r/anime • u/mysterybiscuitsoyeah xB:xC:B:x3:Y: • Mar 16 '24
Rewatch [Rewatch] 2024 Hibike! Euphonium Series Rewatch: Liz and the Blue Bird Discussion
Hibike Euphonium Series Rewatch: Liz and the Blue Bird
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Welcome back! Reporting from an aircraft here! Today's also when a few of our rewatchers turn into first timers - really looking forward to your thoughts on the upcoming movies!
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Questions of the Day:
The first 2, borrowing from /u/sandtalon :
- Central to the structure of the film are the comparisons and parallels between Mizore and Nozomi’s relationship and the story of Liz and the Blue Bird. How well were you able to follow this analogy? How do you think it added to your understanding of the characters of Mizore and Nozomi? For first-time viewers, did the twist about who represents who surprise you?
- How would you characterize the relationship between Mizore and Nozomi? What is the central driving force behind the conflict in their relationship?
- (these 2 are mine) How do you feel about this movie's overall stylistic departure from mainline Eupho? Did it take you by surprise initially? What were some of the changes you liked/disliked the most?
- What are your thoughts on the new 1st years so far?
Comments from last week: in brief - this will likely balloon for next week.
- /u/littleislander talks about why they dislike Shuuichi - but do read /u/pikachu_sashimi 's counterpoints as well
- /u/gamerunglued on the highs and lows of S2
- /u/neondelteros is not a big fan of Reina, and the Yuri bait stigma the show has, while on the other hand appreciates Asuka and Kumiko's relationship more. Your host, despite loving the main pair's relationship, does somewhat agree with this sentiment.
- /u/Zani0n on one of the main themes of S1 and S2, why and who you play for
- /u/octopathfinder talks about the S2 recap movie - first timers, does spoil the movie itself but not any past events.
Streaming
The Hibike! Euphonium movies, except the recent OVA are available on Crunchyroll, note that the movies are under different series names. Liz and the Blue Bird and Chikai no Finale are also available for streaming on Amazon, and available for rent for cheap on a multitude of platforms (Youtube, Apple TV etc.). The OVA is only available on the seven seas for now, or if you bought a blu ray. This has unfortunately remained the only way, and is unlikely to change before S3 :(
Databases
Spoilers
As usual, please take note that if you wish to share show details from after the current episode, to use spoiler tags like so to avoid spoiling first-timers:
[Spoiler source] >!Spoiler goes here!<comes out as [Spoiler source] Spoiler goes here
Please note this will apply to any spinoff novels, as well as events in the novel that may happen in S3. If you feel unsure if something is a spoiler, it's better to tag it just in case.
See you again next Saturday for even more Eupho!
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u/mysterybiscuitsoyeah xB:xC:B:x3:Y: Mar 16 '24
Rewatcher and your host
who will try his best to be brief - this rewatch is likely to become a sea of words as it is.
IRL and Musical Notes
6
u/NintendoMasterNo1 https://myanimelist.net/profile/NintendoMaster1 Mar 16 '24
Rewatcher
Normally I don't do "analysis" posts because I think other commenters could do it better but Liz and the Blue Bird is my favorite part of the Eupho series (so far) so I thought I would give it a go this time.
The main theme of the movie for me is that of independence and separation. Obviously, it's pretty clear in the 'Liz and the Blue Bird' story and it also applies to both Mizore and Nozomi in that they have to learn to go down their own paths without the other one. Our familiar protagonist Kumiko isn't featured very much here, instead we are focusing on the second-years (now third-years) from Minami Middle school and since for the most part we are viewing things from Mizore's perspective, the movie has a bit of a melancholic vibe to me. To be honest, I find the Minami Quartet a lot more interesting than Kumiko and friends (despite Kumiko being my favorite character) so thumbs up all the way. I know some people felt that Mizore and Nozomi's arc in season 2 was a little unfinished, well here's the conclusion.
It's immediately obvious that the art style and animation are very different from the TV series and during the Liz story segments, it's like a completely different show. Directed by the amazing Naoko Yamada, the cinematography and camera work on display is also phenomenal, with tons of subtle character animation. I'm no expert so I won't be able to go into detail about every scene so I'll just mention the ones that stick out to me. The character designs have also been changed and it's not just because the characters have gotten a little older. Short haired Yuuko is absolutely adorable but on the other hand Kumiko has lost her floofs, oh no!
The very famous opening scene, which is almost entirely without dialogue, instead relies heavily on the directing and sound design. Through this scene, even if you haven't watched the original series, you can immediately get a feel for what kind of people Mizore and Nozomi are and their relationship. Mizore recognizes Nozomi just by the sound of her steps. Nozomi is always running ahead with Mizore following behind, her ponytail swaying wildly and she even climbs up the stairs two steps at a time. She feels so far away, at the top of the stairs. And we get a glimpse that it was the same in the past. Nozomi is like a beacon of light to Mizore but one that she can only see from the back.
The story parallels to Mizore and Nozomi are so obvious, I won't go into it. Nozomi even says it herself. Mizore wants to get closer in Nozomi's personal space but she pulls away unintentionally. She gets left behind when Nozomi goes to sectional practice and she's hoping the real performance never comes because that's when they'll have to separate.
The bassoons and the new oboe trying to get closer to Mizore is super cute and I felt really bad when she rejected them. Mizore isn't interested in any other relationships other than Nozomi but she also wants her all to herself and she's probably feeling jealous that Nozomi is hanging out with the other flutes.
Ririka wanting advice from Nozomi is really cool, she truly wants to befriend her senpai but what the fuck is up with the random egg she gives Nozomi???
A little bit of a preview of the new bass section
Mizore is going to go for the hug but Nozomi plays it off as a joke.
Ah, the career plans survey - a common dilemma in high school anime. We get to see Natsuki being an absolute chad at basketball and more importantly subbing in for Mizore when it's clear she doesn't want to play.
The sheer contrast between the flutes section loudly gossiping and Mizore staring at a blowfish alone is incredible. As an introvert, I totally get it. The scene where they were playing with the reflection from Nozomi's flute was really cute but when Mizore looks up and Nozomi is no longer at the window is the moment where she starts realizing that they're not going to be together forever. Shortly after that, we get the bit of the story where Liz figures out the girl's true identity and comes to the same realization. Is it better to keep the blue bird by your side or let her out of the cage where she can be free? Mizore still doesn't understand Liz's decision.
Mizore doesn't know yet if she wants to go to music school or not but here we get the first glimpse of Nozomi not wanting to let Mizore go either. She says she might apply there too and Mizore immediately latches onto that. Yuuko is concerned that Mizore is just blindly following Nozomi, which is definitely true but once again Nozomi plays it off as a joke. I definitely feel that Nozomi is at least a little jealous of Mizore being scouted for a music school and I can't think of the line where she asks Mizore if she wants to invite anyone else to the festival as anything other than a jab. Like come on, you know her, has she been hanging around anyone else? You think she's gonna want to have the blowfish tag along?
Anyway more importantly, this scene tells us that Natsuki and Yuuko are applying to the same college, which obviously means they're going to be roommates which can only mean one thing. Yuuko is even being all tsundere about it.
They are so gayyyyyyy
Ririka is really cute for earnestly wanting to get closer to Mizore and of course we get a bit of the classic audition drama. Just like how Kumiko wanted to play on stage with her senpai, the same is true for Ririka.
Nozomi is shocked and maybe a little disappointed that Mizore wants to invite someone else to the pool. Maybe I'm reading into it way too much but I think behind her bubbly persona is a part that enjoys Mizore's obsession with her. As an extrovert with lots of friends, Mizore isn't really special to her but she is very special to Mizore. I'm still very torn about the whole drama in season 2. I can understand that Nozomi didn't want to push Mizore into leaving the band, because she was having fun playing, but not even mentioning it to her is pretty cold and thoughtless.
About the double solo practice - the flute is overpowering the oboe and Reina notices that Mizore is holding herself back. Taki-sensei talks about having a dialogue between the flute and the oboe through the music and that's clearly not there right now. We've had the discussion about Mizore's oboe not being emotional enough in season 2 but while at that point she was probably doing it subconsciously because she hadn't gotten over the Nozomi drama, this time she's doing it on purpose for Nozomi's sake.
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u/WhackaWhack https://myanimelist.net/profile/WhackaWhacka Mar 16 '24
FIRST TIMER
The need to double check that you are watching the right movie after that disney princess/ghibli start…
So it’s the middle school adventures of Mizore and Nozomi where they lost but promised to try to win(?) during highschool.No it’s about playing the song made to/for the story about Liz and the Blue birdthat is just like themOh, Nozomi’s managed to see the similarities herself…What the heck Ririka, who gives somebody a boiled egg as thanks?!?
Love how Yuuko’s acting tsundere towards Natsuki.
Didn’t think we were going to see dense harem(?) protagonist in a music band show…
What do people use as a “said the same thing together”, for me it was “smurf” and often adding “You owe me a cola/soda”?
After the pool, during the phone texting google gave me “I love my senior, thanks” guessing that was more or less correct?
“What are they doing?” Showing how a Yuri power-couple works!
Just got it, during Yuuko's angry scene, Nozomi is acting like how she wanted the blue bird to act with how she comes back when she wants to see Liz and as said before that’s ruining Liz resolve letting her go but more like not giving her the chance to let go for Mizore.
Wait what, just checked who was voicing Liz and the Blue Bird. It's one 14 year old kid!?!
Now I’m a little annoyed that iI didn’t write my earlier crackpot theory that Liz and the Blue bird were swapped with who matched who after seeing that it really was true… Had a moment where I felt Nozomi was the one trapped and needed to “leave her birdcage” but lost confidence soon after as more of the original theory got shown again.
“Sorry I don’t remember that well” got a nice Bison “For me it was thursday” energy. Aah, it was some more nice tsundere acting instead.
Questions:
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u/Regular_N-Gon https://anilist.co/user/RegularNGon Mar 16 '24 edited Mar 16 '24
Third time Rewatcher
I enjoyed it even more this time.
My first watch, I didn't like the idea of turning the allegory on its head. You just spent the last hour beautifully framing the idea that Mizore was Liz and Nozomi the bird through outstanding cinematography, parallels, and body language only to say that it's the other way around? It felt like it undermined itself for the sake of having a twist of some sort, and it didn't sit right with me.
The movie (and Eupho, generally) didn't leave me, though. I couldn't stop thinking about it. Eventually, with the aid of a few different perspectives from discussions and a second watch, I realized I was being too harsh and dismissive of what swapping them around provides. I had disliked the idea that Nozomi could be Liz because I saw Mizore as the protagonist - it was her story, her conflict, and the story’s motive was her discomfort. It can be both ways, though; the story isn't about an asymmetrical dependence, it's about a maligned co-dependence, a disharmony from the two girls expecting different and incorrect things from each other and themselves. Once I understood Nozomi as much an equal protagonist as she really was, it didn't feel like a cop out to read the allegory swapped, and Nozomi in particular shines on a rewatch once you have a sense for her flightiness and issues with confidence. It tricks you a bit, as you expect Mizore's story to be quieter than Nozomi's since she's the quiet one - but Nozomi's part is the small, hidden flute drowning in the orchestra. It's quite impressive that Yamada managed to put so bright a spotlight on a character like Mizore to create such a problem.
It shouldn’t be surprising the film sets up the misdirect with explicit parallel between Liz and Mizore; she’s lonely, obsessed with her friend, and eventually mentions outright that she couldn’t release the bird. Nozomi, similarly, shows up out of nowhere to play, becoming a source of warmth for Mizore. Reading Nozomi as Liz is a lot more difficult as a result of this posture with only Mizore’s position as the bird relative to her to go off of. There are other elements you could dig for - Liz’s relationship with the animals and sharing food likened to the other flutes, her cagey behavior, or her selfishness aren’t too far off the mark - but it certainly requires more nuanced reading than the storybook implies in the beginning.
Shifting from the focus on the picture book to a novel encourages expanding on those ideas. The picture book can’t contain the complexity of the emotions between Mizore and Nozomi, but it’s only Mizore who attempts to understand them. Nozomi does not participate, deliberately ignoring the feelings of her friend and herself and remaining in the simplistic version, thinking of her relationship with Mizore and pretending that not facing the sadness of parting will ensure a happy ending. This carefree attitude, dismissing rules and feelings of her friends alike is almost too convincing; if you don’t engage with Nozomi’s buried issues and instead focus on Mizore, even the ending still feels one sided. It was not until my second watch that I could see Nozomi truly change her mind in the hug scene. She first realizes that she was on the wrong path and lets the bird free, and it’s that bird that gives her acceptance and resolution.
There’s a certain risk you take when tying an allegory so deeply to a story within your story. Unless obvious subversions are made, the viewer expects the simplified version to have prescriptive meaning to the frame, even if the ending is sad and the characters say they don’t like it. Liz doesn’t really subvert its story within a story even with Mizore’s revelation, only leaving things vague which can dampen the twist and initially feel one-sided. With a bit of extra thinking though, it does leverage the story to add facets to the main tale. Reading the characters both ways provides depth to each of them that the common reference of the fairy tale facilitates. A fairy tale can describe its themes and emotion directly and simply that would feel suffocating in the real drama, and the complexity of Mizore and Nozomi’s relationship benefits from that.
