So much was revealed this episode, but the mysteries still keep piling up.
The Destination of Fate
We begin with a monologue from Sanetoshi (the librarian) about how he hates the word fate. This may remind us of Shouma and Ringo’s monologues in the first episodes. In fact, they aren’t just similar: it is the exact same speech as Shouma’s! How are these two tied together?
The main difference between the two monologues stems from the visuals. When Shouma speaks, we are in a star-filled room with a sleeping Himari. During Sanetoshi’s spiel, the scene is quite similar: we are still looking at a sleeping Himari. But the stars are gone, and Himari is dead. Shouma, although he despises fate, has not lost his sense of wonder and joy as Sanetoshi has.
As for the content of the speech, Sanetoshi is from the Destination of Fate. And he hates the word fate? This is the last person we’d expect to hear this from! At the moment, I don’t think we have enough information to know why yet.
Sanetoshi also appears to know Shouma and Kanba’s father from the past: he puts the photo of the 36th Antarctic Environmental Defense team on the doctor’s table. The father appears to be the team’s leader. The scene is filled with penguins, and one of the penguin logos is quite conspicuous. This is an expedition to defend the environment: we could also call it a “survival strategy.”
Meet the Parents
As others have speculated, the Takakura parents were the masterminds behind the sarin gas attacks. The father seems definitively involved, as we see him entering the Kasumigaseki station, one of the stops where the attack took place. But I doubt that this is the end of the story.
First, note that the father initiates the plan upon hearing of Shouma and Kanba’s successful birth. It is a “survival strategy” not for himself, but for his children. As he walks into the station, the father says that what he is doing will bring peace.
Which brings us back to the penguin corporation and the mission to the Antarctic. How are these things related? I don’t know, and I doubt we have enough information to figure it out yet. But let’s consider the idea that their father did what he did to ensure the survival of the planet and his children.
This segment also fits in quite nicely with Super Frog Saves Tokyo, the book that Himari was searching for in the library. Frog and his friend battle the Worm underground to save the world. No one knows what they have done, and they are despised and scorned. But the fact that one person is cheering for him is enough for frog to keep courage. Similarly, Takakura descends underground to battle forces of evil. His actions are despised and not understood. But Shouma and Kanba are waiting for him, and this is enough.
A Sister’s Innocence and a Brother’s Love
Himari is appearing less and less innocent as the show continues. Now we have her joking about private parts, and delivering line after line of sexual innuendo as her penguin is stripped by and does some bondage play with Kanba’s penguin. Is she acting differently because Sho isn’t there and she is alone with Kanba? Her two personalities seem to be merging closer and closer together.
I’m still leaning towards the idea that the sister Himari and the penguin hat Himari are two facets of the same person, but either way, which person is Kanba in love with? There is more going on between Kanba and the penguin hat than we knew: Kanba knowingly gave her a portion of his life to extend Himari’s. Obviously, he loves his sister, but his more erotic affections seem to be reserved for the alien Himari (e.g., this episode’s stripping). Which girl did Kanba steal a kiss from?
The Myth of Mary
What are we to make of Shouma’s myth of Mary and the three little lambs? It bears some resemblance to the stories of Prometheus and the garden of Eden (and countless other myths).
Mary loves the three little lambs, and can’t wait to spin their wool into thread. Where have we seen thread imagery before? The red string of fate (note that the swirl on the lamb’s bellies is also red). Does Mary want to fix the Takakura sibling’s destinies?
Then we come to the apple tree in the garden, the first tree in the world. It has withered, but its light was once the source of the world’s love, future and dreams. We could see this as akin to the Tree of Knowledge in a gnostic interpretation of the creation story. For those unfamiliar with this version, a (very) short summary: the roles are inverted, and the god walking in the garden is a false god. He keeps the the knowledge of the true god (hidden in the fruit of the tree) from humans, but the true god comes in the form of the snake and gives knowledge to mankind.
Next, the black bunnies appear and tell Mary to fetch the ashes from the torch in the Goddess’ shrine and use them to revive the tree. But contact with the Goddess’ torch is forbidden. The black bunnies play the role of the snake, luring Mary to break the taboo.
The rabbits convince Mary and she takes the ashes. Mary, as Prometheus, steals the fire which the gods have hoarded and gives it to mankind. Alternatively, Adam and Eve see the light and their eyes are opened.
But the Goddess is furious, and takes the smallest lamb’s life as punishment. Prometheus is chained to a rock, and his liver is pecked out by an eagle every day. Adam and Eve are exiled (by the false god).
