#kiniromosaic — Public Fediverse posts

Recently added titles (October 2024)

Building upon the titles listed for July/August, September, October,  November, and December 2021, and January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, and December of 2022, and January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, and December of 2023, January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, and September of this year, this post notes recent titles with libraries or librarians in popular culture which I’ve come across in the past month. Each of these has been watched or read during the past month. Note: There will be spoilers for the series I am discussing here.

Animated series recently added to this page

• Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft, “Whanaungatanga” (s1 ep 5)

In this episode, in one scene, a messy library is shown, said to be the “best in the world.” While the location of this library is not stated, it is messy and somewhere within the mansion of Lara Croft’s family (possibly in Australia maybe? It’s definitely not in the UK), with her friend Zip being tired after reading the text of some dry history books on the Zulus. She tells him that this place is important to her, pointing to where her mother taught her French, and other life events that happened there, saying the place is full of “too many memories” and there’s no room for her there. She learns that her friend Jonah remembers Charles Devereaux, the series villain, heard him talking about the Battle of Zhuolu, not Zulu, which was one of the founding battles of China she heard about as a kid.

Anime series recently added to this page

• Encouragement of Climb, “The Homework’s Unending!” (s2 ep 19)
• Encouragement of Climb, “Kokona’s Big Hanno Adventure” (s2 ep 20)
• I’ll Become a Villainess Who Goes Down in History (s1 ep 1)
• I’ll Become a Villainess Who Goes Down in History (s1 ep 2)
• I’ll Become a Villainess Who Goes Down in History (s1 ep 3)
• I’ll Become a Villainess Who Goes Down in History (s1 ep 4)
• No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular! aka WataMote, “Since I’m Not Popular, I’ll Go See the Fireworks” (s1 ep 6)
• No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular! aka WataMote, “Since I’m Not Popular, I’ll Put on Airs” (s1 ep 8)

In the first episode mentioned here, Aoi Takimura studies with her friends at the local public library during the summer to get her homework done before she hikes on a nearby mountain, which is starting to make her exhausted. The fact she has any summer homework is a crime. She shouldn’t have any!

In the second episode mentioned here, Kokona goes to a local park (Akebano Children’s Forest Park) to try out her new shoes her mother gave her to celebrate her birthday, where she goes into a library room, in a building that almost looks like it came out of a fairytale, and happily reads a book, in one scene. Later she tells her mom that she “read an old book” there.

I mentioned it before, but in the first episode of Encouragement of Climb: Next Summit, which is a sort of reboot/revival of Encouragement of Climb, Aoi visits a local library and reads about mountain climbing. One of the librarians, a student at the same high school she goes to, recognizes her. The protagonist later describes the library as a place she likes to go since she is nice and quiet.

As for WataMote, in the sixth episode, noted above, the socially anxious protagonist Tomoko Kuroki, goes to the library in hopes of asking a nerd to the fireworks during the summer break from school, but decides to ask a cute girl in the library to go to the fireworks. However, before she can say anything, she realizes the girl has friends, and stops herself. After the girl leaves with her friends, she says her only option is a huge nerd reading in the library. She sets a timer, hoping he will ask her to go the fireworks, then takes a fake call with someone saying they can’t go to the fireworks, and says something hoping to entice him, and sits back in her seat, declaring the stage is set. Instead, he leaves and never says a word to her. There’s also a brief library scene in the eighth episode involving the cousin of Tomoko, Ki-tan, who comes to visit during the summer. The latter only involves the library as a brief setting, but Ki-tan is shown reading in the library and Tomoko walks through it.

I mentioned library scenes in the manga, from which this animated series was based, specifically in chapters 46, 47, 48, 50, and 84 back in August. I came across another scene in chapter, specifically chapter 101, in which Akari Iguchi (who has a crush on Tomoko’s brother, Tomoki) goes to the library where she sees Koriyama Kotomi, who is serving as the librarian, and Tomoko gets Arkari o admit she likes Tomoki, while Koriyama admits she likes Tomoki and his sexual organs. Akari claims she only likes Tomoki for his personality, something that confuses Tomoko because he has a terrible personality (not saying hers is great though).

I began watching I’ll Become a Villainess Who Goes Down in History (fully known as this, plus the colon “It Seems Turning into a High-Born Baddie Makes the Prince All the More Lovestruck” or Rekishi ni Nokoru Akujo ni Naru zo: Akuyaku Reijō ni Naru hodo Ōji no Dekiai wa Kasoku suru yō desu! in Japanese) on a whim, and in the first episode, shown above, the protagonist Alicia goes through the library to learn more about magic. She walks through the stacks so she can begin to master magic, to find the right book so she can begin self-training, but no book in the entire library is about magic, annoying her, so she decides to read a book on plants instead. She later is proud of herself for reading many books (probably 20-30) in one day. She goes to the library the next day so she can continue her reading. Her mother is even impressed. After a week, she has gained more energy. The next day she goes to the library again, and then leaves so she can do sword training.

In the next episode she goes to the library again and looks at a map, deciding to go to a far-off village, Lorea, so she can help. She decides to sneak out, knowing she won’t be able to go there with permission. She is shown reading in the library later on (set two years later), still learning more from the library’s collections. Some time later, she declares she will dedicate herself more to her studies to become the best villainess possible, so she returns to the library, hoping to find a grimoire this time. Her magical powers reveal hidden shelves of the library that she couldn’t see before, amazing her.

In the third episode, Alice goes to the reference room in the magic academy, which, of course, includes a library. Similarly, there is a library scene in the fourth episode as well, when the protagonist begins going to the magic academy, and is brought into the library by the prince in a transport spell without her permission, catching her completely off guard. She later says her conduct there is “completely unbecoming of a villainess” (whether that is true is up to the viewer).

Comics recently added to this page

• Diamond Dive, Issue 37
  
• Hilda and the Black Hound, page 41
• Humanoido, “Ep. 6 – I’ll Talk to You as a Friend“
• Kiniro Mosaic vol. 2 (p. 79-80)
• No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular!, Chapter 101
• The Engagement of the Disgraced Witch and the Cross-Dressing Princess, Chapter 9, “Green Convictions”
• The Oracle, Issue 2

I have already have mentioned Hilda animated series many times and I decided to check out the original graphic novels by Luke Pearson. Internet Archive has the first five. This is the only one that has a scene in a library, and while a librarian is shown, it is very brief. I also read the other graphic novel, Hilda and the Mountain King, and it has no scenes in libraries.

As for Diamond Dive, you can’t read this unless you have logged in, as you can’t view mature content on the site otherwise. Anyway, in this issue, they go to a library-like setting so they an schedule a duel with Ms. Davies, between Karta Kloss and Bailey Montgomery.

As for The Oracle, Niko goes to the school library, reading a book on Grimoire half-truths, being interested in what it said. Then for chapter 9, entitled “The Convictions”, in The Engagement of the Disgraced Witch and the Cross-Dressing Princess, the protagonist, the cross-dressing princess, Ciel, is shown reading in the central library of the capital, about traditions and fairy tales about witches, along with a scholar from the city and woman she loves, according to the 20th to 27th pages of the comic scan I read.

Then there’s Humanoido. In this sixth issue, Ido Noh and another girl, Jisu, are studying in the library together, but she is pulled away because “something exciting” is going on. In this flashback, Jisu wonders whether Ido wants to hang out with her at all, because she is very silent, and says it is like she is “talking to a machine.” It is observations like that which get her branded as a robot (even though she is human) and cause a misunderstanding: an actual robotic boy, Se-i Ryu, thinks that Ido is like him, serving as the crux of the story.

