Category: Finished Series: Slice of Life/Drama

3-gatsu no Lion – 14 [Blinding Darkness – Just a Little Water]

by SuperMario, posted in 3-gatsu no Lion, Currently Watching:

This week in 3-gatsu no Lion, we again witness another one of Rei’s depression, which is fine I guess because this is what the show does best anyways; but seriously it didn’t leave much of an impact on me, both because those depression thoughts start to wear out on me, and this section drags out for too long. Here lies the issues: the way Shaft decided to adapt every double chapters per episode mean that sometimes we suffer the disconnect in tones between two chapters like last week’s, or we have to go through their lesser materials like this one. In manga medium, this is totally acceptable because one volume has multiple chapters, so it doesn’t distract the flow of the story as severe as in adaptation form. This episode is where its deliberated pacing doesn’t benefit the story at all and if they speed up a bit to the next chapter the story would flow so much smoother.

I have to note that this is the first time ever that we witness him lost right in front of our eyes. Kudos for the sharp writing that building up the big match to come between Rei and Gotou before crushing that anticipation from Rei and us apart. We’re pretty much in the same mind as Rei expecting an easy win for him. Except it isn’t. Rei loses and he loses hard. The loss strips Rei down pretty hard that he loses faith in his own ability and even looks for job hunting. It’s pretty understandable for someone his age; young and talented but inexperienced; misjudged the capability of his opponent. This isn’t come from his own arrogant though, but more like he hasn’t give much thoughts about his opponent and he certainly paid his price. The very solid depressing visuals (as expected from Shaft) were conveyed through water bubbles again, and through his own dehydration. If there is one thing we certainly learn after this episode, it’s Rei is even bad of being depressed.

It’s tough to carry all these self-doubting thoughts on his own, so what does he decide to do next? Go to school and keep carry on of course. But kiddo, if you don’t feel okay from the inside, carry on with life like normal won’t do you anything good. He feels like he doesn’t belong at school, so he’s even more depressed and cries out of solitude. Thankfully, there are lights of hope at the end of the road, in the name of Hayashida-sensei who give him a much-needed advice and the workshop by Shimada which will help him improve his game. In a way, Rei needs to take 2 steps back before moving few steps forward, and this loss is something that someone his age need to realize the sooner the better; thus I get the narrative. But the episode lacks the final punch, moreover the male casts can’t handle the atmosphere or carry the emotions as good as the female counterparts (call me sexist. I’ll take it.), as a result this episode is a big meh. Give me more Kyouko, give me more of the 3 sisters please. In the end, characters-wise, the show still rocks (how it gives much personalities to Shimada despite a very unremarkable introduction for example) but I really hope the show doesn’t waste its time for some minor chapters like this and end up not having enough time to cover the main thread.

Scum’s Wish – 02 [I’m here for that warmth]

by SuperMario, posted in Currently Watching:, Scum's Wish

Welcome to the roller coaster of the emotional manipulative anime of this season, are you with me on this ride? Scum’s Wish has the exact opposite issues with ACCA in that it tries to overwhelm us with lots of raw feelings that sometime it touches the line of manipulation. This episode, fortunately, still pretty much gets away with that problem, but at the same time I’m not satisfy with it. In my first impression, I have mentioned that the show explores two interconnected themes, first is the hard truth about one-sided love and keep pressing their heads into thick wall (which I kinda have mixed feeling) and the second theme is about sharing the pain together through physical and destructive relationship (which I find myself really invested in). Unfortunately, with the introductions of those “third-girls” from our mains – themselves a third person on their own love –the story heads itself towards the former and pretty signals that things will go pretty heavy and unsatisfied later on.

As I said earlier, to make things even harder to unknot, we are introduced with the new threads of this web’s relationship, Moca and Ecchan, the person who secretly love Mugi and Hanabi, respectively. These are as doomed a relationship as you would get, but it’s actually interesting to see how similar yet different those two hopeless obsessions progress. Both are described as childhood crush (which actually the same with the mains), but while Moca’s crush towards Mugi is framed as childish and somewhat light in tone, Ecchan secret love towards Hanabi is framed as sort of hidden and forbidden love. While Moca is always very vocal about her love, Ecchan’s love is silent and concealed. Hanabi actually sees through all the efforts Moca’s trying to make to pull Mugi off her, thus she harshly shrugs the girl off. As Hana says it to Moca, as much to herself; “Don’t go around clinging for what aren’t yours”; it’s never fun to see your ugly sides through the mirror. Well, as for Ecchan, I give it a point for how the show actually portraits a yuri crush, a love from a girl to another girl that feel realistic and true to life.