We’ve established the connection to the myth of Prometheus and the gnostic creation myth. But how does Mary’s story fit into Mawaru Penguindrum?
It appears that the souls of the sheep (the Takakura siblings) are the flames of the Godess’ torch. By sacrificing themselves (as Kanba has done) the sheep can prolong the life of the apple tree.
The next questions are the identites of Mary and the Goddess. It seems reasonable to guess that the Goddess is fate herself, who has afflicted Himari with a curse. Mary, although he bears a female name, is wearing a tie. Mary seems to hold much in common with Shouma and Kanba’s father. He has broken a taboo (executing the gas attacks) as part of a survival strategy for the apple tree. The apple tree in this context could be the Earth itself, if we consider the discussion from earlier.
One last question: what are the dark bunnies? A dark, uncontrollable force fighting against fate: they seem similar to the Worm from Super Frog Saves Tokyo. Why is Sanetoshi leading them?
Further Thoughts
- I wonder what animals the young Tabuki was supposed to take care of? Birds?
- What’s up with Tabuki’s fingers here? After the Sarin gas attacks, the perpetrators mailed a bomb to Yukio Aoshima, the governor of Tokyo, and blew the fingers off his secretary’s hand.
- When Tabuki refuses to believe that Momoka has died, we jump to a shot of a bird in a cage. Her death has trapped him in the past, unwilling to fly and move on.
- Great music in this episode, especially the piano piece towards the middle.
- The myth sequence was beautifully choreographed: the two storylines happening at the same time fit together perfectly.
- Penguin hat Himari claims that she is also from the destination of fate. I’m sticking with my theory that the destination of fate is death.
- D’aaaawwww. Baby Ringo is so cute. She’s always been attached to that diary.
- Sanetoshi’s apple has a different symbol than the yin-yang penguin head. What is it supposed to be? It kind of looks like a candle to me. The Godess’ torch?
- Who is the girl saying “Because punishment has to be the most unjust” at the end?
I look forward to hearing your own theories in the comments!
Note: I’ll be out of town this weekend, so Dantalian will be delayed. As will any first impressions posts for new series.
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I loved this episode, too, and I have a lot to comment on in regards to your theories/questions 🙂
First, in regards to the photo Sanetoshi picked up: I think he was putting it back on the doctor’s desk, not putting it there. This would imply the doctor was a part of the Takakura’s project from the beginning and is intimately connected with the Takakuras. Perhaps he’s the man standing next to Kenzan on the left? It seems to fit, at least to me.
Also, a correction: Kenzan’s phone call indicated that he was only aware of one boy being born, so this could also indicate that Shouma (who looks nothing like Kenzan and Chiemi) is adopted into their family in the future. I like to think that the scene where Kenzan leaves the car — and how there are two shots of him from opposing sides — gives us a clue that perhaps Kenzan is the one that has a twin brother. Maybe Kenzan’s twin brother also had a son born that day, but that brother and his wife died and they took in the son (Shouma) as their own? It would certainly make a lot of sense as Shouma always seems to be the one left in the dark and always doing the ‘menial’ tasks. Also, he’s the only one the Crystal Princess drops besides Ringo (who is not a Takakura relation). Shouma also has been left out of using his lifeforce to save Himari’s life. Why only Kanba? Could it be because he’s actually the only brother with the closest DNA to match to her by blood and therefore able to give her part of his life for her? If Shouma is a cousin to Himari and Kanba he might be somewhat viable to use, but not a blood-related sibling with the same/similar DNA pattern. It seems, also, that Himari and Kanba are the only real ones in the ‘know’ about what’s going on: Penguin Force, Pengroup, the Hat, etc. It just seems like Shouma, of all the siblings, is the one who’s left out the most, rather than Himari.
I also believe your theory on how the father (Mary) tried to change fate in some way and thus his daughter had to pay the ultimate price for his sin. Maybe Kenzan stole the Penguindrum during the attacks on March 20th? Maybe Momoka was the key to it or the Penguindrum herself and she was kidnapped by the Takakuras during the attacks. It would make sense if that were so since Ringo’s relatives commented that Momoka couldn’t be found and all that was left of her was her Diary. Or, perhaps, Tabuki was somehow involved and Momoka is the third and final opposing force against the Crystal Princess and the Crown Prince (Mario). It would nicely tie in with the use of 3 in the series.
