Crystal Tokyo Anime Blog

     This episode begins with Touya’s father asking a nurse about his son, and she tells him that he left for home without waking him which he knows is BS. Then we see Yayoi leaving Touya’s apartment after it looks like they had a night of sex, Yayoi looks happy, and Touya looks, well……….indifferent. Later, Mana blows off Touya’s tutoring appointment because she really wants to hang out with Haruka and not study.

      Once Touya hangs up the phone he sees Yuki waiting to speak with him, so they head to the roof of the hospital for a talk. They talk for a while and Yuki tells Touya about her lessons being cancelled, and she sort of breaks down and starts crying over her uncertainty about her performance. Yuki starts to tell Touya that no matter how much time passes she never….(changes) but, doesn’t finish. Yuki even tells Touya that Eiji must have tired of her so that’s why he cancelled her lessons. Just when thing seem really bad for Yuki, Touya offers her the comfort she needs at that very moment.

      Later that evening, we see that Yuki goes looking for Eiji, and she searches all his known haunts. Then we see Touya with his father at the hospital, his father assumes that Touya is spending his nights with Yuki, and Touya doesn’t deny his father’s assumptions. He then asks Touya if he hasn’t gotten sick of her yet? After some talking, they basically get to what I feel is the heart of their disagreement, Touya’s father assumes that Touya’s a young punk who’s never experienced any of the hardships, or sadnesses of life, and Touya thinks his father has let all his sad experiences in  life beat him down, so now he’s happy being alone.

      Then we switch to Eiji talking with Franky about the painting, and he tells Franky that when he saw the painting he felt three sadnesses inside of it, the sadness of losing something, the sadness of understanding your loss, and the sadness of having something right in front of you and not being able to grab it. He feels that the painting was his mother, even though he never met her. At that moment, Yuki show up and Eiji tells her that he cancelled her lesson because of his own reasons that have nothing to do with her. Then Eiji goes all weird on Yuki telling her she needs more happiness in her life, and then he tells Yuki to share her happiness on him because he’s been overcome with depression.

      Later that evening, we see Touya looking for Misaki, and we see that Mana and Haruka are still hanging out. Later on, we see Yayoi picking up Yuki and telling her that Eiji told her to make Yuki happy. Then we see Touya making his way back to the hospital to see his father where he finds Misaki and Akira visiting his father, and he asks them what they’re doing for New Years? Then we see that Misaki and Akira have taken Touya’s father back to his house for New Year’s eve, but, of course, Touya had other commitments. We also see that Mana left a note telling her mother that she’ll be hanging out with Haruka instead of her, and we see the two of them hanging out at Haruka’s family’s country house.

      As, Touya’s sitting at home watching Rina doing a TV concert his doorbell rings, and we see that Yayoi has chaperoned Yuki over to his apartment for a visit. As Touya and Yuki are standing on his balcony, Yuki struggles to convey her feelings to Touya but he settles the matter by zooming in and kissing her, in the background we hear the Buddhist bells tolling. 

      Culture Note ( As midnight of New Year’s eve approaches, Buddhist temples will slowly toll its bell 108 times symbolising the cleansing of the 108 sins/sadnesses from the world leaving the world with a clean slate for the New Year. Also, it is quite common in Japan and other Buddhist countries to pay a visit to the local shrine/temple right after midnight (hatsumoude in Japanese) then hangout with family or friends and watch the sun rise on New Year’s morning. I actually did something similar with my Korean friends when I lived there back in 1988 & 1989.)

     As Touya continues to lay kisses on Yuki he can see that Yayoi is watching everything they’re doing. Then we see Yayoi taking a picture of Yuki and Touya (proof of Yuki’s happiness for Eiji?), and we see Misaki, Akira, and Touya’s father getting their pictures taken, we also see Rina getting bombarded by photographers after her concert.