The show doesn’t give us much the actual relationship between Mugi and Hanabi in this episode, but when it does, it’s still remarkable and brings the emotions forward. They rely on each other physically in order to take away their pain and frustration towards their true love, and in one of flashback of Mugi there was another blond, short hair girl who seem to sexually abused him before? I’m not really sure but if that’s the case then… *smirk* bring it on. Talking about remarkable, I’m very impressed by the ED of Scum’s Wish that is done in the style of the Rorschach inkblot test and is very risqué in presentation that very, very fitting to the provocative nature of the series. It might be just me but I see this ED full of female private parts, naked characters (because those feelings are pretty much naked too) and the music really brings the melancholy tones home. Good stuff.

But on the other spectrum, in terms of story, even with its already complex web of doomed relationships, the show still feels the need to cram in a side love story from Hanabi’s friends asking for her advice on which boys she should pick. I get the point of this little story that meant to point out that her friend’s love isn’t true love at all, but I can’t help but feel that side story is totally unnecessary. Those relationships are already complicated as it is, there is no need to stuff in more doomed love from someone else’s. All in all, this is the direction that I’m a bit worry whether the show can pull it off. Now that all the main characters are introduced let see how they manage to use them to full potential. I’m pretty much in for a ride anyways so come at me with all you got Scum’s Wish.

Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu – 15

by AidanAK47, posted in Currently Watching:, Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu

It was inevitable that Yotaro’s past with the Yakuza would come back to haunt him but boy did it really bite him in the ass. I was wondering as to how the show would work with Yotaro and give him conflict but then this episode comes along and gives him plenty to worry about. He’s having trouble finding his old style and is mimicking his masters and acting as a surrogate father for Konatsu’s child when the father appears to have returned at episodes end. Yotaro’s performance in this episode was hard to watch but I really love how Rakugo never has someone on the sidelines to inform us that the performance wasn’t going well. Just by watching and listening, even though I don’t know Japanese, made it clear how well it was going. Helped by showing the audience’s reaction and Yotaro’s own panicking nervousness. Rakugo seems like a temperamental art, much like comedy.

The mood of the audience can kill a performance and in Rakugo’s case, bore them to death. You can tell Yotaro is really trying with his performance but as the audience loses interest his moves grow all the more desperate. Even changing the voice of the housewife character mid performance as Yakumo complained about it earlier. When Yotaro unwittingly reveals his Yakuza tattoo in front of the audience he knows right away that he made a bad move. Still as painful as this is I certainly remember a fair share of Yakumo’s terrible performances. Though what certainly isn’t terrible is the new opening and boy if it isn’t a unique way to start this show. I am a little on the fence over the song but the visuals are fantastic. I love the imagery of Sukoroku opening his shirt to reveal a ribcage. I originally thought this season was going to be primarily about Yotaro but the opening puts Yakumo in the spotlight and shows his worries and the things that haunt him well. It worries me though as the opening is not very happy and could foreshadow this season being quite depressing. All things considered I would prefer a more heartwarming end to this story and more moments like Yakumo consoling Yotaro over his past.

Speaking of which Yakumo is not doing so well either. He’s not doing much to help out Konatsu with the child and it’s clear that he has long grown tired of his life. His cold attitude towards Konatsu and disinterest in the child is somewhat understandable. As I doubt Konatsu wants him anywhere near him. Konatsu is still just as hostile to him which is sad as Yakumo at least tries to throw some kindness her way. The scene with him reciting one of Sukoroku’s old bits that put her to sleep. I almost believed that this could be the start of them at least growing closer together as a family. Though Konatsu burns that bridge fast by reminding him that he lead her parents to their death. All things considered I think Konatsu isn’t really being fair. After all if anyone is to blame for what happened it would be her mother. Yakumo then reveals his desire to die and to take Rakugo with him. So in that regard Yotaro may have saved Yakumo’s life when he declared to be taking up Sukoroku’s name. So in one episode we have essentially declared the problems the protagonists will be dealing with for likely the majority of the season. And here I thought that the end of season one only signaled a rise for Rakugo in the future. Life truly is never that simple.

3-gatsu no Lion – 13 [Black River (part 2) – Beyond the Door]

by SuperMario, posted in 3-gatsu no Lion, Currently Watching:

This week we have 2 disjoined chapters, which are different in tones and more importantly in their point of view. We go through the first section from Smith-san perspective detailing his own thoughts towards the match against Gotou, and the latter part Rei took the stage, being on his way to challenge Gotou in next match, except things weren’t go according to plan either. If there is any mutual theme out of these two chapters, it’s this: know your own place in the shogi world.

