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Originally Posted by TinyRedLeaf
I agree that the imagery was probably meant to imply incarceration of some sort. If you think about it, it's not just those bars that implied a "prison". The two sets of monkey bars that ring the perimeter of the playground also, in my mind, represent a prison of sorts. Or, in this context, they appear to delineate the characters' "safety zone", an oasis amid an oppresive desert of empty space. It's an emptiness that traps them all or, at the very least, Araragi, who was feeling very small throughout the most part of this arc.
I'm beginning to get the impression that the wide open space is meant to emphasise the varying degrees of loneliness that all the characters feel: Senjougahara's anxious desire not to appear strange again; Hachikuji's deliberate rejection of company so as not to lead people astry; and, lastly, Araragi's feeling of being ostracised by his sisters.
That's another example of visual imagery that had been used very effectively, I believe. To me, it's an example of how the appropriate use of visual technique can effectively encapsulate the essence of a literary story.
There are plenty of other things to pick up, I'm sure. Most of them appear to be merely for flair and effect. But there will definitely be a few that are meant to have deliberate meaning. The images are "everywhere and nowhere at the same" time. So, how many more do you see?
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I have a different opinion on this matter. The feeling I get is not one of incarceration at all, but rather openness. There's a reason for such far shots.
Others have already taken note about the geometry of bars and shapes in every shot, but not many have focused on the role that colour plays. The colour palette of the background is that of primary colours—that is red, yellow and blue—set at first on a neutral, gray background. The effect of an RYB palette is in a way rather energetic; yellow can leap towards you by intensity alone, but blues and reds are stark enough for the eye to jump from one to the other. Not one colour can truly dominate the other two. Interesting to note here, is that these colours are used only for the park, and even when the sun is setting these colours still stand out in each shot. No such colour scheme is present on the streets when they set out in search of Mayoi's mother. It is no accident that extensive exposition takes place in the park.
The geometry of the bars also connotes movement—that is, movement within symmetry or balance. Not one element in the background tries to dominate your attention. If the characters weren't present at all, your gaze would have been everywhere (or nowhere), balanced across the space of the picture all at the same time. The neutral background, also symmetrical and visually balanced in its own terms (the never-ending rows of windows of apartment buildings), only serves to make these coloured bars pop. In other words, with bars that go everywhere and nowhere, there is no specific focal point; no point of dominance that grabs at your attention. Nothing is emphasized over the other in the background. This also reflected in the symmetry or balance demonstrated by shape and form (the top view of the park comes to mind).
I wonder if this is just me, or if this has something to do with the point of this episode—about the multiplicity of viewpoints and perspective, in that when all viewpoints are considered, only then can one see the entire picture.