- It appears I spoke too soon. But we all saw it coming anyway.
- Although the passing away of characters is somewhat of a staple (and a given) in Jun Maeda/Studio Key shows, what are we meant to think when it hits us so suddenly? Okay, okay, so there’s was absolutely no way that imouto could’ve made it out of that. And so that’s mostly the reason why I chose to avoid Tumblr entirely this week, purely because I just know how incredibly cruel users can be, even to the most innocent of characters…people like Ayumi.
- As much as I’m accustomed to Studio Key shows, I still found this a very uncomfortable watch. I mean it’s simply too easy to just run away and forget about everything, like what Yuu did. And it was only the best thing that Nao was tailing him and keeping a close eye on him since he was discharged from hospital.
- While he was cheating his way into the best schools and charming his way into getting the best girls, Yuu just took his little sister (who loved him unconditionally) for granted. It’s only when she died when it hit him. He feels guilty for not protecting her like a big brother ought to. Yuu’s path of self-destruction…from binging on cup noodles, to locking himself in an internet cafe, to getting addicted to shooting games, to picking random fights…all of this took place while Nao just stood by and let him do this. And so that led me to think, why? Well perhaps she did in the possibility that Yuu would know his limit and stop himself; it was only when things turned too ugly when she had to act. And as for all those people he beat up, well maybe she thought they deserved it for being douches or something.
- So because of this intervention at the end of the show, we can see now that Yuu and Nao have so much more in common. They have now both lost a sibling (albeit either literal or not). They both became angry with themselves, beat themselves up about it, and didn’t care about the consequences. And they both now have all the more reason to stop the guinea pig experimenting. Also, for Nao, this mission of hers has become much more personal, as she feels responsible for just letting Ayumi go (instead of ‘quarantining’ her, which considering what her ability was, would have probably been the better option). In her past living in a holding unit along with her brother, her mission has elevated; before she would just stop random adolescents she didn’t know (and would forget instantly)…now this is happening to someone she has grown to know well, she cannot sit by and watch Yuu slowly kill himself.
- Also notable was how the score was kept at a total minimum this week. The writers wanted this episode to be the turning point not just for Yuu but for the entire show, so any kind of melancholic score (even light piano music) that played while he was using his abilities to beat gangsters up would make the episode more than corny, and would completely ruin the entire episode. Considering other Key adaptations loved (and I mean absolutely loved) to use score for any mood in the show, this stands out. It could be down to that we expect much more to come in this show (more that requires genuine score that pulls at your heart-strings), or it could just be a change of heart for Jun Maeda…I actually think it’s the former. Okay so we all cried at the end of Clannad (both seasons); that show heavily depended on its score. It worked like a charm, and for all we know some more heavy tragedy will come our way……eh, what am I saying!? This is a Jun Maeda show!
- And comedy has now been thrown out the window this week, and I think now we are firmly into the second half of the show, if the story of Charlotte is anything like what people suspect it to be, then now is the time for the token idiot and the token airhead to take a back-seat. Those two will certainly be back next week, but considering what has happened in these last two episodes, what will the mood be like amongst them? Yusa will, of course, be constantly apologetic and offer him expensive cake, leaving Joujirou to spin around stupidly watching his goddess perform her ‘making-up’ magic spell on Yuu. The random adolescents with abilities will stop now, leaving us with time to consider whether Yuu and Nao will connect the way we want them to. Hell we don’t even know what ‘Charlotte’ is even supposed to mean at this stage. I recall when I was reviewing P.A. Works’ Glasslip last year, the term ‘fragments of the future’ was waved around here, there and everywhere…it turned out to mean absolutely nothing. Jun Maeda isn’t one to fail us, considering his excellent reputation in storytelling, so ‘Charlotte’ will mean something…kind of.
At least he gave a nod to one show in particular.
