Now and Then, Here and There is a critically-acclaimed TV series from a few years ago that features a crazy militaristic leader, a magical water girl and plenty of emotionally scarring moments. Worth the watch? You’ll have to check out the review to find out!
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I find myself agreeing with you almost unequivocally on most things. But this is injustice! I have had a review of this sitting in my draft posts almost since I launched my blog, and never felt that I quite nailed what I wanted to say.
But I can definitely address the fact that I love the hell out of Now and Then.
As for Shu being a bad protagonist… I’m not sure whether he’s particularly believable, but his optimism is a necessary character trait. First off, it helps get across an overarching theme that (at least in his mind) blind persistence is all, and will help you triumph. But also, he provides a contrast that other dark and depressing anime (think Eva, where literally everyone is contemptible in some way) doesn’t have. Because of his hokey optimism, you get something like the Gurren-Lagann-Fuck-Yes-Factor, except it’s systematically beaten down. You, the viewer, really know how awful things are, and how real Sara’s plight is, because you’re presented with the contrast of Hellwood’s world against Shu’s naggingly bright outlook.
Besides that, he provides a good lesson — you don’t have to be smart, or strong, or skilled, but it’s really important to maintain your values and your beliefs in the face of insurmountable adversity, otherwise they don’t count for shit.
Side note, American viewers can judge for themselves because starting next Monday, the Sci-Fi channel will be showing it (and the dub is really not bad) directly after the mighty Gurren Lagann.
I can’t seem to nail the source of my dislike with Shu. Although he does remind me of Simon, what made Simon such a lovable character was that he evolved – nay, blossomed – into a lead protagonist from his humble beginnings. I don’t get that feeling from Shu: come episode 13 he’s still the same thick-headed boy you first saw fencing in episode 01. Again, by contrast, Sara goes from child to woman in the span of the series, and in a most chaotic and uncharitable way. Is there any emotional moment you felt could capture Shu’s character the way that Sara slicing her beautiful blonde hair off did?
But whatever my opinion of Now and Then, Here and There, I’ll be the first to read your review when you finish it. :) I totally dig reviews that reveal points or sides I hadn’t considered. I did always wonder why it was under the “Acquired Taste” label of The List.
Shu is among other things the embodiment of the ganbare (? my Japanese is non-existent) that many people tell me (including, like, whole articles devoted to it in the FT!) is a big part of the Japanese character.
I’m not sure a lack of realism is a fair criticism to aim at him, but you might get away with suggesting that he’s not an entertaining character. It’s true that he doesn’t grow or change much over the course of the show. But does everything have to have a bildungsroman element to it? The whole character-growth thing sometimes irritates me, as it seems to me we’ve mistaken a relatively recent emphasis in literature for an eternal rule of Good Storytelling.
I’ve heard the term ganbare before. “Do your best” or “hang in there” both approximate the original meaning, I believe. It certainly fits Shu, the little bugger doesn’t know when to quit no matter what people do to him. :)
However, I must disagree about the character evolution issue. I care first and foremost about the story, and any story is always as good as the characters that inhabit it… But without change, evolution, conflict, a story is a dead end, a Groundhog Day scenario that calls to mind status quo TV sitcoms where the core premise and setting never change. Homer’s always the dumb one, Kramer’s always the wacky one, and so on.
You’re quite right that not every anime show should strive for an epic arc like Towards the Terra, where you follow characters who are born, grow up, and die over the course of the series, yet I can’t seem to recall any I liked where character evolution wasn’t central to the storyline – TTGL, Kurenai, Welcome to the NHK, True Tears, Naisho no Tsubomi, even Haruhi (remember that Live Alive scene where Haruhi realizes that it’s a nice feeling to have people be grateful?).
The term you are looking for is ganbariya-san, or someone who is always perpetually upbeat and willing to work hard, no matter how hopeless the situation maybe.
Ah, thanks! One more word I can add to my puny Japanese vocabulary only to forget it right away. :/
[...] Muto, so my current theory is that Shu’s the embodiment of tenacious persistence. I’m told that the word I want might be ‘ganbariya-san‘. That must be important because years ago [...]