Review for Nekomonogatari White

Introduction

This is the point where fan fervour will do battle with financial realism to see which will prevail. The Monogatari franchise is the biggest thing since the last biggest thing to appeal to hardcore anime fans. It’s the perfect storm of narrative, characterisation, deft writing, and SHAFT animation, just the sort of thing that fans looking for that exclusive niche of anime in which to sink their savings would alight on. It’s in the same sort of company as Madoka Magica, or Haruhi Suzumiya, and over the last year or so particularly, UK fans have had the distinct pleasure of partaking of the Bakemonogatari, and Nisemonogatari series, as well as the Nekomonogatari Black OVA. When you consider that this franchise is released as subtitle only, and on Blu-ray as well as DVD, just the sort of thing that traditionally has been hard to sell, that it’s sold well enough for MVM to continue licensing the show is astounding.


The fans really do love this show though, and there’s plenty of more Monogatari out there to watch, and yet to be animated. The thing is that the Bakemonogatari and Nisemonogatari series were sold in half season sets (although Nisemonogatari is a small series), the way that we’ve come to expect our anime. But Aniplex US has cottoned on to just how popular this show is, and they are the go to guys in America when it comes to overpriced and exclusive anime releases. What’s more is that they can dictate terms to anyone else who sub-licenses from them. Monogatari Season 2 was the first full length season of episodes in the franchise, and Aniplex US have decided to release it in arcs, not half season sets. When an arc is about four or five episodes long, that basically means we’re back to the beginning, buying anime in single volumes again. And what they dictate, everyone else must follow, and Hanabee in Australia and MVM here in the UK have to release it in exactly the same way. This then is the first arc in Monogatari Season 2, Nekomonogatari White. But is it worth shelling out for?


Tsubasa Hanekawa is the girl who has trouble with cats, ever since she found a dead one and buried it. She became possessed by Black Hanekawa, a feline personality from the darker corners of her psyche that would emerge when she was stressed, and wreak havoc on all around. With Koyomi Araragi’s help, the Black Hanekawa personality became a little more docile, but the stress in Tsubasa’s life hasn’t diminished. The summer vacation has ended, and a new school term is beginning, and it’s on the way to school that Tsubasa Hanekawa sees a new apparition, a giant tiger with some wry opinions about her. Then her family house burns down, and that’s just the first victim. With Araragi out of town, she’ll have to work out how to deal with this alone... or maybe not alone, as Hitagi Senjyogahara offers some unexpected help...


The five episodes of the Nekomonogatari White arc are presented on this disc from MVM. The show is also available on Blu-ray.

1. Tsubasa Tiger Part 1
2. Tsubasa Tiger Part 2
3. Tsubasa Tiger Part 3
4. Tsubasa Tiger Part 4
5. Tsubasa Tiger Part 5

Picture

Nekomonogatari White gets a 1.78:1 anamorphic transfer in the native PAL format on this DVD. It’s a clear and sharp transfer, rich in detail, with smooth animation, and an absence of artefacts or obvious aliasing. It’s just the image quality you’d expect for a Studio SHAFT animation, one of the Monogatari series. Expect inventive and varied visuals, odd camera angles, lots of characters looking back over their shoulders, and of course the fan service. Also, just like the Bakemonogatari releases Nekomonogatari White reveals signs of edge enhancement when scaled up to a large HD screen, making the Blu-ray the obvious choice for those who are capable.

Sound

You have a simple DD 2.0 Stereo Japanese track, with a player locked translated (white) subtitles and signs track. There is no English dub to this title, and dubbing that intense verbiage, all those witticisms and puns would be a colossal effort. The dialogue is clear throughout, and the stereo gives a little space for the music and action. The music too is pretty effective; I certainly appreciate the theme songs. The subtitling isn’t perfect, although once again all the on screen text is translated, and you’ll spend a fair bit of time manning your pause button to get everything read. There’s a missing subtitle caption at 4:33 into episode 1 though.

