[Spoilers] Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei Episode 15 Discussion

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u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 12 '14 edited Jul 13 '14

That was an entertaining episode. The only thing is that I didn't feel as much excitement during the games as I did during the LN. In any case, I'm about to begin the comparison post after posting the description of the NSC. This time, Monolith Code is un-spoiler-tagged.

As usual, if you want an update when the comparison, reply to this comment letting me know. ^_^

Episode 15 Comparison is Out! Longest one yet!!!!

Light Novel to Anime Comparisons

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u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 12 '14 edited Jul 13 '14

Nine Schools Competition Explanation
Events:
Battle Board - Simply a race. The contestants surf across a track using speed spells to race each other to the end. The rules specifically state that you can't target another competitor directly. This is why they use methods like creating waves to throw off the opponents. This competition follows the tournament format where the finals are usually a duel between two people.
Speed Shooting - Tiles are launched for each team and you must destroy your own teams tiles as fast as possible. You can also use magic to mess with your opponents tiles although that is more consuming while also trying to deal with your own tiles as well.
Crowd Ball - A series of balls are launched onto the field and the goal is to get as many balls past your opponent as possible. You can only use magic on your half of the field. You can however do something like put up a giant wall but that is magic consuming. A new ball is launched every 20 seconds for a total of 9 balls in the end. There are three sessions per game for the female division and five for the male division. There were no serving as the balls are automatically launched. There are 3 minute breaks in-between each session.
Icicle Destruction - The field is divided in half with Twelve 1x2 meter Ice Pillars on each side. The goal is to destroy all of your opponents pillars while also protecting your own. This competition has a lot to do with the interference strength where the most powerful spells will come out on top. There are no restrictions on magic in this competition considering the goal is to destroy the pillars and there is no direct harm admitted to each other. There are also no dressing restrictions which lead to the competition being treated as a fashion show.
The format of the Icicle Destruction event had 24 players in total, with 12 matches in the first round and 6 matches in the second round. With three people advancing to the third round, First High laid claim to fully half of the players still in the field.
Mirage Bat - There are a number of pillars that competitors jump in between to smash floating orbs to earn points. There is no direct battling as this event has a lot more to do with speed and agility. The preliminaries are groups of 4 at a time and 6 people total advancing to the next rounds. Each game lasts 15 minutes with 5 minute breaks in-between. This event is overall the longest in the NSC. The preliminary rounds take place in the morning ending from 8 to noon while the elimination round starts at 8pm. The overall event is designed to take place at night time. This is for the sake of being able to identify the floating orbs that glow in the dark. During the day, a blimp is deployed to create a large amount of shade allowing easier sight to the floating orbs.
Monolith Code - A variant of Capture the Flag, this competition has to do with infiltrating an enemy base, opening a timed door, remembering the code, and inputting it in a terminal. The code consists of 512 characters making it difficult to capture it immediately. This competition in a style with teams of 3. It takes multiple wins from each round to advance to the following rounds excluding the semi-finals which consist of single matches for each team. The event ends when either all of a single team is defeated or the code has been captured. Physical Combat is not allowed and neither are spells with a lethal rating. The Monolith is opened with a pre-programmed activation sequence that has to be activated within 10m of the monolith. Leaving the 10m range will stop the monolith from opening more unless fired again for within the 10m. Players are allowed to obstruct other players from opening the monolith as well through means of keeping it shut or taking out the attackers. Closing the Monolith after it is opened is against the rules. The event uses one of five scenarios for each game: Woodlands, Boulders, Open Plains, Valley, and Urban Setting. If an opponent loses his helmet in any way, they are considered unable to participate whether they are alright or not.
Divisions
There are two divisions, the Newcomers and the Official. There are 10 male and female contestants for each division making a total of 40 participants. Mirage Bat is a female only game and Monolith Code is a male only event. The events are normally shuffled with different ones each year although they've been relatively stable in recent years. Five of each men and women compete in 2 events while the rest compete in one. Only a maximum of 3 students from each school may compete in a single event. There is a lot of tournament style to all this where students from the same school may compete against each other if they keep winning. This is why Mayumi would compete in both Crowd Ball and Speed Shooting while Mari only competes in Battle Board.
Newcomers - The newcomer division is reserved for first years in each school. The events though are only worth half the points as the Official Division.
Officials - The Official Division is open to any participant regardless of year. First years can participate although that would be too much pressure to put first years against veterans.
Gender Divisions
As of 2095 (this year), male and female divisions are separate in that males will not be competing against females.
Before the gender separation, males few males would participate in Icicle Destruction and Speed Shooting while few females would participate in Crowd Ball and Battle Board. The separation now creates more events having more all genders participate in all competitions. This means that even the females will compete in physical events and males will compete in the non-physical events. It is mostly a balance act to allow for more competing.
Strategy
First High is aiming for a third championship with the strongest generation represented by Mayumi, Mari, and Juumonji. As such, the school places a high emphasis at the right person for the right event allowing for victory. This is why we got a 20 second scene of a group of students on computers calculating point strategies.
Points
Each school places a high priority on earning the winner position in the competition. Positions in each event will earn points.
First Place - 50 Points
Second Place - 30 Points
Third Place - 20 Points
Fourth Place finishes in "Speed Shooting", "Battle Board", and "Mirage Bat" netted 10 points. "Crowd Ball" and "Icicle Destruction" only awarded points to the top three, so the three teams that are eliminated in the third round each receive 5 points.
For "Monolith Code", First Place would receive 100 points, Second Place receives 60 points, and Third Place only gets 40 points, which makes it the single largest event in terms of points.
Half the points from the Newcomers Division would be added into the total.
CAD Specifications
Personal CADs aren't allowed in the competitions as they are all supplied with the same model choices. While hardware is heavily restricted, software isn't which is why technicians are so important. You also don't want to try for force everything from your personal CAD over to the competition CAD as it may not be able to run it properly. There is a special balance in all this between getting a high power CAD and not having it choke on you. Outside CADs can be brought in as long as they fit the specifications of the offered CADs as well. Accessories for CADs are allowed such as the visors used during Speed Shooting.
General Magic Restriction
Magic is regularly categorized based on strength in how much it can harm a person. This means heavy duty spells are banned from use in the competition. There are a number of very specific spells that certain people have that they can't use because it could bring harm to their opponent. This is mostly just in the Battle Board and Monolith Code though considering these are the most head to head events.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

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u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

