Anime Thread

[daphenaxa]

YOI is the most beautiful thing that happened in 2016 or maybe ever. Yesterday i watched episode 10 and then bishi bashi and I was sobbing with joy on my own for the rest of the evening.

I definitely want season 2 like it must happen. I like the idea of an older Yurio some years down the road (maybe facing Minami coached by Viktuuri) but it could be for season 3
I want Yuuri to go to worlds with Viktor and win it. I mean who retires after grand prix final??? it makes no sense, it is the middle of the season and it is an important title but end goal for skaters is worlds!!!!

[000dia000]

Yup, I'm all for Yurio having his own spin off, I never would have thought I'd say that in the first episode but look where we are The last episode was great, I shouldn't be complaining but I hope they go ALL OUT in the last episode in a big finale or something. Also I'm worried some accident will happen, I feel like it will, I'm so sorry.

[sia]

Haha I'm really indifferent about Yurio, after all the character growth he had I still think of him as a bratty kid that yells all the time for no reason but if they do season two victor and yuri should definitely be more backgroud characters so that they can have their happy end in this season

[human]

I was just whinging to somelikeitpink today how I dislike Yurio and can't find myself rooting for him; I find him rude and selfish. I couldn't imagine how it must feel to be Yuri and wake up to find your idol has come to coach you, living your dream, and then some bitter kid shows up and demands he come coach him instead and leave to another country immediately. I kinda just wanted to tell Yurio to grow up and deal with the fact that Victor didn't want you.

Not saying he's not young and naive and has his own story and issues, but I personally find him unlikeable and can't bring myself to cheer for him at all.

But god. I'm living for YOI right now. Premium CrunchyRoll is worth every penny.

[daphenaxa]

I was just whinging to somelikeitpink today how I dislike Yurio and can't find myself rooting for him; I find him rude and selfish. I couldn't imagine how it must feel to be Yuri and wake up to find your idol has come to coach you, living your dream, and then some bitter kid shows up and demands he come coach him instead and leave to another country immediately. I kinda just wanted to tell Yurio to grow up and deal with the fact that Victor didn't want you.

Not saying he's not young and naive and has his own story and issues, but I personally find him unlikeable and can't bring myself to cheer for him at all.

But god. I'm living for YOI right now. Premium CrunchyRoll is worth every penny.

I don't deny Yurio is definitely very rude and selfish but I can't help but root for him. He is so rude and mean and irascible but it is nearly all the time as a self-defense mechanism. He attacks 1st and thinks later i feel.
Also it must be so hard for him to see Viktor with Yuuri now. Because he had Viktor for himself before. Not romantically of course but he had him as his training mate and inspiration and probably some kind of brotherly/mentor bond and now Viktor has chosen Yuuri instead of him.

Yurio left his hometown and family at a very young age to train in Yakov's group. He will never admit it but it is clear Viktor is his idol too so we can think he made that move to train with Viktor even more than to train under Yakov. Viktor had promised him a program, Viktor was giving him advice on his skating (ex. in ep1), he was just there for him. And then he wasn't. It is not much shown but Viktor chose Agape for Yurio because he knew him well enough to know he had it in him, hidden very deep but still there. Just like after the banquet he knew Yuuri could pull off Eros.
It is obvious Yurio doesn't actually dislike Yuuri. He even likes him but he is dying of jealousy that Yuuri took Viktor away from him.

I really loved the scene next to the sea between Viktor and Yurio in the last episode because with nearly no words it summed up their relationship so well. Yurio was once against seething with anger and jealousy telling Viktor that "Viktor Nikiforov" the great figure skater was "dead". And Viktor teased him, read right through him, didn't answer really because he knew the anger was a facade for his disappointment and pain to lose his idol. He even acknowledges the fact that if he had stayed Yurio wouldn't have been motivated to fight because competing against your idol is so difficult, but neither would he have been motivated because he clearly cares for Yurio and maybe didn't want to have to face him.
Then when Yurio is leaving and says that the scenery with the seagulls and all reminds him of Hasetsu and Viktor agrees, it is his way of letting Viktor go. Because the scenery reminds Viktor of his home just like in episode 3 (i think?), but his home is not St Petersburg anymore, it is Hasetsu with Yuuri.

[sia]

I was just whinging to somelikeitpink today how I dislike Yurio and can't find myself rooting for him; I find him rude and selfish. I couldn't imagine how it must feel to be Yuri and wake up to find your idol has come to coach you, living your dream, and then some bitter kid shows up and demands he come coach him instead and leave to another country immediately. I kinda just wanted to tell Yurio to grow up and deal with the fact that Victor didn't want you.

Not saying he's not young and naive and has his own story and issues, but I personally find him unlikeable and can't bring myself to cheer for him at all.

But god. I'm living for YOI right now. Premium CrunchyRoll is worth every penny.

I don't deny Yurio is definitely very rude and selfish but I can't help but root for him. He is so rude and mean and irascible but it is nearly all the time as a self-defense mechanism. He attacks 1st and thinks later i feel.
Also it must be so hard for him to see Viktor with Yuuri now. Because he had Viktor for himself before. Not romantically of course but he had him as his training mate and inspiration and probably some kind of brotherly/mentor bond and now Viktor has chosen Yuuri instead of him.

Yurio left his hometown and family at a very young age to train in Yakov's group. He will never admit it but it is clear Viktor is his idol too so we can think he made that move to train with Viktor even more than to train under Yakov. Viktor had promised him a program, Viktor was giving him advice on his skating (ex. in ep1), he was just there for him. And then he wasn't. It is not much shown but Viktor chose Agape for Yurio because he knew him well enough to know he had it in him, hidden very deep but still there. Just like after the banquet he knew Yuuri could pull off Eros.
It is obvious Yurio doesn't actually dislike Yuuri. He even likes him but he is dying of jealousy that Yuuri took Viktor away from him.

I really loved the scene next to the sea between Viktor and Yurio in the last episode because with nearly no words it summed up their relationship so well. Yurio was once against seething with anger and jealousy telling Viktor that "Viktor Nikiforov" the great figure skater was "dead". And Viktor teased him, read right through him, didn't answer really because he knew the anger was a facade for his disappointment and pain to lose his idol. He even acknowledges the fact that if he had stayed Yurio wouldn't have been motivated to fight because competing against your idol is so difficult, but neither would he have been motivated because he clearly cares for Yurio and maybe didn't want to have to face him.
Then when Yurio is leaving and says that the scenery with the seagulls and all reminds him of Hasetsu and Viktor agrees, it is his way of letting Viktor go. Because the scenery reminds Viktor of his home just like in episode 3 (i think?), but his home is not St Petersburg anymore, it is Hasetsu with Yuuri.

