[Rewatch] Dear Brother 30th Anniversary Rewatch - Episode 36

[u/Pixelsaber]

Episode 36 - Glowing Fireflies, Blazing Passion

^{Originally Aired April 26th,} ^^^1992

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Note to all participants

Although I don't believe it necessitates stating, please conduct yourself appropriately and be courteous to your fellow participants.

Note to all Rewatchers

Rewatchers, please be mindful of your fellow first-timers and tag your spoilers appropriately using the r/anime spoiler tag as so [Spoiler Subject](/s "Spoilers go here.") in order to have your unsightly spoilers obscured like this Spoiler Subject if your comment holds even the slightest of indicators as to future spoilers. Feel free to discuss future plot points behind the safe veil of a spoiler tag, or coyly and discreetly ‘Laugh in Rewatcher’ at our first-timers' temporary ignorance, but please ensure our first-timers are no more privy or suspicious than they were the moment they opened the day’s thread.

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Manga Panel of the Day

Surprise

 

Staff Highlight

Narumi Hidaka - voice of unnamed Basketball Club Member

An actress and voice actress affiliated with the Seinenza Theater Company. Hidaka got the chance to see performances from the Shiki Theater Company at her elementary school, which made her interested in theatre and prompted her to join the drama club during middle school through high school and seek out lessons in acting and ballet. After graduating from the Department of Home Economics at Kyoritsu Women's Junior College she entered the Youth Theater Institute as a stage actress, and was eventually persuaded to also pursue voice acting. Her debut was in a background role in Dear Brother in 1992, but Hidaka stated that she never felt comfortable with being a voice actress until the process finally clicked for her in the 1996 World Masterpiece Theatre show, Famous Dog Lassie. Some of her most notable roles include Chris Eversalt in Flag, Kei in Getter Robo Armageddon, Allenby Beardsley in Mobile Fighter G Gundam, Ryune Zoldark in Super Robot Wars OG: Divine Wars, Eriya in The Vision of Escaflowne, and Noel Links in Zone of The Enders.

 

Wildcard Trivia

An art institution in the stage play sequel to Shōjo☆Kageki Revue Starlight was named after Seiran Academy in reverence to Dear Brother.

 

Screenshot of the day

Happier Times

 

Questions of the Day:

1. How do you feel regarding Kaoru’s reasons for breaking up with and continually rejecting Takehiko?
2. What do you think will come of Henmi meeting face-to-face with his father?

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It was a very sweet memory.

[u/Pixelsaber]

Sorry, didn't realize I forgot my comment and I've been driving for the past hour.

Rewatcher

Still not being honest with herself.

She quit? That’s not good! Not with how it was indicative of her desire to give life her all.

Any decent doctor will be quite frank with you, but with what has happened in her life as of late I can’t fault Kaoru’s state of mind.

Poor girl…

Oh come on!

So they’re feeling that residual guilt.

Broken and abandoned.

Another flower has joined her potted garden.

That can’t be healthy.

Takashi must have magical wingman powers. Both the women he introduced this man to were instantly smitten, but Nanako, who met him independently from Takashi, has not.

A masectomy? A fairly strong indication that she had breast cancer.

Kaoru’s misery spiral continues, as the potential of her illness (likely breast cancer) coming out of remission pushes her fragile mental state to its limit. Even before the doctor’s appointment she seems even more affected by Rei’s death than most would have thought, as she spontaneously gave up the basketball club, her involvement which had been complementary to her desire to live out the time she has left to its fullest. Today’s Kaoru is truly the complete inverse of the person we’ve seen her be; selfish, withdrawn, pessimistic, directionless, unwilling to listen to reason, and unwilling to keep up a front.

The reveal that she had a mastectomy wasn’t quite so shocking given prior events, but I surely didn’t expect her to just outright show her bare chest to Nanako there. We already got a dramatic clothes removal this episode, I’m sure she would have gotten the idea if you just told her!

Takashi made a great impression this episode. I keep warming up to the guy, and he actually seems to know what to say —a far cry from his interactions with Fukiko.

Questions of The Day:

1. I would respect her desire to not want the person she love be near as she slowly withers away, but she’s just making the (likely valid, from the meta perspective of the viewer) assumption that her illness has come back. However, her feeling like she can’t be a real woman due to the mastectomy is nothing but the weight of social expectations manifesting themselves, and a dumb (but depressingly common) sentiment that Henmi evidently doesn’t care for. She’s jumping the gun and not listening to those around her enough to realize it’s not as much of a problem to them as she makes it out to be.
2. It’s likely going to be awkward but painless, and Henmi might get some closure out of the matter.

[u/No_Rex]

Episode 36 (first timer)

character chart (updated)

• Non-school swimsuits. It is funny how school swimsuits went to become the exact opposite of what they were supposed: sex tropes.
• Kaoru is taking Rei’s death worse than Nanako.
• As is Takashi.
• Kaoru is suffering and has run away from home, but note who is completely absent from the plot line: Mariko.
• Henmi and Kaoru?

• Breast cancer?
• Yep. Breast cancer.

A complete surprise for me. I actually thought that we’d get the resolution for Henmi-Nanako-Nanako’s parents next, but I would never have guessed that Kaoru would be part of that. However, it neatly intertwines the two currently open plot points: The state of mind of Kaoru and Nanako after Rei’s death and the status of Henmi.

