Escapism, Reality, and the Kagerou Project

…and even if the nut up there in that vid is a freaking crappy being, it’s got a point about the kids that it’s messing with.

Hey there, nutshellcrackers. It’s me, The Overlord Bear.

KagePro song covers aside, it’s been a long while since my previous post about the Kagerou Project, I think. It’s a series that I’ll definitely remember a lot, still. It’s not perfect, but I think that I’ve learned a lot of good things from it.

Now, if you don’t want to be spoiled about it, then here’s me saying that there will be spoilers.

Now, about what I want to talk about today…

I was writing Tagalog translyrics for Outer Science, and of course, I thought about that song’s themes and meanings while I did that. Aside from it being the gloating of a villain who has been manipulating the Mekakushi Dan and their loved ones for its own selfish ends, it got me thinking about a bunch of things that I’ve thought before, plus things that I’ve recently realized.

One, the control issues of the medusae in the series. Not control over their snake powers, but control over what happens in their lives. They all had good intentions, yes. Azami, wishing for an eternally happy life that’s undisturbed by the rest of humanity’s hatred, created the seemingly heavenly but actually imperfect Heat-Haze Daze. Shion, fearing that hatred that tore her family apart, kept Mary sheltered. And Mary, wanting to be with her friends forever, reset time again and again with the help of the Wide-Awake Snake and the Heat-Haze Daze (but the Wide-Awake Snake’s assistance back then is something that she doesn’t remember much during MCA, it seems).

But hey, trouble is inevitable…

…Life isn’t as easy as it seems…

…and no matter how much we deny it, we’re not perfect.

Which brings me to the another point: escapism. We humans do that when we face trouble in order to cope with it, but hey, too much of it is bad. We’ll all have to face the bad parts of reality eventually, all while looking for the truly and certainly existing good parts of reality. KagePro reminded me a lot about how my younger self and a bunch of youths from today’s generation enjoy reading fiction for the sake of escaping the “totally cruel” place we call reality.

Even if it feels enjoyable to watch this idiot learning a lesson, I don’t think that this instantly leads to the Mekakushi Dan’s Happily Ever After.

Despite Mekakucity Actors, the story of the apparently final loop in the KagePro loops, being filled with lots of flashbacks, wonky animation in the TV version, and an ending that feels unrealistic, it’s still something that I consider freaking worthwhile, especially now. My more childish side enjoys the heroics and the power of friendship after all the chaos in it, while my more mature side enjoys being reminded of the seemingly realistic but actually unrealistic positive developments that I once enjoyed and will make fun of. It’s not for everyone, yes, but it has the power to inspire, indeed. 🙂

Also, the frequent flashbacks in MCA now remind me a lot about Mary and Shintarou’s desire to relive the past. The way they were presented seem to be the sort that would be enjoyed by the viewers who like looking at their past, but as for the viewers who don’t enjoy watching their past as much as the former group does…well, I think I now have a better understanding about why they feel bored and confused by the flashbacks. Thinking about the frequent and long flashbacks in it makes me wanna shout “GROW UP ALREADY!” at the characters now.

And speaking of Mary, Shintarou, and their desire to relive the past, especially the happy moments in it (which is something that we definitely wished for at least once in our lives), I think I understand why Mary gave Recording Eyes to Shintarou better now. But hey, I think that Shintarou is the more mature one between the two of them, because unlike Mary, he chose to move forward while remembering his very very heavy load of memories.

And now, with more emphasis on the “sweet” part, I’d like to call this ending “bittersweet.”

And hey, now that I think about Shintarou, I think that they have more hope, even though they’ll suffer again in the future.

I don’t think it’s obvious, but he’s more badass than he looks here. Remember his eye power? Not being able to forget things isn’t a total disadvantage, and being able to be like this takes a lot, you know.

 

Hmm…I guess MCA’s ending isn’t as unrealistic as I thought…

Now, I don’t know what Jin-sensei will write for the rest of KagePro’s story, and I’m not even sure about whether he’ll really end it or not (though I do hope that he manages to finish writing and presenting the rest of its plot with the best of his and the production crew’s abilities), but the Mekakushi Dan will still experience bad times, and the Mekakushi Dan will still experience good times too. I still like the Kagerou Project, and again, it’s something that has helped me a lot in becoming who I am today. And God, thank you very much for working through Jin-sensei and the KagePro production crew. Please give them the strength to do more freaking awesome things in the future!

And as I end this post, here’s a feels truck, dear nutshellcrackers. 🙂

And now, I patiently wait for the days when the members of the Mekakushi Dan truly grow up…