Kare Kano vol 12

 In volume 11 the story shifted to focusing on Shibahime's step-brother Kazuma.  Kazuma's summer is filled with Shibahime and his band, the two things that he loves.  The band consumes much of his life and passion and when he realizes the pain and rejection that Shibahime has dealt with in her life, his guilt begins to overwhelm him.  She clings to him desperately but he realizes music will cause her to be alone again.  His feelings for her grow stronger and the fear of hurting or loosing her causes him to avoid her.  When she confronts him about his confusing behavior he lashes out at her and runs away from home.

     Kazuma has run away from home because he is unable to deal with his growing feelings for Shibahime.  Instead he decides to focus his entire life around music, quiting school to do so.  At this point everyone around him realizes how he feels, except for Shibahime and his mother understandably allows him to travel the path he chooses.  The turmoil from his emotional stress causes his artistic abilities to engage and he begins writing new material for the band.  A song that is a love letter to his step-sister causes the band to gain incredible attention through out the music community, pushing them to relent and sign to a major label.

     Meanwhile Shibahime is again alone and lost.  All she see's around her is the images and sounds of Kazuma.  It gets to be painful enough that she unknowingly begins to block out his music.  Her friends remain mostly oblivious to the pain she is going through and wonder at her odd behavior, while they are swept away in the popularity of her step-brothers band.  Shibahime ends up in the hospital due to exhaustion and malnutrition.  Kazuma decides to confront her and express his love for her, regardless of the outcome.  As he suspected, she does not view him in the same way and rejects his decision.  Not wanting to lose her, he tells her that she will always be the most important person in her life.  Willing to wait forever if she opens up her heart more to him.  After a successful tour the band comes back to Tokyo to play the famous Budokan.  Kazuma gifts Shibahime a ticket in the front row, in the hopes that he can reach out to her.  For the first time she is able to hear his words and hear his heart.

 

    The final segment deals with a peak into the life of the least talked about person in the friend group, Sena Rika.  Rika considers herself normal and just enjoys life in the background.  She doesn't recognize her amazing sewing as anything special.  Shibahime's father was so impressed with her clothing design work for the cultural festival play that he unofficially offered her a job at his company.  While she has known Shibahime, Arima and Tsubaki since middle school, she has been friends with Aya since kindergarten.  The two spent as much time together as kids as possible, even if Aya was a bit sadistic.  They always spent time with Aya's older brother, who over time grew to develop feelings for Rika.  Rika comes to visit Aya as she works hard on her next novel and is able to spend time with Aya's older brother.  She comes to realize she has feelings for him and recognizes that he is probably too shy to express them himself.  In a moment of shared understanding the things they can not say end up being conveyed.

 

 

Kare Kano vol 11

 In volume 10 we learn how Maho ended up with a boyfriend 12 years her senior.  The group also has fun and excitement during a school trip to Kyoto and we flashback to the day of the entrance exam and how all of the characters worked through it.  Arima was late due to making sure Shibahime made it, his disturbance upon arriving in the exam room after the start appears to have caused enough of a lapse in Miyazawa's concentration that she ended up in second place.

    Volume 11 focuses primarily from the view point of Shibahime's step-brother Kazuma.  Even though the band he was made lead singer of, Yin and Yang, is incredibly popular on the indy scene, he feels like an intruder.  The rest of the band are established adults and he is a high school student who doesn't feel he brings anything to it.  He struggles with thoughts of the band just being nice to him.  He is also effected by the opinions of those around him that are critical.  The band, sensing his unease, try to convince him to ignore the naysayers.  As a way to encourage him to have faith in himself they invite him to start writing songs, to help facilitate a sense of belonging and ownership in the band.  While he struggles with creating useful content, the band mates encourage him to keep going, understanding that he will improve with time and experience.

    With summer making more time for Kazuma, the band decides to focus on playing as many live shows as possible.  The constant performing and long nights out mean that Shibahime is not able to spend as much time with her step-brother as she would like.  Kazuma enjoys spending time with her and cherishes her, but music calls to him in a way that he can't avoid.  Miyazawa and the friend group attend one concert and are overtaken by the performance and Kazuma's part in it.  Shibahime realizes that her desire to have Kazuma all to herself is impossible, recognizing the draw music has on him, she again finds herself coming in second place.  All she desires is to have someone who cars about her above anything else, something she lost with her father, then lost with Arima and is now losing with Kazuma.  When he learns about her past feelings for Arima and what the loss of him to Miyazawa means he also recognizes what his pursuit of music is doing to her.

    It is unclear what type of relationship Shibahime wants with Kazuma.  Is it the love of a companion or that of a husband?  After recognizing the emotional turmoil she continues to go through, his love for her turns to more than just brotherly.  These new feelings make him uncomfortable around her.  He doesn't know how she will receive them and fears that the relationship they have will disappear if he tells her about his changing feelings.  Them being step siblings complicates it further, but his band mates, recognizing their connection sooner, encourages him to be honest with her.  In a moment of weakness, as she confronts him about his avoidance, he pushes her away.  Unable to deal with the situation he leaves home, to stay with the band, while he figures out his situation.

