So this post is going to be an interesting one. The Tatami Galaxy holds a very special place in my heart. I first watched this show at the end of my senior year of high school. This show, if you aren’t familiar, is about a junior in college, unnamed, who is dissatisfied with his current life. As a result, in each episode, he rewinds back the clock to the start of his college career. And, in each episode, he chooses a different club to be a part of, hoping to find the “rose-colored” college experience that he’s been missing out on. However, at the end of each episode, he realizes he’s still dissatisfied and rewinds the clock back again.
The reason why I found this show important on first viewing is because it gave me, I think, insight into many different things. First, the majority of the anime that I had been watching at the time had primarily been shounen, such as FMA, Hunter x Hunter 2011, and One Piece. And, the Tatami Galaxy was one of my first anime shows that I watched that branched out of that genre. Watching this “art-house” style anime is really what got me interested in cinematography, art, and framing. This show has definitely played a large role in defining my current tastes. Second, this show gave me, what I thought at the time, was an insight into what it was like to be in college.
Watching this show now, with the experience that I’ve gained, has put the show in a completely different context. I would posit that I wasn’t truly ready to watch this show, nor is anyone, until they’ve gone through college. Until you’ve gone through that unique life experience, it’s pretty impossible to understand the angst that the protagonist is feeling. This show is all about his inner-thoughts, and I felt like the show rang so much truer to me on a second watch.
In short, the thesis of this show is that there is no rose-colored college life that you are seeking. The rose-colored life is what you have right now, so take the opportunity dangling right in front of you. Seize upon it and don’t look back and regret. This might seem like a fairly obvious point to some, but my understanding of this has totally changed now that I’ve been through the trials of being dropped off on a campus, far away from home, not knowing your place yet.
So, let’s talk more about the show specifically. I think I’ll just give a few very brief notes on each episode.
Episode 1: This is a great introduction to the show. Highlights include the the firework scene at the bridge, Ozu and Watashi getting dinner, the master and Watashi’s conversation at the Neko Ramen stand, and Ozu and Watashi jumping off the bridge in the end. It can be hard to first watch this show because the dialogue is moving a million miles an hour, but if you can keep up you will be rewarded. Also, pay attention to the small details in this episode because everything will be called back.
Episode 2: This is an okay episode. I really enjoyed the film exposing Jogasaki. That’s when I realized that this show, in the end, is actually a comedy. It’s hilarious. I mean… the boob rock climbing wall… that shit’s gold.
Episode 3: This was also an okay episode in my opinion. This is when we start to see the characters in multiple contexts, like Akashi and Ozu, so we’re starting to get a better sense of them. It’s also become very clear at this point that Watashi should make a move on Akashi. Everyone can see it, but him. My favorite line from this episode: “Manami… what the hell… it’s just an old bike!”
Episode 4: Oh, I really don’t like this episode. I don’t think it’s bad, and it’s probably a pretty necessary episode because it gives us a much better sense of the master and changes the pace of the show. We also learn about his relationship to Hanuki and Jogasaki. However, the change of pace of this episode might be necessary. Everything in this show is super fast, and the slow place nature of this episode makes it stand out. It’s very meditative.
Episode 5: Oh wow, one of my favorite episodes. I feel like there is so much that happens here. First joining the softball club, then getting involved in a pyramid-scheme cult, going to the cult headquarters, and then escaping with Ozu. This episode is also one of my favorites in terms of visuals. It is a feast for the eyes. This episode also ties very well into the overall plot of the show, which is revealed to us later in the show.
Episode 6: This is also a great episode. The english is kind of painful to listen to, but the entire episode is completely worth it because it gives us Johnny. Yes, Johnny. The cowboy manifestation of Watashi’s libido. If that sentence sounds weird to you, I can only assure you that the episode explains all. Watashi’s sexual hang ups are interesting to watch, and this is also the start of a three part series involving three different woman. I really like this three-part act inserted in the middle of show. I think it mixes up the formula that’s been presented to us and does a good job showing what its like to pursue relationships in college. It’s hard!
Episode 7: Also a pretty good episode. I honestly don’t have too much to say about it. Does that make it a bad episode?
Episode 8: Same thing with this one. The idea that Keiko is actually Ozu was not very surprising.
Episode 9: Okay, so this is a very interesting episode. I don’t think it really does too much in a thematic sense, but I think it does a really good job of putting the entire plot in context. We understand that these clubs are all connected, that they’re basically being run by Ozu, and that he’s doing it all for his girlfriend. This is actually very important because now everything makes sense for this show! Plot-wise at least. In terms of thematics… well… that’ll be what the next two episodes are about.
Episode 10: This is an amazing episode. In fact, it’s my second favorite episode of the entire show, and you can probably guess which one will be my favorite. The way this episode starts though… With Watashi locked in his room, observing everything in his room. In some brilliant stroke of good directing, Masaaki Yuasa decided to frame Watashi’s description of his room in underwater, almost aquarium like setting. The feeling that it provokes is surreal. As the main character finds himself trapped in his own room, it is so fascinating to watch his mind at work. At first, loving it. Then, having it drive him quickly insane. After going through so many rooms, he realizes something brilliant, which ties the entire show together. All of these rooms are the past lives that he’s lived in the previous episodes. He realizes that while they weren’t perfect, it really seemed like those versions of him were really enjoying themselves. There it is. The thematic wrapping of this show. But wait, there’s more.
Episode 11: This episode is my favorite episode of television of all time. Better than that one Breaking Bad episode. Or that incredibly overrated Blackwater invasion episode in Game of Thrones. Better than any episode of Twin Peaks. This is the episode where Watashi returns back to his room and realizes that the only way out of this psychological prison that he’s created for himself is to seize the opportunity right in front of him. He grabs the mochiguman that’s been dangling in his room, on the light, during the entire show. A swarm of moths overtakes him, and Watashi is finally let out of his room. Running towards the festival, he goes to save Ozu, in the situation that we found him in episode 1, and then, half naked, he finally asks Akashi out to Neko Ramen. My heart.
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