Cruel Angel Theses

Nanatsuiro Drops has been an unexpected joy to watch, for as far as I can remember when I finally got it, which was probably around the second episode. Looking past the girly girl fa�ade and what seemed like clich� magical girl trappings, it�s been, like the proverbial child molester, something that�s touched me again and again. Or I could just be waxing lyrical about what�s been advertised, as per its tagline, �First love that encompasses you�.

So this is also an eroge adaptation that I actually like wholeheartedly and unabashedly. It�s really surprising, considering that my views on them haven�t been too favourable, or maybe it�s just the limited sample size I�ve gotten my hands on so far. ND has everything going for it by not harping on the �first love� thing, instead choosing to build on emotions and situations that we can all relate to, and boy, has it been a ride. This is without a doubt, realistic idealism at its best.

I�m listening to Byousoku 5cm�s soundtrack as I write this, and one of the more poignant tunes that�s stuck in my head ever since I saw the movie has been Kanae no Kimochi, or Kanae�s Feelings. Cosmonaut was a great chapter for Kanae and Kanae alone. It spoke volumes about how a one-sided love could put imaginary barriers between people; how we put the objects of our desire up on a pedestal instead of realising that they�re not perfect, but human; that choking feeling you get in your chest; the sense of crushing despair when you realise they like someone else instead.

ND explores this at length, some more than others, some not at all. While its roots are firmly entrenched in the �first love� area it doesn�t harp on it or romanticise endlessly like you�d think it would. Its mahou shoujo side isn�t emphasised as much as, say, its famous predecessors Card Captor Sakura or Sailor Moon. If this is mahou shoujo then it�s only safe to say that a post- or neo- suffix wouldn�t go amiss in front, because the focus here isn�t so much collecting the seven stardrops as it is bridging the distance between Haru and Sumomo.

I�ve contended that ND is a lot like Midori no Hibi, only with the gender roles reversed. I say this because the attachment of Midori to Seiji�s arm only served to bring the two of them closer; while she�s always loved him from afar, it�s only by literally being stuck together with him 24 hours a day that she begins to have a better understanding of him, in turn cementing her love further; he, on the other hand (look, a pun, without even trying!), changes for the better from his former delinquent self through her help and encouragement.

In the same way too does Haru and Sumomo get closer through their search for the seven stardrops — while Sumomo grows as a character and overcomes her innate timidity, Haru gains a closer understanding of the girl he gradually grows to have feelings for. She steps away from her faint-hearted self, endearing herself to the viewers in the process, while he has a better reason to fall for her that isn�t superficial or skin-deep.

Contrast this then to the typical shoujo setup in which girl meets boy, girl falls for boy, boy falls for girl, and a few obligatory juvenile quarrels later they�re set to go, bar random amusing/tragic/tragically amusing/amusingly tragic side characters who try, but fail miserably to get in the promised couple�s way.

Been there, done that. That�s what the standard first love trope is all about, anyway, a dramatisation and romanticisation of something a lot of us don�t pay much thought to in real life. The problem with this is that it�s plot-centric rather than character-centric as a rule, and any enjoyment that could possibly be derived out of reading such stuff as these fade with age. Read one, you�ve read them all.

nevermind that it�s being used to death, Lucky Star still makes everything funny

Right from the start does ND establish that it�s a tongue in cheek homage to the genre it draws its influences from, not subtle satire or outright parody. Sumomo, instead of transforming into her costume, wears it; of course, it�s a delivery from her mother overseas rather than something that comes with the magical staff and ring, and she actually learns how to wear it later through reciting a spell, or, as is humorously termed in that world, a recipe.

Likewise, so does the protagonist and antagonist�s interaction with each other differ greatly from that of the norm. Yuuki, for instance, wants to defeat someone that she�d consider worthy of being her rival. It isn�t so much a burning, misguided desire to win on her part as it is her wanting a fair fight between both Stellar Spinners, and she breaks convention by helping Sumomo at one point, pitying her inability to capture a stardrop under pressure.

This has the effect of de-emphasising the outcome, which is important, since we all know that no matter how hard Yuuki tries, she�s always destined for second place. More importantly, by diverting the emphasis away from the actions of the Stellar Spinners, it brings Yuki and Sumomo into focus.

ND doesn�t fall short in the romance side either, managing to be sweet yet not saccharine, idealistic yet realistic, empathic, not sympathetic. The subject of a first love is tricky, due to how overt romanticisation can break the suspension of disbelief in a viewer all too easily, yet its presentation here allows for a level of identification that�s all too easy to embrace.

How is this achieved? ND does this by playing down the �first� in �first love�, choosing to instead concentrate on the �love� part. You don�t have to have had a first love of equal magnitude to identify with what Haru or Sumomo goes through, and that�s the beauty of what it does — just having loved once before is enough to seal the deal.

The writers know their stuff. Everything, from the stammering hesitation of newly-found lovers to the wordless attraction that bind people together, are portrayed with the utmost earnestness. It�s something I�m highly appreciative of, having seen many a stereotypical first love story in my time, and ND�s definitely pushed the envelope in terms of what such a well-worn format can deliver.

If there was one fault I could blame ND for, it would be its by the book nature. Even with that in mind, it turns what some might perceive as a fault into a strength by how it uses the expected to its advantage. Every time I think I�ve got the storyline down pat ND surprises me yet again by twisting a familiar scene or trope into something vastly different, and that�s why I�ll continue to watch it until the end.

I did a poll recently to find out how many readers watch Nanatsuiro Drops, and while it�s rather disheartening to see that a grand total of seven people watch it, I hope this post might have just changed your mind about it. Be sure to tune in for the second part, �Idealistic Realism�, when I write about School Days next.