Continue on to volume 12.

Kare Kano vol 10

 In vol 9 the cultural festival finally begins.  The play Miyazawa and her friends perform is well received and strikes a chord with many people.  Jubilant in the success and the high she has from the performance Miyazawa unknowingly begins to create a rift in her relationship with Arima.  In a short time she has gone from willfully being alone to having a growing group to support her.  Arima on the other hand senses that the closed world with he and Miyazawa is quickly evaporating and he is sliding into a darkness that may consumer him with out anyone being aware.

     We begin with a flash back to Maho in her final year of middle school and how she came to have a boyfriend who is 12 years her senior.  She had decided to change up her route home in order to enjoy the gardens and homes of a more modern section of the neighborhood.  At one particular apartment complex she meets a young man who she assumes is a doorman.  A few days later she meets again as he treats a wound she received while stopping the girls she was with from shoplifting.  Yusuke is a dentist in the area who lives on his own.  She begins to go out of her way as much as possible so she can see him, enjoying his calming presence in her tumultuous life.  At one point she admits that she is in love with him, much to his horror.  Before things can get too complicated he tells her that she should leave him alone, that he is too old for her and he is not interested in being in a relationship with a child.  She appears to accept that only to return months later, after the was accepted into high school.  She convinces him that their relationship is something that will work out in the future and to have patience with her.  That she isn't just trying to rebel by chasing after a grown man with a career.  

    After the quick look at Maho's interesting situation the focus returns to school as the students head to Kyoto for their class trip.  Miyazawa groups up with all of her new girl friends and Arima is grouped with Tonami and Asaba.  Even though they are split into different groups they end up being together, exploring and sight seeing.  Many of them stand out among the crowd and draw unwanted attention at times.  In one incident Arima punches a guy who pushed Miyazawa after the other girls rejected their attention.  At one point everyone gets separated into smaller groups, with Miyazawa and Arima enjoying a relaxing afternoon visiting temples.  The following day she comes down with a cold, leaving him to worry about her.  As she comes out of a deep rest from the cold she catches a glimpse of the hidden personality of the man she loves, as he looks after her.  It is gone as soon as she sees it and is unable fully comprehend what it represents.  She asks him to start calling her by her first name, to try and continue the evolution of their relationship.  The trip ends up being mostly uneventful and the characters return home after much fun and adventure exploring the old capital.

    The final segment of this volume is a flashback of the high school entrance exam.  It shows the characters as they head to and work through the exam which will ultimately change many of their lives.  Miyazawa is in top form and quite confident she will be able to get the best score.  Arima ends up being late to the exam when he decides to head back to Shibahime's house.  He encountered the rest of the friends who were waiting for her, he tells them to go on ahead, that he will make sure she makes it.  When he arrives into the examination room, late, the disturbance interrupts Miyazawa's test taking aura and she falters slightly on the first exam.  With this circling back to a past that exists now because of what has transpired in the manga, we see it is Arima's fault that Miyazawa did not get the highest marks on the exam.

Continue on to volume 11.

Kare Kano vol 9

 In vol 8 we saw the girls bring their prep work for the cultural festival almost to completion.  Takifumi recognizes and acts upon his true feelings for Tsubaki.  A typhoon forces Arima to spend the night at the Miyazawa residence where he learns that her father also came from a childhood without real parents.

        As soon as it begins, the relationship between Takefumi and Tsubaki ends.  He realizes he can't force her to end her free spirited ways and doesn't want to prevent her from being herself.  While wallowing in his own misery he begins to understand what Arima sees in Miyazawa.  He recognizes that the Arima he knew in the past was a facade and Miyazawa saw through it.  Unlike everyone else, she sees him as a normal person, with flaws and needs, instead of the perfect student.

    After all of the hasty preparation the cultural festival finally begins.  Shibahime's step brother and his band show up, causing a commotion when they take over the stage for an impromptu concert.  Miyazawa's family visits the kendo club stall and her little sisters are saved from lecherous strangers by the ever growing friend group.  As they are about to perform their play Maho is struck with stage freight.  The appearance of her much older boyfriend does not help matters much, but she gathers up her courage and the play is on at last.

    The play takes place in the future, after human-like androids have been created to assist humanity.  Their original creator enters into self imposed exile with his original android.  He is woken from cryo freeze 80 years later by the most advanced descendant of the androids he created.  The new model desires nothing more than to understand it's creator.  But the man dodges questions about himself, instead probing deep into the new androids functions and abilities, all while his previous original model begins to breakdown.  The first half of the play ends with the man confronting his troubling past.  The concepts brought up for the past the man is trying to escape, who is being played by Miyazawa, deeply affects Arima.  

