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Now in Japan
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Friday, 08 April 2005 13:51 |
 A few more episodes of Air, and a little more
of an idea about how the show seems to work, as Kano's story ends and
the focus moves on to Tohno. Don't worry, Misuzu hasn't been
forgotten about, either. :) Just make sure you're in a mellow
mood before you sit down to watch, as this is one of those shows that
certainly won't get the adrenalin pumping...
3 - Whisper
Kano collapses outside the shrine, and when she comes to she has no
memory of what's happened to her or why she's at the shrine - which
leaves Yukito with some explaining to do when Hijiri appears.
Back at the surgery, he overhears a conversation between Kano and
Hijiri that may explain a little. The next evening, though, Kano
disappears - when Yukito and Misuzu search for her, they find her at
the shrine again, but once more Kano's not herself, and attacks
Yukito...
4 - Plume
Yukito finally gets an explanation as to what's going on with Kano -
when she was a child, she handled a mysterious feather that was being
kept at the shrine. Since then, she's often behaved strangely -
afraid of bright lights, talking to herself, and at times trying to
harm herself. Hijiri has no idea what it was about the feather
that caused Kano to change - all she knows is that she has to protect
her sister, but Kano seems to have other ideas. Yukito finds a
note in her room: "I've decided to fly away - I think it'll be better
that way..." Tracking Kano down leads to the shrine once more,
and the truth behind the feather...
5 - Wing
Now that Kano's back to normal, it's time for a shift in story
focus. Tohno invites Yukito to watch the stars with her - since
she's a member of the school astronomy club, she's able to use their
telescope, and the roof of the school makes a great viewing
point. It would be much more peaceful if Michiru wasn't with
them, but there you go. He walks Tohno home later, but when her
mother meets her at the door, she seems to have trouble remembering her
own daughter's name. Later, Misuzu breaks down in tears, the
result of a mental illness that causes anixety attacks when she feels
she's getting close to someone. With Yukito now being the cause
of her attacks, it's time for him to leave Misuzu's home...
I get the distinct impression that this show's going for the record of
how many unhinged girls you can have in one place - Yukito's certainly
more understanding about almost being choked to death than I would ever
be! It does seem to give a few pointers as to the real story
here, though - with Kano's story resolved & a feather playing a key
part, I wonder if it has a connection to Yukito's search for the girl
with wings. If Tohno's story ends with a feather involved, I'll
know I'm on to something there.
One thing is for certain, though - Air is not the
show to watch if you're needing cheering up, as the themse of rejection
and separation from others that are underlying everything make it quite
heavy going. That said, there's also a certain sense of
fulfilment when things go right, as happens when Yukito is able to life
Kano's 'curse'.
With more of an idea of what's going on, I'm getting more and more hooked by Air's
story and characters. While it's not the easiest show to watch,
I've got plenty of mindless anime in my collection to lighten the mood
with once it's done, and I can't help but keep watching to see what
happens next. Well worth watching.
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