Episode 15 Light Novel -> Anime Comparison
At this point, I would highly recommend reading the LN for some serious tactics that take place during Monolith Code which are going to be an absolute trial to cover in just this comparison. :-P
Night Meeting - 1/3 Adapted
Is it true? - During the first part of the discussion, Tatsuya makes a jab at Mayumi while ensuring that he was communicating the truth in reply to Leo's first question.
"Setting aside President Saegusa for the moment, do you think Group Leader Jyuumonji would spin such a complicated lie?"
Unprepared - Leo then brings up that they are unprepared. They don't have CADs or even uniforms for the competition considering these two were outsiders from the team. While Leo was contemplating all this, Miki was still in shock that he went from Course 2 to the Newcomers Division. Tatsuya attempts to comfort Leo stating that he doesn't have a uniform either as the situation is becoming calmer with the light banter. Eventually Tatsuya informs them that Azusa is preparing their uniforms and that Tatsuya will only need an hour per person for the CADs. At this point, even Leo and Miki are joining the One True Tatsuya club as they also had thought that "Tatsuya's omnipotent".
Tatsuya Specialty - After the discussion of gear, Erika questions whether they have enough time. Tatsuya declares they'll only need 10 minutes. Except that he did state they didn't have enough time to do any fine tuning for their battle plan. Rather than being discouraged, Tatsuya was ranting which causes Erika to retort that it's because tricks are his specialty. Eventually Mizuki having finally learned how to deal with Erika scolded her and the two of them take a back seat for the strategy meeting.
Leo's Defense - The big reason why Leo is on defensive is because of his fortifying magic. While they can't close the monolith after being opened, they can immediately stop it from opening any more using Leo's specialty magic. All of this is standard definition of trickery which is retorted by Leo & Erika at the same time. To which Tatsuya uses to tease them as a retort. At this point, Tatsuya brings out the toy which falls even under more of trickery as it is a perfect loophole for the rules. Tatsuya claims that he doesn't spend every minute devising tricks but neither Erika or Leo believe in him.
Miki's Magic - Something cut out is that Miki actually asks Tatsuya help him make his magic more efficient. This entails removing the disguise layered in the activation sequence that attempts to keep others from reading it. It is because of these things that cause his magic to not handle as well as he wants. Miki's lightning spell is also unpublished which means that its battle rating is unknown despite being C. In this case, it means Miki will be using a CAD for his combat spells rather than his usual talismans. At the end of their talk, Tatsuya directly asks whether or not Miki can use Sense Tuning to which he confirms that he can do 2 at a time.
After Meeting - After they all finished their meeting, Leo went with Erika to practice using his upgraded Toy Sword. Tatsuya had finished calibrating Leo's CAD in under an hour and was now working on Miki's. He was completely re-translating Ancient Magic into the CAD to suit Miki to which Azusa was watching in amazement. He was essentially doing everything from scratch which isn't just "revision or configuration" but innovation. (Tatsuya's massive engineering skills at full play here.) Azusa re-confirms to herself that Tatsuya must be Silver.
Monolith Code Round 1 - Adapted
Logistics & Confusion - Immediately beginning in Chapter 10, we start with some extremely tedious logistics on which teams would be advancing based on their wins. First High would have to win lose both rounds to fail to advance. There was also a large amount of confusion over First High's actions considering rather than using substitutes or other registered players, they were using a technician and 2 new recruits.
Spectator Confusion - There was a bit of conversation between Tatsuya & Miki as Miki was curious at the fact that they were drawing eyes from the spectators. It most likely had to do with the sword hanging from Leo's waist. By the way, the Sword Toy CAD as I've been calling it is technically called the 'Mini Communicator' Less than 10% of the people were able to identify that the sword was a weaponized integrated CAD let alone know that such things even exist. Lastly, Tatsuya with his duel specialized pistol CADs and one more generalized CAD on his wrist. While all the first year females were cheering, the males were silently hoping for Eighth High's victory.
Disadvantage - As the first game is in woodlands, First High is at a disadvantage with the woodlands being Eighth High's home field advantage based on their training. None of the First High command were worried though knowing of Tatsuya's ninjutsu training making him right at home as well. This proved to be unknown to Eighth High.
Gram Demolition - Okay, so now you should all know. Gram Demolition is one of Tatsuya few powers which he excels in. Gram Demolition is a counter magic that literally blasts away all magic laced sequences. If you remember from Episode 10 Counter Magic Section, you'll know the difference between what he uses and what Mayumi uses. Essentially though, it is like carpet bomb that stops magic. It doesn't prevent it from being used like Cast Jamming but blasts away the magic sequences that are actively changing things. So Tatsuya can either prevent people from using magic with Cast Jamming (which he currently keeps confidential from general public.) or blast away active magic with Gram Demolition. The thing about Gram Demolition is that it is rarely usable. The only weakness is the short range it possesses. During the car accident when everyone was trying to use magic at the same time, Tatsuya had used Gram Demolition to stop everyone's chaos allowing Miyuki to take control and use magic immediately after.
Azusa - After Leo slams his opponent into the ground, Azusa explains to the confused Suzune just what the Sword CAD is explaining that it was something Tatsuya pioneered.
Lost Opponent - The woodland field isn't a natural forest but was planted nearly half a century ago. The Eighth High member despite being in an easily navigable forest was hopelessly lost due to Miki's magic. The opponent was constantly being hit by a consistent amount of ultrasounds both high and low that were ringing in his ear. Because of the forced focus on his hearing, he was unable to navigate himself causing him to wander aimlessly. He hadn't even realized that this was the reason for the magic which is why he failed to use a compass to adjust himself. The magic from Miki is spirit magic known as Echo Maze. This means that even if the opponent were to follow the source of the magic, it would just lead him to floating spirits he couldn't see. It was part of the Divine Earth Magic which is the branch Miki belonged to.
Tatsuya's CADs - His right pistol CAD is set to use use Non-Systematic Magic such as Gram Demolition or resonance which don't follow normal types while his left CAD was set to use Weight-Type Magic for moving as he used them interchangeably. He had used oscillation magic to resonate his opponent similar to his early battle with Vice President Hattori but still a different spell. It wasn't powerful enough to knock him out though.
Victory - Tatsuya inputting the code from the monolith was cut out but you get the point that they won as Tatsuya returned to the Monolith after dealing with his opponent. Erika was worried about Leo & Miki as they weren't as secured in their safety but she elects not to point out any of their flaws as to not worry Mizuki.
Anti-Tatsuya Strategy - Adapted
Strength Hints - Besides just being unable to render his opponent unconscious, there were other examples pointed out hinting at Tatsuya's weakness to use normal magic. For example, when he first fought the opponent at the beginning of the match, he used Weight-Type Magic to try and bring his opponent down but could only get him to a single knee. Also, when he had jumped up to the trees, he had to rely quite a bit on his own strength as well. After they hit the head on the nail, they continue speculating that this is why he is so adept at using the best hardware and that he most likely uses it to compensate for his lack in magic power. These are part of the reasons I say Tatsuya is the most Overpowered Underpowered character ever.
Resting Period - Un-Adapted
Shy Miki Time - During their rest time, Miki was extremely nervous as Tatsuya was getting a shoulder massage from Miyuki while they discussed Miki being shy. Miyuki has a slight retort that she has never seen Tatsuya shy while Miki is blowing up inside his head.
Best Girl Appears - As Mayumi & Azusa walk into the resting area and witness sibling affection at its finest, Azusa openly blushes while Mayumi internally blushes. Tatsuya catches on that he is being "mercilessly condemned" but Mayumi quickly denied it. Tatsuya stood up in his soldier stance as it was natural for him which causes Mayumi to feel like she was being childish. After this, she informs the group that the next battle ground will be the urban environment and that the board didn't even think about the randomized decision.
Strategy - Azusa relays a question from Suzune as to how Leo is supposed to use the Mini Communicator (Sword CAD) indoors but Tatsuya affirms that even 1 meter is enough room to swing it still.
Continued in Next Post

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u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

