Ge-ge-ge no nyobou 5/11
May. 12th, 2010 01:41 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mbarkeraka Scary but nostalgic
This episode started with a pen drawing an eye on a manga figure. Shigeru lifted the pen as Fumie commented, "Scary but natsukashii" (brings back fond memories, old-fashioned, nostalgic?) Shigeru said, "What?" Fumie said, "It's what the teenager at the bookstore said." Shigeru nodded, then got up and opened the closet in his workroom. He dragged out the old tin box. Fumie said, "What's that?" As he opened it, he said it was paintings from his childhood. He showed scenery, etc. then pulled out one. "Here it is." He unfolded it to show red devils tormenting a figure. "That's hell." Then he explained (and they showed us a flashback) that his old maid had taken him to a nearby temple one night. She said this picture is heaven and this picture is hell, and the gods decide where you go. He said hell was much more interesting, as the pictures of the devils tormenting figures swelled and twisted.
Fumie asked, "Was she the one who told you stories about kitsune?" (foxes -- who are somewhat magical figures in Japanese fairy tales)
Shigeru said yes, then pointed up at the ceiling. "You see the stain in the corner? She said that ceilings had eyes, and that stains like that were from the tears of the ceiling." Fumie looked up at the ceiling, and seemed to see a shadowy eye blink, and the stain grew darker. She blinked her own eyes and looked down at the floor.
This is where they ran the theme!
Shigeru was listing various fairy tale monsters, including tanuki (Japanese raccoon dogs, often the opposition to kitsune in the fairy tales). "She told me lots of bakemon (monster) stories." He squinted. "She had me convinced there were kappa in the stream behind the house." (Kappa is a green water spirit, with a depression in the top of their head that holds water.) Fumie laughed. "How can people fight kappa?" Shigeru said, "If you can get the kappa to look down, the water falls out of his head, and he gets weak."
Fumie said my grandmother used to tell scary stories every night. There was one about a big snake. (Flashback!)
Then she laughed and said, "Scary really is amusing, isn't it?"
Shigeru agreed, and then mentioned obon (summer festival of the dead). Fumie said they did that too. (Flashbacks, again). She said, "I asked where all the boats go?" (These are the little straw boats that are floated downriver as part of the festival). "There must be 100,000 boats." Shigeru said it's another country. You can't see it, but it's here.
Fumie remembered the boy who met her in the forest and told her the same thing. (flashback)
Shigeru said, "Look at the time. We need to get back to work." As he sat down at the worktable, Fumie asked, "A long time ago... a really long time ago, did you help a young girl being chased by a monster?" Shigeru inked his pen, then looked at her. "A young girl? Hum. I might have. I might not have. I don't remember." Then he went back to drawing.
Fumie looked at him. The voiceover said, "Was that Shigeru? Fumie didn't know, but she felt a little closer to him."
That fall, Hakaba no Kitaro volumes one, two, and three were in the bookstores. In the rental bookstore, they had stacks of all of them. As a man looked at them, Kiyo, the old woman, stood nearby, dusting. When he picked up all three, she silently cheered, raising her hands in victory. Michiko happily rented him the three volumes for 30 yen. As he walked out, the gang of women passed him, looking at the books under his arm, then coming in and saying, "Yes!" They babbled about having gotten their husbands and friends to read the books. Kiyo said, "Everyone should read them, they're great." The women said, "Have you read them?" Kiyo said, "Of course." Then Michiko piped up from behind the counter, "I've read them, too." The women said, "Now that's unusual. You usually say you don't have time to read all these books." Michiko said, "Yes, but these are different."
An older man with a square bundle on his back heard the talk outside the store. He muttered to himself, "Hakaba no Kitaro?" Then he went inside and picked up one of the books, and started to read it.
The women looked at his bundle, and said, "A peddler?" Michiko said, loudly, "Welcome to the store." He ignored her. Kiyo, the old woman, dusted near him and said, "Standing and reading without buying isn't good manners." He turned away from her and continued reading.
Meanwhile, Shigeru chased Tomita, the publisher, up the stairs and into his office. Shigeru said, "You've got three books, and I haven't been paid yet." Tomita said, "Just be patient a little bit longer." Shigeru said, "What? Why should I be patient? Aren't you going to pay me?" Tomita said, "Oh, no, I'll pay you. But things are difficult right now. Those war model kits didn't sell." Shigeru said, "That was you and Uraki, not me." Tomita said, "I know, but... look, have you forgotten? Three years ago, when you just arrived in Tokyo, I helped you. We've got this long relationship. Just wait a bit more."
At the house, Fumie was sweeping outside. She picked up a leaf and looked at it. Then she heard the trudging steps in the street, and went to greet Shigeru. She asked, "How did it go?" Shigeru shook his head. Then they sat down outside. Shigeru explained, and said, "It's hard, isn't it. What can we do?" Then he asked if the upstairs guy had paid this month. Fumie said no, and he said he would ask him.
Shigeru went inside and upstairs. He knocked on the door and looked inside. The upstairs guy was huddled over a pot on a hot plate, with a towel around his neck. He coughed. Shigeru said, "What are you doing?" The upstairs guy stirred the contents of the pot with chopsticks, and poured a little soy sauce in. He said, "It's tea leaves. But if you add some soy sauce, they're not bad." Then he grabbed a handkerchief and blew his nose.
Shigeru came downstairs. He told Fumie it wasn't possible. Then he went into his work room.
Fumie started to look at her notebook. From outside, someone called in a loud voice, "Excuse me?" Fumie went to answer the door, and looked at the older man standing there with his square bundle on his back. She said, "We don't need any." The man said, "Oh, I'm not a peddler. This is where Mizuki lives, isn't it? I'm an old friend of his." Shigeru came to the door, glanced at the man, and said, "Is it really you?" Then he went over and embraced him.
to be continued...
