Your Kanon review is so accurate and to the point, I felt my very self speak through your words.
Here's to you, one of our fallen and forgotten heroes! May you one day return to us with a warm, shining smile!
Ok, I concede on the fact we don't have any female characters here who aren't helpless, defenseless, insecure, or half-dead. But I think you're more accusing the creators of not giving a feminine power role (other than Asako, since she's a bit minor) to the anime than assessing the existing characters. I know you're doing some of that too, but...I feel that, as it was a dating sim, the real emotions toward the girls need to come from the viewer him/herself, those emotions that you point out Yuuichi is sorely lacking. If Yuuichi treats Makoto as a pet, for example, it's up to the viewer to fill that gap with his or her emotions about Makoto. This brings you into the anime and lets you fully appreciate its beautiful nature. Yuuichi's character setting might be flawed but obviously the creators wanted it that way so that people could connect to the characters who are woven through so intricately.
I think the creators wanted to paint a picture of a group of loosely-connected girls entwined in miracles. Miracles in the magical sense, and miracles in the purely emotional. This anime is not just a story, it's a work of art, and it should be treated as such. And as a work of art, it is open to interpretation. However, I find that accusing the creators of giving a very negative and submissive impression of women in this a bit misleading, since the female characters themselves are just strokes in this beautiful masterpiece, meant to be taken in with the utmost admiration and respect.
You seem very focused on Yuuichi. I think you're taking the romance aspect at face value, actually. I feel that the romance is what emotionally connects all the characters and the writer used Yuuichi as kind of a central hub. He doesn't have to be extremely devoted as long as he is at least tolerable. What is more important in this case are the feelings of the girls and what they go through. Yuuichi's gradual remembrance of everything just makes all of the separate stories of the girls more cinematic and interesting to piece together.
I recently started rewatching it (which I rarely do with anime, but since this is my favorite I decided to go again for the ride) and I noticed that it was put together beautifully. There is so much more to appreciate than the barebones romance aspect. It's like looking at a beautiful flower arrangement and saying one flower that sticks out more than the others happens to be wilting a little. You're ignoring the beauty of the whole picture. And this is assuming I agree with your view of Yuuichi, which I do not entirely.
It's barely a harem. Yuuichi does feel horrible. He skipped school more and more to comfort the girls. And even if the relationships were not entirely truthful and <3 filled, who says they should be? It makes for even more drama in a relationship that isn't perfect, or a relationship that might be lacking in some respects. Rotten? Rotten is a word to describe something beyond purification, something that can never be good no matter how much you try to fix it. Yuuichi's experiences with the various girls, especially Makoto, Mai and Ayu, really show how much he really cared about them. He cried hard when Makoto died. He stayed with Mai until things got out of hand, and even after they got out of hand to help her reconnect with herself. And Ayu...man, he didn't give up on her--he freaking invented a new reality for himself (that got enchanted somehow) just so that he could deal with the horrible childhood loss, and after it was exposed, he still loved Ayu for what she is and began to help her a lot with her recovery! Does that sound like a rotten harem to you?
I read your Kanon 2006 review and...I think you missed the emotional factor there. The point is not Yuuichi's attitude toward the girls. The point is the viewer's connection to the girls and how they all fit together in the amazing "miracles" that happen in that city. You shouldn't think of Kanon as a harem anime where Yuuichi just screws around with different girls. All of those girls (well...most of them) have a very deep past and Yuuichi only acts as a central guide for the viewer to piece the puzzle together.
Of course, this is coming from a person who absolutely loved Kanon 2006 so much that he bawled his eyes out over the last two episodes and then decided it was the best thing he's ever watched, so...take my opinion as you will.
I was wondering where i could read the Mokke manga in english, since you seemed to have read it. If you know any sites or anything, i would really appreciate it if you could tell me :D.
All Comments (9) Comments
Here's to you, one of our fallen and forgotten heroes! May you one day return to us with a warm, shining smile!
I think the creators wanted to paint a picture of a group of loosely-connected girls entwined in miracles. Miracles in the magical sense, and miracles in the purely emotional. This anime is not just a story, it's a work of art, and it should be treated as such. And as a work of art, it is open to interpretation. However, I find that accusing the creators of giving a very negative and submissive impression of women in this a bit misleading, since the female characters themselves are just strokes in this beautiful masterpiece, meant to be taken in with the utmost admiration and respect.
I recently started rewatching it (which I rarely do with anime, but since this is my favorite I decided to go again for the ride) and I noticed that it was put together beautifully. There is so much more to appreciate than the barebones romance aspect. It's like looking at a beautiful flower arrangement and saying one flower that sticks out more than the others happens to be wilting a little. You're ignoring the beauty of the whole picture. And this is assuming I agree with your view of Yuuichi, which I do not entirely.
Of course, this is coming from a person who absolutely loved Kanon 2006 so much that he bawled his eyes out over the last two episodes and then decided it was the best thing he's ever watched, so...take my opinion as you will.
and wow, another shadow star fan. Its way too hard to find those xD.
Would you happen to be the same WAHa_06x36 from the YKK/Cafe Alpha forums and IIChan Translations?