Nazo no Kanojo X - 04 - Lost in Anime

I guess the three eps leading up to this were the normal part of MGX, because this week things got really weird.

I have another twist on my theory regarding the symbolism of the whole drool thing, but I’ll get to that in a minute as I think enough stuff went down that it bears some recap. Firstly, we have the fantasy elements of the story really grabbing MGX by the throat and not let go. It’s not as if the stuff Urabe was doing in the first three episodes was literally possible, but it was easier for me to swallow it (pun intended) or purely symbolic terms when it was just that little bit vague. I still think her magic loogies are primarily a metaphorical device rather than a plot device, but when you see what happened to Oka it forces you to confront them on both levels.

So as to that, we have Urabe falling and skinning her knee while running relays during PE, which is an interesting scene in itself because it shows Urabe to have a competitive streak. That surprises me a little as it seems that she’d be immune from such “normal” societal pressures but clearly, she was running to win – and got seriously pissed off when she tripped (which I got the feeling was intentional on the part of the twintails girl). The real action comes when Oka takes her to the nurse’s office (can there be a more action-packed place than a nurse’s office in a Japanese high school?) and bandages her knee, then shares an indirect kiss via a juice bottle – which immediately causes an identical cut to appear on her knee. Just to confirm, Urabe cuts her palm with an X-Acto knife and feeds Oka her drool, with similarly stigmatic results (and if there was any doubt, inadvertently causes the same to happen to Tsubaki later).

Now that happened – there’s just no denying it – which strongly implies that there really is something magical and special about Urabe’s drool (did I miss earlier close-ups of the UFO strap on Urabe’s purse?). Is this a sci-fi, after all – did we nudge closer to the giant robot scenario Ueshiba talked about? Except, oddly enough, Oka is able to cause a similar effect in Urabe, only this time it’s more in line with the mood-related “magic” of earlier eps and not a physical change. I can’t really say where this is going to end up in terms of the plot itself, but I still feel as if the author is making a larger point. As I mentioned last week it seems to me that the drool represents Urabe’s femininity, representing the purely physical side of their relationship and the impact it has on Tsubaki. But this week’s ep makes me think it’s also symbolic of how a girl’s moods have a powerful impact on the boy she’s with – how those moods act as a potent influence on his daily life, and also how females are much more in touch with their emotional state than males. While teenaged guys go about trying to more or less act tough and have little grasp on what they’re really feeling, with girls these feelings are so real that they’re an actual physical, tangible force.

That’s a lot of speculating, but that’s the fun part of this gig. And one could certainly speculate plenty on the weird nature of the relationship between Oka and Urabe. Oka is an odd sort of girl to begin with, and the interest she takes in Urable is odd too – though more understandable once she reveals that she “accidentally” saw Urabe feed Tsubaki her drool. She’s fascinated by this but given that she’s already with Ueno, reasons that it would be easier to get close to Urabe than Tsubaki. Thus begins a very strange “courtship” – as Oka tries to win Urabe as a friend through very conventional romantic means – making her lunches, feeding her by hand, and ultimately sharing drool with her. Urabe is pretty anti-social as we know, quite insistent that Tsubaki is the only “friend” she needs, but Oka is equally stubborn in pushing forward, and it certainly shakes Urabe a bit to discover she has the same bond with Oka that she does with Tsubaki. As with so much else here I’m not sure exactly what this means, and also just exactly what Oka is seeking in this relationship. Her interest in Ueno seems legitimate if a bit detached, her interest in Urabe a bit more than simply intellectual curiosity and friendliness.

Meanwhile I’m starting to get just the slightest bit impatient with Tsubaki and Urabe’s relationship. Oka sheds some light on this herself by conjuring up her feelings when she and Ueno kissed for the first time as she feeds Urabe her drool, and when Urabe declares she’s never felt anything like it Oka correctly deduces that Urabe has never kissed Tsubaki. Not only has Urabe never been to first base, in fact, she’s never heard of it. Of course she never does anything in a remotely normal way, so there’s no reason to suspect that a romantic relationship should be any different and Tsubaki knows this going in. Still, he’s endearing because he’s as normal as she is weird, and his heartfelt desire for the joys of a “normal” relationship and her perverse refusal to participate in one seem like an irresistible force and an immovable object that must meet – maybe as soon as next week, “A Mysterious First Date”.