 

        The first half concludes to much applause.  The depictions of the characters are also closely based on the people who play them.  The group scrambles to print out a synopsis of the first act to bring people up to speed who will only be able to see the second act.  The second act begins and it deals with the mans hidden past.  In his youth he was shunned and hated by his peers due to his low intelligence and poorness.  A woman named Rose connects with him but eventually leaves him, leaving him in deep despair.  Years later she returns and forces him to adopt her daughter, who the man loves with all of his heart.  But that love turns dark as he tries to keep her all to himself, eventually leading to her death.  Realizing the terrible mistakes he has made he attempts to kill himself, but survives and jars his brain to the point that it unlocks his true intelligence.  Once he recovers he uses his new gift to make a better life for himself, no longer shunned by humanity.  He pursues the creation and perfection of androids as a way to make his mark on the world.  Success brings his dark past to public scrutiny which causes him to flee Earth and leave the world behind, choosing isolation for relief and atonement.

    The play ends to a roar of applause and the friends involved in its creation are ecstatic.  Tsubaki tracks down Takefumi to convince him to continue their relationship, he relents, even though he understands he will never be able to have as much of her attention as he desires.  Miyazawa finally finds Arima and her exuberance shifts their relationship into a perilous trajectory.  She has grown so much in a few short months.  At first utterly alone to sharing a closed world with the man she loves to being involved with a growing group of friends, creating something greater than her own accomplishments.  Her revelry in her new found freedom strikes a blow to Arima who recognizes that the closed world he shares with her is evaporating, leaving him alone again.

Continue on to volume 10.

    

Kare Kano vol 8

 In volume 7 the second semester begins with it everyone needing to prepare for the upcoming cultural festival.  Aya the friend group to put on a play that she has written.  A new student has transferred that had once gone to school with many of Miyazawa's friends.  During his time away he completely remade himself and is hiding his identity in order to exact revenge on Tusbaki.  Meanwhile Arima plunges deeper into the darkness in his heart as he struggles with his relationship with Miyazawa.

    Everyone works hard as the cultural festival fast approaches, building the sets, memorizing their lines, filling every minute they can towards the endeavor.  Sensing his unease, Miyazawa tells Arima that they will spend as much time together as possible after the festival.  After being warned to not be so friendly with Miyazawa, he begins to recognize an intense jealousy from Arima. Takifumi comes to the realization that his feelings towards Tsubaki aren't hatred but love.  In a moment alone they both admit a love for the other and become a couple.  With that desire for revenge behind him, willed Takefumi be able to heal the sudden divide between he and Arima?

    Just before the festival a typhoon hits the area.  Arima walks Miyazawa home and is made to stay until her father comes home safely.  Miyazawa struggles with the fact that everyone loves her boyfriend, making her question her special place in his life.  When her father comes home he insists that Arima spend the night due to the fierceness of the typhoon.  As they go to bed he and Arima connect over being orphaned as children.  That night, with Miyazawa under the same roof as him, he sleeps peacefully for the first time in years.  But the darkness still lurks in him, wanting to keep the love of his life all to himself, selfishly wishing to restrict her freedoms.  He is afraid of loosing her, fearing that she will one day outgrow her need for him.  He believes that he can no longer grow and without her in his life it will be a radical shift backwards, fulfilling his destiny.

    For the most part the anime ended with only a few pieces of story coming from this volume.  We see a stronger emphasis on Arima's mental health and the struggles with his own happiness and his reliance on Miyazawa.  Miyazawa revels in her blossoming social life and only partially picks up on her boyfriend's dilemma.

Continue on to volume 9.

Kare Kano vol 7

 In volume 6 we learned more about how Miyazawa's parents grew up and fell in love.  The time away from Arima causes her to grow more lonely.  When he returns her love for him overwhelms her and she struggles with expressing herself.  Arima becomes bolder and confesses his desire to make love to her.  Arima struggles with his self worth after a family gathering in which his relatives remind him of his worthlessness.  Before the end of summer Miyazawa and Arima become more intimate, moving their relationship to a place they cannot return from.

    The second semester begins with everyone having to focus on the cultural festival.  The class that does the best can win one of a few desirable rewards.  Miyazawa is fired up for a chance to get notes taken by a past student who graduated to attend Tokyo U.  But Asaba's class has a foil proof plan to win, the Asaba Dinner Theater.  Meanwhile Aya, who is a professional writer outside of school, puts together a sci-fi play that she wants to wrangle everyone into for the cultural festival.

    The second semester also brings a transfer student who had moved to Okinawa three years earlier and is now back to make his own high school debut.  The transfer, Tonami Takefumi could present a problem for Miyazawa's new friend Sakura Tsubaki.  In elementary school Tsubaki was tasked with protecting the sickly and hated Tonami from bullies. Unfortunately for him Tsubaki was no better than the bullies.  When he left, knowing he would return in a few years, he vowed to drastically change himself.  He went away a sickly, short and fat cry-baby and came back a tall, healthy star athlete.  Now he just needs to exact his revenge on the girl who tormented him the most.

    Due to he and Arima getting along previously, Takefumi is welcomed into the friend group.  Miyazawa sees a kindred spirit in Takefumi because of how much work they have both put into improving themselves.  Arima on the other hand starts to feel a distance growing between he and Miyazawa.  He struggles with her sharing something with someone other than him.  As the jealousy grows inside of him what will it mean for the way he reacts to the people around him?