Lastly, I received the second volume of the Kiniro Mosaic [also known as Kin-iro Mosaic and Kinmoza] manga and the first volume of the Lycoris Recoil manga this month in the mail this month. Unsurprisingly, the latter didn’t have any library scenes (it did have some archivy themes which I’ll post about later on Wading Through the Cultural Stacks at some point). However, the Kiniro Mosaic manga volume did have library scenes, without librarians. In the past, I’ve noted the anime adaptation (which I was familiar with first and even wrote about in a review of the series Blu-ray for Pop Culture Maniacs, and even noted that it “depicts British-ness more positively than R.O.D. the TV which depicts the British Library as the series antagonists as they try to seize all the world’s knowledge for themselves”) on this blog, firstly noting library scenes in the episodes “Present For You” and “The Girl on My Mind”, with the latter featuring an unnamed and uncredited librarian who doesn’t have her hair in a hair bun, but in a pony tail. Otherwise, I mentioned the anime briefly on this blog in April 2023, April of this year, and September of this year, and then in July of this year I noted that the series had various episodes (“Aya Nervous in the Rain”, “Present For You”, “The Girl on My Mind”) which “feature characters studying in the library”, described said episodes, and the role of the library to the show’s characters during those episodes.

This volume has two panels of a scene in the library with Alice helping Karen study English, since Alice is very good at it, with Shino pointing this out. Karen and Shino end up bonding as their scores on the tests are the same. Later, Alice can’t reach the dictionary and Karen offers to help her. Following this, Aya tries to do the same, declares she can “do it herself,” to which Youko offers a stool, but Aya is embarrassed nonetheless. She really brings the yuri to this manga.

Films recently added to this page

• The Truman Show (1998) [updated]

I’ve had this entry for a while and have mentioned this series multiple times, first in August 2020, then in December 2020 (small mention), June 2024 (I noted that those who created Truman Burbank’s reality had “enough foresight to have the school library stocked with books. The idea was to create an illusion that the world he was in was “real,” and that there was no reason to ever leave”), and September 2024 (short description). My current entry for the series is as follows:

Truman Burbank and the woman he loves, Sylvia, meet in a library, in a pivotal scene of the film. At the urging of Sylvia, they escape it and are able to have a romantic time together, before she gets turned over to those trying to ensure that Truman doesn’t learn the truth about his world.

I wrote much more in my August 2020 post, my longest treatment of this scene to date, saying the following:

…I thought back and I remembered the library scene in The Truman Show, so I recently re-watched it and was pleased. The scene in this film only gets a short mention in Martin Raish’s bibliography of movies about librarians, who describes it simply as having a scene where “Truman and the lovely dark haired young woman meet in the campus library.” He adds that this was “filmed in the Fort Walton Beach Campus Library, a facility shared by the Okaloosa-Walton College and The University of West Florida” adding that a real librarian served as a consultant and as an extra, portraying the librarian, but “her scene was cut from the final version of the film.” But there is much more than this. In the film itself, this library setting is a key part of Truman’s life. While he is studying for finals, he sees Sylvia, who had been taken away from him, so they could set him up with Meryl, recognizing her bracelet. They only spend a brief time in the library, but they don’t employ any stereotypes here, which is promising to say the least.

 

From there, they run away to the beach, kiss, and “they” find Sylvia and take her away, with the “father” saying they are going to Fiji. So, he keeps the memory, keeping her sweater, although he doesn’t realize yet that his whole life is staged, and continues to have a sense of adventure. So, this isn’t exactly “love in the library” but it still is a relatively positive scene of libraries, having all the signs and notices that a usual library would have!

I have tentative plans to write a longer post on this subject in the future. We will see what happens.

Other entries recently added to this page

• Hilda and the Great Parade
• Hilda and the Nowhere Space
• Hilda and the Ghost Ship
• Hilda’s World: A guide to Trolberg, the wilderness, and beyond
• I’m in Love with the Villainess Vol. 2 (2021) [updated]

Recently I bought the first five novels of the tie-in novel series to the Hilda animate series, with novels by Stephen Davies. I foolishly thought that that these were graphic novels, but they are actually just children’s media. Of the five novels, only three of them, the ones listed above, feature the librarian, Kaisa, while the other two (Hilda and the Hidden People and Hilda and the Time Worm), do not.

The three novels I have listed above have scenes with Kaisa. I have written about her extensively on this blog for over sixty posts, including her brief role in season 3, Kaisa Day (on December 14), in connection to reference librarianship, the defense Kaisa made in favor of not returning a book, her role in season 2, how she is experiencing burnout, and other posts about her in January 2021 and September 2020. The latter post was her first mention on this blog. I plan to write a post about these novels in an upcoming post on this blog, which will appear at some point.

As for Hilda’s World: A guide to Trolberg, the wilderness, and beyond, it mentions the library on multiple pages, but especially pages 40-43, with even a profile of the librarian, Kaisa!

Then there’s I’m in Love with the Villainess Vol. 2 (2021). I had previously noted this in some posts before, but I hadn’t added it properly to this list, so its finally being added. Otherwise, there were also library scenes in volume 7 of the I’m in Love with the Villainess manga, and I updated the term I had for that “I’m in Love with the Villainess aka Watashi no Oshi wa Akuyaku Reijō aka Wataoshi (2020-Present) [Manga]” to “I’m in Love with the Villainess Vol. 7 (2024) [Manga]” to be more accurate.

© 2023-2024 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

#BluRays #books #China #EncouragementOfClimb #EncouragementOfClimbNextSummit #Hilda #HildaAndTheGhostShip #HildaAndTheGreatParade #HildaAndTheNowhereSpace #HildaSWorld #homework #ILlBecomeAVillainessWhoGoesDownInHistory #IMInLoveWithTheVillainess #ItSYouGuysFaultIMNotPopular #Kaisa #KinIroMosaic #LibrariansInTheMoviesAnAnnotatedFilmography #lists #NoMatterHowILookAtIt #RODTheTV #RecentlyAddedTitles #shortBlogs #studying #TheEngagementOfTheDisgracedWitchAndTheCrossDressingPrincess #TheTrumanShow #TombRaiderTheLegendOfLaraCroft #WataMote

Love, learning, and all the rest: Fictional libraries in “Fruits Basket” and beyond

Before watching Fruits Basket, an anime which mixes the romantic comedy, slice-of-life, and supernatural genres, I knew there was a librarian character (voiced by Sayumi Watabe). I was not aware, however, that libraries would have an important role in the series, at least in a few episodes. In this post, I’ll examine the scenes in Fruits Basket, and connect it to other posts on this blog.

In the third episode of Fruits Basket, a schoolgirl confesses to Yuki Soma (voiced by Nobunaga Shimazaki) in the library and he pushes her off. She is disappointed, saying he is closed off to most people and asks why he can’t let her in. The truth is that if women hug him, then he turns into an animal, a rat to be specific. The schoolgirl, understandably runs off, sad and likely crying, leaving him standing in the library. As it turns out, Tohru Honda (voiced by Manaka Iwami ), who is living at his house, tells him later that she is happy that he let her in, making him happy. The impact of this library scene is a strong one, even though the scene is pretty short.

In some ways, I can relate this to a few issues of the romantic slice-of-life webcomic, Literary Link. The protagonist, Faye, gets a community service job at the local public library’s literary club, due to a fighter in school, and meets a girl named Atlas. As would be expected, Faye falls in love with Atlas, after she teases her a bit, and agrees to keep volunteering at the literary club. Although Atlas isn’t sure if Faye will return, she does, making her happy, especially when she brings cupcakes, and Atlas bandages Faye up from an earlier fight. [1]

Literary Link and Fruits Basket are relatively different from other depictions of romance within libraries that I’ve noted on this blog. In The Truman Show (1998) and Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008), which I wrote about in the early days of this blog, the libraries play a big role in the stories of each film. In the first film, it is pivotal moment for Truman Burbank, as he meets the woman he loves, Sylvia, and runs out from the library with her to a secluded beach. In the second film, Harold remembers how he met his ex-girlfriend, Vanessa, in the library. Both of them, in line with the fact the film is a stoner comedy, smoke pot in the library, even though it isn’t allowed.