It is interesting how people can see identical scenes and interpret them completely differently, so I respectfully disagree and let me explain why; I really don't see any affection towards Yuri by Yurio. He literally kicked Yuri when he was at the bottom in the first episode simply because they shared names and he wanted to be the only Yuri in the competition, yes he started training at very young age, and he apparently only has granpa left from close family members, but he was also the absolutely best skater in his age group. His main problem before he went after Victor to Japan was that he was so good and lacking competition in junior league that he stopped putting any effort in training. He is a loud brat that is full of himself and used to getting anything he wants. I think the reason he was able to skate agape was simply because he is so young and still has some childhood innocence inside of him. And I see the main reason for his character growth that he was finally kicked out of his bubble of being the very best in junior competition and now has to work his butt off again to still be good. Also he has some hormonal teenage anger issues which is something I never find attractive. And maybe he has some more respect for Yuri as a skater now but there is a big difference between a fraction of professional respect and an affection, also Victor seemed really mad to me at Yurio at the seaside scene, not to say I didn't like that scene

[mio]

(..so are we over putting everything YOI in spoiles or?)

While I still can't bring myself to care about yurio (basically the same reasons human pointed out), I liked the scenes he had with that kazakh guy. Finally he gets some kind of own storyline instead of just showing up full of rage in random situations to shout at victor/yuri. If you have that kind of (annoying) character on your show you also need to use or redeem them in some way imo, I hope that's what's gonna happen now.


Apart from that the plot twist about the banquet backstory at the end of ep 10 is THE BEST THING TO EVER HAPPEN IN ANYTHING EVER.
It's like the most beautiful sappy fanfic plot. I now want to know everything about victor's perspective of that past year. If they won't reveal more in the last two episodes I hope at least some talented writer turns it into a 50k fic.
I love how they kept Victor's intentions blurry to the viewer this whole time, just to now shed everything in a different light.

[daphenaxa]

I was just whinging to somelikeitpink today how I dislike Yurio and can't find myself rooting for him; I find him rude and selfish. I couldn't imagine how it must feel to be Yuri and wake up to find your idol has come to coach you, living your dream, and then some bitter kid shows up and demands he come coach him instead and leave to another country immediately. I kinda just wanted to tell Yurio to grow up and deal with the fact that Victor didn't want you.

Not saying he's not young and naive and has his own story and issues, but I personally find him unlikeable and can't bring myself to cheer for him at all.

But god. I'm living for YOI right now. Premium CrunchyRoll is worth every penny.

I don't deny Yurio is definitely very rude and selfish but I can't help but root for him. He is so rude and mean and irascible but it is nearly all the time as a self-defense mechanism. He attacks 1st and thinks later i feel.
Also it must be so hard for him to see Viktor with Yuuri now. Because he had Viktor for himself before. Not romantically of course but he had him as his training mate and inspiration and probably some kind of brotherly/mentor bond and now Viktor has chosen Yuuri instead of him.

Yurio left his hometown and family at a very young age to train in Yakov's group. He will never admit it but it is clear Viktor is his idol too so we can think he made that move to train with Viktor even more than to train under Yakov. Viktor had promised him a program, Viktor was giving him advice on his skating (ex. in ep1), he was just there for him. And then he wasn't. It is not much shown but Viktor chose Agape for Yurio because he knew him well enough to know he had it in him, hidden very deep but still there. Just like after the banquet he knew Yuuri could pull off Eros.
It is obvious Yurio doesn't actually dislike Yuuri. He even likes him but he is dying of jealousy that Yuuri took Viktor away from him.

I really loved the scene next to the sea between Viktor and Yurio in the last episode because with nearly no words it summed up their relationship so well. Yurio was once against seething with anger and jealousy telling Viktor that "Viktor Nikiforov" the great figure skater was "dead". And Viktor teased him, read right through him, didn't answer really because he knew the anger was a facade for his disappointment and pain to lose his idol. He even acknowledges the fact that if he had stayed Yurio wouldn't have been motivated to fight because competing against your idol is so difficult, but neither would he have been motivated because he clearly cares for Yurio and maybe didn't want to have to face him.
Then when Yurio is leaving and says that the scenery with the seagulls and all reminds him of Hasetsu and Viktor agrees, it is his way of letting Viktor go. Because the scenery reminds Viktor of his home just like in episode 3 (i think?), but his home is not St Petersburg anymore, it is Hasetsu with Yuuri.

It is interesting how people can see identical scenes and interpret them completely differently, so I respectfully disagree and let me explain why; I really don't see any affection towards Yuri by Yurio. He literally kicked Yuri when he was at the bottom in the first episode simply because they shared names and he wanted to be the only Yuri in the competition, yes he started training at very young age, and he apparently only has granpa left from close family members, but he was also the absolutely best skater in his age group. His main problem before he went after Victor to Japan was that he was so good and lacking competition in junior league that he stopped putting any effort in training. He is a loud brat that is full of himself and used to getting anything he wants. I think the reason he was able to skate agape was simply because he is so young and still has some childhood innocence inside of him. And I see the main reason for his character growth that he was finally kicked out of his bubble of being the very best in junior competition and now has to work his butt off again to still be good. Also he has some hormonal teenage anger issues which is something I never find attractive. And maybe he has some more respect for Yuri as a skater now but there is a big difference between a fraction of professional respect and an affection, also Victor seemed really mad to me at Yurio at the seaside scene, not to say I didn't like that scene

i still think he likes him. When he was in Japan they had some complicity moments even tho they were fighting for Viktor to stay with them respectively. Yurio even taught quad salchow to Yuuri. That's really not something you do often to your direct competition even more if you hate them. Then when he messes up at Cup of Russia, Yurio cheers for him and then goes to give him piroskies katsudon for his bday. I still think it is obvious he likes him but his want/need to win is also so big that he was and still is very mean sometimes. (also obviously he has professional respect towards him, he wouldn't have threatened him in the bathroom if he didn't think he was a threat for him in seniors. We have to remember GPF has the 6 best skaters in the world. Even if Yuri bombed at the last GPF, he was still the 6th best in the world!)

When he was in junior he was so good he did lose motivation to train for a bit as Yakov says but in his conversation with Otabek, Yurio is surprised the guy thought he was a soldier and so good because at that time his memories were that he was desperate and struggling to get better and didn't think he was good enough to complain. I really don't think he is used to getting everything he wants, he clearly works so hard to get it, it is just not a straight trajectory, his motivation did falter at one point but I think it is an accurate representation of sports. Viktor's motivation before going to see Yuuri had also faltered and he needed a change.

I think Viktor was pissed at Yurio's words about Yuuri for sure at the sea side scene. But i also think he knew how Yurio felt. That's why his reaction or lack of thereof was so good.

