Clannad 24 review, a walk down the road not traveled.

       This alternate universe episode of Clannad  takes starts off on the day of the student council election with Tomoyo waking up her boyfriend Tomoya, Tomoya is nervous about today’s election but they decide to head to school with a smile. At school, Tomoya and Tomoyo await the election results in a empty classroom where Tomoya reflects about how he and Tomoyo became lovers.

         Soon, the results are in and Tomoya has won, and now they vow to preserve the Sakura trees outside the school. Later, Youhei makes the comment about how the good for nothing has hooked up with the school President. Whispers and rumors circulate around the school about how Tomoyo is dating a trouble maker/ loser, while Tomoya shows no reaction to this it clearly bothers him. Later that day, one of their teachers calls the couple in for a little talk, and he tells them since so many rumors abound that they have to be careful now that Tomoyo is the school’s president.

      As the days pass, Tomoyo becomes very busy getting the school ready for the festival, and she seems to spend less time with Tomoya. Youhei notices that Tomoya seems down and tries to cheer him up, on the day of the festival Tomoyo is so busy that she has to use a costume to sneak some alone time with Tomoya, and when they try to sneak in a kiss, even that gets interrupted.

      Tomoya is told that she has to meet with former school council members in order to get their support for saving the Sakura trees. As soon as she leaves, the guy who interrupted them tells Tomoya to quit wasting Tomoyo’s time, she’s raising herself up and all your doing is dragging her down and that’s what everyone thinks. Tomoya is about to fight the guy but his words seem to have hurt him greatly.

      As time passes, Tomoya comes under intense pressure from students and teachers to basically breakup with Tomoyo. After school, Tomoya tells Tomoyo that it would be better for the both of them if they broke up, Tomoyo tells him to quit joking around, but he tells her he serious, and that her being with him might keep her from her goals. She says “no”, and goes into many reasons why they shouldn’t breakup, she even tells him that she loves him, but he says that he doesn’t feel love for her. He tells her to fulfill her goals so that some day he can say that he dated a wonderful girl like her, she says OK and thanks him for dating her.

      Later at Youhei’s place, he tells Tomoya that he thought they got along well and that if he asked her to choose between him or the student counsel she would choose him, Tomoya tells him that it’s not that simple. Tomoya tries his best at school to do things right because he told Tomoyo that he didn’t need to rely on her. As time passes, Tomoya becomes a OK student and Tomoyo raises herself up to be one of the best students in Japan. More time passes and school graduation comes and Youhei and Tomoya prepare to look for jobs and begin life after school. After the graduation ceremony Tomoya heads home where he runs into Tomoyo on the snow covered path.

      When they meet, Tomoya asks her if she achieved her dream, and she says yes but she also lost something, eight months worth of time with the person she loves. She says she loves him even more than ever, and that she was always watching him. Tomoya tells her that he knows that, but she has much higher places to go than to be with him, but she says that she wants to be with him and it’s more important than schools or what teachers decided because it’s her choice. So, he finally agrees to be with her and she breaks down in tears and they embrace. At the end of the episode, Tomoya is shown heading to work with Tomoyo waiting for him with a smile and a bento for him on her way to school. That’s all of this episode.

A walk down the road not traveled.

      At many points in my life I’ve often thought about the roads not traveled, I can look back and wonder about how a different choice might have lead me down this path or that path. Normally us anime fans are left with reading or writing fan-fictions to travels certain alternate paths, so I would like to thank Key  and Kyoto Animation  for giving us fans this ultimate fan-service, a whole thirty minutes of an alternate reality. 

     Slipping into this alternative Clannad  universe of where Tomoya and Tomoyo are boyfriend and girlfriend was as easy as slipping into my favorite pair of slippers, soft, comfortable, and gentle. The storytelling in this episode was fully fleshed out and felt fulfilling due to the story being uncluttered by extra characters and distractions, the story pretty much only really included Tomoya and Tomoyo with a small dose of Youhei. I feel that limiting the story to a small cast gave the writers more freedom to really do their relationship justice.

        It was really sweet to see Tomoyo be able to achieve her dream of saving the Sakura trees, but as she said it came a great cost to her, as always to achieve great things great sacrifices must be made. I could really see how much Tomoya loved Tomoyo by his dedication to becoming a good student and doing what was necessary, he knew that Tomoyo would be worried about him so he had to do whatever he could to ease her burden.

      Many fans might argue that Tomoya was weak for caving into the pressure and breaking up with Tomoyo when he knew that she really loved him, and he really loved her. But, what he did was the ultimate show of the strength of his love for her, as you know in Japan they have a saying that goes something like “the nail that sticks up gets hammered down“, so rather than him having to watch Tomoyo get hammered down for her love of him he did the honorable and brave thing by sacrificing his love for her.

