Anime: Kuuchuu Buranko

Jan 16, 2015 12:37 PM

danz

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Jan 2009

736

This thread is for the discussion of Kuuchuu Buranko.

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mosaic_Feb 6, 2015 2:08 PM

Jan 16, 2015 12:56 PM

eririri

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Oct 2012

214

adhdboys> kuuchuu buranko is the shit
mosaic> ^

Jan 22, 2015 9:58 PM

Adam_R

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Apr 2011

615

It feels a bit gimmicky and repetitive. The sexy nurse and the doctor who pops up to explain everything were funny in the first 2-3 episodes, but don't add anything to the series after a while. Dr. Fuji or whoever explains things that even virtually everyone who has never taken a psychology course would understand.

Also, if I remember right (it's been a while), the doctor might have repeated some of his explanations. I'm not sure we needed 3-4 explanations about what ADD is. The presentation is really gaudy, with live-action bits all over the place. The show doesn't have a sense of flow, because the nurse, doctor, and live-action stuff grind the series to a halt. The whole thing just doesn't move as naturally as you'd hope. When there's artsy arthouse visuals, I'd hope they work with the flow of an anime, not against it.

This is a pretty good character study. The character development is solid, and way everything ties together is nice. Some of the humor was funny. Still, some aspects go a bit too far.

Adam_RJan 22, 2015 10:03 PM

Jan 24, 2015 8:44 AM

eririri

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Oct 2012

214

The nurse's importance is often understated because of her explicit fanservice scenes and comparatively subtle characterization. The first few episodes present her only as eye candy, so I guess some people simply takes her at that face value for the later episodes as well. She starts to show her more human side a few episodes in, such as when she suggests the novelist to write novels with more substance.

Her most important moments are in the final episode where she appears alongside the symbolic canaries, prompting the viewers to consider her as a human and reconsider her past scenes. She is a human being with her own feelings and motives behind each action. She, just like everyone else, quietly and subtly supports others in her own way from the background. Also worth mentioning is that the nurse is the only character completely animated using live-action techniques, so she's in a way the most human character in the series. She can be seen as a sort of contrast or foil to the doctor, who is less of a human/character and more of a set of ideas or a concept.

I wrote a review on Kuuchuu Buranko, so might as well paste it here:
Do others truly know you? Do you lay bare your mind, yours deepest secrets confide? Can you dive into other’s minds and see the world through their eyes? Do you notice the chirping canaries that fly by your side?

Psychiatry deals with incredibly grave issues. Perhaps triggered by a past trauma, perhaps by the insufferable present; patients find themselves unable to cope with their daily lives. This gravity is what makes the eccentric Irabu Ichiro, certified psychiatrist, so bewildering a character. Accompanied by his seductive nurse Mayumi, he runs a psychiatric ward visited by people suffering from various mental disorders and are in need of consultation and treatment. The deceptively simple premise of Kuuchuu Buranko lays the groundwork for an extraordinary exploration of human mind and society.

As Kuuchuu Buranko starts playing, the first thing to catch people’s eyes is probably its distinctive artistic style, employing a mixture of animated art, live-action, and rotoscopy. The colours are vibrant and lively; abstract patterns overlaying various background objects work in conjunction with the palette to surround the viewers in a vivid ambience. As result, the atmosphere straddles the line between real and surreal. Far from a superficial attempt at adding to the psychological tone of the series, the unique style is appropriate for an investigation of the human psyche where reality mingles with imagination. The bizarreness does not move out of line: the realistic character designs and the sincerity of the stories both serve to ground the show in reality. The human mind can be an alien place, but the problems it may cause are nonetheless real.

