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Kids, why do you keep coming back to this spot and listening to this guy?! HE IS NOT YOUR FRIEND!! D:*Ahem* At any rate, he’s back again, and ready to tell a few more stories to us. Last time, Dio took a stab at listening to the masked man’s stories and caught something that I didn’t catch: The way how he greeted kids. I actually didn’t pick up on that the first time round and thought to myself “Wait…HAS he been variant with his greetings?” So I kept that in mind as I watched and listened to this next set of stories.
Also, the fact that the man behind Ju-On is directing these stories didn’t help either…
Capsule Toy Machine
Businessman goin' through a rough patch at work passes by an old man at a capsule toy machine at night. Nothing strange about that sentence, right? Well, consider this: the old man has been going at it for quite some time; to the point that he was on his knees and breathing excitedly while opened capsules littered the ground. Also, consider that the capsule toy machine itself is the ONLY one there. None of this hits the businessman, and he just goes on his way.
The very next day, the old man isn’t there, but the capsule machine is, with the other capsules swept away. Out of curiosity, the businessman puts 20 yen up in there and pops open a capsule. In it, he sees his old car eraser that he had when he was a kid; something that he thought he lost a long time ago. Excited, he does so again, and finds a tiny figure of his old dog, John. Then he finds a figurine of a young girl named Miki. Perhaps an old high school friend or love? We’re not too sure. A little strange, yeah?
Consider this: his hair instantly turns white upon seeing the eraser, he visibly grows older as he opens more capsules, and his teeth began to fall out upon seeing Miki. He begins to scrape and claw at the capsule as another man passes by and sees him. The very next day, that same man looks at the capsule toy machine…and puts in 20 yen. Yeah, I’m not messing with the capsule toy machines in Japantown in San Jose for some time…
Dio's Note:
I don't usually do this in an article, but I do want to say this one struck me as not only my favorite episode throughout both season, but the saddest. What the capsule machine seems to dispense is not just the past, but from the receiver, it takes more than a couple yen coins. It seems to give the memories of those times represented by the prize and takes from you…even more. Its not the one episode that scared me the most, it was the singular episode that made me want to cry more than anything else. And as we know, fear and sadness going hand in hand always is a winner in my book. If you're looking to choose an episode in the second season that really mixes up the formula, this is the one I highly recommend.
Farewell ConfessionalA young man named Ken is visiting a village where his relatives lived. A few folk know of him, meaning that he’s been there a few times in the past. He’s visiting because someone he knew had passed, and he had come to pay his respects. At the viewing of the body, two things jump out at him: 1) There’s no priest. 2) other people are going into the room where the body lies and telling…confessions…secrets. One woman at the viewing tells Ken that if you tell your secrets, your sins that you couldn’t tell in life, they will ascend to heaven along with him.
The secrets range from broken branches to affairs.
After a few folks go, it’s Ken’s turn. He’s hesitant at first, but he’s soon coaxed inside. As he’s hovering over the body, he struggles with what he wants to say. After a moment, however, he remembers a secret about the man’s dog. A puff of wind and springing body later…………………………….
Moral of the story: Don’t fuck with other’s pets.
Ominie-SanNew teacher decides to eat with her students at a middle school. Asako seems to be getting along well with them! They recommend a dish to her called Ominie-San. Asako seems ok with it and sits down with them. Ominie-San comes out in a large cooking pot and…well, let’s just say it’s something that would make H.P. Lovecraft proud. On sight of the food, the kids chow down, forsaking any form of table manners at all. Asako gets queasy, puts it in her bag, and leaves.
It moves when trying to toss it in the incinerator.
She tries to eat out and…someone asks for it. Getting queasy with her own food, she leaves. She heads home and because she hasn’t eaten, she develops a fever. The next day, she’s seen eating and getting her strength back…guess what’s mixed in. The look on her face when she starts eating is…
Let’s just say I could feel my insides churning after watching that.
Also, I took a listen to how the masked man spoke with each greeting. For episode 7, his voice is full of wonder, as if talking about an amazing item in his story (he’s right, but not in the way you think.) Episode 8, he sounds as if he’s a bit sad at the story that he’s going to tell (it’s a funeral, but…well…). And in Episode 9 his voice is full of delight. The story that follows it is ANYTHING but.
Could he be trying to set a misleading tone for each story? Or are we just trippin?
I know I’m trippin after seeing these episodes.
Oshimai…
--Choco Thunda (10/23/14)
Screencapped by me, off Crunchyroll.
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