And with this, Hana-Saku Iroha stepped out of the shadow of its first two episodes. This episode once again was great, and full of emotions.
It was a bit random, but nevertheless a great way for Ohana to get back to her mother. Ending up writing a scathing review of the inn where both her daughter and mother work. The tension between her and Ohana in this episode was just amazing, and after that this series managed to make things even better by also involving Ko in the equation.
It was indeed a bit early for me to call her part of the love triangle, but at least I was right about her having a crush on Ko: the signs about her introduction were all there. What I didn’t expect however was for Ko to turn her down. That scene between him and Ohana at the Wac Donalds was some excellent romance: it played with the distance between the two and Ohana’s shyness, without making it a simple “will they won’t they?” This episode also rocked because the creators stuffed in a ton of those small details, like Ohana crumbling that piece of straw wrapper.
Overall, I know that I’ve been a bit harsh on this series while it still was building up. In the past I would have had the patience to indeed wait until it get the chance to show its true colours. However, 2010 unfortunately made me very sceptical of those kinds of series that promise to get better later on. It felt like half of the long shows failed to do that despite the huge luxury in episodes they received: Heroman, Nurarihyon, Arakawa Under the Bridge and Index II all failed to live up to their promise to get better. Then there are the series like Kaichou wa Maid Sama which despite the fact that I dropped them early on, I really doubt that they were able to redeem themselves. On top of that there were Durarara and Letter Bee Reverse, which both decreased in quality during their second halves and Star Driver, which promised to get better, only to remain pretty much consistent throughout its entire run. There was only a relatively small fraction of 22-26-episoded that started in 2010 that actually made good use of all of its build-up (Giant Killing, Rainbow, Denyuuden, Uragiri and Shiki).
That’s why I’m really glad that so many long series this season seem to head into the right direction, but as long as they don’t I unfortunately have to remain a bit (okay, very) sceptical.
Rating: *** (Awesome)
*SPOILER ALERT*
Ohana’s mom drives me nuts. I can’t stand flighty, shallow people in the first place and add in a large degree of insensitivity. What a terrible person. Hopefully, she’ll change her ways by the end of the series, but I remain skeptical given the type of character who abandons her daughter and then back-stabs her.
Definitely agree that this was an awesome episode. So much emotion that seems unforced and real. I think that Ohana has trouble returning Ko’s feelings because she simply cannot trust anyone (due to her rather screwed up mum). That was evident in the earlier episodes and to some extent she has begun to trust and lean on the others at the Hot Springs, but I think it will take something special to allow her to trust someone with her heart.
Also .. one last comment. Definitely agree about the little details in the animation this show. One that got me was the view from the Wac Donalds. There was a girl standing under an umbrella for what seemed like a long time across the street apparently watching them. Initially I thought it was the girl who liked Ko but later on someone comes up and meets her and they walk off. Little details like that really make this show amazing.
Ohana’s mother is a bad parent I guess you could say. And with all the emotions running high in this episode, I couldn’t help but see just how human all these characters were. Unfortunately, that didn’t save Ohana from being slightly annoying with her self-righteous conquest against her mother.
I didn’t see this as Kou turning her down at all. He turned bookstore girl down, if anything – Ohana could have told him right then and there that she was ready to be with him, and Kou would have been the happiest guy in the world.
The guy just wants an answer – that’s all. I don’t think you can fault him for that.
@Guardian Enzo: That’s what psgel said. The her he is referring to is bookstore girl.
The animation production on this show is excellent. From my perspective it is just the story that has been lacking. If they manage to keep going with this, then the show seems like it is back on track. I am not surprised that the show seems to have an extra intensity now that Ohana’s mom was re-introduced. Her ridiculous irresponsibility was an essential part of the set-up that gave the first two episodes a kick. I just hope they keep pushing on the drama instead of returning to wacky hijinx, that (to me) didn’t do justice to the incredibly detailed world the characters are seen walking around in.
