No.18402
>>18401Unreliable unreliable narrators. So far we have no reason to believe anything. Maybe we will suddenly get someone shooting someone or nothing will happen at all other than people being bored behind the curtains.
What I am more interest in is the world itself. Are there even other countries in the world? How big is even the land mass? Would want to see more about their economical and political system. What was with the fucked up ubermensch project district with 2.20 meter mutants?
No.18404
Seems like a set up. If Jean is involved, and Crow has been watching him all along, then Crow would already have ample evidence to prove Jean's involvement. On the other hand, if Crow is playing double agent and is on Jean's side, he could easily be withholding information were Jean to actually be involved in the coup, so it could go either way.
I'm glad they got that lighter thing out of the way quickly, and it was a pleasant surprise in the way it was resolved, with the cop now owing Jean.
I also have to state how much I like the animation in this, with small touches like Jean's eyes in this scene.
>>18402>What I am more interest in is the world itself.Yeah, I want to find out more, but it seems that we're going to be trickled information with each episode. I hope this isn't just one cour, because if it's one episode for each territory it'll be spreading itself rather thin.
No.18408
>>18404>I'm glad they got that lighter thing out of the way quickly, and it was a pleasant surprise in the way it was resolved, with the cop now owing Jean.I was more surprised by the fact that the cop immediately jumped from this to ogling the sister. It was a cute development, I must admit.
Also, too many heads not being shown. I'm not sure if the arsonist case was just a red herring and it's really over, or the fact that we didn't see the head of the arsonist means this will continue and will be interwoven in the main story. If it's the first, maybe the coup d'etat will also be a red herring, and it will really be a slice of life about an overly paranoid bunch of people?
>>18402>How big is even the land mass?Not too big, it's limited by the speed of the plane. Certainly not larger than Europe, I'd say. Most probably around the size of Japan.
>Would want to see more about their economical and political system.Free market, supposedly with some regulations, taxation-wise for some reason tobacco is taxed exceptionally high. I'd expect the tax burden as a whole isn't low, but in the same time the general populace is largely post-scarcity, if the bureaucrats can complain about low salaries and shop in all sorts of speciality shops.
The structure of the federation I expect to be more like the EU (Schengen) than like the US. The fed-level should be only the central branches of ACCA and the King, I guess? Of course, this is with the caveat that it has only one official language.
>What was with the fucked up ubermensch project district with 2.20 meter mutants?My bet is on GMO food, best case scenario.
No.18411
>>18410They didn't, but…
The chief eats his cake in 10, and Jean's next flight is in hour and a half, so 11:30. The harvest is over, so the sunset is around 20:00 at most, and he is driving for his second flight soon before sunset. But the color of the light that comes from the outside while he's still in the office shows it's nowhere near sunset. This means at least half an hour drive from the airport to the office, and I'd wager they left the office around 19:00.
Talking with the colleagues from Central, finding out about the tampered data, touring the office… well, let's say at least an hour or two. They were also in that Diner, so half an hour more there. And half an hour for getting out of the airport, because fuck airports. This means the upper limit for when he arrived in Faamasu is …. around 16:00. Ergo a maximum possible flight time of four hours and a half. There are certainly longer flights within Europe.
I just assumed at first it's Douwa, where the king is, but… the children's show said the capital was changed? And one of the districts is named Badon, and when he was inspecting the local dept it was the Badon dept, right? So it should be Badon?
This actually means the flight to Faamasu is the longest possible in the country.
No.18413
Well here are the two maps, with some minor inconsistencies.
>>18411>>18412If Badon is the capital that would be somewhat odd, as a small island detached from the rest of the country. It's also a bit odd that Badon would be a metropolis, for the same reason. But it does offer a good reason as to why investigating the other branches from there is a pain.
No.18414
>>18413It's a reason to suspect the existence of other countries, though. For Badon to be a metropolis, it's probably a major port that deals with international trade.
Besides, it's obviously meant to be New York. So, like, one day the states in America revolted against the king in Washington and changed the capital to New York. Makes sense. Kind of.
No.18511
I still have the feeling everybody is just overtly paranoid, and thinks everybody else is planning to overtake the country.
So the result is a tangled web of plots how to stop the other plots.