And, the answer your question about what symbol is on Sanetoshi’s apple logo: that’s not a candle at all. It’s an ampoule. Ampoules are basically sealed glass tubes with various fluids/samples inside of them. Mostly they’re used for medicines/science samples. I’d suspect that it’s either some type of drug (animal testing, maybe?) or some type of scientific sample of a compound/element that is integral to the plot in some way. Though, I got the feeling during the opening (where hundreds of ampoules are floating down) that those ampoules contain a type of drug—maybe a mind-altering one or maybe even a destiny-altering one, perhaps. Though, ampoules also can contain gasses… which might be a reference to the Sarin Gas Attacks, or more specifically, a chemical the cult released into the air when the bombings went off.
Hope that helps and clears things up ^___^
That’s a good point about the doctor. We also see that there’s a penguin logo on the hospital, the same logo that was on the father’s shirt (and elsewhere). So perhaps the hospital and the doctor are connected in this as well. Sanetoshi’s presence in his room seemed to indicate some familiarity with the doctor, although he kind of looked like a ghost or spirit, present without the doctor’s knowledge. Maybe all three of them were members of the expedition together.
I missed that only a single child was mentioned on the phone call, but I noticed the shots of the father’s face from two angles as well. It was so conspicuous that I actually played it back several times before concluding that it was indeed the same face. But if the father is actually the one with a twin brother? MIND=BLOWN. And you’re right, Shouma does seem to be the outsider out of the three siblings. The more I think about this, the more compelling it becomes…
There does seem to be some third opposing force in the series, since the other half of the diary was taken by another group. I like the idea that Momoka could be part of that. Here’s a completely ridiculous idea that just came to me: since they didn’t find her body, maybe Momoka isn’t dead yet. Maybe Momoka is actually Yuri. That would cast everything with Ringo and Tabuki in a completely different light. Tabuki’s further involvement in the attacks seems likely as well, especially considering the glimpse we had of his fingers.
Now that you point it out, the symbol definitely does look like an ampoule. The tie-ins to the Sarin gas attacks seem the most likely explanation to me as well.
Thanks for a great comment! I rarely get such thoughtful responses, and really appreciate it!
That the father mentioned only one child is sure to be an important point – Arcane’s theory of Shouma being a distant relation rather than a sibling makes a great deal of sense apart from one hint of a contradiction. Shouma doesn’t look like Kenzan or Chiemi, but surely if he’s the son of Kenzan’s twin brother he would bear some resemblance to Kenzan? The chances of him not resembling him are very remote.
Ahhh, but that’s where you’re wrong: if Shouma is indeed a cousin of Kanba and Himari and his father is Kenzan’s twin, then the green eyes is the giveaway. Kenzan and Kanba both have green eyes. Thus, if Kenzan’s twin brother (Shouma’s real father) has green eyes, so will Kanba and Shouma. Plus, if Shouma’s real mother had blue hair, it would explain why he also has blue hair while nobody in his family has it, too.
While Himari might have purple eyes, I think it’s more to give her an otherworldy look than anything (or to throw us off the idea of Shouma being the adopted child and not Himari). Though, if you really want a mind-fuck here’s another thought: What if Kenzan had two twin brothers and the only real son of his is Kanba while Himari and Shouma come from his two twin brothers? In other words, Kenzan could be ‘biologically’ all three children’s father since he shares the exact same genes with his two twin brothers, but each has a different mother; thus why every sibling looks as though they have a different parental mother.
Pretty trippy, no? 😛
This family life is getting quite complicated… I don’t even know what to think anymore…
Those two theories would make Himari and Kanba’s relationship a bit less incestuous, however, and if we proceed from the theory that Ikuhara will pull the craziest stunts possible, that makes them seem a bit less likely. 🙂
Too true, too true 🙂 It *would* be pretty mind-blowing, though, if the Triplet-angle were true: that Kenzan had two twin brothers that were identical to him and thus Himari and Shouma were from each brother. This would also make it seem like either: A) Both twin brothers died and Kenzan was the only one alive to raise them with Chiemi and Kanba, B) Both twin brothers were caught and he took in Shouma and Himari to raise as his own in hiding, or C) Both twins abandoned their children and gave up custody to Kenzan to raise all three children in a sort-of hodgepodge, broken-but-whole family atmosphere. Someone brought up the idea of cloning (thus Kenzan has many clones) so this could be a possibility but I like the idea of Himari and Shouma being from Kenzan’s twin brother(s).