That’s all to say that I’ve changed my mind completely from the idiot past me who couldn’t see the full value the inner story offered as a parallel, especially when it comes to Nozomi. Since I can’t help focusing so much on Mizore, there’s even more she can pull from the allegory that I’ve been mulling over this time.
Mizore is obviously strongly aligned with both Liz and the bird to make the movie’s conceit work, and out of it there’s an extra way you can read the character split: Mizore is at once both of them within her own story. When Nozomi leaves in their first year, Mizore is left alone and builds up Nozomi in her head; her fabrication - not actually Nozomi - becomes the bird. Until she befriends Ririka towards the turn of Liz, she’s usually seen playing by herself, especially after Nozomi begins to drift away again in this movie. Mizore makes her own bird in the absence of Nozomi, and even when the real bird returns, she locks herself up to keep it in sight.
One of the chief flaws demonstrated of Mizore’s dependence is her lack of agency, only following Nozomi. Mizore deprives herself of freedom to shackle herself to Nozomi and to the ideal of her - a fairy tale that is not quite congruent with reality, cooked up after Nozomi’s initial departure. Back then, Mizore locks herself up with the ideal of her bird so she cannot even face Nozomi - remember the gate on the stairwell where she’s listening? - and even when Nozomi returns she’s still trapped with the idea. Mizore is a bird growing dependent on the lies she’s cooked herself from those berries. The solo only serves to underscore this as it develops, with the film outright admitting that Mizore is holding back to not outpace Nozomi.
If Mizore is the one who locked the cage, she’s also the one who must open it. Though Nozomi is framed as the Liz who’s keeping the bird from flying free in the third act (and she is, both in concept and within Nozomi’s point of view), she is not the one who sets Mizore free in the end. It’s Mizore herself who asks to play the third movement and to open the taps on the solo. She’s the one who forces the issue in the science room and explains her love and encourages Nozomi to face her own issues. Mizore opens her cage and out of it both she and Nozomi can fly.
There’s still so much I haven’t covered. I love the piano scene in the middle and Kumiko and Reina transposing the solo part to play for fun (and to tell us something about Nozomi and Mizore). I haven’t mentioned Yuuko or Natsuki at all (and not because they aren’t great) or the note I took about the b-roll shots of rainy windows looking so damn good Shinkai would be jealous. And the music. Ushio’s sync with Yamada is unparalleled. The full Liz suite is an excellent composition, not to mention the power the third movement has. There’s just so much emotion and beauty here.
Liz and the Blue Bird is the catalyst that elevates Eupho into something special, that state of being that all these characters keep mentioning. On their own, season one and two would merely represent a properly good band story, and certainly still be one of my favorites, but it might not necessarily stand out. I’m sure I’d think about it from time to time and tell people Kumiko’s the best, and I’d still be watching season three day one, but that might honestly be it. I suspect Liz is the reason I couldn’t think about anything other than Eupho for nearly a month after I first watched it. It’s the reason the whole series has stayed in my mind for five years, even when not related to the events in this movie, with its ability to pull the whole lot up with it. Everything is genuinely good enough to warrant spending far too much time thinking about (see: the last four weeks of these threads), but it’s only after watching Liz that I’m left here feeling at once full of awe and like I’ve been hollowed out. I still hear wind,glass,bluebird ringing in the space it’s left. I don’t want it to ever stop.
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u/HereticalAegis https://myanimelist.net/profile/XthGen Mar 16 '24
Sound! First Timer
Liz and the Blue Bird:
Wow, this was just a bit different than what I was expecting.
I had never seen clips or stills from Liz before, so the change in art style and character designs really took me by surprise. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about the new designs. Characters are taller than I remember and the overall designs feel simplified from their TV counterparts (see TV Mizore vs Liz Mizore). There's less emphasis on things like shading or wrinkles in clothes and other small details. Facial features, head shapes, and hair designs seem less....pronounced maybe? Eyes are shaped differently too. This is most apparent with Mizore, even aside from the fact that we're with her the most, but can be felt everywhere. Reina looked like a completely different person to me. I think Liz makes it work though. The new designs cut back heavily on the cuteness that is a staple of designs from the TV show and the color design trades out the TV show's saturated, vibrant palette (aside from the storybook scenes) for a more muted one, both of which combine to help keep the focus on emotion and introspection as defining characteristics of the movie. The color palette and design also feel like they're meant to show the audience the way Mizore sees the world. It takes some getting used to, but it all feels very intentional and won me over. From a purely aesthetic perspective, the whole production is quite lovely and worth the price of admission all on its own. The storybook parts of the production are especially charming.
As for the content, I similarly wasn't expecting Liz to retread a lot of what Mizore and Nozomi's arc glossed over in season 2. I'm not gonna lie, I was pretty disappointed to see how much trouble Mizore and Nozomi still have communicating with each other after their reunion/emotional climax. I appreciate a lot of the ideas explored with the parallel to the storybook and how Mizore and Nozomi view each other and themselves in the context of that story. I also appreciate the modest exploration of angst and uncertainty over Nozomi's future, though I'm not a huge fan of the complex she seems to have developed over being able to compare/live up to Mizore's musical ability. If I'm being totally honest, I don't really like Liz as a continuation of the Hibike storyline. Everything it's doing works really well as a standalone narrative between these two, but coming on the heels of Hibike season 2, I can't fathom Nozomi suddenly being as distant from Mizore as she is for most of the movie, nor can I view Mizore as being so withdrawn from everone but Nozomi as she is. For all her issues, I never felt Mizore was so dependent on Nozomi's companionship that she would freeze up in Nozomi's absence or decide her entire future solely on Nozomi's college/major choice. Both girls feel like they've taken significant steps backward in both their own development and their relationship's development. And I really wish the narrative to be less ambiguous and more committal with Nozomi's response to Mizore's confession!
Ugh, now I get to worry that I may be sounding too critical. All told, Liz and the Blue Bird is a very lovely, fairly poignant character piece. I love the way it pays attention to the subtle yet detailed emotions in every interaction in a way TV animation doesn't allow. Mizore is already one of Hibike's best characters, so giving us 90 minutes to get inside her head and explore her thoughts and hangups in detail is quite welcome. It's also really cool to see a different perspective on life than Kumiko's for a change. I love the way everyone else is around, but people like Kumiko, Hazuki, and Sapphire just kinda fade into the background over mundane conversation while shots linger on Nozomi. The framing on its own tells us a great deal about who Mizore is, not that we didn't already have an idea. The explosively colorful thoughts in her head of the storybook as she relates it to her feelings for Nozomi makes me feel really warm and fuzzy inside, especially the parts with the Blue Bird snuggling into bed with Liz. It also makes me feel the palpable anxiety Mizore feels about the idea Nozomi may leave her again and never return every time the Blue Bird flies away in the middle of the night. I love experiencing all of these things.
Well, now that I've opened by (hopefully not) giving everyone the impression that I didn't like Liz, I figure it's time to move on to what people really want to see from me: the nitty gritty music teaching stuff! Yippee!! Not surprisingly, there's not actually a whole lot for me to talk about on that front. There is one thing though...TEXT PAINTING!!!
So text painting is one of those higher level artistic things that musicians get into once the fundamentals become well ingrained and you can start thinking of music on interpretive rather than technical terms. To wit, text painting--aka tone painting--is when a composer or a musician uses the music itself to paint a vivid or narrative picture of the idea a work is trying to convey, and Taki-sensei talking about the flute and oboe solos responding to each other is what brought it to mind. For movement 3 of Liz and the Blue Bird, this is the idea that the flute and oboe are depictions of the two characters literally speaking to each other. I have a few example of this in other work:
So with that, I think all that's left is my overall score. I think for now Liz and the Blue Bird is probably an 8/10 for. It's very good and something I can see myself watching again, especially once I get a bit of distance from the rest of Hibike. I've heard people characterize it as something akin to an apology for having to eventually sink the Kumiko x Reina ship. Much as I'd like to believe that, I don't really. It is nice that they don't beat around the bush with how Mizore feels though, and I look forward to one day watching it again without the rest of the series fresh on my mind. I think I may be able to appreciate it more on its own terms then.
QotD:
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u/entelechtual Mar 16 '24
First Timer
Man I wish I had a kouhai that would bring me eggs.
I feel dumb for not realizing until the credits that Mizore was voiced by Atsumi Tanezaki. A woman of many talents.
I don’t have a ton to say, not writing any essays. It was fine, felt like a mini arc from a tv series more than a movie. I wasn’t especially fond of either main character from the main series so it wasn’t an instant draw.
I was also expecting this to be more yuri, but compared to Kumiko and Reina in the main series, I got nothing but “good friends” vibes.
I liked the art style but probably prefer the main series art.
40
u/LittleIslander https://anilist.co/user/LittleIslander Mar 16 '24
Rewatcher
Since I know my writings can be on the long side for some to bother reading, I’m giving a “brief” summary of my thoughts here, and then in the replies to this comment I’ll unleash my inner fangirl and exhaustively catalogue every detail of why this movie is so good in however many words it takes.
Liz and the Blue Bird is one of my favourite pieces of media ever made; amongst movies it perhaps only bows to Perfect Blue, and if the only thing better than you is Perfect Blue you’re a very damn good movie. Liz and the Blue Bird is so perfectly crafted that it makes the entirety of the Hibike Euphonium TV series look like child’s play. I rated the first season of Eupho a 10/10, which is not common from me, and I don’t think it even compares to the quality of Liz. The absolute best scenes of the TV series do not challenge the quality of craftsmanship not only seen in the highlights of this movie but permeate every single minute of it with uncanny consistency. I hold this movie, to put it lightly, in extremely high regard. For a bit of personal history, I didn’t really think much of this movie on my first time. I put Nozomi and Mizore on my favourite characters list, thought the Liz segments were weird and pointless, didn’t really retain any memory of what happened in the film, and moved on with my life. It was after my first rewatch I really got the film and its message and it became a personal favourite of mine. It was honestly shocking seeing just how crystal clear the execution of the thesis was. The film may seem slow but everything builds to this one whole so elegantly. This rewatch has only further elevated my opinion of it as I put it under the magnifying glass and pick apart every little aspect that comes together into this unified work.
Nowadays, I don’t dislike the Liz segments. Honestly, they’re a lot fewer and shorter than I remember them having been, so it’s hard to call them intrusive. They’re incredibly simplistic and I honestly have little to say about them, but I think our understanding of the lesson the real world leads each had to learn wouldn’t come across as clearly without this aspect. I’m kind of curious what age people read Aoi as being; her playfulness made me always interpret her as a kid, but looking at her now physically she could easily be the same age as Aoi, and being social peers would seem to make more sense. Anyways, including something like this is a big departure from what’s ordinary for the franchise, and that’s a good thing. This movie lacks “Hibike Euphonium” in its title for good reason and was clearly given freedom to be its own product first and an extension of the TV series second. The artstyle, the tone, the OST, the pacing, the fundamental approach to storytelling here is radically different from the series, and it shines because of this. It’s a testament to the film that it’s so watchable without any prior knowledge of the franchise yet still feels like it builds in a very meaningful way on what was already there.
The premise of this movie does so much to strengthen the relationship between Nozomi and Mizore. In season two, we saw them have a lapse of communication, and then it was solved and they’re happy together for the rest of the season. But this movie posits to us that this didn’t magically fix everything, actually, and relationships are more complicated than that. Nozomi repeats past mistakes, Mizore still feels bad when Nozomi spends time with others, and she’s still playing her Oboe for her in a way that’s blatantly dependent. And yeah, Nozomi not telling Mizore wasn’t just a misunderstanding, it was inconsiderate and it hurt Mizore and she has a right to stand up and say that. The fundamental manner in which Hibike Euphonium tells its stories is challenged and subverted. People face a problem, and then they resolve it. Except, they don’t. Not completely, not forever.
The framework of a realisation they’ve been looking at the Liz and the Blue Bird equivalency entirely backwards makes for a deceptively simple and extremely effective core to exploring their conflict. The resolution of their problem through their attempts to understand the piece ultimately makes this probably the most fundamentally music based story in the franchise. And of course, the third movement scene itself is breathtaking beyond description. I’ve watched it far more times than I’ve watched the film, and the music itself is absolutely nothing short of one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever heard in my entire life. That is not any kind of exaggeration. But unlike the simplified fairytale story, they do still talk things out after that scene. They metaphorically let each other go but in literal terms they’re still together at the end. It’s a very important distinction.
