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ファイト／ステイナイト 
December 28, 2005 | 
11 Comments
This turns out to be another excellent installment for the series. If the series had been this good right from the start, I think this would have easily been one of my favourite series of the season. As it is now though, I am a bit ambivalent about it. I think the series has the potential to be really interesting. However, in order for this to happen, the writers need to stop featuring too many vengeance-wisher of the week because I notice that the writing seems to be stronger when the storyline veers away from this typical scenario. I also have to say that I'm surprised to see the high quality animation in this episode. It really feels as if I'm watching a different series from the one that I usually see. There are a lot of artistic shots, clever use of red colors, and the sceneries are much better directed and animated in comparison to the other episodes.
The episode begins with a shot of the Hell candles. The camera eventually closing in on a candle which almost burns out. Cut to a scene of Tsugumi in trance mode again. In her vision, Ai walks through the street and enters an old bookshop. Tsugumi is eventually shaken out of her trance by Hajime, who asks her if she gets one of those visions again. Tsugumi confirms her father's guess but becomes embarassed when Hajime asks her what kind of books the shop sells. After not getting an answer from Tsugumi, Hajime smirks and correctly guesses that the bookshop sells porn. He promptly gets hit by Tsugumi with rice bowl for being a pervert. When Hajime comes out of the house, he's seen sporting a band-aid on his nose. XD Meanwhile, Ichimoku Ren, Hone-Onna, and Wanyuudo are wondering what Ai is doing right now. Hone-Onna believes that they'll find out soon enough. She also thinks that they will have to deal with Hajime one day.
At the same time, Hajime manages to find a bookshop that was described by Tsugumi. Unfortunately the owner of the bookshop doesn't seem to know anything about Jigoku Tsuushin. His clever parrot even thinks that it's some kind of a book. Upon hearing this, Hajime decides to change tactic and asks the parrot if it knows what Ai was doing in the bookshop. The parrot points out to Hajime that Ai was looking at a particular area in the bookshop. Upon checking out the area, Hajime finds a magazine that contains an article called 「煉獄少女」 - Rengoku Shoujo (Purgatory Girl). The author mentions how he knew about Rengoku Tsuushin from his friend and that he saw a beautiful girl upon mailing his letter to her. When Hajime checks out the illustration of this so-called 'Rengoku Shoujo', he finds a rather scary-looking girl. Nevertheless Hajime thinks that both Jigoku Tsuushin and Rengoku Tsuushin have similar working method.
At the end of the article, Hajime finds the name of the author, which is 'Jigoku Ochiro'. The bookshop owner, however, informs Hajime that the name is probably just a pen name so he directs Hajime to see the publisher instead. From the publisher, Hajime finds out that the author's real name is Fukumoto. Fukumoto apparently had a friend called Ookouchi who somehow disappeared without a trace one day. The publisher also informs Hajime that the picture used in the article was actually drawn by another person and proceeds to show the real pictures drawn by Fukumoto. Hajime is shocked upon finding out that the picture of the real 'Rengoku Shoujo' is none other than Ai. With the help of the publisher, Hajime manages to find out the whereabouts of Fukumoto. Fukumoto at first refuses to talk to Hajime until Hajime tells him that he wants to talk about Enma Ai. Upon hearing this, he tells Hajime to come in because he doesn't have much time anymore.
Fukumoto tells Hajime that back then, Jigoku Tsuushin appeared in the form of a newspaper ad that only those with a vengeance desire can see. Ironically, Fukumoto was informed about this by his then-friend, Ookouchi, but was unable to see it until one day he saw his wife raped by said 'friend'. Shortly after this, his wife killed herself and for the first time ever, Fukumoto had the desire to kill another human being. This desire allowed him to see the Jigoku Tsuushin ad in the newspaper. Because of this, Fukumoto mailed a letter to a post box and upon doing so, instantly received a visitation from Ai, who gave him the usual drill. Fukumoto tells Hajime that he too will go to hell after he died a natural death and proceeds to show the hell symbol on his chest. He admits that he tried to forget about his eventual fate by working, meditating, gambling, doing charity work, but in the end he can't forget that he fact that he'll eventually go to hell.
