The Irresponsible Captain Tylor (OVA)
Episode 06: “White Christmas”
For largely being a slapstick comedy, the original TV series for The Irresponsible Captain Tylor had episodes and scenes with very different tones, including those that were solemn or romantic. And so, it’s no surprise that the OVA contains an episode involving Christmas that fits these moods.
The setup for the episode is simple. Yuriko musters up the courage to ask Tylor on a Christmas Eve date. Tylor agrees, but as usual, causes plenty of trouble and frustration, while serendipitously helping others, on his way there.
The episode is a little peculiar, though perhaps this may just be because the entire OVA is strange. I don’t know – I haven’t seen the rest of it. But certainly, some might feel a bit offended by the portrayal of women here. Yuriko waits and waits and waits patiently for Tylor (boy, has she matured since the TV series!), and is still pleased to see him when he arrives hours late. Meanwhile, a lesson portrayed in the episode seems to be that working mothers with latchkey kids need to stop working long hours; while I might agree with some of that assessment, it certainly left even me feeling a bit defensive toward working moms.
But what the episode does right is in its display of love. The special could have revolved around romantic love, and it surely touches on Yuriko’s feelings toward Tylor, but it also goes beyond this. We see the dedicated love the Soyokaze crew feels toward their captain. We also particularly note Tylor’s patient and kind love toward others, even those that have done him wrong. He is one of the most gracious characters in all of anime.
And really – grace is what the season is all about.
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