Also, I’m going to reply to your reply soon, Draggle, though I have a request (and it might sound odd or impertinent of me, but hear me out!): Could you perhaps change the layout of your blog to a white or off-white/gray tone color? I only ask because black backgrounds tend to hurt my eyes excessively — especially when reading things online and while I love the star motif, a lighter background (for the text tables, even) would be splendid 🙂 I also noticed the reply boxes/tables only go out so far which makes the replies and entries seem squashed a bit. You might want to tinker around with that, too, if you have time. (Sorry, total html geek-freak and squashed blogs tend to be even harder to read, imo ;____;).
Thanks for the discussions and I’ll get right on your reply (after I’ve rested my eyes a bit and recharged ^^).
Thanks for the suggestions! I know absolutely nothing about design, so I really appreciate it. Let’s try this for a while, it does seem easier to read.
Im pretty sure the opening monologue in this episode was said by kanba, not sanetoshi.
I’ll admit that I’m bad at telling voices apart. I listened to it again, and it still sounds more like Sanetoshi to me, but I’m not entirely sure anymore. Sanetoshi’s presence in the room with the doctor made me think it was him speaking more than the actual voice did. Thanks for mentioning this.
yeah i understand how you may get confused, since sanetoshi is in the scene in the beginning.. but considering how in the monologue, the guy refers to himself with “ore”, its pretty safe to says its kanba. Also, it makes much more sense if kanba says it, since him and shouma are in the same situation. kanbas mirroring shoumas monologue from the first episode.
Ah, good to know. Yes, in that case the monologue would make much more sense: it’s obvious why Kanba would hate fate.
With Sanetoshi’s association with the black bunnies, however, I still don’t think he is the willing accomplice to fate that he initially seemed.
I enjoyed reading about your connection of Prometheus to the mythical story. I did have similar thoughts about the mythical story, but in my case, I thought mainly about the nursery rhyme, Mary Had a Little Lamb, and of the biblical story of Adam and Eve. You can check out my post on these here: http://ephemeraldreamer.wordpress.com/2011/09/29/mawaru-penguindrum-12-mary-had-a-little-lamb/
As for the black rabbits, the rabbits themselves symbolizes family, awareness, caution, and curiosity. Add to that the symbolism of the color, black, which could mean negative aspects such as a hidden ill intent, and you have very contradicting symbolism here. Now, the boys that we see near the end with Sanetoshi bears a strong resemblance to the black rabbits in the mythical story. It’s possible that they could have hidden motives, but there’s no further information about them, so I suppose that we’ll have to wait and see.
I think perhaps a more straightforward interpretation of the black bunny rabbits could be a loss of innocence. Bunnies are often envisaged as being a pure white, perfectly innocent. But these bunnies have been stained black with sin. And I saw your post, some interesting ideas! (I left a comment there too with some more stuff to say)
Thank you for another great post.
As far as the Takakura parents: I think they were involved in this world’s version of the sarin attacks, but a few strange clues, like Momoka’s “body” going missing (and her family doesn’t find it strange), indicate that in this version, it may have been something more like bombs.
The PenguinForce logo is the logo for the Antarctic mission as well as the one in the factory-type building we see Kenzan Takakura in when he gets the phonecall. Later on chronologically, in episode 5, we see him wearing a Kiga logo jacket in the hospital visiting young Himari. Now, this is a shot-in-the-dark complete guess, but perhaps PenguinForce somehow represents this world’s version of Aum. In that case, perhaps the Kiga logo jacket means that he A) successfully left the group later on or B) This is a different person – I.E., his twin or clone.
I wanted to mention something related to the “survival strategy” that Kenzan (Dad Takakura) initiates. It could be that he was doing it for his children, and in fact the “Mary” scene may be part of that, but when I heard it, that wasn’t my first thought. What I thought of was reading about Vayrayana Tantra in Underground, Murakami’s book in which he interviewed victims of the sarin attacks as well as members of the Aum. A passage that really stood out to me was where one Aum member talked about how some of the higher-ups in the Aum were on this Varayana “fast path” version of Buddhism (because they were presumably more englightened). Those high enough, according to him, could “discern the process of transmigration and rebirth” in people and therefore see who it was (for lack of a better phrase) okay to kill because “that person would have been happier than he would have been living his life”. Those are direct quotes from the American edition of the book I have, btw. So when I saw a guy with a package going into a subway and heard “survival strategy”, I thought of a group of people who honestly believed that their leader could tell who would be “saved” by being killed. Upsetting stuff. This episode was hard to watch.
And thank you for a great comment!
