Asatte no Houkou ep.08

November 24, 2006 | 24 Comments

This is unbelievably good. I always knew that there is something special about this series but the writers took one step further and made an episode that is near, if not as good as one of those Honey and Clover episodes. The segment featuring Karada's childhood is absolutely beautiful. The combination of Suara singing Kasa and the well-written storyline took me by surprise. I find it hard to believe that there are only 4 more episodes. But I suppose it's better to end it while it's still good than to go on and on without any kind of direction. As a side note, the insert song I mentioned earlier actually comes from Suara's new single, Hikari no Kisetsu, which is also this series' OP theme. The song itself is fantastic on its own. If you can find the time, however, I'd recommend watching this entire episode because the combination of the song and the imagery creates one powerful story.

Suara - Kasa (320kbps MP3, 9.81MB)

The episode begins with Karada leaving Kanouchou and arriving at an unspecified big city. She experiences disorientation right away when the ticket machine won't allow her to exit until she inserts the ticket into the slot. Karada's then visits a real estate agent but she is dismayed upon realising that the rent for the cheapest apartment is 58,000 Yen/month (around $500). After wandering around the city, Karada decides to make a stop at W fast food joint. Upon looking at the prices of the foods (which hovers around 600 Yen) and the amount of money that she has (probably no more than 5000 Yen), Karada decides not to eat at all. When she sees a poster offering a position at the fast food joint, she decides to apply for it. She tells the manager that she's proud of her cooking skills. Although she never made Hamburger before, she'll do her best to learn how to do it. Unfortunately, the manager wants to see her resume and she doesn't have one.

In order to solver her problem Karada goes to a Combini and asks the clerk if they sell "Resume". XD Instead the clerk simply directs her to purchase a Rirekisho (Resume Book). Before Karada goes out of the Combini, she notices a job placement magazine so she takes that out as well. Her next attempt is to apply for a job at a Library. Unfortunately she is criticised because she doesn't put furigana on top of her Kanji name, doesn't include picture in her resume, have a lot of empty spaces on her Rirekisho, and she wrote that she's only 12 years old. In the end, Karada doesn't get this job either but she refuses to give up. She goes to a photo booth and takes a passport size photograph of herself and sticks it in her Rirekisho. She also reads through a "How to write a Resume" book. Karada decides to use "Satou Hanako" as her fake name and pretends to be 20 years old. She tells a tavern owner how she has to work because her parents have died.

Karada thinks she'd get the job when the woman who works there starts sobbing at her story. Unfortunately, she's just a hiring manager and not the owner so she'd have to contact Karada later. That evening, Karada has no choice but to wander around the city since she has no place to stay and doesn't have enough money to either buy a food or find a place to stay. While she laments her fate, however, 3 creeps approach her, asking her if she's free. They invite her to have coffee or going to Karaoke with them since they've been observing her for a while and she hasn't been doing anything. Karada apologises and runs away from the creep but they try to chase after her. Thankfully before they can get her, she manages to hide herself in an empty alley. This turns out to be a bad idea as well since a pimp then approaches her, promising to find her a job if she's looking for one. After noticing the strip show sign nearby, Karada decides to flee for her life.

That night it's raining around the city but Karada is nowhere to be found in the area. As it turns out, she has taken a refuge at a nearby public park. She is now sitting underneath a slide looking wet and miserable but still tells herself to do her best. While this happens, she remembers her past when her parents were still alive. It was then that Karada was shown a picture of Hiro by her parents. The two of them claimed that Hiro is her brother who lives in the US. Her parents told her that if she stays good, she'd soon meet him. One night, Karada's mother asked her husband if it's okay to not tell Karada the truth. Unfortunately, her husband stupidly said outloud that there's nothing they can say since Karada is not their real child. Karada who was standing outside the door overheard the words and started to cry, asking her parents if she's really not their real daughter. Her parents consoled her and apologised that she found out about it this way.

