Weekly Highlights (17-02-09)

A week of emotion and artistry.

Anime Highlights

Clannad ~ After Story~ 18

Most definitely the best episode of the series. I think the whole idea behind the ~After Story~ arc is the show growing up. I think I said it best here:

…the show’s changed from fan-pandering yet occasionally poignant to genuinely heartfelt drama. In my opinion, the first 2 or three arcs were just filler; they remineded people about what the original series was about and what appeal it had so that before delving into something entirely outside of Clannad’s comfort zone.

I used to think Clannad was just light-hearted entertainment (that I enjoyed, don’t get me wrong) but the last few episodes have really done something to push the show to the next level in my eyes.

Toradora 19

See here. Everything just seemed to build up and to an awesome conclusion and then taper off into those ironic credits. Perhaps the best episode yet.

Blogging Highlights

Some Thoughts on Toradora 17-18

Mike – Anime Diet

Perhaps this is my theological side talking, but I couldn’t help but see a subtext about God/faith in these Christmas episodes. Taiga speaks of Santa in much the same way believers talk about God; while this isn’t the first time this has happened in anime, it functions in her life the same way religion functions for many people, which is to give them a sense of moral order and something to look forward to, even if they do not take it literally. The otherwise superfluous mention about her time in Catholic school and orphans makes sense in this context. Christmas, for her, is a time to clarify things and to start with a cleaner slate–to be “good” and to have some joy in her life for a change.

A very interesting reading, going above and beyond what I thought about the episode and it’s portrayal of Taiga. It’s kind of strange that such seemingly simple scenes and imagery can be viewed in such different ways.

Artist Highlight: ban Akira – The Dark Side of the Scarlet Family

21stcenturydigitalboy – Euphoric Field

IT’S JUST AWESOME ART.

Toradora – Christmas on Valentine’s

OGT – Anime wa Bakahatsu da!

It’s possibly significant in some small, minor way that we never actually seem to know whether Minorin likes Ryuuji in that way or not–after all, her entire personality is couched in studied ambiguity and a self-defeatist attitude that causes her to place others before her, not because she’s selfless, but because she feels them more worthy than she feels herself. We explicitly know so little of Minorin, and yet the fact that we know so little explicitly tells us much implicitly

A great analysis of Minori’s character which brings to light how many assumptions I had about her. Perhaps if she dropped a few of the (admittedly good) metaphors we’d be able to make more sense of her actions and words. But then again, that wouldn’t be the Minori we all know and love, would it?

I guess it’s time I defended the Clannad After Story

Martin – Mono no Aware

After a couple of diversions that have the typical hit-and-miss effect on me I can now see where Clannad ~AS~ is headed. Or, at least, I can see that it’s going beyond the invisible envelope that surrounds this type of series. This is where Clannad ~AS~ really endeared itself to me: it takes the story outside the situations and settings of the genre. Clannad is all growed up.

Already quoted myself earlier in the post about this. Rather than how many think that Clannad was just crap/ not good up until this point, I’d rather say it was just an enjoyable prelude. Without seeing the childhood experiences of the characters, these emotionally powerful episodes wouldn’t be nearly as, well, powerful. Taking his words completely out of context here, but what ghostlightning said about Toradora! also works with Clannad:

The high point of the show has passed, those episodes were all deposits in our emotional bank accounts, so that when the mood shifts and the show needs to slow things down to move the stories in their respective directions, there’s enough goodwill in us to let it.

And that’s it for this week. Watch Baccano!, it’s awesome and the basis for my new blog name.