      Many Western fans might have preferred a “Graduate” moment with Tomoya storming into the council room and running off with Tomoyo, or a “Officer and a Gentleman“  moment with Tomoya carrying off Tomoyo in his arms, but that’s not reality and it’s certainly not possible in Japanese culture. But in the end Tomoya and Tomoyo’s conclusion was even better, after all their tears and all their suffering how sweet must the taste of their love must be? Bravo, great episode.

 

Antique Bakery 1 review, first look at a new series.

 

      This episode begins with a man (Keisuke Tachibana) having a vivid dream about being held prisoner as a child, while being held his abductor tries to feed him cake but he refuses. Then when the man awakens he tells his parents that he is quitting his job at a top company to start up a sweets shop, and his parents even vow to invest in the venture. Then we fast forward to the present day where a pastry baker (Yusuke Ono) is showing off his skills to Tachibana to try and win the bakers job.

 

        When the two guys were in high school together Ono once confessed his love to Tachibana, and Tachibana rejected him in a very brutal manner, now Tachibana wonders if Ono has forgotten the incident. Later, Keisuke asks Ono why there are always fights over him at his past places of employment and if that is the reason he always get fired, and Ono replies it’s because he’s devilishly gay. Tachibana laughs when Ono says this, but Ono changes his clothes and asks Tachibana to follow him somewhere. Upon hearing this Tachibana is curious so he agrees to follow him. Then we move to a scene inside a boxing gym where a young fighter (Eiji Kanda) is told by his coach that he must quit boxing because of an eye injury, the coach tries to help break the news by offering him some yummy cake.

       As the night draws near, Ono leads Tachibana to the gay section of town and takes him to his favorite gay bar where Tachibana sees the power that Ono has over other gay men and he also finds out that every straight man that Ono is around is also drawn to his power. Later Ono tells Tachibana about his coming out to a guy in high school and being rejected, and that he even thought about killing himself after the rejection, but that rejection led him to be able to admit and accept his lifestyle, and now he doesn’t even rem amber that guy’s name or face anymore, and soon Ono leaves the bar for a while with one of the young guys.

         Later when Tachibana and Ono are walking home Ono refuses the Job saying that since he has taken an interest in Tachibana it will end up like all the rest, and he tries to kiss Tachibana. But, Tachibana refuses the embrace telling Ono that it was him that refused his advances in high school. At first Ono doesn’t believe him, but eventually he is convinced and Ono agrees to work for the only man who ever refused his charms, and Ono tells him that he has no hard feelings about high school saying that because of his rejection he was able to live freely. After their talk, the younger guy who Ono was with earlier shows up again and Ono leaves with him. But while they are walking away we see a flashback where Ono clearly hasn’t forgotten the trauma of Tachibana’s rejection. Well, that’s all for this episode.

      Before I review the episode content I’d like to make mention of the opening and the ending animations, they are both different from the way a normal anime would be done. The opening sequence features drawn cutouts of characters moving around the digital background of the Antique Bakery, and the ending sequence features the characters and backgrounds done in a jigsaw puzzle fashion with pieces falling into water, I don’t know what to make of it but it’s different.

The opening.

The ending.

       Well, here goes my first blog review of a boy’s love/ shonen-ai anime, I’ve viewed this genre of anime before but with never much enjoyment. Let me explain, I’ll watch almost any type of anime as long as the character development and storyline is good. Years ago, when I was involved in a local anime club, every time a boy’s love/ shonen-ai/ yaoi movie or series was shown, I could never follow or let alone try to enjoy the viewing because of the squealing and howling of the fangirls, it would get so loud that it would drown out the audio system (I’m not lying about this).

       If I had ever shouted out some of the very same comments about the female characters in a harem anime series that I’d heard during those boy’s love/ shonen-ai/ yaoi showings, I would have probably have been banned for making sexually inappropriate comments. Oh well, that’s life.

      First of all, I found the initial plot and character development to be interesting, but a little slow for my liking. Also I found the story to be a little dark for my liking, all of the featured characters seem to harbor a dark cloud circling around their hearts, they try to keep this locked inside but every now and then it shows itself.

      Tachibana is an interesting contradiction between experience and actions, he clearly still harbors a almost post traumatic stress disorder like reaction to his childhood kidnapping but he chooses to quit his job and open a sweets shop. Maybe his attempts to run a sweets shop is an attempt to conquer his fear of sweets that he incurred during his kidnapping.