In other news, Baka ouji's voice is pure sex.
No.18512
I almost expected the king to say that this is the end of the royal family as heads of the government.
>>18511I do think the white haired guy is a likely bad guy. The King's assistant was a little suspicious too. But it is also likely that all of this is red herring and our guy is indeed the centre of it all.
No.18520
>>18518Oh shit, it took me hours to figure it out.
:>
No.18610
I really didn't like this episode. It felt completely cut off from the rest of the series. Not only the whole concept of the district it was silly it did nothing useful to the plot nor Jean's character.
No.18611
>>18610I didn't dislike it too much, but I agree with your points. After last episode I was expecting this one to really get into the plot but I guess they're just going to commit to taking us on a tour of all the districts, even if the show does suffer for it.
No.18614
>>18610I don't agree. This episode we learnt where Jean has been getting his cigarettes from, and we also find out that Jean is willing to shirk his duties for his self-satisfaction, which is an important point when the question of whether he's involved in the coup still hasn't been answered.
No.18617
>>18616How was what?
>>18614I didn't see some new characteristics of Jean that were not presented already. I wouldn't say we even have half of the full story about his cigarettes. They just foreshadowed further the importance of what is happening behind them, as if it wasn't done enough by now. It was all repetition and possible some not very meaningful set ups with a silly district for the future political unrest.
I just realized we are only at episode 4, though. It felt like we were a little further in the story. This is why I am probably so annoyed, the pace of the story felt disrupted with mostly unimportant shit.
No.18669
So what's your opinion on this episode fufufu?
I think it was kinda silly with the prince and aide shenanigans.
No.18672
>>18669I will have to wonder if that will conclude with her abduction or something. Or maybe she will get closer to the servant than the prince.
Also another person this season that is fast to forgive betrayals. Though Jean went even further and made the snitch eat with his sister on a regular basis.
No.18675
>>18669I had thought that the king's adviser was planning to do something to the prince while his servant was away, but then nothing happened. Come to think of it, that angry cop guy has totally fallen off the face of the Earth. Also, with chief Lilium being so friendly to Jean, I'm now sure that he's going to end up dead.
>>18672>Though Jean went even further and made the snitch eat with his sister on a regular basis.It seemed pretty clear that he noticed when the three of them were eating together that someone was watching Lotta, so he told Nino to look after his sister. I'm sure Nino was aware of it too.
No.18681
>>18617While the 4th episode indeed didn't do much for the plot or for the character of Jean, it did a lot for the worldbuilding, didn't it? For example, we didn't even know a district is allowed so much autonomy. I'll have to retract my previous statement that the country is like the Schengen zone. Heck, while Bulgaria and Romania still have border control, they can't legally stop a citizen from entering another country, unless there's some crime involved. So EU is more like one country than this country.
One more important detail, though. The Birra guy said his district will accept the oil given by the central government. I wonder what's that about. Most probably this oil comes from foreign trade, otherwise why would the central government be the one to distribute it? If it was one of the districts to produce oil, that district would have demanded they keep their oil during the revolution.
>>18669I liked the silliness.
>>18675>I had thought that the king's adviser was planning to do something to the prince while his servant was away, but then nothing happened.Yeah, me too. But maybe something DID happen, and we'll see it later on?
>Come to think of it, that angry cop guy has totally fallen off the face of the Earth.But he was part of the prince and aide's shenanigans.
>Also, with chief Lilium being so friendly to Jean, I'm now sure that he's going to end up dead.I still think it may all be one big and tangled up paranoia.
>It seemed pretty clear that he noticed when the three of them were eating together that someone was watching Lotta, so he told Nino to look after his sister.That would work easier if Nino is watching from the shadows too. I'd say he just wanted to go to Rokkusu alone.
No.18682
>>18681Good points in that first paragraph, I hadn't even thought about any of that.
>But he was part of the prince and aide's shenanigans. I meant the guy from the first two episodes who was mad at Jean for being better off than him, and was planning to frame him.
>That would work easier if Nino is watching from the shadows too. I'd say he just wanted to go to Rokkusu alone.It'd be easier for Nino to watch the other watcher like that, sure, but it'd be harder for him to keep Lotta safe. It'd be a lot harder for someone to kidnap Lotta if Nino was by her side at all times. Though it could also be your idea of Jean wanting to be alone at the same time.