Fukumoto then tells Hajime that he wants to show Hajime his latest work and takes the guy to a room full of Ai's paintings. The latest work he was talking about turned out to be a large mural painting of Ai. Upon seeing his works, Hajime doesn't understand why Fukumoto doesn't seem to hate the fact that Ai has ruined his life. Fukumoto, however, tells Hajime that the one who ruined his life was Ookouchi. He believes that he'd have died faster had he tried to exact the vengeance on his own. In fact, the only thing that he's looking forward to right now is meeting Ai again. This leads Hajime to wonder about Ai's identity. Fukumoto tells Hajime that she's either not human or once was a human. The documentation refers to her existence as far as the Edo period although it probably goes back as far as Azuchi Momoyama (Sengoku) period (1467-1603). Hajime also finds out that Fukumoto feels that it was Ai's will that compelled him to write Rengoku Shoujo.
It seems that Ai wants to tell her story to someone and Fukumoto believes that this someone is none other than Hajime. After saying this, Fukumoto begins to apply some finishing touch on Ai's mural. Once the painting is completed, all of a sudden tears begin to come out of Ai's eyes in the painting. Upon seeing this Fukumoto wonders if Ai is crying for his sake. Meanwhile, the candle which represents Fukumoto's life finally burns out. In the real world, Fukumoto finally passed away and when he opens his eyes, he finds himself in a boat rowed by Ai. He tells Ai that she still hasn't changed at all and still as beautiful as ever. Upon looking at his surrounding, Fukumoto wonders if he'll ever see Ookouchi again in hell. Ai for some reason smiles a little bit upon hearing this. And then, after a few quiet moments tell Fukumoto that hell is a big enough place. The episode then ends with the boat moving towards the gate of hell.
Impression:
I have to say that this is not exactly what I had in mind when I first watched the episode. Nevertheless, I am quite happy with what I've seen here. The episode basically shows what would happen to a person who made a contract with Ai once that person is close to his natural death. The answer is, the person will still go to hell. This episode, however, remains interesting because it actually gives out a few additional information about the way Jigoku Tsuushin works. First of all, in the olden days, newspaper ad seems to be the method that was used by Ai to advertise her service. Just like the electronic version, however, only those with real grudge can actually see the advert. This intriques me a little bit because as stated by Fukumoto, Ai has been around for a long time. If Ai really did exist ever since the Azuchi Momoyama period, then it means she's been around for at least 500 years. I hope that the series will one day show a grudge-wisher from those period.
Another thing that is obvious from this episode is that Ai and Jigoku Tsuushin itself evolve and adapt to the current way of living. For example, Jigoku Tsuushin used to be in the form of a newspaper ad and now takes a form of a website. Similarly, Ai's dress style has changed according to the time that she lives in. As seen in this episode, Ai actually visited Fukumoto in her kimono instead of the usual schoolgirl outfit she used to visit her recent clients. So I assume that her schoolgirl outfit is an attempt to adapt to the current society's dress code. It is also obvious by now that Ai uses Tsugumi and Hajime to tell her story. The start of this episode clearly suggests that Ai went out of her way to go to the bookshop for no apparent reason but to give Tsugumi some information about the article. If she hadn't done this, Hajime would not have been able to know about the existence of the article and get to meet Fukumoto.
Having said that, it seems to me that her helpers don't know about her intention and this is why they think that Hajime sticks his nose too closely in their business. This makes me wonder what kind of story Ai wants to tell to the world. I also wonder if one day Ai will end up having disagreement with her associates over Hajime and Tsugumi. Another thing that I think was interesting was the way Ai smiles after hearing Fukumoto's question if he'll see his friend in hell. Ai told the guy that hell is big enough so that means that the likelihood of him seeing his friend is quite small. Does this also mean that there are different kinds of hell for different people? I noticed that the word 'Purgatory' seems to be used quite frequently in this episode instead of 'Hell'. In certain religion, especially Catholicism, 'Purgatory' is basically the place between Heaven and Hell. A place where one cleans their sins through temporal punishment prior to ascending into Heaven.
