This arc (generally known as “Picture Perfect”) is proving one of the longest in Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun. But that’s not incongruous, because it’s also one of the weightiest. It stares down the darkness at the heart of this premise pretty much head-on. And that’s a dark place indeed. Both figures at the center of this arc are tragic ones, but Kou and Nene are too in their own way (though of the two only he grasps that fact).
Kou pairing off with Sousuke and Nene with Amane is the logical direction for this to have headed. I go back and forth over whether Amane understands more than he’s letting on, which is a testament to Ogata Megumi’s performance. With Mitsuba there’s no doubt of course. He and Hanako are both living in a wish-fulfillment fantasy but only Mitsuba is seemingly aware of that fact. As such Hanako and Nene are free to attend their meteor shower viewing party under the guise of normalcy, and she finds it all too easy to get caught up in it.
This is the more idyllic of the two scenarios, even with Tsukasa lurking ominously in the background. Amane focuses everyone’s telescopes and then heads for the rooftop of the school roof, where Nene finds him gazing up at Scorpio. Antares, he tells her, is actually a pair star but so bright you can’t see its twin without a telescope. It’s also a red supergiant, meaning it’s nearing the end of its life (and may already be dead by the time its light has traveled 600 [actually 550] years to Earth). As a twin himself, especially one with his family history in the “real” world, it’s hard not to project self-awareness onto Amane’s comments.
This Amane is pure possibility. He’s happy, popular, an all-around shining kid in the flush of adolescence. The sadness one feels watching these two is of the wistful variety. It stands in stark contrast to Mitsuba and Kou, which is a far more visceral sort of pain. Amane-kun asks Nene about this “Hanako” guy, and she confesses – the likes “him”. But she does it while clasping Amane’s hand, and the implication is unmistakable. Nene is an optimistic sort, and manages to convince herself that she can guide this story – and this boy – to a happy ending. But she has no real idea how.
Everything is a contrast with Sousuke and Kou. Mitsuba has always been less settled as an apparition than Hanako, who always acts as if he’s very much in control. Sousuke is very close to being a “hungry ghost”, one of the most terrifying figures in Buddhist mythology. He’s acutely aware of what he’s missing, and he misses it all the time. His life as a living boy wasn’t a happy one, but the Mitsuba he is now resents that tortured soul for the connections he had, however painful they were. What he hungers for is life, with all its emotional entanglements. And he wished this world into existence at Tsukasa’s prodding (this time we literally did go through the looking glass) to grasp at it.
In contrast to Nene, Kou has a direct role in Mitsuba’s life as a human, and blames himself for how things ended up. And because Mitsuba’s frustration and anger is so great that he lashes out at Kou, Kou has no choice but to fight back. What Mitsuba wants is for Kou to throw it all away and join him in this fantasy that Shijima-san created, to be the friend he always needed. What Sousuke can’t seem to grasp is that Kou is his friend in that real world, irrespective of what Sosuuke is. Kou can’t give Sousuke what he really wants, but he can take it away.
There’s one more great difference in these two pairings. Unlike Nene, Kou has a very clear idea of what he can do for Mitsuba. He can die so that he can finally understand his friend, and join him in the quest to cross the final river again. I think both of them know it’s impossible but at least that way Mitsuba won’t be alone. Would Mitsuba wish for that? I guess that’s the ultimate test of whether he really is a hungry ghost or not. But either way, it’s something I truly believe Kou would do. Again I say, in many ways Kou is the heart of Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun, and its conscience too.
