Legitimate Lamentations: It’s all about the subtext
Posted by: Owen S in Anime, tags: Byousoku 5cm, true tearsRelax, kuro, we understand j00. In case you have difficulty in deciphering the gist of this post due to my verbosity, here’s Cliff Notes for you: It’s like casting pearls before swine. Which is my passive-aggressive, catty and unnecessarily confrontational way of saying either “What is wrong with you, true tears is excellent, get out”, or “If you think Winter is trash and you haven’t seen true tears, please end your life now.” Of course, I say it by means of a large post like this since for all my efforts to take this to be the gospel truth like the ardent fanboy I am, I still have to maintain a civil fa�ade all purposes aside.
Call it a man’s gut instinct (intuition is for women), but true tears seems hardly like the type of thing to go wrong any time soon: it’s so pretty, and no, I won’t stop talking about the animation until you, my reader, watch it, if you’re one of the unfortunate few that haven’t. You could surely write this off as another star-struck fan rambling about the glitz behind this diamond in the rough, this rose among thorns, but hey, it’s the director of Simoun at work, and whatever he did that was good about the series, he’s brought the magic around to play.
I expect true tears to be one of those shows that I come away from consistently wowed everytime, and to crown it “Anime of the Year” seems like a daring feat to be sure, but I know what I’m talking about. true tears is, to be honest, very much like the girl (or guy, for the ladies) that you meet one day who strikes you as just so damn attractive for a number of compelling reasons, all of which you can only begin to describe in detail later. When love strikes it strikes hard, leaves you babbling, and it’s only when you pick up the pieces later can you barely decipher the reasons for falling in such a chemistry-charged, primal manner.
The same thing goes for true tears, the experience of which is very much like falling in love, for its underrated complexity with so simple a form. I can understand kuro’s frustration at the Philistines and swine for not “getting it”, since for all of its mainstream trappings true tears is very much in the league of Byousoku 5cm et al, with a steadfastly indie heart beating beneath. Why is this so? Subtext, lots of it. This show is powerful in such an understated way that I couldn’t begin to put to words right after seeing it back to back, but I get it now. Its magic stems not so much from what’s being said as it is what’s not being said, and this is why it feels so damn realistic. Because real life doesn’t have convenient inner monologues for us to refer to.
What annoyed me the most about my screenings of Byousoku to non-otaku audiences wasn’t that they were non-otaku and therefore genetically faulty by virtue of being themselves; it was the frustrating questions they asked which had nothing to do with the movie and everything to do with suspension of disbelief that made me shake my head in both despair and annoyance, maybe disgust even. They just didn’t get it. Byousoku and true tears are creepily alike in many senses beyond the superficial, from how they both look and sound good, to telling a great love story, to conveying powerful emotions.
But one other thing that Byousoku did and true tears is doing even better, to my chagrin? Telling more with less. Show not tell. I love shows that actually make you read between the lines to figure out the tension, simple things like body language, posture, a slight crinkling of the eyes or furrowing of the eyebrows. A quick glance there and back, or a downcast gaze. Clenched fists or flinching, as if in pain. It’s important things like these that animation budgets should be lavished on, not breasts that jiggle independently of each other or huge mecha porn battles, and P.A. Works has shown amazing acumen in this respect.
I detest the English language for obvious puns like these sometimes
I said “to my chagrin” earlier, and rightfully so. For what’s a lean and mean show like this to do when the viewers attempting to feed on it are dumb cows, fed on a steady drip of fat, bloated, and redundant writing? There’s the ever-present and dreaded inner monologue. The consistent exposition dumps performed in order to forward the plot. The blatant disregard for one of the most elementary of writing basics, “show not tell”. All of these are present in our entertainment by varying degrees, and anime isn’t exempt from it. Rather, I’d like to think that anime fans everywhere have come off the worse for it, and here’s why.
Ladies and gentlemen, in the corner, Exhibit A.
Mip Said,
February 4, 2008 @ 3:50 pmMeh, I won’t be happy until Hiromi get’s run over by a bus or something. She is so damn boring -_-
Here’s a perfect example of someone that just doesn’t “get it”, if there was one. This isn’t personal, as I’m more concerned with what is being said here more than the person saying it, and while detractors like these will always be present regardless of anime, I think you have to draw the line at some point. How exactly is Hiromi boring, and why do people choose to watch shows like these time and again without using the organ between their ears, i.e. their brains, to think for a moment about why the characters do the things they do?