[PolarFox]

I feel like a Yurio stan I need to add to this discussion. Yes, he is an angry brat and very sad (probably) backstory doesn't really redeem that. But I think the angriness comes from, besides puberty, from him just being scared and insecure and it is his defence mechanism. Attack before they can. Don't let them see.

The YOI wiki suggests Yurio has been the main source of income for his family since his rookie days. Not since he got into junior league, since he first started ever competing in ice skating. Of course he wants to win. That is a lot of pressure to have on you while you're a child. He also knows he might start his puberty growth and that could fuck up his skating maybe forever. So yes, I can see why he would want to win so agressively and why he might come out as a brat while he probably just uses his anger as a defence mechanism because he is afraid.

I mean, Viktor was there with him the whole time and then he goes and teaches his rival? And lives comofortably with said rival because they can? You know how angering that is to an angsty teenager? Viktor just can put all his career on the hanger because he decides to, while Yurio might not even have a choice and would have to continue regardless of if he's winning or not and wether he will still love it in the future.

I don't believe he hates Yuri personaly though, I think he came to understand why Viktor loves him so much and is just being a tsundere, like he's with Viktor as well. He just wants to be noticed a lot more and now all the focus is on Viktor and Yuuri and him being mean is him trying to be competetive and getting noticed.

And then maybe there is the thing that he gave it his best and still came second. Again, this is a fifteen year old with dreams and hopes coming into the adult life getting crushed. And his reaction and defence is again anger. As you could see from him offering his whole soul and body to Lillia, he is very hardworking as well and not just a whiny boy who thinks he can have anything on a golden plate.

In the end, I think he is sick and tired of being called a fairy, kitten, girl while he's trying to look strong even while in beautiful costume with long hair and also is so so very lonely, and that all is why Otabek gets to him so easily. He sees the strength in him and has spent five years wanting to befriend him because of that and I'm really glad that happened in the anime. We already see soft and caring moments from Yurio here and there - like when he bragged about his grandpa's pirozhki to Yuri and smiled so brightly, or when interacting with said grandpa. Or in the new episode, talking with Otabek in that café. I'm lookimg forward to him maybe melting and openong a bit more and I hope so much he doesn't get hurt. That would set his character development from the past episodes straight back to zero, I would say. I hope he gets a medal and a hug, he needs it.

Uh... that was so freakishly long, I'm sorry.
Anywayz I will be glad to see anyone on the podium, as long as it's not JJ.

[human]

I feel like a Yurio stan I need to add to this discussion. Yes, he is an angry brat and very sad (probably) backstory doesn't really redeem that. But I think the angriness comes from, besides puberty, from him just being scared and insecure and it is his defence mechanism. Attack before they can. Don't let them see.

Tbh... I'd feel like I could like him if it was just that about him, but it's not. He is really selfish, doesn't cheer on anyone else, doesn't want anyone else to succeed, doesn't care how anyone else does, does care what anyone else's dreams are, tries to wreck other people's careers and only cares about himself.

I just don't think someone like that should be in competitive sports; cockiness, confidence and competitiveness are key in performing well of course and I see those traits in all of the other competitors in healthy amounts. I just don't want him to do well tbh. I don't care so much about his back story when he's trying to stop Victor from coaching (when he seems like he's an amazing coach and could do really well) and calling people's girlfriends, who were standing by completely innocently, disgusting names. Gross. I still have no empathy for him still at all haha.

[PolarFox]

I feel like a Yurio stan I need to add to this discussion. Yes, he is an angry brat and very sad (probably) backstory doesn't really redeem that. But I think the angriness comes from, besides puberty, from him just being scared and insecure and it is his defence mechanism. Attack before they can. Don't let them see.

Tbh... I'd feel like I could like him if it was just that about him, but it's not. He is really selfish, doesn't cheer on anyone else, doesn't want anyone else to succeed, doesn't care how anyone else does, does care what anyone else's dreams are, tries to wreck other people's careers and only cares about himself.

I just don't think someone like that should be in competitive sports; cockiness, confidence and competitiveness are key in performing well of course and I see those traits in all of the other competitors in healthy amounts. I just don't want him to do well tbh. I don't care so much about his back story when he's trying to stop Victor from coaching (when he seems like he's an amazing coach and could do really well) and calling people's girlfriends, who were standing by completely innocently, disgusting names. Gross. I still have no empathy for him still at all haha.

Hah, and here I am kind of loving how he's a side character trying to become the main character so hard.
I would also like to point out, he's not in fact really like that, I believe he puts on an angry persona, which was kinda the point I was trying to make.
I guess I can see myself apologizing his behaviour as basically still an angsty teenager who sometimes uses sharp tongue and being petty and mean as a defence mechanism myself.
But hey, we all have that one character who we don't like so no biggie

[000dia000]

^I personally didn't like him at first but I've seen a lot of character growth and I believe he's still a long way to go in "his journey"

[kuensukki]

http://thejhambs.tumblr.com/post/154791 ... -storyline
THIS sums up my feelings perfectly for yoi and episode 12. I feel like the story ended yet they still didn't want it to. So instead of finishing an already tied up story they wanted to make some money on a second season and I just didn't think another season was necessary.

Also they ruined some really good build up and left the story with no lessons or even a definitive answer to Yuri and Viktors relationship. Not that they would be allowed to, but at the same time the heavy ambiguity adding on to the emphasis on the coaching relationship rather then the underlying romantic one threw me off.

[timtam]

http://thejhambs.tumblr.com/post/154791 ... -storyline
THIS sums up my feelings perfectly for yoi and episode 12. I feel like the story ended yet they still didn't want it to. So instead of finishing an already tied up story they wanted to make some money on a second season and I just didn't think another season was necessary.

Also they ruined some really good build up and left the story with no lessons or even a definitive answer to Yuri and Viktors relationship. Not that they would be allowed to, but at the same time the heavy ambiguity adding on to the emphasis on the coaching relationship rather then the underlying romantic one threw me off.

I feel like all of this should be under spoilers but okay

I just want to state I was not entirely happy with this episode but I think that the person who have linked to has interpreted things a bit differently and very negatively. I have a problem with the idea that "Yurio was supposed to learn that he was not as good as he thought" because that isn't really what his arc was about? He was supposed to learn about Agape and he did so successfully and therefore I think his win is deserved in that sense. As for Yuri "not winning gold means that he’s still overshadowed by Viktor, and not on an equal plane, as he hoped to be" the fact that he beat Victor's long standing record in the free skate kinda negates this. Also Yuri didn't need to win gold just to "learn that he is good enough", I actually think it's more powerful that Yuri can accept and be happy with a silver medal because he IS good enough with that and would have been even if he lost.

I do however agree about Victor. It is disappointing to see him go back to competitive skating but I can see how they might argue that he has been 'reinspired' now. Also his actions towards Yuri's silver medal was really a step backwards in terms of their relationship. His words were a bit manipulative which is in stark contrast to the car park manipulative scene which did not go down well.

