Karasu wa Aruji wo Erabanai Episode 9 Discussion

So Shiratama was adopted (by her grandparents?) solely for the purpose of having someone in their family to marry the prince. That’s a lot of pressure from such a young age. Kazumi was really a much needed breath of fresh air for her. Their backstory is so beautifully bittersweet.
No wonder Kazumi’s “death” broke her mind so badly. I bet she’ll always wonder if she could have prevented it if she had met up with him that night.
I pity Shiratama, but she made her choice. Her sad backstory doesn’t excuse the things she’s done.

“They want to make me kill the son of the son of the woman my parents murdered.”
Hamayu’s reason for coming to the Cherry Blossom Palace was a lot deeper and more complicated than I expected.
She’s pretty cool, actually. I really like that she encouraged the girls to think for themselves so they don’t miss their shot at happiness before she took off. I didn’t expect her character to have so much depth.
I can’t wait to see what else is going on underneath the surface. I’m glad Yukiya is smart enough to know the situation is off.

@crazyanderewitch

Shiratama was adopted by her uncle, Lord Genya is her mother's brother, or half-brother. They messed it up in the anime, calling them her grandparents. It makes no sense, because Shiratama inherited her beauty from her grandmother, a courtesan married to the previous Lord of the North.

Is the Japanese conversation in the anime said it as Grandfather or is it just a subtitle's English mistranslation..?

Hamayuu's story was interesting, and the way she simply walked away (flew away, to be exact) was very cool. But as Yukiya said, it feels a little strange.

She's endured the charade and the rite of ascension all this time, and the moment Shiratami points a finger at her, she spills everything and leaves? How can she "give up" so easily? She didn't even try to deny Shiratami's accusations.

Or did Shiratami's story genuinely shock her? I do think she cares for the girls somewhat, but I really doubt that she's finally had enough. It always felt like she's been through a lot and not much really fazed her.

Where would she even go? She's now on the run from both the Southern House and the royal house. If she had somewhere to go, why didn't she leave earlier?

What does she really want? What is her plan? Just to blow up the Southern house's schemes out of revenge?

Very intrigued and waiting for the episodes to expand on this, but based on the next episode preview, it looks like we won't have a lot of time for Hamayuu.

"Cherry Blossom Palace isn't the whole world, and being with the man you love isn't the only way a woman can be happy. Don't get that mixed up and miss your own shot at happiness."

Dang at last someone said it! I feel like I've been wanting someone to slap such reality check to these ladies and I didn't even expect it to be done by one of the ladies. Got goosebumps from it honestly. Thank you, Hamayu

@RobertBobert the point is that Hamayuu was not raised to be the ideal bride, she has been "literally crawling in the dirt" for a long time, and she is well aware of the life of lower class women. They also were oppressed and their life was often hard in this medieval society, but they had some more freedom of action as compared to noble ladies, because they took part in work and trade alongside the men.

@KisMaczka You don't understand what I want to say. I want to say that these are the words not of a medieval woman, but of a modern one. Noble ladies actually had fewer rights than peasant women, because the desire to use them as brides in political games predictably led to a complete restriction of their lives. Naoko Yamada captured this very well in her adaptation of The Tale of the Taira House.

@RobertBobert Then Masuho is somewhat modern too, since she understood Hamayuu's message all too well...
She was a bit surprised, but does not blame Hamayuu and supports her instead.

@KisMaczka She doesn't have to be a modern woman to understand this message. Obviously, few women throughout history were happy with this state of affairs. The issue is that in their setting it would be very difficult if it is impossible to live up to such ideals. We have Romeo and Juliet as a vivid example of how the attempts of young people to manage their personal lives at that time ended.

@RobertBobert Anyway, Hamayuu has a special personality, it has been emphasized many times in the novel (and, maybe, in the manga) that she is more like a man than a woman. She's somewhat androgynous , on the inside as well as on the outside, and that makes her modern, too.

There are also some women in Yamauchi, who have men's status, such as Shouin, and warrior women, such as Wisteria Guard and their leader Takimoto. But the first is an "outcast", a "fallen woman", who had to renounce all family ties and to be re-registered as a man in order to advance in ranks, and the seconds are nuns serving the Imperial House in the name of Yamagami the Mountain God.

@KisMaczka I have already noted that Hamayuu should be perceived as ikemen onna. I must admit, for a while I even thought she was a man in disguise. Shoun is also positioned like this?

@RobertBobert And Hamayuu was living disguised as a boy called Sumi in childhood, when she was exiled.
Shouin is looking even more like a male official in manga version.She received a new male name when she became one, and she is addressed by courtiers with -dono honorific,like an army officer.

@KisMaczka And does all this get some kind of development in the future or is it just a noticeable fact in the biography of the characters?

@RobertBobert In Hamayuu's case it does, in some ways. As for Shouin, her case is just a part of Yamauchi lore as a Heian-like fantasy world...

@KisMaczka Then, without going into spoilers, I just have one question. Is there a chance that the anime could adapt the entire story or at least one book from the series?

@RobertBobert 2 first volumes out of 1st part 6-volume series are already adapted in this anime (1 or 2 eps are necessary to finish their plot). So, 7 or 8 more eps. remain, if the anime has 20 eps.,as announced.
I hope that they would spend the remaining eps. on adapting vol.3 (or, at least, a half of it, which would lead to a cliffhanger at the end of the season). If they continue to adapt the story, it could result in two (1 for vol. 3-4 and 1 for vols. 5-6) or one (vols 4-5-6) more seasons.

@KisMaczka So, at the current pace, they will need another 1 or 2 seasons to cover the whole story?

@RobertBobert Exactly, if the anime is popular (Chisato Abe's novels are,in Japan) and if the studio has enough funds.

@KisMaczka How far in the story are we atm? Is the novel completed? Have you read the entire thing?

@MegamiRem, In 13 eps.they have combined 2 first volumes of the first 6-volume novel cycle (both of them have the same parallel plotline, bur shown through the brides' eyes (1st vol.) and through the prince's and Co eyes (2nd vol.)). Next 7 eps. will be based on the 3-rd volume of the same cycle. There also are two volumes of side-stories and a new 4 volumes novel cycle (the last volume was published in February 2024).I don't know if there will be more volumes in the new cycle. As to me, I've read the first six volumes,these can be considered as a completed story.

@KisMaczka Thanks for the info. So first story is completed with six volumes, anime adapted the first two, volume 3 starts next episode and there's a sequel with another 4 volume which is ongoing? So total 10 volumes? Is it a direct sequel or next/new gen sort of thing?

Btw I had a question regarding Asebi's elder sister. Is she the daughter of current Kin'u and Ukigomo the woman from eastern who was supposed to marry him? Please put the answer under a spoiler tag for others convenience.