Houseki no Kuni - Breaking down Phos

[@seacrystal6189]

Phos is SUCH an interesting character i don't even know where to start. The fact that they changed so much and forgot why they even did that in the first place, their entire relationship with cairngorm, the fact that they made both the gem and the moon society better by changing while ruining themself... There's so much to analyze here and it's done so well with stunningly beautiful art. Houseki no kuni will always be my favourite manga/anime

[@ladynoluck]

Land of the Lustrous is basically like “What if we apply that ship Theseus’s thing to a person and very literally?”

[@starburst98]

The newest chapters of the manga... ichikawa's wild ride never ends.

[@starburst98]

Also, while cairngorm is still sexless, are they still genderless?

[@G.F.SF55]

*Loughs in chapter 95*

[@rouamili]

@@G.F.SF55 i think we're all gonna laugh at ourselves as soon as chapter 196 comes out

[@willembodied]

@@rouamili we're still waiting

[@rouamili]

@@willembodied just 9000 years and 8 months left

[@missionreport6538]

“What more could you possibly do?!” Ichikawa: “honey you got a big storm coming”

[@clivehandforth3531]

Heres an idea: the ice floes are stated to be lost souls or sinners or something. Phos' body is made of gem (the bone) and their legs are part of the sea lifeform (the flesh). Maybe the reason phos can hear them is because theyre more human than the rest of the gems and are able to hear their souls. I dont remember where i heard this, but its only after phos gets the moon eye does sensei recognize them as a human. Having parts of each of the separated remnants of humanity (soul, flesh, bone). Also I think its SO interesting that their gold arms are like, fluid? I assume at some point theyve regenerated so many times that the gold must be in an infinite amount of crevices. It reminds me of blood. Veins, arteries, capillaries, moving and powering through body, waiting for an injury to heal it.

[@ningensan8198]

Yeah if you didnt notice when phos was repaired on the moon after the 220 years the gold forms what looks like a human skeleton that even kept him intact when cinnabar broke him. It was also pouring out of his back forming a vertebral column

[@Tuskbumper]

"What if you had endless time." *Laughs in 10000 years*

[@NamHuang1506]

dude

[@screamo1642]

having literally just finished reading the manga,,, god you have no idea how much i needed this video i am in a g o n y

[@renhatori]

I know and this manga got me throw when Steve ended and put me in more agency and it is in my top 2 sense i saw the anime the year it came out with the dub

[@nkyfong]

Finished reading chapter 95 and it gave me chills. They were promised happiness and all they got is 10,000 years of suffering. From lovable goofball to grief driven maniac and now an immortal, forever suffering being. That's parkour.

[@n3rdm4n]

> Breaking down Phos This is the purpose of the entire manga up to this point. (CHAP 96 WHEN)

[@zeroloid9762]

OMG! You've made me a proud rock lad this day! There's a few things you brought up that flew right over my head when I watched/read it. For example, I never noticed that Phos' arms breaking when they met Cinnabar was foreshadowing, or that Ghost was using Phos as a replacement for Lapis. That's quite the exploration of loss. Keep it up! It's always great to see more meaningful discussion of Houseki and even just anime in general. I'm looking forward to that Utena video! Keep it up you beautiful gem you! Don't doubt your content for a second! GO! GO! GO!

[@PinheadSV2]

Something tells me this ended up in my recommendations because you commented on it. The timing is too perfect. *puts on tinfoil hat*

[@zeroloid9762]

@@PinheadSV2 It showed up in my suggestions just this morning so it probably ended up in yours too. This be blowin' up yo!

[@GigasGalvantula]

@@zeroloid9762 yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee same reeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[@soratheorangejuicemascot5809]

@@zeroloid9762 How the hell did I ended up here! Is this some sort of phenomena intervention?

[@zeroloid9762]

@@soratheorangejuicemascot5809 Quick! Channel your energy to Noralities! *HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA*

[@bananewane1402]

I LOVED this anime I saw phos’s transformation to symbolise their loss of innocence and eruption into adulthood stripping away their zest, creativity and soul and leaving them a cold, depressed shell. I can relate very strongly to both Phos and Cinnabar. I’m just, a really sensitive person. I have sensory processing issues and overload easily. I’m emotionally dysregulated and can quickly spiral into anxiety, deep sadness, rage, or plain exhaustion. I have an autoimmune condition that attacks my joints and eyes when I get stressed. I struggle with social interaction and fail to understand the behaviour of many people. I’m clumsy and uncoordinated so I struggle with simple tasks. I often feel fragile and useless, unable to provide to society what was provided to me growing up. I often feel like I can’t handle adult life, that I’m on the brink of suicidiality or a panic attack at any moment. If my parents weren’t so gracious, if I wasn’t so privileged, I might be dead right now. I couldn’t even do a job washing dishes because the kitchen noises made me so overloaded I felt sick and wanted to scream and cry. Right now I’m doing a cleaning job that is usually given to heavily pregnant women, and I’m nearly 19 and not pregnant. I should be in the prime of my life but I feel like an old person. All the pain and injustice of the world weighs on me heavily.