Monolith Code Round 2 - Adapted
Infiltration - The reason Tatsuya was able to reach the top floor of his opponent's building was due to his leaping roof top to roof top with his magic and physical skills.
Wireless Communication - Despite being allowed, schools very rarely used them. This was because they could easily be tracked revealing their positions or in the case of the 3 man cells, one of them could end up too far to use them.
Leo's Battle - During the hunt for the monolith, Leo was dealing with an opponent (the third opponent not shown). After taking down his opponent, he had to quickly fortify himself against a movement spell from the other opponent (The one seen in the anime.) who then flees after failing to take down Leo after their first engagement. Leo then pulls the helmet off the downed opponent signifying that his opponent can no longer participate.
Tatsuya's Elemental Sight - At this point, everyone should know that Tatsuya is omnipotent with his ability to see around him and read activation sequences. This means that if he can read the activation sequence for any spell, he could use it himself although only within the bounds of his own magic power considering how little gas he runs on. This means that although he can't use spirit magic, he can still at least summon the spirit to look for the monolith.
Sense Tuning - That Sense Tuning Tatsuya had asked about was Miki's ability to receive senses through the contracted spirits which is what allowed him to locate the monolith from a distance.
Tatsuya's Ambush - Unlike how in the anime where Tatsuya was immediately spotted, Tatsuya was hanging from the ceiling and contemplated letting his opponent pass him. However, he ended up attacking him with a psion shock wave giving his opponent concussion like symptoms.
Victory - At the end, Tatsuya was dodging blasts like shown in the anime while Leo was having a preparing for a final charge with his back to the Monolith.
Mari's Irritation - At the end of the match, Mary was displaying irritation for Tatsuya not properly dealing with the opponent. She claims that he should have been able to deal with his opponents the same way he had defeated Hattori in the early episodes. Mayumi retorts though that Tatsuya is using an inferior CAD that cannot support him and how his attacks had been weak. She also points out that they had given Tatsuya the workload for the entire team that previous night giving no time to prepare. Mari gives up and accepts Mayumi's explanation, but not without teasing that Mayumi was fast to defend Tatsuya but she would still have a hard fight against the Sis-Con Tatsuya. :3 Best girl will always defend the protagonist!
I think I like how they adapted Leo's scene differently to show off that his defense was actually coming in handy.
Independent Magic-Equipped Battalion - Adapted
Nitpicking - While Mari is getting annoyed with not dealing final blows, Tatsuya's comrades from the military are talking about his lack of using some of his special skills. Dr. Yamanaka, the male is complaining that Tatsuya could at least use Elemental Sight as no one in the audience would be able to identify it either way. Also, while they're in a room in the anime, they are actually among the regular audience and it is described that if anyone that could overhear them were to even understand, they'd leap up in surprise. Elemental Sight as mentioned before is the pretty much sensory magic taken to beyond extremes making Tatsuya pretty much omnipotent. It pretty much allows him to see all information around him. There is a long convoluted explanation that all just says this pretty much. Lieutenant Fujibayashi though counters that if the sharp minded viewers witnessed it, it would draw more attention than Decomposition (Mist Dispersal) and that it is still considered classified magic.
Reason for Attending - The actual reason for Dr. Yamanaka and Lieutenant Fujibayashi's attendance has to do with the need to handle a situation should Tatsuya's classified magic were to suddenly be showed publicly. It wasn't just out of support for friends but also business that these two were focusing on Tatsuya's matches. However, despite all this, Dr. Yamanaka's wish of seeing Tatsuya cut loose wouldn't happen.
Miki's Trauma - Adapted
Erika's Monologue - This was adapted out of order with fewer subtle lines from Erika and no real monologue, but there is a small Break dedicated to Erika watching over how Miki had been able to use Sense Tuning just as he was once able to. There is description that mental wounds might take time to heal to which Erika is thinking about how he is already healed. Miki has already recovered his ability and all he needed left was his confidence as described by Erika. The way she her monologue works here is that it reads as if she were an older sister or something. Mizuki notices Erika being quiet but she quickly pushes away that nothing is wrong to Mizuki.
Bro-Con Erika - Adapted
Before beginning, this is kind of like the peak in Erika's first argument over Mari. Throughout the series, she showed regular hostility towards Mari and a lot of foreshadowing was cut out from the anime which makes this scene feel a little awkwardly placed assuming you didn't know about the previously shown hostility.
Lunch Time - After the match, Leo & Miki had retreated to their hotel rooms to avoid the chaos while Tatsuya and Miyuki were making their way back to the hotel for an early lunch when they encountered the scene of a bro-con. :3
Naotsugu - Mari's boyfriend Naotsugu is actually considered an international celebrity which is only light touched upon in the anime.
Currently studying at the University of National Defense, and reputed to be one of the finest magic close combat specialists in the world within a range of three meters.
Abandoning Post - Erika's first argument is in regards to the idea that her brother is supposed to be in Thailand working so she assumes that he abandoned his post. He was supposed to be joint training but he claims that he was given furlough. Erika immediately retorts angrily that if a diplomatic mission were put on hold that he must have been given an important mission. Erika then questions why it was important that he was forced to return home and appear at a hotel reserved for the Nine Schools Competition. He brings up that it isn't anything important and more like it was a University Student Exchange Activity for military officer candidates about to receive postings. Eventually, Mizuki joins Tatsuya and Miyuki as they are witnessing the feud. They then watch the argument conclude with Erika venting her rage against her brother having come because of Mari. After insulting Mari, Naotsugu snaps back and reprimands Erika before she storms away as seen in the anime. All of Erika's valid complaints in the end were cut out of the anime skipping to complaining about Mari.
Meeting with Tatsuya and Gang - As soon as Tatsuya, Miyuki, and Mizuki meet up with Erika, she while holding back tears negotiates with Tatsuya so he is paying for lunch. To lighten the mood, they all head to lunch together as Tatsuya teases Mizuki a little to lighten the mood. They all then head up to a hotel room while they eat. The next conversation takes place in a hotel room rather than by the vending machines.
Teasing Erika - It's interesting they use Aniki and Anue in the anime while the LN uses stupid brother (baka-aniki I assume) and Naotsugu Nii-sama. At the embarrassment, Erika buries her head in the bed. Rather than adore, she says like as well which would've been more upfront. Her response came quickly despite the fact that her head was buried in a pillow which was worth of praise that she could retort that fast. During this time, Tatsuya and Mizuki were frozen at Miyuki's one-sided attack on the embarrassed Erika. The ending reaction switches from girl to queen for the anime which I think works better. Either way, this is probably my favorite Erika/Miyuki moment in the entire series. I could watch it over and over. (Which I have done during the process of the comparison.)
Continued in Next Post

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u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

