10 Second Anime - Kill la Kill - Episode 21

Kill la Kill - Episode 21

This is the battle for Ryuko's heart and mind. There will be blood. Oh, yes. There will be blood.

Sex.

I've talked about this before, but when Ragyo and Harime converted Ryuko and had her put on Junketsu, they made the point explicitly. All three of them have life fibers integrated into their bodies, and the alien life fibers feed off the neurochemical energy in people. What makes connection between touching fibers the most compatible, or efficient, is the feeling of sex. Ragyo had been trying to bring that sexual sensation out of Satsuki, but because she did not have life fibers in her body, she could never have the affinity for Junketsu that Ryuko or Ragyo could. Harime, they explain, can't wear these life fiber suits, because she's an artificial life fiber being to begin with. Perhaps Ragyo thought by hypersexualizing Satsuki, she could improve her compatibility with an original life fiber suit. Satsuki, of course, hated her mother since the age of 5, so her personal training wasn't going to work since emotionality is tied in so closely with sexuality. In Ryuko's case, just touching the life fibers is enough to turn her switch. Making the hand motion of spreading open a flower to trip Junketsu's switch: blatant.

Kiss la Kiss begins! The Override is also effective because of Ryuko's life fibers, which was why Satsuki never really connected with Junketsu. This is in direct contrast to Senketsu, who is made of artificial life fibers, so his strength comes from the neurochemical energy of friendship and shared purpose. This shared purpose is how Satsuki is able to transform Senketsu, and use the new forms that he and Ryuko created, even combining some of them. But his blade form can't cut life fibers, still putting Satsuki at a disadvantage.

Satsuki is wearing Senketsu, but Senketsu is not wearing Satsuki. That is the essence of Synchronization. We've boiled down the two opposing sides purposes with these two suits. Override vs. Synchronization is directly related to Slavery vs. Cooperation. It turns out that this whole battle between Satsuki and Ryuko was the feint, while the real operation is being handled by the Inner Circle to extract Ryuko from the suit. Unfortunately, Harime and Ragyo saw fit to sew Junketsu's threads directly to Ryuko's own life fiber threads. Harime joins the fight when they discover they can't rescue Ryuko that easily. It's time for the game changer. Mako Moment!

Aw. Mako started a little slow because she hit her head. Her point is that Senketsu is still her best suit, and that she's still Ryuko, no matter what they've done to her. Harime isn't taking any chances after seeing how she calmed Ryuko down at the Battle Royale when she went berserk. The battle now changes to Satsuki fighting Harime and the Inner Council trying to find an opening with Ryuko and Junketsu.

Satsuki notices that Harime still doesn't trust Ryuko, because she didn't give back the other half of the scissor. There is actual fear about what a whole scissor can do. Finally this show brings this up. With Ragyo flying the Big Ball of Yarn to their location, this might be important.

Meanwhile, the opening the Inner Council is trying to create is to allow Senketsu inside Ryuko's body to undo all the sewn threads himself. With a quick switch of fighting partners again, Satsuki cuts a gash in Ryuko, and Senketsu dives in with Mako's help. Somehow Mako gets sucked in there too, and together they see the false memories of happiness which are placating Ryuko and causing the Override. As they try to convince her to give up these delusions, Ryuko cuts open Senketsu, and he begins spraying blood over the scene.

This causes a massive trauma, and out pops Mako and Senketsu. Harime thinks they lost because they weren't able to loosen Junketsu's threads, but apparently forcing Ryuko to strike down her best friends, even in a dream, woke Ryuko up. She impales Harime with her scissor, and begins ripping off Junketsu with her own hands. Ryuko, covered in blood, saves herself, so that she can wear Senketsu again.

The betrayals are done, but there might be a few more revelations to go in the main story. Like how the full pair of scissors works, and some other information on the life fibers that will be the key to their undoing. Sadly, this might be the last Mako Moment, unless she has one in the final showdown between Ryuko and Ragyo. I still want to know if Aikuro's glowing secondary sex characteristics means something. Please let it be so.