There are many other examples of love, and romance, within libraries, whether Luz’s crush on Amity (which is later canonized) in The Owl House, Sophia beginning to confess her love to Catarina in My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, an almost-kiss between Shizuma and Nagisa in the Strawberry Panic! episode “Etoile”, and Fumi and Sugimoto kissing in an episode of Whispered Words (“Adolescence is Beautiful”). There are other instances of love being expressed inside of library walls, including a bun-wearing librarian shushing male students who are expressing their romance in the library.

The second time that libraries appear in the series is a short scene at the end of the fourth episode, when Tohru checks out books from the library about vegetable gardens and martial arts, so she can learn about what Yuki and Kyo like and dislike. She hopes to find “hidden sides” of them. Not long after, she ends up dropping these books, dramatically, when she learns that her Grandpa’s place is now ready for her to move back in. As it turns out, she doesn’t want to go back, but she decides she has to, although she is later saved by Yuki and Kyo in the following episode. This library scene has the first librarian character in the series, the aforementioned librarian voiced by Sayumi Watabe. This librarian is a student library worker. She checks out the books for Tohru.

Such librarians are not unique in anime. I mentioned many of them in my post back in April, including one protagonist, Haruki, in the striking and moving anime film, I Want to Eat Your Pancreas. He ends up helping another protagonist, Sakura Yamauchi, who’s disabled and uses a wheelchair. He becomes her good friend and later her love interest. She works in the library alongside him. This example differs from school-age student librarians, library workers to be precise, who are almost exclusively female, shown in various series. [2]

Some of the more prominent and recurring student librarians include Hisami Hishishii in multiple episodes of R.O.D. the TV, protagonist Hanamaru Kunikida in Love Live! Sunshine!!, Yamada and Kosuda in B Gata H Kei, Azusa Aoi in Whispered Words, Fumi Manjōme in Aoi Hana / Sweet Blue Flowers, Fumio Murakumi in Girl Friend Beta, Himeko Agari in Komi Can’t Communicate, Chiyo Tsukudate in Strawberry Panic!, Sumireko Sanshokunin a.k.a. “Pansy” in Oresuki, and Anne and Grea in Manaria Friends. Of these characters, they are often said to be quiet, shy, hardworking, diligent, lonely, sweet, socially awkward, or introverted. There are exceptions like the lustful and flirtatious Yamada, or Pansy who has strong charisma and observation skills. Many also have yuri subtext integral to their characters either directly or indirectly. [3]

A unique character is Rin Shima in Laid Back-Camp. She fits with the overall theme of iyashikei, a genre of anime which is “healing,” shying away from romance or action in favor of “meaningful connections with family and friends, and finding joy in the minutiae of life,” as Marley Crusch of Polygon put it. Shima is further described by Crusch as a girl who enjoys camping, quiet, reserved personality, and an introvert, although she becomes better at talking with others by the time of the 2nd season. [4]

This differs from more professional, yet unvoiced, ones in episodes of Akebi’s Sailor Uniform, Kin-iro Mosaic, Revolutionary Girl Utena, Maria Watches Over Us, Is the Order a Rabbit, Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible, and The Dangers in My Heart. Kanina Shizuka in Maria Watches Over Us, is another example, but she is a supporting character. This connects to what I wrote in August, noting that within workplaces, there are unspoken/spoken “common standards of professional appearance” which penalize those with “tattoos and piercings, connecting with societally-sanctioned standards of appearance, which can be harsher on women.

In anime, all the characters, with stated or presumed professional credentials, in this post would be called librarians and assistant librarians, according to the landmark Library Act in Japan. In any case, one must continually be critical of what Fobazi Ettarh has defined as vocational awe, a set of values, ideas, and assumptions that “librarians have about themselves and the profession that result in beliefs that libraries…are inherently good…sacred, and…beyond critique.” With that, my post comes to a close. Until next week, where my post will examine the profound lack of libraries in Tom Gauld’s Revenge of the Librarians and stronger fictional depictions.

© 2023-2024 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] “Literary Club” [Issue 1]; Literary Link, May 6, 2023; “What’s her name?” [Issue 2], Literary Link, May 12, 2023; “Ethically Questionable” [Issue 3], Literary Link, May 27, 2023; “Careful with your face” [Issue 4], Literary Link, Jun. 10, 2023; “Overthinking” [Issue 5], Literary Link, Jun. 24, 2023.

[2] I’m referring to, in part, Nagisa Yasaka in My Roommate is a Cat, Nagisa Yasaka (episode: “Ones Who Can’t Be Controlled” and “What Connects Us”), Aoi Uribe in Myself ; Yourself (episode “The Important Melody”), Hasegawa Sumika in Bernard-jou Iwaku a.k.a. Miss Bernard said, Kamiya in Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie (episode: “Cultural Festival I”), Sumireko Sanshokunin a.k.a. “Pansy” in Oresuki, Anne and Grea in Manaria Friends,  and Female Student B (librarian) in Azumanga Daioh (episode 19 segment “Springtime of Life”).

[3] “Hisami Hishiishii,” Read or Die Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Hanamaru Kunikida,” Love Live Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Yamada,” B Gata H Kei Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Fumio Murakumi,” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Agari Himeko,” Komi-San Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Chiyo Tsukudate,” Strawberry Panic! Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Sumireko Sanshokunin,” Oresuki Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Grea,” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Anne (Rage of Bagamut),” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023.

[4] “Rin Shima,” Yuru Camp Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023.

#AkebiSSailorUniform #AmityBlight #AoiHana #AzumangaDaioh #beautyStandards #ChiyoTsukudate #disabledPatrons #FobaziEttarh #FruitsBasket #groomingStandards #HanamaruKunikida #HaroldAndKumar #HisamiHishishii #IWantToEatYourPancreas #IsTheOrderARabbit #JapaneseLibrarians #JapanesePatrons #JapaneseWomen #KinIroMosaic #KuboWonTLetMeBeInvisible #LaidBackCamp #LesbianLibrarians #LGBTQ #libraryPatrons #libraryWorkers #LiteraryLink #LoveLiveSunshine #MariaWatchesOverUs #MissBernardSaid #MyNextLifeAsAVillainess #MyRoommateIsACat #MyselfYourself #professionals #RevengeOfTheLibrarians #RevolutionaryGirlUtena #ShikimoriSNotJustACutie #StrawberryPanic #students #SweetBlueFlowers #TheDangersInMyHeart #TheOwlHouse #TheTrumanShow #vocationalAwe #WhisperedWords

Love, learning, and all the rest: Fictional libraries in “Fruits Basket” and beyond

Before watching Fruits Basket, an anime which mixes the romantic comedy, slice-of-life, and supernatural genres, I knew there was a librarian character (voiced by Sayumi Watabe). I was not aware, however, that libraries would have an important role in the series, at least in a few episodes. In this post, I’ll examine the scenes in Fruits Basket, and connect it to other posts on this blog.

In the third episode of Fruits Basket, a schoolgirl confesses to Yuki Soma (voiced by Nobunaga Shimazaki) in the library and he pushes her off. She is disappointed, saying he is closed off to most people and asks why he can’t let her in. The truth is that if women hug him, then he turns into an animal, a rat to be specific. The schoolgirl, understandably runs off, sad and likely crying, leaving him standing in the library. As it turns out, Tohru Honda (voiced by Manaka Iwami ), who is living at his house, tells him later that she is happy that he let her in, making him happy. The impact of this library scene is a strong one, even though the scene is pretty short.

