Yuri Kuma Arashi – 06

…And then Princess Backhair was banished to the forest.

Funny how I always get the fairy tale episodes. That’s not a complaint, by the way. I’m totally down with these bear-themed fables.

When loved ones die, those left behind have to learn to move on. Usually an episode 1 death of a side character is just something to give the main character motivation that carries them throughout the series. You kill off some rando and that acts as a nice spark to get things going and make you feel bad for those left behind to mourn. As for the one getting killed, well, they’re generally just a tool used to make a powerful first episode so they’re forgotten. Yurikuma is an interesting exception to the anime that I’ve seen in that the sacrificial lamb continues to be important – even after death.

Let’s be real here: Sumika has an awful lot of screen time for a dead person. By all means, she should have been abandoned as soon as she died. As a member of the audience, I met her, she kicked the bucket, and that was pretty much it. I didn’t have enough time to get attached to her so I was ready to move on as soon as her funeral began. However, I think this lack of time given for us to form an imprint of Sumika is intentional. Me caring for Sumika as much as I care about the amount of rainfall in New Zealand in 1992 (i.e. not at all) makes Kureha’s obsession with holding onto her seem all the more odd. It’s a nice contrast that makes you really, really want Kureha to just move on and start paying attention to Ginko. Maybe if I had grown to love Sumika over a few episodes then I would also be upset that she gone. I’d be right there with Kureha saying “fuck these other chicks, bring back Sumika!”.

Is this what happens at sleepovers?

Mourning after a death is fine. It’d be weirder to not be affected by such a major event. However, Kureha takes it to an unhealthy level by refusing to open up to anyone. It’s like she doesn’t want to make another friend because she’s convinced Sumika will somehow come back to her. This sort of denial is detrimental because it makes Kureha blind to the kindness being offered to her, and therefore blind to any possible happiness she could achieve. Until she moves on from Sumika’s death, she’s going to be bitter and depressed.

But at the same time, as we learn more about Sumika…her death (retroactively) became more sad to me. Now that I’m starting to learn about her and how dedicated she was, I actually wish she could have stuck around longer. I really loved seeing Kureha read her mom’s incredibly personal story to Sumika while the two warmed up in bed (not sure how being naked helps with that but whatever). It makes it clear that Kureha does crave that sort of closeness, but has trouble imagining that kind of relationship with anyone other than Sumika. In fact, most of the characters here have very rigid fixations or obsessions with only one other person. Maybe it’s a message that being too dependent and obsessed with someone is unhealthy. Once Kureha learns to trust someone other than Sumika, she’ll become happy. Once Ginko stops being so jealous and possessive of Kureha, she’ll become happy as well. Of course, it’s rarely that simple, but it would certainly help smooth over some of the rough edges at the very least.

DID SMOKEY THE BEAR TEACH YOU NOTHING ABOUT FIRES?

After seeing Kureha close herself off so much and wallow in her own misery, it’s nice to see her try to let people in. She’s becoming more openly fond of Ginko and Lulu, which is good. Unfortunately, she also trusts a cult of school girls who try to assassinate her on her birthday. Not the best start to turning over a new leaf, is it? She should have just stuck with her sexy, apron-wearing roommates. The good news is that seems to be happening now that she’s been explicitly told to get over herself and pay attention to the bear who risked her life to grab a crumpled up letter. Ah, the start of a beautiful friendship.

…Or maybe not. Yurikuma is not the kind of show I expect to be able to actually make predictions about because well…it’s hard to know what’s happening. And even if you know what’s happening, that might not be what’s actually happening. So of course this big shift is paired with Ginko coming closer to revealing her big sin, which appears to revolve around how Sumika died. Ginko may not have eaten her, but she didn’t stop another bear from doing so.

As much as the show pushes us to root for Ginko x Kureha, I’m actually more invested in what happens to Lulu. She’s just such a sweetheart. She tends to Ginko lovingly all night long and when she wakes up and runs to Kureha instead of thanking her…Lulu never complains. When Ginko jumps into fire for another girl…she doesn’t complain. Lulu is a selfless matchmaker who isn’t utterly obsessed to a yandere level with one other girl. She doesn’t want to keep anyone for herself. Yet, despite this, she does not claim to love anyone. It’s sad, but I hope she gets happiness in whatever form truly makes her feel good. Maybe it really is vicarious happiness through getting Ginko a girlfriend, or maybe she wants something for herself too.

About Overcooled

A neuroscience graduate, black belt, and all-around nerd. You'll either find me in my lab or curled up in my rilakkuma kigurumi watching anime.