As Garten has said, I think this is a great episode and one of the most scary anime episodes I've ever seen. And the most scary part is this: When Hajime asked why the old painter had written the story of Rengoku Shojo, the old man said because Ai wanted Hajime to know the story. When I heard this, my arms were covered with goosebumps. The old man wrote the story more than 50 years ago. That must be before Hajime was born. So Ai knew then Hajime would be born, become a writer and try to find who she is. What Hajime is doing now was already known more than 50 years ago. And that BGM is scary too. I don't know who the singer is but that scat seems to be very effective. When the old man finished the mural, the painted Ai started shedding tears. I wonder why she has to cry. She may have seen so many dark sides of human nature. She may not like what she has been doing and think it is right either. But she may think she has to fix the vengeance for the weak because many bad people know how to escape from the crimes they have committed. Until I saw this episode, I had never thought Ai was a sad girl. I sometimes thought she was a lonely girl but never a sad girl. But since I saw those tears, I think she is sad and asking Hajime to help her. When the series started, I thought Jigoku Shojo was less than mediocre. I thought the series would be a parade of how to punish bad people. But since Hajime and Tsugumi were involved, the series has got so interesting and intriguing.
Now I have so many questions. What the hell is Ai anyway? Has she really been sending bad people to the hell since Momoyama period? Why does Ai want Hajime to know about Jigoku Tsushin? Because he is a writer? But there are so many writers in Japan. How is Tsugumi and Ai related? I don't believe Tsugumi just happens to be Hajime's daughter. I hope the writer will answer all the questions before the series is over.
Now THIS is the type of story I've been waiting 12 episodes for, and this is the type of development I was missing since Ep 2-3. :D Seriously - would it have killed them to have started Ai's story sooner? Halfway through the series, in my opinion, is a bit late... and after the third time we saw someone wished to Hell, we probably had an idea as to the way Ai and company worked, thus allowing us to get onto the main story, which is Tsugumi and Hajime's links to Ai's tale - in my opinion anyways.
It's interesting to see how there's a big difference, or at least there seems to be one, when she interacts with people who don't really 'deserve' to go to Hell (like last week's schoolteacher and this week's painter) as compared to the unrepentant or truly 'wicked'. In the case of the former, we've seen two simple transitions without any psychological torture or any attempt to hint at one's fate before being condemned, while with those targets who were vicious or in denial got the full deal (Misato's boss Riho from Ep 5, Ayaka from Ep 7, and Ayu from Ep 1).
I really, REALLY wish this episode had shown up about 3-4 episodes sooner; The last two eps have been among the more interesting, if only because it's not the same 'person A feels wronged, calls Ai, then sends person B to hell'.
One more note: Tsugumi's incredibly cute when she shouts that her father's a pervert. :D Then again, so's Ai - she's quite cute as well, even if she DOES end up sending most, if not everyone who sees her, to hell.
"Just like the electronic version, however, only those with real grudge can actually see the advert"
I thought anyone could see the site if they visited it at midnight? For example the hacker episode.
Yeah, I also questioned this plot point back in the first episode where Hajime was introduced. I said that I find it weird that Hajime can't access the site (because he doesn't have a grudge against anyone) and yet those hacker can. I thought it was a plot hole since this whole having to have a vengeance desire wasn't introduced until Hajime and Tsugumi's episode.
But someone pointed out that the hacker has a grudge against her boss (which is true), so she can see the site. But how about the boss herself? I thought she could see the site too. I guess one can say that the boss has a desire to kill someone so she can see it. But I thought that's quite different from having a grudge against someone. Anyone else has any thought about this?
I don't recall if Riho actually SAW the site herself, or merely knew about it and wanted to exploit it so she could send people to death in the most efficient way possible... but she used Misato to do it so her soul wouldn't get condemned to Hell, if she knew about the price, or if she used Misato to make sure there was 'plausible deniability' if something should go wrong.
The methods have obviously changed over the years - what was once advertised in papers now usually can be found on the World Wide Web on its own website, and the Jigoku/Rengoku Shoujo is no different. I don't recall if midnight was required to see the site, especially as so many other people used it at varying times of day - Episode 2 isn't specific on the time when Ryuoko accessed it, and Episode 7 has Ayaka's victim pulling the string on her, and we don't know if she ever accessed the site herself, much less when she did it. That's the rumor that's floating around, however, but I don't recall if the chattering schoolgirls ever say 'you have to go there at 12'.
