Hanasaku Iroha - Episode 10 Discussion / Poll

[Kanon]

Originally Posted by ipodi

Spoiler for ep:

It does not appear that the message has been sent out, as I see it.

This episode was hyped up before it got aired, now I felt I had been trolled majorly. It did not foreshadow any new major conflicts ahead nor has any of the old conflicts (romance, Ohana's relationship with her mom) moved forward or been resolved. This is still a charming episode, but the hype is way overblown.

Watching the preview for episode 11 made me feel like the comment was off by one episode. Unless the preview is incredibly misleading, next week is when shit will hit the fan.

The only thing special about episode 10 is that it showed an insecure, weakened and depressed Ohana as opposed to the usual cheerful, optimistic, and energetic Ohana. That made for an interesting change of pace.

Tooru has definitely fallen head over heels for Ohana, and I can't blame him. It's almost impossible not to like such an adorable person. Futhermore, she was pretty hot (not pun intended... nah, of course it was intended) in this episode, the porridge scene was very erotic.

Jiromaru was hilarious as usual. "Oh, this 16-year-old is sick? I'd better go read her a porn novel! The main character of this novel is based on her grandmother too, I'm sure it will cheer her up to hear about her grandmother getting bukkaked!"

Nakochi was as lovely as ever and Minko, although she obviously feels jealous, was also pretty kind to Ohana. It's obvious she's grown to like her.

The shrine scenes were... weird. I was particularly creeped out by the stalker loli and the fox. It seems like Ohana has been torn between the inn and Ko for a while, and eventually chose Kissuiso over him. Huhu, Ko's gonna friendzoned!

[Austin1]

Tohru is like 23 and he is going after a 16 year old. What a pedo.

I feel like one of two things might happen when Ohana runs to Ko when she is upset. I feel he might comfort her hopefully so she recognizes his feelings or blow up at her because she only communicates with him when she is having problems. It seems kinda like Ohana just uses Ko.

[orion]

Originally Posted by Austin1

Tohru is like 23 and he is going after a 16 year old. What a pedo.

I feel like one of two things might happen when Ohana runs to Ko when she is upset. I feel he might comfort her hopefully so she recognizes his feelings or blow up at her because she only communicates with him when she is having problems. It seems kinda like Ohana just uses Ko.

Not pedo for a 23 yo to go after a 16 yo. It's just a 7 yr age difference. She's an adult in 2 yrs.

I agree that Ko is being used as an emergency crutch like that best friend or relative who is far away that you only call when it's important.

[Anh_Minh]

Two remarks on their care for Ohana:
- who the hell let creepy men into the room of a sick, helpless Ohana? And yes, I count Tooru as a 0.7 Jirou on the creepy scale. Loved the manager and Tomoe's "Ohana doesn't need your crap" scene at the end, though. At least, the uncle was bringing her food, but he probably couldn't have resisted the urge to tease her. And Jiroumaru, seriously? The hell?
- Can't they leave the remote next to her hand, instead of forcing her to get off her bed to turn the TV on or off? The whole point of a remote is to not have to do that.

Minchi realized Tooru liked Ohana, but she didn't take it out on her. Progress!

That dream sequence was really bad for Ko. But the preview sounded good. Hm.

[serenade_beta]

I felt this episode was probably the most frozen episode so far.
You get to see the girls act all nice to each other. Hoorah...?
Frozen as in, practically none of the story moved at all. Except that Kou-chan seemingly died and his spirit is talking to Ohana in her dreams and trying to drag her to hell too.

Originally Posted by ipodi

This episode was hyped up before it got aired, now I felt I had been trolled majorly. It did not foreshadow any new major conflicts ahead nor has any of the old conflicts (romance, Ohana's relationship with her mom) moved forward or been resolved. This is still a charming episode, but the hype is way overblown.

Well, the problem with the hype was that it came from Mel.
And the way he hyped it up wasn't that it was amazing story-wise, but just very appealing to otaku... You know, in that way.
People are disappointed elsewhere too, by the way.

[Arabesque]

I can't say I'm disappointed. On the contrary I loved the episode, but there was something about it that was very strange and made me go ''what am I watching?''

I might need to re-watch it again.

[ipodi]

Originally Posted by Kanon

Watching the preview for episode 11 made me feel like the comment was off by one episode. Unless the preview is incredibly misleading, next week is when shit will hit the fan.

I have learned not to trust the previews anymore.

[ID555]

What I take away from this episode is that Tooru for some reason found Ohana's lips interesting... I have no idea why.

On next week's preview - the calling out to Kou may just be a flashback. Either way, should be more... exciting than this week's episode.

[Decagon]

Ohana! If Tooru makes you something and puts his special sauce on it, don't eat it!!

[Rei.K]

Sure, nothing really moved forward plot wise except more confirmation regarding Tohru's feelings for Ohana but damn, that was such a cute episode.
Ohana crying and Nako going out of her usual way to reassure her, that was such a touching scene. I mean, it's probably impossible to remain passive when a character as lovable as Ohana reacts like this.

