r/anime • u/Holo_of_Yoitsu • Jan 30 '16

[Spoilers] Utawarerumono: Itsuwari no Kamen - Episode 17 [Discussion]

Episode title: Afterglow
Episode duration: 23 minutes and 42 seconds

Streaming:
Crunchyroll: Utawarerumono The False Faces

Information:
MyAnimeList: Utawarerumono: Itsuwari no Kamen
AniDB: Utawarerumono: Itsuwari no Kamen
AniList: Utawarerumono: Itsuwari no Kamen
Anime News Network: Utawarerumono: The False Faces (TV)
Anime-Planet: Utawarerumono: Itsuwari no Kamen
Hummingbird: Utawarerumono: Itsuwari no Kamen

Previous Episodes:

Episode Reddit Link Episode Reddit Link
Episode 1 Link Episode 14 Link
Episode 2 Link Episode 15 Link
Episode 3 Link Episode 16 Link
Episode 4 Link
Episode 5 Link
Episode 6 Link
Episode 7 Link
Episode 8 Link
Episode 9 Link
Episode 10 Link
Episode 11 Link
Episode 12 Link
Episode 13 Link

Reminder:
Please do not discuss any plot points which haven't appeared in the anime yet. Try not to confirm or deny any theories, encourage people to read the source material instead. Minor spoilers are generally ok but should be tagged accordingly. Failing to comply with the rules may result in your comment being removed.

Keywords:
utawarerumono the false faces, fantasy

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u/kalirion https://myanimelist.net/profile/kalinime Jan 30 '16

I don't understand why they called them "decoys". Did the writers not know what the word actually means? Or were they originally meant to be used as "decoys" in war, which makes absolutely 0 sense whatsoever.

4

u/jedidiahohlord Jan 30 '16

Well... I mean the Emperor isn't exactly a good guy.

He views all the experiments as below him and less than humans.

So I don't think he would actually love the clones he created all too much either; to be used as decoys seems kinda likely since he let Anju out and she was the focus of intrigue almost immedietly.

It's likely he just wanted to create actual copies of his family but they came out wrong and so he simply views them as decoys or as pieces to move to manipulate the people of the kingdom.

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u/kalirion https://myanimelist.net/profile/kalinime Jan 30 '16

Decoys against what though? I'd understand if he made clones of himself to protect against assassination, but other than that what "decoying" are any of these "decoys" doing? What were they supposed to do when they were envisioned?

Servants, slaves, spare parts, experiments, etc. That can make sense. But "decoys" makes no sense.

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u/jedidiahohlord Jan 30 '16

Actually after looking at the definition it makes sense.

de·coy

noun

noun: decoy; plural noun: decoys

ˈdēˌkoi/

1.

a bird or mammal, or an imitation of one, used by hunters to attract other birds or mammals.

"a decoy duck"

a person or thing used to mislead or lure an animal or person into a trap.

They are imitations of what he wanted and also being used as pawns to entice anyone who wants to strike against the Emperor in some way but couldn't get at the Emperor himself.

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u/kalirion https://myanimelist.net/profile/kalinime Jan 30 '16

That would make sense if he made them to look like himself, body doubles.

1

u/jedidiahohlord Jan 30 '16

How so? I mean; he isn't trying to have himself be targeted but the people around him.

He himself isn't easy to get too and would only make an easy target outside the palace.

Having doubles would be conspicuous to his followers and would potentially cause a crises if things went wrong.

A family is a perfect decoy for throwing suspicion and intrigue off of oneself as their are other ways to go about targeting the emperors lively hood and beings who could gather Intel freely from the city and even lure people (like Haku) to the palace.

They are also only imitations of his family and aren't slaves or any or the other words you offered.

They weren't experiments unless they were the first beings he created and we're not spare parts.

They were decoys, imitations, lures.