[Kill la Kill] - Episode 5
Trigger
I don't really like
Kill la Kill. I don't really have anything else to add to that particular discussion of the series as a whole. However, as I went back through the show I came across a real gem - the fifth episode in the series. Not only do I think this is the best episode in the series but it also represents a fascinating insight into what Kill la Kill might have looked like if it wasn't being directed by Imaishi.
Episode 5,
Trigger, introduces Tsumugu of Nudist Beach and features his battle with Ryuko over Senketsu. It also features some drip-feeding of information to the viewers about the wider world of the series and hints at future plot developments. None of that sounds particularly noteworthy, so why I am singling it out as something to highlight?
This episode was directed and storyboarded by Hiroshi Kobayashi whose directorial work you might have seen on the recent
Yozakura Quartet TV show and OVA's (no, he's not the one doing all pantyshots). It's also worth pointing out that he's done key animation here and there. Still, it's not a particularly large portfolio but based on his work here I feel like he's someone to look out for. What makes this episode so interesting is that the production quality is so far off the hook that it feels like it's been made by an entirely different studio and the overall tone of the show feels completely different as well. It's far more restrained, and, for want of a better word, serious.
Fanservice
For example, Hiroshi doesn't frame Ryuko's scantily clad body the same way that other directors have done in the series. You can debate all you want about whether the 'fanservice' in other episodes is just there for fun or not, but you can't deny that it exists. This episode is different. Hiroshi doesn't shove the camera up her ass, or between her thighs, or across her breasts. For the most part, that is.
There's not really a classy way to shoot her outfit, but this is about as classy as you can make it while still actually showing Ryuko onscreen! The rest of Imaishi's trademark humour and style is largely absent too with a distinct lack of perv jokes, food jokes, or naked people jokes. All the dumb gags that you normally find scattered throughout the show are mainly missing and when they do, occasionally, appear it's only very briefly and they're not really the focus of the scene.
Tone Control
Another surprising aspect of the tone is how uncomfortable the bathroom sequence at the end of the episode is. When Tsumgu has completely defeated Ryuko she still refuses to relent to his will and so he beats her with the brunt of his weapon in a manner that isn't lighthearted or exaggerated, or heroic of fantastical, it simply looks like a strong, brutal man assaulting a teenage girl:
This one act of violence is very off-putting, even though we're slightly distanced from it buy the longshot we can still feel it due to the reaction shot for Ryuko. This also establishes Tsumugu as a character who will apparently stop at nothing to achieve his goals. It's some pretty serious stuff.
What's good about this scene is that we also learn Tsumgu will stop at nothing to eliminate Senketsu:
That's right, when a tragic accident occurred that Tsumugu could do nothing to stop he vowed to never feel so powerless again. This is emphasised in the framing of the show where Tsumugu is not only restrained by two men, but entrapped by the frame of the window itself. Therefore, by his logic, it's okay to hurt Ryuko because really he's trying to help her in the long run. Unfortunately this particular plot line is never developed in the series and loses all relevance fairly quickly. But it works in this episode!
Production Quality
With regards to the production quality being higher than the rest of the show, a casual flip through this episode should be enough to show you how different it looks. The character designs are more complicated, the world is far richer in visual detail, the animation is great throughout and there's none of the classic money-saving techniques used in many other episodes. Things also appear far more rounded and fuller then than the rest of the series where things tend to be flat and brash:
I think this is most noticeable when you check out the battle that occurs in the middle of the episode and see how much animation actually occurs:
I know right, movement and stuff. You'll notice how this isn't just two static combatants with overlayed with a loop of cheap animation.
Tsumugu
This episode does two very important thing in that in introduces Tsumugu, who we learn is a badass, and it strengthens the bond between Ryuko and Senketsu. Now, both of these improtant developments are handled well in the script but they really come alive on screen thanks to the directing.
Don't ask me how or why, but in movies/tv/games wearing sunglasses, riding on a motorcyle and smoking cigarettes all make you cool. That's just a fact of life. Tsumgu wins a lot of points simply for having these as part of his character. Ridiculous, but that's just how it works!
Tsumug's strength and dominance is demonstrated in numerous scenes where he thrashed anyone who gets in his way from lowly scrubs to the main character at the peak of her power. The framing of this character always demonstrates his power, he's usually shot from a low-angle so that we can see him physically dominating those below him in the frame and other characters are clearly subservient to him.
Another device that shows Tsumugu's dominance in this episode is how he extends out of the traditionally shallow frame towards and reach out towards the audience. We aren't even safe from him:
In the scene where he first meets Ryuko Tsumgu almost appears like a monster in a horror movie, his face shrouded in darkness with only his ominous sunglasses visible like the glowing eyes of a larger-than-life demon. He has utter control of the scene and of Ryuko and the way the scene is shot emphasises this greatly:
One of my favourite shots in the episode that really demonstrates his power, and the strength of the storyboarding, is this one:
Which is basically just Ryuko being kicked very hard by Tsumug. You can feel the force of the impact just from a single frame, but why is that? It's because just about everything in that shot is concentrating your eye on the impact itself, as you can see in this shot where I trace the lines in the image that are being used to guide your eyes:
Owch. Of course, for whatever reason, this guy becomes a complete gag character by the end of the series!
Bonus shot of Tsumugu being a boss before he got horribly neutered. RIP, cool dude.
Next time, I'll cover Senketu and Ryuko's relationship in this episode!