      Later, we see that Touya wants Yuki to visit the shrine with him, but when we see him there, we see that he’s alone. As the sun rises, we see Haruka and Mana watching it rise outside her broken down cottage, we see the two Sakura-dan girls riding a train to somewhere, we see Akira wanting to have sex with Misaki but she refuses him, and we see Touya going to meet Yayoi at Echoes. While Touya’s waiting outside the club Eiji sees him getting into Yayoi’s car and he flips out, he rants to himself about “they know”. As Yayoi drives off with Touya he tells her that he visited the shrine, and she tells him that’s good because it saves her the trouble. Well, that’s all for this episode.

      Well, as the start  of second season of White Album approached, I really didn’t know if I wanted to continue blogging this anime because I had developed a love/hate relationship with the series. While I loved the complex and intertwining plot threads I began to hate the frustrations most of the characters where experiencing in their personal lives. But, I decided to give the second season a few episodes before I would make a decision on whether or not to drop the series, and finally I was rewarded by beginning to understand what the causes of all the unhappiness surrounding the characters.

“All happy families are happy alike, all unhappy families are unhappy in their own way.”, Leo Tolstoy from Anna Karenina (1877)

     First of all, let me say that the cast of White Album has to be the biggest group of unhappy son of bitches ever to grace an anime series.

As the Beatles asked in Eleanor Rigby

 All the lonely people
Where do they all come from?
All the lonely people
Where do they all belong?

Well, all the lonely people come from the White Album series, and they belong with each other.

      OK, enough ranting for now. What I really liked about this episode was that I finally got enough character development to begin to understand the cause/source of Touya’s problems with his father, and what likely is the source of his wanton womanizing. When the series first began I pretty much thought that Touya and his father didn’t get along because Touya was a lazy piece of shit, but now I understand that their problems are much deeper than that. After the death of Touya’s mother it seems that Touya’s father allowed the grief of his wife’s death to crush his spirit, and also caused him to lose all his lust for life, it must have been pure misary for Touya to live in that house. Touya’s father hates Touya because he feels that Touya’s a punk because he’s not experienced the pain of loss that comes with age. I feel that Touya’s habit of trying to find his “goddess of the day” is a direct result of him seeing how miserable his father is being alone, and he tries anything to not be alone. I also feel that Touya really loves Yuki, but he fears being alone like his father so much that he’s willing to sleep with any woman rather than being by himself.

      Yuki’s problem is that she fears that she can’t change or progress, I think that she still sees herself as the same person she was back in high school, and Touya’s father didn’t help matters when he told Yuki that she’s still the same. For all of Yuki’s talk in the first season about changing herself she’s still just a little schoolgirl; she does what everybody expects and tells her what to do, and until Yuki does what she really wants to do for her own sake (whether it’s sleeping with Touya, or something else) she’ll still be the little girl that she feels she is.

      Now, to the two most interesting character in the whole series, Yayoi and  Eiji. Yayoi, where do I start? I think that Yayoi’s is beginning to actually enjoy her relationship with Touya, she’s having a lot more sex with Touya, and spending much more time with him than would really be necessary to keep him from wanting to jump Yuki’s bones, hell I actually thought I saw a smile on her face when she left his apartment. I think that Yayoi for all her dedication to her job is pretty lonely, and while she might think that sleeping with Touya is part of her job, some sex is when you’re lonely is better than being alone with no sex. Eiji, what a nut job, I can’t figure out if he’s the one stalking Yayoi and Touya or if it’s someone else, either way, he’s got major problems. The whole painting thing is a metaphor for his entire life, but in reverse. Eiji sees what he wants right before him but he can’t grab it, then he understands the pain of his inability to attempt to get any joy out of what he desires, he might want a better relationship with his sister, or he might want to sleep with Yayoi, or with Yuki, or with any number of other women but he’s too impotent to attempt any real relationships. So, I can see how Eiji just might be stalking Yayoi and Touya, or even Yuki an in attempt to get his gratification from watching others enjoy what he can’t.