Extras

The disc presents its content with a static menu screen.

You’ll find the Clean Opening and the two Clean Closings in the extras, along with trailers for Nekomonogatari Black, Devil Survivor 2, and From the New World.

By far the most substantial extra is the Omnibus 1 episode. It’s a useful addition to the set, as it recaps Tsubasa Hanekawa’s story so far, taking in the key moments from the Tsubasa Cat arc of Bakemonogatari, and of course the Nekomonogatari Black OVAs. This lasts 23:20.

Conclusion

It happens so often in entertainment. Someone creates a singular vision, a piece of narrative, music, something visually groundbreaking, or just a new way of doing things that grabs an audience, enters the Zeitgeist as the best thing ever, and everyone is happy. That’s until it fades slightly, and people start wanting more. It’s the to-be-feared second album syndrome, as the creators try to capture lightning in a bottle once more. We got the Matrix, awesome stuff. The Matrix sequels, not so much. George Lucas gave the world Star Wars, and a generation rejoiced. He then gave us the Prequel trilogy, and the same generation wept. This is no less true in anime. One of the biggest things ever in the mid-2000s was The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, which was another one of those ‘best thing ever’ moments. Then, when Season 2 finally dawned, it brought with it Endless Eight....


I don’t know if the writer of the light novels had that issue with Monogatari, trying to live up to past glories, but it certainly does feel that way when it comes to this anime adaptation of the second series, or at least it does with this first instalment, Nekomonogatari White. I was just not feeling it at all, none of the passion, the excitement, the interest in a furtherance of the story. It all felt contrived to appeal to niche fan sensibilities. A case of just giving fans more of the same. Tsubasa Hanekawa is certainly a fan favourite, especially in cat ear mode, cat speech impediment in full force, and especially with her tendency to bound around the city at night in her lingerie. So it isn’t surprising that the producers chose to kick off the second season with another Tsubasa adventure.


Her personal demons manifest once more when stress causes Black Hanekawa to appear, the name given to her cat-girl form. But it gets more complicated when a giant white tiger appears, heralding a spate of fires. What might be disappointing to some fans is that series protagonist, and part-time vampire Koyomi Araragi is absent for much of this arc, leaving Hanekawa to deal with her situation by herself. The thing is, it’s a simple problem with a simple solution, but it’s stretched out over five episodes. The producers decide to use this arc as a welcome back to the Monogatari world, and do so by having Hanekawa encountering all the main characters from the show and spending some quality time with them, Mayoi, Kanbaru, the Fire Sisters, Shinobu, as well as introducing a new significant character in Gaen. But it’s really all padding to distract from the thinness of the story, a series of conversations where the trademark Monogatari wordplay and verbal jousting is in full effect, only without the force of narrative behind the script, it all begins to feel tedious, dull even.


We mustn’t forget Senjyogahara, who comes to Hanekawa’s rescue when the first fire leaves her homeless, and offers, for one night at least a roof to shelter under. Two girls together in the same apartment. Two girls sharing a futon, two girls in their underwear, Senjyogahara being seductive and flirty, two girls sharing a shower, with much lather involved... We’ve gone so far past fan service at this point, that this should be classed as a blatant masturbatory interlude, with a tissue-box symbol in the corner flashing during its duration.


The opening arc of Monogatari has ceased being an exercise in storytelling, and is simply there as fan wish-fulfilment. It’s manipulative and contrived, and it just isn’t enjoyable. It’s just a simple, if bloated way to re-introduce the fans to its universe. It does drop a few anvils of narrative significance along the way regarding the other characters, but that will only pay off in subsequent volumes. Taking these opening five episodes by themselves, this is a very disappointing reintroduction to the show. Hopefully with that awkward opening arc out of the way, the next arcs will get down to some serious storytelling, and rewarding character development. Single volume releases... I can tell you that I don’t miss them at all.