[@Gooberwares]

I feel so bad for pho’s it seems the only person that still loves him is sensei weirdly enough

[@seraphim108]

Which is even darker lol

[@galelululu]

“Where do you go from here? What more could you possibly do?” me, from several chapters after this video: dies Also hey manga readers did you know that gold and mercury react to form a new kind of compound called an amalgam which is much more pale, soft and flaky than typical gold? Kind of almost approaching human flesh? I just thought that was interesting.

[@younggod5230]

The phos crying scene in the moonship was made so memorable to me because the very first panel of the very next chapter was just them playing something akin to a mobile game collectathon. It's so relatable: Emotional breakdown, then coping with video games.

[@sirbobulous]

"If you find it too hard to understand the singular 'they', watch someone elses video" Love the burn here. Burst out laughing :D

[@anastasia_852]

Moral of the story: Being an immortal sucks

[@PigEqualsBakon]

the algorithim does good and throws another obscure HnK video at me. very nice. on the topic of the Ice Floes, isnt it mentioned that the ice also contains some living/organic materials? And Phos can speak to organics/sea creatures. i think, its actually been a bit since i read the manga or watched the show.

[@unlimon4712]

Great analysis and video! The artstyle is really cute aswell. only problem i had was the mic quality, although you delivered everything so precisely its amazing

[@Noralities]

AAA, thank you! Yes, I know the quality of the audio isn’t up to snuff, it’s what I’m least satisfied with, (I just used my laptop’s mic which is why it’s so scratchy), but I will absolutely have a proper mic for the next one òwóbb Thank you for the feedback I really appreciate it!

[@lithigos]

This was the first video I saw about Houseki no Kuni and having paused before manga spoilers, this video became my motivation to collect and read the whole series. It has finished since the making of this video and I'm finally returning to finish it. Shit went down and I am so shook I don't know how to feel. I hope one day, wherever you are, you'll return to talk about the end of the series. Hope you're doing well Noralities 💜

[@haileyk2236]

I miss you Noralities, I hope you come back at some point and youre doing good

[@novelty_thief]

Still waiting 10 000 years until Ichikawa continues

[@mothtastic7641]

oh god the latest chapter. phos got what they wanted. they now have the most important job

[@missionreport6538]

This video was super well done! I love how you brought up how stagnant the gems and gem society is compared to phos and their “character growth” especially since the new chapters (spoilers) reveal that Achemea has been manipulating Pho’s and destroying their life from the start. I would love to hear you talk about the newer chapters especially (spoilers again) about the whole,,,,, uh, child,,, thing,,,

[@LunaAshes]

This is the best break (HA) down of Phos ever. Also thank you so much for sticking to they/them pronouns. It means a lot to me as a HNK fan and enby person.

[@ishkajules]

I would LOVE to see another video on Land of the Lustrous, I think it's been long enough that there'd be plenty new content to work with! I'm not caught up on the manga (I haven't even got to the moon yet!) but I'm fascinated by this series.

[@bam0n_]

21:33 'What more could you possibly do?' Chapter 95 is typing...

[@lianumatsov3133]

Hey there! This should have been on my radar as soon as possible lol, this is absolutely amazing work. Personally as someone whose read all the manga in a day, this was a truly heart wrenching series, this is truly a great in depth analysis!

[@Jessoares12]

Another Hnk essay on youtube yaaay, keep up the good work!

[@dibzybd9741]

20:24 when I first saw clips of Land of the Lustrous before watching the anime, I mistook short haired Phos for another character and thought they were Phos’ sibling 😅

[@Purpletrident]

Great video! I welcome any discussion for my absolute favorite anime and manga.

[@phossu3110]

ahhh this was so good tho now im sad im looking forward to future content -.-

[@cf8415]

This was insanely good! I’m definitely gonna watch more videos from you and subscribe. Also your character stills are so pretty!