3-gatsu no Lion sure has a very slow pace, and it’s most apparent here in the first 6 minutes when all the actions can be displayed in one brief sequence in other anime, but the show goes on and on, both in a good and bad ways. Look, for a show that relies heavily on building up and tender atmosphere, it makes sense that some scenes they need to drag out a bit longer to provide the mood; but truthfully, I don’t get the recap here. We don’t need that, tell me something else instead. The latter part, in contrast, followed Smith-san having breakfast (eating fresh, whole tomato!) played like a gif animation with its jerky movement and upbeat music and I’m digging it very much. If you decide to go off the track, then make it with styles. Thank you Shaft.

But to be honest, spending an entire chapter focused on Smith-san feel like a filler, side story because at the end of the day it doesn’t add up much to the mother narrative. Smith-san has never been anything other than Rei’s shogi-mate before so it’s hard to relate to him more than that. Telling the story in his point of view, however, still has its purpose because one-part of 3-gatsu is still stories about the life of shogi profession players anyways, and Smith-san’s perspective provides a more mature look at shogi than Rei’s, as he’s now in the middle of his career path. It’s true that when one becomes a professional, the only thing he knows best is his own ability comparing to others. This isn’t simply the lack of confident, but more in terms of actual level, the actual talent that separate those great players and the rest. Here in this chapter, Smith-san went all he got despite knowing full well that gap; but in the end what he found really was that he still has a long way to reach to the top, to perfect his style. It’s fine though, since not only he found these things, but a black tray cat in need of aid as well. Kudos for the show’s consistency of providing the world full of cats. Hungry cats, stray cats, owl cat, warrior cats, you name it.

It’s Rei, on the other hand, who needs to learn a hard lesson about knowing his own place in this shogi world. As his mind was occupied by the provocation of Gotou, he steps into the match against Shimada the 8th dan with his head in the cloud. The show smartly conveys that sense of thoughts as we see Shimada as a shadow, unimportant figure until Rei pays full attention to him. I love the smart storytelling that later fleshing out Shimada in his best possible way in just few details, both underlines how he truly cares about the kid Harunobu (“I want you to split Rei’s head in half”. What a great friend Harunobu is), and how good he’s actually is in shogi (well, he’s in 8th dan for a reason); leading Rei all the way to his destruction without him realizing it. Rei does need something like that (I don’t mean that splitting head in half metaphor. Too graphic! I’ll go with slapping in the face) for him to know that he isn’t that talented to underestimate other players and there is a long way for him as well to be ready for that fateful match. This is a minor 3-gatsu episode, but even so there’s still plenty good moments to recommend.

3-gatsu no Lion – 12 [What Lies on the Opposite Shore – Black River (part 1)]

by SuperMario, posted in 3-gatsu no Lion, Currently Watching:

3-gatsu no Lion is back again in the new year with another stellar episode. Structure-wise, I think this is one of the most confident episode 3-gatsu no Lion has delivered for a while, as the show handled multiple tones and aspects in Rei’s current life in one neat package. This episode begins with a deep look inside Rei’s depression, then move on to the noise and colorful life of his shogi life from his shogi-mates, then deliver one of the most intense moments when Rei meet Gotou, and later on back to the warm and cozy atmosphere of the sisters; the result is like a roller coaster of feeling: disturbing one moment, warm and heart-felt the next, all wonderfully tie up with Rei’s own emotion right in the center. Let’s get down to each of them below.

Shaft has always been superb when it comes to depicting Rei’s inner psyche, especially his insecurities towards the life he been living. Sharp lines with black and white imaginaries, water bubbles, the loud noises of his clock and his air conditioner, and even their extreme close-up, all successfully visualize his mental breaking point. It actually gives us the nausea effects that Rei is suffering, put us into his mindscape and for me this is one of the most real depiction of depressions in anime. Rei compares the three sisters’ house as kotatsu, a place so warm that it makes every other place seem colder and pale in comparison. Now he’s sitting in his house and realizes how lonely he is and he knows full well that he can’t rely emotionally to others; because once you rely on something you become dependent, and vulnerable as well, yet at the same time he can’t help but longing for one. I’m myself amazed with the complexity of personal struggles the show given to Rei. It’s not only his struggles but the same for all of us, it isn’t a temporary battle but a lifelong one and even then we might never find a true answer at the end of the road. Must be suck being human.

