White Album Madness...

Okay guys,

The last four eps (9,10,11,and 12). What is your opinion on this madness. This anime has really done a number on me with all this convoluted absurdity. I feel like my brain is about to blow thanks to this title.

I mean come on:

The issue with Misaki
Rina's recent behavior
That night Touya "spent" with Yayoi
Haruka's role in this
Mana's mother (and if she is who she is, then Mana's so called long lost sister is actually one of those .....)
The ever-so-clueless Yuki
Touya's feeding fuel to the fire without realizing it


Where do you want to begin? Or is this anime intented to be undecipherable? What a giant mess this is!

I'm only up to episode nine so far.

You may need a pen and paper in order to watch the next 3 eps Stretch. It gets ridiculous (particularly ep 10). There is no method to the madness I tell you.

As I understand it, here's what's going on in episode ten:

Rina's career is collapsing, largely because her brother has lost interest in her. She's been scheduled for a relatively small Christmas Eve concert, which is humiliating since it's like an admission that her popularity is in a spiral and can't be saved. Her last chance is to do well (in ticket sales?) relative to either Yuki or Sakura-dan (those bitchy red-outfitted girls). Touga is complaining about Yuki never coming to see him, which doesn't make sense since he's been ignoring her. Misaki has done something "disrespectful" to Touga's father--I don't know what. The head of the theater club is out to get her, for interupting the performance of the play. Yayoi is being stalked by Hiragi, the fat, heavy-breathing guy (where did he come from?). Apparently Yayoi tore up the letter which Yuki wanted her to deliver to Touya (but it seemed like she almost handed him another one--a fake? Rina found the shreds of the original letter and reassembled them. It turned out to be a request that Touya attend her Christmas Eve debut concert. Rina had already sort of hired Touya as an agent or something, probably just to keep them apart and keep an eye on him herself.

One thing I didn't get was why Touya's friend was dressed as a priest. Though I'm enjoying White Album, I'm not rewatching episodes and studying every detail of the plot, so I may have missed or misunderstood some thing(s). This is based on a dating sim (I think); it's almost as if elements of more than one play of the game have been intertwined, so we sometimes lose the cause and effect. That is, as if some scenes from a game play in which Touya went after Yuki were mixed with ones from a play where he prefered Rina, and maybe some others as well.

Whoa!! (LOL) Alrighty, I'll try to pick out the points you wrote in bits and pieces (the italics is your quotes):

I think they refered to Sakura-dan as "M3". Rina mentioned it many times.

I say Misaki's "disrespectful" guilt is probably refering to the fact that she just used Touya for such a stupid reason (she used the father as well, remember) and how she practically spit in Touya's face when she gave him the forced confession while they were down there (if Touya told his father about it that is - which is unlikely).

"Yayoi is being stalked by Hiragi, the fat, heavy-breathing guy (where did he come from?)". I agree with you 1000%. I was like, "when did this start from?" It seems like it was going on all along and that the situation has gotten pretty serious at that point.

Apparently Yayoi tore up the letter which Yuki wanted her to deliver to Touya (but it seemed like she almost handed him another one--a fake? Wait, the letter she ripped was by accident wasn't it (remember when she knocked over her bag and both letters got mixed together?) She wanted to rip Hiragi's letter instead and almost gave it to Touya by mistake (remember the expression on her face when she noticed her blunder). Imagine what would happen if Touya did get the stalker letter by mistake and he read it. LOL

Akira (Touya's friend) was dressed like a priest because of his school project or whatever.

I'm still lost on how Touya and Misaki can still talk to each other after what happened that night. They're both pretending that they can still be friends. If it was me, I would never have the courage to look her in the eyes ever again and the atmosphere around us would always be awkward. That's just me I guess.

Another thing I don't get is why Touya is so "hell-bent" on keeping Yuki as his girlfriend. She is far too much trouble and he is only suffering everytime he thinks about her. He needs to cut his loses.

Trust me, I don't think it's mentally possible to understand this title unless you rewatch the eps (for those of us who didn't play the game). Unfortunately, I admit that I had to see ep 10 three times (!) in order to pull out all of what was going on. My notes were a page and a half long and I'm sure I'm still missing something else in there. I'm trying to stall myself now as I know I have to watch 12 again to make sure I can believe what Rina said and did to Touya regarding Yuki.

As always, thanks for your input Stretch.

Edited on 03/25/2009 12:24 PM.

You made notes? I just gave up the whole thing as a bad job.

LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh my God!!! That was funny bro. Ah, man. Forbin, you are too much. LOL.

So, Yayoi meant to tear up Hiragi's letter but tore up Touya's by mistake, and almost gave Touya Hiragi's letter, but must have noticed the different colored envelope... that makes some sense. Thanks. I was sure she would want to rip up Touya's letter, since her job is pretty much to keep them apart.

Tell me about it. That's why it took me multiple times to get it, because that's what I thought as well. If it wasn't for her expression in the car, it would've been true.

I watched episode 11 last night. Yuki seemed to have a freaky dream of herself panicking during her crucial upcoming debut concert. What's the relationship between Misaki Sawakura and Haruka Kawashima (the schoolgirl Touya tutors and the quiet, athletic girl who sometimes shows up at his apartment--I forget which is which)? They're not really sisters, are they? Again, I saw the date "1986" on a calendar. Rina was shocked to learn that Touya will be meeting with Yayoi tommorrow--or perhaps that he won't break that date to go out with her.

While I was looking up the names at ANN, I noticed an article which said that the series will have a second season in the fall.

• Misaki = Theater
• Haruka = Bike / Tennis
• MANA = Tutor Girl

Sorry, I'm not good with names, especially Japanese ones. What I meant was Haruka and Mana, who took off together on bicycles in episode 11. Are they sisters? Friends? What's their connection?

I got you Stretch.

Mana and Haruka aren't related at all, their just friends who have a common interest in Touya (who doesn't at this point). They met that night when Haruka was about to be raped in the streets and they've been cool ever since.

As for the second season: I knew that they would do it (though I can't say i'm excited) because this story is beyond saving if they let it end like this. There is just far too many unknowns. I don't think I can afford a second season of this insanity (mentally speaking).

Edited on 03/27/2009 02:51 PM.

Well since Hayate is starting, that will help you straighten out..haha.

So, in episode 12 Rina lies to Touya that the letter from Yuki was her saying she wanted to break up? The way it was phrased was so confusing that I couldn't tell if Yuki really did want to break up or get even closer together! Did Rina fire him because she learned of his liason with Yayoi? Touya doesn't seem to be showing much loyalty to any particular girlfriend, he just takes whatever affection he can get, anywhere, anytime.

Well so far he isn't a Motoko.....yet....get those knives sharpened.

No one can say that this title wasn't a crazy ride of drama and confusion, that for sure.

Can season 2 shed light on the situation or are we doomed for more "headache-inducing" fun...

There is an episode 13 coming, right? The first season isn't quite over, is it?

It's already out.