[@bigcat9765]

A paradise? No consequences? That's really odd to me. They were living in wartime. Their home was the battleground. They saw (by the standards of gem lifespans) frequent fatalities and losses. The land they lived on was beautiful and had many resources, but they didn't have industrialisation. All the tools and products of their society were made with long arduous labour that was the dedication of a population in the double digits. I don't think that's a paradise with no consequences. And 'a child playing soldier' just doesn't sound right to me. They lived in wartime and were the ones invaded. It's natural for a child to want to support the war effort. But maybe that is a form of child playing soldier? I don't know. What I do know is that Phos did attempt to take on non-military jobs, and that Phos wasn't just the weakest gem, but was also the most unfocused and accident prone. They were constantly judged by the other gems around them for not contributing, or for contributing wrong. It's not as simple as them having a perfect civilian life and arrogantly insisting on joining combat. Maybe this is my own biased experience as a disabled person raised to believe that I'm either useful or useless, but I always felt that Phos's trauma history began before the manga/anime even begins. That Phos's eventual self loathing and self image as worthless junk is already seeded before they are faced with death. When they are told every day by their peers and elders that they have to find something they can be good at and all they find every day are things that they are bad at. Indeed, part of why Cinnabar and Antarcticite are so important to Phos is precisely because they are the first gems that Phos sincerely believes they can do something for. The first work that Phos can do.

[@siginotmylastname3969]

Yep, the take of Phos as spoiled is baffling to me. It's why I hated seeing no developments in relationships with gems that were that positive and lasted, you're telling me this character will keep being stuck without real friends? Why!?

[@bigcat9765]

@@siginotmylastname3969 Oh that's because it's a story about suffering and desire.

[@bandam9780]

You earned ya self a new sub. PLEASE MAKE MORE HNK VIDS!!!!!!!!!! THIS WAS GREAT!

[@lilacflowerao]

Oh god, watching this after reading the newest chapters is horrible

[@gsgaming6976]

Dear Noralities I am writing this because the KZbin algorithm is being a bastard to you specifically. Dear KZbin algorithm, I like the videos produced by Noralities. I also like Re: Zero. Don't show me 50 fucking videos bashing Noralities just because I watched one of her videos and I also liked Re:Zero. Noralities is an awesome creator who makes valuable points that we need to see more of in society. I'm going to go through every one of her videos and leave a like and comment just to say fuck you to all the haters and the algorithm.

[@mindswillbeblown]

Imma have to come back to this after I read the manga lol, can't wait

[@eduaragao]

I loved your analysis of Utena and HNK, especially about nanami (I just love her). I would love it if you talked more about HNK (especially the latest chapters before the hiatus and other characters besides Phos). And I don't know if you've seen Steven Universe (you really should), but I would love to hear your take on it. Anyways, you got a subscriber

[@PirateQueen1720]

Wow, I'm going to have to check out this story. The concept of focusing on the change in a character who theoretically shouldn't be able to change is fascinating...

[@karismakhara1347]

I was literally nodding my head so hard for this entire video

[@leannetsai9171]

This video was sweet! I crave for Hnk content! You've mentioned how Houseki no Kuni reminds you of Madoka Magica so will you do a Madoka Magica analysis anytime soon?

[@BlinkyBopsB137]

Off topic but sun and snow makes it so bright that you can barely see

[@clivehandforth3531]

Ive accidentally seen like all of his videos independently so definitely earned a sub

[@vicenteisaaclopezvaldez2450]

God, I wish I had the writting skills of female manga writers.

[@starburst98]

Oh boy, latest chapter.

[@Noralities]

this series is going to make me lose my mind

[@renhatori]

@@Noralities same here Caught up yesterday because i could not whaet for the tankoban

[@alchemysaga3745]

The TL;DR of the series seems to be in line with the whole "a child who does not feel the love of their village will burn it down to feel its warmth" phrase, including that the child still is the one that suffers more than anyone else. If any of the Gems had actually taken time with Phos, they wouldn't have done many of the things they did. If the other gems hadn't made choices for them in several places, they wouldn't have become who they did or done many of the things they did. If many of them had shown the traits they demand of Phos to Phos, they wouldn't have felt that they should do the things they did. Quite literally the 'good' guys played into every little step of the main villain to intentionally turn Phos into a figure that the gems/crystals hated so that they would leave Phos to suffer. And they don't even get forced to reckon with what they did to Phos. In otherwords, the entire cast is a cast of hypocrites, except the best that can be said is that a *very few* of them didn't even know they were being hypocrites.

[@EveryTimeV2]

Apply this logic to the medical professions. If you went into a hospital, it would seem that all those doctors and nurses involved had one thing in common. They are all trying to stop death, given the option to prolong someone's life or end it, not one of them choose to end it, that would be counter-intuitive to medicine. So yes, it's probably a good thing if we can live forever.

