Hanging on a fine line between reality and imitation
It's been awhile since the last time I watched anime. Recently, I re-watched one of my favourite anime which was aired this earlier 2012. The reason I loved this anime was the philosophy lying deep within the anime. I never get bored watching it the second time, since what I had was time during holiday. Well, this is the first time for me writing an anime review. Please enjoy!
Back when Bakemonogatari aried in 2009, it immediately gained widespread attention due to its rich context, fun characters, interesting dialogues and unique animations. Few years later, its sequel, Nisemonogatari aired, and of cause, it is compared to its predecessor. Is it better then Bakemonogatari? Or is it worse? Should they even be compared? We shall see what I have to say about the matter.
Before I start though, I would like the point out the difference between the meaning between “Bakemonogatari” and “Nisemonogatari” since I might be touching more on this subject later on. The latter part of the phrases, “monogatari” means “tales”. It can then be easily seen that Bakemonogatari is a portmanteau of bakemono (monster) and monogatari (tales), and Nisemonogatari is a portmanteau of nisemono (a fake, imitation) and monogatari (tales).
In that respect, some argued that Nisemonogatari had gone completely off track and doesn’t even feel like Bakemonogatari. The sole reason is because even though they are related, they dealt with different aspects of the show. Bakemonogatari focuses more literally on “getting possessed by monsters” part of the series and while Nisemonogatari dealt with the “inner monsters trapped in human body” part slightly too, it is more focused on the internal concept between real and fake, and the quality between the two. Needless to say, Nisemonogatari will have monster-less plotlines and of cause, less actions.
Aforementioned, the anime may feel different from Bakemongatari, it deals more with the premise of real and fake, and how fake can be more real due to it’s never-ending imitation in becoming real. Ultimately, I don’t think Bakemonogatari and Nisemonogatari should be not be compared so strictly, both are worlds apart in terms of concept, and in my opinion, I believe it is good to have the same mindset for any future monogatari anime adaptions.
The concept for Nisemonogatari is quite philosophical, and suits the show quite well. The ending left a big question mark to me though, as the main character, Koyomi found his girl friend, Senjougahara Hitagi with short hair on a sandy beach...Well, it’s probably a set-up for an obvious 3rd season.
Overall, Nisemonogatari is one of the best shows this season. It might had some controversial problems (suggestive ecchi scene between Koyomi and his sisters), but it is definitely worth watching it. Nisemonogatari had provided reasons and reasons why you SHOULD check it out. It has very interesting and fun dialogues, it has graphics which are literally sex to the eyes, and most of all, it generates enjoyment.
The fundamental point that this series is trying to tell us is the subject of real and fake. Truths and lies. When we are born, all of us have been fed with assumptions, ‘truths’ and the likes. So what constitutes real and fake depends on our belief, principle and conviction that we hold. Some beliefs that we do not hold strongly on to are easily swayed and changed. And to quote a line from Lenin, “A lie told often enough becomes the truth”. What we have been thought to believe the truth it has been all the while suddenly turns into a fake and a lie, can we humans accept the real truth? After all, the truth hurts, right? There will always be some truth in the lies and there are always some fakes in the truth. So far everything you have seen here, are they truths, lies or half-truths?
I guess when we are possessed by an unexplained supernatural, it is natural for us to fear in it simply we do not fully understand the reason behind it all. People always fear of the unknown. Modern science and medicine sometimes do not really explain or give scientific evidence and proof, we turn to priests, bomohs and local shamans in hopes of seeking a cure. In that desperate of need, this is when we usually become vulnerable and those with bad intentions seek to take advantage of this situation. Even if ywe don’t believe in supernatural stuffs, at least please respect them. There are lots of unexplained things in this world. Tales and stuffs that you might have heard from your grandmother trying to scare the shit out of your pants when you were young. Eventually it’s really up to you whether you want to believe it or not. Hey, between, if you really hate someone, there’s this website that appear only at midnight and when you type in the name of the person you hate most, you can send him/her to hell. Sounds too good to be true? Am I telling the truth or lying through my teeth? Check it out yourself…LOL...
