Narumi strangely informs the audience that Ayaka had jumped off the roof “without telling anybody.” Well, only about one in six suicide victims ever leave behind any form of a note. I think this alone tells us enough about Ayaka’s mindset in the days leading up to the tragic incident. When you’re at the brink of no return, what left is there to say?
One of the biggest revelations this week is that Ayaka’s brother had been exploiting her gardening club to grow the flower necessary to produce Angel Fix. Of course, there has to be more than this simple betrayal to push a girl to suicide, right? As a result, the ending seems to imply Ayaka had also taken Angel Fix on the night of her fall. Personally, I was rooting for the “got punched in both eyes and walked off the roof” theory, but I guess this’ll do. Now that we’ve gotten this far, Narumi is racing against time to find Toshi before Yondaime can beat the guy up so bad, we won’t even get to see it onscreen. Yay, it’s NEETs vs. the yakuza vs. diabolical biochemistry major (he’s certainly no Walter).
Ayaka’s absence
Thanks to Twitter, I learned that some people actually cried over last week’s conclusion. Like it was with Steins;Gate, I can’t really understand how a minor character could invoke such a deep emotional response. Ayaka just hasn’t been that significant a part of KamiMemo‘s story. This might sound harsh, but if I’m going to cry over every minor character to die in my anime, the plight of poor African children should put me into a catatonic state. But I guess this is the trend in the medium nowadays; just include a cute but tangential character to the story only to kill her off and reap the tears.
The anime tries to maintain a serious face about everyone’s loss, but it becomes almost farcical. For example, how does Ayaka’s absence affect Minli? When a customer orders beer, it’s usually Ayaka’s job to fetch it. So when Minli calls out to the poor girl only to realize that she’s missing — oh, gloom and despair. I don’t know, I guess I just expect a better example than “We’ll always miss you… and your beer-fetching abilities.” Why not include a more poignant scene like how Ayaka has always given a loner character like Alice some much-needed company? I’m just saying that if the anime wants me to feel sad, they should provide a better example than beer-fetching.
Another thing that bothers me is the way Ayaka’s attempted suicide is bringing Narumi and Alice even closer together. I guess tragic losses and hardship have helped people bond in reality, but somehow, it just feels exploitative in KamiMemo. The anime hasn’t really given its audience any legitimate reason to think of Narumi and Alice as a serious couple. As a result, I guess my cynical thought process is jumping (no pun intended) to an equally cynical conclusion. In other words, Ayaka’s tragedy is being used as a catalyst for a coupling that has never felt natural. What really seals the deal for me is when Narumi references the 5% burden he’ll carry for Alice — what a groan-worthy moment.
Emo Narumi
So of course, Narumi goes into a downward spiral of anger and despair. He turns to violence at one point, asking Tetsu to teach him how to box. Oh, don’t take my half-mocking tone too seriously. I guess I prefer this boy hero over the old one. At least Narumi now has a modicum of emotion in him, which will always beat the bland character he had been portraying.
“Over-analysis”
Alice seemingly conjures up a mystery around Ayaka’s attempted suicide. Y’know, had some blogger done this sort of analysis, readers would accuse him or her of “overthinking it.”
- Why did Ayaka jump from such a low building? Well, do you expect a depressed individual to plan his or her death out meticulously?
- Why did Ayaka try to commit suicide at school? But what other location is more dear to the poor girl than the place that houses her beloved gardening club?
I guess it’s bad form to answer Alice’s questions with more questions, but this is my point: since the analysis is coming straight from Alice’s mouth herself, most viewers would just accept it at face value. Had these questions come from outside the anime instead, all of a sudden, people’s perception of the “overthinking it” factor jumps up a notch. But why should the shift in voice matter whatsoever? Don’t get me wrong — I agree with Alice that there is something fishy about the whole affair. After all, there just has to be something to investigate or else we wouldn’t have much of a show. Still, I just found the whole thing rather amusing.
That’s just a little creepy
When the anime does try to be all serious and profound, it borders on self-parody:
Alice: “Your arms, your legs, your eyes, your ears, your throat, your nails, your teeth, and your tongue. Even the last drop of your blood. They all belong to me now.”
Uh, the appropriate response to Alice’s words should be:
But instead, Narumi is on his knees before her as if he’s being knighted:
I mean, are you serious? How is this not a silly scene? There’s even an overwrought string piece playing in the background. I guess I don’t understand how the people behind KamiMemo could put this scene together and not think to themselves, “Gosh, maybe we’re overdoing it just a tad.”
Thank you for watching this so I don’t have to.
I aim to please.
I hope Narumi turns out to be a fun character after this arc.
…
Woops, I forgot that the show ENDS after this arc. Silly me.
>_>
Well, something’s gonna have to fill the thoughtless sequel void when JC Staff has tapped the Shana and Zero no Tsukaima wells bone dry.
Okay, so what did I learn in a Modern-day Detective Anime so far?
1. Let your secretary do all your work.
2. Testimonies are a big no-no. (I mean, at least give us some serious testimonies from other people outside Ayaka’s close circle of friends)
3. Dull White Bread protag is probably linked to the Yakuza and the Mob, hence why people love him so much. Or he is generally a new form of cyborg (Hence why the heck does 5% of shouldering burdens have to do it.)
4. Is it me or does Alice look at Narumi like he is something to eat when Alice “knighted” him to be her pet? I know it’s supposed to be the whole “quirky neet moe” personality she is trying to do, but seriously!
Fuck it, I’m just gonna watch Sherlock.