In a steep contrast to that dark void of his inner voice, the professional shogi players all serve as an energetic and hilarious facet to spice up his life a bit. All the matches this week aren’t about competition or ranking progression like other sport shows, but function more as bright, light moments in his life. The ninth dan who played against him this week fit well into that vein as his antics are decidedly quirky. I personally love the moments Smith-san won the match, the two were just staring and dissecting Smith’s tactics because it’s so damn unprofessional but simultaneously show how they love shogi at hearts. The shogi chairman also kicks things up a notch with his fishes. A lot of fishes. It’s a brief sequence but I’m totally feel the care of him towards Rei so I’m up to see more about him in the future.

But never before, even in Kyouko’s moments, the show has reached that much intense when Rei (to be more exact, we) finally meets Gotou in person. Unlike Kyouko where Rei’s feeling for her is a mixture of love, guilt, and heaps of pain, there is only pure hatred from him when it comes to Gotou; not that the guy has any better opinion towards Rei either. Now it sheds a rather intriguing twist to Gotou and Kyouko’s relationship: Gotou calls her “a stalker” and wants to get rid of her. Talking about perspective! Either they had been in an affair (his wife is “still” in the hospital) and now Gotou wants to cut his ties or all the intense love from Kyouko are just her feeling alone. Those possibilities are still pretty much unclear at this point; but one thing for sure that Kyouko is in a deeper sh*t than she thought and that Gotou is not a sane guy. Things pretty much set up for the match between those two (poor Smith-san) and I know everyone is pretty hyped up for that moments to come. Well, you better be.

The episode ends with the warmness moments inside the Kawamoto’s house and the show again handles those scenes with styles. Rei now aware that he feels at home in that house but in order to keep forward, he has to step out and walks on his own two feet. The moment when Rei hold Momo tight gets me every time for how emotionally honest it feels. This episode by far is the most tonal inconsistency the show had to encounter so far, but by focusing squarely on Rei’s feeling, those uneven in tones actually become an asset to underline the highs and lows of Rei’s current life; as a result this episode is one of the richest 3-gatsu no Lion had ever pulled off.

Sound! Euphonium 2 (Fall 2016) Review – 86/100

by SuperMario, posted in Anime Reviews, Reviews by SuperMario, Sound! Euphonium 2

I must admit that out of all the series I was blogging last year, Sound Eupho 2 was the one I’m saddest to see it ends; not because it was my absolute favorite anime last year, but because the sheer amount of their attention to details and their ridiculously quest for perfection are something that out of this world, in this day and age, which I will get to that later in my review. This is a sequel to Sound Eupho last year but I will keep the comparison to the first season to minimum in terms of quality because this season is great enough to be judged by its own.

The story is a direct continuation from the end of last season, as the Kitauji high school concert band just qualified from the qualifying round, now heading to Kansai region competition and later on, the National competition. Unlike the first season where the main dramatic events like Aio pulled out from the music club to focus on her study; the audition to choose the best players for the competition or the challenge to pick the lead trumpet arise and resolved around the development of the band club itself, the second season concentrates more on the band members’ personal issues. This change of focus is more apparent in the second half, when the show completely drops the band practice, even to the point of not showing the national performance at all. I understand this bold choice can cause disappointment to many fans who want to see the band in action, and moreover focus on individual character drama can cause the lack of cohesive theme; this shift of attention, on the other hand, also brings out some of the best character developments and intimate moments the show has ever achieved.

I will get to the negative part first. When the show concentrates more on character’s heightened drama, those dramas can be uneven and doesn’t add up much to the big picture. Two of this season’s acts for example: Yoroizuka and Reina act don’t play well for me because they have the exact opposite problems. Yoroizuka (the only character that I used by surname here, as this is how Kumiko refers her) is a secondary character who was suddenly given the spotlight and while her final confrontation with Yuuko and Nozomi was effective, the drama was resolved too quickly, Yoroizuka changed so fast that I personally don’t see her grow as natural at all. Reina’s affection to Taki-sensei grow to another level this season, but I’m not alone to say that this was the show’s weakest act because almost everyone can see the outcomes. That drama isn’t much to speak of to begin with; it’s a shame because Reina was my favorite character the first season and I’d like to see other kind of developments for Reina, any other development but this.

Moreover, sometimes it does feel like Sound Eupho stumbles around those dramas in order to “create the situation”; as a result sometimes the show loses its focus because it has to cover too many grounds (like in episode 6), other times some of the conflicts feel forced and calculated (of all time, Mamiko choose she decided to tell her parents to quit college on that stormy night, and “she quited because it has to be now”. Why?). While the Mamiko act actually turns out pretty great, those issues speak to the lack of single unified theme that made the first season so tightly constructed. The last issue, which was also the show’s biggest flaw, lied in the fact that when they focus too much on one set of characters for the drama, other cast members unfortunately don’t have much roles so all they do is hanging around and making the best out of little screen time they had. Reina, before reaching her act, serves as a shadow behind Kumiko; Shuichi becomes the unluckiest guy in the world and worst of all, Hazuki and Sapphire don’t have any development anymore, given that they are still billed as the lead characters.

