Yukiteru’s father is pretty much a failure as a human being (I guess we know where Yukiteru inherits it from) but he is easy to sympathize with. If my enormous debt would be cancelled in exchange for breaking my son’s cellphone, I would do it too. He doesn’t seem to be aware of the fact that Yukki will die.

And Yuno asks some tough questions. I think the correct answer is “neither.”

Yuno’s Portrayal

This episode landed an excellent balance between the cute and innocent girl and the crazy killer. I’ve mentioned before (and dene323 has extensively chronicled) how Yuno oscillates between the two extremes with increasing amplitude. In this episode, they managed to walk the line right between the two extremes, which is even more difficult.

For example, consider the above scene. Yuno is smiling in her hospital robes, breathing a sigh of relief that Yukki is safe and it’s only his dad. Of course, while she’s doing this, she’s gripping a knife.

Then we had the scene where Yuno almost stabs the father. But before she can, Yukki pushes her away, almost as if he’s embarrassed of having his dad meet his girlfriend. Yuno looks surprised and just lets herself be pushed.

Of course, Yuno then immediately tries to poison the father without giving any sign on her face. As Yukki pushes her away they hold hands and he lectures her like a child. They’re really like boyfriend and girlfriend now, Yukkiteru can read her thoughts and isn’t even surprised by what she’s doing.

Back to the Future

Mirai Nikki hasn’t even attempted to address some of the most interesting questions involved in knowing the future. Perhaps part of the reason is that the diaries don’t actually tell the future, strictly speaking: it would be better to see them as predictors of the future. After all, the future can’t change! That’s not to deny free will, but merely to acknowledge that if some series of events doesn’t occur, it wasn’t the “future” after all. To be more precise, the diaries observe the future before a feedback loop occurs. Which somehow happens when human minds come to decisions rather than instantaneously. I probably shouldn’t think about this too hard.

One of the most famous examples of the problems with knowing the future is the prophecy the Delphic Oracle told Oedipus: that he would mate with his mother and kill his father. To avoid this terrible fate, Oedipus flees town. Unfortunately, it turns out Oedipus was adopted, and he goes on to fulfill the prophecy. If Oedipus had never heard the prophecy, he would have stayed home and never met his birth parents.  The Oracle’s prophecies are self-fulfilling.

Likewise, this episode has Ai accusing Marco of cheating on her for events that haven’t even occurred yet. How do you defend against those accusations? Then it turns out he was acquiring their wedding ring. After making up, Marco thinks to himself, “I guess I need to buy a ring now.” The prophecy is self-fulfilling. The future causes the past. Information travels faster than the speed of light, and the universe is one %@#$%! up place.

Further Thoughts

I approve of Ninth’s costumes. I approve of Ninth.

I thought this line was hilarious. Taking life lessons from terrorists.