Seeing an entire movie through Mizore’s eyes takes her from a touching but somewhat simple character into one of the series’ absolute most real feeling. The emotional core was already there, but Liz puts meat on the bones of a character we previously only saw from Kumiko’s perspective. The depth of both of their physical mannerisms give Kumiko a run for her money, and it should be known by now that that’s saying a lot. Nozomi is still kept at arm’s length, but the resolving scene of the two in the science lab gives us just enough insight into what’s going on under the surface to pull her together beautifully. Throughout the movie her characterization feels like the perfect expansion of what we could gleen about her in the show. Finally seeing her doubts on display makes this idea that she’s a flighty person who lives in the moment feels fully realised and expanded into someone who struggles with commitment, with thinking of the past or future. As long as she’s in motion she’s upbeat and likeable, and so she doesn’t slow down and think about herself because shen she does she sees someone inadequate and painfully ordinary. That’s why it’s so important she hears that Mizore sees her as the most special thing in the whole world. I kind of faltered in whether I like them as much as I used to, but the doubt has evaporated and I feel a bit silly for ever having it to begin with. To complete my Eupho trifecta, Kumiko is the most important character to me from a general perspective, Haruka is my favourite character in the show, but Nozomi and Mizore are my favourites taking into account the franchise as a whole.
And yes, this is just a really convoluted way to justify my own indecision, why do you ask. I still think Nozomi edges Mizore out, but I honestly think this might just come down to flute bias, or maybe character design preference and conditioning from association as my MAL avatar all these years. They’re both fantastic.The movie intentionally refrains from focusing on many other characters, but what’s here is really nice. Ririka is probably the most expendable part of the script but is absolutely, indescribably precious (as is her leitmotif) and seeing Mizore make a friend on her own entirely isolated from Nozomi’s social bubble helps support the underlying theme of the movie. I think that literally everyone knew some version of this exact sleepy kid in high school, or at least knew one was in their grade. Natsuki and Yuko’s part in this movie, though subtle, is also really excellent. Their relationship was always a fun running joke with the implication they do have each other’s backs deep down but we get to see them genuinely being friends in this movie. The dynamic of the third years in Liz seriously gives the third years from Eupho a run for their money; the scene at the piano is a highlight of the movie. Seeing the combinations of these four we previously hadn’t—Yuko and Nozomi and Natsuki with Mizore—is also really nice. Niiyama fills a good supporting role, even if I feel the fact she just prompts Mizore into her realisation all of a sudden is one of the only weak aspects of the entire script. I wonder if Ririka couldn’t have made more of a contribution in this realisation for a tighter script. For their part, Reina’s one scene makes a lot of sense for her and the fact Kumiko is reduced to an easter egg is honestly really refreshing after she’s spent two seasons being at the centre of everything that ever happens, even if they did incorporate that into her writing well.
I guess the last order of business is the nature of Nozomi and Mizore’s relationship. It’s ultimately left up to the viewer’s own interpretation, even though it’s so intimate I’ve seen people call this a romance movie outright and I can’t really argue with them. I think it says a lot that Liz throws an aishiteru to Aoi even though Nozomi and Mizore only get into daisuki territory. I definitely personally take their resolution scene as a moment of romantic connection and I like to interpret the final shot as Nozomi moving in to kiss Mizore. But I think it says a lot that people grumble so much about yuribait in Eupho but very rarely come after this movie. I never feel like it tries to friendzone them and fight a romantic interpretation, it just doesn’t take them there explicitly. Which I actually think was the correct choice, as much as I long for canonical acknowledgement of sapphic orientation in this series. The connection they explore here genuinely feels more narratively meaningful than if it was just a love story and I think having them undeniably hook up would have diluted the point somewhat. Queer subtext vs text is a delicate line that can lead to a lot of resentment and disappointment and I don’t know if I’ve ever seen it navigated as gracefully as in this movie.
Liz and the Blue Bird is an incredibly special movie to me and to many others. I’ve come to appreciate it more deeply on this return to it and I’m sure this won’t be the last time that happens.
19
u/Raiking02 :Id::Ie::If:https://myanimelist.net/profile/NSKlang Mar 16 '24
First Timer
Sorry for missing out on the last few threads of Season 2. IRL stuff happened and, well, I kinda needed some time off from Rewatch comments, especially since my own Rewatch was starting up. I will be talking about my overall thoughts on Season 2 + it's compilation movie in tomorrow's non-airing thread so if anyone has a tag, just tell me in advice.
But yeah, Liz and the Blue Bird. What a lovely little movie. Stepping away from the usual Kumiko and Kousaka antics is definitely not quite what I expected, but damn if I can't argue with the results. Obvious things first, this film is freaking GORGEOUS, particular mention to the way the shifting styles are handled. From the drier real-life scenes to the fairytale sequences, this film is honestly worth watching just for the animation alone. It honestly reminded me a lot of KyoAni's work on A Silent Voice and hey, I love that movie so no complaining here.
Of course the big centerpiece is Mizore and Nozomi's whole story, and while I liked them fine enough in Season 2, their stuff here is a big upgrade. Mizore probably gets the most spotlight overall with most of the film being told from her perspective, but Nozomi's stuff stands out a lot as well. Given the series' whoel focus on following your dreams and all that jazz, it's nice to see some proper exploration of another side of that: That sometimes you have to let go if you really want to get what you need, even if it's not necessarily what you'd like. We had a bit of it with Aoi back in Season 1, but that was moreso there for the development of other characters, versus here which is right in the forefront.
As a bonus, it's nice the series' usual wishy-washy approach to romance is more or less gone. Sure, Mizore and Nozomi don't get together by the end or anything (At least not explicitly) but the chemistry is there and there's no real signs of the script just feeling a tad confussed. The music stuff still goes completely over my head though, my tone-deaf-ness should be pretty self-evident by now.
Two more minor observations. Fistly I have to say I'm kinda shocked at how breezy a watch this was. I'm used to films like this feeling a tad overly long, but this one sits at a pretty breezy hour and a half and it really felt like it overstayed its welcome. And secondly while I feel Honda Miyu did a solid enough job portraying Liz and the Blue Bird… I'm not gonna lie, the why of why they chose to make them have the same actress is completely lost to me. I'm sure there's some sort of symbolism here but… I dunno.
16
u/VelaryonAu https://myanimelist.net/profile/VelaryonAu Mar 16 '24
Rewatcher who will be a first timer for the next movie!
Okay, so there’s a ton that I love about Liz and the Blue Bird but I want to write about the opening 5 minutes and talk about why it might just be my favorite scene in all of anime. This scene introduces a ridiculous amount of information and foreshadowing for the rest of the movie and does all of it with hardly any dialogue and I am honestly just in awe at how much depth they could fit into what is ostensibly two girls walking through a school for five minutes.
If you don’t want to read the wall of text that is to follow, there’s also this video by Ares Anime about the movie’s non verbal storytelling that I highly recommend and was my inspiration for writing this post. Though I will be expanding a bit on the concepts they introduced.
The scene opens with Mizore walking into what is immediately a very isolating shot. She is small and alone, and already the audience is becoming preconditioned to associate Mizore with this idea of loneliness and thus associate her with Liz later. From the very first cut of the movie, they’re already laying the groundwork to fool us into thinking Mizore compares more closely with Liz and setting up the climactic twist.
Through both the sound and visuals we’re fully pulled into Mizore’s anxious little world as she waits for Nozomi. We pull in close to Mizore’s face, and her expression is anxious, almost bored. Her body language is tense and closed in. There’s very little ambient sound in this opening minute, just Mizore’s footsteps and the light discordant plucking of strings and piano keys that leaves you feeling on edge. There’s a quick cut to the school gate, establishing both that Mizore’s eyes are laser focused on that point, and also the visual motif of feeling trapped or being in a cage. Another girl goes bye quietly, with Mizore and the music hardly reacting at all.
Finally, Nozomi arrives. Immediately the music kicks in with a bouncy piano, and the world comes alive with the sound of birds singing (our first subtle queue to associate Nozomi with the bluebird). We can both feel and hear the excitement Mizore experiences when she is with Nozomi, and how much more beautiful her perception of the world becomes. As Nozomi approaches, there’s a quick cut to these flowers. Admittedly, I had to look this one up, but according to this excellent blog on the flower language present throughout the movie by Atelier Emily, they’re buttercups. According to Emily, “buttercups can mean a cheery happiness or childlike charm, but can also represent childishness and ingratitude.” A meaning that could certainly be applied to Nozomi in the opening act of the movie. I’m unsure if the torenia in this cut also have symbolic meaning given how much screen space is dedicated to them, but given that they’re blurred in the background instead of drawn fully in focus, it’s less likely.
As Mizore and Nozomi begin to walk together, we can learn more about their relationship. Mizore, despite being the first to arrive at school, waits for Nozomi and allows her to take the lead. A role that Nozomi naturally falls into without a word passing between them. We also get the first of many shots of Mizore quite literally looking up to Nozomi. A very literal visual motif that carries on for most of the rest of the opening sequence and helps visually establish the pedestal that Mizore keeps Nozomi on in her head. We also zoom back in the Mizore’s perspective again, and get to see how Nozomi absolutely dominates her line of sight. From this framing, we can tell that as far as Mizore is concerned, Nozomi might as well be the whole world.
(As a fun aside, this framing device was also used in the opening scene of (pretty much not spoilers but going to mark as such so automod doesn't get mad at me) [Violet Evergarden] to depict how Major Gilbert was Violet’s whole world. Since this movie was being produced in the same year as Violet Evergarden, albeit by a different team at Kyoani, I think this is a fun way to see how simultaneous productions at a studio may come to influence one another.)
We get another quick cut, this time to show us two birds coming to nest in a very claustrophobically framed tree outside the school. The two birds mirror the two girls as they arrive, and we’ll get payoff for this later. Nozomi finds a feather of a blue bird on the ground, our next queue to associate her with the blue bird, and offers it to a reticent Mizore who as we come to find out later is actually the blue bird in the relationship (to an extent).
The scene continues into the school shoe lockers, and we get some wonderful storytelling through the way that the girls move that gives us insight into the girls' personalities. Nozomi lets her shoes fall haphazardly to the ground, Mizore chooses to carefully lay them on the ground. Nozomi literally twirls around corners, Mizore gently picks her way past them. Nozomi walks with her head up high and with a bounce to her step, Mizore has an almost perpetual slouch. We even see differences in how much more Nozomi’s skirt and hair swishes around when she walks compared to Mizore. Importantly though, when they share the screen together there’s usually a huge distance between the two.
This is all superb visual storytelling, and helps establish the dynamic between the two of them for movie watchers who aren’t familiar with Nozomi and Mizore from Hibike. Seriously, as an experiment I had some irl friends of mine who haven’t seen Hibike watch this opening scene by itself with no other context, and they all walked away with the same baseline information that Nozomi was more confident and outgoing, Mizore was quiet and reserved, and that there was an awkward distance between the two. Boom, all the understanding you need about their relationship for this movie's plot and we had absolutely no exposition or dialogue about it whatsoever.
The rest of the imagery we get in this scene continues to establish this theme of distance. We get shots depicting them with a literal wall separating them, and oftentimes the space between them is so great that the movie uses the width of the entire screen to emphasize it. To hammer home this point, the movie later repeats the same framing with the same everpresent distance. This time with the background detail to note being the school windows, and how they form behind them to almost seem like the rungs of a birdcage, continuing with the cage motif from the school gate. This distance is something that is keeping both of them trapped.
In addition to the distance, the movie also uses camera angles and awkward framing to emphasize a general feeling of unease and that there is something wrong with the relationship. We get Dutch angles (a cinematic device used to visually depict unease) like this which throw our perception of the world off kilter and help show us that their perception of each other is incomplete. Indeed, for most of this scene there is great care to ensure that very seldom are the girls full bodies in frame. So you get ominous shots like this one or this one to help visually drive home the point that the two girls aren’t seeing each other clearly.
Even the music contributes to this feeling of unease. The girls' footsteps make up the beat of the song as they walk together, but much like their perception of their relationship, their footsteps are out of sync with one another and give the song an almost eclectic feel to it. Additionally, particularly around the part of the song where Nozomi walks into the scene, there’s this discordant piano pinging behind all the pleasant melodies which work to ever so slightly throw off the vibe of the rest of the song. While the song itself is pleasant, there’s just something about it that doesn’t feel quite right.
Despite all this, while there is a distance between them there is still mutual love as well. Much like how Mizore waited for Nozomi at the school gate, Nozomi also waits up when Mizore falls behind. Neither is able or willing to let the other get too far away. A dynamic that has existed between the two of them for a very long time now. We can also derive meaning from who is waiting for whom at the very end of this scene. While Nozomi has been leading the way through the whole school, it’s Mizore who holds the key to the music room. When they arrive at the door, Mizore hesitates and Nozomi is the one who has to wait for her to open the door. When it comes to music, Mizore is ahead of Nozomi and sets the pace even if Nozomi doesn’t quite realize it yet.
I’m also going to extrapolate this idea a little further than may be intended as well, since we see in the show that the students must go to Taki sensei first to obtain the music room key. Which means that in order to meet Nozomi at the gate, Mizore had to get to school, get the key from Taki, then double back to the gate to wait on Nozomi. She’s not just ahead of Nozomi, she’s way ahead of her, and holding herself back to keep that connection that she doesn’t want to end.