No.18687
>>18685Considering he's also most probably the one that the aide called later on in the episode, I wonder how he found out the parents are dead. He checked her police record? Or he's actually managed to make such long conversations with the sister already?
No.18688
>>18687At first I thought the servant was talking with the sister herself, but then I realized he was probably talking with the guy he send to spy on her (both fell into the same trap). Was that guy
>>18684 or not? I am really not sure and I don't have the episodes any more.
No.18689
>>18688>then I realized he was probably talking with the guy he send to spy on herI'm pretty sure it was the police dude and not someone he sent, I really doubt he'd have to bribe one of his subordinates with bread.
No.18693
>>18689>I'm pretty sure it was the police dude and not someone he sent, I really doubt he'd have to bribe one of his subordinates with bread.This. I don't think we saw the guy the aide sent to spy on the sister again.
No.18751
>>18750>I hope things escalate next episode so we can get things moving a bit.Imagine things slowing up even further. But then suddenly a lot happens, even though it doesn't feel like it, because none of it was directly connected to the coup thing. And then suddenly it is the last episode, the country got a new king and stuff and our people are still making their everyday chitchat about the coup and then the episode is over. And so we will never know
who was phone. No.18812
File: 1487699289249.jpg (Spoiler Image, 218.76 KB, 1280x720, [HorribleSubs] ACCA - 13-k….jpg)
I wonder if we are going to learn that the princess did ballet.
No.18828
Wait, so what's the family tree?
The aunt we saw is the first sister, the second sister is the mother of Jean, and the third is the mother of Baka Ouji? (who turns out to be not so baka, and may be faking the idiocy, in a long-standing anime tradition)
That being said, I'm seriously starting to ship these two
>>18812 . They seem to be a good match.
No.18829
>>18828Second princess would imply that. Did they at any point said the king has no sons or something? I just realized his sons, if any, are completely out of the picture. A random one from some affair could end up taking the throne anyway.
No.18832
>>18829Definitely no sons, if the succession is between Jean and the Baka Ouji.
No.18871
And with one flashback episode they managed to explain everything. Kuvamaru is probably the one pulling the strings behind the coup rumors - and probably it really amounts only to starting a rumor in a group of overly paranoid people, so that he can use their paranoia to uncover Jean's identity. It doesn't seem in Grossular's character to lead such a plot. Weirdly enough, this makes all theories, brought up in this thread, at least partially true.
So, assuming Grossular is Schnee's aide (it seems like he rose to Rokkusu branch chief a little too quickly, and besides why Rokkusu and not Badon - so I have my doubts), I've only one question. Does he have a son? Specifically, is the police guy who fell for Lotta his son? Hairstyles look similar, and as demonstrated by Jean's father, hairstyles are hereditary.
No.18875
The most unbelievable part of this show is now that Nino was able to pass for a high school student. I guess this means that Jean is around 31, and Nino 41? I didn't think either would be that old, or that there'd be such an age gap between them.
>>18871Seems clear enough to me that the aide is meant to be Grossular, particularly given that we never hear Grossular's first name or Abend's last name. Though Abend's name could have been changed anyway.
Who's Kuvamaru, though? The king's advisor? I'm having a hard time keeping track of all these character names.
No.18876
>>18875Yeah, the king's advisor. I had to look up his name too.
Don't worry, a pair of glasses are enough to hide ten years of age difference! That was kind of stupid indeed.
No.18877
>>18876The dumbest part is how needless it seems. They could have just made Nino a baby when they left instead, and he'd have been only a few years older that way. I can't see it affecting the story any, but I guess the author didn't want Nino finding out about the princess from some other scenario down the line instead.
No.18878
>>18875>>18876>>18877Even now both Jean and Nino look in their mid-20s tops. This is a country with a top tier gene pool. Like any Western European country is in the eyes of Japanese. Other than the rocky district that is, but that was probably because of too much inbreeding or something.
No.18978
So this episode was basically just 20 minutes of pointing out that next episode shit is going to go down.
>>18977No way man, I can tell that he's evil and motivated by personal greed because his expressions are unpleasant.