There were also several plumes of smoke across the sky in Penguindrum’s version of the attacks, which would go along well with the bomb theory.
I didn’t even remember the father’s jacket in episode 5— nice catch! Associating the PenguinForce with the Aum seems reasonable, since they’re both the perpetrators of the attacks. And the idea that the perpetrator is in fact a different person fits in perfectly with Arcane’s idea of the twins.
I really need to read Underground now— I didn’t realize Murakami had interviewed members of the Aum as well. That sounds utterly fascinating (and upsetting). And that seems like a good explanation for why Kenzan would kill random people on a train. But I feel that there must be some additional reason he would do it, that he is not just following instructions— the timing of that phone call before the attack feels much too intentional to be a coincidence. What could Kanba’s birth have to do with the attacks? Also, Shouma said that both of his parents were involved in the attacks. But what does his mother, who had just given birth, have to do with it?
The picture of Kenzan in Antarctica makes me think that his actions have something to do with why the Takakuras have Penguins. I read a comment on another blog that suggested that details in the Penguins’ appearances serve to point out lingering guilt suffered by the siblings for the things they did to their parents, but maybe their appearance as Penguins itself is related to the sins of their parents and the guilt that the siblings experience. The Takakura parents and their disappearance has been a huge weight on their children’s shoulders, so far.
I’m still trying to piece Shouma’s tale together, myself. The lambs are clearly the siblings, and I think that Mary is Kenzan, but the important thing here seems to be the apple tree, whatever it represents. Does it represent Chiemi, his children, or maybe the something bigger like you suggest? I’m not sure, but I have a feeling that when we learn what it represents we’ll know why the parents participated in the attacks for their Survival Strategy in the first place. I really think you’re on to something about the world or some greater good being part of Kenzan’s decision, since the tree would have to be something huge for the parents to be involved with something so horrible.
On another note, Tabuki is becoming suspicious himself. I’m not sure whether it was baby Ringo or the diary that was sparkling when we saw them from Tabuki’s point of view, but either way holds some very ominous implications with his failure to accept Momoka’s death. I’ve wondered for a while if he’s as innocent as he looks, and I’m convinced now that Tabuki is hiding some dark obsessions towards Ringo or the diary behind his cheerful exterior.
I agree that the appearance of the penguins is probably associated with Kenzan’s trip to Antarctica: this seems like it could be central to the whole series. Why do 1, 2, 3 and the hat appear, and what are the goals of the opposing penguin corporations?
I hadn’t thought of that about Tabuki: if you see the scene with the adorable baby Ringo chewing on the diary from Tabuki’s perspective, it would look downright sinister. Based on what happened to his hand, it seems like his involvement in that day’s incident must have been much deeper than we were shown in the flashback. What could he be hiding?
Although I don’t have much to add to the theories, I just wanted to say thank you for such a great post! After watching this episode today, so much happened and I just wanted to make sense of it all in my head. I found this post and it did just that for me. Thanks a bunch!
From what I understood, Himari died once more because the portion Kanba gave of his own life ran out. Although we don’t know how much of his own life he gave, it still turned out to be only a short amount of time. “Alien Himari” just unexpectedly collapsed, and when it happened it seemed to surprised her too, which I guess could mean that she thought Kanba’s life portion would be longer than it was. If a portion of Kanba’s life is so short, wouldn’t that mean that he probably doesn’t have a long life to live? Especially considering he tried again to give her another portion. Just a thought I guess….
Glad you liked the post. I was wondering about the same thing actually: I was half expecting Kanba to keel over and die along with Himari. I don’t think that the Hat Himari expected it to work the second time though— she said it was like a kiss or love, which has more magic the first time, and hesitated to take more of his life at all. It seems that the ashes of the torch may only be a temporary stopgap measure against the death of the tree / the whim of the goddess / fate.
The “peach symbol” (the upside-down heart with leaves and a crescent inside) was shown inside Yuri’s apartment a few episodes ago (It was also on Ringo’s house in ep. 6). That could be foreshadowing that indeed Yuri = Momoka. (Dunno if this has already been said before)
Another possibility is that Momoka is the redhead, but that doesn’t really make sense yet, and I don’t see the connection just yet.
In the world of anime, I like the chances that if the body wasn’t found, the character is alive.
I really enjoyed this episode and the blog/comments..
Ooh, I hadn’t noticed that peach symbol, but I bet you’re onto something.
Momoka as the redhead could be an interesting possibility (it would explain where she went, at least). Sanetoshi came across as masculine in the library, but in this episode he seemed much more androgynous. Seems plausible.
