Hearts torn asunder.
What They Say:
Episode 13: “Unreachable Fingertips”
The Review
Content: (please note that the content portions of this review contain spoilers)
How do you convince a cold, unfeeling god to see things your way?
After much soul searching, our little group comes to terms that no matter what happens they will always love each other. I didn’t take Manaka for a poet or Hikari for a philosopher, but they sure sound like ones as the episode opens. The kids depart to carry out the ceremony, even as the adults in the village succumb to the effects of the hibernation. The group is cutting it close, but they didn’t expect the fate which was about to befall them.
Akari departs, resplendent in her wedding attire, and the parade of boats heads out after dark. Even Uroko gives them a token gift of lighting the lamps along the roadside with sacred fire to create a path of light for the boats to follow. It’s a lovely seen, both dramatic and solemn. This show always looks nice, but there’s some especially lovely scenery here. The good times don’t last long though, and all that beauty becomes ominous when the sea god tries to, unsurprisingly, claim his bride. I knew this was a terrible idea.
While Akari was the one who put herself in harm’s way, Manaka’s fate was sealed from day one, compounded by her promising to tell Hikari what she decided ‘after’ the ceremony. I mean, she’s covered in salt, asleep with a hourglass in the end credits! The girl is foolish, but her heart was in the right place. I have to wonder at her exact fate though, because exactly what happens to her does not look gentle.
What was a surprise was what happens to Tsumugu, Chisaki, and Kaname. I don’t think anyone saw that coming, especially not Chisaki herself. Even though Kaname has the personality of a paper towel, he certainly didn’t deserve what he got. At least now I know for sure what those stanchions in the harbor are for. Maybe the department of transportation in their world should have finished the job.
The real question is, what now? The preview only shows a glimpse of the aftermath of the ceremony. Uroko has seen to it that Shioshishio has been put into cold sleep for an undetermined amount of time, and the kids seem to have been made an example of. Is the sea god vindictive or just a force of nature? Uroko doesn’t seem to care for the kids plight, and makes sure that his duty is done above all else. And what became of Hikari? He was swept away, but was it to the surface, or down into the sleeping town?
In Summary:
While a certain event of this episode of Nagi no Asukara was expected, and heavily foreshadowed, exactly how it comes to pass was not. It was clear that the group was going to have some sort of split, but I could not have predicted exactly who was going to end up on which side of that divide. The ramifications of the split are sure to be long lasting. How long though is the real question. I’m most curious about Chisaki and Hikari though, and if anyone is going to attempt to question Uroko about this. Although, I’m not sure anyone is in any kind of emotional or physical state to do anything about what just happened right away. Now that we’ve run out of foreshadowing I have no idea where the series could go. The wait for the next episode is going to be a tough one.
Episode Grade: A –
Streamed by: Crunchyroll
Review Equipment: 27” iMac running OS 10.8.4, via Safari 6.0.5, FIOS 15/5 Mbps connection. Your milage may vary.
Was I the only one who didn’t get overly surprised with Tsumugu and Chisaki? You see, I made the “love” chart for this show or something like that and I’ve been really observing Tsumugu. I can’t seem to figure out who he likes, if there is one and I came down to either Manaka or Chisaki. Yes, not only Manaka, but also Chisaki. I kind of felt it, I don’t know why. The thing I don’t get is Chisaki. It seems like she has loved Hikari and only Hikari so I don’t know if she has something for Tsumugu, too. Let’s wait for the next episodes for the confirmation of these two and their feelings.
Now, with Kaname. I really feel sad about what happened to him. He really doesn’t deserve. Out of all the characters, he has the most guts. He’s hurt enough with Chisaki and Hikari, or trying to keep his little group together. What he saw, it certainly hurt. Gawsh, his smile after seeing the Chiskai holding Tsumugu scene was so painful to see. I hope we would see how he’s alright in the next episode or so. He deserves to be a little bit more happy. Chisaki, I don’t know with you either. Fix yourselves up, people!
Lastly, about Manaka, I kind of expected it and I bet many of you did too. If you don’t know, I’m a very big fan of HikariXManaka so I don’t give a crap about anything else as long as they’ll end up together. I was really curious about the thing that she was supposed to say to Hikari after the ceremony. But I’m guessing, there’s no “after”, is there? I hope everything goes well in the succeeding episodes. I mean, there’s like 13 episodes left right? Let’s see how this series would go from now.