Being an episode anime, each episode deals with a patient and a disorder. While the patients who consult doctor Irabu often display exaggerated traits or disorders, these are reflective of universal problems present in the general public. Insight into the viewer’s mind follows alongside the presentation and development of the character’s stories. Kuuchuu Buranko does not take the disorders lightly; they lead to predicaments of real severity as they do in reality. Yet, the comical depiction of the disorders give the viewers a laid-back and sometimes ironic view of the traits that they themselves often display to a milder degree. The seemingly detached standpoint on the veritably personal problems stresses the importance of perspective in psychiatry. Each episode ends on an uplifting note, but is not blindly optimistic as the disorders are not always cured. It is rather the outlook on the problems that change by the end of each episode. The psyche is shown as the dynamic and flexible being that it is

Much of the themes of Kuuchuu Buranko are perhaps best embodied by Dr Irabu himself, who constantly shifts forms between a patched-up teddybear, a young adult, and a child. At times eccentric, other times indifferent, each persona is characterised by a distinctive personality. He also seems to be capable of appearing at any place and time. As the only character without a realistic face, he can be seen more as a concept which drives the show’s characters and themes forward. In psychiatry, the source of the cure is always the patient, whereas doctors and drugs merely facilitate the patient’s self-discovery. Operating completely at his own whims and without regard to medical ethics, Irabu illustrates the importance of personalized and adaptive care instead of systematic approaches on patient treatment.

While the doctor is both entertaining and thematically dense, the real highlight of Kuuchuu Buranko is the rest of its cast. With the primary focus being characterization rather than plot progression, the patients show significant depth and development despite each being cast in only a single episode. Each episode takes a widespread problem, condenses it into a character, slowly provides perspective and insight into the problem, and ends on an immensely satisfying manner be it conclusive or not. Take episode ten, for example, in which a sentimental businessman struggles to relive his youth through his sense of duty and vehement patriotism. Rather than dealing solely with the often deceptive notion of youth, pride and strength, it also discusses the mismatch between the self we conceive and others’ conception of us. The issues dealt with are usually far broader than is apparent but do not suffer from the superficiality commonly resulting from broadness, due to the depth and effectiveness with which the specific issues are presented and developed. Kuuchuu Buranko is powerful because it knows us.

You don’t see the world as everyone else do. Every person has their own problems and imperfections. Even the nurse Mayumi, who seemingly exist solely for sexual gratification, is a human being with her own feelings and motives behind each action. She, just like everyone else, quietly and subtly supports others in her own way from the background. Without trying to truly understand and empathise with those around us, we will never see beyond face value. Do you, my friend, notice the chirping canaries that fly by your side?

Jan 26, 2015 5:49 PM

Excelsior

Offline

Sep 2007

655

I had a particular issue with a crucial symbol in the last episode (and I'm throwing this out here because I'm still thinking over said issue myself)-- I found aspects of the canary metaphor in the final episode kinda off-putting or uncomfortable or questionable? The canary metaphor had two implications that I thought were questionable: firstly, the implication that mental illness purely arises from the environment/social factors and, secondly, that mental illness is a "poison." It's not like I'm knowledgeable about this sort of stuff though, so I was wondering what everyone else thought about it?

ExcelsiorJan 26, 2015 11:36 PM

Jan 27, 2015 3:32 PM

eririri

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Oct 2012

214

It's been a while since I watched that episode, but wasn't the canary merely injured and not poisoned? But poison would also be a good metaphor for mental illness since they're both insidious and crippling.

I don't understand your first claim; how do canaries imply "that mental illness purely arises from the environment/social factors"? Also, I don't think the underlying scientific cause of mental illnesses is of any relevance to the show.

In addition to reflecting the father's mental state and his relationship with his son, the canaries in the final episode also embody the central message of the show. Nobody is perfect, and one needs to look beyond what others show on the surface and take their problems into consideration. It's easy to miss others' troubles and their subtle hints of them, just as how it's easy to miss the canaries which fly by. In the final scene of the show, a canary sits on the patient's chair. I see this as saying that everyone around you is a canary until you really consider his/her feelings.

