WhileLycoris Recoilgets its popularitythrough its “Cute girls with guns” concept, there are actually other, much deeper themes that it tries to convey, which is “Talent” and “Living up to your full potential”. Takina feels upset when she is kicked out of Lycoris HQ because she felt that she wouldn’t be able to reach her full potential if she works in a small branch like the LycoReco café. On the other hand, Chisato is universally accepted as the most talented Lycoris agent, and yet she gladly left the rigid HQ and work in LycoReco because she prefers to do things her way, even if most people think that her ability is wasted there.
There are a lot of things that can be unpacked regarding the use of these themes and concepts throughout the series. But for now,let’s focus on Chisato. What is actually her talent? Does she manage to live up to her full potential? Does she even have to follow her talent and live up to her full potential?
RELATED:What Makes Lycoris Recoil So Popular
The Alan Institute
The Alan Institute is a secretive organizationthat provides all kinds of support to those that they deem to be talented individuals. It all started years ago when a man named Alan Adams helped an impoverished artist to not only get back on his feet, but also to thrive. Ever since then, the name Alan has become a symbol of anonymous support given to talented artists. Not long after that, Alan Institute was founded with the core mission of supporting those who can usher the world into a better future.
As a testament to its ambitious mission, their support started to branch out from art and into other fields of expertise as well, such asscience and sport, among other things. The type of support given is also different. Some are given financial support, others are given access to tools and opportunities that they need, and there are even people who are given state-of-the-art medical support. The recipient of Alan Institute’s support is usually kept secret, but there are also recipients who decide to go public about their status. The only mark that proves them as a honoree is a pendant with a small gold-plated owl as its ornaments.
With a Nobel Prize winner, best-selling authors, and even Olympic athletes as its honoree, it’s not an exaggeration to say that Alan Institute does indeed change the world for the better. That being said, people begin to question the legality and the ethics of the Institute due to its secretive nature. After all, nobody knows who the people that Alan Institute decides to support, what are the basis of their support, where does the money come from, andso many other questionable things.
Chisato’s Ability
Chisato’s greatest ability is certainly her extremely sharp vision. Once she focuses her attention on something, her eyes wouldn’t miss a single thing that is about to happen to that object. This is basically the reason why she can evade bullets with ease. Not even a shot from a point-blank range can hit her.
Needless to say, having a great pair of eyes is only the tip of the iceberg for Chisato. Because in a sense, what Chisato does is actually predicting her opponents' intention. Be it shooting a gun or playing rock-paper-scissors,she has the ability to accurately deduce what her opponent would do next.
RELATED:Lycoris Recoil: Episode 10 “Repay Evil With Evil” Review
She does this amazing feat by using her eyes to look into micro changes that happen to her opponents, such as the subtle twitch of their muscle, the direction of their eyes, the shift in the fabric of their clothes, and tons of tiny little things that might signal their immediate intention.
Not only that, butshe also takes their psychology into account, such as whether they are in a state of panic or not, are they a trained shooter, are there any habits or patterns happening when they shoot their guns, and so many other little cues. That is why it would actually be easier for Chisato to predict the movement of a pro, because they usually employ a strict and predictable range of motion. On the same note, she would also have an easy time predicting the behavior of somebody that she is already familiar with. What’s even crazier is the fact that all of these things happen in split seconds.
Chisato’s Talent
Based on the previous point,we can surmise that Chisato excels in three main categories. She has the eyes that can pick up every tiny little detail, she has the brain that is able to compute all of that information in a matter of seconds to not only predict what her opponent is about to do, but also to decide what is the best response that she needs to take. And last but not least, Chisato has the power, speed, and athleticism needed in order to execute those responses.
The Alan Institute, through Shinji Yoshimatsu, noticed these extraordinary abilities and decided that Chisato has a unique talent for one specific thing, which is to become a hitman, an assassin, a killer. So how can Alan Institute support Chisato and therefore usher her into what they deem to be her rightful path? Well, fortunately for them,Chisato has a congenital heart disease.
Chisato has already been able to harness her ability since a very young age. But due to her weak heart, she would immediately collapse after every training season. Yoshimatsu found out about this information through one of Lycoris' agents named Mika, and used Alan Institute’s influence to get a state-of-the-art artificial heart for Chisato. In exchange, Yoshi asked Mika to train Chisato into the greatest hitman that the world has ever seen. He wants to seeher talent as a killer bloom.
That is pretty much the grim truth behind Chisato’s talent and the fate that the Alan Institute deems to be the most suitable for her. However, as we’ve seen from the series thus far, Chisato prefers to use her ability to help other people instead. She even went as far as using rubber bullets in order to avoid killing those who intend to kill her. But as to how her life will turn out from now on, only time can tell.
More:The Best Action Anime To Watch If You Love Lycoris Recoil
