Skip Beat! 25 (END) A quick final note on Skip Beat! - I hadn’t planned to post about it but after some second thoughts realized I had to say something. Skip Beat was one of the shows I anticipated most last fall because of the manga’s lofty reputation. I’m a shoujo-holic - I love even the worst shoujo manga adaptations (Itazura na Kiss anyone?), so seeing the gorgeous shoujo character designs on the Dark Moon poster and reading the ravings of “Kyoko-sama’s” many fans all over discussion boards had me foaming at the mouth for this show. Did it live up to my (admittedly overblown) expectations? Yes and no. I had problems with the pacing from the start - scenes of Kyoko’s exaggerated inner world seemed to drag on and whole episodes would pass with very little plot progression. I was intrigued enough however by the characters and premise to read the manga - which, as I’ve mentioned, I found vastly superior. Skip Beat has a great spin on the classic shoujo romance narrative. While it employs loads of genre cliches (like the forgotten childhood friend trope) the whole thing is kind of disrupted by the personality of Kyoko herself and her quest for revenge. Even when her flightiness pisses me off, Kyoko remains a fascinatingly unique shoujo heroine. She’s angry, jealous, vengeful, and formidably talented. Her strengths come from denying her own servile nature, not wanting to be loved, and selfishly exploring her acting talent as a way of defining her identity in opposition to the people she grew up serving (Sho, customers at the inn, her mother). Even the romance between Kyoko and Ren is unconventional, because wherever the archetypal “good boy / bad boy” dichotomy appears in the shoujo world, everybody knows the bad boy ALWAYS wins. This is shoujo gospel. And I ain’t complaining, because I love the bad one most of the time. But Ren is decidedly the good boy next to Sho. To have a tough, talented heroine paired with a gentle, supportive male lead really flips the trope on its head. And I feel like that’s a good thing. It’s a shame that this adaptation had a bit of trouble conveying its wicked source material. Not only did the long interior monologues of the manga not translate too well due to the way they were paced, the story wasn’t adequately fit to the 25 episode season either. It ended on an abruptly awkward note, only a few episodes into its most interesting story arc. If only less time had been spent on those sluggish early episodes maybe they could have animated the entire Dark Moon arc instead of cutting it short right before it climaxed, leaving so much unresolved. As it stands we’ll just have to wait for an as-yet-unannounced second season. I’ll be looking forward to it.
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Erm.. a real disappointing ending to a good anime series! The way they try to wrap up everything in the last few minutes is pretty lame. To be frank, I'm not even sure how to summarize this episode.I don't quite understand why they bother starting the Dark Moon arc in the first place. It's awful that they end Skip Beat! in the middle of the Dark Moon arc. Though I don't read the manga, there seems to be so much more to go for the Dark Moon arc.Will there an another season? Well, I seriously hope so. I want to watch the continued rivalry between Sho and Kyoko! Those episodes with them 'fighting' are the funniest.Plot: 9/10 Characters: 9/10 Entertainment Level: 9/10 Art/Animation: 6/10As a whole, I like Skip Beat! It's funny most of the time and everything is very good except for the art/animation, the music and the last episode.SummaryDespite the heart to heart talk with Bo (Kyoko), Ren is still at a loss. He wishes he had not realized those feelings, which Bo was talking about.Meanwhile, the filming for 'Dark Moon' is still ongoing. While changing, Kyoko overhears the other co-actresses commenting on how her acting is better than Ren's. Instead of feeling happy for being praised, Kyoko feels very upset as she personally thinks that Ren is the best actor around. With that, she decides to call Ren's manager to ask for Ren's schedule. Ren's manager promises to give her Ren's schedule only if she fulfills two conditions. One is to eat dinner with Ren and the other is to listen to Ren's work problems. To Kyoko, the first condition is very easy to fulfill, however the second condition is mission impossible.That night, Kyoko pays Ren a surprise visit and cooks dinner for him. The moment she appears in front of him, Ren's unexpected feelings begin to pour out. However, he tries to suppress and hide it by acting cold and indifferent. Throughout dinner, he says nothing much to her and keeps a distance from her. After dinner, he sends her home. Before he leaves, Kyoko, with a heartwarming smile, tells him that she can't wait for the return of Katsuki. Those words of encouragement, again stirs up mixed emotions within Ren. With a cool tone, he replies, 'I'll do my best' and leaves.When Ren reaches home, he receives a call from Takarada, who reminds Ren that he will be removed from the role if he's still unable to act as Katsuki. Ren finally understands that he doesn't have to figure out the role, but he has to feel it. Rather than trying to come up with a Katsuki which people think is better than the original, he will now focus on coming up with a Katsuki he can pull off. Meanwhile, Kyoko is holding on to Corn's stone and praying that it will take away Ren's worries and pain.The next day, Kyoko looks forward to seeing a new Ren. On her way to school, she realizes that, through the many people she met, she also has changed. Though, initially, she entered Showbiz because of Sho, now it's more than that.PicturesKyoko: 'Make her yours. Do whatever you need to do'.Hmm.. I wonder if she will still say the same thing if she knows she's the girl he likes.The co-actresses praise Kyoko for being better than Ren.However, Kyoko is upset because she thinks Ren is the best!The 2 conditions Kyoko needs to fulfill, but she can only fulfill the first one.The dinner turns out to be awkward.Kyoko: 'I'm waiting. I can't wait to meet Katsuki.'Kyoko: 'Please Corn. Take away Tsugura-san's worries and pain.'Ren: 'I need to come up with a Katsuki I can pull off.'The next day, Ren appears to be happier.Kyoko appears to be happier too.
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Minnie: Good news! I’ve been waiting for this episode to come out all day and it’s not out on April Fool’s Day like someone said! Gosh, I can’t believe how addicted I am to Skip Beat… addicted enough to wait all day for Skip Beat Episode 25 aka last episode. Why must Skip Beat end [...]
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