Heavenly Delusion is an exploration of two societies and the analysis attached to their existence. While one society thrives on the world outside the facility, the other is a nursery of children taken care of by robots. The examination of the two societies requires a deep dive into the inherent psychological traumas of characters from both worlds.
In this article, we will examine how Maru and Kiruko survive in the world outside and how their powers, especially the Kiru-Beam, hereon to be also referred to as Murder Beam, plays an important role in keeping these two characters alive in the wilderness of the world.
Heavenly Delusion’s Maru and Kiruko: the idea of being ‘lost’ and being ‘found’
Maru and Kiruko in Heavenly Delusion are the two main protagonists. While they remain in the world outside and face the creatures which feed on humans, Maru and Kiruko are no more than ‘two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl, year after year’.
The Pink Floyd reference here only gravitates towards a possible notion of disaster, war, and an apocalypse that has ruined human civilization both in material terms as well as in the psychological aspect of the survivors. The trauma which follows the people of this world is otherworldly, in terms of this being a result of the infliction of pain from supernatural creatures and death caused by the same.
- The idea of being lost and the idea of being found is an important thematic concern of the show. It revolves around the characters and their personalities.
- While Maru is lost in this hubris, Kiruko is found and rescued. Moreover, the children in the facility are both lost and found at the same time. They are lost in the sense that they do not have the knowledge or accessibility of the world outside, and found in a sense that they are safe from the horrors outside.
- Maru and Kiruko therefore become major mediums of this theory and the fact that they completely fit into these ideas makes them a bridge between what exists and what has been abandoned.
The Murder Beam: Kiruko’s gun and the limitations attached to it
Kiruko uses a gun which she refers to as the Kiru Beam. The Kiru Beam or the Murder Beam can fire six separate shots and one shot is enough to completely kill the target. This gun releases a strong white beam that fries everything in its way.
The beam can melt metal as well. She uses this against the creatures which reside in the world outside and as a form of defence against the goons which they frequently encounter.
- Although Kiruko’s Murder Beam is a strong weapon of destruction, it also has its own set of flaws. The gun doesn’t guarantee the sixth shot.
- While Maru has his own set of abilities, Kiruko strongly depends on her gun, which doesn’t function smoothly. She is a sharpshooter and this becomes a material of reliance for her.
Kiruko’s Murder Beam: Is it strong enough to defend Maru and will it keep them alive?
- Kiruko acts as Maru’s bodyguard. She depends on her gun and martial arts to defend Maru.
- Maru is a strong protagonist but he can only defeat those creatures as long as he can touch them.
- Therefore, Kiruko becomes an important element of Maru’s defence. Her ability to keep him in line and the Murder Beam together plays a major role in aiding Maru in his adventures.
Kiruko’s Murder Beam is a simple-looking, yet strong, weapon that might possibly be a symbol of disaster in a destroyed world. Kiruko’s Murder Beam might be a signifier of the entire apocalypse and the white beam might also signify hope as the whole colour contrast of the anime as it shows the real world remains in dark hues. We can therefore see this as a scope for the resonance of hope in a hopeless world and Kiruko’s Murder Beam as a possible trope in this aspect.