Maidragon Season 1 Notes

Originally written from 2022 February 04 - 2022 March 07

#1

SB: Yasuhiro Takemoto • ED: Haruka Fujita • AD: Miku Kadowaki, Nobuaki Maruki, Tatsunari Maruko

My 3rd watch, in prep for second season! This episode doesn't get hung up on introductions, instead introducing characters incredibly efficiently through clever writing. It starts in media res in Kobayashi's daily life, even her first meeting with Tohru is delayed until its later flashed back to. The real emotion behind this phase of their relationship is contained, not even in the span of a single scene, but just in PART of a scene's normal conversation especially considering the extravagant subject matter. Their meeting is something that came by complete accident, definitely not something she would've done sober, but as the series goes on, I'm hoping that she won't have to use alcohol as much of an outlet anymore and trust in the people she can be genuine with. The scene starts with a regular color pallete (at least the part that ISN'T an incredibly Shinbo-influenced flashback scene no doubt due to Takemoto), until Kobayashi rejects Tohru's offer. A subtle shift in tone happens, as pressure falls on Kobayashi, as she nearly lets go of an opportunity of a lifetime. Once again, because of the framing, not just to have a relationship with a dragon, but to have any meaningful connection at all. Even through the more "normal" scenes, the tone serves its point, as instead of asking Tohru all about the extravagant life she's led, she only thinks of her own normal life and how they could comfortably live together on this world. Considering Tohru's backstory, I'd imagine that wanting to settle down with someone was something she's wanted for a long time as well. The last scene in the bed immediately cues the viewer in on the role the comedy plays in its themes as well. Comedy doesn't only have to exist for the sake of itself, it can serve genuine character moments & emotions at the same time. Because, underneath all the fish-out-of-water comedy we're about to see throughout the show, is a drastic change of environment for the dragons, and the wounds of their past lives take time to heal. But the more time they spend here, living in the present, moment-to-moment, the more they'll be able to love this new life for what it is.

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"The past and the future don't mean a thing. Simply being here right now, with the people here right now, is what I love!"

Once again, all of this, not explicitly stated through dialogue, but portrayed through subtle directing and implications, each scene PACKED with detail, and it's that refreshing character writing that I love KyoAni for.

#2

SB: Yasuhiro Takemoto • ED: Shinpei Sawa • AD: Yuki Tsunoda • Assistant AD: Akiko Takase

(Part A) Kanna's introduction with an absolutely beautiful scene.

The part with Tohru reflecting on her words ;-; Even though she's talking to Kanna, you can tell that all of it applies to Tohru as well. Not that she doesn't trust Kobayashi, but just knowing her intent is enough. She shows that she truly understands where they're coming from when they act apprehensive & take time to adjust in this world. That's also what makes the tone so touching in its mundanity, that she has such realistic expectations of them, because she can relate to that feeling of isolation and not being able to live true to herself.

(Part B)

Throughout this scene, we see background characters in the foreground, hammering in the fact that our dragons are hidden in plain sight. Even if they have to hide their true selves, they can still be happy knowing that they still have a circle of people they can be genuine with, including each other. It's obviously much easier for people with the same traits to relate to each other without fear of scaring off the other, but it's clear that there's also a unique value they place in their relationship with Kobayashi, someone who unconditionally accepts them because of their differences.

#3

SB: Yasuhiro Takemoto • ED: Noriyuki Kitanohara • AD: Kohei Okamura

Slowing down a bit as both the characters and we as the audience get settled into their everyday routine. Part A was all about cramped spaces, both because of this newfound family fitting in a small apartment, and because of their obligation to hide their true forms. As such, Kobayashi went house hunting, but most of them didn't feel right, that is until they found one with an expansive open roof, one that the dragons can return to their original forms every once in a while to stretch out. With this, they've truly set in to this new life, finding a nice & quiet place to come home to and be themselves together.

However, this scene shows that, while there's value in being in an environment where we can be ourselves, without some feedback from a different person, it leaves us feeling unfulfilled. As much as it can get frustrating living with someone (especially someone with such a different background & cultural understanding that Kobayashi keeps having to explain things to), there's something we all can gain from this environment. This is their everyday life, and they have an unchanging, normal routine, but even then there's a never-ending process of working out those differences that makes every single day interesting and fulfilling to live through.