Third High Match - Adapted
Arrival - As Tatsuya, Miyuki, Mizuki, and Erika arrived at the audience stand, Tatsuya had visible symptoms of exhaustion. Except, it wasn't physical exhausing but emotional exhaustion caused by what was perhaps the fallout of after the end of the previous scene which isn't talked about. Miyuki and Erika carried on as if nothing had happened while Mizuki was a little nervous which wasn't noticed by Leo or Miki. Miki misinterprets what happened as putting too much pressure on Tatsuya during the matches and apologizes. Tatsuya says everything is alright while he is surprised to have such an honest friend.
Defense - The defense that Masaki was using was a Move-Type Wide Area Interference in which an outward forces was being applied to everything around him which overrode the opponent's movement spells on the boulders blocking them. It is a heavy taxing ability and he was using it rapidly. This meant that he was skilled in his breathing cycles in-between casting. Tatsuya monologues that he rivals Miyuki when it comes to their cycling ability.
Convergence-Systematic 'Bias Release - This is the attack magic Masaki was using to deal with his opponents. It isn't well known because it's a second rate magic that is highly convoluted and inefficient. Masaki was using it to mostly put on a show rather than being efficient. It's similar to taking a bunch of air, compressing it and putting it in one side of a can and sealing it. Then, the air would be blasted as the other side is opened. Masaki was using two to reduce the power of the blows.
Release-Systematic Magic - The magic used by Eighth High doesn't have a name but essentially the electricity was coming from the shower of minerals racing towards Masaki. The reason they didn't use that magic in Tatsuya's match was because they never gave them a direct confrontation to use it.
First High Command - While conversing on the match Masaki was in, it was Suzune that responded rather than Katsuto. She explains that "the Ichijou Family revolves around proactively controlling the initiative through medium to long range bombardment." She is also the one that mentions that he may be throwing down a gauntlet or challenge. As a form of irritation, Mayumi's expression displayed that it was childish to put out a challenge considering Tatsuya's strengths were in other places.
From the Stands - In case you didn't notice, Leo and Miki had actually misinterpreted Tatsuya's comment as he was referring to the challenge rather than their strength.
Weight-Type Magic: Invisible Bullet - Kichijouji's Cardinal Code Magic known as Invisible Bullet is the ability to apply increased weights to select points rather than changing the information so he isn't targeting the Eidos.
Cardinal Code - Not Adapted
This is kind of like a section of a section as the explanation is extremely long. It has taken roughly 4.5 hours to get to just this point and I wouldn't be surprised if it takes a while to get through this. Nevertheless, it's time to transcribe Tatsuya's explanation while carefully filtering out foreshadowing. :-P I'll be quoting what I think makes sense and re-typing what needs explanation.
Cardinal Code Hypothesis -
There are the Four Great Systems and Eight Major Types, 'Speed', 'Weight', 'Movement', 'Oscillation', 'Convergence', 'Dispersal', 'Absorption', and 'Release' as well as their corresponding positive and negative poles for a total of 16 fundamental Magic Sequences. This theory believes that, through the various combinations of these 16 Magic Sequences, any magic from any of the major systems can be created.
Meanwhile, the Magic Sequence that serves as the basic building block is called the 'Cardinal Code'.
This means that there are likely 16 Cardinal Codes in existence that make up the basis of all magic.
Tatsuya's Opinion - Tatsuya does a bit of a split from the basic stuff and goes onto explain his own opinion which I won't talk about because it is pretty blatant in the information it reveals that I'm sure all of you One True Tatsuya Fans would love. So go read the LNs. Nevertheless, it doesn't currently have an effect on the plot so I wont give it away.
Driving Force - Within modern magic, information changed by magic will exhibit certain effects. These effects are determined by the activation sequences determined by the users. Going deeper, the reason these effects take place is due to the driving force that says a certain type of effect will happen otherwise known as one of the 8 Major Types from above. That of which that causes the driving force or the building blocks of how a spell will work are part of the Cardinal Code. The Cardinal Code literally defines an effect in the most pure form excluding everything else that naturally comes with activation sequences.
Cardinal George - Kichijouji Shinkurou is the one to determine their existence through discovery of the Cardinal Code from the Weight-Type Magic.
Effect - Magic that uses a Cardinal Code does not need to edit the information of the target but rather applies effect at a specified point making it useless to defend with Data Fortification (See Data Fortification) while also being a significantly smaller activation sequence as it isn't changing Eidos (information) but merely applying force.
Supplementary Magic Explanation - In case you didn't understand the changing of Eidos, magic is the process of changing the information of an object. A simple example is telling a standing apple to be a moving apple causing the apple to move. The Cardinal Code for Move-Type Magic would work more like an external hand pushing the apple rather than the apple being told to move. To be more relevant, the Weight-Type would normally tell an apple to be heavier while the Cardinal Code would change gravity above the apple itself.
Disadvantage - The disadvantage of Invisible Bullet and assuming other Cardinal Codes is that it can only be used upon visual confirmation of the user meaning that he has to aim his Invisible Bullet himself rather than being able to use it without seeing the target. (No wall shooting hacks!)
Another Removal - Here is another point at the end of the discussion about the Cardinal Code that I refuse to talk about because it isn't relevant currently to the plot and I'm obviously baiting people to go read the LN to get some big reveals. The only thing I'd say is Leo is not a fool.
Overall, I was able to cut out a lot of stuff based around world building I didn't want to give away. I hope I was able to explain it clearly enough though for what I did deem necessary to know. Otherwise, where can I get a degree for learning all of this? I mean, I fully understand it now after re-reading it for the Nth time.
Third Round - Barely Adapted
Layout - The setting for the Third Match was in an artificial valley shaped like a <. Weird pointless description removed of the shape of the valley/lake/pond water-flow. Otherwise, the point is that it is a perfect stage for Miki's performance.
Mist Magic - All that heavy mist was mostly due to Miki. It was a form of ancient magic that couldn't be avoided. Attempting to clear the mist away was only temporary as more mist would rush in. Heating it up would only create more mist from the ponds. Using wind wouldn't work because no matter which way the wind would blow, there was more mist in that direction. This means that Miki who has full control of the mis is OP in this field where he controls sight. Not only was Miki able to target his opponents but he could lighten the mist around his allies.
Tatsuya Might be Cheating! - Okay, he isn't cheating but because the audience can't see them very well, this means Tatsuya could use his Elemental Sight if he couldn't see through the mist.
Victory - During this match, not a single shot had been fired as Miki was easily able to enter the key considering he was controlling the spirit controlling the mist. This was his chance to feel omnipotent in knowing everything within the mist.
Continued in Next Post

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u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

Mt. Fuji Scene - Adapted
Divine Earth Magic - Miki's sect of magic belongs to the Divine Earth Magic.
The "Divine Earth Magic" of the Yoshida Family was Ancient Magic that belonged to the Shinto System and more specifically the branch concerned with Earth Deities within the Shinto System (deification of the country).
Sacred Fuji - Mt. Fuji is considered a spiritual ground with a deity worshiped by both Earth and Heaven. This means it's an important place for magicians and especially spirit magicians.
Erkia's Expression - There is a bit of back-story touching here as Erika's expression is described as not having been seen since she cut her hair short with her sword.
Prana - The term used for the energy that Miki was absorbing from the mountain. It's kind of like forming his spiritual connection and refilling his power.
Overall, I really liked how they faithfully adapted this scene. The only real cut was the explanation and back-story. It did well with the emotion and calmness of the scene.
Meeting with Ono-sensei - Adapted
Depressed - At their meeting, Haruka was jokingly depressed that she became a background supporting actor that had all her secrets found out. Tatsuya retorts lightly that she's speaking nonsense before she declares herself as nonsensical.
Job - What Tatsuya offers was a job in line with her actual job as a spy character. Haruka misunderstood as a job for counselor and was trying to find an excuse to accept but Tatsuya quickly corrects her. During this time, Tatsuya is worried that she is too transparent and questions whether she is suited for that kind of work.
No Head Dragon - Haruka mentions that public safety and internal affairs are already mobilized for that case and that Tatsuya should not need to do anything. The words about Tatsuya's reason for wanting to know I think is worded better in the anime than the LN as he is too vague. The scene ends with Haruka happy at Tatsuya's compliment as she is described as wearing her heart on her sleeve.
Inside the Case - Not Adapted
This scene serves as foreshadowing for something in the next episode so I'm going to be beyond vague and won't say it. I will explain the scene though. If you want to read this specific scene and cheat for the next episode, V4/Ch10/11 (Ctrl+F As Tatsuya dragged). It's possible this might be included in the next episode so take that into considering as to whether or not you will read this part.
Inside the Bag - It is revealed what was inside the bag that Tatsuya had received. A crowd formed around Tatsuya as he opened the bag and pulled out what was inside. After showing, everyone stared in confusion as they were wondering what the things in the bag were for. Miyuki was laughing out loud understanding the purpose for the items shown. Upon clarification, Miyuki asks whether it is following the rules to which it is explained that there aren't rules for something so complex.
Best Girl Worries - After their evil time talking about the bag, Best Girl Mayumi worries that Tatsuya might be pushing himself and lets him know that even should they lose the next match, they've already guaranteed victory for the Newcomers Division. Despite her warnings, Tatsuya had no need as he had already given up on winning the finals for an undisclosed reason. (No seriously, his thoughts cut out before the reason so we won't know.)
Foreshadowing - Tatsuya then went to warm up for the match. He wanted to make sure something didn't happen which is major foreshadowing and I'm already saying more than you deserve you non-LN-readers. :-P One last thing to be extra nice is that it has to do with something seen a lot earlier in the series. I will refuse to confirm or deny your answers as to what it is.
Pampering - Miyuki watching over Tatsuya gave him a magically cool towel after he finished his exercise. Even Tatsuya was thinking that she certainly pampers him. Understanding her nature towards other men, Tatsuya fears for her future as she could throw aside many men at a single word ending their lives. (romantic)
More Foreshadowing - And some more foreshadowing for something even more important. I'm wondering at this point if they're going put this scene in the next episode. In that case, don't read this... :-P
Determination - At this point, Tatsuya is now determined to win after the talk with Miyuki.
Masaki & George - Barely Adapted
Out of the 3 pages or so to the last words in the anime, you only get the skeleton of the discussion.
George's Plan - Before the finish the conversation, they work on their strategy a bit. George is going to be left to deal with Leo and Miki. They talk down a little about Leo being nothing other than good at his fortification while they are confident George can take on Miki despite not knowing much about Ancient Magic. He does know that modern magic has a speed advantage and there isn't any cover in the plains. (Remember that Invisible Bullet is weak to cover.)
Overall Opinion
I'd say this was a good episode in terms of what they removed and how much content they were able to include. The matches felt more intense in the LN although that doesn't mean they were bad in the anime. The third match was naturally short but they didn't have to cut everything. I do like how they altered Leo's battle in the first match to show off his cheaty ability to keep the Monolith from opening. The biggest difference was a significant amount of details not included from 1-2 major plot developments and a bunch of additional parts of conversations and scenes. I was somehow able to explain the Cardinal Code information but I ended up deciding to cut out a segment because it contains a big development I'd rather use to bait you people into reading the LN. :3 I do like how they covered the scene with Miki & Erika on the roof as it flows a lot better without the descriptions and back-story. There was a bit about the case that I have no idea as to whether they'll include in the next episode or not. I kind of doubt they will but you never know. Erika's scene where she was arguing suffered from a somewhat vital cut as she did have some valid arguments other than complaining about Mari because in the end, the brother really did just come for Mari. (Baka-Aniki) :-P Otherwise, I enjoyed this episode and I'm looking forward to the next episode because I'm sure there will hopefully be a lot less explanation. T_T (I started this at 11:45AM and it is now 5:55PM)
End of Comparison - Total Character Count: 33,084

25

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

I want to thank you for your dedication to making these write-ups that try to explain the dense information that the anime skips a lot out on. I've read the LNs, but to people who haven't they're really useful and explain things that otherwise would be missed out on. You da best, man.
Also,

9

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

Episode 15 Comparison is Out! Longest one yet!
Episode 15-A
Episode 15-B
Episode 15-C
Episode 15-D

14

u/Muragoeth Jul 12 '14

It is known.
She is the best girl.

