I absolutely love how this show delves into the minds of its characters. This episode yet again had me teared up, and again it’s not just because of one character, but a whole bunch of them. I mean, most series pick one or two characters do develop each episode: this show does this with nearly every character for nearly every episode. Even Yukiatsu and Chiriko, who had a relatively small role in this episode, were great. I especially love how honest Yukiatsu has become.
The real meat of the episode though was about Jinta finally going to school, Naruko suffering through endless gossips about what happened in the previous episode and Menma only worrying about others. With all these, this show has a nice habit of not just showing characters, but it also keeps showing characters telling how they feel about other characters. Whether right or wrong, it’s actually a great way to flesh them out by showing how they seem in the eyes of someone else.
As for Menma, this episode could have given a really big hint as to why Menma is staying behind as a ghost. Running away is a huge concept of this series. The most apparent is of course Jinta, but the rest of the cast also tends to have this. Menma keeps avoiding talking about herself. I mean, did Jinta ever apologize for what he said to her, right before she died? It’s of course not going to be this simple, but I do think that something in that direction is her wish.
Rating: *** (Awesome)
The only flaw with this series seems to be that we have to wait seven days for it to air again. Sucks really …
Perhaps Menma’s wish is to hear what Jinta really feels about her?
The end of this series is going to make me cry ):
From the conversation between Yuki and Tsuruko I suppose that Menma’s wish was the reason she called the Super Peace Busters to the secret base on that fatal day…
No clue on what the actual wish could be but it’s something that a 10/11 years old girl would think. Nothing fancy, I guess.
Eh, they’re airing Occult Academy on Jintan’s TV. (^_^)
How funny that Jinta was watching Occult Academy.
I agree with you with regard to Yukiatsu’s honesty. That is (I think) one of the hardest thing to admit to oneself and even harder to say out loud.
Also, from this episode, I would guess that Menma’s wish might have something to do with her family, particularly her dad who have some issues which as we know from the episodes so far is his seeming apathy with Menma’s death (Ep1) and the way Jinta described him as being really scary when they were kids.
I have a feeling that this will be one heck of a series to rewatch as a marathon once all of the episodes comes out. This really is the best anime (in terms always delivering on its episodes) that I have seen in a long time.
Me too! I REALLY LOVE anohana!
I agree with the reviewer, running away is huge in this anime. That said, it’s all just interpretation on our part and the creators could have intended for something completely different. Nevertheless, this is an instant classic for me and I’ll keep coming back each week since this anime is so captivating.
This episode left me feeling very uneasy as to what was happening to Menma’s family life prior to her death. There was something very off about how the mother was glancing around as they were visiting.
I think Menma’s wish is deeper than wanting to know how Jinta feels about her. The whole “who do you like” conversation was brought up by Naruko while they were already in the secret base, so Menma’s intentions probably don’t have anything to do with that. There must be family issues involved. And the reason why she only shows up to Jinta might be because he was the friend she liked the most/were in love with.
Another great, great episode. It’s truly a pleasure to watch AnoHana every week.
It sounds cocky and I know I’m probably going to be wrong on everything but after episode 6 and the ep 7 preview I think I have a really good sense where the show is going.
Jinta: he’s going to die soon from some disease like his mom did. His stress is the byproduct of his trying to ignore this fact; his dad’s “oh, not going to school? that’s cool”-attitude is b/c his dad knows and feels sorry for him. He can see Menma b/c of the fact he’s nearing death himself.
Menma’s Family: Menma is the product of her mom’s adultery. Her “father” was abusive, definitely to her mother and probably to her. Not a happy home.
That Day: Menma was going to announce to the group that she was running away from home, but Anaru derailed the meeting and Menma never got a chance to announce it.
Menma’s Death: basically a soft suicide. Despite not announcing it she decided to run away, had an accident along the way, and didn’t really “fight for her life” when it happened.
Menma’s Problem: she puts everyone else in front. She planned to run away from home so her dad would stop abusing her mom; she also thought she was the cause of problems in her group of friends (due to the Anaru->Jinta->Menma and Tsuruko->Yukiatsu->Menma love triangles).
Menma’s Wish: was that they get together again in N years (N will enough so that the events of the anime grant her wish) and do something specific (let off some fireworks?). Thematically it’s going to be meant to evoke the (ultimately futile) wish that they’d stay the same even if she disappeared.
Menma’s Ghost: is a real ghost (not just a hallucination). She can’t remember her wish / is sad all the time b/c as in life she’s trying to suppress her unpleasant memories / experiences. There’s probably also a sadness b/c she’s seeing that her friends’ lives have changed — and not always for the better — despite her having left.
Menma’s Diary: will reveal something about the abuse in the family, which is why the mother parted with it so willingly (she secretly hopes to see her husband’s abuse outed).
The Friends: all kinda knew something wasn’t right with Menma’s situation, even if they didn’t know exactly what, and have a lingering guilt that they never did anything about it. Poppo might read the diary and decide to “grant Menma’s wish” in a humorous way; he’s a big guy and isn’t afraid of anything.
Putting my bold guesses down for posterity. Thanks as always for the excellent writeups.