Part C is dedicated to introducing the other dragons, who we've only heard their voices of before—just that little bit of detail added to make their introductions a little less sudden, unlike so many other nichijou-kei's out there. Also establishing Fafnir and Takiya's relationship, with Fafnir finding his outlet through video games lol, a much healthier one this his previous one. Mostly stayed in the background, but in the few scenes we got, we see the way they bond, and find their own everyday routine

#4

ED/SB: Takuya Yamamura • AD: Kazumi Ikeda [Animation Do]

Kanna goes to school, and it serves as a continuation of Ep. 2.

The anxieties of feeling like an outsider probably isn't going to go away, and that anxiety is even harder to fix at a societal level. These may be dragons capable of incredible things at supernatural proportions, but not even they can change human nature. But what they can do is try to meet them halfway and see where they're coming from, because they felt the exact same way about humans when they first came to this world. Tohru knows that it's important not to lose their own identities as a result of trying to fit in, but even still, putting in that effort could lead to all these connections with people that would accept them for their differences. If Kanna never took that first step, she never would've truly made a home in this world, having never been able to meet Saikawa, who she'll learn is someone that she can be more honest with.

#5

SB: Taichi Ishidate, Taichi Ogawa • ED: Taichi Ogawa • AD: Chiyoko Ueno

every time... every SINGLE time they just knock it out of the park...

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both the physical and emotional distance closing.. these intimate, indescribable feelings...

with kobayashi's workplace literally having jigoku in its name.. obviously tohru cant fix everything everyday like she did here, but just being there for kobayashi for emotional support at the end of a hard day..im crying just thinking about it 😭😭❤

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and that influence goes both ways, both of them only able to look positively at the world around them because of each other. its impossible to go out into a world that we feel is against us without a proper support network

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the variety of drawings ueno comes up with, only made possible by her expertise in fundamentals. the fact that the same person known for her cartoony style is also known for the magnitude detail she's capable of as shown in VEG is astonishing

ogawa's boards fucking hellll man,,,, the timing of each cut to immerse us as the viewer into Kobayashi's perspective—and exists for a reason with kobayashi feeling like she's alienating tohru by telling her to embrace her differences, when in reality that's what tohru loves most about her 😭😭

each of these shots has meaning: with these POV shots of Kobayashi looking at Tohru's troubled-looking expression and her tail that is the telltale sign that she will always be different from humans. followed up by the shot of her back and Kobayashi's outstretched hand—the fear that this difference between them will tear them apart. all followed up by Tohru immediately dispelling those worries with her usual cheer as we see the relief in Kobayashi's expression.

through this scene, the ebb and flow of the emotional distance between them is felt, but goes unsaid—with the exact amount of subtlety and attention-to-detail you'd expect from KyoAni and Ogawa, one of their leading star directors.

i also want to sing more praises of Ueno's AD work, so heres some underappreciated cuts that i thought were rly cool.

the camera here is incredible, her hands in the foreground and the small smears at the impact. the spoons bouncing as well, just another detail in the dozens per episode

they always do sitting and standing up incredibly well. the shot is relatively flat yet you can see Kobayashi's head leaning forward, and her arms pushing down on the table. the chair slightly sliding backwards too. so many parts going into a single movement

#6

SB/ED: Ichirou Miyoshi (PN: Yoshiji Kigami) • AD: Tatsunari Maruko

The most "normal" episode so far, in that the theme is how you can only know you like someone by spending time with them, particularly in seeing how they carry themselves in their everyday lives. Through both sunny and rainy days, the good and the bad, you only love them if you naturally want to spend those days with them, no more, no less. That's what makes Fafnir's insertion in Takumi's life so great, seeing the ways they almost seem made for each other—Takumi previously leading a life of a lonely, outsider otaku. I imagine his life before this, of him alone in his room, and now he finally has someone to share in his passions and aaaaaaaaa, it's incredible.

Also this is one of my favorite images of the entire show aaaaaaaaaaafkjghdfjkghfdkgjh

#7

SB/ED: Noriyuki Kitanohara • AD: Yuko Myouken, Miku Kadowaki, Tatsunari Maruko

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In a stark contrast to the past episodes, this one is all about Tohru's sense of unbelonging. we've seen this before in the show, but now tohru's starting to feel like an outsider even in her home back in the dragon world, as a result of her affection of Kobayashi and fascination with humanity. It brings to mind the same kinds of feelings many Asian Americans have had--or at least of the early generations of the diaspora. As they spend more time away from their hometown, they immerse themselves in this different culture in an attempt to fit in. But, if they're not careful, they are capable of losing touch of where they came from. And in that scenario, on top of the fact that they already feel like they don't belong in a completely different country, they start feeling like a foreigner of even their own birthplace as they become a mishmash between two completely different cultures—embodying both, but never truly being one or the other. Maidragon's theme of belonging rings especially true when it's speaking to this experience, how even in spite of all these troubles, Tohru is confident that she belongs here because Kobayashi, the person she loves, is the one who lives here: and that's all the reason she needs to be proud of who—and where—she chooses to be.

