This will be my last time writing about Fumetsu no Anata e. Several of its recent episodes have left me without a single positive thing to say, and while I’m regularly critical of anime, there’s no value in unchecked negativity. I flirted with the idea of throwing this post in the trash as well, but I’ll just throw up a warning here instead: only venture beyond this sentence if you’re as frustrated with the show as you imagine me to be.
After the severe disappointment of Fumetsu no Anata e’s late May to early June run, I wasn’t particularly eager to revisit the series, but I knew that its style of storytelling would lead to a conclusion for Gugu’s arc before too long. That conclusion arrived a couple weeks ago, and though it didn’t bowl me over like March’s sendoff, I was happy with it. (There’s your TL;DR if you needed one.) Synthesizing the content of these three episodes in a longer, more holistic piece would be ideal, but it’s been weeks since I’ve seen the older ones, so I’m just going to touch on the highlights and lowlights of each. Thoughts on the second half of Gugu’s story begin after the jump, so click on through if you Do Read posts that aren’t Too Long.
These new episodes of Fumetsu no Anata e? They’re not good.
Continue reading “Fumetsu no Anata e – 8-9 [Monster Brothers/Deep Memories]”
I’ve got my relationship with Fumetsu no Anata e ironed out at this point. All the time it spends detailing new locations and characters? I sleep. The showstoppers it delivers once all the pieces are in place? Real shit. Right now we’re in the first of those two modes, but since our newest character Gugu is already grappling with existential issues, the other shoe can’t be far off.
Continue reading “Fumetsu no Anata e – 6-7 [Our Goals/The Boy Who Wants to Change]”
After an episode like this one, I hardly need to say a thing.
Continue reading “Fumetsu no Anata e – 05 [Those Who Follow]”
I don’t know the process by which episode counts are decided for TV anime, but Fumetsu’s 20 seems like a strange number given the industry’s general adherence to multiples of 12 and 13. Some may perceive the glass to be half full – seven extra episodes, oh boy! – but after watching “A Large Vessel,” I can only view it as half empty. Fushi’s attempted escape from prison and resulting torture were stuffed into a twelve second montage, undercutting the horror of his experience and muddling his subsequent search for an exit. Parona’s encounter with a would-be rapist was neutered by its placement late in the episode (though her previous wall-scaling scene was suitably tense). Characters are being robbed of the ability to process their experiences, and in a series like this one, which is about the experience of life across cultures and species, that’s a serious issue. “Just add more episodes” is a hated catch-all phrase of mine, but fuck it, I’ll join the chorus in this case: Fumetsu deserved 26.
I’m still withholding my assessment of Fumetsu no Anata e’s forest makeover, as it feels like this chapter won’t reach its climax for a while yet. There was plenty of action this week, capped with the rescue of a young girl bound for death, but it all segued so smoothly into the next plot point that my emotional receptors never woke up. There’s no time for catharsis when everyone is immediately recaptured and carted off to Hayase’s village. (There’s also no need for it when March proves herself to be the mildest human sacrifice in the practice’s history.) Even the payoff to the previous episode’s “Arigatou” scene landed kind of sideways, since Fushi saved March due to instinct rather than gratitude. He’s an extraordinary character in what is quickly becoming an ordinary adventure series, and I feel a bit of a disconnect there. That said, it’s probably in my best interest to let go of the reins and just be a passenger in Fumetsu’s wagon, at least until its protagonist grows enough to start shaping the story (rather than be shaped by it).
Continue reading “Fumetsu no Anata e – 03 [A Small Evolution]”
I’m mixed on nearly every aspect of To Your Eternity’s new direction. The story? An indigenous ‘virgin sacrifice’ drama, time-tested but lacking in flavor. The human characters? Dutiful vessels for their roles, but they don’t leave much of an impression. The art? Serviceable, but lacking any potential to inspire (a single scene notwithstanding). The music? Worth a round of golf claps for its avoidance of J-rock, I suppose, but you’ve certainly heard its ‘brass-less orchestra’ approach elsewhere. I have no intention of judging the whole 20 episode series by its second installment, but it feels like a manga of Fumetsu’s magnitude ought to be receiving a stronger adaptation.
Continue reading “Fumetsu no Anata e – 02 [A Rambunctious Girl]”