After watching Bakemonogatari, I thought I couldn’t possibly get enough of the artistic direction and witty writing that filled the series. Then Nisemonogatari came along, and more specifically, the toothbrush scene. And for me, the warmth I had for the series largely disappeared.
Halfway into episode one of Nekomonogatari, and we have more of the same, both the good (humor, rapid conversation, unexpected imagery) and the bad (several minutes spent on Araragi ogling his sisters and even assaulting one).
Because I’m familiar with the series, and because I’m an Ararararararagi hater, the sweetness in the ending of episode one of Neko- caught me by complete surprise. Despite himself, Araragi does what’s right (and to his credit, he does consistently leave his lecherous self behind and sacrifices body and soul in times of dire straits). And it’s because he sees the big picture.
Our lives aren’t much different. If you’re like me, you might let little things aggravate you – like traffic jams or rude service employees. And you might get caught up in spending money and time on the latest trends or focus much of your life on gaining pleasure (I know I’m more of a hedonist than I’d like to admit). But I hope that when something of real significance pops up – as it did for Araragi when he found out about the abuse toward Hanekawa – we react in the way he did, forgetting ourselves and doing what we can to love others.
But I want to do more than that – I want to live a transformed life. I want my life to be as little about me as possible and much more about others. And that’s both the key and the challenge – to love fiercely, fully, and magnanimously as a way of life, not just as a bump in the highway of self-gain.
I want to live a life bigger than me.
How about you?
Note: On Thursday, I’ll be posting about an even bigger perspective.
Related articles
- Another Reason Why I Like Anime #4726: Nekomonogatari’s opening (Drastic My Anime Blog)
- Nekomonogatari: Kuro Review – A- (Something Eternal)