The B part of the episode takes an interesting turn as we have a Comiket episode! the environment of comiket is depicted with such minute detail and enormous scale that it's unsurprising that Takemoto and the team went on a location scouting trip, and even got official approval to use the name! this felt like such a throwback to Lucky Star with that love for otaku passion, and the way it connects that to tohru's character makes it feel sincere as opposed to phoned-in and pandering.

Having a semiyearly event where tohru can let loose and be a part of the crowd as her genuine self instead of an outsider is so resonant to what comiket must feel like...

As covered in #5, Tohru will far outlive Kobayashi's lifespan, and this place where she belongs will eventually end, but that doesn't give her any less reason to embrace the experience of living in it while she still can... That's what makes the moment-to-moment structure of this show so strong. Even though these are disconnected stories, it has a single theme tying them together that makes the show as a whole feel cohesive and meaningful.

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anyways animation wise it's flawless once again. great expressions and the effects are sharp and impactful. Yuko Myouken was the main supervisor here and nailed every one of Kitanohara's inventive sequences

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this witch girl's design is way too good for just a one-off character 😭😭🙏♥

#8

SB/ED: Naoko Yamada • AD: Futoshi Nishiya

this eps all about the little arguments they get into, and how they're an important part of communication, especially in a relationship between people as different as tohru and kobayashi

cordial fights like the cook-off in part A are well and good since it's all in good fun, but it's in confrontations like the last scene where their relationship is truly tested. this is the first time that kobayashi was fully honest about herself to tohru

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god, look at them,,,,😭😭those empty shots baring their loneliness to the other, neither of them are used to such an intimate and personal relationship so they cant explain it well through words but their actions speak loud and clear. they're both doing their best to meet the other halfway and that alone is more than enough proof for them to completely trust in the other the deep recesses of their mind that they normally keep hidden from the rest of the world

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when Yamada goes Intimate Mode™ like this, it's so intimate to the point of being almost uncomfortable; so she resorts to obscuring the characters' faces entirely--whether it be through profile shots or her quintessential leg shots. we're peering into their emotions, but by hiding certain elements it gives off the sense that even the viewers can't truly know the full extent of what's being communicated between these characters. it's a completely personal connection that only they can understand—so to hide that connection from even the viewer makes the way she depicts relationships feel so much more intimate than if she had meticulously explained every detail and facet of these moments to us. it leaves a lot to the viewers' imagination, and knowing what to show and what not to show in the frame are equally important, and her expertise at this will only grow stronger as she transitions into the even more cerebral phase of her career in Liz.

as for nishiya's work, im afraid of not giving it the justice it deserves, so as always it's been said better than i ever could by people inifinitely smarter than me. i dont have much to add so please bare with me while i grasp at straws here

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the sheer range is what stood out most to me. from extremely stylized—simplistic yet expressive—drawings, to hyper-detailed ones with a frankly obscene number of lines. sometimes it's a mixture of the two like with tohru in the last one--her eyes having some of that detail while its shape along with her head remain pretty simple to fit with the funny gag it's paired with. both approaches, while different in execution, are effective at exaggeration in different ways and makes for a very fun episode!

#9

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Sawa's SB debut, to the surprise of no one after his work as assistant ED on Eupho S2 #8, was just about as polished as you'd expect. Despite this, as is the case of all the staff who spent their entire education & career in KyoAni, he was ready for the task and more.

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the ability to express emotion through nothing more than a scene's layout and drawings. it doesnt get any more kyoani than this. all made possible because of the education by the studio's veterans. he was still a complete newbie just 8 years prior!

the repetition of this scene is what stood out to me, seeing kanna come to understand that kobayashi's working hard for her sake, even if that means she can't always make time for her. all of that communicated through no dialogue, and not even through a shot showing her full face

as is best for most relationships, those steps taken to come to a place of understanding & empathy must come from both sides, and kobayashi's similar situation with her own parents makes those steps that much easier to take

a celebration of small moments. it is just a regular-old sports meet, but the works of kyoani know better than anyone that these seemingly insignificant moments matter more than they first seem.

it's only through these small moments does she realize how much she's changed. it's under these small gestures of love that lies something deeper, the desire to live her life for the sake of the people she loves. what a fucking show. 👏Thank you KyoAni. Thank you so much.🙏

• More on this episode (the anecdote about Ikeda 😭😭)
• More on Sawa and the lead-up to this debut
  • particularly interesting in this one is the unique ways starting out as a key animator prepares them for the switch to SB and ED work, i imagine it even applies outside of kyoani like with moaang's recent debut as well, although obviously very different in KyoAni's case.

