And I return again from the recesses of my own loop. Maybe I have done all this in another world not too unlike my own? So many questions of what happens beyond this corporeal form. Very curious things to ponder about and why I enjoy this genre so much. Well, as promised I’ll try to complete my task this time. If memory serves me from the prior cycle, I was discussing Natsuki Subaru toil. And, I was so inspired, I started looking into the “If” story summaries provided by this channel: https://youtube.com/@echidnut?si=P6z4PXxk956lj5Vxh by Echidnut. These are “What if” stories that flesh out the universe and possible routes. They have been interesting to enjoy. I’d love to read the light novels sometime in my spare time.
But let’s no longer digress, let’s conclude this loop. You can read its beginning here: https://planetwu.com/would-you-be-so-tempted-to-press-the-reset-button/ I look forward to completing this chapter. It has been a joy of experimentation. But let’s cease my droning and finish this foray and loop. The final boss dungeon awaits.
But Without Further Adieu…
Back to The Elementary School Classroom, He Returns…
As promised in my Mother’s Day musing last year, I just had to eventually write about this controversial anime. That musing can be found here: https://planetwu.com/celebrating-the-awesome-mothers-of-anime-both-new-and-old/ if you want a refresher. But I’ve been pretty excited to talk about this bit of animated fiction is where the Witch Sachiko Fujinuma hails from. And man do I love it. The story follows Satoru Fujinuma, a cynical adult surviving his late 20s as a pizza delivery man, and is currently a mangaka trying to find the heart in his works. It’s very familiar to another point of my life seeking heart, love, and direction in what I aimed to be my “destiny” my love for writing. For a length from my mid twenties to early thirties, I had an intense writers block and was aimless. It frustrated me because I was ashamed to have bloomed so much later. Well into my late twenties. I remember when I was accepted into a University of Michigan fellowship, and I was so self conscious about being a 30 year-old surrounded by 20 year Olds. Then eventually I got past being self conscious about being a late bloomer when I eventually had someone talk sense into me. Now I live by this motto…
And unlike various other Looper protagonists, he’s already aware of one piece of his powers which both sends him back minutes, and gives him a “Spider Sense”. He’s lived with the power for some years. When he sees a blue butterfly, it alerts him to a chaotic event ensuing. From doing a little research, blue butterfly is supposed to symbolize rebirth. And his keen analytical abilities inherited from Sachiko grants him the analytical ability to piece together what is going to happen and how to solve it. One fateful day, he gets into an accident saving a kid from getting hit by a truck while on a pizza delivery. He is thrown back in the past like Takemitchi in his, but it is even further back into elementary school rather than middle-school.
And our young protagonist was the popular kid in class, friends with all the mates. But everything isn’t hunkydory. Kids have been found dead at the hands of a serial killer. And this obviously has the town uneasy and everyone one high alert. One of the victims of this tale is Kayo, a class outcast from a very abusive family, and is the main heroine of the story that Satoru is determined to save. Satoru is aware of her fate and chooses to use this opportunity to correct it. So he ends up aggressively pestering her to become friends, and eventually draws the rest of the class to her company. By thwarting the killer from Kayo, he also saves his classmates and a friend who became a patsy for the actual murderer to frame for his heinous crimes, from their miserable fate. The anime is incredibly charming as it puts the viewer in the shoes of Satoru when he is but a wee lad using his child rizz to grow closer to Kayo. This the core of the anime, because Kayo comes from an incredibly broken and abusive home. So her self worth has been reduced to rubble by her mom. In grand scheme, i understand why the ending put many off, especially after watching the two’s sweet bond flourish. But some have to remember too that when you love someone dearly, you put their well being above your own. And for that reason, im sure Satoru cares more Kayo was saved even if things ended unfavorably. It’s complicated but satisfying ending in my opinion. And the audience gets to see Sachiko when she is a young mother and understand how she received her nickname. And beyond it’s charm, this anime has quite serious from dealing with child abuse and trying to deduce the serial killer targeting children. A thrilling anime with a supernatural twist that is more just a plot device. It’s my main criticism of this anime like Tokyo Revengers. But similar to that, it’s more about the journey than the destination I take it. Honestly very enjoyable even through some tough subject matter.