In some ways, I can relate this to a few issues of the romantic slice-of-life webcomic, Literary Link. The protagonist, Faye, gets a community service job at the local public library’s literary club, due to a fighter in school, and meets a girl named Atlas. As would be expected, Faye falls in love with Atlas, after she teases her a bit, and agrees to keep volunteering at the literary club. Although Atlas isn’t sure if Faye will return, she does, making her happy, especially when she brings cupcakes, and Atlas bandages Faye up from an earlier fight. [1]

Literary Link and Fruits Basket are relatively different from other depictions of romance within libraries that I’ve noted on this blog. In The Truman Show (1998) and Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008), which I wrote about in the early days of this blog, the libraries play a big role in the stories of each film. In the first film, it is pivotal moment for Truman Burbank, as he meets the woman he loves, Sylvia, and runs out from the library with her to a secluded beach. In the second film, Harold remembers how he met his ex-girlfriend, Vanessa, in the library. Both of them, in line with the fact the film is a stoner comedy, smoke pot in the library, even though it isn’t allowed.

There are many other examples of love, and romance, within libraries, whether Luz’s crush on Amity (which is later canonized) in The Owl House, Sophia beginning to confess her love to Catarina in My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, an almost-kiss between Shizuma and Nagisa in the Strawberry Panic! episode “Etoile”, and Fumi and Sugimoto kissing in an episode of Whispered Words (“Adolescence is Beautiful”). There are other instances of love being expressed inside of library walls, including a bun-wearing librarian shushing male students who are expressing their romance in the library.

The second time that libraries appear in the series is a short scene at the end of the fourth episode, when Tohru checks out books from the library about vegetable gardens and martial arts, so she can learn about what Yuki and Kyo like and dislike. She hopes to find “hidden sides” of them. Not long after, she ends up dropping these books, dramatically, when she learns that her Grandpa’s place is now ready for her to move back in. As it turns out, she doesn’t want to go back, but she decides she has to, although she is later saved by Yuki and Kyo in the following episode. This library scene has the first librarian character in the series, the aforementioned librarian voiced by Sayumi Watabe. This librarian is a student library worker. She checks out the books for Tohru.

Such librarians are not unique in anime. I mentioned many of them in my post back in April, including one protagonist, Haruki, in the striking and moving anime film, I Want to Eat Your Pancreas. He ends up helping another protagonist, Sakura Yamauchi, who’s disabled and uses a wheelchair. He becomes her good friend and later her love interest. She works in the library alongside him. This example differs from school-age student librarians, library workers to be precise, who are almost exclusively female, shown in various series. [2]

Some of the more prominent and recurring student librarians include Hisami Hishishii in multiple episodes of R.O.D. the TV, protagonist Hanamaru Kunikida in Love Live! Sunshine!!, Yamada and Kosuda in B Gata H Kei, Azusa Aoi in Whispered Words, Fumi Manjōme in Aoi Hana / Sweet Blue Flowers, Fumio Murakumi in Girl Friend Beta, Himeko Agari in Komi Can’t Communicate, Chiyo Tsukudate in Strawberry Panic!, Sumireko Sanshokunin a.k.a. “Pansy” in Oresuki, and Anne and Grea in Manaria Friends. Of these characters, they are often said to be quiet, shy, hardworking, diligent, lonely, sweet, socially awkward, or introverted. There are exceptions like the lustful and flirtatious Yamada, or Pansy who has strong charisma and observation skills. Many also have yuri subtext integral to their characters either directly or indirectly. [3]

A unique character is Rin Shima in Laid Back-Camp. She fits with the overall theme of iyashikei, a genre of anime which is “healing,” shying away from romance or action in favor of “meaningful connections with family and friends, and finding joy in the minutiae of life,” as Marley Crusch of Polygon put it. Shima is further described by Crusch as a girl who enjoys camping, quiet, reserved personality, and an introvert, although she becomes better at talking with others by the time of the 2nd season. [4]

This differs from more professional, yet unvoiced, ones in episodes of Akebi’s Sailor Uniform, Kin-iro Mosaic, Revolutionary Girl Utena, Maria Watches Over Us, Is the Order a Rabbit, Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible, and The Dangers in My Heart. Kanina Shizuka in Maria Watches Over Us, is another example, but she is a supporting character. This connects to what I wrote in August, noting that within workplaces, there are unspoken/spoken “common standards of professional appearance” which penalize those with “tattoos and piercings, connecting with societally-sanctioned standards of appearance, which can be harsher on women.

In anime, all the characters, with stated or presumed professional credentials, in this post would be called librarians and assistant librarians, according to the landmark Library Act in Japan. In any case, one must continually be critical of what Fobazi Ettarh has defined as vocational awe, a set of values, ideas, and assumptions that “librarians have about themselves and the profession that result in beliefs that libraries…are inherently good…sacred, and…beyond critique.” With that, my post comes to a close. Until next week, where my post will examine the profound lack of libraries in Tom Gauld’s Revenge of the Librarians and stronger fictional depictions.

© 2023-2024 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] “Literary Club” [Issue 1]; Literary Link, May 6, 2023; “What’s her name?” [Issue 2], Literary Link, May 12, 2023; “Ethically Questionable” [Issue 3], Literary Link, May 27, 2023; “Careful with your face” [Issue 4], Literary Link, Jun. 10, 2023; “Overthinking” [Issue 5], Literary Link, Jun. 24, 2023.

[2] I’m referring to, in part, Nagisa Yasaka in My Roommate is a Cat, Nagisa Yasaka (episode: “Ones Who Can’t Be Controlled” and “What Connects Us”), Aoi Uribe in Myself ; Yourself (episode “The Important Melody”), Hasegawa Sumika in Bernard-jou Iwaku a.k.a. Miss Bernard said, Kamiya in Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie (episode: “Cultural Festival I”), Sumireko Sanshokunin a.k.a. “Pansy” in Oresuki, Anne and Grea in Manaria Friends,  and Female Student B (librarian) in Azumanga Daioh (episode 19 segment “Springtime of Life”).

[3] “Hisami Hishiishii,” Read or Die Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Hanamaru Kunikida,” Love Live Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Yamada,” B Gata H Kei Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Fumio Murakumi,” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Agari Himeko,” Komi-San Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Chiyo Tsukudate,” Strawberry Panic! Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Sumireko Sanshokunin,” Oresuki Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Grea,” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Anne (Rage of Bagamut),” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023.

[4] “Rin Shima,” Yuru Camp Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023.

#AkebiSSailorUniform #AmityBlight #AoiHana #AzumangaDaioh #beautyStandards #ChiyoTsukudate #disabledPatrons #FobaziEttarh #FruitsBasket #groomingStandards #HanamaruKunikida #HaroldAndKumar #HisamiHishishii #IWantToEatYourPancreas #IsTheOrderARabbit #JapaneseLibrarians #JapanesePatrons #JapaneseWomen #KinIroMosaic #KuboWonTLetMeBeInvisible #LaidBackCamp #LesbianLibrarians #LGBTQ #libraryPatrons #libraryWorkers #LiteraryLink #LoveLiveSunshine #MariaWatchesOverUs #MissBernardSaid #MyNextLifeAsAVillainess #MyRoommateIsACat #MyselfYourself #professionals #RevengeOfTheLibrarians #RevolutionaryGirlUtena #ShikimoriSNotJustACutie #StrawberryPanic #students #SweetBlueFlowers #TheDangersInMyHeart #TheOwlHouse #TheTrumanShow #vocationalAwe #WhisperedWords

Love, learning, and all the rest: Fictional libraries in “Fruits Basket” and beyond

Before watching Fruits Basket, an anime which mixes the romantic comedy, slice-of-life, and supernatural genres, I knew there was a librarian character (voiced by Sayumi Watabe). I was not aware, however, that libraries would have an important role in the series, at least in a few episodes. In this post, I’ll examine the scenes in Fruits Basket, and connect it to other posts on this blog.