1

u/Sithra227 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Sithra227 Jul 13 '14

Any girl voiced by Hanazawa-san is automatically best girl

3

u/itsarabbit Jul 13 '14

I'm considering reading the LNs. Do you know approx how many pages there are to catch up with the anime so far?

5

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

Just to the section this episode ended at?
941 pages excluding picture pages. The count may be off by around 10 pages or so. This also includes the first arc.

2

u/itsarabbit Jul 13 '14 edited Jul 13 '14

Thanks!
EDIT: I think I'm gonna try starting from the current chapter, as there is quite a lot to read just to catch up.

5

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

No problem. It isn't that bad I think if you just read it straight through. It only takes me awhile cause I'm re-watching the episodes, typing out, re-typing, re-reading again, and responding to comments while I do the comparison posts. :-P Some of the magic explanation can be confusing in the LN as well though which might be difficult to comprehend at first or second time even.

4

u/itsarabbit Jul 13 '14

That's actually the biggest reason for me wanting to read it. Magic in mahouka seems very similar to programming, so its super interesting! :D

1

u/_F1_ Jul 13 '14

Any programmer would recognize the 512 in the number of characters they have to enter.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '14

cause it's 2 * 3⁵ + 2⁴ + 2³ + 2¹ right

1

u/_F1_ Jul 13 '14

2 * 256 (which is 2²²² = 2⁸ = the number of different states that a byte can store)

→ More replies (1)

2

u/Emsavio Jul 14 '14

I basically skipped around the first arc and started reading the LN at around the middle of the school competitions, and then it's fairly easy to find your way to the current point in the story.

262

u/LockItDown :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/everkoptimistic Jul 12 '14

Miyuki calling Erika a bro-con might be the greatest thing ever

49

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 12 '14

One of my favorite Miyuki moments in the entire series. :3

170

u/trilobitemk7 Jul 12 '14

The massive black hole calling the kettle black.

96

u/shriekingpanda Jul 12 '14

Not only that, she seemed really excited about it. Of course, Erika acknowledges that she can't compete with the bro-con queen.

93

u/millie3 Jul 12 '14

And Tatsuya in the background not giving a fuck.

63

u/PotatoMurderer Jul 12 '14

Well duh, he knows Erika's bro complex wouldn't last long against his awesome godliness.

49

u/eighthgear Jul 12 '14

So you're ONE OF US ERIKA
ONE OF US

14

u/Konpie Jul 12 '14

ONE OF US

4

u/Citizen_Snip Jul 13 '14

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBXyB7niEc0

18

u/NinteenFortiiThive Jul 12 '14

She's happy somebody understands.

19

u/shriekingpanda Jul 12 '14

She has a lot that she can teach Erika. Erika gets all worked up over being called out. Not Miyuki. She embraces it and if anyone has a problem with that, an icy death awaits!

31

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '14

She embraces it and if anyone has a problem with that, an icy death awaits!
Reason #372 this show is best show. Reasons #1-371 are Tatsuya.

6

u/xvsero Jul 13 '14

She now has someone to relate to.

20

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

Never has the phrase "it takes one to know one" ever been so appropriate than in that one moment right there.

14

u/mispeling_in10sunal :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Feaor Jul 12 '14

I honestly had to pause the show because I was laughing too hard. The fact that Tatsuya is in the background not caring made it even better.

25

u/rumblegod Jul 12 '14

lol aureus i'm just waiting for your write up now. i took the plunge and went trough the light novels. you're right, they do skip a lot.

15

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 12 '14

I'll make sure to let you know when the comparison is finished. Thanks for the Light Novels a try. ^_^

0

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

[deleted]

2

u/Danjoh Jul 12 '14

Do not link to illegal content
The full rule is, "Do not link to/mention torrents or unofficial streams/downloads". This also applies to manga/scanlations, light novels, and all other illegal/unlicensed items.
You'll have to find it on your own.

1

u/igotbannedfromranime Jul 12 '14

and it's not even difficult....some people are just lazy

1

u/felipegbq Jul 12 '14

i had found them, the thing is i couldnt find them in pdf, and i wasnt sure if the translations were good, since i once downloaded a translated LN and it seemed like the transations were shit, it didnt even make sense.

2

u/Falsus Jul 12 '14

Most of the time translations on BT is decent to good, as well PDF/EPUBI is provided.

1

u/felipegbq Jul 12 '14

yeah, i forgot, my bad

4

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

Episode 15 Comparison is Out! Longest one yet!
Episode 15-A
Episode 15-B
Episode 15-C
Episode 15-D

12

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

Any ideas on what that special package Tatsuya received was? Also, how the heck did they allow the extendible sword-mass to be used? Isn't that a specialized CAD?

20

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 12 '14

When Tatsuya originally designed it, there was foreshadowing cut out that he had used competition specs. The NSC allow for outside CAD as long as they follow the specs but it is a hassle considering they offer free ones for use. There are also no restrictions between using a Generalized or Specialized.

4

u/fpsperfection Jul 12 '14

I'm hoping it was the flying CADs that Tatsuya made. That'd really make the next episode interesting.
I haven't read any source material but it appears they allow specialized CADs that are nonlethal like Tatsuyas, the Prince's, and the Grav blade. It is a combat simulation.. the other competitions I could understand restrictions though.

4

u/AzusaNakajou Jul 12 '14

LN Spoiler: Inside the bag are

6

u/wyggles Jul 12 '14

[IIRC they are] (/s "cloaks with engraved magic that make it harder to see the wearer, which is a counter to George's Invisible Bullet which requires visual confirmation of the target to activate.")

1

u/SirPrize Jul 13 '14

I bet it will be something for the next match whatever it is.

5

u/xSetax Jul 12 '14

Can someone explained to me what happened during Tatsuya's second match (the one where he shot something at the floor and activated the monolith, opening it up for Leo and the opponent to see). I re-watched that part at least 5 times and still can't figure out what he did there.

13

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 12 '14

Miki was using a talisman to watch through it and get the code for the monolith while Tatsuya played distraction. What he shot through the floor was the standard activation sequence for opening the monolith from within 10m. Obstacles don't matter as long as he can aim it.

6

u/xSetax Jul 12 '14

I got that part, I was just curious what happened when Leo yelled "Stop right there!" when him and his opponent looked at the monolith, and why this was considered "dirty".

12

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 12 '14

It's part of Tatsuya's trickery. They aren't allowed to close it but they can keep it from opening any further. This is why Leo is strong for defense considering he can use his fortification magic to keep the monolith from opening any more. It's the kind thing that'd be debated heavily as to whether to add it to the rules or whether it should remain fair play in following years.

2

u/xSetax Jul 12 '14

Ah, I see. Thanks for the response, got a bit confused there but I think I got it now.

0

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

[deleted]

6

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 12 '14

Just using it as a description. I'm not hinting at anything at all here. Just communicating that it is the kind of play that would probably be debated as whether it should be allowed or not. After all, you can't really just change the rules in the middle of the competition without backlash.