Feeling bad for Minko though. But she would have probably noticed sooner or later. The sooner the better I guess. So far she's taking it quite well, but that's maybe because she might still think she's somehow mistaken. You know. Love blinds people, like they say.


I wasn't disappointed at all by this ep because I just didn't jump into the hype wagon. I guess not watching previews helps.

[sikvod00]

I've never liked Minchi very much due to her prickly attitude , but oh man did I feel sorry for her this episode. She was genuinely worried about Ohana being sick but at the same time had to deal with Tohru being obsessed with Ohana as well. Talk about conflicted emotions! But I am glad that in the end she didn't let her jealousy get the best of her, and managed to comfort a friend.

As for the preview, it's not a straight-up flashback. It looks like it deals with Ohana having trouble in the present with someone (at school?) and having flashbacks of a similar situation.

[Kaoru Chujo]

Loved the episode. Beautiful tone and feeling. And Itou Kanae's sick/sleepy voice was wonderful.

Personally, I feel as if the whole increasing distance from Kou thing is a troll, and she will end up with him. But if they go the other way and there really is increasing separation, that would be pretty moving, too. Sad and beautiful.

Who is the little dark-haired girl in the shrine? Kid Minchi? Ohana's mother? Her grandmother? Her true self?

I noticed the episode was written by Nishimura Junji (director of Simoun, true tears, etc.). Works for me.

Storyboard, Shinohara Toshiya (director of Bantorra, Kuroshitsuji). Episode direction, Hanyuu Naoyasu (director of Great Teacher Onizuka).

I guess the main director is involved in everything: Andou Masahiro (director of Canaan). And the lead writer: Okada Mari (Sketchbook, true tears, Kodomo no Jikan, Vampire Knight, Kuroshitsuji, Canaan, Bantorra, Hourou Musuko, Fractale, Gosick...many episodes of Simoun.).

[Triple_R]

That was a refreshing, relaxing, rewarding watch. Sweetly sublime sentimental charm to end off the weekend with.

Slight superfluous streaks here and there, though, so I'll settle on 9/10 for this episode.

More thoughts below...

Spoiler for Hanasaku Iroha Episode 10:

The first thing I want to mention here is the artwork and the animation.

That is genuinely godly.

The realistic, pristine architecture, and its serene surrounding setting, are truly a pleasure to behold, and watch animated.

In particular, I very much liked the opening scene where Ohana is cleaning that large, spacious hallway. The way the artwork, animation, and direction of that scene coalesced together left me feeling like I was actually there. And that's an absolutely amazing achievement for an animated work to pull off.

This has become one of those very rare anime shows that I'd watch, and like a lot, for the artwork and animation alone, even if I found the anime otherwise dull or boring.

Thankfully, though, I also find Hanasaku Iroha to be a frequently engaging watch.


Granted, the mood in this episode was decidedly low-key, and it probably needed the glorious artwork and animation to help accomplish its subtle aims, but accomplish them it did.

In particular, I found Ohana's two dreams so very telling and poignant.

This episode makes it crystal clear how, in Ohana's mind, Ko now represents her pre-Kissuiso past. Now there's a couple competing ways of interpreting this:

1. Ohana is emotionally drifting farther and farther away from her former world, including Ko. This is setting the stage for a romance between her and Tohru.

2. Ko is the one element of her pre-Kissuiso past that Ohana dearly misses. And that's why she cries in her second dream. Kissuiso now means more to Ohana than Ko alone does, but in her ideal world, Ko would still be part of her day-to-day life.


What I think Okada might do is leave the viewer guessing as to which of these two interpretations is the correct one, and then have the anime essentially confirm one or the other near or at the end of the anime.


In addition to the above, this episode also makes it plainly clear, but in an eminently realistic fashion, that as much as Ohana loves Kissuiso, the other people at Kissuiso are similarly coming to love her. Even Minchi was downright nice to her in this episode. The Tohru and Nako moments with Ohana were, in particular, very amusing and heartwarming.

One slight specific critique though: I question the wisdom of having the Management Consultant as a permanent cast member, which this episode suggests may be happening. A character like her works best as a recurring character, in my view, not as a cast fixture.


Still, I'm very much looking forward to how Okada continues to intermix character development with relationship development for Ohana.

[Guardian Enzo]

Interesting ep, but there's some relationship trolling going on here. We're less than halfway through - as anyone who survived a series shipping series (which I still don't think this is) can tell you, the worst thing that can happen is peaking too soon. It was a big week for Tohru and seemingly bad for Kou, but it's too early to call that definitive. There's also no reason to conclude Ohana has any feelings for Tohru whatsoever.

I did find the whole sequence with Ohana concluding she was no longer needed a bit flimsy and overwrought. Really, that was a massive overreaction even for someone with a fever - and it came totally out of the blue as well.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

I did find the whole sequence with Ohana concluding she was no longer needed a bit flimsy and overwrought.

I actually never had a problem with that.

Nako's choice of words there really could have been much better. It read to me like how an insult would, though that's obviously not what Nako intended.

Still, precisely because it came from Nako, and clearly wasn't mean-spirited at all (bit ironically intended to comfort), Ohana probably felt there was some painful truth to Nako's comments.