In the third episode of Fruits Basket, a schoolgirl confesses to Yuki Soma (voiced by Nobunaga Shimazaki) in the library and he pushes her off. She is disappointed, saying he is closed off to most people and asks why he can’t let her in. The truth is that if women hug him, then he turns into an animal, a rat to be specific. The schoolgirl, understandably runs off, sad and likely crying, leaving him standing in the library. As it turns out, Tohru Honda (voiced by Manaka Iwami ), who is living at his house, tells him later that she is happy that he let her in, making him happy. The impact of this library scene is a strong one, even though the scene is pretty short.

In some ways, I can relate this to a few issues of the romantic slice-of-life webcomic, Literary Link. The protagonist, Faye, gets a community service job at the local public library’s literary club, due to a fighter in school, and meets a girl named Atlas. As would be expected, Faye falls in love with Atlas, after she teases her a bit, and agrees to keep volunteering at the literary club. Although Atlas isn’t sure if Faye will return, she does, making her happy, especially when she brings cupcakes, and Atlas bandages Faye up from an earlier fight. [1]

Literary Link and Fruits Basket are relatively different from other depictions of romance within libraries that I’ve noted on this blog. In The Truman Show (1998) and Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008), which I wrote about in the early days of this blog, the libraries play a big role in the stories of each film. In the first film, it is pivotal moment for Truman Burbank, as he meets the woman he loves, Sylvia, and runs out from the library with her to a secluded beach. In the second film, Harold remembers how he met his ex-girlfriend, Vanessa, in the library. Both of them, in line with the fact the film is a stoner comedy, smoke pot in the library, even though it isn’t allowed.

There are many other examples of love, and romance, within libraries, whether Luz’s crush on Amity (which is later canonized) in The Owl House, Sophia beginning to confess her love to Catarina in My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, an almost-kiss between Shizuma and Nagisa in the Strawberry Panic! episode “Etoile”, and Fumi and Sugimoto kissing in an episode of Whispered Words (“Adolescence is Beautiful”). There are other instances of love being expressed inside of library walls, including a bun-wearing librarian shushing male students who are expressing their romance in the library.

The second time that libraries appear in the series is a short scene at the end of the fourth episode, when Tohru checks out books from the library about vegetable gardens and martial arts, so she can learn about what Yuki and Kyo like and dislike. She hopes to find “hidden sides” of them. Not long after, she ends up dropping these books, dramatically, when she learns that her Grandpa’s place is now ready for her to move back in. As it turns out, she doesn’t want to go back, but she decides she has to, although she is later saved by Yuki and Kyo in the following episode. This library scene has the first librarian character in the series, the aforementioned librarian voiced by Sayumi Watabe. This librarian is a student library worker. She checks out the books for Tohru.

Such librarians are not unique in anime. I mentioned many of them in my post back in April, including one protagonist, Haruki, in the striking and moving anime film, I Want to Eat Your Pancreas. He ends up helping another protagonist, Sakura Yamauchi, who’s disabled and uses a wheelchair. He becomes her good friend and later her love interest. She works in the library alongside him. This example differs from school-age student librarians, library workers to be precise, who are almost exclusively female, shown in various series. [2]

Some of the more prominent and recurring student librarians include Hisami Hishishii in multiple episodes of R.O.D. the TV, protagonist Hanamaru Kunikida in Love Live! Sunshine!!, Yamada and Kosuda in B Gata H Kei, Azusa Aoi in Whispered Words, Fumi Manjōme in Aoi Hana / Sweet Blue Flowers, Fumio Murakumi in Girl Friend Beta, Himeko Agari in Komi Can’t Communicate, Chiyo Tsukudate in Strawberry Panic!, Sumireko Sanshokunin a.k.a. “Pansy” in Oresuki, and Anne and Grea in Manaria Friends. Of these characters, they are often said to be quiet, shy, hardworking, diligent, lonely, sweet, socially awkward, or introverted. There are exceptions like the lustful and flirtatious Yamada, or Pansy who has strong charisma and observation skills. Many also have yuri subtext integral to their characters either directly or indirectly. [3]

A unique character is Rin Shima in Laid Back-Camp. She fits with the overall theme of iyashikei, a genre of anime which is “healing,” shying away from romance or action in favor of “meaningful connections with family and friends, and finding joy in the minutiae of life,” as Marley Crusch of Polygon put it. Shima is further described by Crusch as a girl who enjoys camping, quiet, reserved personality, and an introvert, although she becomes better at talking with others by the time of the 2nd season. [4]

This differs from more professional, yet unvoiced, ones in episodes of Akebi’s Sailor Uniform, Kin-iro Mosaic, Revolutionary Girl Utena, Maria Watches Over Us, Is the Order a Rabbit, Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible, and The Dangers in My Heart. Kanina Shizuka in Maria Watches Over Us, is another example, but she is a supporting character. This connects to what I wrote in August, noting that within workplaces, there are unspoken/spoken “common standards of professional appearance” which penalize those with “tattoos and piercings, connecting with societally-sanctioned standards of appearance, which can be harsher on women.

In anime, all the characters, with stated or presumed professional credentials, in this post would be called librarians and assistant librarians, according to the landmark Library Act in Japan. In any case, one must continually be critical of what Fobazi Ettarh has defined as vocational awe, a set of values, ideas, and assumptions that “librarians have about themselves and the profession that result in beliefs that libraries…are inherently good…sacred, and…beyond critique.” With that, my post comes to a close. Until next week, where my post will examine the profound lack of libraries in Tom Gauld’s Revenge of the Librarians and stronger fictional depictions.

© 2023-2024 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] “Literary Club” [Issue 1]; Literary Link, May 6, 2023; “What’s her name?” [Issue 2], Literary Link, May 12, 2023; “Ethically Questionable” [Issue 3], Literary Link, May 27, 2023; “Careful with your face” [Issue 4], Literary Link, Jun. 10, 2023; “Overthinking” [Issue 5], Literary Link, Jun. 24, 2023.

[2] I’m referring to, in part, Nagisa Yasaka in My Roommate is a Cat, Nagisa Yasaka (episode: “Ones Who Can’t Be Controlled” and “What Connects Us”), Aoi Uribe in Myself ; Yourself (episode “The Important Melody”), Hasegawa Sumika in Bernard-jou Iwaku a.k.a. Miss Bernard said, Kamiya in Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie (episode: “Cultural Festival I”), Sumireko Sanshokunin a.k.a. “Pansy” in Oresuki, Anne and Grea in Manaria Friends,  and Female Student B (librarian) in Azumanga Daioh (episode 19 segment “Springtime of Life”).

[3] “Hisami Hishiishii,” Read or Die Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Hanamaru Kunikida,” Love Live Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Yamada,” B Gata H Kei Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Fumio Murakumi,” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Agari Himeko,” Komi-San Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Chiyo Tsukudate,” Strawberry Panic! Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Sumireko Sanshokunin,” Oresuki Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Grea,” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Anne (Rage of Bagamut),” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023.

[4] “Rin Shima,” Yuru Camp Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023.