And yes, in anime, if there’s no body, there’s a good chance they aren’t dead. Even if there is a body, there’s a good chance they aren’t dead, for some shows at least…
Nice post!
I liked your allusions to Super Frog Saves Tokyo in regards to as long as meaning is assigned to your actions via your love or friendship with someone else, it brings meaning to your actions regardless of anyone else recognizing or celebrating your actions. It’s also rather chilling isn’t it, since ultimately you are the one assigning meaning to your own actions? Does something “mean more” or “mean less” depending on intent regardless of how horrifying the action is, and “the highest wisdom is to have no fear?”
I hadn’t thought of the dark bunnies as something akin to Worm; however, and I take issue with it a bit since Worm was described by Frog himself as a force of nature, and of darkness that was necessary to exist in the world (until he became too dangerous and had to be dealt with). Worm isn’t particularly active, he remains a vague force. If Shouma’s allegory is to be believed, then presumably the dark bunnies were not only forces of nature, but ACTIVE forces of nature that deliberately tempted Kenzan. If this is correct, then one has to wonder for what purpose. Is Himari special, as Sanetoshi tells her, because she has always been marked as the bride of fate and thus Kenzan had to be tempted in order for her to die, or is she special because of Kenzan’s actions? Is she the cause, or is her death an effect or reaction? I suppose when it comes down to it, it depends on how much you believe Shouma.
bleh, horrifying grammar. Sorry, I’ve been through the ringer this week and am quite tired.
Some very interesting questions.
I think one of the similarities the bunnies have with worm is that their existence is necessary: if I remember correctly, it’s Himari who said that the dark bunnies have now come into the world. It sounded to me as if their existence was something that simply had to occur, although it’s hard to tell. As for the more active temptation, recall that the Worm is both an external and an internal force. I see the bunnies likewise: they’re both literally the bunnies by Sanetoshi’s side and a force from within Kenzan. Did they actively try to tempt him? Maybe and maybe not. The Worm needs to roll around under the ground, he isn’t try to destroy humanity. Perhaps the bunnies also simply need to tempt Kenzan; I’m not yet convinced that they actively seek to. I think it may be too early to guess their motivations at this point.
To tie this back in with the story of Eden, I highly recommend reading the short story Planet Without Laughter by the logician Raymond Smullyan. To spoil part of the punchline (you really should read the story first, it’s great), the snake is doing God’s bidding the entire time. So who tempted Adam and Eve: the snake or God? This goes back to your final question, and I think the answer depends on how much you believe in fate. If you don’t believe that everything is fated, then Kenzan’s actions are the cause. If it is Himari’s fate to die in this manner, then cause and effect are one and the same.
“Who is the girl saying “Because punishment has to be the most unjust” at the end?”
= Wasn’t she the goddess in the story? Though I’m hoping she’s representing ana ctual character in the series xD
Yes, I think she was probably the Goddess. But based on the fact that she was animated so differently from the rest of the story of Mary, I’m guessing that she is an actual character as well.
This was a great episode.
I was also confused when only one son was born, actually up until ep.11, I didn’t even know Shoma and Kana were the same age.
I figured for a bit that one son was born a bit earlier than the other, but that doesn’t make sense because the doctor implied the birth was over.
So, the twin siblings theory seems sound.
I liked all of the connections you seem to have made with mythology (most of your posts show of your vast expertise on mythology, how the hell do you know so much?), the only connection I made was with the Creation story and vaguely the nursery rhyme “Mary had a little lamb”.
I’d also like to make note of Shouma’s spotlight this episode. Normally, Shouma is always in the background, and someone else, like Ringo or Kana or Himari are the important ones, but this entire episode was narrated by Shouma, he was the one telling the whole story which is quite different than the norm, maybe Shouma is the all important first son that started the whole mess, though then the question remains, “why does he call Kana oni-san?”.
Another thing to note is that there are two penguin logos, maybe the black one is representative of this evil, environment caring organisation that the parents belonged to, and the other representative of Satahoshi or some other fate entity.
I’m not sure I would call my knowledge “vast”, haha, but mythology and religions simply fascinate me, so I read a fair amount about them. It’s kind of my second hobby along with anime.
That’s a good point about it being Shouma doing the narration this time. Ringo is actually in the background for once.
As for the logos, others have pointed out that when taking Himari to the hospital, Kenzan is wearing the other penguin logo. So something must have changed between then…