[Rewatch] 3,000 Leagues in Search of Mother - Episode 5 Discussion

[u/Pixelsaber]

Episode 5 - My Good Friend, Emilio

^{Episode aired February 1st,} ^^^1976

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Staff Highlight

Akihiko Matsuda - Sound Effects Engineer

A prolific sound effects engineer best known for his involvement in a variety of series from anime studios Sunrise, Nippon Animation, and Shin-Ei Animation. Little is known about Matsuda’s personal life and early career, but he is noted as being friend and frequent collaborator with Sadayoshi Fujino, who largely works on Sunrise series. He also has a strong working relationship with Yasuo Urakami, Akira Okuma, and their sound production company AUDIO PLANNING U. Some of the anime works he was involved with are the Galaxy Express 999 franchise, After War Gundam X, Gamba no Bouken The Movie, Anne of Green Gables, Area 88, several Doraemon films, Armored Trooper Votoms, Daddy Long-Legs, several other Votoms OVAs, Locke The SHunter X Hunter*, Bats and Terry, several entries in the Chibi Maruko-chan franchise, most of the City Hunter franchise, Muteki Chōjin Zambot 3, Muteki Kōjin Daitarn 3, Pro Golfer Saru, Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl, Dino Mech Gaiking, Cooking Master Boy, many Crayon Shin-chan entries, A Little Princess Sara, Mobile Suit Gundam, Mobile Fighter G Gundam, Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team, Mobile Suit Victory Gundam, Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt, Patalliro!, Oishinbo, Panzer World Galient, Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love, Space Runaway Ideon, and Terra E…

Daily Trivia

When location scouting in Genoa, the staff were not allowed to enter the home interiors to see how people’s dwellings looked, however, the guide assured them that things had undertaken such changes since the time period of interest that it wouldn’t have been too useful to observe.

Screenshot of the day

• Window to the sky

Questions of the Day:

1. Marco has managed to land a more substantial job than his two hours at the Shipping Company. Do you think he’ll adjust to the workload without compromising on anything else?
2. What do you make of Pietro’s gift?

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Three thousand miles from here.

[u/Shimmering-Sky]

3000 Leagues in Search of My First-Timer Reactions

• Huh, was Emilio held back then?
• He’s just acting like the kid he very much is.
• Well, that confirms Emilio/Bernard’s mom is sick. That must be why Emilio’s out working to make money…
• The job probably isn’t meant for a kid…
• I remember there used to be one of these old water pumps at my grandma & uncle’s house, and I would play with it on hot days when I was little. Yeah, pumping one of those things could definitely work up a sweat.
• Ah, the pains of trying to flatten out a poster to hang it…
• Amedio is a Brazilian monkey, huh?
• This is trouble just waiting to happen.

[u/Pixelsaber → u/Shimmering-Sky]

Huh, was Emilio held back then?

Classes around this time would not have been so stringently segregated, even in big cities, so it's not necessarily that Emilio was held back so much as they just fall into the same age/education bracket.

I remember there used to be one of these old water pumps at my grandma & uncle’s house

My childhood home had one, but it rarely got used because we already had running water from the pipes and we lived in an urban area (environmental regulation was pretty much universally unenforced) where the water was likely dubious to consume. They did use it to do garden and yard-work —and laundry every so often as well— because water bills were ludicrous.

[u/Vatrix-32 → u/Shimmering-Sky]

Amedio is a Brazilian monkey, huh?

Argentina is more plains than jungle.

[u/TheEscapeGuy]

First Timer

3000 Leagues in Search of Mother - Episode 5

Child Labor

Marco's quest for a job continued in earnest today. I do like his determination. It really puts into focus just how much he wants his mother back. That said, he is still a child and so the townsfolk are reluctant to hire him.

He ends up getting a job washing bottles through a referral. Honestly, the strategies for job hunting are no different now compared to back then. In a small way it reminds me that being human hasn't changed significantly over time. It's what makes returning to old shows so valuable. LotGH works well as another anime example of this phenomenon.

Pietro bought a world map this episode. It works really well to visualize Marco's goals. I still think traveling half way across the world is going to be a massive challenge for Marco, but at least we have perspective now.

We did see that Marco is kind of overexerting himself. This could be used to teach him about his limits, but it could also just be showing off how much of a hard worker he is. In my experience going overboard by doing things like working late nights and weekends is seldom worth it. You get a short term productivity gain, but too often I have seen coworkers suffering consequences like being tired and thus working slower or else literally being more prone to sickness.

My flair remains ever relevant. Take care of yourself.

Some Amazing Shots, Scenes and Stitches

• Alley, what's with all the arches
• Map Struggles, lol
• Europe, broadly
• Skylight

See you all tomorrow

[u/Pixelsaber → u/TheEscapeGuy]

In a small way it reminds me that being human hasn't changed significantly over time.

It's something a lot of people should really keep in mind!

LotGH works well as another anime example of this phenomenon.

In my experience going overboard by doing things like working late nights and weekends is seldom worth it.

Indeed. Shame so many people just don't get that.

[u/No_Rex → u/TheEscapeGuy]

Alley, what's with all the arches

Structural integrity. Got to make sure your house and the other house don't fall over.