    After much plotting and planning Aya convinces Miyazawa to go along with the play, which then works to convince the other targets for the production to join.  They then work to get approval from the student council and secure an advisor for the temporary club.  Excited by it happening the hard work of producing the play begins.  Arima hangs on the outskirts, looking in, feeling helpless and disconnected from Miyazawa.  Everyone is pitching in for the performance and connecting with her in ways he is unable to.  He begins to doubt if he is worthy of Miyazawa's love, fearing that their connection is tenuous.  As he sits on the sidelines, helpless, he begins to dwell on his utter reliance of Miyazawa.  In contrast, she keeps growing, even when he is not around.  He begins to believe that he is the lesser one in their relationship, instead of equals.  Even though she said she wants to rely on him, she really doesn't need to rely on anyone.  But he desperately needs her to keep the darkness in his heart at bay.

 

Continue on to volume 8.

Kare Kano vol 6

 In volume 5 we begin to learn about the different and sometimes challenging home lives of Miyazawa's growing circle of friends.  While Arima is off for the kendo club she grows closer to Tsubasa who is struggling with issues of her father wanting to remarry.  The Miyazawa's take some time to visit Yukino's maternal grandfather and we begin to learn about how her parents met as children and fell in love over time.

    The story about Yukino's parents past continues as her father and mother move from being in middle school to being in high school together two years later.  Still unable to express their feelings until after his grandfather passes away.  Hiroyuki is at a loss following the death of his only family, especially because of the loss of being able to repay the kindness and care that he was given.  On the cusp of adulthood, Hiroyuki has planned to do everything in his power to make sure the gentle man who raised him could live in the comfort he deserved.  Unfortunately, he was unable to achieve the dream in time.  In comfort for his pain Miyako expresses her desire to be there for him in the way that he wanted to be there for his grandfather.  They were married after she graduated high school, much to her fathers horror.

    When Arima finally returns from his responsibility as a member of the kendo club they are able to go on a date.  Arima has matured while away and Miyazawa is uncomfortable with her renewed love for him.  She struggles with telling him her feelings and awkwardly avoids contact on their date.  Frustrated he confronts her about her behavior, afraid she has actually started to dislike him.  She attempts to run away but he chases her and forces her to come clean.  For the first time they openly confirm their love for one another.

     Arima and his parents attend a family gathering, which tend to be emotionally draining on him.  Because of his real father's theft and disappearance everyone else in the family views Souichiro as a bad apple from a rotten tree.  Even after his step father scolds his aunt about her blatant hatred for him, Arima struggles to find his worth.  That is until Miyazawa shows up delivering notes for summer homework.  He realizes how much she helps keep him from his despair.  He confesses to her that he wants to make love to her.  While it causes momentary awkwardness it doesn't stop them from enjoying the last of summer break.  

    Nearing the end of break a thunderstorm brings them alone to Arima's house where there passions take over and the reach a new level on intimacy.  Miyazawa revels in the deeper connection with Arima but that night, when she is away from him in her own bed, he has a nightmare about his cursed existence.  An inner him reminds him that he can never truly be happy.

Continue on to volume 7.
 

Cowboy Bebop

 Cowboy Bebop (カウボーイビバップ) is the legendary sci-fi series created by Watanabe Shinichiro.  The series ran for 26 episodes between 1997 and 1998 and had a theatrical movie in 2001.

    Cowboy Bebop follows the adventures of a ragtag group of misfits traveling the Solar System near the end of the 21st century, doing what ever they can to keep surviving.  The series begins with bounty hunter partners Spike Spiegel and Jet Black, who travel between colonies and communities in the Solar System aboard the Bebop.  Travel is made possible through warp gates and humanity has spread between Mars and Jupiter following a catastrophic accident involving a gate on the Moon.  Jet, an ex-cop, owns and operates the Bebop working with Spike to collect bounties.  Spike had previously worked as an assassin for a wide spread crime syndicate,  He faked his own death following troubles with a woman associated with the syndicate that he had fallen in love with.  Eventually a third bounty hunter named Faye Valentine forces her way onto the Bebop.  Faye had been under cryogenic stasis for decades, having been born near the end of the 20th century.  Her gambling habit seeming to be a catalyst for her 'career' as a bounty hunter.  As the trio go back and forth chasing leads for huge payouts a forth member forces their way onto the ship in the form of a child prodigy hacker from Earth named Ed.

    The overall plot point of the series, which is primarily episodic in nature, is Spikes equal from the crime syndicate, Vicious, who begins to hunt him down once it is learned he lives.  Spike had attempted to steal Vicious' girlfriend and flee the syndicate.  Before they could get away Vicious set up a trap to kill him.  After years of being dead, Spike's re-emergence aggravates Vicious as he plans a coup on the syndicate.  Spike on the other hand seems to have a death wish as he is constantly pulled towards Vicious and the women he almost died for, dragging the rest of the Bebop crew into his personal problems.

     Bebop is now one of the legendary iconic anime and in some ways its a deserved title.  It presented a different style of anime at a time when TV anime was beginning a massive change in how it approached things.  The series is a finely crafted mash up of classic B movies; western, Hong Kong action, body horror, mafia, cyberpunk, the list goes on.  The style and character influences are numerous and hail from a golden age of cinema.  Between its eclectic and catchy soundtrack to it's distinct and lovable main characters the show has a lot to enjoy.  When it comes to fans of anime, across different generations, its hard to find people who have not seen or heard about the series and the response is generally positive.

