I’m quite bemused with Fumetsu no Anata e, I must admit. I can’t quite get a handle on it. It’s become more and more unorthodox as it’s progressed, for starters. The story is a tangle of odd twists and turns, often executed in rather clumsy, Detroit muscle car rather than Evo X fashion. Yet somehow I’m still connected to it. I would even say both on the intellectual and emotional level, though undeniably the pull is stronger with the former than the latter.
For all that, the battle between Fushi and the Nokkers has been a constant, the the point where it runs the risk of repetitiveness. The revelations in last week’s episode do put a twist on that, though. I don’t really see anything to change the fundamental dynamic that they’re the big bad of the series – it’s interesting that they believe they’re doing humanity a favor, but that doesn’t mesh with any reasonably orthodox view of existence as a human being. Fushi is really something of a tragic figure, caught up in this eternal struggle his conscience won’t let him avoid. But now, at last, he’s starting to evolve.
One might ask “why did it take so long for that to happen?”, and I don’t think it’s unreasonable to do so. By human standards I think Fushi has been passive for far too long about questioning his own limitations. But that said, one has to remember that Fushi isn’t human. Just exactly what he is may be a sort of philosophical question, but in practical terms it wouldn’t be far off to call him an alien. His mind may be strongly influenced by whatever form he’s taking, but Fushi doesn’t become that person (or creature) even if their residual presence influences him.
At this point the Nokkers are toying with him through the one in Kahaku’s arm, though whether that Nokker is a willing accomplice isn’t yet clear. They lure him into battle and in the process of defeating them he loses five of his retinue – including Gugu, who Bon is right to point out is a huge loss in combat terms (not to mention emotional). It’s interesting that Bon can see and hear the souls Fushi has forgotten (apparently), though despite a slip-up this is yet another secret he chooses to keep from Fushi.
The horse thing is another one of those left-field developments Fumetsu seems to specialize in. A creature made from part of Fushi’s body by the Man in Black, and one which takes it upon its equine self to act as Fushi’s common sense organ. Eventually Fushi stumbles into the information that he’s capable of doing a lot more than he realized, and the Creator promptly gives him a lesson in how to access this new side of his powers. I guess MiB isn’t the sort for volunteering information unsolicited, but he could have told Fushi all this anytime (just like he could have given him the wonder horse any time, for that matter).
As things stand, the battle is headed for Renril – the “largest city on the continent” according to Baron Spring Roll. This time the arm-Nokker gives Fushi a year’s warning, and Bon talks him into using that time to develop his newfound creation powers to the point where they can be of some use in Renril. What’s in this for the Nokkers, one wonders – is it simply a matter of luring Fushi into battle after battle with the aim of finally taking him out? One imagines the “death” of their physical forms isn’t much a deterrent to them, given the nature of their existence.
