White Album 2 – 05
Standing at the turnstile is not quite like running from the altar
This show! It glues me to the screen, and engages me like very few shows have ever done! I’m always saying I’m cool on ‘action’, but this type of drama is really what pulls me in.
Setsuna Comes Roaring Back
Setsuna wears her emotions plainly
After two nights of their sleepover, Setsuna’s really feeling down in the dumps, not because Haruki isn’t progressing on her song, but because she’s worried about finding his travel set in the bathroom. So when they leave, she’s really not gonna engage him. “Sou da ne.” “un, betsu ni.” And then her recitation of his qualities on the bridge, a pretty noble attempt at convincing herself that he’s not really a great guy, that he’s not someone she should be in love with. And even after that, she has to run away from him, to try to reinforce the idea that he’s a jerk.
Setsuna trying to convince herself that Haruki’s not that great
And then he does the worst / best thing of all: calls her all night on the phone! How is she ever going to forget about him if he won’t leave her alone? But finally, tired of his not giving up, she talks to him, and finds that he learned why she was upset from Kazusa. And even though Haruki is a guy who’s oblivious, who’s stubborn, and who doesn’t really know what the right thing to say is, he is right up Setsuna’s alley. Even if she’s mad at him, she can’t stay mad at him long, because he really is an honest, straightforward person who wants to do right by everyone, including her.
I didn’t realize the importance of the placement here before
Haruki even gets filled in on the friend drama that caused Setsuna to hold herself apart from having friends for the past three years, which Haruki sums up in two sentences to Setsuna’s consternation. And those exchanges are what really make this show feel authentic, that when Setsuna and Haruki are talking to each other, they don’t get mad at each other, even if Haruki says something questionable about her. I find those moments absolutely cute, with Setsuna’s “I don’t know how I feel about that…” retorts, and her embarrassment even over the phone, and her giggling when she finally gets Haruki to call her Setsuna.
Happiness at confiding, and getting back in the game
Nobody Wants To Lose Friendships
Touma bolts
Setsuna does move fast on friendships, tho, for someone who hasn’t had one in 3 years. And she works on Kazusa about it as well, although the best she gets out of her is “We can’t get rid of you until the school festival”. But Kazusa has her own problems, trying to comply with Takeya’s request about Haruki’s actual dream, which seems to be writing a song. And when the teacher takes away the notebook with his notes, she loses it, yelling at the teacher and leaving class in the middle of a test.
Haruki passes the “Setsuna” event
Kazusa also won’t accede to Setsuna’s request to use her given name, and is somewhat amused and annoyed at the same time with Setsuna’s friendliness, but that’s to be expected from a girl who hasn’t had any friends, or wanted any. But when the crisis comes, both Haruki and Setsuna back up Kazusa, skipping class to practice with her, and promising to drag her studies up after the school festival so that she can graduate. As a group of friends, they’re coming together pretty well, but even if Setsuna is riding high with Haruki, there’s still romance drama to come.
Coming to support Kazusa
Bonus Embarrassment!
I found everything about this episode captivating, really. The conversation between Haruki and Setsuna, her reactions to the things he said, his promise that he’d stay with her until she left him, all of it was great. I don’t know how long they can hold off the relationship drama, or the fair performance, but we look to have some anime-style collapsing drama next week.
Something else I wanted to mention that’s really impressed me about this show is the instrument recording. The piano that’s used, especially, is very well mic’d and recorded. It could be an electronic piano (there are some very good ones), but the way it fits into the show, along with the other instruments, adds a richness that most music just doesn’t add. It really makes you feel like you’re in a room with a piano, which is something that sounds different from most recordings. Also, the OP and ED songs are out now, so you can listen to the full version of the excellent Todokanai Koi ’13!
About Highway
Proving that you don't have to be young to love anime, I enjoy all genres and styles of shows. If it's not hurting anyone else, you should never be ashamed of what you like!
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
I agree the piano literally moves in the show. Technical kudos all around. Now, if they could just fire the guy that makes the coffee; what happened in that last scene?
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
It’s actually making me think I want to get my piano tuned and worked on, which would be way more expensive than I want it to be, but just to hear that kind of sound filling the house.
I kind of wish they could have come up with some other way for drama besides the old “overwork collapse”. It’s rough being an anime character, being far less robust than any other creature in the whole world, I guess.
POWUH: iLurker with 15 comments
My favorite show of the season by far. At the end of each episode, I wince and wish so much that I had the next one to follow up…
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I know exactly what you mean. This is just a show that I’m totally sucked into, and don’t want to end.
POWUH: 600-699 and LN Enthusiast with 623 comments
You know a show is really good when even Mentar gets to comment in here.
Also my favorite show this season.
POWUH: Metanorn Regular with 104 comments
Favorite of the season(with a chance to be even more than that) as well.
They just HAVE to animate more than the IC and according to the way the sales are going that Enzo mentioned on LiA last week,there’s a good chance of that.My other worry is if we’ll see it in a year from now in fall or maybe winter.Waiting 2-3 years would be torture,lol.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Hopefully the sales will hold up, and people aren’t scared off by one girl or the other ‘winning’. If it’s popular tho, they’ll want to keep capitalizing on it while the LN is still highly ranked.
POWUH: iLurker with 1 comments
If everything goes well,there´s a high chance the season 2 be on the spring,since there´s a gap of at least one season needed to sell bd´s and don´t lose quality.My only worry is they decide to adapt the second part in one cour,which can be a problem,since the novel is 30-50 hours(to much material).For now, let´s pray to sell a lot,and we get an announcement once the final episode is over.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I think they’ll have to be pretty economical with episodes to get things done. While I would like to see it, especially at this quality level, it’s really tough for any anime to support 4 cours of interest, which it sounds like this would need to have (at least) to support the three VN’s. And it will be really important that each cour end with a believable end, unless there’s another one announced in the pipeline already.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Okay, I’ve been following this from afar (ish) and hearing how good it is, but then I finally sat down at watched this. I’ve only finished up to episode 4, but this really caught me on the first episode. That last scene in there was amazing.
Not so much the scene where Setsuna is on the roof, but before that where Haruki is ready to have one last performance with the mysterious piano player, and then the music suddenly all fits together. That really struck me for some reason.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I’m glad you’re giving it a try! I think there are a few moments like that, and then there are the parts that I find riveting, like in Episode 5, I was so interested in Haruki and Setsuna’s conversation, and in episode 3, in Touma and Setsuna’s conversation.
There just feel like there are a lot of those moments where it all just comes together.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Setsuna is really a unique girl but I never pegged her as the somewhat self loathing type. It would be in her best interest to stay honest because she isn’t quite good at concealing her feelings, especially at the bridge.
I liked the conversation between Haruki and Setsuna. For nothing but talking, the scene was nice to watch. The two are easy to pair together because they bounce off of each other nicely.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I don’t think she’s that self-loathing. I think she’s mostly just cautious, because things have fallen apart on her before through no fault of her own, like the story she told. Show ▼
Haruki and Setsuna do go together well, but so do Haruki and Kazusa. That’s one reason this show is so good, both ships work well.