Frustrating? You bet. While it’s nice to see the wheat being separated from the chaff with defining gems like these, something tells me that anything everyone’s posted about true tears has only gone to show that this isn’t exactly rocket science. Neither is this avant-garde, or awash in so much symbolism or reflective meta-fiction that’d give even the most skilled English degree students a headache. It’s a matter of living, plain and simple, so how can anyone not see this? It’s like missing the forest for the trees, if you ask me.
It’s one thing to take anime as a form of entertainment; it’s another to besmirch it due to ignorance on one’s end. When you say “this isn’t doing it for me”, it differs greatly from “this blows and is boring” in the sense that the former’s about how the fault doesn’t lie with the anime but rather your tastes, as opposed to the latter, which is all about blaming the anime. I’ve done my odd spot of blaming the anime here and there, but I try to acquiesce more often than not when contrasting it to the general reaction: is it just me, or is it everyone else? If the verdict is unanimously negative, then that’s fine and dandy fine, but what about when it’s mixed, with vocal opinions on both sides of the fence, and the matter in question is that of taste?
This will always be a thorny issue, but it’s also why I continue to blog. The issue of Hiromi is far from being an issue of taste, “boring”, or deserving a gory fate underneath the wheels of a large vehicle — she’s one of the more complex silent-type (if I might borrow a potentially degrading archetype-label for a moment) characters I’ve ever seen, and everything about her speaks volumes, from her body language to her facial expressions to her speech. There is depth here if , and it would be asinine to dismiss true tears as merely another dull romance or so-so high school love-triangle without truly giving it a chance and meeting it on its terms.
To rub salt into the wound, it’s not like true tears has been dragging its feet to show what it can do, either. A quick fact check: ef had three storylines and 12 episodes in which to work its magic — it started getting good halfway. kimikiss has three storylines, albeit ones that converge a lot more than ef, and it’s been allocated 25 episodes, 16 of which have already aired — this, too, didn’t really warm up until after the midway mark. true tears has 13 episodes and a slimmer, more trimmed down cast than kimikiss, even if it has three storylines, albeit after a fashion, yet vastly outperforms these two in terms of effectiveness by hitting the ground running — simple math’s all that’s needed to come to the conclusion that true tears got the high ground by means of numbers.
What do you mean you haven’t seen this yet? Frankly, I pity the fool those missing out on this diamond in the rough right now, because every episode’s a joy to behold. Just a week or so ago I finally got around to watching Hidamari Sketch, and what strikes me about its quality isn’t so much the humour, or the characters, or the general warm fuzzies, but the feeling I get from it — the feeling of not wanting it to end, of wanting to savour it slowly like one does a chocolate almond pistachio cashew honey gelato giant cone. true tears is like that, only in slightly different flavours, and with less traces of nuts. Every 20-plus minutes is a joy, and while I wouldn’t rank an indescribable feeling as one of my criteria for a good anime, it’s the wonder of that feeling that keeps me coming back for more.
February 6th, 2008 at 7:30 am
‘It’s important things like these that animation budgets should be lavished on, not . . . huge mecha porn battles’
Oh come on! You’re not seriously suggesting that anything could be better than a huge mecha porn battle episode? (Except, of course, a feature film which is solely a huge mecha porn battle. Or if my life suddenly became one huge, decades-long mecha porn battle.)
Now, I’m all-too familiar with the laziness which strikes when I comment on others’ blogs and which prevents me from saying anything incisive, so I’m prepared to give ‘this blows and is boring’ comments the benefit of the doubt; deep down, I suppose I hope most people would agree that letting one’s own clouded lenses get in the way of the anime itself is foolish.
As for ‘anime of the year’ . . . h’hm.