[@noctisthedevious]

I'm sorry but I would not choose to live forever just so someone else can fulfill some purpose they chose for themselves.

[@IncendiarySolution]

What I think we really want is to live life in parallel rather than series. We want to be able to do all the things. no compromises.

[@eschell4564]

Character growth: pain

[@Redskull1411]

"at this point howworse it can become" Me with the future update: BOY, you understimated Ichikawa

[@Nokimio]

Defo would love an analysis of bortz and dia's relationship by you ✌

[@janmarie5013]

omg, please look into another video about the latest chapter

[@cookiegamer670]

* reads title * *DO NOT* its hard to glue gems

[@fallins]

that was so good... my only gripe is that the sound quality is kinda meh keep it up looking forward to your video on utena

[@dhe-origjin]

If you say that I don't have to neither die nor survive? Then HELL YEAH!!! I AM RUNNING TO ALL MY WISHES AND DESIRES RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!!!!!

[@vollupie]

Awesome video, thank you for doing it ♡

[@mags6201]

im really late to this video but i recently binge read the manga and just finished today (or at least what is currently up) and the recent chapters are such a stab to the heart. honestly at the current point, for some scenes phos was the villain, not the lunarians.

[@manami3164]

It’s strange, because even though the series feels like it should have ended by now, it’s still going. Phos is still there, it’s like they will always be there

[@chifffy]

Breaking down phos - oop

[@kazmoo56]

Turns out he could do a lot more.

[@hustinyano.a]

Manifesting new Houseki no Kuni video from you

[@iggy7893]

1:54 CG models are made by people and animated by people too.

[@micanikko]

Will you please do a follow up video about Phos regarding the recent chapters please?? It'd be cool to see a breakdown of their progression.

[@Matiasfv]

This sounds like Steven universe but well written lol

[@Coteoki]

I have never thought of the manga with this much depth before 😅, I should definitely reread it

[@synesthesian]

Really great video, the only claim I question is the comparison of Phos being beloved while Cinnabar is not. I do not think the other gems love Phos really at all. Obviously they are emotionally immature beings that lack the words to describe their feelings (admitted by Dia when we hear them talking about "if only Bortz wasn't here" and asking Phos to find a word for this feeling). Maybe the translation I was reading was off but from the beginning you see all kinds of comments about Phos' uselessness, lacking intelligence, being ugly, and basically all kinds of insults. I mean, Bortz even offers to break Phos to "solve the problem" after the Amethyst twins nearly got taken away. Gems like Dia or Yellow who seem to be kind to Phos are only doing so due to their status as an elder or harder gem, but are too focused on their own goals or problems to really notice how Phos is being rejected by the entire society. Instead they relate to Phos' struggle on the surface, but end up only fueling Phos' problems later on. For example, Dia: "if only Bortz wasn't here" and later Phos saying the same about Adamant. I guess the difference would be Phos' response to their rejection vs how Cinnabar reacts. Phos is extroverted while Shinsha is introverted (obviously) so Phos seems to struggle against rejection and still fight for a place while Shinsha seems to accept isolation and willingly banishes themselves from society, until Phos' development ultimately leads them to reconnect with the Earth gems. How ironic. But yeah, like I said I would disagree that Phos is beloved in any way. At best higher ranking gems ignore Phos until they cause problems, and at worst younger gems insult and Bortz would even go as far as breaking someone they see as useless trash. Phos has internalized all of these experiences unfortunately and believes they are worthless.

[@Oueenazolatigressgina]

Bort is a really strange character, at one moment he emotionally abuses Dia and the next thing you know he does give you advice(like when he was listening to Zircon's troubles), also I can't really blame the Dia or Yellow seeing how they are pretty messed in the head. Also not all of the gems treated Phos badly like there was Goshenite, Morganite, Red Beryl, Rutile, the Amethyst twins and Ghost Quartz

[@chronred8190]

honestly as much as some see it as this being a gem only thing i see the ability to let go and move on as fairly normal; i am 20 years old for example and i still remember pretty clearly and feel disdain and lack of peace towards things that happened years ago, towards bullying and discrimination i went through; even though my life started to become actually good since almost a year ago i still am unhappy with what happened back then; not until they face judgement and retribution or until they have been made up for. it has to be paid and replaced, otherwise i just can't let go

