Episode 39:
Mikagami Vs Kai Cels
Series: Flame of Recca
MASSIVE SPOILERS!!!! Because this is an important plot episode toward the end of
the series, I strongly advise against reading the text if you haven't yet seen it.
Every single comment on this page should be assumed to include spoilers, so I won't bother
to further note them. THERE ARE ALSO SPOILER IMAGES!
All of these cels are in the order that they appeared on screen, so this can work as a
partial recap of the fight. Albeit a very very teensy one, but this fight is one of my wish
list pits so I expect the selection will grow. Want Jello (bleep)... want ice & water
critters. Want, want, want.
Mikagami Vs Kai is my favourite fight in the series. It's the most important Mikagami one
that we got to see animated, and it's the only fight he wasn't a slacker in. We got to see
more of his attacks in this one episode than we did in the rest of the series combined!
Lots of ice, and I love the ice attacks.
I also like Kai. If you've read the manga, you probably have "Gold! Gold! Gold!" chanting
through your brain like the poor guy does through his. Not very nice, Meguri-san. In the
anime, Kai was supposedly Meguri's student before Mikagami but was dumped in favour of the
child prodigy. In the manga, Kai supposedly became Meguri's student one year before
encountering his decade-younger predecessor.
As usual, Mikagami is more impressive in the manga version of this fight. Much of it is
the same, what happens visually is pretty much the same, but a lot of the whys and hows are
different. If you've seen the anime and don't mind manga spoilers, follow the link to read
the differences in the end of the fight.
End of Fight Manga Summary
Up next: Lots! I actually wanted to do a mass update of this page, but I couldn't cope
with not scanning the impaled beauty any longer. Mostly it'll be more Mikagami next, though,
with a little Kai.
The entire Mikagami Vs Kai fight happens within episode 39, but there is a little recap
repetition so I'll go ahead and list the episodes that each cel is in.
Episode 39: Mikagami's Death Battle!! Heedless Hyomon Ken!!
Episode 40 (recap): A Wicked Woman's Trap!! Furious Fuujin!!
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Episode #: 39
Stats: 1 layer, A3
Sketches: 1 matching, unstuck
Comments: Satomi is the serpent. She referees the fight between Mikagami and Kai.
In the anime she debuts by descending to the fighting stage floor while saying "I'm 22, and
single", much to the delight of many men in the audience. In the manga she descends saying
"I'm 22, and a Mikagami fan", much to the horror and depression of many men in the audience.
Then she punches Toraha out of the way for getting too happy about Mikagami deciding to
fight, which leaves poor Toraha crying that Satomi is 5 years older than Mikagami. Here
Satomi's asking Uruha Kurenai's Kai to come forward, though in the manga he usurps a
snivelling Mikoto because Mikagami entered the ring. |
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Episode #: 39
Stats: 2 layers, stuck, A1 KEY END (most)/B3 (eyes)
Sketches: 1 matching (A1), unstuck
Comments: Mikagami gawks and assumes a deer in the headlights look. Kai had used
something he called Hyomon Ken Tsurara Gaeshi to block his Tsurara Mai and told him he's not
the only one who mastered Hyomon Ken. There's only supposed to be one successor, so that
moment produced a very similar gape from Mikagami. It was quickly replaced by denial (at
least after Kai told him his expression was classic) when Mikagami jumped to the conclusion
that Kai was merely mimicking attacks he'd previously seen. He tested it by using an attack
as of yet unrevealed at the UBS: Tsunami Hebi (water snake). Kai blocked it with an equally
unrevealed and stronger Koori no Hebi (ice snake). As a result (in this cel) poor Mikagami
reverts back to being that soon-to-be-flat deer. While he's gaping, Kai asks what's wrong
and says Meguri Kyouza did indeed have two successors so Mikagami should consider him his
big brother. All my startled sweetie manages to retort with is "Nani?!".