February 6th, 2008 at 7:56 am
I have a lot to say to this actually but since I’m at work in seven hours and I’m feeling ill as hell into the bargain, I’ll probably post another comment later today/tomorrow. The first thing that grabbed me about this show was the initial impression of “oh no, not another bishoujo high school show…” before it went all deep and convincing and all. My criticisms of the initial episodes - minor ones at that, really - were actually a result of the realistic portrayal of the characters! I stopped to think afterwards about what was bugging me, and it turned out to be that I was judging the characters as I would real people…and yeah, it’s rare that I do that with an anime show.
A second look at what I’ve seen so far gave me a weird tingle-up-the-spine feeling…it’s too early for ’series of the year’ just yet but there’s something about this show that’s really, really special. Until I can come up with anything better…
February 6th, 2008 at 10:40 am
People who ‘don’t get it’ should try watching it again..
In what ways is Hiromi boring anyway..
For me, she’s an interesting character that differs from the rest.. (in a good way)
I agree with you..
The body language plays a big role in this anime..
And other animes should do so too..
It’s too early to crown it the Anime of the Year title..
It’s still February and there are more animes to come..(hopefully good ones)
For example, Haruhi…
February 6th, 2008 at 11:59 am
Regardless, I think we can all agree that True Tears has quite possibly single handedly saved the winter 08 season.
February 6th, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Good post, saturnine.
Yes, this show is all about the subtext, and I agree, this pearl of a show is definitely wasted on some swines, though I won’t be taking the high, elitist road yet.
And instead of dragging it’s feet, it’s more like true tears has magically been stretching time. I feel I’ve been following the show far longer than it has ran, and till now, I still don’t believe it’s only been 5 episodes. It’s definitely the depth of the show’s subtext, which really makes the show truly far longer than it it’s actual length.
February 6th, 2008 at 1:16 pm
[...] Only the Bitch Knows had a pretty fascinating post on Shigofumi (and Bandai Visual’s release on it). The first part brought up an interesting point about pacing, stating that slower shows are more complex. It’s not something I really agree with. I think slower shows have more of a chance for interpersonal drama and reflection, but if dot Hack is a horribly complex show, then I’ll stick to my “mecha-porn fests” (as Owen called them in this post) [...]
February 6th, 2008 at 2:19 pm
Well, I’m excited to watch Code Geass, Monochrome Factor, Soul Eater and Vampire Knight. Is a second season of Suzumiya Haruhi really coming out? I thought they were changing it into a new project but Haruhi is still the main protagonist.
February 6th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
I have to be honest and confess that I was once one of those swine that had very low expectations for the series. I still cannot fathom how I just simply chose it one a whim, perhaps I simply wanted to spite Impz, but then again it may have been the providence that compelled me to investigate it in the first place. I agree that by showing instead of telling True Tears was able to overawe this old cynic within the first episode. There is no gimmick, no magic, no bouncing racks, and no eternal pit of despair, it simply works in being ordinary. There are no useless characters here, even the employee has touch of personality.
True Tears is the only series thus far that has gotten me to wait impatiently for the next episode, for no other reason than to simply watch what happens rather than what new mockable material will come in my case. I agree with Kurogane that its really hard to believe that were already nearing the halfway point as most other series would have dithered with a filler. I hope that this will turn out to be one for the ages, an anime that newcomers can watch years from now and still be awestruck by it. If nothing else PA Works has demonstrated what excellent story telling can do.
February 6th, 2008 at 10:06 pm
“My criticisms of the initial episodes - minor ones at that, really - were actually a result of the realistic portrayal of the characters!”
Which might be why I find Shinichiro’s goals of catching tears to be schmaltzy and silly based on what we’ve seen of him, but Noe’s quest to be just find based on what we’ve seen of her. :P
This does go into the question of what people are looking for when watching anime. As you’ve said, taste does matter a lot. true tears isn’t a show for people who want to quickly know what’s going on, nor is it a show for people who want quick entertainment, nor is it a show for people who don’t like slice of life-ish qualities, ad nauseum. As long as you acknowledge that IT’S NOT THE SHOW, IT’S YOU, things should work out well though. This is something I felt with ef, for a recent example. Objectively, the show was great, but subjectively, it wasn’t quite as good for me as it was for everyone else.
If it doesn’t work for you, by all means don’t watch it anymore, but you would be missing out on something.