Karada narrated that her parents loved her like their own child but there's always one thing that she's unsure of: if her brother in the US is thinking about her. She always thought about a way to introduce herself to him when they meet each other for the first time. One day, Karada's parents passed away and she had no one else left to fend for her. When she woke up, two altars were already set up for her parents. It was then that she first met Hiro and cried as she introduced herself to him. Back then Hiro hugged her tightly and apologised for coming late but everything will be okay now. The two then moved to their current apartment and after seeing how Hiro worked hard for her, Karada decided to learn how to cook. Because he's afraid that she'll get hurt without proper training, Hiro agreed to teach her how to cook and do other chores. One thing that always bothers Karada, however, is the way Hiro always evades questions about his time in the US.

Even then, she already knew that Hiro sacrificed many things for her sake. Something which was important. This is why she made a wish, a wish that she'll grow up soon so she can give her brother his freedom back. However, her wish didn't bring happiness to anyone. The next day, Karada returns to the train station. A taxi driver that she saw one day ago feels sorry upon seeing her looking cold and decided to fetch a can of warm coffee for her. Karada decides to leave the area before the guy returns and in the process drops a Rirekisho that she brought. At the same time, Hiro finds a picture of himself and Shouko inside one of Shouko's book. He coldly asks her why she still has this thing. Shouko tells him that she simply forgot and apologises for it. Their conversation comes to a halt when someone calls Hiro. Meanwhile, Karada is at a train station, ready to take a train that will take her to another city. She, however, hesitates at the last minute.

At the same time, Hiro is on his way to the city where Karada is currenly located after presumably informed by the taxi driver. Back in Kanouchou, Shouko looks at pictures of herself and Hiro in sadness. She then opens her hand to reveal a pendant in the shape of a key. A few hours later, Karada notices Hiro roaming around in the train station. A flashback then shows that the picture of Hiro and Shouko made her realised that the thing that Hiro sacrificed so he could take care of her was Shouko. Back in the present, Hiro finally notices Karada about to board the train that will take her to another city. He tries to get into the platform but by the time he gets there, the train doors are already closed. When he pounds on the door, Karada turns around and tries to smile even though she's crying. She then apologises to Hiro as the train leaves the station and Hiro behind. Inside the train, Karada cries and thanks Hiro for always being her brother.

Impression:

I was impressed with this episode. To begin with, Karada's shock treatment when she was at the big city was painfully realistic. It's very hard to find a job out there. I'm sure everyone can identify easily with this part. It was also horrifying to see the three creeps trying to have their way with Karada. Just looking and hearing at the guys screaming at Karada and telling her that she won't be able to get away gave me the creep. I know what would have happened if Karada failed to get away from them and it's something that I hope I won't get to see in this series. The best part of this episode, however, belongs to the flashback scene. I think this can partly be attributed to the insert song, Kasa, which for some reason has a Ghibli-esque feel to it. It's hard not to be moved seeing Karada enduring so many trials and tribulations even when she was a little kid.

I am not really surprised to know that her parents are not her real parents. However, the way she found out about it was brutal. It was painful to see a kid as young as her having to accidentally hear from her parents that she's not their real child. As if that's not bad enough, the two of them were taken away from Karada when she's still at a very young age. This allows Hiro to come into her life but it's obvious that Karada feels guilty for taking Hiro's kindness. She knew all along that Hiro sacrificed something but it's not until she saw Shouko's photo that she found out what it was that Hiro sacrificed. This was the reason why she decided to leave and live her own life now that she's an 'adult'. The problem is, she's not really an adult. She doesn't know how to write a resume and she's extremely naive to think that she can survive in a big city with only 5000 Yen (around $50). Overall, this was an excellent emotional roller-coaster from start to finish.

Preview

On next week's episode: It seems to be a story about Tetsu. Dang it, I want to find out what happens to Karada.

© memento 2003