Form, Truth and Regret: Final Thoughts on Mononoke
Title: Mononoke (モノノ怪)
Scrumptious Meter: 5 (Slice bread!)
Length: 12 episodes
Mononoke seeks to deliver something fresh amidst the moe schoolgirls and lolis that are prevalent in recent anime.
Set in Japan, probably during the Edo period, it follows the Medicine Seller as he fights Mononoke of Japanese lore. Mononoke results when an Ayakashi, a spirit that simply comes into being, unites with strong human emotions such as vengeance, sadness or fear. The Medicine Seller uses the Sword of Exorcism to defeat the Mononoke but in order to unsheathe the sword, Form, Truth and Regret must be present. Form is the product of the intertwined fates of men, Truth is the natural state of all things, and Regret is present in every men’s hearts.
Although the series has a supernatural backdrop, what makes Mononoke different from other anime of the same genre is that rather than focusing on the horrors outside, it focuses on the horrors within, that of the human heart. The result is a dark mixture of the preternatural and the psychological.
The direction employs stylish and experimental techniques. The art is bold. Mononoke is unashamed to return to the roots of anime and manga, the ukiyo-e. In fact, watching Mononoke is like watching an ukiyo-e come to life. Mononoke, however, manages to seamlessly blend traditional Japanese art with elements of Western art movements art noveau, surrealism, abstract expressionism and cubism.
Mononoke is a spin-off of the “Bakeneko” arc from Ayakashi~Japanese Classic Horror. Being a spin-off, it is often compared to its predecessor. I haven’t seen Ayakashi yet but I think Mononoke stands well on its own. However, I still intend to watch the previous to make my experience complete.
I thouroughly enjoyed watching Mononoke. Each episode contains subtle clues which provide insights regarding the story. Sometimes, an episode is watched more than once, with each re-watch revealing details previously missed. Watching Mononoke requires one to think and to question. The show does not provide all the answers but instead allows the audience to fill in the gaps. To fully appreciate the series, one must ruminate on each episode as cows do to grass.
I wonder if there will be future sequels. Twelve episodes, comprising four arcs, is somehow short. I would have wanted to know the Medicine Seller’s story and how he acquired the Sword of Exorcism. Too many episodes though would make mundane what Mononoke made unique and the Medicine Seller’s story left unexplained provided the mystery surrounding him.
The opening theme, “Kagen no Tsuki”, is an nice accordion-and-vocals piece by Komatsu Ryota and Charlie Kosei. The ending theme, “Natsu no Hana” by JUJU provides a fitting closure to each episode. Sakurai Takahiro who voiced Kururugi Suzaku of Code Geass, Sasori of Naruto, and Fakir of Princess Tutu, lends his voice to the Medicine Seller, the only recurring character in the series.
Mononoke is directed by Nakamura Kenji and produced by Toei Animation.
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7 comments for “Form, Truth and Regret: Final Thoughts on Mononoke”
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I think I’m going to like watching this. It’s the first time I’ve heard of Mononoke (well the only Mononoke I know of is Miyazaki’s Mononoke Hime).
@ coeli
go for it!
I’m currently watching it, and am completely astounded. The Medicine Seller swept away everything I thought was hardcore in a protagonist, and judging from the few episodes I’ve seen, I think his enigmatic smile and surreal calm in desperate situations are very fitting to this spirit-like demon banisher, and not just empty show, as I’ve seen in many supernatural warrior characters. It’s a feast for the eye, I can’t wait to watch more of it.
I’ve watched it and it’s pretty awesome and unique.
The heavily stylized art is similar to what was used in the Count of Monte Cristo.
I was thoroughly entertained! And yeap, a nice change for all the influx of pop anime these days. I now want to look for things like this some more.
There’s another recurring character. Kayo, from the Umi Bozu arc, was in the Bakeneko arc of Ayakashi (the show Mononoke originally spun off from). Also…Nomoto Chiyo, from the Bakeneko arc of Mononoke is probably the same person.
And yeah, you really do need to watch Mononoke with a friend, and then talk about it after each episode. My boyfriend and I have had rather heated discussions about what happened at the end of Zashiki-Warashi. :p
Little things like Chiyo and Kayo being the same person…. You really need to watch it a number of times.
The anime movie “Pricess Mononoke” is indeed related to yasugi steel.
And also it is related to yasukuni tatara.
Tatara means ancient japanese steel making method and it is called “Takadono” in this movie.
All of this is related ancient japanese myth,
especially Izumo myth.The story like a ayakashi in Japan is a comprehence key of japanese deep myth culture and high-tech power.