If last week’s magic word was “why”, this week it seems to be “family”.
If this week’s episode of Gangsta wasn’t quite as transcendent as its very best have been, it was still awfully good. There are so many layers to this story that it’s hard not to be acutely aware of just how little time we have left – just four episodes. This is the frustration of being an anime fan who loves manga adaptations, and while it’s not a new thing by any means (Kare Kano on line two) it has gotten even worse with the predominance of the one-cour series in recent years. C’est la vie – it’s not as if the manga is finished in any case.
One of the many rare abilities this series possesses is that it can make the scope of the story bigger even as it’s getting more intimate, and that’s very much the case here. Even as we dig deeper into Alex’ past than we ever have before, what we see reveals the nature of the larger story from a new perspective. Alex has been the most passive among the main cast so far, very much a passenger on this ride, but she has a crucial role to play – not just as a catalyst for Nic and Worick’s character arcs, but as an outsider’s perspective on the brutal reality that is Ergastulum.
With Worick and Nic, the duality of perception is between the past and the present, which (especially with the way they’re presented in the anime) exist side-by-side. For Alex, it’s a question of fantasy and reality – though her hallucinations are a product of her past to be sure. And that past is encroaching on her now, as she weans herself off the drugs her pimp gave her and her memories start to trickle back. Everything before Barry might be “a blur”, but her hindsight is startling to clear – and what it most crucially reveals seems to be a younger brother left behind at East Gate.
Is this man that long-lost brother? It seems very likely, though it’s too early to say if that’s why he’s come to Ergastulum (for the first time, if his own words are any judge). What can be said for sure is that anti-twilight terrorism is taking hold in Ergastulum, and that no tag is safe – which is why the local twilight population has been invited to a “soiree” at Bastard, the club apparently owned by the Cristiano family. Nic and Worick are seemingly there to deal with the vigilante attacks they assume will be coming – though Worick has his own reasons for inviting Ally to the party.
This is a complicated situation, but then pretty much everything in Gangsta is complicated. The Cristianos are seemingly the poorest of the four families, their area of control being the flow of Celebrer and their leader a little girl, and they rely on those like Monroe and the Paulklee Guild (and the Benri-ya) to protect them. There’s a slightly surreal feeling to the party scenes, an uncomfortable mix of broad ecchi humor and creeping unease, and it culminates with Alex singing a torch song with full jazz trio backup. Noto Mamiko is certainly a respectable singer, but for me this sequence falls a bit flat until the scenes of Alex’ brother start to flash across the screen, reminding us of just what a lost traveler Ally is.
Again, for me the concept of family is crucial to all this. The literal families we see here are all dysfunctional and broken, while Ergastulum as a whole maintains a fragile peace thanks to the iron fists of a very different sort of families. And what maintains the characters’ sanity and human dignity is the surrogate family relationships they’ve built to replace the families they’re missing – Nic and Worick’s is obvious, and they’re certainly trying to provide that to Alex. But it extends to the likes of Nina and Constance, and we’ve already seen how people like Daniel Monroe, Captain Chad and even Big Mama (ironically named) Georgina developed a sort of parental relationship with the young Handymen.
Surrogate families are no easier – or less complicated – than “real” ones. And what I’m seeing now is that the larger story of Gangsta is really that of the Twilights themselves. Call them humanity’s child, or black-sheep cousin, or younger sibling – they’re our responsibility. And the fate of their race is at the heart of what’s happening here – there are those in Ergastulum trying to take responsibility for what we’ve done and offer them a chance to live their short lives with some dignity, while others view them purely with hatred and wish to wipe them out. It would be too simple to say that Worick and Nic’s complex bond is symbolic of that between humans and twilights in its entirety, but there’s a measure of resonance in the idea – the opposite of love isn’t hate, it’s indifference. And in a family, love and hate can very often exist uncomfortably side by side.
Earthling Zing
August 24, 2015 at 1:24 pmVery nice review, I especially liked that last paragraph. I enjoyed the singing scene, but I do agree that it wasn't as poignant as it could have been until it showed glimpses of the singer's past. The series seems like its pretty popular, what are the chances of it getting a second season? It feels like the main story is only just getting started!
admin
August 24, 2015 at 8:05 pmThe manga does OK for a seinen, but the anime doesn't seem as if it's ticketed to sell more than 2K or so. If Gangsta has any hope of being more than another Manglobe one cour wonder, I would imagine it's finding some success in the West. Seems like a natural fit for Adult Swim.
gilraen_tinuviel
August 24, 2015 at 9:47 pmWe could observe some examples of a juvenile and, frankly, little tasteless humour of the manga in this episode. You can't make a random boob grab and leering jokes at expense of the abused, sexually and otherwise, woman and expect of me to find it funny. Pshhh. And the anime has handled it better for such a long time. Such a waste!
I like anime's Worick little more too, because in the manga he's sometimes casually sexist too much (it's one of the reason I can't ship him with Alex). Here he's more sensitive.
I'm little sad there were cut couple other bonding scenes between Nicolas and Alex but of course they aren't important to the plot, so I guess they have to be cut. But due to the all alternations I guess it's something isn't visible in the anime so much but Alex has been fascinated with Nicolas from the start. There was a point, when she has started to know him better, where she was afraid of him too. But form the start it was a deep fascination. And him too, he tried to keep the distance, because of his past with the mysterious Veronica, but he couldn't help to starting care too. Ahem, sorry I'm taking of these shipping goggles now.
But I love the singing scene, it was very soothing but melancholic at the same time. Alex was so beautiful and relaxed. Yet there was a sharp contrast between a song's message and what was happening at the outside of the club.
Blueicegal ♥
August 24, 2015 at 10:31 pmi haven't read the manga but i sensed something between nicolas and alex even though the show seems to be pushing alex and worwick more. when i told my brother he didn't see it at all.. but just the smallest moments when nicolas watches over her, like when he held her hand steady as she opened the pill bottle, shows a lot for him. i don't know whats going to happen but i hope they end up together. i ship them so hard! nobody seems to be a fan of the singing scene but i was really moved by it. i personally thought it was really beautiful. just seeing her shine like that, and the lyrics.