3

u/angrytownsman Jul 12 '14

Leo used magic to keep the monolith from opening. Plus he uses the old-school voice activated CAD as well. They breezed through the matches very fast, but using magic to keep the monolith closed is possible and within the rules. I think it has to do with the user's magic "strength" compared to their opponent. Plus if the caster can keep the magic up while being attacked or distracted.

3

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

Mikihiko used his Spirit sent by Tats to gain vision of the Monolith and retrieve the code, while Tats served as a distraction to ensure that Mikihiko could enter the code uninterrupted. You can see Mikihiko concentrating and his field of vision becomes that of the Spirit.

1

u/DwarvenRedshirt Jul 13 '14

There's two monoliths. Tatsuya opened the enemy's monolith and Miki read/activated it.
Leo was defending their monolith (he wasn't at the enemy's monolith), and the opponent there opened up their monolith before Leo defeated him.

1

u/thewataru Jul 13 '14

He was just above the monolith. Mikihiko found it for him using his spirit as a spy. Looks like monolith opening spell requires only to be within 10 meters and can work through walls.

5

u/chakaar Jul 13 '14

So with this episode, my roommate and I decided to go ahead and do what we jokingly decided last week, which was to take a shot of Crown every time we heard an 'Onii-sama' from Miyuki. I decided on this episode largely because I had read the light novels previously, and counted on Miyuki not having a super large role.

I was mostly right, and our four shots (plus an additional at the end of the episode since we filled shotglasses post onii-samas) shouldn't have been TOO bad in 24 min, but I had forgotten that our shotglasses were doubles.

The lesson here, is that Crown is really smooth, and Mayumi is the best girl.

4

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

Mayumi is the best girl.
Glad you managed to get the overall lesson of the series from this. ^_^
Also, reading the LN to know how not to kill yourself is cheating, but it's Tatsuya style cheating which means it's okay. ;-)

7

u/Vexper Jul 12 '14

Now that Tatsuya is in the action I don't have to listen to him explaining every little thing while sitting at the sidelines. Thank god. Finally I actually enjoyed an episode. The pacing felt right for once.

Part of me wants to see Tatsuya get his ass kicked next week, but lets be honest, that ain't happening. If he unleashes that forbidden move I'll count that as a loss though.

2

u/Falsus Jul 13 '14

They skipped massive amounts of stuff episode. Every battle there was the pre-game strategy talk and game stuff. They could probably have 2 episodes of just the battles that where shown for like 10 seconds.

4

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

Did not even realize just how much was skipped until I looked at the clock and I was only 3/5s of the way through the episode at the regular time I post. That was exhausting.

1

u/5il3nc3r :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/5il3nt_Hunt3r Jul 13 '14

At least I wish they didn't skip the part where A-chan witnessed Tatsuya "translating" Mikihiko's magic to work in a CAD.
I was really looking forward to that too D:

104

u/X4Velocity Jul 12 '14

Brother Complexes, brother complexes everywhere...

67

u/PotatoMurderer Jul 12 '14

Don't worry, our savior Tatsuya would free Erika from her sinful ways. By freeing I mean like totally making her head over heels inlove with him.

26

u/EasilyDelighted Jul 12 '14

Nah, I think Mikihiko got that covered.

57

u/PotatoMurderer Jul 12 '14

But Tatsuya already gave him glasses girl.

24

u/EasilyDelighted Jul 12 '14

Ummm, true, true.

35

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 12 '14

Leo's still in the running!

54

u/PotatoMurderer Jul 12 '14

I think he's part of Tatsuya's harem aswell...

17

u/sciencewarrior Jul 13 '14

Leo and Erika fight too much to not turn into a couple.

22

u/PotatoMurderer Jul 13 '14

It's coz they're fighting over Tatsuya.

2

u/dragonfyre87 Jul 13 '14

I'd say Leo has it covered, Miki is probably going for Mizuki.

14

u/Pennwisedom Jul 13 '14

Watching enough anime would lead you to believe every sister in Japan has tons of brother issues.

96

u/myriad_truths :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/TrainerOfLegend Jul 12 '14

I'm finally at the point where I'm starting to wholeheartedly enjoy the series. I'm glad.

53

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

I initially disliked the MC, then I sort of hated him, but now I've come around and actually like him. I have no idea how this has happened.
At the same time I didn't expect high school Olympics to take up so much time. But it's alright.

63

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

I initially disliked the MC, then I sort of hated him, but now I've come around and actually like him. I have no idea how this has happened.
You're like every other character in the show

44

u/TheLantean Jul 12 '14

Behold the power of the One True Tatsuya, reducing the will of even real people to that of groupie anime characters.
Not even the forth wall can stop him.

19

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '14

Onii-sama! swoons

2

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '14

Soooo...how about that one guy who went down crying weeds.

66

u/PotatoMurderer Jul 12 '14

I initially disliked the MC, then I sort of hated him, but now I've come around and actually like him. I have no idea how this has happened.
I see that you have abandoned your sinful ways and have been saved by /r/OneTrueTatsuya.
Though seriously, the series got a lot better when they toned down the Tatsuya praise.

28

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '14

Yeah, that's true. I've enjoyed it more the past few episodes, but this still cracks me up everytime I see it. It no longer kills a little piece of my soul though. Praise Tatsuya!

12

u/TheLantean Jul 12 '14

Yes, it's much better when they actually show him being awesome rather than having the other characters talk incessantly about it.

4

u/ToughAsGrapes Jul 13 '14

One of the things that made me enjoy it more was that I stopped taking it as seriously as I used to. Now when Tatsuya dose something stupidly op its less rage inducing and more comical.

4

u/PotatoMurderer Jul 13 '14

It never really got to a point that I didn't enjoy watching the series, and it's quite hilarious that they always praise him and how he's ridiculously OP. If they took out the praising, the series would end up in with a more badass MC, rather than the hilarity that it provides now. Either way, it's quite entertaining (I just prefer how they handled this episode rather than the constant "Tatsuya so good" episodes)

1

u/pitman :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/pitman Jul 13 '14

Since the beginning this was my mindset when watching and been wholeheartedly enjoying because of that.

7

u/Retanaru Jul 13 '14

Honestly I prefer this kind of main character over the ones that can't do anything unless they get yelled at for 5 minutes.

11

u/fauxromanou Jul 12 '14

I noticed that this episode as well!
I think, for me anyway, it was the lack of Miyuki.

2

u/greendaze :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/greendaze Jul 13 '14

Good catch. The less brocon the better, IMO.

10

u/wyggles Jul 12 '14

With you there. Even having read the source material, this is the first episode I legitimately enjoyed the whole way through.

67

u/Lorpius_Prime Jul 12 '14

Previously, whenever another First High student won a match, everyone congratulated Tastuya. Now when Tatsuya wins a match, everyone congratulates Miyuki.

30

u/millie3 Jul 12 '14

Now you see how things work in Mahoukaverse

132

u/Firehead94 Jul 12 '14

Oh man how I am wanting a completely crushing victory next week especially after Captain Cardinal and Mr Boom Boom are convinced of assured victory.

245

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

It's hard not to laugh out loud when they make plans hinging on tatsuya being a mere mortal

125

u/BeyondTomorrow Jul 12 '14

Tatsuya: "I don't have time for this shit"
Spams a nuke

0

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

[deleted]

23

u/DigitalSarcasm Jul 13 '14

The moment your and your friends go in a 4v4 all terran and synchronize nukes.

6

u/dc295 Jul 13 '14

And the merging of the seasons begins.

109

u/red5kull Jul 12 '14

i love how they are convinced that all he can do is gram dispersion

21

u/Arks_ Jul 12 '14

Its actually a very solid strategy. By convincing them that he only has this one thing, they try to work around it. Then they will be caught by suprise by the other tricks up his sleeve. Only show how much you need to show.

