Oct20

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso – 02

By , posted under ANIME, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso-Serious

Leaving it all on the stage

spring14-highwWelcome back for episode 2 of Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso. We haven’t gotten to the big lie of the title yet, but we did have a competition.

 

Competition

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso-Different Goals

Thoughts of his performance temporarily vacate his head

It’s not quite the same as a sports anime, but the presence of a music competition isn’t particularly new in anime. What was different here in this show was, as in the first episode, the high quality of the animation that was presented during the competition. I think I’m right in that they’ve got the piano modeled, because they once again threw in some great animation, especially of the runs in the piece that was played, Beethoven’s Violin Sonata No. 9, the “Kreutzer” (I think just the first movement, I’m not super familiar with violin pieces, since that would have been about 15 minutes per competitor). But they also had great animation of the violin playing, at least for Kaori’s performance. I was a little worried when they were doing the other competitors in still-frames. But I can’t particularly fault them for saving the best for the main character.

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso-Ghosts of the Past

Meanwhile, Kousei is experiencing something he’d thought he left behind

It was indicative of Kaori’s goal in playing, the difference in what she was worried about walking out on the stage and what the previous performer was thinking as he walked off. He was worried about messing up (and I’ll pretty much guarantee that’s what he was worried about when he came on to the stage). But Kaori’s much more interested in whether she can get her feelings across to the audience. Not the judges, who I’m sure she had written off or ignored from the beginning. Instead, she wanted everyone to feel the passion of the music that she felt.

Reaction

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso-Audience Response

Not the largest audience, but good response

And they certainly did. After having sat through 3 others (and were they going up to at least 11? Boy, forget about an audience for that) they were stunned and appreciative of this performance which poured out so much energy. That doesn’t mean that the judges liked it, tho, since as was pointed out, the performance didn’t keep the tempo consistent, and put in her own dynamics. There’s no arguing that it worked from a performance standpoint, but it wasn’t what the judges were looking for. But her performance wasn’t for them, and she even said so afterwards, that she wasn’t worried about the standings.

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso-The one she asks

She didn’t quite run past Watari to ask Kousei, but it was close

It’s interesting that the person whose opinion she’s interested in was Kousei’s. Did she recognize him from some other time? Other people in the audience were recognizing him from his past, but Kaori gave no indication of it. Or was it that she felt that his opinion would be the most honest? Watari is there to meet a cute girl. Tsubaki is her friend already. Their opinions are both compromised. But Kousei is an unknown, presumably unbiased. Would she be able to communicate to him? That’s what she wanted. His response seemed to make her happy enough, at least to calm her worries about it.

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso-Helpful Friend

Ahhh, love

The other thing that I found really interesting this episode was the discussion that Kousei and Watari had about Kousei’s distraction. It’s great that Watari is actually supportive of his crush on Kaori, at least in the sense that one can’t really control who they have a crush on. He didn’t try to scare him off, or act like he had any claim on Kaori. Plus, given that Watari supposedly has a girlfriend in the unseen Keiko, it’s not like he needs that much attention. I find Tsubaki’s actions a little more odd: if Watari already is with Keiko, who is Tsubaki’s friend, why would she introduce Kaori to him? I guess there’s not too much harm there, but it still seems odd.

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso-Friend A

“She totally remembered me!”

header-spring14-highw

There were things I was familiar with in this competition, and things that were a lot different from what I experienced when I was in piano and clarinet competitions. For instance, I never played a competition in front of an audience, but then I wasn’t in particularly high-stakes competitions. At most I played in state-level competitions (and at most got an honorable mention). But I do know that feeling of walking out worrying about messing up, being nervous, wanting to get it over with, but hoping it’s not your turn yet.

I also understand Kousei’s feelings of wanting to see her, but not wanting to see her. It’s good that the strictures his mother had placed on him – you must win, it’s work, it’s worthless if you’re not the best – have been falling away. That’s what Tsubaki was hoping for, although whether she’ll get her wish of a boyfriend named Kousei is probably still far-fetched.

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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!
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16 Responses to “Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso – 02”

  1. skylion says:
    October 20, 2014 at 12:36 am
    POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments

    For the record, I am in love with this show. As if I didn’t say that enough during our shared FI.