No.18979
>>18978That is not fair. Half of the episode was a pretty comfy world building with the new district.
No.19150
>>19149>Or is the idea to pressure him into not being active until he becomes irrelevantPretty sure this was it.
Better to have an idiot in power who they can trust not do do anything then someone who might try something. But yeah, not very satisfying at all. Though for me, the show peaked at episode 3 and I've been lukewarm since then so wasn't expecting much anyway.
No.19152
File: 1490735758496.jpg (Spoiler Image, 78.97 KB, 1280x720, [HorribleSubs] ACCA - 13-k….jpg)
>>18932God damn it, I was joking.
No.19970
Left myself a few months for the last three episodes. Turns out they were doing exactly the thing I was wondering until the last episode why they aren't doing.
>>19149>I don't see why they let the prince be.1)
You dissuade further coup d'etats. One successful coup may encourage others to try too.2)
Weak king and strong civil government is preferable to strong king and whatever. No matter how good the person in power is, the very fact that he's in power means his worldview will get warped. He can't retain power without succumbing to this. Thus a weak king is always preferable. Politics 101. Unless you actually like authoritarian governments, of course. It seems most people do, after all.3)
The royal family is always more advantageous as a blemish-free tourist attraction than as anything else. Elizabeth, may she live forever, is a money-printing press practically.4)
Practically everything is a better outcome than the arabs' coup being successful.5)
Usually it's better to have a gradual change than an abrupt one.6)
Baka ouji was a nice guy, don't be so mean towards him.
>nor did they actively do something to decrease his powerBut they demonstrated it's within their ability to do so, which is even better.
>Seems like a lot of nothing happened and it made most of what was going on until now meaningless.Sheesh, can't you enjoy your tangled web of plots? That's what the anime was always going to be about.
>>19150>But yeah, not very satisfying at all. I found it quite satisfying. They wrapped up everything quite beautifully, avoiding unnecessary dramatization. Most of my questions were answered, even minute details like in
>>18681 . And my shipping of the policeman with the sister seemed to be going somewhere, kind of. I was correct, this anime was on par with Showa Genroku on quality.
No.19971
>>19970Are you implying the hero of the story would be corruptible? Especially the hero in this story, the one that middle fingering everyone? He could have easily been a great king and abolish the royal family's power eventually.
No.19973
>>19971Yes. I'm implying nobody can hold any power without becoming corruptible. That holds true for Mauve too, however she's subject to much more checks and regulations, in turn depending on a much larger pool of key supporters.
To add further to the list,
7) The royal family can also exert influence, mostly through Qualm. That influence can't really be ignored. And they wanted the baka ouji on the throne. Getting the hero of the story on the throne would mean pointless tensions, when they can achieve their goal more efficiently, and with the support of the royal faction.
P.S. Turns out
>>18932 is the best description of this anime. Nice.
No.19975
>>19973As a comparison, the arabs would have ruled by strongarming the economy, using the distribution of oil as a bludgeon, and by controlling in a top-down manner the Crown and ACCA - any dissent in one of these factions can be suppressed by using the other faction. Thus they need relatively few key supporters to keep their rule. Jean, in turn, has to oppose them, so he needs to somehow wrestle the control of their key supporters out of their hands. That means that he has to become corruptible in order for these key supporters to switch to him. That's just the reality of politics.
However, the director-general Mauve in comparison has to answer to ACCA's internal regulations; to Jean's department; to the judicial system we saw not even a hint of - but there is no country without a judicial system, and Mauve doesn't have parliamentary immunity; to each and every of the governments of the thirteen - I mean, twelve countries; to the Crown; and she has to not anger the economy too much. More key supporters means that no individual key supporter is too important, so she can be less corruptible in her circus act of balancing influences. Especially after she dealt with the strongest faction early on: the Crown.
On the flipside, Jean is now in an even better position to direct the progress of the country than if he became a king. He has influence over every key faction in the country (royal faction by blood, ACCA by position, he is friends with some people in the countries' governments, and don't forget he also has deep ties in the economy), and everybody knows he could have taken the throne had he wished for it. So, he at the same time is free to introduce change, and will not suffer any possible negative consequences from that change. Perfection.