      Ono’s character is also interesting, the gay boy who mustered the courage to confess his love for one of the most popular heterosexual males in his school, then who was brutally rejected, manages to bounce back and become one of the most desirable gay male around. Ono is now working for the only male who ever rejected his love, this plot-line is typically used in shojo style storytelling where a cute, nice, normal girl rejects or is rejected by the most popular guy around only to have him either change his ways, or see her better qualities, then they hookup to find true love.

      The mood and the feel of this series is almost Gothic in nature, a vast majority of the episode occurred in darkness or dimly lit environments, and the background music was also in a Gothic style. The feeling I got when watching this series is that it could have easily been set in a Victorian time period. Overall, I find this series to be moderately interesting, and I will continue to watch it as long as they pickup the pace a little bit. 

 

Telepathy Shojo Ran 4 review, Midori has a crush!

      This episode begins with Ran and Midori becoming closer and more comfortable around each other, then Ran, Midori, and Rui start planning a trip they can go on during Golden Week. Ran and Midori argue about which hot spring to visit (yes, all anime must have a Onsen visit), but Rui wants to go to Hayate village because of an old legend. The village was supposed to have had a woman who could control people using magical grass (Emahi grass) (I don’t know about Emahi grass but in my younger days I knew of a few brands of grass that could control my mind), as Ran and Midori are arguing about the village they get a telepathic call for help coming from a woman.

       Midori seems to have had a bad reaction to their shared vision so Ran invites her back to her house for rest and dinner. Once they get to Ran’s house Midori seems to be instantly smitten by Ran’s older brother Rin, so she starts sucking up to Ran’s family by being super friendly and polite, much to Ran’s dismay.

       During dinner Midori keeps fawning over Rin, and later Ran’s father asks them if they want to go to a village called Hayate, he has a friend their that wanted his help researching some grass. Ran, Rui, and Midori  agree to go with him, but Rin and Ran’s mother have to stay home because of school exams and a book deadline. At the train station the group encounters a strange fog and Midori gets a uneasy feeling about the place, and they run into a group of villagers that are about to attack them until Ran’s father returns with his friend (Takizawa).

      On the drive towards the village Ran picks up some strange visions from her father’s friend and a sweet grass smell gets stronger, later Midori tries to read his mind but is blocked, so she warns Ran to be wary of him. Oh, by the way there is a monkey involved (Sanae) he clings to Rui making Ran jealous. When they get to Takizawa house they are served a meal made by a beautiful woman named Yurie, Ran’s father know both Takizawa and Yurie from their college days. While in Takizawa’s house the monkey seems to dislike/ fear Yurie.

       After looking over some pictures of Takizawa and Yurie, Ran asks them if Takizawa and Yurie were friends from childhood that were married, and when they say yes she makes comparisons between their situation and her and Rui’s current situation. Then Takizawa, Ran’s father, Ran, and Rui go to look for the magical grass Midori stays behind with Yurie. As they are driving through town Rui and Ran sees everybody fleeing at the sight of Takizawa’s car, and this makes them very uneasy.

      After a drive through the village, the group must proceed on foot and Ran hears a voice calling for help, back at the house Midori has even more visions. A guest arrives at the house and when Midori mentions Yurie’s name he flees in terror. Once the group arrives at the location of the grass, Ran again hears a voice calling for help. A little while later Midori hears the fleeing guest calling for help as his car is out of control and heading towards a wall, Midori tries to use her powers to save him but they won’t work and the car crashes into the wall. As Midori drags the man out of the car she uses her powers to tell Ran that the village is very dangerous. Well, that’s all for this episode.

      Well, this episode begins the first adventure of our junior high school physic detective agency. A couple of interesting but not unexpected things occur in this episode, first of all Ran and Midori seem to have become pretty good friends, it’s kind of nice seeing Midori in a relaxed and casual state.

      The second and not quite unexpected thing that happened in this episode was Midori falling for Ran’s older brother Rin. Midori, the girl that never really had any friends, is finally growing comfortable around people she feels will accept her or at least won’t hurt her is now able be like a almost normal girl, crushes and all.

      Overall, this is a nicely paced and executed anime with a supernatural plot line geared towards viewers of the junior high school age range, it has danger but a more mood and fear based danger rather than a violent and bloody danger. The show has romance in it, but is a general romance theme, Ran has a boyfriend and Midori is crushing on Ran’s brother, but it’s a romantic feel, not actual romance, blushing, flirting, small fleeting accidental touches here and there, nothing even mildly sexual in nature. I feel that it’s a nice anime for it’s intended viewing audience.

      Oh, I also like Midori’s sassy nature, I found it quite funny when Ran tells her she’s not acting cute now, and Midori replies that if she’s not cute than no other girl in the world can be called cute.