Things about the final episode that I liked:

- I'm happy for Yurios' win I think he has come a long way in his acceptance of agape
- Yuri absolutely smashing his free stake
- Yuri being so proud and happy for himself at the end of his skate and then realistically being anxious about his result anyway
- Victor and Yuri wishing Chris good luck
- Victor and Yurio's hug
- Yuri watching and silently encouraging Yurio's skate
- Yurio thinking about Yuri during his skate and being angry at him retiring
- The shot of Yuri basically sitting in Victor's lap while everyone else is gone and people are cleaning up the rink
- The pair skate was absolutely beautiful and I cry
- Yuri running with Makkachin bc it implies that Victor and Yuri must be still together later on otherwise why would he have Makkachin with him?

Things I didn't like:

- JJ getting third seems a bit wonky considering how terrible he went in the short program (#justiceforotabek)
- I'm still not sure how I feel about Victor returning to skating - would prefer him to stay as a coach
- Yuri and Victor did seem very distant this episode and I'm sad that there was angst at the start
- Because of Victor's anger at Yuri wanting to retire he did seem manipulative and salty this episode
- I would have liked a little more discussion on their future as a couple/non skating talk
- I would have liked some scenes of the skaters celebrating their wins. Maybe Yuri and Victor congratulating Yurio!!
- It did seem rushed at the end there
- There were many hugging moments that I wanted to be kissing moments but I guess that's my shipper heart getting in the way!

[PolarFox]

Honestly, I don't agree with this posts at all (I'm warning you beforehand - I loved episode 12 and I am Yurio stan)
About the ending being so open and not conclusive, I would like to direct you to this http://themorninglark.tumblr.com/post/1 ... fe-goes-on
It was said by the author - it was never supposed to tie everything loose. Because life goes on, people change and one competition doesn't finish your story.
Only thing I can agree is, that this probably wasn't the intended ending. It probably was very similar but they very probably changed few things so they had the chance to tie second season into it if they can.

About Yurio

I believe his story was about learning about life and love, as both are main drives of the story. His was agape - general unconditional love. He did. And he broke the world record.
Now I see all people being salty that he needs to lose. I feel like you are seeing all this with the wrong light. Yurio worked his ass of to win. He deserves his medal. He pushed his limits. He proved us that his willpower is strong. If you compare him to the Yurio from episode one I see very different man.

He won out of spite. He didn't want his ?idol? to retire. He did it so he could try beat Yuuri at least once more. And he managed to do it even though his FS wasn't perfect.
Just the mental strenght of this boy omg. I hope his family is proud and that the money he won will serve them well. Let's not forget he is the main provider for his family since his rookie days. So please stop saying he doesn't deserve gold because he's an asshole to other people. I'd say he improved on being polite too but that is up for debate.

Also, while Yuuri and others are wholesome skaters, Yurio still has the puberty growth looming above him. With this, thye opened the possibilty of it happening next season and us maybe seeing a story arc about him dealing with it. He might need to take season off. He might not be able to overcome it. We don't know.

I just really hate the consensus about Yurio's story being about learning that he's not as good as he thinks. And that he learns it by losing. I feel like thats so incredibly mean and absolutely missing the point and notion of the whole anime? The story didn't want any character to have unhappy ending. It's about growing as people, learning to live and love and most importantly - you can do anything when you belive in yourself and your motivation. Have you ever actually listened to the opening?

About Yuuri (and Viktor by extension)

I expected him winning gold. I did. But the silver did add to his story. His story was about learning about love and self worth. He learned he doesn't need to win gold to be worthy. Yes, it's a bit icky that it has been foreshadowed the whole time and it didn't happen. But it had its meaning.

I see lots of people saying Viktor was being manipulative. See, I don't see it there. I think Viktor saw how much Yuuri loves the ice and how he is so hesistant to retire. That he doesn't really want to but feels like he has to. And of course instead of actually talking to him, he did it the Viktor way. But it worked. And I think him not retiring is just his wish to be on the ice with Yuuri? Why is Viktor always seen as manipulative/bad because he acts instead of talking? I belive he genuinely loves and cares for Yuuri. And Yuuri for him. And that is Viktor's arc completed too - he was stuck, neglecting both life and love for years. Thanks to Yuuri, he was given and shown both. Now he is no longer stuck, he can try combine the two.

The thing is, the anime doesn't show everything. They very probably had a talk after they got back.

Sorry for the longass post

[ohgod]

After taking a day to think about it I decided I liked the YOI finale. It wasn't my favorite ep, but it was a nice ending that set up a lot for next season.

I think my main disappointment was the lack of a strong romantic resolution between Victor and Yuri. They've been building their relationship up all season and I expected a bit more than what we got, especially after the hotel room scene in the beginning. I'm glad they ended up staying together, but the episode seemed to gloss over a lot. Oh well, I'm sure we'll get lots of good relationship development for them next season!

I'm surprised at how many people didn't see Victor's return to skating coming/didn't think his decision to do so made sense. The way I saw it, he took a break from skating because he was low on inspiration for putting together new programs, not because he was sick of the sport altogether. Yuri was the one to bring that inspiration back for him. I saw his return coming since that scene a few episodes ago when a news reporter asks him about the possibility of competing against Yuri one day and he just smiles.

[jhamba]

Honestly, I don't agree with this posts at all (I'm warning you beforehand - I loved episode 12 and I am Yurio stan)
About the ending being so open and not conclusive, I would like to direct you to this http://themorninglark.tumblr.com/post/1 ... fe-goes-on
It was said by the author - it was never supposed to tie everything loose. Because life goes on, people change and one competition doesn't finish your story.
Only thing I can agree is, that this probably wasn't the intended ending. It probably was very similar but they very probably changed few things so they had the chance to tie second season into it if they can.

About Yurio

I believe his story was about learning about life and love, as both are main drives of the story. His was agape - general unconditional love. He did. And he broke the world record.
Now I see all people being salty that he needs to lose. I feel like you are seeing all this with the wrong light. Yurio worked his ass of to win. He deserves his medal. He pushed his limits. He proved us that his willpower is strong. If you compare him to the Yurio from episode one I see very different man.

He won out of spite. He didn't want his ?idol? to retire. He did it so he could try beat Yuuri at least once more. And he managed to do it even though his FS wasn't perfect.
Just the mental strenght of this boy omg. I hope his family is proud and that the money he won will serve them well. Let's not forget he is the main provider for his family since his rookie days. So please stop saying he doesn't deserve gold because he's an asshole to other people. I'd say he improved on being polite too but that is up for debate.

Also, while Yuuri and others are wholesome skaters, Yurio still has the puberty growth looming above him. With this, thye opened the possibilty of it happening next season and us maybe seeing a story arc about him dealing with it. He might need to take season off. He might not be able to overcome it. We don't know.

