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the-gardenofproserpine · 5 years

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Exploring life

Girls' Last Tour is a slice of life anime that revolves around two girls Chito and Yuuri as they explore the remains of a war-torn city for their survival. As they ride on their motor-bike they encounter many places and and very little people, and on the way learn about the world they live in and develop perspectives on life and its essence.

Chito is a more serious and intellectual girl who makes the rationale decisions and keeps the two girls alive, while Yuuri is very carefree and strives to actually live life. Even so Chito does like to enjoy life which Yuuri makes sure she does, while Yuuri is a curious girl (about a few random things, too) and Chito helps her to understand what lays around better.

The anime asks some very thought-provoking questions in a very light-hearted manner; amidst the girls' banter and exploration as they wonder about what they experience. Every element in the story is carefully accounted for -- the art is not too grand but it perfectly fits the feel of the anime, the music is gentle or often delighting, the voice (at least in the sub) is perfect, though we mainly have the two girls as the characters. The sound of their movements of the rain or just what's around them is great, too, and it's basically sugoi. And the OST is ahhhhh.

It's basically a story of two girls who learn about life. They literally know next to nothing (not even about cheese, chocolate, God, potatoes, airplanes, nothing. Only Chito knows a little bit about whatever she's read in her books.)

I won't be saying much because this is a story you should experience and think about yourself. Come after you're done.

Recommendation: Go watch it. Now. This is an anime fit for everyone (other those who dislike a lack of plot).

Hagimemashou!

Going deeper into the anime

The cheerful tone of the anime will keep you happy at almost all times - as they explore the world in ruins with their positive and curious outlook. We don't know much about them, their history - only a grandfather mentioned a few times and towards the end a few flashbacks. Still, you feel an immediate connection with them, and go with them, together, on the girls' last tour as they scout for their basic necessities while going towards the highest level.

This is all sweet, but what I really loved about the anime where the questions asked. Almost every episode delved deeper into a single thought (that was connected to many other), and perhaps the girls reached a concluding point of some pause (which wasn't necessarily positive), the story allowed the reader to think about the themes themselves while seeing the girls' perspective. These questions are what I really want to talk about, with a few additional things.

Hajimemashou!

1. War

"War means killing each other, right? Why'd they do that?" - Yuuri

"Dunno. Their interests probably didn't coincide with the other's side." - Chito

---

Now, you must be thinking, what's so special or thought-provoking about this segment? What Chito says makes sense and it probably is the truth. And you're right (assuming you're thinking along the lines of that). However, moments later we see Yuuri raise a gun on Chito as they had five ration sticks and the two girls were starving. Chito proposed to split the last stick into two halves, but Yuuri snatched it from her, raised her gun at Chito (in a rather serious manner, though her real intention was obviously humorous) and ate it. Even though this wasn't actually serious, it just makes me think. Survival of the fittest is perhaps the most popular thought on this planet amongst everything. Us humans are also animals and thus we rely largely on our instincts, along with our intelligence. Perhaps the instinct of survival, the notions of desire and that intelligence is what causes the war?

2. The Afterlife

"We're actually dead, and we're in the pure white world of the afterlife." - Yuuri

---

"Hey, did you know that the afterlife is supposed to be really warm?" - Yuuri

"If that's true, it doesn't look like we're dead yet." - Chito

---

These girls know nothing, I've already established that. But as it was in the first segment, they are human and they do have those instincts, those feelings about what's around you. But they don't even know if they're in their lives or in the afterlife? I mean really, what makes us so sure that we are in the real world? That this isn't some sort of illusion that we forget after death? That an afterlife even exists? We know so less and yet we continue to live life. We are human beings and we are 'living', thus we continue to live life.