      Mana’s unhappy because she’s lonely and has no real relationship with her mother, so she’s clinging to Haruka. Both Akira and Misaki seem unhappy with their current situation, Akira because the relationship isn’t moving to the next level, and Misaki because she’s feeling pressure from Akira (hey, Misaki, have you ever heard about the three date rule?). 

      I really feel sorry for Haruka, when I saw Haruka watching the sunrise on New Year’s morning, all the things surrounding the cottage seemed broken down and in disrepair, a perfect metaphor for her broken life after her brother’s death. Also, I found the whole Touya kissing Yuki as the Buddhists bells were tolling to wash away the previous years sins to be quite ironic. Touya had the perfect opportunity to turn over a new leaf and be faithful to Yuki, and what does he do? He goes right back to being unfaithful to her the very next day. Well, I can’t wait to see how this whole big steaming pile of unhappiness called White Album turns out.

       Well, this episode picks up at the end of summer break with Sawako continuing her life motto of “one good deed a day”, and Sawako still seems to have a frighting affect on other students. When Sawako gets to class, she’s soaking wet because she left her umbrella to cover an abandoned puppy, and when Kazehaya notices this he asks Sawako if she has a spare gym uniform, no. So, Kazehaya asks Yoshida if she has a spare, so she loans Sadako one that’s buried at the bottom of her locker, and Kazehaya loans her his towel. Sawako is very happy that her classmates would care enough to loan her things.

       Later, one of Kazehaya’s friends tells him he’s being too kind worrying about Sadako since he rejected her, and Kazehaya tells him he didn’t reject her. So, you agreed to go out with her? No, it’s not like that. Then we see a further flashback of Sawako and Kazehaya’s roadside conversation and what she told him. Later, we see that Sawako has left drinks on Yano, Yoshida, and Kazehaya’s desk in return for being kind to her. Then Kazehaya tracks her down and asks if she left him the drink, yes. I’m glad it was you, and I was worried that it was someone else. Once Sawako and Kazehaya get talking they both find out that they both left items for the puppy by the river.

       After school, Sawako and Kazehaya head back to the river, and find the puppy and their stuff still there. Kazehaya asks if he can keep the puppy, and it takes a liking to him right away, but it has hostility towards Sawako. She tells Kazehaya that it’s OK, she’s used to kids and animals not liking her. Well, Kazehaya tells her that he heard that dogs will like their owners friends, so he’ll like her because they’re close friends. As Kazehaya is about to leave, Sawako asks if she can see the dog again, and Kazehaya says only the dog and not me? Of course I want to see you again. Then Kazehaya says it’s OK.

       The next day, at school, Sawako has brought some homemade treats to give to Yano, Yoshida, and Kazehaya but she starts to get nervous about the gift. After she talks with Kazehaya, she gets up to leave and two new girls come into the class and talk about not wanting to be near Sadako’s seat, and she overhears them talking about her. In her mind, Sawako tells the girls it’s OK it’s not dirty, and that she doesn’t have that kind of powers, but only in her mind. Then we see that Yoshida has taken in the whole scene and is looking at Sadako intensely.

       Then comes the big announcement from the teacher, it’s time for a new seating chart, so he tells the class to figure it out on their own. Well, the kids draw numbers for their seats and most of the class wishes to be nowhere near Sadako and she can hear all their talk. So, when Kazehaya sees that no one wants to be by Sawako’s he asks another guy for the seat next to her, and he’s soon joined by Yano and Yoshida. Then Sawako offers the homemade treats to the three of them for their help yesterday. Kazehaya thinks her snacks taste great, and Yano and Yoshida also like them. Hell, even the boy sitting behind Sadako has a go at her treats.