If you rewatched the previous episodes with that in mind you would probably notice a lot more canaries than you remember, and those can be associated with more abstract and debatable meanings like change and freedom and whatnot, but that's discussion for another day.

Jan 27, 2015 4:22 PM

Excelsior

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Sep 2007

655

I think you're forgetting the full extent of the metaphor in the final episode; the protagonist explains to the doctor that canaries were used in coal mines to fulfill a dangerous duty-- the canaries would enter the mines and, if the mines were full of poisonous gases, they would die, thus warning the miners. I interpreted that as the poisonous gases being the external pressures of society, personal hardships, or just the personal anxieties that were pushed to the extremes, leading to their mental illnesses, which is different than how I wrote it in the first post, looking back. It's a strange metaphor anyways. Are the "canaries" supposed to warn the "miners," or, people without mental illnesses, about the dangers of letting one's anxieties and personal fears overwhelm you? To basically use people with mental illnesses as a cautionary tale? And isn't that a pretty simplistic and cynical view of mental illness and how it relates tot he people it affects? It's definitely a metaphor that made me cock my head when I saw that final episode.

And no, I disagree-- what the show posits to be the underlying causes of mental illnesses is very important to the show. It's a show about mental illnesses after all. Whatever the show puts forward, including its beliefs in what the causes of mental illnesses are, is up for scrutiny. But, this is also why I emphasized my lack of knowledge in this area, although, from my understanding, mental illnesses can be genetic.

Mmmm. I dunno, maybe you're right wrt poison being a fitting metaphor for mental illness. I guess it just felt questionable to me to equate the two. The more I type the more out-of-my-element I feel; it's not like the topic directly affects me and it's not like I'm very knowledgeable about it so yeah

Jan 27, 2015 5:59 PM

eririri

Offline

Oct 2012

214

I actually did completely forget about the miners part; good that you reminded me of it. It could be a reflection of how we (the miners) may hurt people in our surroundings (canaries) from a lack of insight into their mind. If one is only conscious of his own problems, he might not notice someone else's until these problems become serious and apparent (the canary' death). That could then make you conscious of the "dangers of letting one's anxieties and personal fears overwhelm you" as you said. It's not using mentally ill people as a cautionary tale, it's probably telling you to think about others before it becomes too late.

The show only discusses psychological causes for mental illness, which is what psychiatrists deal with. A psychiatrist wouldn't map a patient's genome or put him in a fMRI scanner. There is a lot of scientific evidence which suggests genetic predispositions for mental illnesses, but the illnesses still need to be triggered by environmental factors. The poison metaphor works in this regard too; some canaries may have more innate resistance against the mine poison, but they all need to be poisoned in the first place to die from it.

Jan 27, 2015 8:33 PM

Excelsior

Offline

Sep 2007

655

Mmmm. I just rewatched a bit from the last episode because it was starting to frustrate me how many details I've forgotten and I think your interpretation is correct. We all have a duty to watch over the people close to us and watch over and care for them. I still find aspects of the metaphor questionable however. In the metaphor, not only are the miners hurting the canaries, but they're also using them for the sake of determining the presence or absence of poisonous gases so that they won't risk their own lives traversing those mines. Is this divorced from the metaphor for the sake of blithely stating that, "we hurt people/canaries?" Also, the metaphor does relegate this poison to external factors and it does state that canaries will tell you, "when their surroundings change a little." I'm not convinced that the poison metaphor works in the regard that some canaries may have some innate resistance to the poison, that's not mentioned or even implied anywhere in the episode.

Well, that's true, but while the show revolves around a psychiatrist, the series itself is making an overarching and broad statement about the nature of mental illnesses in general.

Jan 28, 2015 7:33 AM

#10

eririri

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Oct 2012

214

Idk I don't think you need to read too deeply into it. Symbolism can’t perfectly mirror all aspects of reality, and the canaries mean far more than what is implied by the miner trivia.