#AkebiSSailorUniform #AmityBlight #AoiHana #AzumangaDaioh #beautyStandards #ChiyoTsukudate #disabledPatrons #FobaziEttarh #FruitsBasket #groomingStandards #HanamaruKunikida #HaroldAndKumar #HisamiHishishii #IWantToEatYourPancreas #IsTheOrderARabbit #JapaneseLibrarians #JapanesePatrons #JapaneseWomen #KinIroMosaic #KuboWonTLetMeBeInvisible #LaidBackCamp #LesbianLibrarians #LGBTQ #libraryPatrons #libraryWorkers #LiteraryLink #LoveLiveSunshine #MariaWatchesOverUs #MissBernardSaid #MyNextLifeAsAVillainess #MyRoommateIsACat #MyselfYourself #professionals #RevengeOfTheLibrarians #RevolutionaryGirlUtena #ShikimoriSNotJustACutie #StrawberryPanic #students #SweetBlueFlowers #TheDangersInMyHeart #TheOwlHouse #TheTrumanShow #vocationalAwe #WhisperedWords

Love, learning, and all the rest: Fictional libraries in “Fruits Basket” and beyond

Before watching Fruits Basket, an anime which mixes the romantic comedy, slice-of-life, and supernatural genres, I knew there was a librarian character (voiced by Sayumi Watabe). I was not aware, however, that libraries would have an important role in the series, at least in a few episodes. In this post, I’ll examine the scenes in Fruits Basket, and connect it to other posts on this blog.

In the third episode of Fruits Basket, a schoolgirl confesses to Yuki Soma (voiced by Nobunaga Shimazaki) in the library and he pushes her off. She is disappointed, saying he is closed off to most people and asks why he can’t let her in. The truth is that if women hug him, then he turns into an animal, a rat to be specific. The schoolgirl, understandably runs off, sad and likely crying, leaving him standing in the library. As it turns out, Tohru Honda (voiced by Manaka Iwami ), who is living at his house, tells him later that she is happy that he let her in, making him happy. The impact of this library scene is a strong one, even though the scene is pretty short.

In some ways, I can relate this to a few issues of the romantic slice-of-life webcomic, Literary Link. The protagonist, Faye, gets a community service job at the local public library’s literary club, due to a fighter in school, and meets a girl named Atlas. As would be expected, Faye falls in love with Atlas, after she teases her a bit, and agrees to keep volunteering at the literary club. Although Atlas isn’t sure if Faye will return, she does, making her happy, especially when she brings cupcakes, and Atlas bandages Faye up from an earlier fight. [1]

Literary Link and Fruits Basket are relatively different from other depictions of romance within libraries that I’ve noted on this blog. In The Truman Show (1998) and Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008), which I wrote about in the early days of this blog, the libraries play a big role in the stories of each film. In the first film, it is pivotal moment for Truman Burbank, as he meets the woman he loves, Sylvia, and runs out from the library with her to a secluded beach. In the second film, Harold remembers how he met his ex-girlfriend, Vanessa, in the library. Both of them, in line with the fact the film is a stoner comedy, smoke pot in the library, even though it isn’t allowed.

There are many other examples of love, and romance, within libraries, whether Luz’s crush on Amity (which is later canonized) in The Owl House, Sophia beginning to confess her love to Catarina in My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, an almost-kiss between Shizuma and Nagisa in the Strawberry Panic! episode “Etoile”, and Fumi and Sugimoto kissing in an episode of Whispered Words (“Adolescence is Beautiful”). There are other instances of love being expressed inside of library walls, including a bun-wearing librarian shushing male students who are expressing their romance in the library.

The second time that libraries appear in the series is a short scene at the end of the fourth episode, when Tohru checks out books from the library about vegetable gardens and martial arts, so she can learn about what Yuki and Kyo like and dislike. She hopes to find “hidden sides” of them. Not long after, she ends up dropping these books, dramatically, when she learns that her Grandpa’s place is now ready for her to move back in. As it turns out, she doesn’t want to go back, but she decides she has to, although she is later saved by Yuki and Kyo in the following episode. This library scene has the first librarian character in the series, the aforementioned librarian voiced by Sayumi Watabe. This librarian is a student library worker. She checks out the books for Tohru.

Such librarians are not unique in anime. I mentioned many of them in my post back in April, including one protagonist, Haruki, in the striking and moving anime film, I Want to Eat Your Pancreas. He ends up helping another protagonist, Sakura Yamauchi, who’s disabled and uses a wheelchair. He becomes her good friend and later her love interest. She works in the library alongside him. This example differs from school-age student librarians, library workers to be precise, who are almost exclusively female, shown in various series. [2]

Some of the more prominent and recurring student librarians include Hisami Hishishii in multiple episodes of R.O.D. the TV, protagonist Hanamaru Kunikida in Love Live! Sunshine!!, Yamada and Kosuda in B Gata H Kei, Azusa Aoi in Whispered Words, Fumi Manjōme in Aoi Hana / Sweet Blue Flowers, Fumio Murakumi in Girl Friend Beta, Himeko Agari in Komi Can’t Communicate, Chiyo Tsukudate in Strawberry Panic!, Sumireko Sanshokunin a.k.a. “Pansy” in Oresuki, and Anne and Grea in Manaria Friends. Of these characters, they are often said to be quiet, shy, hardworking, diligent, lonely, sweet, socially awkward, or introverted. There are exceptions like the lustful and flirtatious Yamada, or Pansy who has strong charisma and observation skills. Many also have yuri subtext integral to their characters either directly or indirectly. [3]

A unique character is Rin Shima in Laid Back-Camp. She fits with the overall theme of iyashikei, a genre of anime which is “healing,” shying away from romance or action in favor of “meaningful connections with family and friends, and finding joy in the minutiae of life,” as Marley Crusch of Polygon put it. Shima is further described by Crusch as a girl who enjoys camping, quiet, reserved personality, and an introvert, although she becomes better at talking with others by the time of the 2nd season. [4]

This differs from more professional, yet unvoiced, ones in episodes of Akebi’s Sailor Uniform, Kin-iro Mosaic, Revolutionary Girl Utena, Maria Watches Over Us, Is the Order a Rabbit, Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible, and The Dangers in My Heart. Kanina Shizuka in Maria Watches Over Us, is another example, but she is a supporting character. This connects to what I wrote in August, noting that within workplaces, there are unspoken/spoken “common standards of professional appearance” which penalize those with “tattoos and piercings, connecting with societally-sanctioned standards of appearance, which can be harsher on women.

In anime, all the characters, with stated or presumed professional credentials, in this post would be called librarians and assistant librarians, according to the landmark Library Act in Japan. In any case, one must continually be critical of what Fobazi Ettarh has defined as vocational awe, a set of values, ideas, and assumptions that “librarians have about themselves and the profession that result in beliefs that libraries…are inherently good…sacred, and…beyond critique.” With that, my post comes to a close. Until next week, where my post will examine the profound lack of libraries in Tom Gauld’s Revenge of the Librarians and stronger fictional depictions.

© 2023-2024 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] “Literary Club” [Issue 1]; Literary Link, May 6, 2023; “What’s her name?” [Issue 2], Literary Link, May 12, 2023; “Ethically Questionable” [Issue 3], Literary Link, May 27, 2023; “Careful with your face” [Issue 4], Literary Link, Jun. 10, 2023; “Overthinking” [Issue 5], Literary Link, Jun. 24, 2023.

[2] I’m referring to, in part, Nagisa Yasaka in My Roommate is a Cat, Nagisa Yasaka (episode: “Ones Who Can’t Be Controlled” and “What Connects Us”), Aoi Uribe in Myself ; Yourself (episode “The Important Melody”), Hasegawa Sumika in Bernard-jou Iwaku a.k.a. Miss Bernard said, Kamiya in Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie (episode: “Cultural Festival I”), Sumireko Sanshokunin a.k.a. “Pansy” in Oresuki, Anne and Grea in Manaria Friends,  and Female Student B (librarian) in Azumanga Daioh (episode 19 segment “Springtime of Life”).

[3] “Hisami Hishiishii,” Read or Die Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Hanamaru Kunikida,” Love Live Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Yamada,” B Gata H Kei Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Fumio Murakumi,” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Agari Himeko,” Komi-San Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Chiyo Tsukudate,” Strawberry Panic! Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Sumireko Sanshokunin,” Oresuki Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Grea,” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Anne (Rage of Bagamut),” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023.