I just really hate the consensus about Yurio's story being about learning that he's not as good as he thinks. And that he learns it by losing. I feel like thats so incredibly mean and absolutely missing the point and notion of the whole anime? The story didn't want any character to have unhappy ending. It's about growing as people, learning to live and love and most importantly - you can do anything when you belive in yourself and your motivation. Have you ever actually listened to the opening?

About Yuuri (and Viktor by extension)

I expected him winning gold. I did. But the silver did add to his story. His story was about learning about love and self worth. He learned he doesn't need to win gold to be worthy. Yes, it's a bit icky that it has been foreshadowed the whole time and it didn't happen. But it had its meaning.

I see lots of people saying Viktor was being manipulative. See, I don't see it there. I think Viktor saw how much Yuuri loves the ice and how he is so hesistant to retire. That he doesn't really want to but feels like he has to. And of course instead of actually talking to him, he did it the Viktor way. But it worked. And I think him not retiring is just his wish to be on the ice with Yuuri? Why is Viktor always seen as manipulative/bad because he acts instead of talking? I belive he genuinely loves and cares for Yuuri. And Yuuri for him. And that is Viktor's arc completed too - he was stuck, neglecting both life and love for years. Thanks to Yuuri, he was given and shown both. Now he is no longer stuck, he can try combine the two.

The thing is, the anime doesn't show everything. They very probably had a talk after they got back.

Sorry for the longass post

So, I promised myself that I wouldn't talk about YOI anymore, but I have really low self control.
Yurio

The reason I don't think Yurio's arc was about learning agape, is because, he found his agape fairly easily, and after the third episode, it just never made a reappearance. Contrast that with Yuuri's eros, which was drawn attention to, in the beginning of and during his each of his eros performances. Yuuri learned to dance eros by experiencing it, but how did Yurio learn to dance agape? It wasn't by tapping his inner agape, but by working really hard to master the skills of dancing. He began the series very overconfident, but, learnt that confidence and technical skill is not enough to win the senior gpf. Which is why he got a new teacher, who drilled into him the importance of dancing in figure skating, when he used to focus more on the jumping. In his last performance of agape, where he beats the SP world record, it says that his "mind went blank". This is because, by that time, he had mastered the element of performative skills in figure skating.

Also, Yurio winning was kind of unrealistic. In episode 9, he changes his program by putting all his jumps in the second half, which he almost wasn't able to manage. In episode 12, he adds a bunch of new elements to his program, on a whim, and makes just one mistake, and the performative aspects (which is supposed to be his weakness) of his program didn't suffer? I think that's bullshit, and the only reason it was done was so that there could be a second season.

And, I don't think it's mean to not want Yurio to win. It's literally his first time competing in the senior grand prix, and he has many more seasons in front of him, especially compared to Yuuri and Viktor (especially Viktor, who, is in for a lifetime of injuries if he keeps competing, ala his character inspiration, Evgeni Plushenko). He has the makings of a prodigy, and even if he had lost this season, he would have years ahead of him to win gold. Even Viktor didn't win gold at his senior grand prix debut.

viktor

And, Viktor is manipulative. It's been one of his primary character traits from the very beginning, and Yuuri has also called him out on it. This episode was supposed to give us a conversation about it (which is what I think the break up scene was supposed to be), and it didn't.

It doesn't matter what Viktor's intentions are, because, in the end, he's deciding what is good for someone else, and using underhanded techniques to achieve it. It shows a lack of respect for other people's choices, and it's something that Viktor has been doing wrong since the first episode. And, that's something he was supposed to learn not to do, and the show was giving hints that this would be addressed. Instead, this episode showed him doing exactly that, and being rewarded for it.

Yuuri

Honestly, I wouldn't have given a shit if he had lost, if they hadn't made him decide not to retire just so he can win gold next time (also, if he hadn't lost to Yurio). Also, if Viktor hadn't been like, "sorry, babe, you need to win 5 gold medals to get this, lol". If Yuuri isn't lying awake at night thinking about this, then they're overlooking his anxiety, just for this awful joke, and if he is, then, honestly, this is in character for Viktor, but, it's still character regression, because he was supposed to be learning how to interact with Yuuri without being a manipulative asshole, who uses himself as a weird motivational tool

TL;DR: Honestly, what they've done in this episode is postponed a lot of the character development and story progression they'd been promising us, just so that there would be something left for a second season. And, that feels very cheap to me.

[PolarFox]

Honestly, I don't agree with this posts at all (I'm warning you beforehand - I loved episode 12 and I am Yurio stan)
About the ending being so open and not conclusive, I would like to direct you to this http://themorninglark.tumblr.com/post/1 ... fe-goes-on
It was said by the author - it was never supposed to tie everything loose. Because life goes on, people change and one competition doesn't finish your story.
Only thing I can agree is, that this probably wasn't the intended ending. It probably was very similar but they very probably changed few things so they had the chance to tie second season into it if they can.

About Yurio

I believe his story was about learning about life and love, as both are main drives of the story. His was agape - general unconditional love. He did. And he broke the world record.
Now I see all people being salty that he needs to lose. I feel like you are seeing all this with the wrong light. Yurio worked his ass of to win. He deserves his medal. He pushed his limits. He proved us that his willpower is strong. If you compare him to the Yurio from episode one I see very different man.

He won out of spite. He didn't want his ?idol? to retire. He did it so he could try beat Yuuri at least once more. And he managed to do it even though his FS wasn't perfect.
Just the mental strenght of this boy omg. I hope his family is proud and that the money he won will serve them well. Let's not forget he is the main provider for his family since his rookie days. So please stop saying he doesn't deserve gold because he's an asshole to other people. I'd say he improved on being polite too but that is up for debate.

Also, while Yuuri and others are wholesome skaters, Yurio still has the puberty growth looming above him. With this, thye opened the possibilty of it happening next season and us maybe seeing a story arc about him dealing with it. He might need to take season off. He might not be able to overcome it. We don't know.

I just really hate the consensus about Yurio's story being about learning that he's not as good as he thinks. And that he learns it by losing. I feel like thats so incredibly mean and absolutely missing the point and notion of the whole anime? The story didn't want any character to have unhappy ending. It's about growing as people, learning to live and love and most importantly - you can do anything when you belive in yourself and your motivation. Have you ever actually listened to the opening?

About Yuuri (and Viktor by extension)

I expected him winning gold. I did. But the silver did add to his story. His story was about learning about love and self worth. He learned he doesn't need to win gold to be worthy. Yes, it's a bit icky that it has been foreshadowed the whole time and it didn't happen. But it had its meaning.