Screen Cap |
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Episode #: 39
Stats: 2 layers, stuck, A1 KEY/B13
Sketches: 2 matching, unstuck, + layout sketch
Background: Matching, unstuck
Comments: After Kai claims that Mikagami was meant as nothing more than a
replacement in case anything happened to him, Mikagami understandably gets overwhelmed with
anger and tries to hit Kai with his second (and last) Tsurara Mai. Kai jumps out of its way
and counters with Hisame. |
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Episode #: 39 & 40 (recap)
Stats: 2 layers, unstuck, A1/B1 (mouth) KEY
Sketches: 1 matching (A1), unstuck, + layout sketch
Background: Matching, unstuck
Comments: When the lesser Hebi and Tsurara Mai don't work, Mikagami uses up all
of Ensui's water by throwing a massive Tsurara Hebi (icicle snake) at Kai. As it charges at
him (I badly want a cel of its face), Kai builds an ice shield around his body and manages
to withstand the attack. There is ice falling around him, from the shattered Hebi and
shield, which would be on a layer I don't have. You can see it in the screen cap. This cel
has the most uncooperative mouth layer I have ever met. No, he doesn't have buck teeth...
but after three attempts at scanning the mouth I decided this is good enough,
dang it! *sigh*
Screen Cap |
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Episode #: 39
Stats: 1 layer, A8
Sketches: matching, unstuck
Comments: As noted above, Kai withstands the Tsurara Hebi by using a full body
ice shield. During the struggle, his ice gradually cracks off. After he's shattered the
Hebi, little of his own ice remains. Here, with a nice partial coating of ice shield
remaining on his face, he's gloating that Mikagami's Ensui seems to have run dry -- just
before charging at him. There is very little time between the previous cel, this cel, and
the next cel (I would mostly be missing a gawking Mikagami, I suppose... which I may even
have already, I haven't placed all of my bloody gawking Mikagami cels yet). I think this
is my favourite Kai close-up, because I love the ice patches. Very well-placed, so as to
add to the image rather than making it a flawed close-up.
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Episode #: 39
Stats: 1 layer, A4 KEY
Sketches: 1 matching, unstuck
Comments: *twitch* This was one of my biggest Mikagami dream cels, or one from
this sequence anyway (I even needed to cut a WANT hint off this page to add it, but I'll
still take a melting blood puppet!). When I first saw the scene I joked about using a
print-out of it to start a "pretty boys in pain" picture collection on the living room wall.
At least I claim I was joking. As it appears, Mikagami just got Hyouma En rammed straight
through him. He didn't really, though, since this is actually a decoy blood puppet of
himself. Even so, it's one heck of a painful scene. Many thanks to my kind husband for
giving in to my desperate puppy eyes when I saw this cel while quite broke. |
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Episode #: 39
Stats: 2 layers, unstuck, A1/B1 KEY
Sketches: 2 layout sketches + 1 beautiful genga
Background: Matching, unstuck
Comments: Mikagami's down. Using up a lot of his blood to remake Ensui was a bit
much for him... Actually, sorry, that's the manga. Getting Kai's massive halberd (Hyouma En)
run through him was a bit much for poor Mi-chan, so he went down. Kai went down at the same
time but he, unlike Mikagami, got back up therefore won the fight. I badly wanted this cel
because of what it is, but it surprised me by coming with an absolutely gorgeous genga that
I probably like even more than the cel. Naturally, I'm including a scan.
Absolutely Gorgeous Genga |
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Episode #: 39 & 40 (recap)
Stats: 1 layer, B4
Sketches: 1 matching, unstuck
Comments: As if it wasn't already bad enough that Mikagami's entire reality just
shattered and he has to accept how much of a lie his life has been, now he also has to watch
Kai die on his account. After revealing who Mifuyu's killer was, Kai intentionally falls
backward into the pit surrounding the fighting stage so he can die honourably. Mikagami
screams his name and tries to lunge toward him, but let's not forget that his body has a
pretty big hole in it at the moment so, no matter how strong his intentions, he can't really
go anywhere. So many traumas in so little time! *must go snivel in sympathy* Speaking of
which, I would love a cel from right after this when Mikagami looks like he's starting to
cry. |