    So why the hell did it take me close to 20 years to actually finish watching it?  I have no idea.  Laziness?  Distracted by other things?  I started watching it around the turn of the century when the fansubs were the only thing available and then bought the DVD box set in 2008.  I watched the fansubs up until episode 20 and never continued the series.  I knew how it ended and everything for years and years, and watched the movie when it played in the theater locally.  Yet, for some reason I was never compelled enough to finish the story.  I did eventually do that after 2 failed attempts at getting my kids to watch it, the 3rd time worked and we jammed through the entire thing in a weekend, with much satisfaction to finally be done with it.  But what does Bebop mean for me now, after all this time?  The Blue soundtrack see's semi frequent rotation in my vehicle and I still lust for a really well details model of the Swordfish.  Finishing the series was satisfying in a way that did not lead to a desire for more.  I've probably watched the first 12 episodes a dozen times but may never watch any of them again.  I think the repeated viewing were attempts to get on with watching the whole thing, but always wanting to start from the beginning.  Yet I would undoubtedly become disinterested and stop.  I don't dislike the series, I greatly respect it and recommend it to anyone who hasn't enjoyed it. But it's become a thing of the past that doesn't need to be revisited any longer.  But how much has Bebop really shaped anime overall?  Or did it just imprint something into Western audiences that has made it more sacred than it really is?

    Cowboy Bebop, while a little late at first, has been widely available commercially for a long time and is very easy to track down.  It's typically available on any number of streaming services as well.

Kare Kano vol 5

    In volume 4 Miyazawa finds her self both ostracized by the girls in her class and the target of revenge by an old acquaintance of Arima's.  Tsubasa refuses to give up her love for Arima sand continues to relent until her own friends absorb Miyazawa into their circle and she is forced to confess her true feelings to Arima.  Miyazawa's new companions help her to work through the issues with her own class and confront the ring leader, Maho, about the silent treatment  Summer marks the end of the first semester and all of the problems the young couple encounter.  But before they can plan to see each other continuously Arima has to concentrate on his duties in the kendo club as they compete in the nationals tournament.  Will they ever achieve a long stretch of comfort and security?

    Miyazawa kicks off her summer by spending a day with her new friends, including her recent enemy, Maho.  She gets to know how everyone first met the other and the reason's they became and continue stay friends.  The other girls each have their own special talent that makes them unique and Miyazawa ruminates on her complete lack of ability outside of studying.  Maho agrees that she too needs to find a greater purpose than the praise of others and suggest that they work together to find their true selves.  After a day of fun, everyone heads their separate ways, with the exception of Tsubasa, who has suddenly decided to attach herself to Miyazawa.  Fearing for what it may mean Maho is also made to join the festivities.  Once the three girls are on their own, Tsubasa reveals she is running away from home, planning to stay at Miyazawa's house.

    Tsubasa is running away from home because her father is planning to remarry.  Her mother died in child birth so it has been Tsubasa and her dad only.  While he loves her with all of his heart, he also has a demanding job and is forced to leave her in other people's care.  Due to the way she was raised she has become quite selfish and emotionally stunted.  Her father, and the woman he wants to marry, arrive at the Miyazawa residence in order to resolve the problem.  Tsubasa though refuses to budge and tells the woman that she hates her.  Tsubasa is shaken when her father slaps her for the first time in her life.  They leave, letting her stay at overnight with her new friend, but expect her to be more mature about the situation moving forward.

    The woman who Tsubasa's father wants to marry has a son the same age, and lost her husband when he was young.  She too has been in need of someone else to look to for support.  Tsubasa agrees to meet her son who surprises her by his appearance and attitude as the member of a rock band.  Kazuma is incredibly happy to meet Tsubasa's father and with the opportunity to have a little sister...except Tsubasa is actually the older one.  A few days later they run into each other on the street and he helps her deal with a pedophile.  They go back to his apartment afterwards and she gets to see that they have a lot in common.  Both being single children of working single parents, having a life in which you are greeted only by an empty home every day.  This greater understanding convinces Tsubasa that she can give her father her blessings.  What once was two lonely families of two is now a family of four.

    Asaba spends an afternoon at the Miyazawa residence after Yukino's father refuses to let them go to the pool together.  She learns that Asaba lives on his own due to he and his father not getting along.  The discussion about his complicated home life brings Yukino's idyllic life into stark contrast.  Many of her new friends come from complicated families, far different from her own. She comes to realize the struggles that others face help to define them and give them different skills for navigating through life.  In contrast her life has been taken for granted, coming form a stable and very loving environment.  She doesn't think she is able to be as strong as those around her because she has never experienced real hardship.