I rewatched the final episode, and it became pretty apparent that the miner scenario is more a metaphor for the relationship between the father and son rather than a reflection of society as a whole. The canary is the son who is neglected by the father (miner) and develops a cellphone addiction. The poison is the unloving atmosphere of the family, and the cellphone addiction is the symptom of the poison. The son needs love from his father (also implied by for example the lonely canary chirping at the car that the father is in), but is only hurt by his berating remarks instead. The father also borders insanity because of the “poison”, but the sons symptoms finally made him aware of his family’s problems and how he contributed to it.

I’m still not sure why you think a discussion on genetics is necessary. Kuuchuu Buranko is making a broad statement on the nature of mental illnesses in general as you say, but genetics simply isn’t relevant here because it’s not something that can be changed. Innate predisposition will not singlehandedly induce mental disorders; only through a change in the patient’s mentality and/or the external factors will disorders arise or be cured of. Also, Kuuchuu Buranko’s commentary on psychiatry puts less emphasis on causes and more on patient treatment.

Jan 28, 2015 1:28 PM

#11

Excelsior

Offline

Sep 2007

655

It's not just "miner trivia" though, it's information that was explicitly put forward by the show for the purpose of explaining its symbolism. It's not unimportant. If all aspects of the metaphor don't apply to the situation in the show and narrative, then I don't think it's a very good metaphor. Otherwise, why not use a different, more appropriate metaphor to represent what the series is trying to say? What's the point of bringing up this historical example just to decontextualize it? And no, I don't think the miner metaphor was about the father and son alone. The series states, "You have to take note of the voices of all the canaries around you," and then it cuts to shots of the canary intercut with shots of all the different patients covered in the show. It then states that we, all of us, have to take note of the canaries or heroes around us and then there's a shot of a crowd ignoring and walking by some yellow canary feathers. The father is more representative of a person without a mental illness, perhaps a person whose loved ones are affected by it.

Genetics can't be changed and of course external factors and one's environment can change a person and cause mental illness and the like, but I was concerned about how the series wipes away the genetic factor entirely and I just found it curious. That's all. I don't really think it's all that necessary a discussion, but I do think that, considering that the show appears to be implicitly making a statement on the subject, that it's worth addressing that statement. Any work will have the surrounding context and author's politics and worldview injected into it and I think that aspect is worth addressing. I just found it interesting and I don't particularly care that much about the subject of the origins of mental illnesses.

Also I'd disagree-- Kuuchuu Buranko placed a lot of emphasis on the causes of mental illness:

ExcelsiorJan 28, 2015 1:33 PM

Jan 28, 2015 5:04 PM

#12

eririri

Offline

Oct 2012

214

The miner metaphor isn't the full extent of the canary symbolism; the canaries would symbolize the messages of the show just as well without it. I think the miner scenario specifically mirrors the relationship between the son and the father, but that doesn't exclude it from being reflective of much of psychiatric problems in general (just not all).

>If all aspects of the metaphor don't apply to the situation in the show and narrative, then I don't think it's a very good metaphor.
The miner metaphor applies very well to the father-son scenario. What I meant is that if you nitpick details too much you're bound to find inconsistencies. Mental disorders are surrounded by such complex and varied circumstances that you obviously can't expect one scenario to cover all of its intricacies, hence the miner metaphor being only part of the canary symbolism of noticing people around you.

The father is indeed representative of a person without mental illness. He's also a vessel for us the audience, who may get too caught up in personal problems and fail to notice the troubles others.

Uh, I'm pretty sure psychiatrists do wipe away genetic factors entirely in patient treatment, because nothing will be gained from it immediately and individually. Treatment aside, it currently isn't even possible to use genes for prevention of mental disorders, so I don't see how a mention of it would provide any insight into psychiatry, the writer's worldview, or the shows messages. It would merely be an acknowledgement of genetic predispositions and nothing more.