In Loop With a Lunatic That Wants to End it
Another inspiration of this musing, has to be discussed. And this was my anime of 2022. It’s a very interesting take on “Invasion of Body Snatchers”. And fuses the concept with a Looper. These alien beings take refuge on this island that our protagonist Shinpei calls his home and starts murdering the inhabitants to replace them. And during this period, the protagonist left the island when he was young to go to a high caliber urban school. Years pass though, and he finds himself back in the hometown due to a freak event and somber occasion: the funeral of his childhood crush, and best friend Ushio. She drowned to death to save a child from drowning. Which you come to find all have reasons for occurring since his friend Sou suspects it was murder because of strangle marks left. But what left them is eventually connected to its dark premise. ..
“But the first episode is so good and does a great job laying down groundwork for the close knit community of Hitogashima Island and his close friends…”
And while most Loopers don’t grant the protagonist the luxury of a confidant, Shinpei assembles a group which includes friends from the island, all confidants with the mission of ridding the island of these invaders and solving the mystery of his power. And while Subaru abhors the ability, Shinpei pushes past his initial reservations of his plight to understand and harness this ability. And with it he goes through numerous loops both unwillingly and willingly, plunging forth into absolute insanity with his loyal posse trying to save that island and humanity from being wiped out within the island and with the group. A lot of them have unique quirks and motivations. Which adds so much delicious drama filled with romance, mystery, action, innumerable deaths, and plenty of routes.
“…A lot of them have unique quirks and motivations. Which adds so much delicious drama filled romance, mystery, action, innumerable deaths and plenty of routes…”
This anime is such a superb fusion of so many genres, that the viewers have an abundance of content to enjoy and engage with and be stimulated be. When this anime aired, I recall it winning my best action scene award in fact. And while the anime doesn’t have a plethora of action scenes, but for the limited amount, the animation quality is incredibly well done. What saddens me is that possibly this anime was potentially slipped under the radar since it actually had Disney+ exclusivity and was barely advertised. And man, some horror, great action, what about the main adversary of this story…
Probably One of my Favorite Scenes of 2022
In addition to this anime being gripping while dealing with great character drama, weird sci-fi elements, and excellent action sequences. This anime is home of the most nihilistic antagonist since Kefka of Final Fantasy, Hide, who simply wants to hit the “off-switch” not “reset button” on the world. Like a video game console. He is just insane with no complex motive. Pure evil that is refreshing oddly. Anime antagonists as of late have you questioning whether to thwart them or not. So it’s very refreshing to just have an evil big bad. And it is so satisfying just observing characters that contest against him grow extensively, forge unbreakable bonds, and uncover surprising revelations that Shinpei certainly didn’t expect. Excellent anime to watch with not much to complain about. I think my only gripe was it ending and selfishly how it ended. Team Mio for life!!! Now onward to this musing’s true end!
A Loop That Overflows with Youthful Angst
And finally to conclude this long journey, I’ll close out with an anime that is incredibly relatable for me and is my greatest muse for this musing nearly in exact. It isn’t as good or creative as “Summertime Renderer” in my honest opinion, but it struck a chord with me more intimately. Especially because the main character also resembles a piece of me in my opinion. An annoying and cowardly side of myself that I have not shaken away entirely. And it’s all just to exist… not to live . Its protagonist Takemitchi, is unfortunately incredibly dissatisfied with his lot in life due to his inaction and his lack of conviction with his decisions. Just going through motions to sustain existence. And because of that, he is just filled with numerous regrets. I’ve said in a musing in the past that I’ve been experiencing a crisis of 30s in tandem with depression because of being embattled with Multiple Sclerosis. So I went through an immensely lengthy reflection period, especially in my early years of diagnosis. Honestly, it is something I’m squaring with even now, but I’ve gotten considerably better. Or at least, I hope I have.
“This anime really is incredibly relatable for me and is one of my muses for this musing nearly in exact. Takemitchi is incredibly dissatisfied with his lot in life due to his inaction and his lack of conviction with his decisions.“
But back on subject. One fateful day, Takemitchi sees news of his high-school sweetheart, Hinata and her brother Naoto, had been savagely murdered in due to being bystanders to a gang called Tokyo Manji just before his routine trek to work. The audience sees how spineless he has become. How much of a whiner he’s become, and how little he lives. And when he’s waiting for the train the very same morning he sees the news about his middle school flame, he’s shoved onto the tracks to meet his maker. And in his final moments, he sees Hinata his love from high school.