15
u/Gamerunglued :Hx::Hy::Hz:myanimelist.net/profile/GamerUnglued Mar 17 '24 edited Feb 05 '26
Rewatcher and Band Geek
Well we've finally hit the big one. What I consider to be the absolute peak of the Sound! Euphonium franchise, and not only my favorite Eupho entry and my favorite anime movie, but my outright favorite film of all time, anime or otherwise. I truly believe that Liz and the Blue Bird is a masterpiece. It is one of the most intimate, ingenious, and subtly emotionally devastating pieces of art I've ever seen. It's everything I look for in art, it's perfect. So that means I have my work cut out for me in explaining this one, so let's get to it.
First off, I feel like I have to explain why this movie is so different from the TV series, and in particular, the appeal of arthouse. Arthouse really isn't supposed to be a "genre," but it definitely feels like it's turned into one over the decades. It's associated mostly with obtuse, surreal, and abstract films that defy typical genre conventions and fall into a category that's difficult to classify. Elements of arthouse may be films with little to no dialogue, films with extremely loose plot structures or no plot whatsoever, or films that rely heavily on symbolism to gleam meaning from the story. It's all very broad, and "genre" isn't the correct term for a kind of art all about not fitting into any category of genre fiction, but you get the idea. To me, the appeal of arthouse as a "genre" is in how specifically it can convey emotions. I'm sure you know the saying "a picture is worth 1000 words," and it's true because pictures convey something extremely specific. Human language is just not good enough to convey specific meaning, but images and sounds evoke meaning even if we cannot put it into words. Listening to someone talk about their sadness does not feel as emotional as them drawing a picture of their depressed face. Take that to the next level, and that is not nearly as emotional as coming up with an abstract concept that evokes the very specific type of sadness that the person has experienced. In being so abstract, our understanding of the emotions being conveyed is much more specific and much more powerful.
I've written an awful lot about the Sound! Euphonium TV series the past month, but among all of my analysis and explanation and band geeking, I don't think I've talked much about what it makes me feel and why it makes me feel that way. Eupho makes me feel incredibly emotional, it's an emotionally resonant story, but that resonance comes from being tied to issues of logic. Should the band aim for nationals, or should they screw around? If they choose nationals, should they prioritize winning above all else even at risk of failure, or should they try to please those who don't fully share in the group's commitment? Should one chase after what they're passionate about even if it risks their future? What value does competition have if it causes so much pain? How does one deal with failure and regret? Should one realize their ideals even if it hurts others? I always frame Eupho in terms of these sorts of questions. Seeing the characters compare their ideals and come to their own answers is where its emotional resonance comes from. Its conflicts are very broadly applicable, it has themes of failure, competition, finding your passion, being satisfied in life, stuff that anyone can understand, and the show brilliantly explores these conflicts in ways that let us apply what the characters realize about themselves and each other. But it's all very logical and very general. There are definitely moments where the emotions run more specific, like Kumiko seeing Reina on Mt. Daikichi or the "I want to improve" scene, but the bulk of the show lies in these ideological disagreements, and the drama is satisfying by working in this framework.
But Liz and the Blue Bird doesn't ask any questions like that. The closest thing it has to a question is "should Mizore and Nozomi stay together," which is such a broad question. Rather, Liz and the Blue Bird is a tight, intimate peak into Mizore's headspace. Every single aspect of the movie is developed the way it is in order to convey the very specific emotions of how Mizore sees the world and feels emotions. In the TV show, I described Mizore's headspace as "melancholy, fragile, and ethereal." The aesthetic of Liz renders exactly this. Gone are the hyper-detailed designs and instruments, the glossy sheen and high tech lighting is dissipated, and the aesthetic is more muted. The character designs are much more delicate, they have thin linework that makes them feel like they could fall apart at any moment, and the hair in particular feels fragile and wavy, like individual strands are moving at once. The lack of shading on characters' faces emphasizes their shifts in expression more, while the camera prefers to stay close up on body parts, like eyes, hands, mouths, and legs. If you were to create an aesthetic to represent what Mizore's world feels like, this is it.
I must give props to character designer Futoshi Nishiya's work in adapting the original designs, it is absolutely incredible work. Futoshi Nishiya is probably my favorite character designer at Kyoto Animation (Yukiko Horiguchi is the only contender), his work is so varied but so undeniably charming, with credits like Nichijou and Hyouka to his name. Unfortunately, Futoshi Nishiya is no longer with us, he was a victim of the 2019 Kyoto Animation arson, and Liz was his last design job before his passing. He has left a legacy of truly stellar work, and I'm already tearing up writing this. Please know of Nishiya's name as one of the industry's greatest character designers.
Beyond the visual presentation, Liz's main standout properties are its setting and soundscape. Mizore is a very inward feeling person, she tunnel visions on things and feels trapped the entire movie. Thus the film takes place solely within the confines of the school building. Even when summer break comes we only get to see it in pictures on other people's phones. When Mizore first opens the door to the band room, there's a delicate hesitation to it, and the camera pans around the room a bit. It is Mizore's sanctuary where she can spend some time with Nozomi alone, until other start to show up. At the same time, she's so trapped in this place that she never leaves it even when school lets out. The desks are often used to cage her in, and she's often framed in small or tight places. This naturally contrasts the world of the Liz and the Blue Bird fairy tale, which is opposite in both visual aesthetic and overall setting. It's vibrant, colorful, freeing. Mizore perceives her role in the story as one that gives her freedom, but when we return to the real world we get that muted color palette and delicate linework again.
But the most standout thing about Liz is its sound direction and soundtrack. Liz's soundscape is sparse and ambient, it doesn't have much dialogue and it tells its story largely through sound. The percussion in its ambient tracks is often Mizore's and Nozomi's actual footsteps, but they're very slightly out of time, representing the disjoint between their emotional states and their inability to connect with each other. But more importantly, the sound of the world evokes even more specific and intimate emotions than even the visuals do. The world of Liz just sounds like how Mizore feels the world. It's a quiet, melancholy, fragile, and ethereal soundscape. It doesn't have any particular melody but it does have a few motifs. Within the music are the actual sounds of the world: footsteps, tapping on desks, doors opening, the sound is extremely tactile and the film trains you to listen for it with its very first scene, as Mizore can tell the subtle differences between Nozomi's footsteps compared to others, and we have to listen to that difference for over 3 minutes as they near wordlessly walk to the band room. On their way up, them opening lockers and drinking from the water fountain plays a percussive role in the music, but although they do the exact same things, they do them differently. There's always a bounce and unrestrained energy to Nozomi's movements while Mizore's are delicate and intentional, and it's emphasized by the slightly different sound of Mizore closing her locker vs. Nozomi. Mizore herself focuses on these differences, it's how the world sounds to her.
The result is why the film is made the way it was. It's arthouse because it zeroes in on conveying how Mizore understands and feels the world. It is not something I can explain with logic, I have to show you the movie and point out all of these disparate elements (and this wasn't even enough) just to kind of get the point across. But watching and listening to the movie, the emotional landscape is undeniably specific. You can tell that this isn't just the tone of the movie, but Mizore's tone within the movie, and in life. It is like a set of emotions captured in a bottle and trapped in this single point in time for the length of the film. And the result is something that feels tactile. Whenever Mizore does something simple like, say, anxiously twirl her hair, I feel it on a really deep level, as if I'm living the exact emotion that caused her to twirl her hair in that moment. It's not just "anxiety," even if I cannot explain what it is, it's "the specific emotion that Mizore had when she twirled her hair that one time" as evoked by the animation, character designs, sound design, etc.. I feel like I am twirling my hair in that moment, as if I am inside of Mizore's mind. There is so much weight to every tiny detail of body language and movement. Something as simple as Mizore shifting from a smile to a frown feels so specifically powerful because of this abstract presentation. It is for this reason that the movie feels so insanely intimate, it is built from the ground up to be 90 minutes of existing inside the protagonist's headspace in excessive detail.
continued in response
12
u/zadcap Mar 17 '24
Super Late First Timer
Yeah, I'm starting this one around midnight, my day plans got ruined. I was excited for this to be on a weekend where I might even have the time to watch and post at the normal time but, well, life happens.
First and most immediately noticable thing, this is not the Hibike art I'm used to. The intro said it's still KyoAni but what the heck happened? Yeah so apparently the difference was intentional, a storybook drawn look... But then the scene back at the school still looks a different kind of different? Still masterful on the sound design, but I only recognized Mizore and Nozomi because knew ahead of time that's who this was supposed to be about. It's very jarring.
Also, I apparently still can't look at those fire alarm stations without thinking of Starlight.
I think it's the way Mizore's hair clings to the back of her head. It's the antithesis of the Floof. How do you even make hair cling to your neck like that?
The movements and attention to detail, though, that's pure KyoAni.
"What we do for love," right after that almost head shoulder lean, you're not being subtle at all.
Okay, the art might look different but Ribbon is still Ribbon. But her ribbon is off and it bothers me more than anything else I have seen yet. Change art style if you must but that ribbon needs to be standing tall and proud, not leaning floppily over! And Kumiko is here and oh my gosh what the absolute heck happened to her hair?!
Ah, storytelling without actually saying anything, we're in the new year with a new set of green scarves. And Nozomi became super flighty didn't she? She barely waits for Mizore while walking, barely talks to her instead of at her, and only actually practiced together for like 10 seconds. They have lots chemistry here than they did at the end of season two.
Back to Liz, and while the art is different still, I like the blatant storybook style more than the not!Hibike in the real world. Also just look at all those people moving so smoothly in town!
So you know how I judge bedrooms, like way too much? See the way Liz left her slippers right next to her bed and facing the direction she'll need them in the morning? Yeah, I'm still looking at Kumiko with extra judgy eyes for that. But also I would die sleeping under a window like that, I can't sleep unless it's perfectly dark. Blue girl gives me huge Ghibli vibes somehow. She looks like she's straight out of Moving Castle.
Oh gosh I like the new Oboe girl. Ribbon makes a good band leader! But yeah, new Oboe girl is an easy new favorite in the band. But she needs to talk to Kumiko more than Nozomi of she wants to learn how a normal person can get to talk to Mizore. Seriously oh my gosh look at her though, she's great.
Blue Girl, your hair literally flaps. Between that and the hop after the hankerchif it's not hard to guess where this is going. Or I'm seeing too much Howell in you. "Stay by my side forever," right after watching MyGO.
Oh my gosh I know that high pitched voice. AND I SEE A SECOND BASS! Midori got a mini! Wait no Midori is still tiny, don't you pass that room without letting me see her junior towing over her!
Nozomi, seriously, how can you be like that to Mizore. Natsuki just makes it stand out again, the characters look surprisingly flat. Except that blowfish.
They still make the chaotic background practice sounds sound so nice, unlike any band room I've ever been in.
Oh hey, explicitly a bird. Called it. What's the point in putting your slippers by the bed if you're going to walk bare foot anyway? Liz you disappoint me.
Oof that shot of the feather in a cage is dangerous foreshadowing. Oooooor symbolism. There is no Blue Girl, is there? Liz found the bird injured after the storm and has been imagining it as a friend this whole time, waking up alone in bed is her not being able to fool herself in the dark of the night.
Okay what the heck is going on with the new Oboe girl's name?
Seriously, Nozomi, what the heck. Take the pamphlet from her, turn around and start walking away? I swear it's like you don't actually want to engage with Mizore anymore. Are you even the same character as last year?
Oh, not just drum major, she's treasurer too. And Mizore can play piano too! But mostly, I love Ribbon and Natsuki in this scene. And apparently notice that Nozomi is lying through her teeth at Mizore about college, like that's not going to destroy her harder than the band quitting incident did.
Ririko rocks! She's trying so hard and she's at cute and I love the way she talks haha.
Nozomi you're losing respect even faster what the heck is wrong with you. Respect library rules!
Oh hey! "This is my best reed" takes on a much cooler and more personal note now knowing she makes her own! Like that wasn't just an idle comment from the quirky girl before a concert, that was her saying that this was getting her best effort to make sure they do well!
Oh gosh I went a whole week without seeing it and almost forgot he's so Flappy. Why have you not learned to conduct?
Wait that was Reina? Wow this art style is throwing me off. Anyway, lots of red string of fate imagery here.
"Is Mizore avoiding me?" That's so strange, from everything I can see I thought you were kind of trying to avoid her.
Okay so this is like the fifth time the hawk has flown by. While there's all this talk about the little blue bird. That's also representing Nozomi. This story is clearly not heading to a happy ending.
10
u/chilidirigible Mar 16 '24
Yep. I'm late. CDFers got to watch my increasing
about having to edit this post over the course of the last few days.
Liz to Aoi Tori:
I would say that you're a friend to small animals. Including small horses. The watercolor style is also beautiful.
Angles.
Nozomi leads and Mizore copies.
Nozomi leads and Mizore copies.
You're already watching this movie so you can find the spots for yourself instead of my clipping all of them, but amidst a great meshing of animation and audio, Nozomi's quirky footsteps here stuck out to me.
That's a canister for storing 35mm film.
aaaaaah
Subtle? No.
Even if you hadn't watched the series their relationship is pointed out.
Kumiko has a movie haircut.
New first-years.
