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R2 DVD Reviews
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Written by maehara
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Wednesday, 06 August 2008 16:00 |
 Another volume of Gravitation brings us four more episodes of Eiri's changing moods, pop band rivarly and even the occasional piece of music. What it doesn't bring is much that's different from the first volume, and if there's a continual feeling that you've seen it all before, then what's the point in watching again..?
5 - Winding Road
Bad Luck's finally been booked for their first solo gig. The good news is that it's at Ruido, the same place where Nittle Grasper had their debut - a good omen if ever there was one. The bad news is that it's in just two days time, which really doesn't give the band much chance to prepare - and with Shuichu not being in the most inspired form at the moment, you have to wonder if they'll be ready on time. The problem is that all the attention the band's been getting has left Shuichi feeling the pressure. Distraction arrives in the form of young runaway Ayaka Usami - after the boys rescue her from a possible mugging, Hiro takes on the job of helping her find the man she's looking for, while Shuichi gets to meet Eiri's brother, fellow Nittle Grasper fan Tatsuha - who's looking for a but of Shuichu-action himself. He's also on the lookout for Ayaka...
6 - Shady Scheme
One minute Eiri's agreeing to be Shuichi's lover, the next he's completely ignorning the young singer when he's all excited about their upcoming debut single. Not exactly the behaviour you'd expect under the circumstances. The small matter of Ayaka hasn't been fully resolved yet, either, as Mika's quick to remind him - and knowing just how twisted her brother can be leads her to have a chat with Shuichi, just to make sure he knows what he's letting himself in for. Eiri, meanwhile, is already reconsidering the whole relationship, while the boys from ASK are getting somewhat annoyed that Bad Luck are stealing their limelight...
7 - Ground Zero
Having been thrown out by Eiri, Shuichi's back in his own apartment and back on his own again. Although he initially tries to put a brave face on it in public, he soon realises that without Eiri as his inspiration, his heart's no longer in it and decides it's time to quit Bad Luck. Until, that is, he learns from Hiro that Eiri's decided to deal with ASK's half-cocked blackmail plan himself. His happiness that the man he loves is still willing to protect him is clear to see - but he really shouldn't be getting too excited just yet...
8 - Song and Song
Things are back to more-or-less normal between Shuichi and Eiri - Shuichi's moved himself into Eiri's new pad, and the old arguments are back in full force. But under the surface, Eiri's got problems of his own to deal with, and it seems they're going to have to be dealt with. Aizawa, meanwhile, are growing ever more frustrated with Bad Luck's continued success, and vows to continue trying to discredit Eiri as his way of getting at Shuichi. But Aizawa has crossed the line, and draws Seguchi's ire...
Gravitation's biggest failing is in its repetitiveness. I've already lost count of the number of times that we've been through the back-together, split-up cycle with Eiri and Shuichi - each time I've wonder why Eiri bothered, and why Shuichi puts up with the way he's being messed around, but neither learns from their experiences - later in the ep they're back to square one and the cycle begins again. The appearance of Ayaka in episode five held promise for breaking that cycle, but she quickly turned into just another excuse for the boys to go through the cycle a few more times, and by the end of the disc I was thoroughly fed up with seeing the same story repeat again.
The rivalry between Bad Luck and their rivals is much the same - initially with ASK, and later with the reformed Nittle Grasper, we just keep going over the same territory, just adding to my frustration with the main relationship. On the positive side, the show's slapstick comedy is still there and does manage to raise the occasional smile. There's one particular scene, where Shuichi tries to one-up Ayaka's feminine charms by dressing in a girl's school uniform and turning on the charm, which is hugely funny - mainly as it's just so wrong (Shuichi looks good in a seifuku)
But the bad outweighs the good. There's only so many times that a story can rerun the same idea before it just becomes tedious to watch, and after two volumes Gravitation is right on the line. Fans of the Shuichi / Eiri pairing may well find that their ups and downs make for enough entertainment in its own right, but I'm looking for more - and at the moment, the show isn't providing that. One more disc to save the day, but I can't say I'm holding out much hope. Okay at best.
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