       After school, Kazehaya sees Sawako walking home, so he rides up to her on his bike and they talk for awhile while three other girls see this happening. One girls comments that she thought that Kazehaya had rejected her, one girls says she’s been seeing them together a lot, and the last girl just watches the scene. After Kazehaya rides off, Sawako thinks to herself that her feelings of respect and admiration for Kazehaya are still there, but she thinks that maybe the feeling of love has entered the picture. Well, that’s all for this episode.

       Well, It was very interesting watching Sawako/Sadako begin the process of opening up to her fellow classmates, and while she experiences some successes she also experiences some failures. Sawako continues try and follow Kazehaya’s advice of telling people how she feels and to make herself clear. She fails when it comes to the two girls who where talking about her in the classroom, but I do have to say that as Sawako/Sadako is slowly trying to integrate herself in greater school society other students are starting to notice who she spends time with. Also, it seems that Sawako/Sadako has won over Yano, and Yoshida with her forthrightness from the other episode, and her acts of thanks from this episode.

      It was also interesting to see that not all of the students other than Kazehaya, Yano, and Yoshida buy into the Sadako curse. I really liked it when Ryuu refused to change seats with Yoshida (he was sitting right behind Sadako) he either didn’t care that he’s sitting by Sadako, or he doesn’t buy into all the rumors surrounding her, and he even joined in by eating some of Sadako’s treats. What’s really interesting about the students that chose to show support for Sawako/Sadako is that they seem for the most part to be members of the social elite.

       One of the affects of Sawako opening up herself to other also makes their rejection more painful than ever, while she tells Kazehaya that she’s used to rejection it clearly pains her more than ever when others say mean things to her. I also like the fact that Kazehaya is not completely perfect, because while he’s quite smitten with Sawako, he’s just as shy about telling her these things as she was of telling other people how she feels.

      In closing, it was pretty cool watching Sawako come to the conclusion that she now has feelings of love for Kazehaya, wow it only took 2 episodes. But, one thing that Sawako will quickly discover is that loving a prince comes with its own risks, I can almost hear the sound of daggers being drawn from their sheaths.  

       Well, this series begins with 2nd year middle school student Ichigo rushing to dressed while her family is waiting downstairs for her. After falling down the stairs (seems pretty normal for her), she and her family get into the car to head for a piano competition that her younger sister Natsume will be competing in. Ichigo tells us that she’s not a good student, not good at sports, she also says she has no good qualities, and she even wonders why she and her sister are so different.

        When it’s Natsume’s turn to perform, Ichigo notices that Natsume is really nervous and freezing up so she shouts out to her in an inappropriate way, but it breaks the ice and snaps her out of her frozen state. Natsume delivers the winning performance, and when Natsume’s getting her trophy Ichigo has a flashback to her younger days.

      In her flashback Ichigo’s crying next to a river, and her grandmother walks up to her and offers her a cake and tells her that one taste will work its magic on her. After Ichigo has one bite of her grandmother’s cake she cheers up and agrees that it’s magic.

         Then we see Ichigo crossing a street and she wonders why everyone smells so sweet? Well, the smell is coming from a sweets festival, and Ichigo is drawn to the display and she soon has her tray full. But, Ichigo is soon depressed because she forgot her wallet at home until her family manages to track her down and dad offers to pay.

All guys who have ever had a girlfriend or wife knows this feeling (see below)

        While Ichigo is pigging out on the treats, Natsume sits with her and thanks her for shouting out and freeing her up when she was on stage.  As Ichigo is tasting all the treats, one of the treats flavor stops her from eating and she gets up and heads over to find where it came from. When Ichigo finds the right table, a cute foreign guy asks her if anything is wrong with his cake? No, Ichigo tells him that this cake tastes a lot like one her grandmother used to make for her, he seems shocked. The cute guy is named Henri Lucas and he is a lecturer from the St. Marie Academy.