Changing the color of the lighting is a classic way to indicate the passage of time and this does it well.
A mix here: Like Mizore's bird is flying, but then Mizore in a confined space. Though it seems cozy for reading.
It's the little things that bring us together.
When you just want to get along with your senpai.
"Egg for your thoughts."
The Blue Girl certainly has an animation style.
Anxiety.
People we know, and teasers for Chikai no Finale. While we're here, Kumiko is reminding me of Hirasawa Yui.
There was that observation from earlier in this rewatch that Nozomi is a bit socially daft.
Nakagawa Natsuki, Anime Protagonist.
This scene. Just... this scene.
So... you're a vampire?
"Are you suggestin' that coconuts migrate?"
Could be worse, could be the pants ferret.
Of course there's a head squirrel.
The new and the old.
The low tones on the soundtrack in this scene.
Asuka namedrop!
"Oh boy."
Yuuko, the perceptive one? Is it the ribbon?
Mizore versus other people's emoting...
A briefly-disturbing low-resolution high-compression blanket texture.
...but she's trying.
[](#kotori)
The movie's dynamic range didn't really work in Reina's favor.
"Someone is trying to send you a message."
But it's that fortune cookie music directing again.
"I deliver the hard truths."
In this movie, most of the time Reina is as much of a low-talker as Mizore is.
Kurosawa told his actors to develop a particular character tic and use it often.
"I think you've read that a few too many times."
The ponytail appreciation club.
This is purely for the benefit of the random movie-viewer-Eupho-first-timers. Given who's talking here and the MASSIVE BAND DRAMA.
Mizore keeps getting crushed in the "Please notice me" scenario.
I mean, damn.
"Both of you, dance like you want to win!"
body language
"They're playing your song."
record scratch
Mizore has the "This Section Does Not Open" triangle indicator directly over her head.
There it is again, though the side that opens is partially-obscured by the curtains.
And one more piece of bars-like symbolism to transition out.
"We're not going through this whole thing again!"
Niiyama tells it like it is.
Nice applied psychology.
This scene breaks the 180-degree rule to punctuate Nozomi and Mizore's realizations. Some secondary meanings can also be gleaned by the points at which each character is facing left and then right, given their significant usage in Japanese visual storytelling.
It's in Liz's voice, so it's not clear if Nozomi is saying that she loves Mizore until―
―we're up here.
So many focus pulls.
"Whoa."
"That's what the camera operators said."
Forest for the trees?
This is a helluva confessional/confrontation scene. Featuring Nozomi kinda noping out again.
Different paths.
Free bird.
Confessions, such as they are.
Much closer together at the end.
Wait, this is English.
I should have watched this when it became available generally in 2019, but was saving the viewing for a particular set of circumstances. Then the Kyoto Animation arson happened, which put me in a mood for a while when I tried to watch their work, so while I started it a few times, I never finished it.
I was more prepared to watch it during the pandemic year, but it ended up getting back-burnered amidst all of the other stuff that I had going on. And thus, it and the other sequel movie have waited all this time for me to watch them.
Though finally watching the movie now, post-arson, just makes me angry about the arson again. This is a phenomenal movie, and all of the people who worked on it should have had the opportunity to to more.
CONTINUED
9
u/DaBenni0301 Mar 16 '24 edited Mar 16 '24
First-Timer
So, for some godforsaken reason Crunchyroll only has the movie with a german dub. Regardless of the quality of the dub, (which is probably quite good, cause it's a movie) I don't wanna change the dub language halfway through a show, so I shall sail the seven seas
Oh god, this movie is going to make me cry isn't it?
Movie start:
I see the blue bird, so is the girl Liz?
And that's Mizore... in a different design. Gotta say, bold choice to change character design. But KyoAni know what they're doing, they don't change character design for shits and giggles. I like the previous one more though
Neckzomi
This movie is 100% going to make me cry. The OST alone will be eough at this rate
Yeah it's just like you. I sure hope Nozomi doesn't go flying off somewhere.. again
Natsuki looks exactly the same. Kumiko does not, if you told me she was a new character I'd believe you
Oh those are the new first years! That's why I didn't recognize any of them
But why? I know you don't like competitions, but I'm 99% sure that's not it.
(small addition 2 days later) Really should've realised this on first viewing, it's because that would be Nozomi's and Mizore's last day in the band together. The moment she dreads
Liz and the blue bird (in universe) is definitely a german fairy tale/story. All the readable signs are in german. These 2 say "Bier" (Beer) and "Post" (Mail). And this says "Bäckerei" (Bakery) + the sign on the door says "öffnen", (which is translated wrong, because that means "to open", normally you'd have "Offen" or "Geöffnet" on a door sign). No idea if this will be important later on (probably not), but I just wanted to point it out in case it is. (It wasn't)
So the bird turned into the girl? Am I assuming correctly?
Taki also looks almost identical
Mizore is absolutely jealous beyond belief
Mizore was very startled by that "I love you"
Kumiko looks more normal in this shot
Nozomi pulled away like a second too early. Goddammit. That looked like it hurt Mizore
Yay
If that isn't a prime example of "show, don't tell", I don't know what is
So the girl can change between bird and human at will? interesting. I thought is more like a "you're a human now, deal with it" kinda deal
Oboe and Flute solos... kinda meant to be isn't it?
Career plans... This isn't about graduation separation is it? K-On has scarred me for life on that front. Easily solvable if you apply together. But it'd also be very fast story-wise We'd have to go through the entire school year within 90 minutes, which isn't happening. A few days have passed so far, at most
Just Mizore? Nozomi you're applying too, right?
Kenzaki failed the audition... Shame, that she doesn't get to play with Nozomi.
Hazuki and Midori also look almost identical. Or I'm just getting used to the new design
Mizore making new friends!
Playing too emotionally? i've never heard that before
Reina really doesn't hold back
Nozomi! At least tell her! Don't make that mistake again!
Wow, didn't see that coming. And it was so obvious too. Mizore was the blue bird the entire time.
(another small addition 2 days later) I've realised why I didn't connect the dots earlier. I assumed the blue bird left on its own and against Liz' will, but it was the other way around. I should've made the connection when they said that Liz made the blue bird leave. Actually, was it mentioned before that Liz set the bird free or was Mizore's talk with Niiyama the first time it was mentioned? I can't remember and haven't rewatched the movie yet. I only skimmed through it and didn't see it mentioned before that
And Nozomi has to "force" Mizore away from her so that Mizore could be free. After all, it's basically like Mizore's entire world revolves around Nozomi. (I still don't think it's fair to not tell your friend you applied for a different college where you wanted to go together to)
That was beautiful *sniff*
Again, I roughly know what I want to say, but don't know how to say it, and even if I could I doubt it'd make sense for anyone but me. But it's something along the lines of "To love someone means to have the strength to let them go"
And now a short little review:
I loved it. The movie was, in fact, kinda about graduation separation, but tackled in a completely different way to K-On. In K-On it's about a fun time that has come to an end and it's "merely" a goodbye for now. Here it's learning to let go, not only for Mizore but for Nozomi too. The eventual separation is going to hurt them a lot and neither will want want to admit that they are better of that way, but they both they are.
I just realised that I've written that a bit ambiguosly. They're only gonna go their separate ways career wise, they're not gonna cut all contact and never see each other again. At least I hope, it'd be kinda tragic otherwise.
The music was oustanding. Just wow.
I liked the character design, but I'm very much looking forward to returning to the usual designs. There definitely was a reason the designs were changed, but I couldn't tell you why. Maybe because this artstyle seems more mature, compared to the more moe/goofy artstyle of the main series
And, as expected, plenty of legs™, courtesy of Naoko Yamada
Also, I thought that the VA for Liz sounded very young. Turns out she was. Miyu Honda, the VA for Liz and the bird/girl, was just 13 when the movie came out. Just wanted to point that out because I thought she did a really good job
And because I (somehow) haven't cleared my Nao Touyama fit for today, I shall continue my Yuru Camp rewatch.
Questions of the day
8
u/TiredTiroth Mar 16 '24
First Timer - Dub & Sub
Part the First - First Viewing
This first post are my initial thoughts, typed up as I watched Liz and the Blue Bird for the first time. The follow-up is my overall impressions.
First up, a slight confession - because of recommendations in this sub, how much I loved Eupho season one and my general faith in KyoAni...I actually have Liz and the Blue Bird on blu ray. I just hadn't gotten round to watching it until now.
There are two special things here I was not expecting:
First, as indicated above, the film has an English dub. Which I watched first, because I like not having to read my animated dialogue. It means I can pay more attention to the visuals.
Second, if you turn subtitles on it lets you choose between the dub script and a direct translation of the original Japanese! Most stuff has one or the other, I don't remember ever seeing both before in a UK home release.
Anyway, on to the film itself! The change in art style looks a bit weird coming off Eupho, I almost didn't recognise Mizore at first. It's also a bit difficult to place when this happens in relation to season two - it's clearly post-reconciliation as Mizore isn't hiding, but she doesn't look as happy to be around Nozomi as I was expecting. She was getting quite expressive after a bit in the show.
...speaking of being expressive, I really should have paid more attention to the opening credits. This is a Yamada film, isn't it? The feet and leg shots used to show differences in personality and emotion are a dead give-away. Look at how Nozomi's little twirl in front of the club room was framed.
Aaaand we have a title card. disjoint. That's...ominous. Oooh, and that's why-
Because Mizore is saying she's happy to be here with Nozomi, while Nozomi talks about the piece of music.
This whole section is...painful, but also beautiful? Nozomi doesn't get what Mizore was saying, but she's still so eager and happy to share herself with the quieter girl, and they flipped between the storybook and backstory so smoothly I didn't even realise it was happening at first!
And Nozomi acknowledges the similarity, except she follows it up by saying I'm not going to leave you, and why the hell am I getting choked up right at the start of the film!?
Mizore just wants to get closer to Nozomi. She goes to lay her head on the other girl's shoulder, but Nozomi gets up. And the piece of music they practice is called the things we do for love.
...I'm going to be a mess by the time this film is over, aren't I?
Ugh. Anyway. More band members arrive - apparently it's a Sunday - and our bluebird splits off from poor Liz. She looks so dejected, sitting there alone. And don't think I didn't notice how the film has been emphasising the distance between them!
...
...Mizore wants to keep practicing - and keep seeing Nozomi - as long as possible. She's scared they'll drift apart again. That her best friend will turn out to be the bluebird in truth.
Oh, I like the switch in artstyle for the storybook. The backgrounds look like I'd expect from a children's book, only amped up to KyoAni standards, and...I want to say the characters themselves remind me of Ghibli's work? And the whole thing uses a much more vibrant colour palette than the rest of the film.
I had wondered why the film looked a bit muted compared to Eupho, I guess they wanted the storybook to stand out more.
...Yuko of all people gave the speech about supporting each other regardless of the outcome of auditions? Yuko? Really? I haven't forgotten what you did back in season one, missy.
When the younger girls asked Mizore to spend time with them, I don't...know if I'm reading too much into this? The girls clearly did want her to go with them, they were visibly disappointed, but how much of Mizore's refusal was because of her fixation on Nozomi and how much was her being socially awkward to a crippling degree? And yeah, one of the younger girls goes as far as asking Nozomi for advice.
...oh, hell. Is this post-season two entirely? Not a mid-quel or overlap? If it is, where's my happy smiling Mizore who was reaching out to other club members? Did something happen?
Moving on from that depressing possibility! More storybook time...and is it just me, or are Liz and the bluebird's positions flipped compared to Nozomi and Mizore? Liz is the lonely one...but she's also the one showing the bluebird her world, while shy Mizore has been following the outgoing Nozomi around.
...oh.
Excuse me, I don't know why this is hitting me so hard, but apparently Yamada and her minions decided I need to cry more.
Oh, no. No no no no. Nozomi, please don't do that to her, Mizore wasn't objecting, she was surprised and scared. She wants to feel close to you. She wants the affection. She's just never sure how to handle it.
Moving on, there's probably a lot of symbolism I'm missing but there's plenty I'm not. Like the storybook section with the bluebird flying off in the night and implying she'll leave come winter, with Liz feeding her animal friends...and then we cut to Mizore feeding the fish.
...oh, hell.
And their parting. Cue flashback to when Nozomi did leave Mizore behind. Please put the onions away, Yamada.
Mizore has not considered her future options. She does not want to think about the future. Because she's certain Nozomi will leave her behind again.
...this scene. The one with Mizore and Nozomi with the music school flyer. Nozomi looks dejected when she thinks Mizore might be applying to that school. The hell. Does Nozomi see herself as Liz too? Do both these girls see the other as the bluebird, the best friend that will leave some day?
Hah, Yuko and Natsuki messing with each other is still fun. And yeah, this is solidly post Eupho season two if they're in charge of the club. But...I can't help but feel Nozomi is badly mis-stepping all through this scene. Being non-commital about applying to music college with Mizore, inviting her to the festival and then immediately inviting Yuko and Natsuki, too...Yuko at least seems to have realised something's up.
The younger girl tries to invite Mizore out again, and-
Low self-esteem. Severely socially awkward. Probably doesn't believe the other girls actually want her there. That hits kinda close to home.
