#3gatsu

I was looking into a japanese magazine look what I’ve found! 3gatsu cats’ references! I searched for it for hours to do this art just bellow... My best information source was http://myfigurecollection.net/ but it was not very clear... So here it is, for science! :’D

3-gatsu’s ending is a contemplation on the progress our protagonist Rei has made and the journey he has yet to undergo.

The first half of this episode interestingly enough adapts Rei’s return to school to start his second term. Initially, the episode places particular emphasis on the things that have not changed. Rei is still an outcast in his class. He still has yet to join a club or form a particular clique. Even his former homeroom teacher has seemingly moved on.

However, this sentiment is quickly interrupted by his teacher who verbalizes Rei’s anxieties yet refuses to let Rei just lay down and do nothing. Certainly, Rei has not gone backwards. Yet, Rei still lacks the mental fortitude to move forward on his own. Rei’s teacher reminds Rei that the young man went back to highschool because he ‘did not want any regrets’.

Rei did not go back to just eat lunch alone in a stairwell.

Rei is visibly moved by this revelation but still is unable to come up with a solution. This is when Teach suggests a shogi club as a way to bridge the gap between Rei’s career and his school life.

Unfortunately, the two are unable to find four other members to join the club. They do, however, come up with the ingenious plan of fusing the new shogi club with the established Science club in order to meet the five member requirement.

This merging presents an interesting insight. On the surface, it is a clever way to resolve the issue in creating the shogi club. On the other hand, this solution has not the solved the fundamental issue of forcing Rei to interact with those of his age. Rather, he continues to only be capable of speaking with those either older or younger than him. This can can be attributed to his lonely youth as wel as his strained relationship with his foster brother Ayumu of whom is also of the same age.

Of course, this can be rationalized as it being too early for Rei to tackle this particular issue and instead this solution highlights Rei finally being comfortable with relying on others and asking for support; an attribute he lacked for a majority of his life fighting on his own.

Needless to say, this half ends on an optimistic note.

The second half of this episode is rather interesting. SHAFT decided to utilize the Omake chapter Fighter as the closing segment of the anime series. This omake chapter once originally released alongside the Bump of Chicken music video of the same name called ‘Fighter’ (2014) which featured prominently the scene with Rei and Hina at the bridge (Manga Spoiler). 

This segment presents the first clear picture of Rei’s child life explicitly during a class field trip. This segment is meant to contrast with the first half of the episodes school setting.

Various aspects of Rei’s childhood are revealed through this short outing. Rei never got along with the kids around him and they equally had no interest in him. Although he longs for human friendship, he is equally apprehensive of it (see Hedgehog’s dilemma) as he feels somewhat relieved of having not interact with those of which clearly show no interest in understanding him.

Note how Rei is just as worried about looking lonely as he is with actually being lonely. Perhaps this is his crippling self doubt and insecurity speaking. Of course, Rei is forced to retreat to a nearby bush in order to escape from the eyes of his teacher and classmates. Although the bush is damp and dirty, Rei feels at ease with the isolation and takes interest in the workings of the insects around him as to signify how he is indeed capable of showing emotion but only in circumstances where he can not be hurt or hurt others.

Of course, Rei is still very much enamored with shogi as a child. This segment places particular emphasis on how his pursuit of shogi, at least as a child, is his way of ‘earning’ love and validation from his foster father as if familial love did not exist.

Shogi also offers the boy the only opportunity he has to interact with someone else just as interested with something as he is. Shogi presents the boy with the ‘magic ticket’ to meaningfully engaging with others. Shogi presents the boy with the rawest expression of emotion with the battle between the two players in the shogi match. Shogi both isolates the boy yet presents him the opportunity to quench his thirst for human interaction.    

When he is called back to the bus, the teacher asks him where his seat buddy is only for Rei to reply that there was never one to begin with. Of course, in typical Rei fashion, the child is painfully aware of his situation and the loneliness of his response. A child stuck in his own head would no doubt think deeply of his own place in the world yet still lacks the proper experience and perspective to truly understand his emotions. The later aspect, however, does not come to Rei and this cycle of self reflection no doubt warped the boy’s perspective of himself; catalyzing a history of depression and destructive disregard for his own person. Rei is a person who feels he needs to offer up his entire being in order to ever gain the love of others. A person who believes that love can not be unconditional. 

Rei then snaps back to reality to a match he and the boys are reviewing. Now older, Rei has gained some perspective and has found out that his struggle towards the future is one shared by many. His devotion to shogi is one that his colleagues share with him. Nothing has gotten easier. There is no discernable destination. If you fail, you perish. However, Rei is no longer sitting alone on his journey. The only choice is to continue fighting. 

In other news, Season 2 is slated for October and its HINA TIME BAAABYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!

୧‧⁺̣˚̣̣*̣̩⋆̩·̩̩୨3gatsu no lion୧·̩̩⋆̩*̣̩˚̣̣⁺̣‧୨