Orange: Mirai

[Freeter]

The movie followup to the series Orange was recently subbed. And I have to talk about it. Because it's damn good. How good?

Better than 'Your Name' good. I'm not joking.

Let's get to it.



If you're not familiar with the series, here's the original thread to get you caught up. I'll be discussing the film from here on.

The movie starts out by recapping the events of the series, but this time depicting it from Suwa's point of view instead of Naho's. It strongly highlights how great a character he is by putting Naho's happiness above his own feelings for her, and striving to bring her and Kakeru together while saving Kakeru from committing suicide.

The biggest worry that people had from the original series was by saving Kakeru, it would retcon Naho and Suwa's marriage along with their child, which would have left a sour taste in their mouths. Thankfully, the movie does not let that happen. Kakeru was successfully saved and did end up marrying Naho and having a child with her, but the alternate reality in which he died doesn't vanish. It exists as a parallel world, which means there are multiple timelines in this universe, something Your Name failed to establish when it retconned events to achieve its 'happy' ending.

But that's not all. The movie drops subtle hints of shipping between Suwa and Naho, which are far more effective than the blunt affections that Your Name relied on. When Suwa laments to his friends that he might have taken advantage of Naho's vulnerability over Kakeru's passing, they assure him that he's not that kind of person and filled the void Kakeru left in her heart. And even with the outcome of Kakeru and Naho as a married couple with child, the child clings to Suwa, indirectly suggesting he would make the better father.

And the real kicker? It's towards the end so I'll spoil this just in case, but it really drives home how incredible this film is:

Spoiler for final event:

As the group of friends watch the sunset, they ask Kakeru if he wants to write a letter to his past self. He humbles them by insisting he'd write and tell himself and his mother to live without regret and be happy.

But here's the twist. The final scene of the movie shows Naho's past self about to eat breakfast when a letter addressed to her arrives. One would look at the envelope and assume this was just the series revisiting its origins. Except...

...this letter isn't from Naho. It's from Kakeru.

This letter would not only inform Naho of everything needed to save his life, but also of Suwa's feelings towards her and thus lead to a third alternate timeline where Suwa and Naho are married with child but with their dear friend Kakeru alive and well.

God. Damn. That is BRILLIANT.

Kudos to the Ichigo Takano for not falling into the trap that so many time-travel romances suffer from and delivering an outcome that would please everyone. This movie may not have had the production values of a Shinkai film, but it brought way more heart and was far more satisfying than Your Name could ever hope to be. I eagerly await his next work.