In contrast, if anything, this season will be remembered as the season of Kumiko and Asuka. They are the heart and the soul of this season, and it’s a blessing to see how far both of them have matured in the end. Asuka has been one of the most complex character in Sound Eupho’s universe and the show did a damn fine job to underline her struggles with both her parental figures, as well as gradually peeling off the mask to reveal her true feeling inside. The most brilliant part of it was that she never lose her strong side at all, never in many moments we are allowed to see her vulnerable side, because it’s more that she becomes honest to herself, embrace herself to what she loves most and comes out even stronger than before. In additions, most of Asuka and Kumiko moments develop into the highlights of the season. When Asuka played that Sound Euphonium piece to Kumiko in episode 9, it was one of the best moments of the whole show, period. When Kumiko poured her heart out to convince Asuka to come back to the band, it was one of the most effective drama the show could ever committed. As the two getting closer and more honest to each other, it makes a whole lot sense that we have that final confrontation between them that warmly tied up this whole season together. This show indeed ends on a high note.

Kumiko also deserved to be one of the year’s best character here as she has changed a lot from timid and passive with no real passion into the one who is really honest to what she feels. Aside from her interaction with Asuka, her moments with her sister, while soft and never overly dramatic like other acts, feel all too real ans intimate on how siblings care about each other. The last few episodes when we follow her through her quiet tears on the train, her outbursts, her confessions were a joy to watch and each step she made feel like a natural progression. I have to give extra gratitude Tomoyo Kurosawa, the saiyuu of Kumiko, for delivering such a deadpan, plain but strangely distinctive voice of our main girl.

But what make Sound Eupho stand head above the rest of the crop lies in its production values. That 10-minute performance in episode 5 simply outperformed everything else I watched in recent years. KyoAni’s always known for their gorgeous designs and their attentive to make every little detail right, but this is just another level of insanity the more you get to know what they achieved. Almost every performance you heard in the show was correctly timed to their single notes (meaning that if you hear the character hits the notes onscreen, they were the right notes), the position of their fingers, their postures, even down to the preparation of the members before hitting the notes, were all accurate. Now imagine all of these in animation with a band of thirty something characters for the whole two seasons. I can’t even think how on earth one could achieve animating all that, let alone making it all flawlessly. They even go as far as making the echo of the announcement on the firework scene in the first episode, because they wanted it to be real (the city Uji is surrounded by mountains). No, something as insane as this don’t happen often, especially on TV-anime level, so to see it finally at the end of its road suddenly make me feel a little sad.

This second season is indeed a worthy follow up to the Sound Eupho the series. Just a bit of note that the score I’m giving above is for this second season alone, if I have to give a score for the whole series it would be 93/100. Sound Eupho is an install classic and for me is up there as one of KyoAni’s best works to date. As of this writing right now, there is one more novel about our Kitauji school that is more of a collection of short stories (like the real reason Aoi quit the band, or the story of Shuichi finally confesses to Kumiko) so I think OVAs will be the most possible outcomes. Otherwise we have the spin-off novels that focus on Azusa (Kumiko’s childhood friend) and her Rikka high school marching band and for now I think there’s a high chance that in the future KyoAni will return back to that universe by adapting this spin-off. Well, they better adapt it, or on that note, why not adapting Haruhi season 3?

Sound! Euphonium 2 – 13 [Early-Spring Epilogue]

by SuperMario, posted in Currently Watching:, Sound! Euphonium 2

This original episode achieves something so simple: a reminder that the true ending is the new beginning. Now I understand why KyoAni decided to skip the National performance last episode, because we’re having the last performance this week, with all the memories from the past flooding in as the underclassmen play the piece as a farewell to the senpais, and I honestly couldn’t wish for anything more. Now that the third year students had retired, the second year is going to take over the club and the music band basically has to start again from scratch. Not really from scratch to be exact because the remainders of the music band are already National-qualified players. Yuuko, for her great development this season, totally is deserved to be the band president next year. For Natsuki though, it’s a bit weird to nominate a member who was cutout from the audition to be a vice-president, but Yuuko and Natsuki make a perfect pair so I’m done complaining.

