True Tears 03 – Pseudo-siscon drama?

20Jan/0820

True Tears 03 – Pseudo-siscon drama?

This ep gives the strongest hint yet as to why Hiromi distanced herself from Shinichiro despite being childhood friends - Sibling-hood. Important clues like "She's our kid now" and "I sealed those memories after moving into this household" grant new perspective to Hiromi's status in the Shinichiro's home - she's one of them now. Yes, somewhat like Nemu is to the Asakura family except she didn't have to change her surname. Clearly, an addition that Mrs Nakagami didn't welcome and I can surely imagine her lynching the entire family should she discover her son and unwanted adopted daughter to be more than housemates. My heart goes out to Hiromi for having to seal away her feelings for Shin so as to secure a place in the household.... This theory would also explain her lie at the end of ep 3. It's not that she's typically haremette-prideful or tsundere-aspiring, just that it'd indeed be troublesome indeed if the Nakagamis come to hear anything scandalous about the kids under their roof.

Plus, thanks to how ingeniously the plot was woven, Hiromi's lie is going to have some measure of strength backing it because Shin would think she solicited for Noe's friendship while coveting for her brother's attention. Shin would rightly draw all the wrong conclusions at the expense of further estrangement from his childhood love. (Btw using Noe's brother is a very bad move also because Hiromi's friend is clearly smitten with him, hence her truncated outburst.) Speaking of which, is Ai chan also guilty of sending out all the wrong signals to Shin's buddy in a bid to be close to Shin? Man, I'm just loving how the episode uses one plot element to thread the bishoujos' loves together.

In closing, I'd like to say that True tears is a series I don't dare to blog raw despite understanding much of the dialogue. This just isn't another shallow haremic-romance series where a vague knowledge the generic plot would suffice. Its spark lies in the details that can only be fully appreciated when we savour fully the nuances of very word uttered. If the rest of the series keeps to this level of sophistication, not only its production values but the plot and character interaction, there's gonna be major upheavals in my favourite anime list.

Looking forward to next episode where Hotarugawa No. 4 pulls a shotgun on Shinichiro.

Posted by Stripey

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Crusader
January 20th, 2008 - 23:17

I would have thought that Hotarugawa no. 4 aka Isurugi Nii would be verbally blasted by your jealous rage over having Noe for a lovely imouto. As for Hiromi I am sure that she had her reasons, but her deceptions and pretense shall fail. Her feelings for Shin-chan are strong, and they will betray her in due course. Since Mrs. Nakagami refuses to recognize Hiromi as her child she ough to have no qualms if Hiromi steals her son from right under her nose.

I just wish Hiromi realized that lying is a skill like any other, she should have taken a page Elim Garak and spoken with a near perpetual insincerity to mask the truth.

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Koji Oe
January 20th, 2008 - 23:28

This is a very interesting show indeed. Personally, I think most mediocre anime should take a less from the animation presented in True Tears because so far it has been lovely and very top notch in my opinion. Something I haven’t seen in a while.

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Zzz...
January 20th, 2008 - 23:40

*sigh*

For some reason after reading this I thought back to the Yuri Shimai presentation of the “Little Mermaid” tale I read off of Lililicious. The rewrite start of with this line…

“90% (or was it 99%) of all fairy tales are yuri.”

Guess this is what they call subjective reality.

Personally, and it’s just my thoughts on this, I think there was a little more going on between the Nakagami parents and Hiromi’s family than what we see from the surface. The cycle of misery that family seem to be going through may run a little deeper than just siscon or unwanted familial intrusions. I already have some theories on Nakagami-mum’s resentment and let’s just say logically it’s not enough to create such a stir in a group of rational people.

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Stripey
January 21st, 2008 - 00:41

Crusader: It does look like Mrs Nakagami doesn’t like Hiromi not only as a daughter but also for something more so I’d doubt if she would consider her candidature as daughter-in-law I don’t know much about lying cos tanukis don’t lie XD

Koji Oe: Indeed! But I think besides production values (oh how I love the bgm!), TT also excels in the character design/development/interaction department.