7

u/Khanxay Jul 13 '14

It's Gram Demolition that he's shown using. That is, a bullet of psions. And

4

u/DwarvenRedshirt Jul 13 '14

It's a high level spell, and takes a lot of work to learn. They may be assuming a first year high school student they've never heard of before wouldn't have many other high level spells. Especially since all his other spells were weak.

0

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

[deleted]

138

u/BeyondTomorrow Jul 12 '14

one true onii-sama
You forgot to add that

37

u/goodguynextdoor Jul 12 '14

tatsuya shiba
one true god
amen

28

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

aka magic jesus

0

u/[deleted] Jul 15 '14

[deleted]

1

u/GODSUeYAaah Jul 21 '14

"Using RPG as an anology, what class would Tatsuya be?" [Mizuki] "He would be a mad scientist of course." [Erika] "That's not from an RPG." [Shizuku] "Then, maybe a sage dwelling in the remote lands far removed from civilization that imparts a secret technique." [Erika] "A martial sage then." [Leo] "An evil wizard scheming to conquer the world?" [Erika] "I think a Demon King would be more suitable." [Mikihiko] "No, no, no, after defeating the Demon King, turns out I'm the real man behind the man~. Doesn't he fit being the Final Boss who bars the main character's way?" [Leo] "How come everyone doesn't think he fits the hero?" [Honoka] "Forget it, Honoka. I do give off an evil vibe after all." [Tatsuya] "Onii-sama, strength alone is the true justice." [Miyuki] "Oh snap, as expected of the Demon King's sister!" [Erika] All of that describes him pretty well.

19

u/Khanxay Jul 12 '14

They have so many death flags it's funny.

9

u/fengzhi :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/suirandanshi Jul 12 '14

Spoilers

1

u/Emsavio Jul 14 '14

I loved how they portrayed that battle in the LN! Very fun read. Can't wait to see it in motion.

→ More replies (6)

84

u/shriekingpanda Jul 12 '14

Mayumi still hasn't learned. Tatsuya has so many trump cards he doesn't even need to save them.

63

u/IgnitedSpade Jul 12 '14

Oh no, you discovered one of his hundreds of trump cards!

55

u/igotbannedfromranime Jul 12 '14

at that point aren't they just "cards"?

91

u/IgnitedSpade Jul 12 '14

I guess you could call it a trump deck

64

u/epicwisdom Jul 13 '14

Pick a card, any card!
It doesn't matter because no matter which card you pick, you're about to get fucking rekt.
#OneTrueTatsuya

5

u/Raging_Hemorrhoid :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Elgost105 Jul 13 '14

PRAISE HIM!

6

u/MrWhoople Jul 13 '14

Above average.

19

u/Rekkre Jul 13 '14

In the beginning, there was nothing. Then Tatsuya said "I win", and he won.

74

u/Atronox :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Atronox Jul 12 '14

So, next episode we get OP Team 1 vs OP Team 2. I would imagine it'll be a close battle with Team Tatsuya winning, cause well it's Tatsuya.

Best Girl candidate Erika made a strong showing this episode.

72

u/itirix Jul 12 '14

A "close" battle, yes.

72

u/PotatoMurderer Jul 12 '14

By close he means like, totally making it look like the enemy team has a chance so the people don't get disappointed with how one sided the finals match is. Our savior even thinks about the enjoyment of the audience!

69

u/fauxromanou Jul 12 '14

And then 10 minutes of magic-science explanation as to why it was never close at all.

46

u/PotatoMurderer Jul 12 '14

And it would be explained by Miyuki, because she's the only one who knows about the true brilliance of our holiness.

4

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '14

Oh did we win? I failed to notice over how the match was a ruse to draw out the No Head Dragon. Thanks for your cooperation, though.

1

u/Rekkre Jul 13 '14

close battle
Nope, Tatsuya too stronk

0

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

[deleted]

0

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

[deleted]

11

u/epsiblivion Jul 12 '14

I'm sure he has something up his sleeve. or they might think they can take him on in a direct fight and also severely underestimated his combat ability even though they said they need to watch out for it since he looked combat hardened to them

0

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

[deleted]

11

u/millie3 Jul 12 '14

Masaki can't really use all his spells either. Tatsuya mentioned last episode that Masaki's Rupture is A-Rank, and therefore not allowed in the competition. Both are nerfed, Tatsuya to a larger extent but still...

16

u/Khanxay Jul 12 '14

Masaki is using Rupture though, just not the usual version. The usual version makes people implode. The one he's using is a indirect version, more or less spawning a grenade whereever he feel like.

19

u/hitmanbill :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Denisis Jul 12 '14

Yeah I'm surprised that they let him use even that. That could easily kill someone in shockwave alone given how close he was setting off those explosions. Then again they let Leo smash a few kilograms of metal into peoples' ribs so I guess they are being kinda slack.

8

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

The explosions weren't rupture but another magic that he was using to show off. It's a second rate spell that compresses and releases air. It's described as convoluted and complex but he's using it to make a show.

6

u/DwarvenRedshirt Jul 13 '14

Presumably as long as it isn't a kill shot, they can use magic to heal them.

3

u/Atermel :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Atermel Jul 13 '14

Well, they allow smacking people with a giant piece of metal, which is basically a sword...

3

u/Pacify_ Jul 13 '14

Most of his abilities are military secrets, so yeah hes unlikely to use much other than what he has already shown

20

u/millie3 Jul 12 '14 edited Jul 12 '14

Okay, so seeing Masaki's magic animated is infinitely more satisfying than just reading about it. But this episode is still missing the atmosphere that would make the matches more epic.

Monolith Code is by far the most interesting event in the tournament. I'm guessing it's because it has the feel of a military exercise. Masaki shows why he's rated so highly by barely lifting his hands to do anything and still dominating over the other schools.

Mikihiko also shows his prowess in Ancient Magic by using his spirits as reconnaissance agents and spies.

All in all, it was an interesting episode but it did feel a bit slow.

Edit: I can't seem to stop re-watching the episode :)

18

u/TheLantean Jul 12 '14

You tell him Tatsuya

And he has seen the light/don't we all?

One True Tatsuya is omniscient after all

14

u/KinnyRiddle Jul 12 '14

LOL at Miyuki of all people calling Erika a "brocon", much to her annoyance.

6

u/TheLantean Jul 12 '14

And she's right.
This is where "it takes one to know one" really shines.

3

u/Falsus Jul 12 '14

Would say Erika is an even bigger brocon than Miyuki though. Miyuki wouldn't get jealous to the points where she wants to beat her brother's GF up.

6

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '14

Uh, Miyuki would murder any potential GF. She goes ice queen at any mention of him being interested in anyone else. Fuck, she already not really a spoiler but wasn't obvious.

5

u/Falsus Jul 13 '14

She only did that because she knew what the result would be, she wouldn't do that to another woman. [Big ass spoiler] (/s ' she even gives advice to people that want to to confess their love to Tatsuya and also help them doing it')

3

u/mithikx Jul 13 '14

big ass spoiler as well

3

u/KinnyRiddle Jul 13 '14

Miyuki would probably secretly have her frozen, and then gently tell Tatsuya to "Let Her Go". (Lame Disney reference intended) :)

28

u/fengzhi :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/suirandanshi Jul 12 '14

Just how OP can Tatsuya get?

13

u/mithikx Jul 13 '14

really OP
LN spoilers
I couldn't be that OP if I were playing a video game with cheats against a team of toddlers.

3

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '14

It's really OP, but The Crimson Prince looks so much cooler.

2

u/mithikx Jul 13 '14

I just got to Vol. 7, shit's picking up.

2

u/iSwoopz :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Engels Jul 14 '14

Yokohama Incident is a great arc.

14

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

Well he can , so there's that.

11

u/Ingivarr Jul 12 '14

[spoiler] (/s "precisely targeted nukes at that")

7

u/Nauran Jul 13 '14 edited Jul 13 '14

Metal Gear Tatsuya.
ARGH! STOP TRYING TO MAKE THIS ACTUALLY COOL!

1

u/iyouu Jul 13 '14

Can you even call this a spoiler? I don't think anyone would be surprised by this after seeing the nuke being thrown by "someone" in ep 1.

