World Without End: Heartwarming Tales of the [Post]Apocalypse

I wrote this article a while ago for a pop culture blog that went nowhere, but it was one of a few I really liked. So here’s a sample of aniblogging before I really started aniblogging.

Deserts are overtaking the landscapes. The ocean can no longer sustain sea life. Sea levels are rising. Soon the Earth will be barren and uninhabitable.Yet, humans continue to live, just without the technological advances we know today.

The world has ended. Now let’s begin.

The Odd One, or Just the Odd One Out

The primary dynamic of the three main characters of Yuyushiki holds that Yukari is the ditz, Yuzuko is the prankster, and Yui reacts to the antics of the former two. A group of three is odd but somehow, they make it work. Yukari and Yuzuko are regularly synced in their boke act, sometimes making it seem like only a pair instead. But despite their impressive dynamics and chemistry, that still may not be quite the case.

Tear Them Apart Just to See What Happens

Don’t mind me. This is just a post about the best anime of the season.

When people are separated, it may not just be because of fate or plot convenience, but by general happenstance. As people are separated by something as simple as an errand, they can also connect with someone atypical. For each and any occasion, a person will change, a switch is triggered that shifts who they are if just slightly, and a new dynamic is created.

At the beginning of Yuyushiki, each character was introduced individually, with unique music and a little monologue. From those established characters, the three were almost always together. Yuzuko and Yukari work together to both play the “boke” to Yui’s “tsukkomi.” But when Yukari goes on a vacation with her family, that dynamic is broken. Yui and Yuzuko – still close, still friends, still a “boke” and “tsukkomi” combination – are very aware that without Yukari, their close-knit group and silly conversations are not quite complete.

Tamayura’s Trail of Broken Promises

Behind its innocent characters, feelings of “fuwafuwa,” and warm sentimentality, Tamayura represents a world in turmoil. The lives surrounding Potte are filled with broken promises, fallen plans, uncertain futures, and the unpredictability of death. It may have been a while since “time stopped” for Potte, but it may stop for her and others again and again and again. A world so seemingly safe and secure has never been so incredibly insecure.

I Want to be a Star-Crossed Lover

One of the more difficult things to do with AKB0048 is take the series in isolation. Its tie to the real life AKB48 is impossible to ignore, and the series itself finds many parallels. As the real Minami Minegishi was caught in a scandal, so did the anime version turn out to be a traitor. Someone more knowledgeable could probably go into far more useful detail about the sketchiness of AKB48 and various “idol industries” (and I’ll try not to get into that much here).

However, from the very start, AKB0048 introduced a character very much already in conflict with one of the key rules of being an idol – Yuka Ichijo was in love.

Clinging to a Fairy Tale

Apparently, this is one of my favorite topics.

The first season of Haganai, from the perspective of Yozora, plays out sort of like a fairy tale or perhaps a shoujo manga. Two childhood friends, parting on unfortunate terms, somehow reconnect – except one doesn’t recognize the other. By the end, Kodaka realizes Yozora is the “Sora” that he once knew.

Sakurasou is Not a Love Story

Romance is a kind of fanservice, an element designed to fulfill the shipping wishes of its audience. Strangely enough, Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo shied away from a traditional romance story. All of the basic elements exist – and with multiple potential pairings – but the story was ultimately never about who or how or when any couple will fall in love. The frustrations and love of creation is what take the forefront, not the romantic love of another. Sakurasou tells a story about passion, its darker side of frustration and resentment, and what it means to do what you love surrounded by people doing what they love. Yet, when it comes to relationships, Sakurasou is never about what the relationships will be, but always the nature of these relationships as they already exist.