Still, it's.. interesting. Of course, the rules COULD have changed in the 40 years since Fukumoto accessed the Jigoku Tsuushin. Another interesting factoid is the DNS servers for the Jigokutsuushin website, when one tries to access it by typing in the address: the DNS servers 'afraid'. :D
The site I use only has up to ep 6.... T.T
Can someone please send me a site so I can download more? =P
Um...
Check Animesuki and Tokyo Toshokan before asking where to find a series
And as far as I know, no sub group's been serious about Jigoku Shoujo, so no subs go past 6 at the moment. Garten's been watching the RAWs, and speaks Japanese so is able to post these reviews/blogs... as most of the anime bloggers I've been to currently do.
I just rechecked some of the old episodes again and in those episodes, the clients have to wait until 12 to access the site. In fact, in the first episode, the client tried to access the site prior to midnight and didn't have any luck. However, when the time points at exactly 12 at night, the site suddenly appears.
As for episode 5, it's hard to say. But there is one scene where Riho is right behind Misato when the clock turns to 12 and she knows that it's the time for the site to appear. That to me kind of suggests that she has seen the site before. Otherwise, how could she be so sure?
Riho also looks at the screen intently. If she can't see anything, wouldn't she make a comment about it? Also bear in mind that Riho doesn't trust Misato. So I doubt that she will believe the girl about the existence of Jigoku Tsuushin or Misato's inability to get any response from the site unless she sees it herself.
So, assuming Riho can see the site, why can she see it and Hajime can't? I think there are only two possible answers:
1. Riho has a grudge against, well, anyone who is in her way so that's why she can see the site. This is the only possible answer that makes sense. Or...
2. Everyone used to be able to see the site but ever since the incident with Riho and Misato, Ai installed some kind of 'supernatural' firewall which only allows those with real vengeance to see the site. This idea sounds ridiculous to me. If Ai has the means to do this, why not use it earlier? Especially since she already used similar method to prevent unwanted people from reading the newspaper advert in the olden days.
That's part of the problem with inserting the storyline 13 episodes in - if they'd done this sooner, we could at least have a CHANCE at explaining half of the stuff that's gone on without running into contradictions like this. They could've ditched two, maybe three episodes easily, or introduced Hajime and Tsugumi back in Ep 6 or thereabouts, and we'd be on a lot better footing than we are now.
For all we know, Ai never really thought she'd get spammed, so like any normal corporation they never had any protection against certain activities until after the fact. :D However, I never saw Riho as the type to carry grudges - she just has a general antipathy against the world and others, starting with her boyfriend, which spilled out into murders and other 'convenient eliminations'. Misato, on the other hand, always had a reason for a grudge - she suspected Riho had been responsible for what had befallen her father, which was why she let herself get caught in the first place.
Would Kaoruko be the only exception to the rule about contacting the Jigoku Tsuushin? We never saw her access the site, and she even went on to use Ayaka's doll to condemn Ayaka to Hell. Did she discover this on her (along with the knowledge of the Tsuushin and how it works) and then decided to use it that way, or did Ai come by and offer her the chance to turn the tables? She's the only one who we never saw accessing the site, after all - even the girl from Episode 2 accessed it after getting the call from the detective, albeit using her cell phone at whatever hour it was to do so.
Heck, we don't know if anyone else besides the vengeance-seeker sees the site, or what they see - Hajime's 'page not available' may have been due to new protections, or perhaps due to the fact that he (like Fukamoto in Ep 12) never really had someone who he bore a serious grudge towards. We have no idea what Riho saw, and if she didn't see anything, I doubt she'd let Misato know that. That may be why she had Misato accessing it, beyond whatever other rumors she may have heard about the site in question - if she couldn't see it, then she'd have to have a minion do it... beyond the obvious reasons of deniability, of course.
Either way, there are plot holes, and part of why they exist is because we had so much time to build up expectations as to what the rules of the world are... including accessing the Tsuushin. If they'd introduced this idea sooner, we'd have fewer instances of 'people accessing at 12AM precisely' to use to explain why most people couldn't see the page.
Be my friend ok
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