that she too was once just like them. One of my favourite moments is the insistence from Yuri and Kumi to not kill Kasumi in episode 4, they'd rather risk dying themselves than hurt someone who shares their pain. That empathy is what makes Yellow Knife/Kasumi stop choking Kumi in the end, the very answer to this whole ordeal and apathy the adults exhibit is to express empathy for one another, while Yuri wraps Kasumi in her borg's wings, their teacher protects only herself from the explosion. It is the perfect way to wrap up the series given the scope they had and I could walk away feeling fulfilled like I had experienced a fully fleshed, cohesive narrative, whether the manga existed or not.
For sure! I actually wish they'd give it a reboot - having read the manga since I made this video I genuinely think there's so much potential for a really great series :(
I'm on the bird website now! Come and say hello over on twitter @heysaladdaze
The manga actually puts less emphasis on the psychological and social aspects. It's still there and thematically important but compared to the anime there is a lot more focus on physical and immediate problems the girls face. Also from the Yellow Knife part onwards the manga explores humanity in a Ship Of Theseus sort of way. It begins to tackle more philosophical Sci-fi themes rather than relatable everyday ones.
It's not completely different, just noticeable enough that you can tell the writers have different goals for what they wanted to say.
I would say that the examination of the traumas of adolescence are still pretty prominent in the manga, and that question of embodiment and self plays very directly into it, especially with how Kumi's story plays out. While the anime is more direct about her feelings toward Yuri earlier in the narrative than the manga, the way that the manga uses the development of those feelings and plays it off Kumi's uncertainty surrounding her own humanity and authenticity of self, for lack of a better way of putting it, is really interesting and, honestly, heartbreaking. The scene shortly after the extent of her transformation is revealed where she embraces Kasumi only to be told, "It's not me you want, is it?" is utterly devastating in a very simple and understated way.
Does the manga had a proper conclusion, or it was just abandoned? Or by any chance is it still being updated?
I love this series. It’s a metaphor. For growing up and facing the changes the body goes through and how intrusive and scary they can be. The manga was interesting as well
Couple of episodes in and this honestly feels like Evangelion but what if the side characters were borderline psychopaths
This is the perfect description
@@heysaladdaze yeah, like the mc had probably the most logical reaction to the thought of killing aliens while having a creepy alien on top of her unlike the other girl who just kept telling her to shut it or ponytails girl who was actively _enjoying_ her job and that it took some sort of a telepathic connection to make them realize that how much fear she had felt when she was cornered by those three dudes was just absurd not to mention the sus doctor didn't care about the fact that an elementary school kid was traumatized and was more sad that all of her captured aliens were killed, like seriously, if I were the mc, I would have just punched her in the face the second time she asked me to wear that thing on my head
Ehhhhhhh, I don't really get that vibe besides the surreal nature of this series, and the psychological elements. The characters are also a lot more basic, but that might have to do with the length.
The anime specials for this-technically not an OVA, interestingly, as it originally aired on TV-are one of my favourite anime series of all time, and I'm honestly really bummed out that they never got to adapt the rest of the manga because not only is it short enough to fit in a single cour, but it gets *absolutely insane* as it goes on, particularly the sequel mini-series Emulators, the contents of which I really think would have benefitted from the anime's more relaxed pacing (although the main manga's ending would probably be more fitting).
I love alien nine sm, I related to Yuri as a kid and still do. I just wish their was more episodes..
My interpretation was a bit different, colored by my experiences as an adolescent. I think there's a lot of metaphors for puberty and how the way girls are treated changes during that time. Lots of unwanted body horror, that scene with all the male students, and the fact that ultimately our protagonist has no choice in anything. I think this anime is about the horrific side of growing up, deliberately as a contrast to other magical girls series that are about the positive aspects and changes.
For me puberty was unwanted body horror; I'm agender and asexual, and genuinely felt betrayed by my body as it changed. I didn't have the same innate understanding of sexual desire as a lot of the other kids, so it was also abrupt and horrifying when I noticed the reactions to my new body, especially with how many of them were from men my father's age. Sexuality was also pushed on me by my peers as I grew up, to the point where I was bullied and labeled a bad person for not wanting to sleep with the person I was dating at the time by people outside of our relationship. This was a near constant. It didn't matter that my partner at the time was fine with the fact I didn't want to have sex. Even medical professionals pressured me or treated me like I was lying, which reminds me a great deal of the teachers from Alien Nine.
"Agender" helll nah 💀
@@Flykihow tellingly juvenile of you
Honestly thought I just day dreamed watching this a long time ago, glad I’m not the only one who remembers this OVA!
You're not alone, it was definitely real!