16 comments

jebnemo

April 29, 2012 at 5:37 am

Enzo: As I mentioned last week it seems to me that the drool represents Oka’s femininity.. (I think you mean Urabe here).

You did miss the UFO on her bag, which matches the one on her pen.

In a way, you might say that Oka has begun to tame the savage Urabe. Being a girl, she can interact with Urabe in ways that Tsubaki can't. But Urabe's relationships with both do make her come to various realizations.

SlushiZ

April 29, 2012 at 6:15 am

ahah yes Enzo there have been a bunch of UFO accessory close ups, her UFO bag strap matches the one on her clicky pen and the combination of these is why I originally thought they were clearly hinting she was an alien back in ep1. Of course that could all be symbolic of 'girls come from Venus' and how they are incomprehensible to men like the giant robot metaphor.

admin

April 29, 2012 at 7:00 am

I did mean Urabe, thanks.

I did notice the pen, but somehow it didn't seem quite as "in your face" as the bag strap! I'm still going for symbolic, but who knows…

SQA

April 29, 2012 at 7:16 am

I don't think we'll ever get an actual answer. Magical Realism probably just works better in this regard.

Myssa Rei

April 29, 2012 at 7:33 am

While most of Nazo no Kanojo X is still grounded in real life, the manga makes it a point to focus on the fact that Urabe's "condition" can not be looked at in any way as normal. There's nothing symbolic about it, at all.

One of the most popular theories in fact is that Urabe seems to be a low-level empath. And she's NOT the only one in the story with the ability either, as there are one or two others who are implied to have the same ability (with accompanying 'nosebleed' to show that the person in question is "compatible").

admin

April 29, 2012 at 8:01 am

I haven't read the manga, obviously (and thus appreciate great care being taken to avoid spoilers) but, generally speaking, Urabe having some sort of abnormal ability or condition doesn't in any way imply that said condition might not also be symbolic. Giant robots certainly aren't normal, but they're usually pretty damn symbolic!

piratedan

April 29, 2012 at 8:33 am

this is one sweet series that adheres to its own ideas on what is "normal". Love how this is still incredibly chaste and gives full attention to how love and friendship make you feel in your own universe and the perverse happiness that is finding true acceptance and friendship with other people. Absolutely blown away on how they are keeping the spirit of the manga and adding their own touches to the story to smooth out the storytelling. TY Enzo for blogging this series and promoting its awesomeness in the community.

admin

April 29, 2012 at 5:59 pm

That's a little more specific in terms of manga info than I'd prefer, TBH. I'm going to go ahead and delete the content for the benefit if unspoiled viewers.

belatkuro

April 29, 2012 at 6:40 pm

I…wait, what?
You know what, fine. I know I havent said anything spoilerish and I even commented on Oka's seiyuu Hirohashi Ryou and about the preview. It's your blog and you still have the final say. I just think you filter out too much in the comments. I can see why Karmafan said he stopped commenting here on a post in RC.

admin

April 29, 2012 at 7:41 pm

But I don't want to know how slow or fast the romance side develops, and I don't want to know whether there's an explanation for Urabe's powers or not – and you answered both those questions in your comment. Why shouldn't anime readers have the privilege of finding those things out for themselves rather than being told?

Fencedude

April 30, 2012 at 5:59 am

Anyone else wonder if a certain something else of Urabe and Oka's may have come into alignment, other than just when they get hungry?

jebnemo

April 30, 2012 at 11:05 pm

Do you mean the urge to go shopping?

dv

May 3, 2012 at 11:12 am

Enzo: I won't say she was doing her best in the run. She was just doing what she was told to do by the teacher. run a race.

admin

May 3, 2012 at 4:33 pm

Heh, I don't think so. She had a very determined look on her face, especially after the trip. I think she has a competitive streak.

dv

May 3, 2012 at 4:55 pm

okay i just marathon the manga to around 50. she does not have a competitive streak.
Hope you don't consider this to be a spoiler… it is nothing key as far as i can tell. just one of her quirks

Anonymous

May 5, 2012 at 6:58 am

that Urabe not ask her competitive streak that XD — I beat them imai Hayakawa and at their own game XD..and that not using their full potential, perhaps you did not see race against Yajima?

Nazo no Kanojo X – 04

Guardian Enzo

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dv

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Lost in Anime

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