[Categories: Anime Reviews]
Mushishi episode 24: Bound for Bonfire Field
The next eagerly-awaited OAV episode of Mushishi, entitled Bound for Bonfire Field, isn’t quite up to the standards of other recent outings but highlights some unfortunate aspects of the human condition. The visuals, possibly because they are free from the constraints of a TV budget, are of a very high standard and the bleak, dystopian view of an entire field set ablaze is a sight that will linger long in the memory.
A village is the victim of a mushi that has taken the form of a grass that spreads and kills all plant life in its path. Yahagi, the resident mushishi, decides that the only option is that of burning the entire field: a drastic and destructive course of action that the villagers accept without question. Despite Ginko’s more well-informed and objective viewpoint, the villagers choose to follow Yahagi’s advice and set about burning the field, with devastating results.
The strength of this episode lies in the questions posed by this turn of events. Are the villagers ignorant? Is Yahagi arrogant and narrow-minded in ignoring Ginko’s advice? It would be understandable to think so, especially knowing what Ginko does about the mushi they are up against. However I can still understand Yahagi’s ill-informed and flawed course of action because she has gone to so much trouble in researching the subject (even Ginko admits he’s impressed with what she’s published), not to mention being able to see the pressure she is under to do the right thing for her village. Her people know her and trust her; she is their only source of advice and guidance. As foolhardy as they are in ignoring Ginko’s wise words I can forgive them for listening to Hayagi over an outsider in such a crisis.
For all this I still didn’t find this episode to be particularly outstanding. There were a few inconsistencies in the explanations and the story lacks the complexity that I’ve come to expect from this series. This is all relative of course: even an episode such as this looks amazing and will have you deep in thought afterwards. The only real disappointment is the prospect of only two more to go!
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