…and I don’t get the obvious pun. :(
February 7th, 2008 at 3:28 am
@ the AOTY comments in general: How’s it too early? Going by production values, I’d have to say this is going to be the exception to the norm. There’s probably what, an average of anywhere from 2-4 series of exceptional quality every season? Winter’s being Mnemosyne and true tears. We’re looking at an average of about 10 to 12 quality shows here.
IKnight: I’ll be waiting for you to lose the Anti-Spiral war so you can come back and fill Earth with your Beastmen.
Clouded lenses annoy me. We have those severely preoccupied with genre (”This is a bishoujo/visual novel adaptation/high-school romance! I can’t possibly be watching this!“) so much so that it cripples their ability to actually enjoy something good instead of whining about how the season is weak, as usual. The wonders of labelling…
Martin: I’ll be awaiting your second comment. (: The thing is, true tears is so understated that I didn’t really know what on earth was so good about it till much later. It’s really rare that an anime does that — usually we can put a name to it, but what this has been doing is amazing in that regard.
Kurogane: Haha, I’ll see you on the elitist road in a bit. You know you want that lofty viewpoint up in the clouds!
Crusader: I agree with you. P.A. Works have shown what they can do, now it’s all up to them to give us the satisfactory ending and climatic catfights that should be on schedule, if everything goes as planned.
N: Here’s a hint, it’s the animal next to Noe. You can laugh now. ):
Hiding behind the excuse of “it’s my taste! it’s justified!” has always seemed weak, if you ask me. I’d like to think that we can effectively separate both character and show to analyse them separately — it’s like someone getting an Academy Award/Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role despite the movie being not all that great. Performance != overarching genre trappings.
Of course, there would be those of the Bastion of Exemplary Anime Taste who would disagree and say that the fault always lies with the anime, but those people are beyond hope.
February 7th, 2008 at 8:10 am
Heh, man-flu hasn’t helped me think straight but at least another two episodes have given me a better grasp of the characters. I don’t mean this in the sense of the old ‘problem with preconceptions’ idea that came up in the 5cm and ef discussions but I still think there’s an issue of some sort with how this show doesn’t ‘behave’ like most anime series of the same genre. Comparing this with, say, Clannad really makes the difference show up for me: Clannad has a very linear, calculated and almost artificial way of story progression, while True Tears looks and progresses like a live action drama (one of the well-written ones, not a soap opera, obviously), or, indeed, real life. Using the old fave of the food analogy, going from Clannad or similar to True Tears is like living off microwaveable TV dinners for a week then feeding yourself up on home cooking at the weekend. That’s how I understand that side of things, at any rate.
Taking the ‘indie’ and ‘arthouse’ route in the same way as Shinkai, Shinbo or Anno is actually a rarity in anime (often much to my disappointment), but I’m getting the same feeling with this one already. In regards to AOTY we’re only in mid-February right now though, so a lot can happen in the remainder of the year; I’ll concede that this is the best of the season, if nothing else. Crucially it does have that ‘grown up’ vibe, which appeals to me in particular when oftentimes I feel like I’m pretty much growing out of what most anime has to offer.
Just to complicate matters even further (see why I needed to make two separate comments?), the choice Shinichiro feels he has to make in regards to the two girls in his life reminds me a lot of the Toru/Naoko/Midori love triangle in HM’s Norwegian Wood. I just got that sense of familiarity with the solemn childhood friend and the vivacious ‘new girl’, with a clueless guy in between. It’s probably irrelevant, but my brain often goes at tangents like that when I’m running a temperature.
February 8th, 2008 at 9:13 am
[...] However, I do like how this series has portrayed an aspect of male-female conversation that happens all too often; the way males completely fail to notice the subtle body language of the female altogether, and cause a misunderstanding without understanding how it happened in the first place. I’m guessing this is mostly the reason why guys complain about females being unpredictable; yeah, we guys are a little blunt in the head. (…) What I liked even better though, is how the same sequence is seen through two different POVs consecutively; after getting a look into Shinichiro’s thoughts throughout the whole exchange, we go through it all over again, this time from Hiromi’s thoughts to get the complete picture. It is this kind of thing that makes the True Tears characters feel so unusually real, yet so intimate to the viewers at the same time. Crusader: [...]