[@arthurpaulsupera8631]

i actually didnt realize that it was still phos yo-

[@jebes909090]

ya its kinda wierd. are you still you if pieces of someone elses memories, personality and experience are transplanted into you. at what point do you stop being you and become someone else. Strangely enough, this question and this anime sat at the back of my mind for my playthrough of cyberpunk 2077

[@dragonetafireball]

Hits different in the pandemic

[@Robertryuu]

Im not really interested in Houseki no Kuni but loved your presentation style so I watched all the way to the end. Guess I hope into your other more recent videos

[@giuseppedalessandro2897]

1:16 the shade omfg, lmao i loved it

[@dankbudew4830]

Phos and Guts should have a drink together 🍺 🍺 🍺

[@Scrogan]

If you’re lucky you can find Buddhanon’s long explanations of HnK on the /a/ thread that appears occasionally. Probably collated on a pastebin or image somewhere.

[@steph-rb1fs]

21:30 oh….. it got so much worser that statement did not age well 😭

[@rubenjwong7990]

Hope this video gets an update ❤️

[@halooshka1904]

*laughs in chapter 92*

[@eggseed6543]

"Breaking down phos" Aw shit not again

[@old_boy9030]

The last English version of the manga is coming out late August or after and my mind and body are not ready 😰

[@Phoenix.Sparkles]

"I assume you are here because you know what the fuck I'm talking about, so I'll just go ahead and spoil all the important details" Me: *Autoplay*

[@followthewhiterabbit884]

In german fools gold means "Katzengold" = cat gold. Thought, that could be interesting.

[@alicevioleta3184]

someone who fucking addresses that the gems aren't gendered? thank fucking god. finally.

[@msteerie]

I WANNA CRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@renhatori]

Don't we all

[@chronred8190]

in regards to the beginning not going to lie to me the answer to everything would be love; say that i had one or more persons i genuinely loved romantically and was together with them i would just be happy being with them as long as possible and relaxing, just resting and cuddling with them and being loved and forgetting everything else, just being there to be with the persons i love and making them happy; this seems to be a deeply ingrained feeling and conviction which is very likely reality

[@myne1377]

HnK? Do you mean PAIN? *sad angsty song in the bg*

[@alixinthemiddle]

I guess I need to read this because that was a wild ride

[@McGeeMcGeeMcGee-g7w]

the graph at 3:44 cracked me up XD

[@Statick107]

Oh if only you knew at the time what was coming next

[@axjk4025]

21:25 top 10 moments before disaster 😬

[@jonnevitu4979]

I just want the next chapter :(

[@PositiviteaTheFirst]

Please don't break her down, she's fragile

[@MOceanal]

OMG THANK YOU A HOUSEKI ANALYSIS

[@sur7969]

you really should do video about this later when the manga ends

[@Spoogebro]

you should do a video on euclase

[@nidohime6233]

Anime watcher here, I don´t know if fans or the manga tackled this, but something I´ve notice is all the gems are all living in the same building, in the same place. Why inmortal beings would stay there for eternity instead of walking the planet? Is because they don´t want to be alone, or they just never had the drive to do so? At least if I had a entire eternity and cannot die from anything I would want to travel.

[@INCUB4T0R]

Hello, manga reader here. while if they could, I doubt there's any other land in the planet. And it's possible that the land they have while habitable and large enough, is the only land as far as I know to still be on earth (probably, I need to reread the manga to see what earth looks like there) Even if there are other land, they are constantly under the threat of being abducted. And when you have a culture based around trying to fight back a war they can't win, they don't put any drive in trying to explore the world because of this threat of abduction. Because they'd be vulnerable but also because they see no reason to, why explore the world for more land when they've got a perfectly normal one here? This also stagnates the ability for them to change and invent new things, as they make what is only necessary for the fight against the lunarians.

[@Porfonto]

god, i adore this video and the brush into the latter chapters of the manga. seeing as the newest chapter just came out, what do you think about our current stop in the phos suffering train? . . . . . . . [spoilers] also, i'm surprised that you didn't put the battle between padparadscha, yellow, and phos with the earth gems as another "check up" between phos and cinnabar. though i guess it's less of a check up and more of them being juxtaposed to each other in battle. but either way, this was fun to watch after reading chapter 82

[@YoruFullbuster]

2 years after, AUN NO TERMINA EL MANGA

[@laminator6995]

Now that I have infinite time I can finally do my homework

[@johannajans9255]

0:46 yes someone else gets it! Thank you

[@Orange_Tree_]

Finished reading last chapter... Holy fffuck

[@Crosshill]

aw i dont wanna get manga spoiled tho

[@gingermaniac5484]

The pandemic answered all of these questions

[@confusion7809]

underrated comment omg