    The Miyazawa family heads to her maternal grandfathers house for some time away.  Her father and mother begin to talk about their childhood and how there love grew, even against the wishes of Miyako's father.  Her father still hates Yukino's dad and tries to fight as much as possible, while cherishing his daughter and granddaughters to no end.  As Yukino's parents go shopping for dinner they reminisce about their childhood in the neighborhood that has changed with time.  Yukino's father, Hiroyuki, was the terror of the neighborhood as a child, feared even by many adults for his uncontrollable behavior.  Hiroyuki lived alone in a large mansion with his elderly grandfather.  With the amount of terror Hiroyuko reigned through the neighborhood, his grandfather showed him nothing but love and compassion, understanding he was the only stable thing in the young boys life.

 

    Miyako met Hiroyuki when she was four and he six, and did whatever she could to hang out with him, even with his dangerous habits.  She was drawn to him because he had lost both of his parents just as she had lost her mother.  While somewhat separated during middle school, it is the moment they run into each other when she enters the same school that he realizes his love for her.

Continue on to volume 6.

Rascal Does Not Dream of a Dreaming Girl

 Rascal Does Not Dream of a Dreaming Girl (青春ブタ野郎はゆめみる少女の夢を見ない) is a theatrical slice of life supernatural romance movie based on the light novel of the same name and Rascal Does Not Dream of His First Love, both by Kamoshide Hajime and MIzoguchii Keeji.  The movie was released in Japan in 2019.

 

 

  - WARNING - 

THIS REVIEW NECESSITATES SPOILERS THAT ARE PRETTY IMPORTANT TO THE PLOT OF THE FILM AND WILL RUIN YOUR VIEWING EXPERIENCE.  PROCEED WITH CAUTION.

    

    The movie picks up about a month after the last episode of the TV series, covering the 6th and 7th books in the light novel series.  We find Sakuta finally being able to enjoy his life, even if the post 'adolescent syndrome' version of his sister is gone.  He and Mai can finally get down to being a couple...that is until the adult Makinohara Shoko turns up again.  She reveals that she and the younger Shoko are connected and due to that she is unable to return home until the situation she finds herself in is resolved.  Expressing her fondness for Sakuta, she forces herself into living at his apartment until then.  Mei, not wanting anything to develop between her boyfriend and his first love, also forces herself to stay at his apartment.  Sakuta's fantasy is quickly squashed by Mei and he is force to sleep alone in the living room.

    It is soon learned that the younger Shoko is suffering from a heart issue, leading to her being frequently hospitalized and in need of a heart transplant.  Older Shoko's 'adolescent syndrome' as well as Sakuta's seem to be tied to younger Shoko's physical ailment.  After some prodding and questioning, older Shoko reveals a few key pieces of information to Sakuta about the connection and the reason they are suffering from the syndrome.  While not knowing everything, the amount he does learn pushes him towards making the most important decision he has ever faced.  The consequences of the way he solves the issue prove to be more disastrous than he imagined, leaving him to fall into a dark depression.

     It took me a long time to gather my thoughts about how to approach discussing this movie.  It had a significant impact on my mental health to be honest.  The closest I can come to the emotional reaction I had would be Koizora with its emotional roller coaster of a story.  At one point I stood up and yelled in shock and horror, my daughter asking me if we should pause the film so I could calm down.  At first I was not going to write about it for the blog, but then thought I would instead write something talking about the characters and premises of the series in-depth.  The I decided to do a basic review, not revealing any major plot points of the movie.  Still with this draft of the post I tried to hide as much of the surprise portions of the story as possible.  But I was still unsatisfied with writing what amounted to be an empty description of this film that affected me as much as it did.  To reiterate, this movie did some emotional damage to me.  So here we are, with a fourth attempt at conveying my thoughts and feelings about this movie for the blog.

    I absolutely loved this film and strongly desire more of the story to be available.  I greatly enjoy time travel, parallel world manipulation and emotionally realistic and riveting tales.  Which is one of the reasons The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is one of my top movies of all time (not just compared to other anime).  This movie does a really fantastic job of entering that list as well.  From the first episode of the TV series I had fallen in love with the characters, the writing and the world.  I had a great fondness already going into the movie and when it suddenly drops a heart-wrenching tale on top of a very agreeable setting...yeah, it was very impactful.  The movie ends in a way that can reasonably be thought of as the conclusion of Sakuta's world from a literary point.  But, the light novel has kept going from this point, pushing out three more volumes at the time of this posts creation.  While we know there is more story to translate to video the movie ends in a way that is satisfying from a completion-ist viewpoint.  All of the answers have been given to whats been going on with everyone involved, so anything else would just be starting fresh from new plot lines.  But given that there is more story we will hopefully see that brought to the screen in due time...until then I await the English adaptions of the light novels to hurry the hell up!

 

 

 

Inuyashiki

 Inuyashiki (いぬやしき) is a seinen science fiction manga created by Oku Hiroya.  The manga was published between 2014 and 2017 in Evening.  The story was also adapted into a 11 episode anime that was broadcast in the Fall of 2017 as well as a live action movie.

