An essential part of a superhero’s identity is his or her costume. The color scheme and silhouette of the hero’s clothes tell you a lot about him. Batman’s black costume becomes blurry like that of the Dark Knight, while Superman’s bright blue and red costume speaks of “Truth, Justice and the American Way.”
Who is the comic (anti)hero who has the deepest bond with his costume? Of course, for his suit (a black mirror of Spider-Man’s) Venom is a living being. The “Venom” film trilogy was based on it, becoming a buddy-romantic comedy between Eddie Brock and the eponymous symbiote alien (both played by Tom Hardy). Yet Venom isn’t the only one with a living, alien costume. The concept also appears in Studio Trigger’s 2013 action-comedy anime “Kill la Kill”.
Trigger is one of the largest production houses in modern anime; Their recent adaptation of Ryoko Kui’s manga “Delicious in the Dungeon” has the film topping our list of the best anime of 2024. Founded in 2011 by Hiroyuki Imaishi and Masahiko Otsuka, Trigger’s music is a colorful action show filled with physics-defying action, fast-paced tonal and musical elements. animation transitionsAnd sharp plot twists.
The basic model of Trigger is the 2007 anime “Gurren Lagann”, directed by Imaishi and produced at his and Otsuka’s previous employer, Studio Gainax. “Gurren Lagann” is the spiritual beginning of Studio Trigger (in the same way Hayao Miyazaki’s “Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind” set the stage for the rise of Studio Ghibli), but “Kill la Kill” was the first anime series produced by Was done studio.
“Kill la Kill” was also directed by Imaishi (and written by “Gurren Lagann” head writer Kazuki Nakashima). It tells the story of 17-year-old Ryuko Matoi, who sets out to discover the truth about her father’s unsolved murder. Her main companion in this quest is her schoolgirl uniform: the living, speaking “Kamui”, whom she names Senketsu.
“Gurren Lagann” was a proud manly show that showed how true men lift others up instead of tearing them down. “Kill La Kill” is about femininity and how what we wear reinforces our emotions and behavior.
Kill la Kill tests whether fanservice can also be empowering
“Kill la Kill” is science fiction. Incredibly soft science fiction, but the villains are aliens and the fantastic powers in the show are derived from technology. So in the true sense of the word, Ryuko is not a “magical girl”. She is much less delicate than such a character usually is, with a stubborn and trash-talking attitude.
However, watching her act, you can’t help but think of the “magical girl” genre. Whenever she goes into battle, Senketsu transforms around her in power-up sequences from Japanese action-girl classics such as “Cutie Honey” and “Sailor Moon”. Ryuko’s transformation makes her more powerful, but also more exposed; Her skirt shrinks and the senketsu begins to reveal only her midsection to almost her entire torso. Ryuko is embarrassed at first, but her friend Mako encourages her to wear her extremely powerful costume with pride.
I’m on the fence about whether I’d call “Kill la Kill” a feminist series, but it is a positive series – and those two seemingly overlapping themes actually lie at the core of the paradox. The framing of the series is limited by the male gaze in the original sense of the word (Defined by Laura Mulvey): Ryuko’s transformation is mainly shown in close-ups of her body, and the sound design emphasizes the flesh smelling the clothes. This and the lacy suspenders and stockings of Ryuko’s dress highlight the bond – and yet, the excitement of the series overlaps with the narrative empowerment of girls. The less they wear the more powerful they become because, in “Kill la Kill”, clothing is the root of the spell.
The title of the series highlights these themes. “Kill la kill” sounds like nonsense in English, but that’s because it contains a sentence that can’t be translated. Transliterated, the title is “Kiru ra Kiru” and that word can mean both “dress up” and “kill” in Japanese. There is another sentence that highlights the meaning of the show: In Japanese, “fashion” (“fashion”) and “faisho” (“fascism”) are pronounced almost identically.
In Kill la Kill, fashion is a tool of fascism
The primary setting of “Kill la Kill” is Honnouji Academy, a school ruled by student council president (and seemingly Ryuko’s main rival) Satsuki Kiryuin. Imagine if there was a high school queen bee and her group of mean girls Literally Dictator. Satsuki is often shot low, backlit, and standing with a sword in hand, declaring, “Fear is freedom! Submission is freedom! Contradiction is truth!” And like this. She runs the academy with a strict classroom system, providing each student with a “Goku Uniform” made of alien “life fiber” similar to Senketsu. The lowest level students in the school’s hierarchy receive the weaker “no-star” Goku uniform, while Satsuki’s elite four have the powerful three-star uniform.
As in the real world, these uniforms are a self-reinforcing device of hierarchy and division. The opening sequence of the first “Kill la Kill” shows a row after row of sad-looking Honnouji students, all in identical uniforms except Ryuko. She refuses to be confined to her role at the academy, and only aims to rise to the top so she can spare Satsuki from it.
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Ryuko’s main weapon in doing so is a scissor blade, typically a tailor’s tool, not a fighter’s. However, since her opponents get powers from their uniforms, she literally shreds those clothes. Of course, a fully functioning scissor requires two cooperating blades working together; During their journey, Ryuko and Satsuki realize that they could be a match for each other. Watching them grow together in “Kill la Kill” is a fast-paced, bumpy ride that you should definitely take.
“Kill La Kill” is streaming on Crunchyroll.