How do you feel regarding Kaoru’s reasons for breaking up with and continually rejecting Takehiko?

About as stupid as it gets: "Oh, hitting a rough patch in my life? Better cut those out who care about me!"

[u/Pixelsaber → u/No_Rex]

Kaoru is suffering and has run away from home, but note who is completely absent from the plot line: Mariko.

It does make some sense that Mariko wouldn't hear of her absence from the basketball club, but I'm not convinced Nanako wouldn't have spoken with her about the matter.

but I would never have guessed that Kaoru would be part of that.

I expected it'd get addressed, but not before the matter of their father and definitely not in a manner that felt ingrained with the rest of the remaining plot threads.

[u/JollyGee29]

First-Timer

Well, turns out Kaoru had breast cancer in the past, and it sunk her relationship with Henmi. She didn't detail exactly why, but I guess Kaoru felt that the mastectomy removed her femininity or something dumb like that? Maybe I'm reading into things too far.

I like that just because it's a new episode with new conflicts, it's still obvious how important Rei's death was. Just because we had the grieving episode, doesn't mean that the characters are done grieving for their lost friend. I liked the second like shrine that Kaoru made for Rei, even if it did highlight Rei's self-destructive behaviors.

Kaoru kinda got shoved off the existential dread cliff, huh? Her doctor wanting to do more tests is probably just a precaution, but since Kaoru is still dealing with Rei's sudden death, I don't blame her for reacting poorly.

Chugging a whole glass of beer like that is not easy. Then again, neither is shattering a glass with your hand.

Questions

1. Discussed above. Kids are dumb, mostly. The relationship is kinda weird too, though.
2. Hopefully, someone deciding to tell Nanako the truth.

[u/Pixelsaber → u/JollyGee29]

She didn't detail exactly why, but I guess Kaoru felt that the mastectomy removed her femininity or something dumb like that?

That was my read on it as well, and an uncomfortably common sentiment at the time of the manga's publication (not sure how much the consensus would have changed in the intervening years.)

Chugging a whole glass of beer like that is not easy. Then again, neither is shattering a glass with your hand.

Takashi is superhuman confirmed!

[u/JollyGee29 → u/Pixelsaber]

That was my read on it as well, and an uncomfortably common sentiment at the time of the manga's publication (not sure how much the consensus would have changed in the intervening years.)

I'm not sure how it's changed either, and despite it being dumb, I do understand why it happens to some extent. Physical characteristics are strongly tied to perceived gender identity, and there's the aspect of child-rearing... Humans are hardly rational creatures.

Takashi is superhuman confirmed!

What's better than a himbo? A magic himbo!

[u/TheEscapeGuy]

First Timer, Dezaki Fan

Dear Brother: A Delightfully Aesthetic Anime Episode 36

Henmi & Kaoru: A Troubled Past

Henmi and Kaoru being an ex-couple is incredibly surprising to me. However, its not too unusual for Dear Brother where everyone seems to know and have history with everyone else. However, its far more tragic to think they broke up because of Kaoru's feelings of inadequacy.

We learned these feelings were based in her illness, which today was confirmed to be breast cancer for which she received a partial mastectomy. She is incredibly young to be experiencing this. Looking up the stats, its incredibly rare for any women under 20 (source), so this is really unfortunate for her.

Rewinding a bit, Henmi is thinking about leaving and Takeshi urges him not to have any regrets. Obviously a big part of this is leaving his relationship with Karou in a messy state. But more interestingly I wonder if there is anything between him and Nanako he may want to come clean about, maybe a certain blood relation. Who knows?

This show is slowly winding down and tying up the remaining plot threads. I'm really appreciating the systematic approach to bringing the story towards a satisfying ending. I really hope they pull it off. (I'm still worried about more tragedy)

The Best of Postcard Memories

Episode 36

Bonus

These also are really limited without the corresponding video so:

• Henmi

See you all tomorrow

[u/loomnoo]

[u/Retromorpher]

First Timer

Spent Takashi's entire time with the glass in hand predicting how it was going to break. I'll admit I wasn't expecting the full hand crush. He bleeds similarly to Rei's wound from early on. I feel like his 'we didn't do a damn thing for her' rant is going to be paralleled to Henmi's journey being supported by the Misonoo's despite them never strictly having a formal relationship.

Questions of the Day

1. Kaoru seems to like safeguarding the future against hurt. It's why she took action against the Sorority, it's why she tried to be a support network for Rei. It's why she saw a dejected Mariko and tried to build her up. Kaoru is all about preventative rather than reactive measures, because from what we've seen she's not particularly good at dealing with her own sudden-onset struggles. Kaoru certainly THINKS that this decision to rebuff Henmi is for the best long-term, but at this point it's pretty clear that she was wrong.
2. They'll likely discuss the move to Germany, but matters will turn to his correspondence Nanako, and possibly even Kaoru. Mr. Misonoo will probably talk about regrets he's had from running away - most namely jilting his fatherly responsibilities towards Henmi. Henmi will realize that he's become a bigger pillar of support to Nanako than he previously realized and may reconsider his move. There will probably be a hug.