>Also I'd disagree-- Kuuchuu Buranko placed a lot of emphasis on the causes of mental illness
It did discuss causes, just not as much as on the treatment of them. The major portion of each episode is centered around treating the mental illness; if the show wanted to elaborate more on causes it would spend more time showing the development of the symptoms of each patient. Much of Kuuchuu Buranko is a reaction against conventional psychiatric treatments which the writer probably considers too rigid and impersonal. The doctor himself reflects this ideal with his eccentricity and different personas which adapt to given situations. Emphasis on the causes would be pointless without also delving into prevention measures, which the show doesn't really take up.

Feb 1, 2015 10:24 AM

#13

wasteman

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Apr 2014

152

I just watched Kuuchuu Buranko because it was my secret Santa rec. It was incredibly strange...but I liked it.

Feb 6, 2015 1:54 PM

#14

avelys

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Sep 2013

456

I think this was an incredibly fun and entertaining show. Extremely unique. I don't think it was meant to be taken so seriously and you get the feeling of what it tries to do from the very beginning. The goal was to highlight how some problems can be handled on your own and that it's not the end of the world. I think the problems were pretty universal, or at least were extremely relatable to whoever might be watching. It's not meant to be seen as a scholarly work or anything.

The show did have some level of symbolism but it was poking fun at it, really. For example: the episode with the guy with the permanent erection = his animal was a rhinoceros (horny). The experience was pretty light and there wasn't any underhanded meaning in anything. The problems were sometimes even petty, but it was done in such an humorous fashion that it didn't matter that it wasn't a "serious" mental disorder. I think trying to find meaning where there isn't might ruin the experience for some since it was pretty clear in what it wanted to do. It really, for me anyway, was more of how do you feel than what do you think. Kind of throwing any real psychoanalysis out the window, which you get the feeling will be the direction it will go to as soon as you're introduced to the doctor.

The stories feel realistic and moving--the scenarios make you sympathize with their problems. I think it did a great job of having great character development. It's similar to shows like Mushishi where the goal is to have the main character of that episode reach their own conclusion. With the help of a few suggestions from the doctor/Ginko. Like the socratic method. That's really where people find real enlightenment. Not when they have all their problems solved by another person but when they solve it themselves. Like when you fall down and wait for someone to help you but you should be the one with enough strength to pick yourself up.

I saw this in the jdrama, Gokusen where the teacher was talking to this student who wouldn't come to school. She taught him that no matter how many times you fall down, you have to get up again and again. By yourself. Not to depend on anybody because that's what makes you a stronger person. Depending on yourself mainly. So I think this inspirational message was the aim of the show as a whole. Some people might not like the show due to the doctor not really solving his patient's problems or that the problems needed a definite solution in the first place--kinda makes you miss the point of the show. It's supposed to make fun of conventional psychology. You also get a hint from that with the whole medication being a placebo effect.

Life is full of problems that don't necessarily require a solution, just the fact that each character for the most part learned something of themselves and aimed to solve the problem on their own (no matter how long it takes) was satisfying enough. And again, the symbolism was just for laughs. Pretending to be seriously deep disguised in a positive message. In conclusion, it's either a hit or a miss with whoever watches it. That's probably why it's not so popular. Some shows hit the right notes with certain people.

[spoiler]

Scanlator: Shoujohearts | Dessert Scans

Feb 6, 2015 1:59 PM

#15

avelys

Offline

Sep 2013

456

soup said:
Her most important moments are in the final episode where she appears alongside the symbolic canaries, prompting the viewers to consider her as a human and reconsider her past scenes. She is a human being with her own feelings and motives behind each action. She, just like everyone else, quietly and subtly supports others in her own way from the background. Also worth mentioning is that the nurse is the only character completely animated using live-action techniques, so she's in a way the most human character in the series. She can be seen as a sort of contrast or foil to the doctor, who is less of a human/character and more of a set of ideas or a concept.

I REALLY LIKE THIS. Like, A LOT.

Scanlator: Shoujohearts | Dessert Scans

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