Tasogare Otome X Amnesia – 11
A long distance relationship… from 2 feet away.
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I bought Pokemon Conquest (also known as Pokemon + Nobunaga’s Ambition in Japan) on a whim today and it is waaaaay more amusing then I thought it would be. It plays pretty well as a combination of Pokemon and a strategy game too, so I suggest you try playing it if you’re on the fence about it. …If my opinion even means anything to you. In any case, this week’s episode of Tasogare was… not exactly what I was expecting. This is a good thing. |
So I’ve heard of people not being able to see ghosts anymore, but I think this is the first case ever of a ghost no longer being able to see a human. Way to break convention. It was undeniably depressing to watch Yuuko suddenly become alone again. …Er, well, I guess she still had Kirie, but it’s just not the same thing. It’s great that Niiya found a way around it though with the notebook though. I was getting angry watching this before that since he wasn’t even trying to look for a loophole. Kirie’s explanation about how Niiya is now part of the memories that she threw away was extremely informative. I think I can appreciate how simple the Tasogare story has been made now since if this was any more complicated, I probably wouldn’t have gotten it as fast.
I am perfectly okay with these particular harem members turning into OTP support. Kirie really is doing her best to support Niiya and Yuuko in her own way and Momoe is way more subdued now. She may have been somewhat bipolar about their relationship before, but in the end, Kirie really does want Niiya and Yuuko to be together… kind of. At least she straight out told him in the end that even she thinks that it’s better if the two of them just get back together. I still not all that fond of her character, but over the course of the anime, I’ve found her much more tolerable.
Karma strikes! The men who killed Yuuko all died in a terribly ironic fashion. The other ironic thing is that Asa WAS related to Niiya. Totally called it! So the ‘reason’ (or an extension of her bloodline) for Yuuko splitting (and dying in the first place if you want to get technical) is also what brought both halves of her together. I’m just going to assume this is also why they got along so fast. So was Asa actually cured? Was she sick in the first place? I don’t think it matters much at this point. One of the questions I still have is why those choose Asa as the Red Person in the first place. Though at this point, I’m just going to assume it was because they thought she was sick in the first place/ expendable since she had no other family. It really is adorable that Asa and Niiya are related though and that both got to see the good sides to Yuuko. I kind of wish we had gotten to see more Yukariko and Asa bonding (since it looks like they were on better terms after Yuuko died). …But this also kind of brings up the question that if Asa knew that Yuuko had disappeared because of those men, why didn’t she tell the authorities or something? Also, if the men knew that Asa knew of their crime, why didn’t they get rid of her too? Not that these unanswered questions are ruining the story for me or anything, but it does make the plot less seamless.
“You’re both the Yuuko that I love.” Definitely saw this line coming from a mile away, but it was nice to see regardless. So at last Yuuko and S. Yuuko are reunited and Niiya’s overly accepting personality pays off. The whole Yuuko reunited thing seems extremely… simple considering that Yuuko has been like that for so many years, but I goes it’s because nobody else ever talked to her. I have to hand it to SILVER LINK though, they solved this one without any groping whatsoever. …What does this mean for their relationship now though? The bell falling off at the end of the episode wasn’t exactly a great sign for things to come.
Conclusion:
Since Yuuko seems to be at peace with herself now, is she finally going to move on? That means leaving Niiya behind though. So I’m fairly sure that Yuuko is going to disappear, but I also think that SILVER LINK might do something cheesy like have some other girl who conveniently looks like Yuuko show up (with her memories too maybe?), or have her reincarnated or something. …Or they could just leave us with an extremely sad Niiya. Could this entire season of anime just been for a bittersweet conclusion? God I hope not. Sure they could do it, but so far the whole story has been revolving about how Yuuko and Niiya can overcome pretty much every obstacle in their way. Having it end with Yuuko being gone forever would just make the whole production seem kind of pointless. Niiya never really changed as a person and he wouldn’t really walk away with a life lesson learned (other then don’t date the dead), which is normally what makes tragic endings with people disappearing like that okay. Another alternative is the whole ominous warning at the end of this episode be a troll and Yuuko is actually allowed to stay for Niiya. None of these really seem right though. Plus there’s going to be an unaired 13th episode coming on one of the DVD/BDs, so I assume that Yuuko will be sticking around. I doubt there will be another season (unless it’s anime original) as well since they’ve wrapped up the conflict pretty nicely here and the manga hasn’t even fully covered this subject as far as I know.
So overall, a pretty good wrap up of Yuuko’s conflict and we have a general idea of what the last episode will be about. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens to Yuuko. …Hopefully it will be at least a semi-happy one.