I think the monsters are great as metaphors for how grotesque the biological changes of growing up can seem. And the way none of the adults will freely share information or give actual support to any of the alien party girls is also part of that message. The adults who have already fused with their Borgs dont see it as a big deal and rush the girls unsympathetically. The story also definitely deals with sexual assault allegory with the aliens. The only adult men we see are Kasumi's dad and her brother as Yellowknife. A monster that preys on her insecurities at home, consumes her adolescense, and shoots her past her peers in the symbiote timeline, literally changing her into a different person. My bf read the anime's theme as "If young girls knew the conditions of womanhood were permanent they would kill themselves, so adults keep that from them."
The responsibility and loneliness themes I think should be taken as part of the greater narrative of biological and social puberty. The girls each feel isolated in their experience from the rest of their peers, from the adults in their lives, and from their own bodies. All while everyone expects them to step up and be more adultlike without giving them the support or knowledge they need to perform those duties without falling victim to assault.
When I was their age I spent a solid week crying because everyone else was excited to go to middle school while I was mourning all of our childhoods. So Yuri was a familiar state of mind.
4:48
To be fair thats the basic struggle of every single living being
This needs a rerelease! I wanted to read the manga and apparently it’s incredibly rare.
Underrated! Both the show, and more so, you!
Thanks!
i got weirdly hyperfixated on this series for a couple months, and it's SO FUCKING IRRITATING!!!!!!!!!! because there's so much cool stuff in there but i have NO idea how to sell it to people, it really IS like what would happen if you put kids into this scenario! it makes me think of how a lot of older people nowadays will talk about what "the next generation" has to deal with like it doesn't affect them, but simultaneously bemoan anything that'll go on in their lifetime! the kids are there to be that "next generation", to shoulder all the responsibilities, while the adults mostly just watch on and complain rather than actually stepping in.
also just. the fight scenes are so cool. i want to see some of the later manga stuff adapted into anime so bad i hope it happens.. i love how otani's best friend is actually aa big figure in the manga who's there for her.. i just wanna hug them all so bad and awawawawawaw i could talk about this shit for hours but i will cap off with like. that last manga was ASS *AND* IT ENDED HALFWAY THROUGH??? the pain . the pain is real. i pretend Next does not exist.
Good video but I wish it discussed the sexual elements relating to womanhood instead of the more broadly front facing "coming of age" aspects. It is ofc still that but much of the intrigue to this OVA is how well it articulates the discomfort with bodily changes, feeling aliented from everyone and even one's own body. Really pleased a lot of commenters here pointed all this out though, rare to find a hot pot of such accurate analysis, even more rewarding when it's on a relatively underdiscussed series. Personally I did not care at all to see more of this world and have its backstory and mechanics explained in such a "literal" way, it's not really important to understanding the psychosis of this series and its characters and that's the most engaging part about it to me, delivered with such striking direction, it's one of the most empathetic and atmospheric works I've seen, a close favourite of mine that I love revisiting even in just thoughts. I think the ending scene to the OVA does an excellent job at wrapping things up and does instill in me its own unique sense of "warmness". Kumi calls her mother and Yuri cries together with her after everything that's transpired. It manages to peel back all the trauma of the show to this very simple and touching moment about girls connecting with each other and their mothers through something they've all experienced growing up.
There's so much to say about this show, how it portrays the age divide between children growing accustomed to their changing bodies and the adults who've fully assimilated the borg and act indifferent to the trauma the girls are facing. The overt use of bodily fluids to create this constant discomfort in their own skin, the phallic and flowery imagery, yuri beginning to be perceived by the boys in her class as something desirable, the aliens themselves functionally feeling less "alien" than their own teachers, etc. It is a corrupt system that everyone, including the teachers are prisoners of, they only look after themselves because of the fear of losing their livelihood, so no one ever tries to change it. Yet, we all possess empathy. You see the teacher's perspective shaken somewhat by the end from what she's seen, as if finally being reminded that she too was once just like them. One of my favourite moments is the insistence from Yuri and Kumi to not kill Kasumi in episode 4, they'd rather risk dying themselves than hurt someone who shares their pain. That empathy is what makes Yellow Knife/Kasumi stop choking Kumi in the end, the very answer to this whole ordeal and apathy the adults exhibit is to express empathy for one another, while Yuri wraps Kasumi in her borg's wings, their teacher protects only herself from the explosion. It is the perfect way to wrap up the series given the scope they had and I could walk away feeling fulfilled like I had experienced a fully fleshed, cohesive narrative, whether the manga existed or not.
Borgs looks so cute and cool. 😅
Is there more to watch i just finished the 4 episodes and thought it was amazing
Besides a few specials, no, that's it.
The manga
i thought the show was neat. i got a very strong evangelion vibe from the few episodes that came out of it
I liked the show but could be better tbh
For sure! I actually wish they'd give it a reboot - having read the manga since I made this video I genuinely think there's so much potential for a really great series :(
Yeah, I was pretty underwhelmed by the series, but I love the setting and all the weird stuff in it, like the boids and the aliens.