Nagi no Asukara Episode 2 Discussion

Irenesharda said:
but I don't know how it would work if she has to go underwater everyday anyway in order to not dry out and to be able to breath.

rebelakuma said:
That scene where Tsumuga-kun was fishing over the Ocean Village is so beautiful.... Man, that will be really awesome if we have those for real!

EMChamp said:
When I first heard about this show being a romance/drama with middle-schoolers (grades 7-9 in Japan) I must admit that I wasn't exactly sure how a series like this would work with the cast at such a young age. Then I thought back to what those grades were like and I realized that it was an age where people really begin to discover more about themselves, their community and place in the world. I think this is because this is an age where people start to realize the differences between people, that we aren't all just kids but have things about ourselves that make us unique and different from everyone else.

This episode seemed to touch on this theme quite a bit and not just in the simplistic way before of saying "we are sea people and you are land people". I thought it was interesting to note the reaction that Hikari and his sea friends (need a better name for their group) reacted when Tsumugu revealed his interest in the sea village and how he viewed their culture with respect. It was sort of a moment where he transformed from being the ignorant outsider to someone who perhaps they could get along with and welcome into their culture, something contrary to what their upbringing so far had taught them. As they begin to question their existing views of the surface world being a completely unwelcoming place, they stumble upon Hikari's sister, Akari, kissing her boyfriend who is a surface dweller. Kaname points out that dating anyone from the surface means banishment from the series which Manaka and even Hikari see as unreasonable. It's easy to spot why Manaka would feel this way but even Hikari begins to bend a little on his views, beginning to question the reasons behind the rules of his culture. When his sister's secret is discovered at the end of the episode, it seems that Hikari is going to have to make a choice whether to defend his sister or cast her out like the villagers want. It feels like his choice is really a matter of what view he agrees with, does he support the sea village's rules because it is the world that he knows or does he say perhaps that the surface people really aren't all that bad or different and that banishing his sister is unreasonable.

Moving on, I would be remiss not to mention the romance that went on this episode. The attraction that Manaka feels toward's Tsumugu is now becoming fairly obvious to the rest of the group and causing some predictable problems. Hikari is obviously having trouble sorting out his feelings toward's Manaka who he still feels he is protecting as his childhood friend, afraid to realize his feelings for her are causing him to act irrationally. Chisaki's steely veneer is cracked a bit when Hikari lashes out at her in frustration; thus far she has tried to maintain a detached distance between herself and the drama unfolding before her but she realizes she has ulterior motives in approving Manaka's feelings, though she backpedals a bit when she realizes how badly Hikari will be hurt by the outcome. She is definitely caught in a difficult spot trying to keep both her childhood friends happy while wrestling with her own turbulent emotions for Hikari. It isn't exactly clear yet how Tsumugu feels about Manaka but it's clear that Manaka is becoming more and more interested in him. The conversation with Uroko-sama near the end of the episode sums up her predicable in a nut-shell: that if she follows through with her emotions and pursues Tsumugu, she may end up losing her childhood friends who have cared for her since the beginning.

I'll say this about this show, there's certainly a lot of drama but it doesn't feel forced to me so far. The characters are all honest with themselves and pursuing their feelings the best they can. Though they are slow in realizing their own feelings and taking action, I can buy that because people dealing with complex emotions such as love can't be expected to be coldly effective and efficient in dealing with their emotions. There is an obvious cause and effect to the drama at hand (surface vs sea, love forbidden by the village rules, not-so-bad-after-all surface person stealing away a girl you aren't sure of your feelings for) so to me this is better than a situation that is based on say pure misunderstanding after misunderstanding or a character's decisions being rash and make no sense. There is a natural order and time for all things and so far the show hasn't broken them. This show is definitely telling a drama that is more mature than what would we normally associate with the character's given age yet their emotions and actions aren't forced and are still keeping it real which is a good sign moving forward.

Blog post here.

Irenesharda said:
Well, this is getting better with each episode. We run into the rules of the world we see of the relationship between the sea people and the land people. I always wonder why the land people can't become a sea person to be with the one they love. Why is it always the sea person becoming a land person never to return? It just doesn't really seem fair. If there is magic enough for sea person to become land human, then why can't there be magic to go the other way around?

Wind_Sr said:
Manaka x Hikari is a negative for me. I'm starting to hate Manaka. Chiisaki is my main girl now and I hope she gets with Hikari since that is what she wants most. Manaka is in this ahhh idk stage which I hate.

Barion-Zara said:
We're already starting with the drama? O_o...I still don't get how they're gonna fill 26 eps??

Kurini said:


The after taste of a drama... I should not end my day with Nagi no Asukara, it's too painful.