I see lots of people saying Viktor was being manipulative. See, I don't see it there. I think Viktor saw how much Yuuri loves the ice and how he is so hesistant to retire. That he doesn't really want to but feels like he has to. And of course instead of actually talking to him, he did it the Viktor way. But it worked. And I think him not retiring is just his wish to be on the ice with Yuuri? Why is Viktor always seen as manipulative/bad because he acts instead of talking? I belive he genuinely loves and cares for Yuuri. And Yuuri for him. And that is Viktor's arc completed too - he was stuck, neglecting both life and love for years. Thanks to Yuuri, he was given and shown both. Now he is no longer stuck, he can try combine the two.

The thing is, the anime doesn't show everything. They very probably had a talk after they got back.

Sorry for the longass post

So, I promised myself that I wouldn't talk about YOI anymore, but I have really low self control.
Yurio

The reason I don't think Yurio's arc was about learning agape, is because, he found his agape fairly easily, and after the third episode, it just never made a reappearance. Contrast that with Yuuri's eros, which was drawn attention to, in the beginning of and during his each of his eros performances. Yuuri learned to dance eros by experiencing it, but how did Yurio learn to dance agape? It wasn't by tapping his inner agape, but by working really hard to master the skills of dancing. He began the series very overconfident, but, learnt that confidence and technical skill is not enough to win the senior gpf. Which is why he got a new teacher, who drilled into him the importance of dancing in figure skating, when he used to focus more on the jumping. In his last performance of agape, where he beats the SP world record, it says that his "mind went blank". This is because, by that time, he had mastered the element of performative skills in figure skating.

Also, Yurio winning was kind of unrealistic. In episode 9, he changes his program by putting all his jumps in the second half, which he almost wasn't able to manage. In episode 12, he adds a bunch of new elements to his program, on a whim, and makes just one mistake, and the performative aspects (which is supposed to be his weakness) of his program didn't suffer? I think that's bullshit, and the only reason it was done was so that there could be a second season.

And, I don't think it's mean to not want Yurio to win. It's literally his first time competing in the senior grand prix, and he has many more seasons in front of him, especially compared to Yuuri and Viktor (especially Viktor, who, is in for a lifetime of injuries if he keeps competing, ala his character inspiration, Evgeni Plushenko). He has the makings of a prodigy, and even if he had lost this season, he would have years ahead of him to win gold. Even Viktor didn't win gold at his senior grand prix debut.

viktor

And, Viktor is manipulative. It's been one of his primary character traits from the very beginning, and Yuuri has also called him out on it. This episode was supposed to give us a conversation about it (which is what I think the break up scene was supposed to be), and it didn't.

It doesn't matter what Viktor's intentions are, because, in the end, he's deciding what is good for someone else, and using underhanded techniques to achieve it. It shows a lack of respect for other people's choices, and it's something that Viktor has been doing wrong since the first episode. And, that's something he was supposed to learn not to do, and the show was giving hints that this would be addressed. Instead, this episode showed him doing exactly that, and being rewarded for it.

Yuuri

Honestly, I wouldn't have given a shit if he had lost, if they hadn't made him decide not to retire just so he can win gold next time (also, if he hadn't lost to Yurio). Also, if Viktor hadn't been like, "sorry, babe, you need to win 5 gold medals to get this, lol". If Yuuri isn't lying awake at night thinking about this, then they're overlooking his anxiety, just for this awful joke, and if he is, then, honestly, this is in character for Viktor, but, it's still character regression, because he was supposed to be learning how to interact with Yuuri without being a manipulative asshole, who uses himself as a weird motivational tool

TL;DR: Honestly, what they've done in this episode is postponed a lot of the character development and story progression they'd been promising us, just so that there would be something left for a second season. And, that feels very cheap to me.

Now I'm bit torn here as I see what you mean and what can make you uhappy about this, yet I still stand by what I said because that is what I saw in the episode. I also don't see some postponing to season two as cheap, just giving it more space to properly tie in season two.

Now again for the characters and I'm sorry if this makes even less sense than the original as my full thoughts on Yuri on Ice are hard for me to project in english.

Yurio

And there you have his character arc. Dancing to he music and being one with it - and that is why his mind went blank. Idk about this, I don't reaally want to reach, but I felt the theme of some sort of love in his story arc on some level.
I believe he started training these little perks after the Rostelcom cup and seeing how hard he works, it's not that unrealistic. There are lot of unrealistic things. Also his FS got 200 points. His SP record gave him the first place.
This anime is about making history. It was one of its themes. It's not surprising that Yurio would be the one to make history in that sense. He's the one to be foreshadowed to be the next Viktor but better from the start.

Viktor and Yuuri

Well... being manipulative is rewarding, which is why people are doing it. And it works on Yuuri and helps him. Mostly. (No way I'm saying it's good and healthy don't get me wrong!), but I don't see him using it in this episode as regression. He is a slow learner in this. By the time GPF happens, Yuuri and Viktor are too far from this episode being physicaly able to fix their problems you wanted fixed in 23 minutes. So they postponed it for season two because they can. I feel like it will give us much more wholesome resolution.

[timtam]

Honestly, I don't agree with this posts at all (I'm warning you beforehand - I loved episode 12 and I am Yurio stan)
About the ending being so open and not conclusive, I would like to direct you to this http://themorninglark.tumblr.com/post/1 ... fe-goes-on
It was said by the author - it was never supposed to tie everything loose. Because life goes on, people change and one competition doesn't finish your story.
Only thing I can agree is, that this probably wasn't the intended ending. It probably was very similar but they very probably changed few things so they had the chance to tie second season into it if they can.

About Yurio

I believe his story was about learning about life and love, as both are main drives of the story. His was agape - general unconditional love. He did. And he broke the world record.
Now I see all people being salty that he needs to lose. I feel like you are seeing all this with the wrong light. Yurio worked his ass of to win. He deserves his medal. He pushed his limits. He proved us that his willpower is strong. If you compare him to the Yurio from episode one I see very different man.

He won out of spite. He didn't want his ?idol? to retire. He did it so he could try beat Yuuri at least once more. And he managed to do it even though his FS wasn't perfect.
Just the mental strenght of this boy omg. I hope his family is proud and that the money he won will serve them well. Let's not forget he is the main provider for his family since his rookie days. So please stop saying he doesn't deserve gold because he's an asshole to other people. I'd say he improved on being polite too but that is up for debate.

Also, while Yuuri and others are wholesome skaters, Yurio still has the puberty growth looming above him. With this, thye opened the possibilty of it happening next season and us maybe seeing a story arc about him dealing with it. He might need to take season off. He might not be able to overcome it. We don't know.

I just really hate the consensus about Yurio's story being about learning that he's not as good as he thinks. And that he learns it by losing. I feel like thats so incredibly mean and absolutely missing the point and notion of the whole anime? The story didn't want any character to have unhappy ending. It's about growing as people, learning to live and love and most importantly - you can do anything when you belive in yourself and your motivation. Have you ever actually listened to the opening?