[4] “Rin Shima,” Yuru Camp Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023.

#AkebiSSailorUniform #AmityBlight #AoiHana #AzumangaDaioh #beautyStandards #ChiyoTsukudate #disabledPatrons #FobaziEttarh #FruitsBasket #groomingStandards #HanamaruKunikida #HaroldAndKumar #HisamiHishishii #IWantToEatYourPancreas #IsTheOrderARabbit #JapaneseLibrarians #JapanesePatrons #JapaneseWomen #KinIroMosaic #KuboWonTLetMeBeInvisible #LaidBackCamp #LesbianLibrarians #LGBTQ #libraryPatrons #libraryWorkers #LiteraryLink #LoveLiveSunshine #MariaWatchesOverUs #MissBernardSaid #MyNextLifeAsAVillainess #MyRoommateIsACat #MyselfYourself #professionals #RevengeOfTheLibrarians #RevolutionaryGirlUtena #ShikimoriSNotJustACutie #StrawberryPanic #students #SweetBlueFlowers #TheDangersInMyHeart #TheOwlHouse #TheTrumanShow #vocationalAwe #WhisperedWords

Love, learning, and all the rest: Fictional libraries in “Fruits Basket” and beyond

Before watching Fruits Basket, an anime which mixes the romantic comedy, slice-of-life, and supernatural genres, I knew there was a librarian character (voiced by Sayumi Watabe). I was not aware, however, that libraries would have an important role in the series, at least in a few episodes. In this post, I’ll examine the scenes in Fruits Basket, and connect it to other posts on this blog.

In the third episode of Fruits Basket, a schoolgirl confesses to Yuki Soma (voiced by Nobunaga Shimazaki) in the library and he pushes her off. She is disappointed, saying he is closed off to most people and asks why he can’t let her in. The truth is that if women hug him, then he turns into an animal, a rat to be specific. The schoolgirl, understandably runs off, sad and likely crying, leaving him standing in the library. As it turns out, Tohru Honda (voiced by Manaka Iwami ), who is living at his house, tells him later that she is happy that he let her in, making him happy. The impact of this library scene is a strong one, even though the scene is pretty short.

In some ways, I can relate this to a few issues of the romantic slice-of-life webcomic, Literary Link. The protagonist, Faye, gets a community service job at the local public library’s literary club, due to a fighter in school, and meets a girl named Atlas. As would be expected, Faye falls in love with Atlas, after she teases her a bit, and agrees to keep volunteering at the literary club. Although Atlas isn’t sure if Faye will return, she does, making her happy, especially when she brings cupcakes, and Atlas bandages Faye up from an earlier fight. [1]

Literary Link and Fruits Basket are relatively different from other depictions of romance within libraries that I’ve noted on this blog. In The Truman Show (1998) and Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008), which I wrote about in the early days of this blog, the libraries play a big role in the stories of each film. In the first film, it is pivotal moment for Truman Burbank, as he meets the woman he loves, Sylvia, and runs out from the library with her to a secluded beach. In the second film, Harold remembers how he met his ex-girlfriend, Vanessa, in the library. Both of them, in line with the fact the film is a stoner comedy, smoke pot in the library, even though it isn’t allowed.

There are many other examples of love, and romance, within libraries, whether Luz’s crush on Amity (which is later canonized) in The Owl House, Sophia beginning to confess her love to Catarina in My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, an almost-kiss between Shizuma and Nagisa in the Strawberry Panic! episode “Etoile”, and Fumi and Sugimoto kissing in an episode of Whispered Words (“Adolescence is Beautiful”). There are other instances of love being expressed inside of library walls, including a bun-wearing librarian shushing male students who are expressing their romance in the library.

The second time that libraries appear in the series is a short scene at the end of the fourth episode, when Tohru checks out books from the library about vegetable gardens and martial arts, so she can learn about what Yuki and Kyo like and dislike. She hopes to find “hidden sides” of them. Not long after, she ends up dropping these books, dramatically, when she learns that her Grandpa’s place is now ready for her to move back in. As it turns out, she doesn’t want to go back, but she decides she has to, although she is later saved by Yuki and Kyo in the following episode. This library scene has the first librarian character in the series, the aforementioned librarian voiced by Sayumi Watabe. This librarian is a student library worker. She checks out the books for Tohru.

Such librarians are not unique in anime. I mentioned many of them in my post back in April, including one protagonist, Haruki, in the striking and moving anime film, I Want to Eat Your Pancreas. He ends up helping another protagonist, Sakura Yamauchi, who’s disabled and uses a wheelchair. He becomes her good friend and later her love interest. She works in the library alongside him. This example differs from school-age student librarians, library workers to be precise, who are almost exclusively female, shown in various series. [2]

Some of the more prominent and recurring student librarians include Hisami Hishishii in multiple episodes of R.O.D. the TV, protagonist Hanamaru Kunikida in Love Live! Sunshine!!, Yamada and Kosuda in B Gata H Kei, Azusa Aoi in Whispered Words, Fumi Manjōme in Aoi Hana / Sweet Blue Flowers, Fumio Murakumi in Girl Friend Beta, Himeko Agari in Komi Can’t Communicate, Chiyo Tsukudate in Strawberry Panic!, Sumireko Sanshokunin a.k.a. “Pansy” in Oresuki, and Anne and Grea in Manaria Friends. Of these characters, they are often said to be quiet, shy, hardworking, diligent, lonely, sweet, socially awkward, or introverted. There are exceptions like the lustful and flirtatious Yamada, or Pansy who has strong charisma and observation skills. Many also have yuri subtext integral to their characters either directly or indirectly. [3]

A unique character is Rin Shima in Laid Back-Camp. She fits with the overall theme of iyashikei, a genre of anime which is “healing,” shying away from romance or action in favor of “meaningful connections with family and friends, and finding joy in the minutiae of life,” as Marley Crusch of Polygon put it. Shima is further described by Crusch as a girl who enjoys camping, quiet, reserved personality, and an introvert, although she becomes better at talking with others by the time of the 2nd season. [4]

This differs from more professional, yet unvoiced, ones in episodes of Akebi’s Sailor Uniform, Kin-iro Mosaic, Revolutionary Girl Utena, Maria Watches Over Us, Is the Order a Rabbit, Kubo Won’t Let Me Be Invisible, and The Dangers in My Heart. Kanina Shizuka in Maria Watches Over Us, is another example, but she is a supporting character. This connects to what I wrote in August, noting that within workplaces, there are unspoken/spoken “common standards of professional appearance” which penalize those with “tattoos and piercings, connecting with societally-sanctioned standards of appearance, which can be harsher on women.

In anime, all the characters, with stated or presumed professional credentials, in this post would be called librarians and assistant librarians, according to the landmark Library Act in Japan. In any case, one must continually be critical of what Fobazi Ettarh has defined as vocational awe, a set of values, ideas, and assumptions that “librarians have about themselves and the profession that result in beliefs that libraries…are inherently good…sacred, and…beyond critique.” With that, my post comes to a close. Until next week, where my post will examine the profound lack of libraries in Tom Gauld’s Revenge of the Librarians and stronger fictional depictions.

© 2023-2024 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] “Literary Club” [Issue 1]; Literary Link, May 6, 2023; “What’s her name?” [Issue 2], Literary Link, May 12, 2023; “Ethically Questionable” [Issue 3], Literary Link, May 27, 2023; “Careful with your face” [Issue 4], Literary Link, Jun. 10, 2023; “Overthinking” [Issue 5], Literary Link, Jun. 24, 2023.