#11

SB/ED: Takuya Yamamura • AD: Kazumi Ikeda • Animation Do

Nothing too big this episode which is totally fine. Just a tonal piece which I'm surprised we didn't get more of in this show considering its structure; nearly every episode has something substantial to talk about! More signs of Tohru helping with Kobayashi's growth with this being the first time she sends a New Year's card to her parents, and also leads into the season's final arc with Tohru's own parents. Other than that, nice use of repetition once again, particularly with Tatsuya Satou's bit with the tangerine peel.

#12

SB/ED: Taichi Ogawa • AD: Chiyoko Ueno

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Ogawa and Ueno return after #5 for yet another incredible episode. Ogawa's unique focus on colors and lighting is unmatched and it just makes the special scenes feel all the more special.

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with Ueno comes the sheer variety of styles and magnitude of detail she's capable of, none of them compromising her finesse for movement

the flashbacks this ep were very sweet with tohru & kobayashi's first meeting in much more detail than #1. looking back on it after everything we've been through makes their shared struggle at the time feel even more special

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the other flashback into tohru's past was just as sweet with the human seeing dragons as free to do whatever they want, not having anyone to answer to, when in reality, even though she's a being of unfathomable strength, it was that isolation and lack of connection to others that made her feel powerless

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seeing both of them taking that step to form those connections, and seeing them in their new, happy lives is just- aaaalsfjkghdflghdf 😭😭♥♥

#13

SB: Yasuhiro Takemoto • ED: Yoshiji Kigami, Shinpei Sawa • AD: Tatsunari Maruko, Kohei Okamura, Shouko Ikeda

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fitting for the season's climax, Takemoto's boards are so packed with detail that I could be here for hours and not even scratch the surface

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amidst every single detail you get recurring ones like the mug that ties the first and second acts of the ep together. through the contrast of its uses, you can see how competently tohru has grown to taking care of kobayashi, and how dysfunctional kobayashi now is without her

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kyoani is usually praised for its character art (and rightfully so, the uncomfortable silence here as all we can do is to view Kobayashi's neurotic mannerisms is their particular specialty), but an episode like this shows how equally important the environments around those characters are, and how they can tell us just as much about them as even their most intimate expressions and gestures

speaking of intimate gestures.... here is what's probably my favorite scene of the episode. kobayashi using her past tactics of drowning herself in work to distract from her loneliness. or her trying and failing to keep it together in the bath. or her taking solace in the fact that she at least still has kanna with her. and ending the whole montage with her haphazardly laying on the bed that feels far too big for one person. An absence that is felt means a presence that should be cherished. Whether that absence is a short one like this one, or a permanent one doesn't change that. In fact its permanence being an inevitability is all the more reason to hold on while you can. I love that—as long with teaching this to Tohru, as someone who will live centuries longer than Kobayashi—the majority of this episode is about Kobayashi's side of this process.

and ofc the goddamn flower, literally spelling out the flower's meaning in the episode (unlike yamada lol), and using its presence to show their new values that will continue to stay with them forever, even if they're brought apart, either by external forces or by the inevitable flow of time.

those values being their faith in the other, their faith in themselves... none of it came in any single moment, it was born from the entire process of leaning about the other, working out their differences, and spending time with one another. we as the viewer have seen that process play out from start to finish. through every single disconnected story, through these snippets of their everyday domestic lives together, we've seen it all play out and is what makes this grand finale feel so justified.

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kobayashi can only make a statement like this because of that process, to be able to speak for tohru's sake, knowing who tohru is better than she knows herself. kyoani's intimacy never fails, whether they're showing in on a micro-scale, or on a grand stage such as this one.

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the fact that these lines have always been in the ED is proof of Takemoto's clear vision for the series, and is what makes this episode feel both like a release of tension built up over the course of the season and the perfect summation of everything that makes this season great

from episode 5:

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how KyoAni will always turn every source material they adapt into a show about Mono no Aware is a feat that eludes me, but one that I am grateful for nevertheless.

Thank you KyoAni... Thank you Takemoto, for blessing us with some of the most special expressions of love, connection, and intimacy this world has ever seen. I can't even imagine how emotional I'll be seeing how KyoAni has continued his legacy in S2.

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