Sound Eupho keeps defining the very notion of romance, huh? I never would have thought we ain’t done with confession. I originally brush Kumiko’s confession off as just “friendship’s affection” but no matter how you look at it, it’s a romantic confession. Which of course crush Shuichi’s love down the toilet’s sink, and eventually give an answer to an always-teasing-and-baiting relationship of Kumiko and Reina as just friends. Best friends. Over my dead body! At the same time though, I can see where Kumiko’s affection for Asuka come from: Asuka’s the one that Kumiko expresses the most, she pours her heart out to confront Asuka so it’s very understandable that when that someone is gone, she feels empty inside and realizes that she misses her. Now I kind of understand as well why the show pushed Reina’s crush to Taki to such extend. I am honestly not sure what to think about this new development. Asuka’s leaving now meaning that if there ever be a third season, Kumiko and Reina’s relationship still take a central stage and we’d never through with this baiting, ever. But judging that Ayano Takeda hasn’t written the sequence, instead focus on Kumiko’s childhood friend Azusa in Rikka High School in her next spin-off novel, I think the show is ended for good. At least Kumiko has a chance to talk out what really matters to her. She has grown quite tremendously since the beginning of this season. I am glad.

The band playing farewell song- a song we’re now all familiar with- is a nice wrap up to many past moments the band (and us) have spent together. I love the moment when Reina started playing solo, we have a next quick shot of Kaori’s smile. There had been much drama about deciding who played the solo part, and Kaori’s reaction here is as best as she could: facing it with a smile. Those other moments keep reminding us what a ride all this had been and the band grow and act like members of a big family. Speaking of family now Kumiko and Mamiko exchanging mails to each other (how cool that is! Even they all have mobile phones).

Sound Eupho has been a very solid drive and this episode perfectly closed everything up nicely. I left the series with a satisfied feeling of the warm sound of Sound! Euphonium piece. Judging this season alone, personally I think it’s not as strong as the first, just a slightly down because it focuses too much on band member’s drama, while at the same time kind of neglecting our mains, but it sure is a very welcoming follow-up to the first. Judging the show as a whole, it will be up there as one of KyoAni’s best works, both demonstrating their detailed superhuman production values that the studio is famous for, and at the same time this show feels like the studio’s most natural brainchild: a slice of life series that set on their very hometown, Kyoto. Full review will come probably next week, before the next season begins, so stay tuned until then. Overall I have a great time covering it, and frankly a bit sad to see it gone. But life moves on, so should we and here’s a toast for a job well done, Kyoto Animation.

3-gatsu no Lion – 11 [The Old Year – The New Year]

by SuperMario, posted in 3-gatsu no Lion, Currently Watching:

Christmas and New Year are on its way so it is very appropriate that we have a warm, sweet episode from 3-gatsu no Lion. After missing in action for the last few weeks, the Kawamoto sisters are back and they truly are a breath of fresh air from the heaviness of last week. While last week was about negative feelings Rei had to embrace and let it all out, this week was about positive feelings that Rei has to realize and share with those he loved. Being bed-ridden for few days without any food, medicine and cut off from the outside world, Rei absorbs on his own sickness that he doesn’t realize that there are still people around who care about his wellbeing. Akari brushes him off on “living on my own” feel so true that it makes him understand about his own thoughtlessness. As much as he always sees the line that separate him and his adoptive father, the father treats him like his own child and genuinely cares about him. The same goes with the Kawamoto sisters and that last scene of the new year eve is so heartfelt and emotional that I can’t help but feel truly sad for those characters. Trying to cope with your pain and loneliness takes a lifetime, so sharing those happy little moments together with the ones you care for is a step forward that both the sisters and Rei ultimately need to embrace. There’s sadness linger in every corner of this show.

This is the first time that the Kawamoto’s father is mentioned, albeit very briefly. Exactly what happened to him is rather vague right now, but judging from the way the sisters avoided to talk about him, I’d assume he runaways from home. Elope with another woman maybe. Also in this episode Rei has 2 dreams which are actually relevant to his mind state right now. The first dream of him going up in long escalator without a way back signifies the shogi path, and in larger extend, the life he’s taking right now. As of now he’s considering shogi as his life (the only life he has actually), and as the dream further reveals, it’s a long, lonely way up top and when he gets to the top, there is no turning back. The second dream is about his memory way back from his youth, as his sister and him got scolded by their Mom for putting up stickers on her table. As he soon realizes, he feels this Kawamoto sister’s house like his home, even though he just knew them for a short period of time. Finding the place where you belong is never easy, finding a place where you could call home is much harder. It’s still a progression from Rei as he recognizes the warm feeling he has and bit by bit he can consider the sisters as his family.