3. Why Life?

"Why do people live?" - Chito

---

"We find it [food], save it, then go one the move again, always thinking there might be something waiting for us at our destination..." - Chito

---

"It's what I live for!" - Kanazawa

"What you live for?" - Yuuri

"If I lost this [Kanazawa's maps], I'd probably die." - Kanazawa

---

The reason we exist is a topic that has been spoken about, written about many times. But why does an individual personally want to live? What motivates them, how do they ignore the question of a meaningless existence? And in this anime, what motivates these girls to live and keep travelling around the dead world? Perhaps its the support they gain from each other, perhaps curiosity, perhaps to fulfil their temporary goals, perhaps because they are alive (because of their grandfather, maybe they respect the fact that they are alive no matter the circumstances) or perhaps simply because they aren't dead. The reason (not meaning) of life varies from person to person and is constantly changing. Perhaps we're all just trying to understand life.

4. God

"What's the point of making a big disappointment [nice, fake god or the god's statue, I'm not sure] like this? Nobody knows what life's like after death anyway." - Yuuri

"Maybe they [the people] didn't want to think that, [the afterlife is a dark world] so they made those statues and all the lights." - Chito

---

These girls never knew who or what God was and had only each other during the past, when the war was going on. They didn't believe in or found comfort in such an existence and only in each other's presence.

Who is God? Does God really exist, or are they (I use 'they' because I don't believe God has a gender, and not it because it is kinda weird) something that comforts us in our times of adversity? Will God ever really help us, even if they exist? Is God just figment of our imagination and the stories just some awe-inspiring comfort? Are we afraid of some dark truth, and why do we even 'need' God? Perhaps God exists but we have misinterpreted that existence. We know nothing.

5. Home

"What are houses for again?" - Yuuri

"Well, you couldn't live without a house." - Chito

"Yeah, but we don't have a house now." - Yuuri

---

"In the end we're back to a cycle of resupplying and travelling." - Chito

"That means the road we travel is our house."

---

This isn't too philosophical and all but it is an interesting thought. Is home a specific place where we live and feel safe, or is it something we are familiar with and feel a sense of belonging to, or something entirely different?

Also in this (the 5th) episode, the part 'The Sound of Rain' has to be one of my favourite scenes, ahh.

6. Hopelessness and failure

"But, well, once you fail, you feel so carefree." - Ishi

"She's smiling." - Yuuri

"What? Why?" - Chito

"Maybe she's getting along with it.

"The feeling of hopelessness." - Yuuri

---

They're in a world which has been destroyed but they're finding their own goals, each character. We are in a world we don't know much about, we don't know what our failures and success mean.

Maybe we're just getting along with everything.

7. Living Life

"Life would be so easy is we had arrows like this all the time." - Chito

"Aww, that'd be boring!" - Yuuri

---

"Let's go explore!" - Yuuri

"Nope. What kind of person would ignore signs that would help them get to their destination?"

---

To set a destination and easily reach their, or to just be random and go along with time? To fulfil a purpose or simply explore life, no matter the struggles? Perhaps a mix of both, or something entirely different? How should life be lived? Really, what is life?

8. Remembrance and existing

"Then one day we'll probably forget about them." - Yuuri, about Kanazawa and Ishii.

---

"I bet they left behind these names and the things they owned so someone would see it and remember them.

"But now there isn't anyone passing through like we are and everyone in the world is gone... so who would remember them?"

---

We've often thought about the meaning of life, the possibility of an afterlife or simply rebirth, but what about this life? Not everyone is like Albert Einstein or Beethoven or Vincent Van Gogh or Alan Turing or George Eliot, who will be remembered for lifetimes. Not everyone would have the wish of being remembered but most people might want to leave some mark here in the world, of their existence. Again it's a matter of personal wishes, but what do we live for? Or is it someone we live for? Do we want our stories to be known, like Anne Frank, or just pass by and live life for ourselves? (That was probably a poor analogy, though)

9. Empathy - What is living?

"Maybe 'life' is something that has an end?" - Yuuri

—-

This has to be one of my favourite lines from the anime.

In this episode we see two robots. The girls question it if it is living or not, and such questions are raised throughout the episode. Humans are living, fishes are living, but it's a doubt on the machines. The smaller machine is programmed in a way that it invoked empathy in the humans (who are their customers) but the big one cannot speak to it.

By the end of the episode the girls reach the conclusion that the big machine was also living (hence coming to the mentioned dialogue) as it did feel empathy. Perhaps life is something that has an end, and perhaps those who live are those who can feel. Do microorganisms feel? They are living, after all. Are the machines really living?

