Aoi Bungaku

[sapphire-pyro]

Whoa . . . I'm so behind . . . except on the preview for Kokoro xD It looks promising~ And if I understood the details in the website correctly, it's a one hour special Yay!

[Kanon_]

Originally Posted by SuperKnuckles

I'm guessing that the entirety of the story of the second arc is meant to be just a wild fairytale type story that could be interpreted a number of ways. Maybe she really was a demon. Maybe it's just that mountain bear man going insane. I wouldn't dare assume what the entire point of that arc was about. Other than being some weird fable. Probably about the bewitching nature of women.

Yeah, it can be interpreted in totally different ways, and it's pretty much impossible to tell which one is most likely. Maybe the woman was a demon, maybe she wasn't, and maybe there was never a woman to begin with (final text hinted at this). I enjoyed this arc but it didn't really pull me in like No longer human did. It was a nice change though.

I'm looking forward to the next arc, the preview looks great.

[monir]

Originally Posted by bluedemon

I loved the second arc of this series. It was simultaneously bright and cheery while dark and gruesome. I was confused by the ending a bit.

Spoiler for Episode 6:

What really happened between him and the demon?

I'm enjoying pondering it.

She is the demon. I'll elaborate. I won't hide my post in spoiler since the subs are out. I just hope I'll make sense for I'm typing this while I'm half asleep.

She was the one told a guy in love to kill all his former wives if she is to become his wife. He did. She was the one who coerced him to go to to the city. He went. She was the one told him to bring her many heads because heads make perfect ornament which she can play dress-up with. He beheaded.

As he grew restless, he was ready to leave her to go back to the mountain. But she followed by discarding all the things she always yearned for to be with him. Or did she? Recall the note she left for her "maid" which briefly stated she would be back.

Remember, Shigemaru is afraid of the sakura tree when he stands underneath it because he sees an endless flow of blood. Once he was with her underneath that sakura tree a terrifying realization dawns on him. While her beauty is unmatched like a full blown cherry blossom tree from a far, she also brought an endless flow of blood. She is a demon! So, he killed.

This author, Sakeguchi Ango, wrote this story about 2 years after the end of WWII. Japanese are rediscovering their self worth at the time to match their past glory, but the past is also an epic rendition of blood bath achieved in mutual destruction from within and outside force. The beauty of a cherry blossm trees from a far metaphorically emphasizes the glory of the distant past from the present. Shigemaru was fascinated with the cherry blossom tree when he saw for the first time from a far, but as he got closer to it, he was reminded of the endless flow of blood. It was terrifying. So how does the Japanese rediscover themselves? They can't walk the same path as before for the very survival of a culture is at stake here after all! Sakeguchi Ango proposes to "kill the demon." While the allure and the beauty of the demon is unmatched, it can also make one do things that can put ones very sanity at stake. And in an essence the repercussion to such deeds influenced by the demon put ones very survival at jeopardy.

I agree with you. This story was even better than the other one because of how it was told.