Mushishi Zoku Sho continues the episodic chronicles of Ginko, the white-haired, laid back, chain-smoking, wandering ‘Mushishi’ (Loose TL: Mushi-master). For the fans of the much praised 2006 series, Zoku Sho is, in every technical and aesthetic sense, true to its predecessor. The studio behind it (Artland), and the staff is the same, and there have been no dramatic stylistic changes, making Zoku sho, except in its more enhanced visuals and polished presentation, the direct continuation of the first season in every aspect.
For those unfamiliar with this masterful adaptation of Yuki Urushibara’s seminal magnum opus, it is advisable to start with the first season because, despite the whole series being strictly episodic, Zoku Sho assumes that you are familiar with some parts and concepts of the Mushi lore, such as Komyuka (the river of life), its significance, mountain-lords, some recurring characters, and some part of the main character’s background story.
With the above mandatory preface done, I can move on to describing the series, and what the second season is about.
Mushishi is set in ‘imaginary rural Japan’ with the technology and fashion Coeval to 19th Century period. The world of Mushishi is inhabited by supernatural and otherworldly creatures called ‘Mushi’, which exist in various sizes, shapes and types (much like animals and plants); they are as important to the life cycle and ecology of the world as plants and animals. The effect of their interaction with the world and other species (humans, plants, animals) may range from neutral to potentially devastating. There are mushi that can turn the blood inside a human to milk, make cloudless rain to fall wherever their hosts travel, cause various disease/illness, or provide someone the power over life. They can be parasitic, harmless or even beneficial.
The catch is that very few people can perceive, and even fewer understand these ethereal creatures. Some of those who do become ‘Mushishi’, people who deal with Mushi. Ginko is one such person, who has dedicated his life to ‘understanding’ Mushi and help those who are affected by them. In the various episodes we see him travelling to various places, and coming across Mushi related phenomenon, which he is almost always able to handle deftly thanks to his exceptional foresight and erudite knowledge (in fact, after watching two seasons, I am thoroughly convinced that Ginko is something of a PhD on Mushi and mushi related stuff). As a man of learning, Ginko does his best to further his knowledge through research, help people, and keep the ecological balance while saving man and mushi from harming each other.
But Mushishi is about more than that. Almost every episode, despite the fantastical theme, is relatable to a diverse variety of practical real world philosophical, moral, social, or psychological dilemmas and issues. These range from coping with the loss of loved ones, a disease, failure, moral corruption, family woes, relationship breakdowns, loss of self-worth, natural disasters, man’s relationship with the environment, etc.The wisdom contained in these episodes is sometimes esoteric, and at other times, exoteric in nature.
Having said that, every viewer will perceive things from their own lens. Mushishi is not pedantic, and rises above these snippets of existentialist wisdom into the realm of profound and abstruse artistic and aesthetic depth. It transcends to themes and emotions that cannot be easily put in words.
The sparse poetic narration of Ginko and his erstwhile mentor Nui, the sublime background score composed by veteran composer Toshio Masuda, the masterful direction by Nagahama Hiroshi, the exquisite and soothing art direction with its lush, sweeping homage to nature’s beauty, Nakano Yuto’s powerful VA performance, all combine to bring alive the transcendental and minimalist piece of art that is Mushishi. The atmosphere and ambiance of the show is so strong that sometimes I almost felt like I was there, and at times felt what the characters were feeling.
That is, at least for me, Mushishi in a nutshell.
Any comparisons to the previous season may yield variable and subjective results. Many would prefer the first season, largely due to it offering a greater variety of stories, landscapes, themes and music score. Admittedly, there might be some weight to this preference. The incident fact that many of the stories in the second season have ‘parasitic’ mushis and follow a ‘problem, diagnosis, prescription’ format has also been pointed out by some. However, this point is made mute by the fact that every story is unique in some way or the other.
To sum up, Mushishi is an important milestone in anime, and easily recommendable to most anime fans.