    Inuyashiki Ichiro is a middle aged salary-man who looks much older than he really is.  Due to his appearance and passive nature, his family and everyone else walks all over him.  When he learns that he has terminal cancer he takes a stroll through a local park to clear his mind.  For better or worse, the stroll leads to him being caught in an accident caused by a passing extra terrestrial vehicle.  The inhabitants of the vehicle, not wanting to disturb the balance of the planet, resurrect Inuyashiki with cyborg technology.  Unfortunately, the body they inserted his consciousness into was a military unit, capable of massive destruction.  Inuyashiki does not realize that he is no longer human until the next day when an attempt to quench his thirst leads to his body opening up to vent steam.  No longer constrained by the limits of his dying flesh and blood body, Inuyashiki sees an opportunity to make his mark on the world, as someone who works as a hero for those in need.

    While Inuyashiki assumes the role of geriatric Batman another person suffered the same fate as him that night in the park, a high school student named Shishigami Hiro.  While Inuyashiki assumes the roll of protector, Shishigami lets his nihilistic adolescent mindset direct him to a path of murder.  As Inuyashiki works to save people around him, Shishigami becomes a plague that randomly murders families in quiet neighborhoods.  Inevitably the two will have to confront each other, Inuyashiki as the only other force on Earth that can withstand Shishigami and what his loss of humanity propels him to do.

    As with Oku's well known series, Gantz, the artwork of Inuyashiki is impeccable.  Sadly that is the only thing really going for it.  The story is a banal good vs evil redemption tale that is only made interesting by the nature of its protagonist as a downtrodden middle aged man.  Beyond that there is not much new to add to this story archetype.  While the read and watch are enjoyable, in the end the story is rather boring with the most interesting aspect only referenced in the very beginning, the aliens who imbued the dead characters with new unstoppable cyborg bodies.  Shishigami is an incredibly boring and predictable persona, pushing teenage nihilism to a frequently visited extremity.  His motivations are vague, the dynamic he shares with the characters he does not kill are also equally rote.  Even Inuyashiki's role is that of the paint by numbers unsuspecting hero figure.  Learning his powers as new ways to achieve his self affirming role at savior over the course of the story, awaiting the impending final confrontation.

    While reading the manga as it came out I enjoyed the story, but when I went through it again in one large chunk with the anime adaptation it became apparent how shallow and boring the story actually was.  As with Gantz the anime has a hard time matching the details from the manga, which is Oku's strongest ability.  Gantz however had an interesting mystery plot where Inuyashiki sets up how the entire story will go almost from the beginning.  The anime is a well done and faithful retelling of the story however.  But after everything, Inuyashiki is rather forgettable and not worth the effort.

 

    The manga was available on Crunchyroll as it was being released but has since been removed.  The tankoubon are available in English by Kodansha.  The anime is currently not available on disc in North America.

Kare Kano vol 4

 In volume 3 Miyazawa and Arima finally get the chance to spend time together as a couple.  Unfortunately their time spent going on dates has impacted their grades.  Due to the performance issues on the end of term exam their teachers attempt an intervention in the relationship.  The two fight back and force the teachers to involve their parents.  Much to the surprise of everyone, both sets of parents stand behind the children continuing their relationship.  Just as things appear to resume their desired course a classmate is turning the girls against Miyazawa.

    A new rival for Arima's affection shows up as the first term nears it's end.  Shibahime Tsubasa had an accident before school began and was hospitalized.  After missing the first three months she is back in school, only to learn the love of her life has found a girl friend.  Arima and Tsubasa were close in middle school, while Tsubasa loved him with all of her heart, Arima viewed her as a little sister.  Tsubasa decides to fight Miyazawa for Arima's affection, but in the end it leads to her friends liking Miyazawa and inviting her into their circle.  While still refusing to give up her love of Arima, she relents to Miyazawa's existence and understands her situation a little better after they all talk.  Before meeting Arima, Miyazawa was essentially alone but through the circumstances of their relationship she now has a number of friends.

    Miyazawa's sudden friendliness with Tsubasa's circle, Sakura Tsubaki, Aya Suwada and Sena Rika, causes frustration for Maho.  Even though her plan to turn all the girls in their class against her, Miyazawa's personality is able to push through the isolation and find other companions in the student body.  Tsubaki suspects that someone is leading the effort to ostracize Miyazawa but is unsure of who it could be.  In a moment of clarity, Miyazawa recognizes that Maho is behind everything and confronts her about the issue.  Defeated, Maho resigns herself to never being able to defeat Miyazawa as the top figure in the class.  She reflects on her life of worship prior to high school only being temporary and that encountering someone, like Miyazawa, who's qualities outshone hers, was inevitable.

     In a fit of jealousy Tsubasa see's an opportunity to exact revenge on Miyazawa for stealing Arima from her.  When she finds out about it, Miyazawa hunts her down and makes her face the reality of her jealousy, in front of Arima.  Tsubasa explains that she has been in love with him for years but due his oblivious nature, was never able to understand her feelings.  While she had resigned herself to being satisfied as a 'younger sister' the entrance of Miyazawa as his love interest destroyed her emotionally.  Even if she couldn't be his girlfriend she wanted to be something special to him and with Miyazawa in the picture that special relationship seemed worthless to her.