Preview:
About Karakuri
University student and the one at Metanorn who's known for wearing glasses. Likes blood, insanity and plot twists, but also plays otome games and adores cute romance anime. It balances out... somehow.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Thanks for the writeup! I’ll have a go at your questions, too:
– Asa was never sick with the plague, she had a cold, and was recovering before she was nabbed to be the red person. I think they grabbed her probably because she was the first person they found going into a house where they knew there were girls (If you’re going to nab a girl, you go where you know there are at least 2). It probably didn’t hurt that she didn’t have any other family left to complain.
– Why didn’t Asa go to the authorities? I’m going to guess that ‘those men’ *were* the authorities at that time, in that village. There was noone else to go to. Similarly, the men probably had no fear of being ‘caught’, because they were the authorities. And anyway, the situation remedied itself soon enough as they all died from the plague.
When they went to the ending of the show, I was sitting there thinking “Do I really want to watch the last episode? They’re going to break my heart and I’m going to cry.” I agree it’s not a good sign with her seeming to disappear. Also, I don’t know if an extra episode means anything epilogue-ish, it could be non-continuity hijinks from mid-season. But I’ll be watching Episode 12, and I hope that it’s not too sad.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I agree with the theory about there are no authorities around. It’s a very real possibilty with all the damage done from the plague. But also, Asa was a child at the time and very few people would listen to a child with an accusation like that and take it seriously. Especially when it’s a serious accusation against a bunch of grown men who seem to have the village’s favor on their side. So if the word got out, they would feel safe. Moreover, sadly for her, it would be her word against theirs especially without concrete proof of the incident.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Okay, yeah, that makes sense. It would be a different story if she were an adult, but seeing how Asa was an orphan, had no means of transportation, and who knows how far away they are from a different city/town, there’s not much she could have done even if she wanted to.
Hmm, I guess. They could do the whole thing in flashback form if they real wanted to. I’m just hoping that it all turns out okay. I’ve heard theories about Niiya ending up with Kirie. Not sure if I like that solution.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Oh, apparently the 13th episode is a prequel. Damn it.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
A prequel? Damn it!! Come on, I’d only accept such a thing if there was more to Yuuko’s backstory that wasn’t able to fit in the time frame of the previous episode. Other than that, I see no real reason for a prequel.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
This is MAL talking, so it’s not 100% certain.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
It sounds like a 50/50 deal. Do you think a prequel is necessary or should they continue with a story past the planned 12 episodes? Because it looks like they’ve done all they can with the reasoning behind Yuuko’s death.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
I see no use for a prequel to be honest. They’ve covered pretty much everything regarding Yuuko’s story. I can’t see anything else they could add to it. …Unless they want to tell the story from Asa or Yukariko’s POV, but I don’t see the point.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Rural villages cut off from main cities and such are the worst possible places to be if an incident occurs. There would be no means of help or transportation. Being a kid in such a place is no help either. That’s why situations like Yuuko’s sacrifice would be swept under the rug.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I’d only like Niiya ending up with Kirie if it was completely explained how they came to love each other, not just some “The one I love isn’t available, and you’re ok, I guess.” We’ve seen some hinting that Kirie is attracted to Niiya, but it would be hard to even say she’s in love with him, her pushing him back to Yuuko just doesn’t have any sort of “I just want my beloved to be happy” feel, just a “You’re my friend, quit being a dumbass” feel.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I agree. If Teiichi and Kirie do end up together, there needs to be a valid reason behind it otherwise it will look like he chose her as a replacement or memoir of the one he really loves but couldn’t have. And that alone sounds immoral.
Even though she’s grown throughtout the series, Kirie pushed him back to Yuuko because she can’t stand seeing such a good relationship fall apart and she said it herself that she admires Yuuko. I guess she admires her so much that she doesn’t mind giving up her chance with Teiichi.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
Wow, what a great episode! Tasogare Otome x Amnesia is turning out to be way better than expected. I knew something wasn’t right when the episode started with Teiichi just lying on the bench. I also thought with him tackling Shadow Yuuko, she’d possess him. Well, the idea was close. She became part of him without taking over his mind.
But somethings were on my mind that I have to mention, things that were completely off. The ED song was different from usual and it sounded like it had a double voice singing. I wonder what that means. Also, Yuuko regaining her memories was the heart of the story. I didn’t think it would continue past that. So where do we go from here?
I liked the part where Teiichi was smashing everything in the clubhouse but Yuuko couldn’t see him. Seeing that reminded of a part of Inception.
It was nice seeing Yuuko’s sister in the present since I’m sure there are those wanted to know her current condition but what were the odds she would fall in love with the grandson of the girl she was looking after? I know this kind of relationship would make Teiichi look like a necrophiliac but on the other hand, doesn’t this make Yuuko look like a cougar? I thought Yuuko was so sweet when she said she was happy for her fate because this led to her meeting Teiichi. He’s one lucky guy.
But none of this would have been possible without Kirie who deserves a lot credit. If it wasn’t for her knocking some sense into Teiichi (along with some very convincing crying in the process) and set up a meeting with her grandmother, he wouldn’t have gotten this far. Though I have to agree with her that in the first place, a human x ghost relationship is utterly strange. Kirie was annoying at first but she totally has my respect.