This episode also addresses quite sensitively about Akira’s own life. What is better  for her? Taking care of the house, doing house works all day; day by day the same process until she’s worn out? Is this occasionally dressing up to work on a bar to assist her aunt’s pub good for herself? As the fella who really care about woman’s life and issues, this surely piqued my interest. Akira has always been a responsible type so it’s no question that she will commit herself to fulfill mother’s role, at least at this stage. Personally I’d argue that this is not the best for her life, sometimes you should be a little selfish and do what you want to do, but leaving those kids and an old man behind is ruthless as well. She’s in a situation where she has no other choice but to commit to it, but the way she gives it her full without even have time to consider her own feeling or her own dream made me want to hug her so bad. This is again a very subtle character’s writing from Umino Chica. This work feels like a heart and soul of her. Halfway marks and I would say two of the show’s best strengths are the sharp and sensitive in its character’s writing, and the creative, thoughtful visual that really dig deep inside Rei’s depression by Shaft that we witnessed last week. That’s a great combination if you ask me and I personally don’t mind to follow Rei’s depressing mindscape for another season. Merry Christmas everyone!

Sound! Euphonium 2 – 12 [The Last Competition]

by SuperMario, posted in Currently Watching:, Sound! Euphonium 2

This could very well be Sound Eupho confessional episode. We get all the confessions of sort, for better or for worse. This is an episode that gives satisfied conclusions to many ongoing plots. While it also means that the show pushes forward Reina’s feeling for Taki-sensei for literally everyone to hear- which as of now we can pretty much take it or leave it. I will leave it at that- other pay-offs, particular Kumiko’s and Asuka’s, are intimate and heartfelt. Kumiko’s longing for her sister on the performance day is easily one of my favorite Sound Eupho moments. Sometimes you just need to say what hold you back out loud to the one you love. The fact that her sister played music, and to this extend, came all the way to see her play matters to her. The whole sequence was animated quite brilliantly as well, followed Kumiko as she rushing to catch up with her sister. I haven’t really sold on Kumiko’s sudden development for the last few episodes, but this moment comes just so natural and ties very well with her growth that it rings so true to me; not because it reminds me of my own story but because this is what I truly know Kumiko would behave. This is the kind of character moments that I’ve been looking for in the show.

The national performance is decidedly low-key. Very low-key indeed. We have been spoiled too much on Sound Eupho that we would expect another full-blown performance from the band, but this anti-climax approach is actually very fitting with the second half of this season: as the show progressed, they shift the focus on the musical performance to character’s arcs drama, that of course brings a fair share of both good and bad points. On the positive notes, this approach makes the show feel fresh with their attention is squarely on other issues. Do we really need to watch another 10-minutes performance again? Why don’t the show, instead of repeating the same approach, focus to something else entirely? And that’s precisely what happened: instead of that big performance that everyone been waiting for, their very next cuts show the members of the band sitting and interacting with each other after the performance (I love Reina’s just sitting quietly and reflecting here- “Sometimes I sit and think. Sometimes I just sit”-type of situation). I know I’m in minority but I actually enjoy all those small moments here, every member that we all know and care for all have their moments to shine through (but, where are Yuuko and Natsuki??).

This choice, on the other hand, makes the stake of national competition surprisingly low, even much lower than the local competition. I’d rather prefer of instead of that Reina episode last week, they could focus more on the third years feeling towards their very last performance. As the result; even though the band only achieved bronze, we don’t really feel they’ve earned it. Furthermore, that Reina confession sure feels awkward, as she repeatedly banging her head against thick wall. Taki-sensei actually did his best to deal with her confession. He could just easily laugh it off, or right out scold her; but he acknowledges that he appreciates the thoughts but he won’t advance the matter anymore. Now if only that love story is the central theme of the show’s next season.

Shuichi finally has a real moment with Kumiko we’ve been waiting for. This poor guy was shut down from Kumiko just because she didn’t care too much about him. Forget about him being a romantic interest to Kumiko, Shuichi is actually one of those few people who really understands Kumiko, especially about her and her sister’s relationship. Many readers think of him as one of the most underdeveloped character out of the show, especially when it comes to his fruitless childhood crush towards Kumiko. While I partly agree with this, just keep in mind that in actuality many of our characters just hang in there because they don’t have enough material to grow. Reina had been in Kumiko’s shadow for a good number of episodes before reaching her arc, and most notably Sapphire and Hazuki appear so far and few between for main characters. Actually, I don’t even know why they’re still labeled as mains in the ED. I just read through one Ayano Takeda’s interview, the writer of the books that this show adapted (a really informative interview I would add), and in there she said that the main purpose of Sapphire was to elevate the material until Taki-sensei arrived, because otherwise people just lose their interest prior to the band deciding to practice for National competition. That explains a lot on how their roles are minimal this season.