 

Weekly Anime Motivational Posters for the week of 7/14/2008

     Well, here are my two newest anime motivational posters for this week. Please feel free to click on the image to view at full size, enjoy.

 

Candy Candy 5 review, a flower in the attic.

       This episode begins with Candy telling Sisters Lane and Pony that she will be going to Lakewood to find her happiness. When Sister Pony asks her why the sudden decision, she tells them that Annie and everyone is always saying that you must find your own happiness so she’s going to find it herself. Sister Pony gives Candy her own cross as a gift, and Sister Lane gives Candy a new set of PJ’s as a gift. Sister Pony tells Candy to be strong and not to cry when things get tough, and Candy asks them not to tell the other children that she’s leaving. The next morning Candy goes and says her goodbyes to all the children before they awake, Sister Lane says that of all the children Candy will be the hardest to let go.

      As Candy is walking away from Pony home Kurin tries to leave with her but she tries to give him the slip but he won’t leave her so she tells him to come along. As Candy is walking to Lakewood she runs into Tom and his father, Tom seems to be doing very well with his adoptive parents. Tom and Candy have a lasso contest and Tom finally beats Candy, he tells her that he always did his best because of her. When Candy tells them that she’s being adopted by the Leagans Tom asks her if she would be better off with a regular family, she tells him that she will always be Candy.

      Tom’s father thinks that it’s a bad idea for Candy to move in with the Leagans but he keeps his thoughts to himself, and her tells her to be strong, cheerful, and not to cry. When Candy gets to the Leagan’s house she thinks that it’s right out of a fairy tale, but as she walking up to the door some children (Eliza and Neil) dump water on her from above and make fum out of her. So, Candy uses her lasso to capture Neil, but as she demands an apology, Neil’s mother comes out to see whats going on. Later, Candy gets introduced to the family by Mr. Stewart, and Candy wonders where the prince on the hill is.

 

      When Candy tries to talk to Neil and Eliza with a friendly tone their mother tells her to call them mister, and miss, and Candy asks if that’s the way siblings talk to each other. The mother asks Mr. Stewart what was Candy told, well, he says that Mr. Leagan wanted Candy as a playmate for Eliza. So the mother tells Candy she’ll be treated as a daughter but she shouldn’t think of Neil or Eliza as her brother and sister. Later, a maid (Dorothy) comes to show Candy to her room in the attic, on the way up Neil and Eliza try to throw a cat at Candy but she dodges it and it hits Dorothy knocking her down the stairs. When Neil uses Candy’s new PJ’s as a rag to wipe his shoes, Candy attacks him, then Neil and Eliza are saved by Mr. Stewart.

      Later in her attic room, Candy says that even though the room isn’t the prettiest it is still a room just for her. Later the mother calls Candy downstairs where she tells Candy to apologise or leave, and Candy says that she’ll leave rather than live with such horrible people. Just then, Mister Leagan walks in and tells them the he thought that a strong country girl like Candy might strengthen them up, as they begin to argue with him he tells everyone to just let it go, and then he retires form the room for the night.

      After the father leaves the room, Neil and Eliza still demand an apology from Candy but she refuses to apologize, so the mother tells Candy that if she refuses she will fire Dorothy. They make Candy kneel and apologize in order to save Dorothy’s job, and later when she’s in her room Candy breaks down in tears even though everyone told her to be strong. As Candy is crying in her room, Dorothy comes in and consoles her, and Candy asks her if she’s unhappy and why she just doesn’t leave. She tells Candy that she has eight brothers and sisters, and that whenever she’s unhappy she just thinks about them.

     As Dorothy and Candy are talking, Kurin knocks over a picture and it turns out to be Candy’s prince on the hill, and Candy asks if Dorothy knows him, and she says yes he comes around every once and a while. So, Candy resolves to stay and tough it out because she’ll soon be with her prince. Well, that’s all for now.

      Sometimes fairy tales come true and sometimes they don’t, and it looks like Candy’s tale is about to turn in to a Brothers Grimm dark tale. Candy the bright, cheerful, outgoing girl who’s never lied in her life has just walked into a den of wolves, and since she’s never dealt with those kind of people she’s in for a rude awakening. Mr. Leagan’s intentions might have been in the right place by wanting Candy to change his children, but he clearly doesn’t like strife so he won’t stand on the side of right.

     Candy, at this point should have gotten the hell out of that house but decides to try and tough it out after talking with Dorothy. When Candy finds out that her “prince on the hill” visits the Leagan every so often it just strengthens her resolve to stay, ah-love, what a powerful thing. This anime is great shojo melodrama, the romantic dreams of a sweet young girl collides with the cruel reality of a uncaring household, while life for Candy will be dark and foreboding, it will make her moments of joy even sweeter.