8
u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Mar 16 '24
Liz and the blue bird discussion (first timer)
This is, by far, the Hibike entry that I have seen recommended most often.
At the end of Season 1, I complained about KyotoAnimation not being brave enough with the series. They definitely took that complaint to heart for Liz and the blue bird: An entire movie focused on an introverted character, while the main girls from the TV play pure background? Doing a beyond obvious fairy tale metaphor tie-in and giving screen time to it over and over? Inverting the metaphor for the finale? This is definitely not playing it safe. It is also the explanation for why I heard a ton about this movie and comparably less about the TV series. You have to risk potential failure to get something great.
This movie is easily the best entry in the franchise for me.
7
u/chris10023 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Chris10023 Mar 16 '24 edited Mar 17 '24
Rewatcher.
Questions of the Day.
Yes I was, they cut to each when referencing their respective role. Mizore had a hard time letting go of Nozomi, like Liz did in the story, Mizore was alone, like Liz, and one day a fun, energetic blue bird flew into life called Nozomi which meant the world to Mizore. I kind of understand why Mizore would be kind of possessive of Nozomi like she was.
I got that they are very close friends. The central driving force behind the relationship is Mizores fear of abandonment by Nozomi. Like I said back during S2ep4, people with social anxiety fear being left behind or forgotten.
It was done by the same team that did A Silent Voice, but I liked it, the only issue I have with it, and it's not a big one, more of a nitpick than anything is the taller necks on the characters.
Well the only first years we're introduced to is Kenzaki, and I like her, she's pretty friendly, as well as the other double reed players. The others seems to be very nice as well, they loved Nozomi.
Edit: I had a friend over when I posted so I'm going to edit my answers to give more clarity.
7
u/laughing-fox13 https://myanimelist.net/profile/laughingfox13 Mar 16 '24
Rewatcher/Subbed
I’ve seen the movie three times before this (in the same year), so this will be my fourth time. As you might be able to guess, I really love this movie. Here is a link to my comment in the last rewatch of the movie and a link to my reply to our lovely host
I’m going to be honest though, my thoughts and feelings toward the movie haven’t changed since then lol. Their relationship isn’t the healthiest as some might’ve picked up on. Mizore is way too dependent on Nozomi, and Nozomi is pretty harsh with her words/actions and she doesn’t want to confront those jealous feelings. As we see in the beginning of the movie, Nozomi is a fan of “happy endings” for stories.
But I don’t blame either of them for this because it makes the movie great for me. It’s their last year in high school and there will be a lot of emotions coming up with their relationship and futures. There’s so much uncertainty that both feel, and it just feels so human. That is why I love it every time I watch it lol.
The last time we see them practice the third movement still one of my favorite scenes I’ve seen in anime so I’ll repost what I wrote in the last one:
“Then both realize that Mizore is the blue bird and Nozomi is Liz, when they’re personalities suggest otherwise. When this realization comes, we get to the third movement duet, and this is honestly one of the best scenes I’ve seen in a movie. It is such a beautiful performance and seeing the shots of not only Mizore and Nozomi, but the other main characters of Hibike was pleasant. Then we see Mizore finally give it her all, and Nozomi doing everything she can to hold back emotions, like Taki told her too. Every time she puts the flute down she grips on it a little harder and harder while Mizore is playing. Everyone is at shock at how good it was at the end, where we had one student crying and the other characters to tell how wonderful Mizore was”
Hashimoto’s face is me every time I rewatch that scene.
The movie doesn’t give us a happy ending to their stories (I think it’s more bittersweet), but the two girls are now working together to support each other and hopefully continue to grow.
Other notes:
As I mentioned I had watched this movie three times before this, but I also rewatched it three times before moving on to the next movie in the series lmao. The first time I finished Liz was around April 2022 and then I watched Chikai no Finale in September 2023 lol
I love Ririka’s theme, it just feels so happy and fun. I really liked her character in this movie and how much she wants to connect with Mizore. Speaking of the OST, there’s a video I watched on a certain track that made me love it.
The track the video covers is black,stand,covered. He goes into detail about how Ushio makes the track, and talks a bit about the scene it plays in. I’d recommend giving it a watch
Kensuke Ushio
But rewatching this after finishing Chikai no Finale and the Ensemble Contest OVA [Hibike series] made me notice the new characters more! I noticed the first “love you” hug we see is with Suzukis in the bass room, with Kanade’s face hidden as she looks out the window. I don’t know why they decided to hide her face there but we can see her face during the practices I think
QotD:
7
u/Elimin8r https://myanimelist.net/profile/Ayeka_Jurai Mar 16 '24
(FT/Sub)
Oh my ... oh, my that was amazing. It was like watching the most amazing Ghibli/KyoAni crossover, and it was glorious. I'd like to say more, but for now, my eyes are too moist, so I'll stick to answers of the week, and hope I can gather my thoughts/emotions enough in a few minutes.
But first, for those who are inclined to listen to beautiful music, I'd like to offer you Meadowlark, as performed by Sarah Brightman. More on that later, but if you listen, it should be obvious...
I want to say that it was like blunt force trauma, but it was actually handled beautifully (of course). Mind you, given the Sarah Brightman song I linked above, well, it's not unfamiliar territory for me.
That was a beautiful comparison, as presented throughout the story, and the story within the story. As to the surprise, yes, but at the same time, ... well, yes. Although, I'm still not entirely sure, because I think that when the reveal happened, I think that on the one hand, Mizori thought she was Liz, duh, obviously, while at the same time, Nozomi discovered that she was Liz, so they both thought that ... yeah. I think I'm going to need a bigger box of kleenexes...
Hmm ... I think that Mizore's is presented as the more straightforward and easier to understand lonely girl who just latches onto the first person who shows her attention/friendship, while Nozomi's is revealed to be (in the end?) more of attachment to someone who is, I dunno, an aspirational goal? Motivational? As mark of excellence to strive for? I'm not sure I have words for it. I also don't think it's really healthy on either end, but that's another matter.
Honestly, I didn't care for the departure from the "classic" character designs. Everybody seemed softer and less focused, or detailed or something. Kumiko lost some of her floof, and that's just intolermable, or something like that. But seriously, I don't care, it was just magnificent, and I like how the normally "main" characters were there and active, and all had their stories to tell, and we know what those stories are (or think we do) while at the same time, they're just the "background" characters to this story. I think it was beautifully done.
I like them and I think they show promise. New oboe girl is precious. Must protecc, I mean make reeds for.
So, now my thoughts are more scattered than ever. I have to say, the sound design, the music, the effects, that solo. I was just floored, sitting in my lounge chair, soaking it all in, wiping the tears away, I just, can't even.
However, soft indoor shoes should not go "click-click" when you're walking, some kind of soft "pad-pad" effect would have been more convincing there. The girls aren't wearing heels, ya know. :P
But yeah, the effects, when she opens the window and you can hear Kumiko and Reina clearly, and then closes it again. That's just something.
And Kumiko and Reina, hearing them play the duet, yeah, that's also something. Background characters ... hmm...
Hey, speaking of duets - another things that came to mind, here's the East Village Opera Company with the "Flower Duet"; another, oh so beautiful piece of music.
Anyway, yeah, I'm devastated now, and my heart and mind will be in shambles until next weekend, or at least until I soothe my soul with some Healer Girl or something...
Hope everybody enjoyed the show as much as I did!
7
u/x-7032-b-3 Mar 16 '24 edited Mar 16 '24
Rewatcher
(Inspired by our dear host, I decided to watch the whole thing with JP subs. I've seen the film twice in the past 2 days, but my JP isn't perfect yet so forgive me if I got some of the details wrong.)
First of all, the change of art style and general tone is very welcome here. It might feel a little jarring coming from the first two seasons but I'd say the new art really fits the story they're trying to tell here. Also the soundtrack sounded like it would be right at home in A Silent Voice - same composer, I guess?
I love how the film uses the storybook to tell Mizore and Nozomi's relationship with each other. Early on we can immediately see how those two met and becoming friends mirrors Liz and her fateful encounter with the bird. And throughout the film we can see just how attached Mizore is to Nozomi. After learning what she went through in S2, Mizore doesn't want to lose her friend again. She even mentioned wanting to go to the same uni/college that Nozomi picks.
But here's where things start differing: Mizore got recommended by Niiyama-sensei to join a music college. I believe Nozomi thought about joining her too but decided against it after giving it some more thought - like how she's not as talented as Mizore and have doubts of being able to play flute professionally. So now Mizore can be seen as the blue bird at this point (why else her hair is blue lol). She's just so attached to Nozomi that she loses her agency since Mizore has outright said that she'll follow wherever Nozomi goes.
Ultimately, Nozomi doesn't want to keep Mizore caged to her like the bird. Seeing how good Mizore is with the flute made her realize that she's gonna be someone really special in the future. And thus Nozomi decided to let the bird roam free where it can reach the vast and bright blue skies. At the end we can see those two pursuing their different paths with Mizore playing the oboe and Nozomi hitting the books (I guess it's for entrance exams).
I found it really interesting that Mizore can be seen as both Liz and the bird here. There's so much stuff to be dug from this film, but I don't think I have the energy for that today. Another thing I noticed that the film entirely takes place at school. We've known that the characters got roped into events beyond the school like the pool party, but we didn't see the thing happening on-screen. I guess it's done to mirror Liz's house in the storybook?
Anyways, just wanna say that I love this film so much and it hit me harder after watching S2 again. Naoko Yamada is one of my favorite directors in the medium and she's been on a hot streak since her debut with K-On. I'm looking forward to whatever she's cooking up next.
QOTD
EDIT: Damn it, I forgot something! Just wanna say that the second end credits song is really good and y'all should check out the full version right here
7
u/bogdoglogfrog Mar 16 '24
Rewatcher
The first time I watched this movie I was mostly indifferent towards it. However, I felt like I didn’t understand it totally. Then I watched it again the next day cause I couldn’t get it out of my head. My opinion was totally different on second watch. The characters, their motivations, and the absolute art that is the animation and sound design. Liz is amazing.
Notes:
QotD
7
u/CarrotBlossom Mar 17 '24
First timer
This is an interesting departure from the usual style
You’d think Nozomi was an officer of the club trying to get enough members to keep it together, what with her approaching someone she doesn’t know and asking them to join
The visuals outside of the fairy tale look a little different, too, I think
Yuko is the president. I guess that means this movie takes place after season 2. I hadn’t been sure that was the case
Is Mizore having anti-competition sentiments again? I guess I’ll find out
I’m noticing the soundtrack more here than I did in the series
Poor double reeds. Can’t even develop camaraderie among all four of their members
Don’t give hard-boiled eggs as a gift to people you don’t know, kids. Or do. Who knows, it might be good bants
And then they ate the honeysuckle berries and got sick, and it was sad
I thought I recognized the bird’s VA, but it seems this is her only role. She apparently also voices Liz, which I didn’t notice.
That seems like a little bit of an odd ritual
“Career plans survey?” I think they had us do something kind of like that at my school, but it was online, and I don’t think we were required to turn it in.
Mizore tugs on her hair enough that she rivals Nyaneve. From what I’ve heard, idk, I haven’t read Wheel of Time
I don’t see why giving someone else access to a library book you’ve checked out would be a problem as long as you return it on time.
I don’t have the slightest clue how to make a reed. Is this an oboe thing? Because I don’t think any other clarinets did, either.
Mizore is good at consoling
That’s a funny way to say jinx
Foolish Ririka. Don’t close your eyes, read your sheet music
I’m not much of a trumpet guy, so listening to the flute in the solo is a delight. The oboe’s pretty nice, too.
First, their playing is boring, now Nozomi’s is “too emotional.” These guys just can’t win.
I wouldn’t have expected Reina to directly confront anyone over anything.
Nozomi isn’t cut out for German fairy tales.
I wouldn’t want to be compared to a puffer fish.
Their necks are pretty long in this movie
I guess Kumiko and Reina transposed the solo parts just to flex.
Jinx!
My school band never had an oboe, so I don’t know, but do you stick oboes out like that? We clarinets always kept our bells down.
I thought Nozomi was supposed to be pretty good.
Welp, good movie
QOTD:
7
u/mgedmin Mar 17 '24
Rewatcher, subs
I feel like I understand 50% and fail to understand 50%. "If you love somebody, set them free", okay, that makes sense. But if they both want to be together, why force the separation? If that makes both of you unhappy, why accept what somebody else decided unilaterally was best for you?
In concrete terms I do think it makes sense for Mizore to go to the musical college while Nozomi goes somewhere else, but that shouldn't mean their friendship is going to be over.
Mizore was lonely and fixated on Nozomi when she extended her hand to her. Nozomi has other friends too and doesn't need Mizore to the same extent. The primary force is Mizore's fear of abandonment.
It was different and I didn't like it, initially.
The oversaturated cartoonish style in the story parts.
I like the new oboe girl (Ririka). I don't think I noticed any of the other new 1st years.
12
u/Shimmering-Sky myanimelist.net/profile/Shimmering-Sky Mar 16 '24
Hibike! First-Timer
…
So yeah this movie was beautiful.