About Yuuri (and Viktor by extension)

I expected him winning gold. I did. But the silver did add to his story. His story was about learning about love and self worth. He learned he doesn't need to win gold to be worthy. Yes, it's a bit icky that it has been foreshadowed the whole time and it didn't happen. But it had its meaning.

I see lots of people saying Viktor was being manipulative. See, I don't see it there. I think Viktor saw how much Yuuri loves the ice and how he is so hesistant to retire. That he doesn't really want to but feels like he has to. And of course instead of actually talking to him, he did it the Viktor way. But it worked. And I think him not retiring is just his wish to be on the ice with Yuuri? Why is Viktor always seen as manipulative/bad because he acts instead of talking? I belive he genuinely loves and cares for Yuuri. And Yuuri for him. And that is Viktor's arc completed too - he was stuck, neglecting both life and love for years. Thanks to Yuuri, he was given and shown both. Now he is no longer stuck, he can try combine the two.

The thing is, the anime doesn't show everything. They very probably had a talk after they got back.

Sorry for the longass post

So, I promised myself that I wouldn't talk about YOI anymore, but I have really low self control.
Yurio

The reason I don't think Yurio's arc was about learning agape, is because, he found his agape fairly easily, and after the third episode, it just never made a reappearance. Contrast that with Yuuri's eros, which was drawn attention to, in the beginning of and during his each of his eros performances. Yuuri learned to dance eros by experiencing it, but how did Yurio learn to dance agape? It wasn't by tapping his inner agape, but by working really hard to master the skills of dancing. He began the series very overconfident, but, learnt that confidence and technical skill is not enough to win the senior gpf. Which is why he got a new teacher, who drilled into him the importance of dancing in figure skating, when he used to focus more on the jumping. In his last performance of agape, where he beats the SP world record, it says that his "mind went blank". This is because, by that time, he had mastered the element of performative skills in figure skating.

Also, Yurio winning was kind of unrealistic. In episode 9, he changes his program by putting all his jumps in the second half, which he almost wasn't able to manage. In episode 12, he adds a bunch of new elements to his program, on a whim, and makes just one mistake, and the performative aspects (which is supposed to be his weakness) of his program didn't suffer? I think that's bullshit, and the only reason it was done was so that there could be a second season.

And, I don't think it's mean to not want Yurio to win. It's literally his first time competing in the senior grand prix, and he has many more seasons in front of him, especially compared to Yuuri and Viktor (especially Viktor, who, is in for a lifetime of injuries if he keeps competing, ala his character inspiration, Evgeni Plushenko). He has the makings of a prodigy, and even if he had lost this season, he would have years ahead of him to win gold. Even Viktor didn't win gold at his senior grand prix debut.

viktor

And, Viktor is manipulative. It's been one of his primary character traits from the very beginning, and Yuuri has also called him out on it. This episode was supposed to give us a conversation about it (which is what I think the break up scene was supposed to be), and it didn't.

It doesn't matter what Viktor's intentions are, because, in the end, he's deciding what is good for someone else, and using underhanded techniques to achieve it. It shows a lack of respect for other people's choices, and it's something that Viktor has been doing wrong since the first episode. And, that's something he was supposed to learn not to do, and the show was giving hints that this would be addressed. Instead, this episode showed him doing exactly that, and being rewarded for it.

Yuuri

Honestly, I wouldn't have given a shit if he had lost, if they hadn't made him decide not to retire just so he can win gold next time (also, if he hadn't lost to Yurio). Also, if Viktor hadn't been like, "sorry, babe, you need to win 5 gold medals to get this, lol". If Yuuri isn't lying awake at night thinking about this, then they're overlooking his anxiety, just for this awful joke, and if he is, then, honestly, this is in character for Viktor, but, it's still character regression, because he was supposed to be learning how to interact with Yuuri without being a manipulative asshole, who uses himself as a weird motivational tool

TL;DR: Honestly, what they've done in this episode is postponed a lot of the character development and story progression they'd been promising us, just so that there would be something left for a second season. And, that feels very cheap to me.

I don't have anything to add but I just wanted to say I agree with pretty much all of this! There were still nice moments that I loved in the episode but the things you mentioned made me very disappointed in the episode when I finished it. And I think I was so disappointed because I didn't think the show would stoop to that level considering it has been so good at subverting stereotypes about what should happen in these kind of animes.

[jhamba]

I don't have anything to add but I just wanted to say I agree with pretty much all of this! There were still nice moments that I loved in the episode but the things you mentioned made me very disappointed in the episode when I finished it. And I think I was so disappointed because I didn't think the show would stoop to that level considering it has been so good at subverting stereotypes about what should happen in these kind of animes.

The bolded is exactly my issue, haha. This was one of the most subversive shows I'd watched, and the fact that it ended the way it did made me mad. Because, I got invested enough to give a shit about this anime, and then it basically ruined everything that made it an excellent story.

[sia]

Honestly, I don't agree with this posts at all (I'm warning you beforehand - I loved episode 12 and I am Yurio stan)
About the ending being so open and not conclusive, I would like to direct you to this http://themorninglark.tumblr.com/post/1 ... fe-goes-on
It was said by the author - it was never supposed to tie everything loose. Because life goes on, people change and one competition doesn't finish your story.
Only thing I can agree is, that this probably wasn't the intended ending. It probably was very similar but they very probably changed few things so they had the chance to tie second season into it if they can.

About Yurio
I believe his story was about learning about life and love, as both are main drives of the story. His was agape - general unconditional love. He did. And he broke the world record.
Now I see all people being salty that he needs to lose. I feel like you are seeing all this with the wrong light. Yurio worked his ass of to win. He deserves his medal. He pushed his limits. He proved us that his willpower is strong. If you compare him to the Yurio from episode one I see very different man.

He won out of spite. He didn't want his ?idol? to retire. He did it so he could try beat Yuuri at least once more. And he managed to do it even though his FS wasn't perfect.
Just the mental strenght of this boy omg. I hope his family is proud and that the money he won will serve them well. Let's not forget he is the main provider for his family since his rookie days. So please stop saying he doesn't deserve gold because he's an asshole to other people. I'd say he improved on being polite too but that is up for debate.

Also, while Yuuri and others are wholesome skaters, Yurio still has the puberty growth looming above him. With this, thye opened the possibilty of it happening next season and us maybe seeing a story arc about him dealing with it. He might need to take season off. He might not be able to overcome it. We don't know.

I just really hate the consensus about Yurio's story being about learning that he's not as good as he thinks. And that he learns it by losing. I feel like thats so incredibly mean and absolutely missing the point and notion of the whole anime? The story didn't want any character to have unhappy ending. It's about growing as people, learning to live and love and most importantly - you can do anything when you belive in yourself and your motivation. Have you ever actually listened to the opening?