Zzz…: heh, we don’t have much to work with now so I thought this be feasible a postulate.. There’s more than just displeasure at familial intrusion certainly. Could be tied to their family traditional duties of partaking in that folk-dance? Of course we could also go the “Hiromi is Mr Nakagami’s illicit child” route. That case I can drop the “pseudo” from the post title. XD

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Zzz...
January 21st, 2008 - 02:58

I was thinking exactly that at some point. I mean how likely is it for someone to raise their friend’s child after said friend pass on? People can talk a good game but when the chips are down the investment is simply too much. It’ll take a damn good friend to go through with that and for all we have seen Nakagami-pop is a cold, cold fish…

…then this could also be a grudge between the 2 mothers. Maybe Nakagami-mum wanted Hiromi’s harem lead dad in the distant past but lost? I can’t imagine her and Nakagami-pop as passionate lovers. Concillation prize anyone? Certainly you can’t fairly expect her to now accept her rivals child with a smile in such a case. How’s that for the fallout of a rabu contest?

It’ll ne really interesting and exceptional if the parent’s history do eventually play a part in the larger (actually it’s the smaller) story. This isn’t something explored often or well. But a show of this caliber might be able to do it justice.

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lulu
January 21st, 2008 - 18:30

Glad I’m not the only one in love w/ the soundtrack =D

When I first heard one of the bgms in the first ep, I immediately noticed a resemblance to the background music in some of eufonius’ songs. So I searched up the show in ann and voila, the composer for True Tears and the composer for eufonius are the same person, Hajime Kikuchi! Judging from his profile on ann, it looks like True Tears is the first time he’s in charge of composing an anime ost, and he’s doing a beautiful job so far.

Really enjoying the show too. Looks like the godly production value has some solid characterization to back it up.

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Stripey
January 21st, 2008 - 20:29

Zzz…: I’ve noticed that many good stories are built on the feuds/history of the previous generation and I’m glad True Tears may potentially incorporate some. To add to your theory of rival moms, for all we know, Shinichiro may even be Hiromi dad’s illicit son hence the mom’s incessant emphasis on him being a Nakagami (kind of to alleviate her guilt) heh, I guess I’m taking this too far now XD

lulu: he’s doing a superb job for his first foray into background music! I do notice that some of the pieces are merely instrumental versions of the songs but they are so perfect for the mood. Thanks for pointing Kikuchi sensei out

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Cipher
January 21st, 2008 - 21:47

Ah, the delicious irony: Although Hiromi may have been distancing herself from Shinichiro, the key point is that he’s never done the same. Now, if he starts to move away from her, I wonder how much of a slap to the face it must feel to have to go through the same treatment she’s been giving Shinichiro. Not that I want it to happen, but if it further develops their feelings for each other, I’m not complaining. And I like how you spotted the ‘evidence’ that you said would lead Shinichiro down the wrong path, I didn’t actually think of it until reading your post.

While it’s almost certain that there is much more going on behind the scenes at the Nakagami household regarding Hiromi, I think Mrs. Nakagami’s line (“She’s not my child”) isn’t really the giveaway line that people think it to be. In a vacuum, most parents will probably say something similar, since it’s merely parental love that makes them give preferential treatment to their own flesh and blood. What is a giveaway is in the way she said it; if she was really that upset about Shinichiro doing the extra work, she’d have said that line looking straight at Mr. Nakagami’s face. Instead, she glares at the door and mutters the line before leaving. In any case, I won’t deny that there should be a hint in that scene, otherwise the director could have simplified the walk scene by having Shinichiro bump into Hiromi on the way back, and therefore offer to follow her.

And regarding the music, 1 more day to OP release… Can’t wait :3

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Impz
January 22nd, 2008 - 05:07

Seriously though, despite all the drama, I am only concerned over 1 thing in this episode.

The Noe song.

I have been looping it non-stop since 1.5 hours ago. I have been moeified and will be glad to be Raigamaru the 3rd just to get closer to her. No offence to Hiromi though, she’s pretty darn eligible. At least she is no annoying folder but she does not know how to lie at all.