[2] I’m referring to, in part, Nagisa Yasaka in My Roommate is a Cat, Nagisa Yasaka (episode: “Ones Who Can’t Be Controlled” and “What Connects Us”), Aoi Uribe in Myself ; Yourself (episode “The Important Melody”), Hasegawa Sumika in Bernard-jou Iwaku a.k.a. Miss Bernard said, Kamiya in Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie (episode: “Cultural Festival I”), Sumireko Sanshokunin a.k.a. “Pansy” in Oresuki, Anne and Grea in Manaria Friends,  and Female Student B (librarian) in Azumanga Daioh (episode 19 segment “Springtime of Life”).

[3] “Hisami Hishiishii,” Read or Die Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Hanamaru Kunikida,” Love Live Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Yamada,” B Gata H Kei Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Fumio Murakumi,” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Agari Himeko,” Komi-San Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Chiyo Tsukudate,” Strawberry Panic! Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Sumireko Sanshokunin,” Oresuki Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Grea,” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023; “Anne (Rage of Bagamut),” Yuri Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023.

[4] “Rin Shima,” Yuru Camp Wiki, accessed Jul. 4, 2023.

#AkebiSSailorUniform #AmityBlight #AoiHana #AzumangaDaioh #beautyStandards #ChiyoTsukudate #disabledPatrons #FobaziEttarh #FruitsBasket #groomingStandards #HanamaruKunikida #HaroldAndKumar #HisamiHishishii #IWantToEatYourPancreas #IsTheOrderARabbit #JapaneseLibrarians #JapanesePatrons #JapaneseWomen #KinIroMosaic #KuboWonTLetMeBeInvisible #LaidBackCamp #LesbianLibrarians #LGBTQ #libraryPatrons #libraryWorkers #LiteraryLink #LoveLiveSunshine #MariaWatchesOverUs #MissBernardSaid #MyNextLifeAsAVillainess #MyRoommateIsACat #MyselfYourself #professionals #RevengeOfTheLibrarians #RevolutionaryGirlUtena #ShikimoriSNotJustACutie #StrawberryPanic #students #SweetBlueFlowers #TheDangersInMyHeart #TheOwlHouse #TheTrumanShow #vocationalAwe #WhisperedWords

For this weeks #AniMangaPictureChallenge is pirates.

This is Kujou Karen as a pirate from Kiniro Mosaic, who kidnaps Shino and Alice as princesses in a story Shino is telling.

@apc

#KiniroMosaic #AniMangaFoundIt #anime

Toyama Nao showing off a cloth that has Kujou Karen on it on Living.

Source: Touyama Nao Official

#東山奈央 #声優 #KiniroMosaic

Nishi Asuka, Uchiyama Yumi, and Suwa Ayaka at the2024 Omiya Shinobu Birthday POP-UP SHOP

Source: Uchiyama Yumi Official

#西明日香 #内山夕実 #諏訪彩花 #声優 #KiniroMosaic

I bet Karen Kujou is really happy she's staying in Japan with her sweet Japanese girlfriend and not having to deal with whatever is going on in TERF island.

#kiniromosaic #anime

We start off in 2015 when Oonishi joined the cast of #kiniromosaic in its second season. Here, she played Kuzehashi, a new teacher whose strict demeanor, particularly towards Karen, hides a caring, somewhat nervous interior. Still early on in her career, Oonishi showed her ability to play characters who are cool on the surface but still able to get easily flustered.

#kinmoza

Touyama Nao after Kiniro Mosaic 10th Anniversary event.

Already 10 years, time flies.

Source: naobou_official

#東山奈央 #声優 #KiniroMosaic

Today's #AniAnimal is Alice's dog Poppy in a flashback when he was a puppy in "KINMOZA The Movie: Thank you!!".

今日の #アニアニマル は『きんいろモザイク Thank you!!』で子犬の頃の回想に出てくる アリス の愛犬 ポピー です。

More info and other AniAnimals at: https://www.anianimals.moe/scene/VbdPDc2P5-qFBVj1tf4Mlf/

#Anime #AnimeDog #kinmosa #KiniroMosaic #アニメ #アニメ犬 #きんいろモザイク

We're starting our look at Naobou in 2013 with one of her more popular characters, Karen from #kiniromosaic. The half-Brit with an ever-present smile, Karen may not have the best grasp on Japanese, but she'll know how to worm into your heart and become the best friend you could possibly have. Even at an early stage in her career, Touyama gives a defining performance, always giving enough manic energy to always have Karen steal the show without making it overbearing and knowing when to turn it down to let the girl's anxieties come out.

#kinmoza

Today's #AniAnimal are these Nara deer from "KINMOZA The Movie: Thank you!!".

今日の #アニアニマル は『きんいろモザイク Thank you!!』に登場した奈良の鹿です。

More info and other AniAnimals at: https://www.anianimals.moe/scene/SY~jtkfRRpf8HRFY8~~2byC/

#Anime #AnimeDeer #kinmosa #KiniroMosaic #アニメ #アニメ鹿 #きんいろモザイク

Today's #AniAnimal is this lamb in "KINMOZA The Movie: Thank you!!". Shinobu imagined Alice as "Heidi, Girl of the Alps".

今日の #アニアニマル は『きんいろモザイク Thank you!!』のこの子羊。忍 は アリス を『アルプスの少女ハイジ』として想像しました。

More info and other AniAnimals at: https://www.anianimals.moe/scene/jzWVTGD4gBp6hTvnb~nTbR/

#Anime #AnimeSheep #kinmosa #KiniroMosaic #アニメ #アニメ羊 #きんいろモザイク

Today's #AniAnimal is this lamb in "KINMOZA The Movie: Thank you!!". Shinobu imagined Alice as "Heidi, Girl of the Alps".

今日の #アニアニマル は『きんいろモザイク Thank you!!』のこの子羊。忍 は アリス を『アルプスの少女ハイジ』として想像しました。

More info and other AniAnimals at: https://www.anianimals.moe/scene/jzWVTGD4gBp6hTvnb~nTbR/

#Anime #AnimeSheep #kinmosa #KiniroMosaic #アニメ #アニメ羊 #きんいろモザイク

Today's AniAnimal is this lamb in "KINMOZA The Movie: Thank you!!". Shinobu imagined Alice as 'Heidi, Girl of the Alps'.

今日のアニアニマルは『きんいろモザイク Thank you!!』のこの子羊。忍 は アリス を『アルプスの少女ハイジ』として想像しました。

#Anime #AniAnimals #AnimeSheep #kinmosa #KiniroMosaic #アニメ #アニアニマルズ #アニメ羊 #きんいろモザイク

https://anianimals.moe/s/jzWVTGD4gBp6hTvnb~nTbR/

Today's #AniAnimal is this lamb in "KINMOZA The Movie: Thank you!!". Shinobu imagined Alice as "Heidi, Girl of the Alps".

今日の #アニアニマル は『きんいろモザイク Thank you!!』のこの子羊。忍 は アリス を『アルプスの少女ハイジ』として想像しました。

More info and other AniAnimals at: https://www.anianimals.moe/scene/jzWVTGD4gBp6hTvnb~nTbR/

#Anime #AnimeSheep #kinmosa #KiniroMosaic #アニメ #アニメ羊 #きんいろモザイク

Today's #AniAnimal is this lamb in "KINMOZA The Movie: Thank you!!". Shinobu imagined Alice as "Heidi, Girl of the Alps".

今日の #アニアニマル は『きんいろモザイク Thank you!!』のこの子羊。忍 は アリス を『アルプスの少女ハイジ』として想像しました。

More info and other AniAnimals at: https://www.anianimals.moe/scene/jzWVTGD4gBp6hTvnb~nTbR/

#Anime #AnimeSheep #kinmosa #KiniroMosaic #アニメ #アニメ羊 #きんいろモザイク