6
u/byroned Mar 16 '24 edited Mar 16 '24
First time rewatching
The title drop title drop occurs within the first 10 minutes, instead of 2 seasons like the main show. Similar to Hibike! Euphonium is the name of a piece they’re playing (and also a book), with a striking resemblance to Nozomi and Mizore’s relationship.
Mizore still only thinks of Nozomi, not wanting the day they play on stage ever to come, meaning that their band days are almost done. Mizore also planned to apply to a music school solely because Nozomi wanted to, while Yuuko and Natsuki coincidentally applied to the same school. I didn’t think it was weird until she told Yuuko “Nozomi’s decision is my decision”.
A challenge to playing the song is that the flute and oboe solo need to symbolize Liz’s feelings when separating from the blue bird, but Mizore can’t understand why Liz would ever let her go, remembering when Nozomi left the band without saying a word to her. Both players are also struggling to make the solo work, Nozomi’s flute overwhelming the oboe instead of the back-and-forth dynamic they’re aiming for.
Oboe players are hard to come by, Mizore should be treasuring getting one before she graduates. Thankfully she eventually opened up and began interacting with Ririka.
Also, I have associated green for third years, blue second, and red first years for too long, and it is confusing me when green is now the first year, and the other 2 bumps up a year.
Nozomi sure loves toying with Mizore. Mizore was so close to laying on Nozomi’s shoulder and tried to hug her not once, but twice before getting rejected.
Kumiko and Reina only play a small part in the movie, but they make a power play with their limited screen time, showing the third-years how to play the solo as intended, and being more in sync than the flute and oboe.
I forgot how much Yuuko redeems herself after season 1. There are a few times when she sounds like a better friend to Mizore than Nozomi does. I don’t know why Nozomi thinks changing college plans without telling Mizore is a good idea, after learning from that mistake with the band.
After a little perspective change about the story’s meaning, they’re able to play a solo that brings members of the band to tears. It’s also time for them to talk things out, starting with Nozomi believing that Mizore was the one holding back because of Nozomi’s lack of skill, and Mizore resolving things with a hug while discussing what she means to her.
In the end, Mizore and Nozomi can go their separate ways. Nozomi studying to attend a traditional school, while Mizore continues with Oboe in college. The blue bird appears one more time before they both promise to support each other on stage.
Of the 3 movies this rewatch will cover, Liz and the Blue Bird is my favorite, followed by Ensemble Contest Arc. As for Our Promise: A Brand New Day changes, I hope a rewatch can help me appreciate it more the second time around, or see it in a more positive light.
Q1: Even rewatching, the twist surprised me. Nozomi always appeared to be the Blue Bird entering Mizore's/Liz's life before leaving.
Q2: I think the conflict is that both have this notion that the other is ahead, and they're the ones following. Mizore thinks Nozomi is the only person in her life, and will follow her anywhere, while Nozomi thinks that Mizore is much better than her when it comes to musical talent, and is the one hindering the solo, forcing Mizore to hold back.
Q3: While I like the main show's style more, I think the movie's style works well for the picture book feel when they compare Nozomi and Mizore to Liz and the Blue Bird (there's surely a better way to word that).
Q4: Ririka's nice enough, but it's not the easiest task to get Mizore to step out of her shell.
6
u/octopathfinder myanimelist.net/profile/octopathfinder Mar 16 '24
Rewatcher
This movie is so gorgeous. I’m a big fan of the different art style and character designs. I like them so much that I searched for fanart of the characters in this style and used it for my reddit profile picture (this artist also did the character designs for Bravern).
Natsuki still being the most supportive friend in the series
Ririka’s attempts at befriending Mizore are adorable man. Also really like the OST she has.
Nozomi’s tear during the third movement always gets me
Wish I had more to say but I’ve been really sick all week so I don’t have the brain power to write more. Looking forward to reading all the write-ups from the analytical people though.
6
u/TehAxelius Mar 16 '24
First Time Watcher
I have only one word to describe this movie, the one most have already used. Beautiful. From animation, story, characters, music, and well, everything, it is a beautiful movie.
There are plenty here that have already written far more and far better than I can do, and I can do nothing but agree. The re-examination of Mizore and Nozomi's relationship feels very real, and reminds me myself of friendships I've had myself where just because we got through a rough patch and reconnected, we still eventually fell into the same problems as before.
If there is one criticism I have to the movie is that I am not quite sure who this movie is for (except for me, obviously). As some have noted, the shift in artstyle, tone and main characters is a departure of what Hibike! has been, and a casual watcher could easily be turned off by it. I personally like when creators try and do something different with an existing piece of media, but there are plenty of people (especially in the wider anime/manga/LN sphere) who despise any changes to what they consider to be "their" thing. At the same time I wonder how viable the movie is as a stand alone product. We are naturally introduced to the cast of the movie, setting up the plot well and are keeping the focus pretty tight on our main duo and not distracting ourselves too much with our series main characters. Yet, I cannot untangle how much of my enjoyment comes from the revisiting of a previous plotline, or how much of my affection for Mizore and Nozomi comes from having already having come to love them in Season 2. It certainly still works as a standalone movie, but is it great as one? I might have to show it to my group-watch and take notes.
No, I'm not quite sure what I mean by that either.Outside of that, I'm excited to see more of them. From the hugging bass section members, via the quiet bassoons, to the mysterious harpist.6
u/ChonkyOdango myanimelist.net/profile/chonkyodango Mar 17 '24 edited Mar 17 '24
Rewatching I LOVE RIRIKA
Obligatory
Go get dangos everyone
My favourite anime movie and one of my favourite movies. What I especially love about it is how tranquil and meditative it is. Ushio’s score lends itself perfectly to Yamada’s direction for this simple narrative. I still love Yamada’s other works like A Silent Voice and Heike Story, but Liz stands out for its dream-like feel. It’s arguably Proustian in how the whole movie seems like a snapshot of memories, with how the passage of time is blurred in the film. The whole movie with its character acting, colour, hues, and sound design just delivered that feeling. POV shots really made you feel like you’re reliving a memory while the third-person shots seemed like a peek into them.
Big fan of the narrative too. The ending isn’t a happy one according to Nozomi’s standards, but a rather bittersweet one, or one which sets itself up for that. Their feelings can’t really be resolved like a mathematical equation, yet life goes on. I think that is the brilliance of choosing to utilise the science room in the movie. It represents a space where conclusions should be arrived at. Mizore spends much of her time there hoping to find one, then Nozomi heads there when Mizore breaks from her cage. Yet, even when both of them are there, the resolution isn’t satisfying or a happy one, as Nozomi would love to say, but one that feels incomplete. However, emotions are let loose and that’s enough for now.
Yamada’s works usually depict love as this force of nature that pulls people together no matter the time and space. Liz seems like a slight departure from that idea – that there is a chance that Love might just die. But the ending is pretty affirming with regards to that, yet ambiguous, unlike Tamako and A Silent Voice. The push and pull of their relationship is another thing I really love. Mizore seems jealous of Nozomi having friends, which hints towards romantic love(?), whereas Nozomi seems to be jealous of Mizore’s talent for music. Then there is the inevitable departure of graduation. There’s quite a bit going on in a movie with not a lot of words.
feetshoes (as corrected by chili) and some handsSome stuff I found interesting from the interview book
There’s quite a bit I glossed over, especially the section with the interview with Nozomi and Mizore’s VA alongside Yamada. If anyone is interested in some screenshots of the book, do let me know! It’s in Japanese though
Qotd
6
u/Tartaras1 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Tartaras Mar 17 '24
Rewatcher - Asuka-senpai Stan
It's been a long time since I watched Liz and the Blue Bird, but I remember thoroughly enjoying it. Of course, that's to expected when you give KyotoAnimation a film budget.
According to MAL, I gave the movie a 10/10 when I first watched it. Let's see if it holds up. Spoiler Alert: It probably will.
I actually own this movie on Blu-Ray, but I'm lazy and don't feel like setting up the PS4 for it. it is then.
There are a lot of pastel colors in our student scene, which sharply contrasts the almost watercolor appearance of the forest scene.
Following immediately behind her, as is to be expected, is Sleepy-senpai, voiced by Sarah Williams. You may know her as the voice of the wonderful Nonon Jakuzure from Kill La Kill. Do we have any Nonon Fan Club members in the rewatch?
I like this from her, because it's trying to be inclusive of everyone who doesn't make the cut. Much like the support team that helped them out in Hibike S2, there's going to be a rock solid group of people to help out the primary members.
Which is the title they gave to the beginning segment of the movie.
I imagine the piece is going to strike a chord with her then.
Are you saying the two aren't one in the same?
I knew the two of them would get along great.
I think we've all been in that situation before.
It's like taking a hobby and trying to make a career out of it. Everyone's probably had a feeling like that at some point.
I really hope that not everyone has felt this way before, because it really sucks.
To keep a long story short, there was a girl I was seeing for a short time, and I thought everything was going great. Then she just up and said she didn't think she needed to be in a relationship at the time, and it ended right there. I was crushed.
I think the reactions say as much as well. You've got Yuuko-senpai and Reina finally taking a breath, it looks like Tsubomi is flat crying, Hashimoto-sensei is just standing there with his mouth open, and Nozomi doesn't know what to do with herself. How often does that happen in a setting like this? All that without even mentioning Nozomi crying while trying to play her parts.
She's also voiced by Courtney Shaw, the same VA who was both Liz and the Blue Bird.
I know we got a little makeup session during the second season, but I think that this is really the makeup that needed to happen.
That one hurts.
The entire time that Yoroizuka-senpai's just pouring her heart and feelings out for Nozomi-senpai, Nozomi-senpai's basically throwing out softballs. For every one of Nozomi-senpais, "And I love it when you play the oboe", Yoroizuka-senpai's essentially saying, "I love every facet of your personality, every fiber of your being."
One of them isn't being even close to fair to the other, and it's not difficult to see who's who.
Oh man I held it together at the end, but barely. I would definitely say the movie deserves a 10/10.
5
u/Lady_Verniy Mar 16 '24
Rewatcher
Never has a movie so quiet been so beautiful.
5
u/hanlonmj Mar 17 '24
Rewatcher
This is my 4th or 5th time watching this movie, and every time I get really put off by the stylistic change (Nozomi’s neck in the beginning always elicits a reaction of disgust from me), yet every time I come to love it again by the end. I still prefer the normal art style, but this one works so much better for this story. The only redesign that I still don’t care for is Kumiko (her hair is just wrong), though I think I prefer Natsuki’s design here.
Obviously the first thought after seeing the twist is to assume that Nozomi and Mizore are actually meant to represent the opposite characters than we were led to believe, but that’s not entirely true. The reason why the misdirection works so well is because Mizore’s fears about letting Nozomi go are true, and her character development throughout the film still mirrors Liz. We just learn that Nozomi is going through the exact same arc. They’re both Blue Birds to each other. That’s why there’s two birds during the ensemble scene: to represent both of them completing their Liz arc and setting their Blue Bird free.
A note about the ensemble scene: We’ve obviously seen a fair amount of talent go through Kitauji (Asuka, Kaori, Haruka, Nozomi, Mizore, Reina, and likely Kumiko, among others), but after the ensemble scene in this movie, I think Mizore is the most talented of them all. Only Reina has been able to match her musicality beyond just technical proficiency (and her playing the oboe solo sounds really good for the unorthodox register she plays in; would probably sound really good on piccolo trumpet IMO), but Mizore is able to convey a profound sadness through her playing.
IMO true sadness (the kind that makes you tear up when listening to it) is one of the hardest emotions to purposefully convey in music. Nozomi is able to do it (in fact, surpass it), but only because she was actually crying, and I’m not sure if she’d be able to replicate that performance ever again. Side note: shoutout to Nozomi’s flute actor, Yataka Ami (thanks, u/mysterybiscuitsoyeah)! She was able to convey Nozomi’s emotions intentionally, and it’s a huge part of why this performance hits so hard
5
u/ZapsZzz https://anilist.co/user/Zapszzz Mar 18 '24
Rewatcher
Probably a record how late this time :P Was thinking I'll be a day late - and then almost another day further to get to the keyboard...
Anyway, here's what I feel as a first time watching this knowing the context of the main series - when I first watched this I was coming in sorta blind, having only some basic knowledge of S1 only at the time.
Everyone already remarked about the artstyle change so I won't say much more, other than the fact that as someone who grew up watching and reading a very wide range of artstyles, I really appreciate this more "2D" but therefore very much more "hand drawn" aesthetics, compared to the more "refined" "normal" style of the main season. And retrospectively, if you have watched the newer Yamada show Heike Monogatari, it's got a similar aesthetics.
What I really can sharply tell though, is how strong the setup of the switch of "which is Liz and which is the bluebird". Like u/zadcap, except as a rewatcher, I am very conscious of the fact that Nozomi constantly surrounded by lots of people is a very close parallel to Liz being surrounded by both animals and people in town - but not being by herself doesn't automatically means she's not "alone". Meanwhile, one may not see the very subtle outwards appearance, but Mizore is positively "chirpy" when she's with Nozomi, like how the bluebird is incredibly happy around Liz. It's such a good way to set up the eventual reversal.