Perhaps life is defined because it ends. This is an episode that really is felt while you watch it, so there isn't much to say. But it's inconclusive and asks interesting questions.

10th episode

This one mostly talks about waves and the power of music. The rhythm in the sound (just as how it was with the rain, back in episode 5), the sound waves, the waves of the light and how everything is associated with an emotion. The emotion conveyed depends for each person but there's really something profound about it (and because it's related to music, I love it).

Also, we meet a new creature who looks like the statues present throughout the anime. Also we later learn that it is very intelligent (as a species).

11th episode

I don't know what to say about this episode. Cultural differences and war, yeah. Then we saw Yuuri use a very destructive weapon (twice) and laugh it off. You've watched it, you know it. It's thought provoking and just... sits in your head.

12. What humanity, what people mean to us. Just what holds meaning for us.

There is nothing left to say. It's an experience, this entire anime is. I'm probably gonna read the manga soon especially if there is no news for a sequence but truly, it was a delight watching this anime.

#girls' last tour #shoujo shuumatsu ryokou #fictionverse #anime #chito #yuuri #ishi #kanazawa

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the-desolated-quill · 7 years

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The Pandorica Opens - Doctor Who blog

(SPOILER WARNING: The following is an in-depth critical analysis. If you haven’t seen this episode yet, you may want to before reading this review)

New Who doesn’t exactly have a good track record when it comes to its series finales. Russell T Davies had a horrid tendency to make his finales bombastic, gaudy slushfests that usually had high stakes but very little impact. How does Moffat compare with his first of a two part finale?

Well The Pandorica Opens is a nice, welcome change of pace. Instead of this grand, epic narrative, Moffat keeps everything very small and compact. Yes there are 12,000 spaceships in the sky, but the story is mostly contained within the caverns beneath Stonehenge. The only real threat comes from a lone Cybersuit trying to assimilate a new human host, and that was fantastic. A creative use of Cyber lore that was very reminiscent of a John Carpenter movie. Love it. There also seems to be much more emphasis on characters rather than spectacle, specifically on Amy and Rory.

Oh yeah, Rory is back. Like I said previously, I knew even at the time that Rory wasn’t really dead, but fair’s fair. I wasn’t expecting him to come back as a Roman centurion (I do have issues with this, but I’ll come to that later). A big chunk of the episode is dedicated to Amy and Rory reuniting and Amy not remembering him. Both Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill are incredible together, selling the intense emotions their characters are feeling like its going out of season. The ending in particular was both shocking and moving as Rory cradles Amy’s body after he accidentally shoots her.

Matt Smith is also great. The obnoxious weirdness has thankfully been toned down a bit after The Lodger and there are a number of good moments. My favourite being the sequence with the Cyberman arm, but the scene where the Doctor comedically realises that Rory has implausibly returned from oblivion is a close second for me just because it could have been so easy to have fucked that up and made it feel awkward and forced, but Matt Smith pulls it out of the bag. Alex Kingston also does a good job as a mercifully less smug River Song. Okay the Cleopatra scene was incredibly cringeworthy, but her ‘you’re all barbarians now’ speech to the Romans more than made up for it.

If you’re after decent characterisation and good performances, then The Pandorica Opens should be more than satisfactory. If however you’re looking for a good story to go with it, you’re going to be disappointed because this is where the episode falls flat on its face.

Let’s start with the Pandorica. What is it? It’s a prison. The most powerful prison ever constructed with deadlock seals and time locks and so on to contain whatever’s inside... and is incredibly easy to open.

But who or what is inside the Pandorica? Well according to legend it’s some kind of goblin/trickster/warrior. The most feared being in all the cosmos.

Well gee, I wonder who this could be referring to. I mean it could be anybody. No, but seriously. It’s definitely Omega. (Just out of curiosity, the people who came up with this theory, were you just humouring Moffat or were you really that thick?)