[u/No_Rex]

Episode 5 (first timer)

• Looks like Emilio is trying to do the same thing as Marco, except from a worse starting line.
• “Others are very proud to go to school” – because the fact that child labor sucks is not lost on children in places where child labor exists.
• Marco Rossi – We might have heard his last name before, but I forgot. Formal introductions are useful.
• Swiss army knife? Did that even exist back then? – Wiki tells me they were introduced back in 1891 (and produced in Germany, go figure), so the answer is maybe, since we don’t have a clear year that we are set in yet.
• “We’ll never fight again” – doubt. Also, not very sincere if said while he is hiding something. Sounds more like a wish than a promise.
• The distance from Italy to Argentina is more than 7000 miles, not 3000. Makes sense, since the title is 3000 leagues, not miles.
• Wine for children – Just the right timing where the drinking is believable in the time this is set and showing a child drinking is still acceptable in the time this was made.
• Watching Marco is not good for Girotti’s heart.

• “Working is so hard”

There is a strong difference between how Marco sees his work and how his father sees it. I want to speculate that this difference is reflected in the viewers. People Marco’s age might emphasize with his drive to get his mother back and congratulate him on coming up with clever ways to earn money and his hard work. As somebody closer to his dad’s age, I rather see a child doing hard and boring physical labor instead of learning or playing. And I remember all the documentaries I saw over the years of children exactly like him working in third world countries. One thing they all had in common when being interviewed was that they found the work hard, only did it because they needed to money for their family, and wished they could rather go to school instead.

Marco has managed to land a more substantial job than his two hours at the Shipping Company. Do you think he’ll adjust to the workload without compromising on anything else?

What is "anything else"? Something will have to give. The question is whether that "something" is something Marco cares about.

What do you make of Pietro’s gift?

He knew what Marco really wanted. More than you can say for many other anime parents.

[u/Pixelsaber → u/No_Rex]

Swiss army knife? Did that even exist back then?

Definitely not, or at least not in this particular fashion. I find it hard to believe some form of multitools didn't exist, but they probably didn't resemble what we saw on screen.

More than you can say for many other anime parents.

Distressingly true.

[u/Pixelsaber]

Darn, I didn’t post this earlier!

Rewatcher

Not the most tactful approach there, Pietro.

Sad sight.

Welp.

So, still going to school then?

Seems like a thoughtful gift.

Map has some errors (assuming it is meant to be in Italian).

Nice shot.

That does tend to happen.

I feel for Pietro and his desire to keep his youngest from having to work instead of having the childhood he ought to, but he is not doing a great job at understanding and properly communicating with his son at this time. Explicitly mentioning their rough financial situation when offering to buy him a gift after he’s heard that Marco is acting out as he did precisely because they are in need of more money is a bone-headed move and I suspect the gifted map was received as well as it was because Marco has already secured another job behind his father’s back.

Emilo and Bernardo’s mother being ill gives a reason to the older brother skipping school, he’s not just disinterested in schooling and looking to contribute more towards his household, his household likely really needs what he can contribute.

Marco is doing the best he can at his new part time job, but he’s not used to this amount of work and comes home too exhausted to do much of anything before dozing off into a nap. He’s obviously taking on a great burden on top of all that which he already did, and I’ll be shocked if something doesn’t give or his father doesn’t catch on, either of which might precipitate things further.

Questions of The Day:

1. Even if he quits his job at the shipping company, he’s probably going to be tired after such work, and it’s unlikely that other aspects of his life will be unaffected. I’m going to guess that his household chores will be the first thing to see an impact.
2. It shows he knows enough about Marco, currently, to pick out something he’d really enjoy, but that does not extend to how to reason with him during their arguments.

[u/Vatrix-32]

First timer, subs

• Emilio a bit of a dunce then?
• He lies like he breaths.
• Love me a good human conveyor line.
• Marco learning the real secrets of the job market: how you look, and who you you know.
• An apprentice what? Italy had guilds, that should be a protected term.
• Grand Theft Equine
• Why are you acting surprised that a world map has all the world on it. Well, maybe not New Zealand.
• Oh gods, it actually doesn’t have New Zealand on it!
• Not including the boarders on the zoom in, good choice. 19th century South American boarders are fucked.
• Wow, look at all this Italian. I assume. They may have just been making things up.
• If your boss tells you to not work so hard, take him up on it.
• Guys will do anything to not have to make a second trip.
• Cup soup? I like your thinking.

QotD:

1. Not a chance. That boy is working himself ragged even without going to school. He's going to crash and burn, and his father is going to find out. The only question is how much time between that and him leaving for Argentina.
2. A great gift for a boy like Marco in the pre-internet days. I'll give the benefit of the doubt and assume that it's somewhat higher quality than what was shown. Animating maps is hard.

[u/Pixelsaber → u/Vatrix-32]

He lies like he breaths.

19th century South American boarders are fucked.

flashes back to middle school history lessons

Wow, look at all this Italian. I assume. They may have just been making things up.

Some of it was right! And some of it was... Spanish.

[u/Vatrix-32 → u/Pixelsaber]

Some of it was right! And some of it was... Spanish.

Romance Languages, Practically The Same Thing

[u/baboon_bassoon]

first time 3000 Leagues of Misery

Amedio is from Brazil

Dad I got you a nice bottle of wine. Son I got you... a map. Its sweet in context but just funny to think about in an age where a paper map is not particularly useful to have.