While previous episodes of Terror in Resonance (Zankyou no Terror) have followed a formula of having a restrained tone throughout, ending with an explosive conclusion, episode five was an assault on the senses virtually through its entire duration. We could see the new character’s (Number Five) white hair and the gassy cloud that covered the subway. We could taste the the burnt food that Lisa cooked. We could smell the gunpowder in the air and nail polish Five applied. We could hear the cell phones going off simultaneously and the screams of frightened passengers. And we could feel the heat of the explosion blowing against Nine’s back, as his best-laid plans went astray.
Indeed, the new character, Five, a child once intimate with Nine and Twelve, but now working to track them for the FBI, is the first person to put real pressure on the duo. As Twelve mentions, if the bomb isn’t stopped, they’ll become mass murderers, and Five makes it so the bomb does indeed detonate, though our hero barely prevents the explosion from killing anyone.
Five is very sure of herself. As with the two boys, she is especially gifted, and outsmarts her counterparts. With a smile on her lips, her pride is on full display – she has gone to a violent extreme in a game of chicken, revealing both her own identity and that she knows who the terrorists are. We’ll know about Five’s past more as the series progresses, but for now she’s a flat character with the possibility (probability) of much deeper layers underneath the typical devious exterior saved for mad genius antagonists.
Instead, then, its Nine’s pride that hits closer to home. Without any sort of bravado, he clearly believes in his skills. Nine ignores the concerns and gentle prodding from his partner, insisting that he has assembled a riddle that will again lead to their accomplished goal. Of course, he didn’t calculate in the possibility that Five would join in on the hunt, and because of his surety in himself, a disaster almost occurs.
The sort of pride that Nine deals with is the same that most of us have. We’re very sure of ourselves, often unable and unwilling to consider others’ opinions, or to even pause and think about alternatives to our own plans – after all, we must be right. Take for instance that stereotypical man who has a trip all planned out to the hour (or minute!), but finds a wrench thrown in his plans by a disagreeable car or family.
When we understand that we aren’t the end-all, be-all, we might be better able to account for unexpected possibilities or those out of our control. A little humility, and maybe we can avoid a situation blowing up in our own faces.
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The end of your article reminds me of something Benjamin Franklin said, which was to the effect that many refuse to believe the pope infallible but believe in their own infallibility. Distrust of self and being open to the views of others is very important to becoming humble, but seeking a second opinion reveals some of our weaknesses. And I suppose that Nine, with his high level of intelligence and careful planning, refuses to admit that he might be wrong in certain cases. Intellectual pride is perhaps the hardest kind of pride to overcome.
Very good point! And you know, perhaps most dangerous in regards to pride is that the one who displays this characteristics rarely realizes he or she is prideful! And least that’s my observation, looking at others and at my own life.