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Stripey
January 23rd, 2008 - 06:00

Cipher: Well said. Given how Noe’s appearances prompted Hiromi to act on her poorly concealed feelings for Shin, I have no doubt that an unfortunate distancing of Shin would have the draw out more of Hiromi’s affections for Shin. Can’t wait to see how it plays out.

Impz: Heh, almost everything that Noe utters is moefied. Myself, it’s her “Acchi!” that stuck…. KAWAII!!!

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maglor
January 27th, 2008 - 00:12

I believe Stripey is in Cloud Nine right now as True Tears may have become a full blown Siscon drama with possibility of Hiromi being Shinichi’s Half-brother, and interesting attention Noe’s brother is showing Noe.

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dsong
January 27th, 2008 - 01:06

Two thumbs up if Hiromi actually ends up being blood-related to Shin. It would make for some must-see TV and add a considerable amount of drama/angst.

As for Noe, I get the feeling that she and her brother are not blood-related… but even if they are, I don’t see siscon winning – because it would separate Shin and Noe, the “true” pairing in the show!

This would also open up things for Hiromi and #4. While Hiromi was hiding her feelings for Shin, something tells me that her interest in #4 is not zero.

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Stripey
January 27th, 2008 - 09:08

maglor: YES! The near-cheek stroking raised tanuki pulse. But who wouldn’t dote on a bishoujo as cute as Noe, sister or not?

dsong: The best lies are half-truths I wouldn’t be surprised if Hiromi had a crush on Jun before but clearly her heart now lies with Shin.

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dsong
January 27th, 2008 - 14:25

Speaking of half-truths, I think Aiko may be genuinely torn between Shinichiro and Miyokichi, as opposed to using Miyokichi just to get close to Shinichiro. She may be pining for Shinichiro from time to time but this could be the classic “grass is greener on the other side” phenomenon. Aiko wants to give Miyokichi a chance but she sees him as being a bit immature and rough around the edges – it will take some time for Miyokichi to become a person she is willing to accept, and isn’t quite ready to make a commitment just yet.

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Stripey
January 28th, 2008 - 00:27

I think the one strength about True Tears is we can’t quite grasp the characters and their motivations with just a few eps since their characterisation is a great deal more complex/in-depth than most bishoujo series. Personally I’m of the impression that Ai is the type who’s too kind to reject people. She really like Shin but is afraid to hurt Nobuse so she keeps up the pretenses. Very cruel in a long run actually but a common mistake ‘nice’ folks make all the time

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Derek
February 1st, 2008 - 09:26

This is one of the few animes where I’ve actually noticed the BGM (the other memorable one being Rozen Maiden), to be honest. In many animes, it’s just not something that ends up being remarkable enough to make me take specific note. Now, this might be what some good BGM does, working its melodic magic in an unobstrusive way, but I am so enjoying every aspect of True Tears so far, from plot to animation to music.

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Stripey
February 1st, 2008 - 20:41

Glad to know another Rozen Maiden BGM fan! I personally prefer the Traumend OST over season 1 though. Indeed the bgm is one of the most outstanding aspect of TT. Can’t wait for the OST release.

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Derek
February 3rd, 2008 - 18:44

Mmmm, both have great tracks and I think I agree with you overall on Traumend, though I think my favourite would have to be Battle of Rose from the original.

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Stripey
February 3rd, 2008 - 21:43

Ah, battle of Rose is constantly on my playlist. My favourites from Traumend include barasuisho, bara otme, battle of crystal and shukumei. You may want to try the composer’s other works. He also did Asatte no houkou, Zero no tsukaima, and Sky girls.

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Derek
February 4th, 2008 - 19:08

Ah, Sky Girls, yes, that one did have good BGMs too (tho I didn’t end up finishing the series yet).

Right now, I am obsessed with Reflectia, and the second season’s Gunslinger Girl OP/ED, and Nanodesu (Higurashi Kai Hanyuu Character song thing), so not many BGMs playing here atm =D

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