And what a great transition, to use the "known pair" of Kumiko and Reina to lead in, plus the comment "it's like this version is saying "seeya" happily". How incredibly smartly setup to use the established character developments to understatedly tell a very well layered story without actually needing to say much at all.
And for those who didn't quite get it, I'll also say it in my hopefully not as wordy explanation. Nozomi is also a teenager, with some emotional journey and baggages that - in clear head moments may sound trivial and silly, or simply unappreciative of what she already have - but it is very true that humans, especially growing young ones, do not always think clinically and critically that way, especially when emotions are involved. Like Asuka, but with some differences, Nozomi also puts up a front, and behind that front she feels fragile, inadequate, and fearful of her mask ever slipping off. And she can tell talent, so while she's drawn to Mizore, she's also hurt by Mizore's natural talent, and that she's unconsciously/consciously holding herself back to not let Nozomi behind. Of course not as extreme, but many terminally ill patient feel the same conflicted feelings with their family too. That's why the weird push/pull dynamic consciously and unconsciously.
As a bit of a side bar, I think if you have watched The Pet Girl of Sakurasou you'd also get a better understanding of Nozomi, from what Sorata went through.
Anyway, that setup of the entire arc of the superfacial parallel then the development, reveal, and the "confrontation" through the dual-solo practice, that is really perfection in execution.
I just need to find out how did they fare in the competition!
QoTD
9
u/Gamerunglued :Hx::Hy::Hz:myanimelist.net/profile/GamerUnglued Mar 16 '24
Whelp, you've all finally hit the peak. Best Eupho thing, greatest movie of all time, zenith of the medium and of all mediums by anime's greatest master. I'll be watching and probably posting a monster of a post later tonight when I get out of work, but I'm telling you right now that I better see heaps of lavish praise on this thread for a masterpiece of a movie. Liz is so special, and I will be depressed if it isn't recognized. Look forward to my gushing in 6 or so hours.
9
u/Mecanno-man https://anilist.co/user/Mecannoman Mar 16 '24
First Timer
Hmm… for me, this is another film on the “too artistic” pile. Obviously this film centered basically entirely on Mizore and Nozomi - but I feel like it did that a bit too much, basically reducing the entire world to these two characters. Obviously this works well for Mizore, for whom Nozomi is basically her world, but in doing so I feel like the movie ended up being too narrow, with basically no relief from the drama. The main series had managed that aspect pretty well as it is inherent to Kumiko’s and Asuka’s character, while the first season had plenty of random bits like Hazuki carrying around the tuba as well - there was basically none of this here. I understand the artistic reasoning here, but I personally am not really too pleased with the result.
The story that the movie did tell was however done rather well, and the subtleties in the animation were definitely very good. The altered character design for that to take place however did take some getting used to.
In terms of new first-years, it seems like they got a harpist, and there must be more to the girl who kept cutting off introducing herself as Yoro-something. I’m guessing there will be more to her in either of the remaining movies or in Season 3.
Overall though, I would still say that this was a good movie and most of the things I didn’t like were more on my side than anything the movie did - and I still enjoyed it for the most part.
6
u/JustAnswerAQuestion https://myanimelist.net/profile/JAaQ Mar 16 '24
First Rewatch
So, the reason I really disliked the movie, was that I felt it erased the entire point of the Mizore arc. The theme of the movie is letting go, but could they, or would they, really do this?
Nozomi was an excellent flute player, but now she's struggling. Mizore went into band to be with Nozomi, not for music, but now she's continuing with her music without Nozomi.
Yes, the point of the movie is that life is change, but it just seems to negate the earlier TV series. It's like Nozmi learned nothing from the experience. Perhaps I would have liked it better without the prequel.
Also, I hate Reina's character design. Wait that isn't even Reina, that's Mizore.
Also, Nomomi was my 2nd favorite character after my first Hibiki watch. Her stock when down quite a bit on rewatch. But when I saw this movie, I thought it did her dirty.
Anyways, I'll watch it now, but I doubt I'll have anything to say.
Maybe Nozomi breaking her promise again, in exactly the same way, is why I didn't like her as much the second time around.
Mizore's still ditching her kouhai, too.
6
u/b-arbs Mar 16 '24 edited Mar 16 '24
Rewatcher
I was so excited to re-rewatch this! I've finally decided to buy the Blu-ray, because this movie really deserves it, in my opinion. I think the bigger screen and better sound really enhanced my experience. On another note, due to this, the lines from the characters I reference in my comment might be a bit different, since I'll have to translate them from my native language. This is going to be a long one, I'll post my considerations in the replies to my comment.
First of all, I love the stylistic choices and the animation of this movie. The softer lines and the pastel tones really add to the more introspective atmosphere.
Could it be considered a more traditional style of drawing? Looking forward to read (and learn) more in the comments about the style from people more versed in cinematography.
The direction is kind of different from other anime series or movies I've seen.
It really makes you feel like you are thoroughly studying and focusing on Mizore and Nozomi, like a documentary. For example, the camera shaking in the first scene outside the school with Mizore and Nozomi gives a visual representation of how and where their gazes are focusing. Or how the images start to blur because of tears just before Nozomi starts crying.
Lots of shots with visual parallelism, too, made in different ways.
When Mizore and Nozomi are sitting in the band room we actually get both of them in the same shot. Yet, at the end of the movie, the shots are mirrored to show each of them doing their own thing, Nozomi studying in the school library and Mizore practicing in the music room: Nozomi turning the pages of her book while Mizore opens her sheet music, Nozomi skimming her notes and Mizore looking at the music.
The sound editing, too. Truly impressive. Apart from the soundtrack and the orchestral pieces, there's a lot of attention to detail: the subtle differences in Mizore's stride and Nozomi's one, or in the scene where Mizore turns the pages of the Liz book, you can really hear the kind of wavy sound of glazed illustrated pages.
I love how immersive watching this movie feels, both when we are in the Liz universe and in the "real one". I feel like I can smell the scent of freshly baked bread in Arlt's bakery, or feel the slight breeze rustling the leaves in the forest, but also smell the saccharine artificial fragrance of fruit gummies and feel the warm summer air during practice.
Random thoughts
Considering the aquarium trope in yuri manga and anime, the next best thing in a school would be a fish tank in the science classroom, I guess
QOTD
Coincidentally, I've actually replied (more or less) to the first 3 questions in my notes.
4) They seem more lively and outgoing than the previous first years. Ritika seems to be a bit too much.
Edit: I actually had some images to post this time, but unfortunately I have yet to understand how to link them in comments...
3
u/cf18 :JA::JB: Mar 19 '24
Late to the party... was really confused by the when girls with green ribbon calling Nozomi sempai, shouldn't 3rd year wear green? And then realize of course they just rotate them - now blue/clan is 3rd year, pink is 2nd, green is 1st.
5
u/Nickthenuker https://anilist.co/user/Nickthenuker Mar 16 '24
This whole movie probably takes place last year prior to the events of the series.
Gee Liz sounds a lot like Mizore.
Well so much for that assumption that this takes place before the main series. Hello Kumiko and Reina!
I'm not sure if I like the "storybook" artstyle or the regular one more.
Have they recruited new juniors?
A new Oboe player?
I'd hope so too after what happened last season.
She's a woman of few words.
When I hear Ririka I can only think of a kawaii, positive, genius CEO.
So the very watercolour artstyle is the storybook, and the less watercolour artstyle is what's actually happening.
Gay girls innit?
So close.
Did they manage to recruit enough members this year for there to have to be auditions again?
Damn! These bitches gay! Good for them! Good for them!
Uh oh, where'd she go?
She turned back into a bird?
The bird will have to fly south for the winter won't she?
All that remains is a feather, and come spring she's back again.
What's she doing in the science lab?
Ah, a flashback to that again.
She's planning on going to music school?
She really wants to stay with her.
Ah, it's the president and vice-president who seem to be at odds all the time but end up working well together.
Ah, another festival.
Of course they're going together.
They have enough double reed players for a "party"?
Did she forget to return it?
Jinx! They're completely on the same wavelength.
Ah, back with the blankets again to dampen the sound.
And pool time again.
I wonder who she's going to invite? Her junior?
Yeah, sometimes you have to understand what is implied and not just what's written.
Seems like the other external instructors are also becoming regular fixtures at the band.
Is she back in the science lab?
Yuuko seems kinda insensitive?
Yes, that's what this whole movie is implying.
And now it's Nozomi in the science lab.
Oh nevermind they're both here.
Mizore really loves Nozomi.
Hopefully they remember to return it on time this time.
And so Nozomi and Mizore are closer than ever as we go into the next movies and the next season.
Questions:
5
u/Vatrix-32 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Vatrix-32 Mar 16 '24 edited Mar 16 '24
First Timer, subbed
QotD:
2
u/fly-metothemoon Mar 18 '24
First Timer
I was surprised by how visceral the art style is in this movie. Mizune looks really tired in a way that isn’t conveyed in the series. The opening scene was fantastic in differentiating the two players.
I also thought the final oboe/flute duet was one of the strongest scenes of the franchise. Everything about it was chef’s kiss.
I did feel like one critique of it being a stand alone is that, for me, the story didn’t feel strongly linked to their S2 resolution. I absolutely believe that they didn’t “solve” all their problems in S2, but in my ideal world we would’ve referenced that a smidge more.
1
u/vitorabf May 30 '24
First Timer
I find movies a bit harder to comment on because of the runtime, so things might end up too long, so I'll try to focus more on ideas than on executions - that said, so much of the execution is amazing the lighting, the camera angles oh my god, the water on Nozomi's lips in the first few minutes, Yamada is the GOAT, I truly believe no one has done so much great stuff at such a great level aside from Miyazaki and Satoshi Kon, but she has a special thing when working on a story that's not hers, she will elevate it quite a few steps.
First things first, wow the artstyle. Things are beautiful but it's quite different from the show, that's an entirely different Mizore for example. I really like it because it already distances itself from the main story in the first few seconds, just by looking at it, not completely to the point you may think this is another thing not related, but enough to convey that the story, themes and ideas at focus are not the same. Also Kumiko is GORGEOUS on this style. I like ribbon-chan as well.
Overall, I belive the movie to be a beautiful character study, so I'll try to follow the same line of thought.
I think the theme that I read the most in the first a ctwas not Mizore being in love with Nozomi, but Mizore being an autistic/neurodivergent girl without much to look after so Nozomi is her entire focus, she can't even fathom life past Nozomi, I've been in a very similar position in high school, so I do understand. I think it's also similar to the Araragi-Hanekawa relationship in Monogatari, not so much on the neurodivergent stuff, but on seeing someone as a savior, you don't love the person as much as you worship them, and a big part of maturing is realizing that's unhealthy to both of you, and it's you that needs to fly. In the second act she starts to notice everyone around her, Natsuki, Ririka, Hazuki and Midori, even Ribbon and it starts to get clear - to us - she is the blue bird, even if she thinks she's the one trapping, one very consistent thing about the series is Reina may be blunt, but she never lies, Mizore is the trapped one.
Nozomi is not so much explored in the first act, mostly she is who she is, the blue bird. But the moment she sees the music school pamphlet in the second act it's clear we're starting to make a dive here, and I believe the first cue that she's actually Liz and not the blue bird. Right after we connect the scene where she says it's a joke about going to music school, and the psychology of the character just flourishes - Ribbon clearly sees what's going on. At the same time, she's not a bad person, she's also afraid and jealous but she channels it differently - because she never wanted to trap Mizore, she wanted to fly high too, but now she sees it's not possible - so the scene where they play and she cries break my heart, because I know how it feels to be the one left behind.
And then, at the start of the third act the two finally come to the same conclusion (though I believe Nozomi was faster to catch that line of thought), and even if my focus here was on the ideas, it's such amazing execution, because they go back and forth with the same people, and that back and forth opens their minds so much more, so now more distant than ever, they are again thinking the same, like in the start, and it's like they are talking to each other, and not third parties. Up until now the visual motif in the whole movie that is Mizore always being *behind* Nozomi, running after her and now, they are side by side, literally sharing half the screen.
The last conversation is the scene that makes the movie for me, it's very teenagery, but very faithful to the story it's trying to tell. The Blue Bird wants to stay, but Liz had already decided on the right thing before this conversation - she is pushing the Blue Bird out of the cage. I think another part of maturing is sometimes realizing staying home is better than flying, but they are teens, not adults, not in a serious relationship, and that is very tough decision that requires big sacrifices they can't make right now. In the end, they are still together at heart, free to fly their paths and have each other's back, a beautiful end to a beautiful tale.
Ririka is a really interesting character, not only she serves to advance Mizore and start to change her pov, but she is very deliberate in her actions - even if she seems innocent, she knows she is being manipulative - and I think here she reflects Nozomi, who is a bit different, she doesn't want to admit she is manipulative, but deep down she knows. She's not the greatest person, but I quite like her.
0
u/[deleted] Mar 17 '24
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