The Guy Ritchie one where Sherlock gets all topless and bareknuckle boxes? Y’know he’s just shouldering 42% of Irene Adler’s burden.
The BBC One which does involve a modern take of Sherlock Holmes written by two of the writers from Doctor Who, using modern-day technology as a resource.
Ah. From my American vantage point, the BBC is full of wonders. I’m still working my way through Horizon episodes.
It’s great, trust me. I have always thought Sherlock Holmes was dry and boring, but boy was I surprised when I watched Sherlock. The second episode is kind of slow and boring, but it’s not bad by any means. The last minutes of the final episode really had me at the edge of my seat. So. Amazing.
Can’t wait till next season.
^ Indeed. I do have a love for the First and Third Episodes. Second was forced, but still not bad. They are gonna show the next 3 around January. Cannot wait. :)
You see that, Alice? THIS is how you use technology as a resource to solve the mystery. And at least he doesn’t mope around all cute with stuffed toys waiting for his Watson to feed him!
Ayaka’s suicide attempt did sadden me a little bit… but that’s because I actually liked her character way back in Episode 1. Even so, she was a total side-character after the first episode, who’s main lasting relevance can be found in how The Fourth kept referring to Narumi as “The Gardening Club Kid”, lol.
As such, her suicide attempt certainly didn’t make me cry. Rather, it made me realize that any attempt by this anime to be dramatic and suspenseful will be insanely forced and ham-fisted.
I used to fault some anime shows for being emotionally manipulative, but man, much of the anime fanbase is so easy to emotionally manipulate that I’m starting to think that the fans themselves are mostly to blame for this by not making anime studios actually have to work to gain emotional investment from viewers.
Simply put, why bother going to great lengths to build up a character, developing a deserved fan attachment to that character, when a character merely being cute and occasionally genki is enough to get fans to weep over her (potential) death?
That being said, the suicide attempt itself had mighty fine execution, as the opening pic for your blog here demonstrates (I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a better pose/shot of someone throwing themselves off of a rooftop).
And that’s Kamisama no Memouchou summed up in a nutshell – Style over Substance. It has great style (seriously, it usually looks great), but the steak beneath the sizzle leaves an awful lot to be desired.
I LOLed so hard. The exact same screenshot came to my mind reading that. It was also much more meaningful.
Well, KamiMemo so attached to the idea of Narumi being our eyes and ears that is it any surprise that the world appears so much more meaningless? That was a bit of a rhetorical question, but I bet KamiMemo could do wonders with a tweak in perspective.
Interesting. Where is that picture taken from, if you don’t mind me asking?
Serial Experiments Lain. I should do a comparison between it and KamiMemo, actually, when the latter is all said and done.
It’s true that it looks good, especially by JC Staff-standards, but I think it’s a bit boring at the same time. Just looking at characters talk non-stop gets dull quite fast, and sadly Memochou has a lot of these moments. Compare with Bakemonogatari, where episode three takes place in the same place during the entire episode and all the characters do is to talk. And it never gets boring. Shaft has a very unique approach that is very stylistic and they know how to never bore the viewer. The angles, the colors, the cuts etc etc.
JC Staff have a very “safe” approach to anime, and as a result, it gets boring.
Yeah, if it’s style over substance, they went with the wrong sort of style over substance. Lots of anime out there full of energy and events happening all at once to denote style over substance. Durarara!! for one. KamiMemo is nothing but pretty graphics. I’m not sure I’d agree with your assessment of Bakemonogatari, however, but one of the other “writers” loves anything Shaft churns out. She just never posts anything anymore!
Well, Shaft is my favorite studio, so of course I’m a bit biased. And now that you mention it, there are three “contributors/writers”, but you are the only one that writes!
Bakemonogatari was really boring and their comedies always overstay their welcome. We certainly do not need a second season to everything. In any case, Shaft isn’t the worst studio out there but it isn’t anywhere near the best for me.
Tell me about it.
Wth now even commenters are sassing me about not updating -_-. I’ll do something about Hyouge Mono now that it exists again, I swear~.
You never update, heh.
Don’t look at me. I update. Only when I have time. I don’t have time. Look at my sentences. They aren’t even complete.
Heh, updates.
Fin’s a big fat liar. Remember how after the gigantic [C] article, you were all “I’ll do a post a week!” Oh, you abandon your plans faster than Obama and his campaign promises (a topical joke!).
^ For some reason, my reply and quote to Ryan R’s post failed.
I think the relationship between Narumi and Alice is like a child and a toy. She so tiny and fragile, so she needs someone to protect and comfort her. You know what serves that purpose? A stuffed animal. Congratulations Narumi, You’re her new stuffed animal now and you will never see the outside world ever again.
Well, I can’t wait till someone sticks him into the washer.
I can’t wait to see Alice rip Narumi to shreds because of certain fits of rage that can only be calmed by ripping off a stuffed toy’s head!
I get the feeling you got far more offended by my comments than I ever expected you would.
What are you even talking about?Oh, the over-analysis thing. Devoting a paragraph to the topic isn’t really taking offense, but I guess this is the internet where “u mad” gets tossed around just about as often as “troll.” Dude, you’re not the first person to accuse me of over-analysis. For instance, dig up my old post on Highschool of the Dead. I just felt like talking about the issue because of what I got out of this episode.
You’re mistaken if you think my intention was to make “u mad” or make you take offense.
I never said those were your intentions. I was merely pointing out the fact that you had assumed I was offended.
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