        Well, they start talking, and we find out that Ichigo’s grandmother attended the very same academy and shocked her instructors with her creations, and we also learn that Henri is the great grandson of the founder of St. Marie Academy. Well, Henri tells Ichigo that the reason why her grandmother’s cake and his taste almost the same is because they both learned at the same school. Henri goes on to praise Ichigo amazing sense of taste and he tells her she’ll be the first to taste his newest creation. Ichigo is in heaven because this is the first time she’s ever been praised by anyone, let alone a cute guy.

       So, Henri whips up a creation right in front of Ichigo and when she tastes his creation in her minds eye she describes his creation to a T, including its name “first love”. Henri again praises Ichigo’s tremendous sense of taste, and Ichigo is happy she’s being praised again. Henri invites Ichigo to attend the St. Marie Academy because she’s got talent, and Ichigo has another flashback remembering that she wanted to be a Patissiere like her grandmother. After a few seconds of thinking Ichigo agrees to enroll at the St. Marie Academy.

What he made her

What she thinks

What he gets 

       When Ichigo tells her family that she wants to transfer to the St. Marie Academy her father and her family are shocked. While she wouldn’t be studying in Paris, the school has a branch in Japan, she would have to board at the school. Her father is against this mentionong her clumsy and scattered brained nature (don’t crush my girl’s dreams), Ichigo’s mother says that maybe her grandmother’s genes are awaking in her. Well, daddy is still against it, but Ichigo insists that she wants to make wonderful treats like granny, mom tells Ichigo to go for it and tells dad that his daughter is about to walk down her own path.

       Ichigo’s mother tells Ichigo that she’s sorry for always concentrating on her sister Natsume and leaving her to fend for herself, and she’s glad she found her dream. Dad still says no, but mom pulls out some new golf clubs that dad bought and lays a guilt trip on him by says how can you refuse your daughter when you buy new golf clubs and your so bad at golfing, dad caves in and says yes. Later that night, Ichigo e-mails Henri telling him she’ll be able to attend St. Marie Academy. Well, that’s all for this episode.

      OK, since Yumeiro Patissieri a shojo anime aimed at girls from about 8-13 let me go down my check list to see if they hit all the right points for this type of show.

#1 The main heroine is slightly clumsy and feels a little inadequate, Check

#2 The main heroine is extremely cute, Check

#3 The main heroine finds her goal which usually involves making people happy, Check

#4 The main heroine is extremely cute, Check

#5 The main heroine will be surrounded by one or more cute teen aged boys who will be older than the girl (a sort of prince figure) giving the “princess” something to yearn for, Check

#6 The beautiful boys will never ever come close to tasting the “cake”, no matter how much the girl dreams of this, Check

#7 The main heroine is extremely cute, Check

#8 The main heroine will experience trials and tribulations in which her inner strength will shine through and show off her best qualities to those around her, Check

#9 By the end of the series, the main heroine will be well on her way to achieving her dream, and in the process will have gained many new friends and have found a sense of self-worth, Check

#10 Did I mention that the main heroine will be extremely cute, Check

      OK, now that I’ve gotten that out of the way, here’s the deal with this type of series. In a series like Yumeiro Patissiere that’s geared to tween and young teen girls you get wish/dream fulfillment where Ichigo represents the normal insecurities of the girls watching the series; Ichigo feels not exceptional in any way, and even feels she has no redeeming traits, I think she represents how most young of that age feel. Ichigo, for all her feelings of inadequacies has a kind and gentle heart (don’t all girls think this) and it just takes the right situation for others around her to see this. Now, the Henri character represents the “prince” in the common “princess” storyline, all young girls dream of being a princess and you need a prince to see and cherish the princess for what she is, and since this is a shojo geared towards young girls your prince will be a object of longing and desire but in an non-sexual way unlike some of the more predatory types of guy that float around in shojo geared towards older teens. So, by the end of Yumeiro Patissiere, Ichigo will have worked hard and have gained self-worth, gained self-confidence, and earned the friendship of others and maybe a kiss on the cheek. I love a good shojo anime, and if this series keeps to the tried and true path of the genre I’ll love this series too.