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
I never really thought that S. Yuuko was ever going to possess Niiya. She never did anything to Kirie and the only one she’s actively tried to even touch is Yuuko. It was an interesting twist that the fact that Yuuko finding out that Niiya knows about her past resulted in him becoming invisible to her though. ..If that sentence even makes sense.
Oh yeah, the ED was sung by someone different. …It sounded a lot like Yuuko’s seiyuu to me actually. It’s looking more and more like the end of this will be her disappearing.
…I wasn’t that surprised with how Yukariko ended up since it was revealed in the manga a while ago that she was school director or whatever. Since Kirie exists too, Yukariko obviously made it at least a couple years after Yuuko disappeared. Lool, Yuuko as a cougar. Uhhh… I think she still has the heart of a teenager and technically she doesn’t age, so it’s okay…? Yeah, the ending where she was “It wasn’t for nothing!” had me tear up a bit.
Ehh, yeah Kirie does seem to be the voice of reason when Niiya is in a slump. I wonder if he could have made it through if it weren’t for her pushing.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
Yeah, I’m pretty sure that the ED was sung by Hara Yumi, rather than Okui Aki, and it was also with significantly different instrumentation. From what I can tell, it was only one voice, with the same matching melody instrument that the normal version has, not even a big amount of reverb / delay (I also listened to see if they had her sing in both Yuuko and Shadow Yuuko’s voices, but it’s just one).
I also thought it was interesting that S. Yuuko being incorporated into Niiya made Yuuko unable to see him, and the way they worked through that was really nice. The end was just getting to me when they’re talking about happiness and then she has that momentary fading away. I don’t understand why that wouldn’t have happened at some other trigger point: either fusing her memories, or finding out that Asa survived.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
I’m going to be sad when next week’s episode comes because it will be the last. I knew it was going to finish but I don’t want it to. It’s like Kore wa Zombie all over again. Looking at how this ended, I’m seeing a bittersweet ending like in Ano Natsu de Matteru.
What’s funny is that I made the connection that Yuuko was Kirie’s great aunt but I never thought Teiichi was Asa’s grandson. What a coincidence that friends and their descendants are all in the same place.
I’m so happy for Yuuko finally being able to accept herself, both her good and bad memories. The way she accepted Shadow Yuuko was very much like the characters from Persona 4 accepting who they really are but was in a way, better done here. I didn’t want her and Teiichi to end up having to forget each other as a way to avoid the pain. They make a pretty good couple despite her unchangeable condition. Looks like it’s a certainty they’ll be seperated. Can’t the guy just have his ghost girlfriend and be happy?
If Yuuko does move on, I wonder if Teiichi will spend the rest of his life with Kirie. Kirie showed that she still has lingering feelings for him and might still be hoping that he’ll eventually come to love her as much as he did with Yuuko. After all, she still has a bond with him because of their families being tied to each other and I think that would make for a good ending, even if it is a little bittersweet.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I wouldn’t mind some ending where Niiya and Yuuko end up together, like Ano Natsu (even if we don’t see it happen, although that would be preferable), even if it’s something semi-tragic like Niiya decides he can’t live without Yuuko and ends up dead and haunting the school forever with Yuuko. I just hope it’s not anything crushing like Voices of a Distant Star or Kowarekake no Orgel.
Just a few more days to find out!
POWUH: 400-499 with 428 comments
Ah, a heartwarming episode, which really reminded me of Shaft’s work back with ef~a tale of melodies/memories, not just because of the animation slices and dual slides, but also because of the Shadow Yuuko/Yuuko conversation reminding me of the paired dialogue back in ef like between Chihiro and Kei. As for that long distance relationship (Iseewhatyoudidthere.jpeg), for some reason reminded me of Homura and Yuko, (apart from the fact one is a ghost and the one alive is the male protagonist…) 🙂
I had expected a mystery thriller that would keep me on the edge of my seat, but instead I got an unexpected but pleasant surprise of ghost romance…guess it’s back to ef for me! 🙂
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
I meant to watch ef the last time you mentioned it, but I definitely forgot. … So I have no idea what your comparisons are about. Sorry!!
Yeah, Tasogare seems to like hanging around the boarder between the two genres. It did a pretty good job of staying true to the thriller aspect amidst the romance though.
POWUH: iLurker with 1 comments
Great review!
As for the disappearance, it is very possible but I also think that Yuuko might find a new desire that will stop her from resting in peace, i.e. Teiichi, so they might remain like that. Or this could have an open conclusion, who knows?
Really enjoyed this review and you’ve chosen some of my favorite caps! :]
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
I’m glad you think so! …I don’t know how much I want an open conclusion though. I think I would almost prefer if Niiya was left forever alone and Yuuko disappeared.
Ahaha I love the visuals that Tasogare does.