Feeling as though you're an easily expendable part of a team is a horrible feeling, and many people have experienced that at least at some point in their lives. That's a big part of the reason why the emotionality of this episode resonated nicely with me. Ohana's crying at the end was maybe a bit much, I'll admit, but the emotional pain of her situation was palpable to me.

[Guardian Enzo]

Fair enough - didn't work for me, though. I do find this show has a tendency to manipulate coincidence and character behavior for dramatic expediency, and this felt like an example for me. Especially give last week's events where she (and everyone) was utterly indispensable.

I did enjoy lots of the episode, though. I kept wondering why Nako was turning the TV on, and I loved the explanation. This was probably Nako's best episode for me, in fact. But I was really creeped out by Jiromaru walking into a feverish 16 year-old's room to read her his porn. I know he's supposed to be comic relief, but I don't find him funny - and that was downright disturbing.

[frubam]

X03!!!!

Isn't that what they call 'sex hair' or something?

I think the whole Ko-drifting-away thing is being looked upon too negatively. Isn't this a sign that she wants to go back to Ko? The fact that the dreaming sequence constituted that more 'she really wanted to be with Kou' rather than 'her giving up Kou for Kissuiso'. This is rather understandable. Her mother technically left her behind and Kou told her to go ahead and leave(1st ep). Now, she's a part of the lifestyle at the inn and people tell her she's needed. Therefore, she'll remain 'where she's needed' over 'where she wants to go', which is why she cried at the end. I'd like to remain optimistic about the whole thing =03.

Also, lol'd at the Jirou/Uncle(name?) backing away from the manager and Tomoe. That was cute.

And Tohru doesn't acquire any Ohana points this episode. Doesn't look too good for him (yes, I'm smiling).

[ThereminVox]

Am I the only one who thinks we're getting seriously ribbed by this episode? I genuinely don't think we're supposed to know what really happened and what was a fever dream.

Spoiler for Well doc, first there was this bat, see..?:

The TV scene early on where Ohana sees (imagines seeing?) a drama about a hotel, and gets confused if the phone is ringing by her head, or on the television told me right away that the episode we were about to see either doesn't really happen, or happens differently from the way Ohana perceives it. Some of it may be dreams influenced by whatever was on TV at the time.

I've only seen the episode once, but I wouldn't be surprised if the timeline doesn't scan properly when it's re-arranged, meaning that it's deliberately unsolvable. Am I wrong, or does Minko's fish get cooked at the wrong time? And Ohana mutters to herself an order regarding ham sandwiches, which Toohru later references, or does she talk to him about them earlier in the day, and I just missed that part? It just seems suspicious that he'd talk about those, unless it's to make us think "Wait, when did she tell him about that?"

I don't think I quite trust anything I saw where Ohana was present, except maybe the last scene with Minko and Nako, after the marker scene (Minko's imagination, or Ohana's?). Some of it probably really happened, but I'll bet some of it didn't.

Bonus points for the "D'awwwww" factor of Nako going deredere for Ohana when uncle asked if she didn't need her anymore.

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

I did find the whole sequence with Ohana concluding she was no longer needed a bit flimsy and overwrought. Really, that was a massive overreaction even for someone with a fever - and it came totally out of the blue as well.

I can buy it as an irrational delusion brought on by the fever, but I guess they did play it up as being genuine character development. I guess it all depends on how much you believe her feelings of being unneeded were related to the fever.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

Fair enough - didn't work for me, though. I do find this show has a tendency to manipulate coincidence and character behavior for dramatic expediency, and this felt like an example for me. Especially give last week's events where she (and everyone) was utterly indispensable.

That is a very good point, I have to admit.

Yeah, the timing of this could have been better given what you wrote there.

I did enjoy lots of the episode, though. I kept wondering why Nako was turning the TV on, and I loved the explanation. This was probably Nako's best episode for me, in fact. But I was really creeped out by Jiromaru walking into a feverish 16 year-old's room to read her his porn. I know he's supposed to be comic relief, but I don't find him funny - and that was downright disturbing.

Totally agree with you on everything here.

Some characters (like Jiromaru and the Management Consultant) are a bit overused in this anime, imo.

It's not a big deal or anything, but given we do have a large cast here, I'd rather characters with more limited range (like Jiromaru and the Management Consultant) to be used more sparingly. Characters like Jiromaru and the Management Consultant can get old very fast if you use them too much, or they could get watered down into plain "normalcy" in order to compensate for their lack of range.

[Anh_Minh]

Originally Posted by Triple_R

1. Ohana is emotionally drifting farther and farther away from her former world, including Ko. This is setting the stage for a romance between her and Tohru.

The scene with Ohana and Tohru looked like more of his misinterpreting signals to me. Or rather, the consequences of it. He's been priming himself to believe she'd fallen for him for some time now.

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

I did find the whole sequence with Ohana concluding she was no longer needed a bit flimsy and overwrought. Really, that was a massive overreaction even for someone with a fever - and it came totally out of the blue as well.

She'd been feeling that way for some time, though. That's why she was working so hard, to carve a place for herself. The fever and Nako's unfortunate reassurances just compounded the problem.