And as the behemoth of steel barrels towards him, he finds himself thinking about Hinata as his life flashes before his eyes. But instead of endless darkness, he sees a familiar scene from years ago and his second chance to right his choices. He is transported back to the past to middle-school and in there, his sweetheart’s heart beats with scorching flames to be dutiful and courageous. As is her brother. Who in the future becomes his close confidant and becomes a key to activating his looping ability in hopes of saving his sister.
And due to his tinkering, an adventure that bridges the past and present that leads Takemitchi through numerous routes and repeats as he seeks the best outcomes. His modifications also have immense butterfly effects for his friends of the group, influencing changes in their arcs. And he even joins the very gang responsible for his heart’s demise in the future, though it is well before the gang even changes. Which gives Takemitchi an opportunity to rectify his cowardice and lack of resolve that began in middle school. And we get to see the extent of Hinata’s love and strength on behalf of her Takemitchi. It’s quite fiery and courageous which serves to inspire and influence Takemitchi’s growth as well.
Takemitchi & Mikey
Hinata, Take’s Guardian
So Takemitchi attempts to alter the group by altering pivotal events that negatively influences Mikey, the group’s leader, to direct them to becoming a corrupt gang. The story is pretty decent though it does have wane precipitously towards the later seasons in my opinion. And due to his tinkering, an adventure that bridges the past and present that leads Takemitchi through numerous routes and repeats as he seeks the best outcomes. His modifications also has immense butterfly effects for his friends of the group, influencing changes in their arcs. But even with my earlier criticism said, I enjoyed it. And would be lying to say I didn’t relate partly because there are certain decisions I wish I was bolder on, especially in high-school. I actually see this anime more motivated by love since a large part of it is Takemitchi growing to love Hinata, growing as a person befitting of her, and making whatever adjustments he can in the past to avert her horrific future with the assistance of Naoto of the future.
“This was truly my most relatable Looper because I also have someone I cherish and greatly underestimated how I felt about her back then...”
This was truly my most relatable Looper because I also have someone I cherish and greatly underestimated how I felt about her back then. I was so afraid of the possibility of change, I often tried to minimize any potential show of affection and needlessly acted high maintenance and unnecessarily awkward. However, I realized it much later in my life that I had developed intense feelings for her anyway and felt unworthy to even pursue her. Especially in my current broken and burdensome form. It’s his growth I really appreciate and earnestly can say I am envious because my own cowardice prevents me from imagining confessing to my own queen. I think having MS has broken me so much I can’t even imagine a future of being fixed. Regaining my lost confidence. And being worthy of her. I could say that is my actual regret that I erroneously claimed I didn’t have. At least she likely never reads this. And at least I can still support her and her endeavors. That is the least I can hope for.
But I digress long enough, vented long enough, and treated this section as a diary to drone on in. This anime is pretty solid with minor flaws. And damn does it have an incredibly catchy ending theme for season 1. My main criticisms of this anime is that the anime kind of falls off and gets stupid in latter seasons and they really don’t explain how Takemitchi receives this ability. Or at least these seasons. I guess I understand though. Unless it’s a supernatural curse or punishment like Render, When They Cry, or ReZero, there isn’t much room to rationalize the ability procurement. Maybe I have to wait a bit longer, but they never explain why he’s there to suffer either.
I really dig this genre, and these are some highlights I strongly recommend checking out. I’m an overthinker and frequently reexamine particular points and decisions in my life to be honest. And certain anime strikes a chord with certain periods of my life such as “Dangers in my Heart” which brings me back to high-school or “Kaiju 8” which has a man in his 30s reinvigorated to chase his dream. Like these, Loopers strikes a chord with me because of my tendency to overthink. I really find the possibilities so intriguing even if it’s hellish for the characters to experience it again and again. The routes are typically so well crafted that the repetition is only an insignificant insignificant annoyance of some. Since it’s all a loop afterall.
Soooo…
What do you think? This genre is not that fleshed out yet from my knowledge, but in recent years, these standouts have bolstered my excitement in it. I can see an immense amount of creative potential in the genre. Because numerous genres can be combined into different fusion of ideas.
Exciting times ahead of us in my opinion. Do you agree?
Have I piqued your interest? Chime ya thoughts below and I’ll give them a gander. And I apologize for taking time to ramble and moan. This was a tough musing to scribe for me and I thought multiple times about deleting it. But I found it was cathartic hartic to write into the digital ether and much rather be authentic even if embarrassing. Thank you for taking this journey with me. Truly I’m grateful.