This episode started with a pen drawing an eye on a manga figure. Shigeru lifted the pen as Fumie commented, "Scary but natsukashii" (brings back fond memories, old-fashioned, nostalgic?) Shigeru said, "What?" Fumie said, "It's what the teenager at the bookstore said." Shigeru nodded, then got up and opened the closet in his workroom. He dragged out the old tin box. Fumie said, "What's that?" As he opened it, he said it was paintings from his childhood. He showed scenery, etc. then pulled out one. "Here it is." He unfolded it to show red devils tormenting a figure. "That's hell." Then he explained (and they showed us a flashback) that his old maid had taken him to a nearby temple one night. She said this picture is heaven and this picture is hell, and the gods decide where you go. He said hell was much more interesting, as the pictures of the devils tormenting figures swelled and twisted.
Fumie asked, "Was she the one who told you stories about kitsune?" (foxes -- who are somewhat magical figures in Japanese fairy tales)
Shigeru said yes, then pointed up at the ceiling. "You see the stain in the corner? She said that ceilings had eyes, and that stains like that were from the tears of the ceiling." Fumie looked up at the ceiling, and seemed to see a shadowy eye blink, and the stain grew darker. She blinked her own eyes and looked down at the floor.
This is where they ran the theme!
Shigeru was listing various fairy tale monsters, including tanuki (Japanese raccoon dogs, often the opposition to kitsune in the fairy tales). "She told me lots of bakemon (monster) stories." He squinted. "She had me convinced there were kappa in the stream behind the house." (Kappa is a green water spirit, with a depression in the top of their head that holds water.) Fumie laughed. "How can people fight kappa?" Shigeru said, "If you can get the kappa to look down, the water falls out of his head, and he gets weak."
Fumie said my grandmother used to tell scary stories every night. There was one about a big snake. (Flashback!)
Then she laughed and said, "Scary really is amusing, isn't it?"
Shigeru agreed, and then mentioned obon (summer festival of the dead). Fumie said they did that too. (Flashbacks, again). She said, "I asked where all the boats go?" (These are the little straw boats that are floated downriver as part of the festival). "There must be 100,000 boats." Shigeru said it's another country. You can't see it, but it's here.
Fumie remembered the boy who met her in the forest and told her the same thing. (flashback)
Shigeru said, "Look at the time. We need to get back to work." As he sat down at the worktable, Fumie asked, "A long time ago... a really long time ago, did you help a young girl being chased by a monster?" Shigeru inked his pen, then looked at her. "A young girl? Hum. I might have. I might not have. I don't remember." Then he went back to drawing.
Fumie looked at him. The voiceover said, "Was that Shigeru? Fumie didn't know, but she felt a little closer to him."
That fall, Hakaba no Kitaro volumes one, two, and three were in the bookstores. In the rental bookstore, they had stacks of all of them. As a man looked at them, Kiyo, the old woman, stood nearby, dusting. When he picked up all three, she silently cheered, raising her hands in victory. Michiko happily rented him the three volumes for 30 yen. As he walked out, the gang of women passed him, looking at the books under his arm, then coming in and saying, "Yes!" They babbled about having gotten their husbands and friends to read the books. Kiyo said, "Everyone should read them, they're great." The women said, "Have you read them?" Kiyo said, "Of course." Then Michiko piped up from behind the counter, "I've read them, too." The women said, "Now that's unusual. You usually say you don't have time to read all these books." Michiko said, "Yes, but these are different."
An older man with a square bundle on his back heard the talk outside the store. He muttered to himself, "Hakaba no Kitaro?" Then he went inside and picked up one of the books, and started to read it.
The women looked at his bundle, and said, "A peddler?" Michiko said, loudly, "Welcome to the store." He ignored her. Kiyo, the old woman, dusted near him and said, "Standing and reading without buying isn't good manners." He turned away from her and continued reading.
Meanwhile, Shigeru chased Tomita, the publisher, up the stairs and into his office. Shigeru said, "You've got three books, and I haven't been paid yet." Tomita said, "Just be patient a little bit longer." Shigeru said, "What? Why should I be patient? Aren't you going to pay me?" Tomita said, "Oh, no, I'll pay you. But things are difficult right now. Those war model kits didn't sell." Shigeru said, "That was you and Uraki, not me." Tomita said, "I know, but... look, have you forgotten? Three years ago, when you just arrived in Tokyo, I helped you. We've got this long relationship. Just wait a bit more."
At the house, Fumie was sweeping outside. She picked up a leaf and looked at it. Then she heard the trudging steps in the street, and went to greet Shigeru. She asked, "How did it go?" Shigeru shook his head. Then they sat down outside. Shigeru explained, and said, "It's hard, isn't it. What can we do?" Then he asked if the upstairs guy had paid this month. Fumie said no, and he said he would ask him.
Shigeru went inside and upstairs. He knocked on the door and looked inside. The upstairs guy was huddled over a pot on a hot plate, with a towel around his neck. He coughed. Shigeru said, "What are you doing?" The upstairs guy stirred the contents of the pot with chopsticks, and poured a little soy sauce in. He said, "It's tea leaves. But if you add some soy sauce, they're not bad." Then he grabbed a handkerchief and blew his nose.
Shigeru came downstairs. He told Fumie it wasn't possible. Then he went into his work room.
Fumie started to look at her notebook. From outside, someone called in a loud voice, "Excuse me?" Fumie went to answer the door, and looked at the older man standing there with his square bundle on his back. She said, "We don't need any." The man said, "Oh, I'm not a peddler. This is where Mizuki lives, isn't it? I'm an old friend of his." Shigeru came to the door, glanced at the man, and said, "Is it really you?" Then he went over and embraced him.
to be continued...