All those “filler” episodes people thought were useless, really amplify the drama now, because you are so much more connected to the characters
Also, Ko seemed incredibly mature, I was surprised… Stupid of Ohana to turn him down
@Scruffy – thanks, I misinterpreted that, but you’re correct.
@Scruffy – yeah I did the same, thanks
It’s about time this show took a turn for the better.
It’s too bad that the episodes that’re essentially filler — maybe from 3 to 8 or so? — include just enough plot events and characterization that it’d be hard to skip them entirely without feeling lost.
I was most struck by the ways in which Ohana’s mom resembled her grandma, actually: they’re both set in their ways, both obsessed with work, and both rather negligent in their interpersonal relationships.
You could argue that Ohana’s grandma looks more responsible than her mother but I’m not sure how true that really is; Ohana’s mom is a bad mom because she cares much more about her work than about her daughter, but I’d be willing to wager that Ohana’s grandmother cared more about the inn than she cared about Ohana’s mom.
A vicious cycled doomed to repeat?
@Frost: She hasn’t really turned him down, she just hasn’t given him an answer. In Ko’s mind it’s probably the same thing but I’m sure in Ohanna’s mind it is not. It seems to me that she does love him, after all it was him she called out to help for when she was afraid, but she is just unable to trust herself or him with that.
I know how everyone calls Ohana’s mom shallow and a bad character and everything, and I completely agree that she is a horrible mom, but I have no doubt her character extends beyond work > daughter. The fact that she could comprehend Ohana’s determination in the first place shows there’s more to her. And yeah, she left Ohana out in the rain, but what would you do? You’ve seen how determined Ohana is. In facing her, you can only give in or resist yourself, and we have clearly seen how deep emotions run through the characters in this series. Giving in is no easy matter, ironic, but true. And she gave Ohana the food, a cruel mother would not do that. So basically, don’t count off her mom that easily.
But yeah, lol, that was one hella good episode. Easily my favorite of the series. The thing that did it for me was the truth behind the emotions. That stuff is real, and most of us I’m sure have felt it at a time or another. The subtlety is amazing, I just pray for the future of the series to be as amazing.
This is why I prefer Hanairo over Anohana. Despite the light mood of the previous episodes, they were essential for me to start investing in the characters. The reason this episode worked was a combination of intricate details, believably intense emotions, and likeable and interesting characters, which I don’t really see in Anohana.
Most stories run on the strength of their characters. I think it’s telling when the only characters I care for in Anohana are Anaru and Tsuruko, and the only ones I dislike in Hanairo are Takako and Jiroumaru.
Really a great episode!
I think we will soon see the reason why Ohana’s mom left the inn and hasn’t returned. There is a whole storyline to be filled in around this. I can see where O-mom might have felt suffocated and rebellious by the strict, customer first attitude of O-granny. Maybe they will explore this more in the future, I’m looking forward to it.
I get the impression that Ohana’s mom sees alot of her younger self in Ohana, especially in those rare occasions when Ohana says or does something that startles her, but doesn’t faze her.
I’m not sure if I’m ready to call Ohana’s mom a bad parent yet. I get the feeling there might be some method in her madness. Ohana seems to have come out to be a really cool girl who can stand up on her own feet, and in spite of everything, Ohana put her own feelings and conflicts with her mom over her worries for the inn. And the way they treat each other, it feels like they’re really best friends in the middle of yet another argument.
Another thing is I buy Ohana’s mom’s story about the article being pure politics. It’s already indicated that all the minor inns, not just Kissui, got slammed in the article, probably to help promote the new modern resort coming up. And I suspect Ohana’s mom may have other reasons to not care how the article turns out. Either faith that Kissui will pull through regardless, or because of some conflict she has with her own mother.
The situation with Kou. I got a 5 centimeters per second feeling of melancholy. But it really isn’t important whether Ohana winds up with Kou or not. It’s a coming of age story so either way wins.