     The first semester finally ends after all the trial and tribulations.  Miyazawa has plans to hang out with her new circle of friends and spend time with Arima.  Unfortunately the schools kendo club, of which he is a key player, is going to the national tournament over summer break.  He will be away for much of it, training hard for the tournament.  This will be the first time, since they met at the beginning of the year, that they will be separated for a prolonged period of time.  They resolve to spend as much time together as they can when he returns and Arima makes a promise to himself to be even more worthy of Miyazawa's love.

Continue on to volume 5.

Made in Abyss: Dawn of the Deep Soul

 Made in Abyss: Dawn of the Deep Soul (メイドインアビス 深き魂の黎明) is the third theatrical movie for the Made in Abyss franchise.  The movie is based on the manga of the same name by Tsukushi Akihito.  The movie played theatrically in Japan in January of 2020 and April of 2020 in America.

     While it is the third movie of the series, Dawn of the Deep Soul is the first new material following the 13 episode TV series.  The story picks up with Riko, Reg and Nanachi heading to the entrance to Sixth Layer.  the entrance is a safe zone known as the Ido Front and is overseen by the White Whistle Bondrewd, the same person who performed horrific experiments on Nanachi and Mitty.  They make it to the Ido Front relatively unharmed and are surprised to be welcomed by Bondrewd and his daughter Prushka.  Bondrewd seems to be well aware of who they are, which puts Nanachi on edge.

    Even though they seek safe passage to the Sixth Layer, they are informed that the only way they can access the portal to it is with a White Whistle.  Bondrewd confirms for them that no one other than the original owner of a White Whistle may activate it.  With their plans interrupted they wait to figure out what they will need to do in order to proceed.  While awaiting their fate Riko and Prushka become friends and Nanachi confronts her tormentor about his evil acts.  But things are not exactly as they seem at the Ido Front and the way forward will prove the hardest challenge they have faced so far.

    As with the TV series before it, Dawn of the Deep Soul crams as much cuteness as it can before turning a switch and becoming sadistic and cruel.  Horrific secrets and motives are revealed through the course of the film which greatly tests the resolve of our heroes.  It's incredible to see how far and how much these seemingly innocent characters have overcome to end up in the horrific mess that awaits them on this leg of their journey.

    There is not much more to discuss honestly, without getting into details of the plot that will spoil too much.  The artwork is little changed from that of the TV series, which was already fantastic.  The movie is close to two hours in length but the story seems to be shorter than it really is.  You will have to have watched either the series or the first two recap movies to understand most of what is going on in this film, but it is all worth it.  The adventure and world setting of Made in Abyss is as fantastic as it is horrific and well worth the experience.

    The film was released earlier in 2020 and then made available for streaming with a purchase in the Summer of 2020 in most English speaking countries.  At the time of this review it is not yet available on disc in North America.

Kare Kano vol 3

In volume 2 we saw Miyazawa and Arima come together as a couple, overcoming frustration through school duties and the interference of Arima's friend Hideaki.  In the end they confided in the other the desire to be dependable and reliant on the other.  What further struggles with the pair face as they live their new lives to the fullest?

 

    The time they spent together going on dates and enjoying themselves after the sports festival has taken its toll on their grades.  The exam results for the first semester see Miyazawa slip all the way to 13th and Aroma fall to 3rd.  Shocked by the sudden decline in the star pupils studies, the advisors bring the pair in for a meeting about their performance.  Miyazawa's resistance to the scolding confirms for  the rumors of their relationship.  The head teacher tells the two that they should stop dating and take their futures more seriously.  Refusing to give up her new found value as more than someone obsessed with pretending to be perfect, Miyazawa argues with them that the school shouldn't be interfering in their personal live.  Arima backs her up by asking them to allow the relationship as long as they resume their place at the top of student rankings.  The faculty relents, but only temporarily, contacting both sets of parents for a meeting about the relationship and academic performance.

 

    Miyazawa's parents get fired up with the prospect of the meeting, having overcome their own challenges for their love.  Their spirit concerns Miyazawa, who fears they could make things worse.  The real concern is how this will effect Arima's relationship with his adoptive parents.  The two families meet with the teacher to further discuss the schools concern over the relationship and it's effect on their studies.  Miyazawa's father agrees with his daughter and explains to the teacher that their goal is to give their children freedom to enjoy their lives instead of wasting their youth solely focused on studies.  Much to everyone's surprise Arima's parents agree as well, explaining how proud he has made them and the hope to be there to help him when he is in need.  Relenting under the unified front from both families the faculty decide to stop trying to prevent the relationship.

 

    With that challenge behind them they can once again enjoy their time together.  Unfortunately a girl in their class, Izawa Maho, has decided to turn the other girls in the class against Miyazawa.  She convinces them that her facade was only to get the two most sought after boys in the grade.  Dropping her mask only because they were now hers.  The girls see the wisdom in Maho's words and soon begin to give Miyazawa the cold shoulder.  Recognizing the situation and how her past self could lead to their feelings, Yukino decides to accept her fate.  She realizes that her life of tricking everyone meant she never truly connected with anyone.  Even though she has been the top student and admired by the faculty and student body, she has never been able to have meaningful relationships with anyone until she met Arima.  She feels that as long as she has him it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks or does.

 

Continue on to volume 4.