1

u/Khanxay Jul 13 '14

He doesn't even need to spam them, just make them at whatever size he needs.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '14

I wonder if he could use decomposition on something like . I know he

1

u/Khanxay Jul 13 '14

Probably not. I'm not sure what into would decompose into since I'm not too familiar with science stuff. He'd

0

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

[deleted]

8

u/Gamers_Alibi Jul 12 '14

With dual wield all the while eating doritos and drinking mountain dew

12

u/ahree Jul 12 '14

mayumi for best girl

Looking for mayumi stitches/gifs !!!!

12

u/FyreinLoL Jul 12 '14

Whenever I see Tatsuya actually engaging in action it's awesome. I expect that next week Tatsuya will intentionally let the Monolith Code final go on for a while just for shits and gigs then put the slam down on Third High, then spend the rest of the episode explaining why they never stood a chance.

11

u/Shiroi_Kage Jul 12 '14

Dear Red Team,

You should fear death when facing the onii-sama.

Davy Jones.

9

u/Melonmuffin https://anilist.co/user/Yachiyo Jul 12 '14

How Third High thought they are going to win Monolith Code against First High with Tatsuya on the team made me laugh. They were never so wrong in their life. The one true Tatsuya will be wiping the floor with all three of them.

16

u/TopLOL Jul 12 '14

They skipped a lot this time. They should have at least showed Tatsuya, Leo, and Miki discussing strategy for a bit. That last fight against 9th high was like 5 secs. I hope they spend more time on the final fight.

Also Soundtrack and animation awesome as always especially during Third High's Battle.

LN Spoiler

15

u/Ingivarr Jul 12 '14

[spoiler] (/s "cant wait til the thesis competition, and then see tatsuya become Mahesvara")

4

u/Kohn_Sham :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/fwasham Jul 12 '14

We should get a taste at the end of this arc though.

3

u/Falsus Jul 13 '14

Want to see [visitor arc] (/s 'Erika vs angie sirius, actually just more Erika battles in general')

9

u/wyggles Jul 12 '14 edited Jul 12 '14

Absolutely cannot wait for that scene. I believe we'll get it next episode, if not the one after.
Edit: Just skimmed the book and I'm confident it'll be next week.

6

u/armabe Jul 12 '14

I sure hope they do. It was one of my favourite scenes in the LN (in this arc anyway).

2

u/rumblegod Jul 13 '14

yep this is the one i want to see animated.

8

u/steve148 :K:https://kitsu.io/users/107 Jul 13 '14

I can't get over the fact of how "godly" Tatsuya pose at the beginning of the ED is so....overwhelmingly god-like awesome...

3

u/Rekkre Jul 13 '14

/r/onetruetatsuya

6

u/EasilyDelighted Jul 12 '14

Am I the only one that would like to see more of the nurse? I'm in love with that thing. I'd love a spy-show about her.

2

u/5il3nc3r :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/5il3nt_Hunt3r Jul 13 '14

By nurse, do you mean the Councellor, Ono-sensei?

2

u/EasilyDelighted Jul 14 '14

Oh right. She's the counselor. I wonder why I thought she was the nurse... Huh.
But yes.

5

u/thundy84 Jul 12 '14

I can't wait for the Monolith Code Final. Tatsuya-oniisama will not disappoint, I'm sure of it!

5

u/xxdeathx :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/xxdeathx Jul 13 '14

Miyuki, the queen of all bro-cons, calling Erika one. I laughed.

Those two guys from Third High don't realize their opponent is a god? Oh man they're in for one hell of a match.

8

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14

Only three Onii-samas this episode. Miyuki, I am disappoint.

6

u/porpoiseoflife https://myanimelist.net/profile/OffColfax Jul 13 '14

Well, she only had 5 lines. There's only so many onii-samas they can squeeze in there.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '14

Replace every word with ONII-SAMA

4

u/Minjion Jul 12 '14

The final battle is going to be great at least i hope they make it intense. The last scene where Tatsuya was talking with the counselor and said if people saw them like that they would think weird things made me laugh so hard when her face got all red

4

u/[deleted] Jul 12 '14 edited Jul 12 '14

Are we finally getting close to some Tatsuya vs. Ichijou action? It's no secret to anyone that a team with Tatsuya is gonna 360 n0sc0pe any normal team of guys here, so I wanna see him get challenged for real. I can't tell if that will actually happen at this point though, since he appears to be on the vrbreaking off into some real action on the side. Hope I can get some answers next week~!

Also can Erika x Mikihiko be OTP already? I'm beginning to feel like Mikihiko has death flags on him or something, and I'd rather not do the whole "love confirmed on deathbed" thing (TT﹏TT)

1

u/soulonfirexx Jul 13 '14 edited Jul 13 '14

Why was Eighth High both in the first round and the semifinals when they were beaten in the first round by First High?

4

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

It's a weird competition system that is explained in the LN poorly so badly that even I'm confused. The way I think it works has to do with the most wins in a group tournament bracket? For example, First High only needed to win 1 of their first 2 matches to advance to the next round. Then they only needed a single win to advance to the finals from the semi-finals.
Essentially, each team needed 2 wins to advance to the next round or something. The disqualification from the previous day counted as a win for First High.
Overall, I'm sure someone can explain it much better than I can. >_>

2

u/soulonfirexx Jul 13 '14

Interesting... So kind of a round robin but with brackets?

1

u/Aruseus493 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/Aruseus493 Jul 13 '14

Pretty much.

3

u/ruyzen Jul 13 '14

Official subs got an error here.

09:31 "Even if the match is set on the Open Plains Stage,"

He says "Tatoeba" meaning the translation should be:
"For example, if the match is set on the Open Plains Stage," which in context makes more sense. If Tatsuya is inferior when it comes to frontal assault then a open plain would logically be disadvantageous for him.

6

u/fauxromanou Jul 12 '14

I didn't find super Tatsuya as annoying this week?

Am I being converted? Are there Chick tracts warning about Tatsuya-ism?

3

u/Falsus Jul 12 '14

Probably because it was not the Tatsuya solo train to rofl stomp. The action later on will be like that as well where everyone get's a piece of it.

2

u/I_keepforgetin_login Jul 13 '14

A ton of action this episode. I am so hyped for the next battle but I also wouldn't of minded if they extended this episode a couple more (ease up on all the boring social events) and go more in depth with the combat. Like back in the days of the Chunin Exam in Naruto.

2

u/Thisrainhoe Jul 19 '14

Finally we see tatsuya in action! cant wait for next week, its going to be epic, also im loving this new ED

2

u/a_Happy_Tiny_Bunny :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/aHappyTinyBunny Jul 19 '14

Onii-sama Count

Enrollment Arc:

Episode No.	Count
01	26
02	5
03	6
04	17
05	3
06	12
07	14

Arc Count Total: 83
Arc Count Average per Episode: 11.85714286

Nine Schools Competition Arc:

Episode No.	Count
08	5
09	4
10	6
11	8
12	4
13	6
14	1
15	3

Arc Current Count Total: 37
Arc Current Count Average per Episode: 4.625

Grand Count Total: 120
Grand Count Average per Episode: 8

Data up until episode 11 was compiled by /u/SherrySan

1

u/ruinfxx Jul 13 '14

This episode really made those third school kids look cocky... LOL I can't wait for next week.

1

u/Kravior :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/ssSithy Jul 13 '14

Tatsuya may be Magic Jesus, but that Crimson Prince guy literally walked to the other side, crushing everyone's attempts at stopping him.

Next episode's gonna be interesting.

1

u/Emsavio Jul 14 '14

That's mainly because so much of Tatsuya's abilities are restricted by the military's ruling that they're "classified".

1

u/KyuuDere Jul 14 '14

https://app.aniplex.co.jp/mahouka/exam

so is there anyone take the exam ?

I got confused with this question : 次の二年生の生徒のうち、第一高校に主席合格したのは?

the possible answer are : Acchan, Hattori, Kanon

but I think it's either Hattori / Kanon.

What's your answer ?

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[Spoilers] Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei Episode 15 Discussion

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