In the end, this episode actually addresses many character arcs quite nicely, but at the same time I wouldn’t blame people who think this episode is a disappointment. I would just say that your feeling towards this episode entirely depends on how you feel about the second half of this season. Seems like we ending the third book by this episode and the next one will be the anime-original episode so who knows what will going to happen, but it’s the more reason that the final episode is a must-watch for every fan.

And let the final piece begin…

3-gatsu no Lion – 10 [Something Given part 1 – part 2]

by SuperMario, posted in 3-gatsu no Lion, Currently Watching:

The lion is roaring loud this week, both figuratively as the show comes back strong after an unremarkable episode last week, and narratively as this is the first time we see Rei breaks down and screams out loud. I have always enjoyed Shaft’s deliberate pacing for this show, not only because the material is slow-burn in nature, but this pacing really demands us not to look away from the Rei’s raw emotions. Whenever he’s alone, he is in deep, dark and depressing thoughts that if the show rushes over those inner feelings, those emotions can become lousy. Even when Shaft decides to take extra time focus on “nothing happened” sequences like Rei riding train or the match of him and Mr. Yasui; which you can easily tell that part wasn’t in the manga (beautiful score by the way); they nail the mood so right that we can feel the feeling Rei has going to the match. While the way Shaft sometimes focus on quick cuts of extreme close-up shots is somewhat questionable, the pacing is one of those parts that Shaft actually improves on its source material. I’m quite satisfied knowing that the show is in good hands.

Man, that looks from those kids really kill me. For those kids at that time shogi means acceptance from their father so it’s very understandable that those kids were hurt. You can blame the father for being so insensitive but I can understand his point of view. Usually the parent only wishes for one of their child to follow their footstep, and out of the three children obviously Rei fits the bill the most. That’s also the reason he wanted Kyouko to quit shogi. After all, there are many other things outside of shogi they can try out and be good at, right? He certainly undermined the feeling of his own children but I wouldn’t blame him for that. Speaking of Kyouko, she backs again too soon this week to gives Rei another hell. Her own ambiguous relationship towards Rei is one of the show’s rawest and most complicated one. I take that there are two things from Rei that she despites him the most: the fact the he became a member of her family (“you took someone else’s father”. Man, that’s harsh) and his shogi, so when it comes to those two things, she’s as dangerous as a snake and willing to hurt Rei because his very presence hurt her. The hatred becomes too deep that she abused him when they were living together. But I also sense as she growing up now she grows to care for Rei, although just a little bit. After all, many of her little actions suggests that: she fixes the scarf for Rei and came to his apartment to check on his well-being. It seems like her real intention for her venomous talk is not for Rei to lose (she knows Rei’s talent too well), but for Rei to feel guilty if he wins. Every step he walks forward to the path of shogi, she makes sure that Rei FEELS the bones and fleshes of those sacrifices that paved up the path.

The story this week is about Mr. Yasui, who normally a modest guy but when he loses he goes berserk. Unlike the happy ending last week, this time Rei could not improve the situation: it’s his last Christmas with his daughter, but if he loses it mean he’d be in bad mood and really Rei had nothing to do about it. It’s interesting to see Mr. Yasui’s personality through the shogi play, as at first he was composed because he didn’t want to lose, but with one mistake he basically gave up the game. Things never work out the way we want and I’m glad that there is no happy ending for this episode. Actually, when I think back of last episode, the outcome of Mr. Maysunaga makes the result of this week even more impactful. Rei can’t make people happy all the time, and playing great shogi certainly isn’t his crimes. I hope we know about the conclusion of Yasui’s daughter but really even want to know that mean the story already affects me emotionally.

Again, Rei suffers through a hell lot this week. That twisted relationship between him and Ryouko isn’t one-sided after all. He’s all too aware that those words would pierce through his heart but he can’t help but wanting to listen to these. He tries to do something different but those words come back to haunt him, moreover when the consequence plays out exactly like he fears, he feels like he’s a beast who eat up everything in its way. He looks at that hand, the hand of a death god who take away happiness from others, until he can’t take it anymore and explodes. The final sequence is one of the highlight moments not only for this episode, but for the whole season so far. What he screaming might not as relevant to his nature, but the fact alone that he expresses his emotions out loud is something we don’t see very often. He might feel down now and collapse out of sorrow, but one of the best quality that human have is the ability to stand up and walk again after falling down. That I can look forward to.