Yes, obviously there’s nothing inside the Pandorica because obviously it’s meant to be for the Doctor. Not exactly a shocking twist, is it? A demented cabbage could have worked that one out what with the painfully obvious hints. But what makes this twist even more annoying is the fact that it doesn’t make even the slightest bit of sense.

So the Pandorica was created by an Alliance of the Doctor’s greatest enemies.

Remember back in Doomsday when the Daleks and Cybermen fought each other? Yeah I didn’t like it either, but Russell T Davies got one thing right. The Daleks and Cybermen would never work together because of their totally opposing ideologies. Daleks are driven by xenophobia and hatred, whereas Cybermen are driven by a desire to ‘save’ humanity. Daleks want to kill and conquer. Cybermen want to fix and improve. Now you’re expecting me to believe that these two polar opposite Who baddies can not only put their differences aside, but are also willing to work with Sontarans, Sycorax, Judoon, Slitheen, Draconians, Autons, Zygons, Silurians... wait! What the fuck are the Silurians doing there?! Why don’t you just throw in the Ood too and be done with it?!

Then there’s the question of why they’re building this Pandorica in the first place, even going to the trouble of visiting Amy’s house and extrapolating memories of Romans and shit. They believe the Doctor is going to destroy the whole of space and time. I get that (actually I don’t, but I’ll come to that), but if that’s the case, wouldn’t it be easier to just kill him? Why are you going to such ridiculous lengths to capture him when you can just blow him up WITH YOUR 12,000 SPACESHIPS?!!!

And why do you have 12,000 spaceships anyway? It only takes a couple of plastic Romans to shove the Doctor inside the Pandorica. Seems a bit like overkill to me.

Also what’s the point of the transmitter? The Pandorica transmits a message to everyone from the Daleks to the Zygons to even Vincent Van Gogh. The message beams across all of time and space. Everybody hears it... except the one person they’re trying to lure to the Pandorica in the first place.

The only reason the Doctor shows up is because River Song defaces an ancient cliff-face. If Van Gogh’s painting was never discovered, the Doctor would never have showed up at Stonehenge to be locked up, would he? Who the fuck came up with this plan? Mr. Bean?

But the stupidest thing of all is that despite the Alliance having the resources to visit Amy’s house, extrapolate memories, create plastic Romans and build a perfect prison based on a children’s picture book, not one of them has the brainpower to work out that the Doctor isn’t the only one that can fly the TARDIS.

Epic fail for the villains, and I wish I could say that’s the end of it, but it gets worse. Let’s talk about Moffat’s crack.

We know how the cracks in time work, right? If the light touches you, you get erased from existence. You don’t just die. You were never born in the first place. Those are the rules. Well, like with the Angels in Flesh And Stone, Moffat once again breaks his own rules for plot convenience. Turns out you’re not completely erased from existence after all. You leave traces behind. Like an engagement ring or a photograph. How can either of those exist if Rory doesn’t exist? Fucked if I know! Also, apparently if you can remember someone, they can magically come back. So how come those soldiers from Flesh And Stone didn’t miraculously return when Amy remembered them? Because Moffat is a shit writer. That’s why. What’s the point of getting invested in a story if the writer just keeps changing the rules whenever he feels like it?

Also I expect you’re wondering how the Alliance were able to recreate a plastic Rory with all his memories from a single photograph despite the fact he never existed. Well apparently... he’s a miracle.

No. Really. You heard that right. According to the Doctor, there are some impossible things in the universe that cannot be explained, and we call them miracles.

I know that Moffat said in an interview once that he’s always seen Doctor Who as a fairytale, but this is taking the piss. You can allude to fairytales, sure. Borrow elements and draw parallels, but at the end of the day Doctor Who is a sci-fi show. If you use actual fairytale solutions to solve sci-fi problems, you’re just cheating the audience and making us question what the fuck is going on.

Somewhere underneath this convoluted mess is an emotional character piece trying to get out. Unfortunately it’s hampered by a writer being too clever for his own good.

#the pandorica opens #steven moffat #doctor who #eleventh doctor #matt smith #amy pond #karen gillan #rory williams #arthur darvill #river song #alex kingston #bbc #review #spoilers

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