Cruel Angel Theses

Then it’s all tears and drama. Two series with real — and by real here I mean being born to the exact same set of parents and sharing substantial genetic make-up — incest that I know of have all manner of hysteria in their veins. While I haven’t read or seen Angel Sanctuary and are therefore unable to personally vouch for that one, reading Koi Kaze moved me beyond measure for its realistic and uncomfortable portrayal of that six letter word which also happens to be a popular fetish.

Now, before anyone accuses me of being pro-incest, I find my sister as attractive as I do other men (hint: I am straight) and sympathise greatly with those afflicted by it in real life. Neither will you find me separating my future children from each other as they grow up during their formative years due to how the Westermarck effect and genetic sexual attraction provide scientific explanations as to why it happens.

You could say that incest and to a lesser degree, twincest, are as much a part of harem anime as the moe girls and other stock archetypes are. The pseudo-oniichan has been around for ages; I choose to bring this up due to how M;Y has been handling the subject matter this time around, and its subversion of what is an often used and abused trope means that the episode, in addition to resolving two sub-plots, also shone as a result of its excellence.

I’ve mentioned in my previous M;Y posts about how M;Y is “post-harem”, and this episode only served to vindicate my view even further. Stylistically it is harem, no doubt about that, for its visual novel roots lend an irrefutable credibility to it, nevermind how adaptations of its kind have also been slowly redefining what has been commonly thought of as harem in the past half decade or so.

The twincest trope, then, is a two-hit combo that amalgams the best of both worlds. It’s the twin fetish turned naughty, and when they happen to be of the opposite gender it’s the star-crossed lover thing all over again, only with their fate working against them since their physical resemblance is greater, heightening the taboo. Jokes about falling in love with a female version of yourself and Shuuri being a narcissiscon aside, the episode did a great job of fleshing out what initially seemed to be two disposable characters. While the writers obviously have no intention of doing Aoi justice, it’s heartening to know that by the end of M;Y we’re going to have five out of six characters developed considerably.

in contrast to Aoi, Shuuri now fills more than just the stock “violent-yet-well-meaning sibling” void; “sad twin on bed” would now be more apropos

As I wrote about lolis in harem previously, M;Y continues to be post-harem in a way only it can pull off through how it handled the i-word this time. While a lot of harem anime are quick to play out the “we’re not blood-related, therefore it’s okay!” situation shamelessly, resulting in numerous overdone gags which grate on the nerves and get old really fast, the Wakatsuki twins do the opposite by getting into what can be construed as multiple instances of seemingly inappropriate/fanservice moments, before violently objecting to the poison-pen letter, which is ironic given the subtext they seem to be encouraging.

It would be good to note here that in order for a show to be classified as post-harem according to my definition, it has to be aware of what the existing tropes, clichés, and archetypes are in order to work with or around them effectively. Just like how you have to recognise what the basics of a rock sound are before you can try for a post-rock one, the understanding of harem in its contemporary context is essential; the show has to be self-aware, and be able to work around instantly recognisable devices and traits while delivering a final product, that, while technically harem at the end, has a lot more than just numerous girls existing for the sake of a single male character.

The episode seems bent on establishing two messages from the very beginning, and it does so with considerable pomp and attention. The first message is that of conventional incest fanservice: “Being close with your twin sister even when it’s way past the age for that is acceptable if you’re twins!” While it attempts to maintain some semblance of decency by having Shuusuke blush at appropriate moments at the slightest gestures of skinship, the general idea obtained from their interaction till the poison-pen letter is that they are close in a way that outsiders cannot comprehend, a connection that isn’t quite conventional sibling, but by no means romantic for decency’s sake.

The second message is that of “Incest is wrong!”, which, as the anonymous letter demonstrates, contradicts the first message to quite a great extent. For all of Shuuri’s efforts to be closer to Shuusuke in her time of need, they are reminded by society in the form of their despicable headmistress and sycophant deputy headmaster that it isn’t really acceptable for siblings to be that close, twins or not. Ironically, this has a domino effect which results in their being even closer at the end of it all, being pushed by circumstance to seek comfort with each other as a result of their tumultuous personal life and broken family.

This works as post-harem due to it being a parody of a common element in harem (incest) which, despite its appearances, still turns out to be what it is. While it could be a side-effect of M;Y tackling themes and issues not commonly found in harem alongside its darker nature and more realistic issues that don’t involve supernatural powers and creatures of some sort, it’s also M;Y having its cake and wanting to eat it, which is what post-harem is all about. It’s as if the writers, in deciding to peruse something usually infused with lighthearted comedy to contrast off what is usually a serious issue in real life, inserted a reality check to remind its audience that while incest is all well and good in anime, your neighbours and classmates in the real world won’t take it as kindly if they find out you’ve got the hots for your sibling, adopted or otherwise.

Returning to what I said earlier about this episode resolving two sub-plots: Madame Higurashi and the twins’ arc are officially over. Given the misleading episode preview done every time it would be reasonable to think that the next episode is about the twins and not the remaining plot threads like Nanaka’s house’s arsonist and Sana’s enigmatic haemophobia, but M;Y has a track record of misleading episode previews, so I wouldn’t be too worried about it. We’re right on schedule, with the last two three episodes allowing considerable breathing room for any last-minute revelations. Whether the Wakatsuki twins are really done with depends on M;Y emphasising “moment” or “resolution”, which is what I’ll be elaborating on in a later post. In the meantime, hang up your THE END IS NIGH signs. M;Y is proceeding as planned.