About Yuuri (and Viktor by extension)
I expected him winning gold. I did. But the silver did add to his story. His story was about learning about love and self worth. He learned he doesn't need to win gold to be worthy. Yes, it's a bit icky that it has been foreshadowed the whole time and it didn't happen. But it had its meaning.

I see lots of people saying Viktor was being manipulative. See, I don't see it there. I think Viktor saw how much Yuuri loves the ice and how he is so hesistant to retire. That he doesn't really want to but feels like he has to. And of course instead of actually talking to him, he did it the Viktor way. But it worked. And I think him not retiring is just his wish to be on the ice with Yuuri? Why is Viktor always seen as manipulative/bad because he acts instead of talking? I belive he genuinely loves and cares for Yuuri. And Yuuri for him. And that is Viktor's arc completed too - he was stuck, neglecting both life and love for years. Thanks to Yuuri, he was given and shown both. Now he is no longer stuck, he can try combine the two.

The thing is, the anime doesn't show everything. They very probably had a talk after they got back.

Sorry for the longass post

So, I promised myself that I wouldn't talk about YOI anymore, but I have really low self control.
Yurio
The reason I don't think Yurio's arc was about learning agape, is because, he found his agape fairly easily, and after the third episode, it just never made a reappearance. Contrast that with Yuuri's eros, which was drawn attention to, in the beginning of and during his each of his eros performances. Yuuri learned to dance eros by experiencing it, but how did Yurio learn to dance agape? It wasn't by tapping his inner agape, but by working really hard to master the skills of dancing. He began the series very overconfident, but, learnt that confidence and technical skill is not enough to win the senior gpf. Which is why he got a new teacher, who drilled into him the importance of dancing in figure skating, when he used to focus more on the jumping. In his last performance of agape, where he beats the SP world record, it says that his "mind went blank". This is because, by that time, he had mastered the element of performative skills in figure skating.

Also, Yurio winning was kind of unrealistic. In episode 9, he changes his program by putting all his jumps in the second half, which he almost wasn't able to manage. In episode 12, he adds a bunch of new elements to his program, on a whim, and makes just one mistake, and the performative aspects (which is supposed to be his weakness) of his program didn't suffer? I think that's bullshit, and the only reason it was done was so that there could be a second season.

And, I don't think it's mean to not want Yurio to win. It's literally his first time competing in the senior grand prix, and he has many more seasons in front of him, especially compared to Yuuri and Viktor (especially Viktor, who, is in for a lifetime of injuries if he keeps competing, ala his character inspiration, Evgeni Plushenko). He has the makings of a prodigy, and even if he had lost this season, he would have years ahead of him to win gold. Even Viktor didn't win gold at his senior grand prix debut.

viktor
And, Viktor is manipulative. It's been one of his primary character traits from the very beginning, and Yuuri has also called him out on it. This episode was supposed to give us a conversation about it (which is what I think the break up scene was supposed to be), and it didn't.

It doesn't matter what Viktor's intentions are, because, in the end, he's deciding what is good for someone else, and using underhanded techniques to achieve it. It shows a lack of respect for other people's choices, and it's something that Viktor has been doing wrong since the first episode. And, that's something he was supposed to learn not to do, and the show was giving hints that this would be addressed. Instead, this episode showed him doing exactly that, and being rewarded for it.

Yuuri
Honestly, I wouldn't have given a shit if he had lost, if they hadn't made him decide not to retire just so he can win gold next time (also, if he hadn't lost to Yurio). Also, if Viktor hadn't been like, "sorry, babe, you need to win 5 gold medals to get this, lol". If Yuuri isn't lying awake at night thinking about this, then they're overlooking his anxiety, just for this awful joke, and if he is, then, honestly, this is in character for Viktor, but, it's still character regression, because he was supposed to be learning how to interact with Yuuri without being a manipulative asshole, who uses himself as a weird motivational tool

TL;DR: Honestly, what they've done in this episode is postponed a lot of the character development and story progression they'd been promising us, just so that there would be something left for a second season. And, that feels very cheap to me.

I don't have anything to add but I just wanted to say I agree with pretty much all of this! There were still nice moments that I loved in the episode but the things you mentioned made me very disappointed in the episode when I finished it. And I think I was so disappointed because I didn't think the show would stoop to that level considering it has been so good at subverting stereotypes about what should happen in these kind of animes.

Since I was somewhat active in this thread before I just want to add that I also agree with this.

Also as someone unfamiliar with the genre this show just left me confused, are they seriously not allowed to blatantly state that gay relationship is happening in the story or show them kiss without proper tags? How is then all the baiting ok? I don't understand this at all I have no idea what kind of personal satisfaction I should get from implied but not confirmed same sex relationship not that I would get so much more from the confirmed one, but it would definitely tied the story better together

[000dia000]

This a good channel that talks about shipping they have made sneaky references to dan and phil but have made a side comment on their tumblr saying that they do not want to do a video on real people Anyway, I thought that this was a good discussion of Yuri and Ice and the Victuuri relationship, likewise, it's comparisons to No. 6 (which I hope more people watch now that they are being told about it). I thought that I would dump this video here, in case anybody is interested.

Likewise, I am also confused about the nature of the "relationship", while I personally think it is clear, I am also confused about it's ambiguity, in a way. There are good tumblr posts on the issue that ascertain that it's to do with making statements about queer baiting and fan service in anime. This is seen in the flirtatious relationship between the two at the start of the anime, that many people initially pegged as "baiting" even dear old, Danny-boy. Yet, this eventually arose into a close, tender romantic (?) relationship between them. And this flirtatious relationship eventually made sense when realizing Yuri's drunk antics and how this may have "led on" Victor to behave in this way. This is better discussed in this video, if anybody is interested.

[PolarFox]

https://mobile.twitter.com/i/moments/81 ... 575489?m=1
Very interesting interview about Yuri on Ice for y'all.
I find funny how only western viewers ever doubted the kiss.

[CallMeAyana]

I'm very tempted to watch YOI, but I have limited data, so..
Anyways... anyone reading TG:re?
I really love Ishida's art, and TG:re's plot is not bad. It's my type of plot, tbh. Same with Gintama.

[000dia000]

I'm very tempted to watch YOI, but I have limited data, so..
Anyways... anyone reading TG:re?
I really love Ishida's art, and TG:re's plot is not bad. It's my type of plot, tbh. Same with Gintama.

Yup, but I stopped for a little so now I'm a few issues behind o_O I need to get back on that ASAP. I enjoy the manga far more than the anime and count me as one of the people who think that they won't do it justice in the anime adaptation, if the second season of TG anime is anything to go by.