    What I love the most is how it engages me in how I think about these relationships. I’m reading a ton into my own subtext here, but I’ll give it a go…

    I think Watari is in love with Tsubaki. But her childhood friend commitment to Kousie is holding him back. On the other hand, Tsubaki is trying to get Kousie engaged in music again with Kaori. But…Kaori is a free spirit…she might not buy into any of this.

    I thought A-1 worked well with budged limitations here. Kaori was the star, and so, full animation worked best for her, contrasting to still with the other performers.

    Reply
  2. JPNIgor says:
    October 20, 2014 at 9:28 am
    POWUH: 900-999 with 915 comments

    Goosehouse just won’t leave my head. Get outta here dammit.

    I was surprised with the way people recognised Kousei when he walked in the Towa Hall. He was really well-known huh… And Kaori asking eagerly for his thoughts on the performance would mean that she knows who he is as well.

    I’m wondering if Watari will have a bigger role in the relationships besides being the nice and popular friend who gets all the girls. My guess would be that he likes Tsubaki.

    Reply
    • Highway says:
      October 20, 2014 at 9:42 am
      POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments

      I don’t know if Kaori really knows that Kousei is a former musical prodigy. I think that might be a little too convenient. As I said, I think he was more the unbiased observer, the only one whose opinion Kaori could really trust, especially considering the introduction they had had before.

      With you guys talking about Watari liking Tsubaki, I almost want that to *not* be the case. Not to spite you guys, but because that’s the obvious thing. Maybe have him fall in love from here, or sometime in the future, but not “I’ve always liked you.” Especially not if it’s “I’ve always liked you, but you always liked Kousei, so I didn’t say anything.” That’s a little too usual, and doesn’t really feel like it’d fit here.

      Reply
      • skylion says:
        October 20, 2014 at 9:46 am
        POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments

        …it is a bit unusual, granted. I would like to see that developed if it is the case. Plenty of potential actors in romance will hold back to not upset the friendship status quot. The only cliched or unusual bit I can see from it is…he’s a serial dater. Trying to make himself forget her?

        Reply
        • Highway says:
          October 20, 2014 at 9:55 am
          POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments

          I’m saying that it *isn’t* unusual to have “I like her, but she likes you, and I’m not going to get in her way”, which is what this would be. I also don’t think that Watari is to the level of a serial dater, based on what we’ve seen. There’s Keiko and then everyone else. Watari thought Kaori was cute, but he really doesn’t seem interested in her. But he does respond when Tsubaki gives him a hard time about Keiko, and doesn’t want to screw things up with Keiko. Sure, he’s a little bit of a jerk going out when he already kinda has a girlfriend, but I don’t think it rises to the level of two-timing, especially with middle-school relationships.

          Reply
          • JPNIgor says:
            October 20, 2014 at 10:07 am
            POWUH: 900-999 with 915 comments

            I think “one-and-a-half”-timing is still not cool, though.

            Reply
            • HannoX says:
              October 20, 2014 at 11:31 am
              POWUH: Meta Resident with 1692 comments

              Well, it all depends upon what level of relationship Watari and Keiko have. They may have dated a few times, but not really committed to one another yet. For all we know Keiko may have gone out with other boys. So they may still be at the level of having dated a few times, but still sometimes going out with someone else since they’re not sure they want to be a couple, although Tsubaki is pairing them together.

              All that said, Watari is soon going to have to clarify his relationship with Keiko. Either they have to commit to each other or decide they don’t want to be a couple. And given what we’ve heard so far it does sound like Watari is the one who is going to have to decide.

  3. Starburst says:
    October 22, 2014 at 7:38 pm
    POWUH: iLurker with 4 comments

    I still get the feeling that there will be a love square between the four main characters. The OP part where there’s a shot of each of the main characters close up plus a smaller version of their admirers may be foreshadowing it.

    Watari is probably like Taichi with his girlfriend in the beginning of Chihayafuru. He goes along with it because Keiko confessed but he doesn’t really bear anything for her. He may like Tsubaki but is obliged to be a good boyfriend because Keiko is Tsubaki’s friend. He may also have been referring to his own situation when he said “It’s natural for the person you’re crushing on to be in love with someone else”, if Tsubaki likes Kousei.

    Reply

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