86: Have you ever heard of my friend "Dramatic Irony"?
And while Vivy concluded what I will call a thematic arc in its first two episodes, 86 has concluded its own thematic arc in its first three. But before I dive into the scene in question, I find myself always hyper focused on this question: What makes a thematic arc, and how does all great anime use this?
Thematic Arc
In the anime fandom, an arc is often separated by the plot or setting itself. For example in One Piece, the arcs are split between each island and the encompassing story that it focuses on; Whole Cake Island, Wano etc, and the anime fandoms name the arcs as such allowing for easier discussion and analysis of the series. Sometimes arc can be split between characters as well. Zombieland saga is highly character driven as it splits its story into character arcs. Though it can be said to be episodic in nature when referring to Saki and Lily's backstories in season 1, we can also have double-episodes with Junko's arc this season and Sakura's three episode epic at the end of S1. However, while those are perfectly fine ways of splitting an arc, one of the most intriguing ways to split an arc for me is by its theme.
Vivy's first thematic arc was all about the struggle between the system and heart. Throughout the arc, Vivy often juggles between the mission-driven demands of Matsumoto and her own desires to save as many people as possible. She frames her own desire as to "sing her heart out" to as many people as possible, a much more human ideal than the caustic and utilitarian goals of Matsumoto who as we see will let go of the lives of many if it means ensuring mission success.
As every story structure follows the basic build up cum climax, so does a thematic arc. The build up of "the system and the heart" is done in many scenes before its climax, what I like to call skirmishes: Vivy's initial disbelief of the future war in episode 1, Vivy's continued uncooperativeness when Matsumoto tried to download the fighting program into her and Vivy's dispute with Matsumoto about the meaning of her own operations beyond the codes that define her. Those moments are all impactful and conclusive in its own right, but their main goal is to act as thematic motifs, fragments to build up to the bigger climax and thematic payoff -- Who wins, the heart or the system? As Matsumoto beats her down, as their supposedly friendly partnership crumbles, we come to understand that there is no heart in their future missions. The plane crashes, proving that Matsumoto will override all the human ideals and desires Vivy has, not just now but all future missions as well. And as her one and only friend dies, the stone was cast far into the lake on the existential turmoils that will only continue to rage, not just on the battlefield but inside Vivy's heart. Exciting isn't it? That is why I love all thematic arcs. They are the fleshy meat hidden behind the surface level plot for us to dig into. They allow us to link the past and even predict the future. They allow us to view a show not just by episodes or characters, but as a whole -- Build up and pay off; Question and answer.
86's thematic arc then was paid off to flawless perfection with this one scene.
Whew, this scene left me breathless when I first watch it. From a technical perspective alone, this was a masterpiece of a scene, from the intensity of the voice acting to the horrifying reactions of Lena. Notice how her reactions escalates with every accusation; First from wide-eyed shock, to wincing, to her confusion of being accused of hypocrisy, shaking her head in disbelief, clenching her heart, suppressing her breathing, leaning back against her chair as if she is being choked by the words, clutching her head in pain and then finally, tears. These great character acting is compounded by the rising piano, growing increasingly chaotic, and also by the camera. It locks onto Lena, allowing us to see every single reaction of hers. Just like how she can't escape the accusations pounded against her, we the viewers can't escape her horrifying reactions as well. And as we feel the same pain and sympathy for her, the camera delivers the final blow, cornering us and Lena back against the chair and then finally forcing us to confront her dread-filled eyes as the chilling finale.
Needless to say, great scene. But like I've said, a thematic arc consist of two parts: build up and pay off; Question and answer. And the reason to why this scene was even more intense than its sheer presentation alone lies in tension through dissociation.
How dissociative interactions change character dynamics
Now, this was a concept that I have never really thought about as well until this anime put it front and center. We often think about what characters say to each other to get a feel of their dynamics, but we don't think about how they do so.
The plot of the story is simple; There is an empire that classifies an entire population of its citizens as '86', who are considered to be pigs meant to be sacrificed as the empire's war efforts. They live outside the comforts of the city walls, away from safety and the superior race. Said superior race and our protagonist Lena, however, feels sympathy for these 86 and wants to be a good leader for them, and thus with every squadron that she leads she cares for and wants to form trust. And thus, every night she schedules a Para-Raid (the anime's form of voice-only telephone) to talk to them. This is where the first major tension of the series comes in; How do you form trust with someone you have never met or seen?
The story presents itself in a basic focal structure; Splitting both Lena and the Spearhead squadron's POV, an episode will usually have half of it dedicated to focus on Lena and the other half on the Squadron. This is the first decision of dissociative interaction; Lena and the squadron aren't sharing the same experiences. Just think about all the light-hearted moments the squadron shares among themselves; Having meals together, the scene of the girls playing at the lake etc. Lena misses on sharing these fun moments that the squadron have with each other. On the other side, the squadron also misses the moments of sincerity of Lena. If for example, the squadron is there in the lecture room when Lena boldly claims that the 86 are humans just like her, would they have gain a better impression of Lena? We don't know, and that's the point. The show allows you to have such thoughts of: "It's a shame that Lena isn't here to bond with them", or "It's a shame the squadron doesn't see Lena's sincerity", that bugs you. It makes you, first and foremost, sympathetic towards the characters and want to root for them. And second, it creates something called dramatic irony, whereby emotions of suspense and tension are created by the knowledge that we the viewers have and they the characters don't. That to me is the main source of why the final scene is much more tensed than just the presentation alone. The final scene is tensed because of all this dramatic irony that compounds it.
The best use of dramatic irony in the show would be in the moments when Lena and the squadron do share -- Their nightly scheduled Para-Raids. To which I will once again, put this thought forward: How do you form trust with someone you have never met or seen?
When you communicate and talk with someone, not only are words being exchanged but reactions are being shared as well.
This is Anju's reaction to Shin's nonchalant gunslinging. Like the common saying, the face speaks a thousand words that we the viewers can read into and so can her comrades who has access to such an face. However what about Lena? First consider how everything and everyone seem to come to a halt when Lena called. All the fun that everyone is having, and even the music itself crashed the moment the Para-Raid rang. We the viewers could see the sudden mood shift but Lena herself does not share in that experience. She didn't know that she just crashed the party, while we did; Another example of dramatic irony. And when she continues to talk onwards about the mission and work-related stuff, all we feel is the tenseness from this awkward atmosphere and also once again, sympathy for Lena for not only making things worse for herself but also not knowing that she was ultimately dissociated from their true feelings.
What about when she was talking about things like looking towards the future? We the viewers could see how such forward-looking conversations must be tough for soldiers who wake up everyday knowing it could be their last. Everyone looks so damn sad that I almost wanted to reach into the screen to shush Lena up. However if we think about this scene from Lena's perspective, that poor girl probably thought that talking about such a topic is her connecting with her squadron or maybe even giving them hope. The background piano even seems to convey this feeling. For Lena, the piano probably was filled with intimacy, but for us viewers who are privy to everyone's reaction, we can read the piano as melancholic -- Once again, dramatic irony done via dissociative interactions.
Lastly, I couldn't not bring up this scene up as this is literally the show putting up neon signs on their dramatic irony, saying: "Look at me, aren't I making everything more tensed?" Once again, Lena isn't even privy that her nightly scheduled call is actively making some members of her squadron pissed off, with her actually believing that "it's just a rat" being pure dramatic irony fuel for us.
However another reason why I find this scene interesting is in the later half of the conversation where in actuality, there was a moment when Lena wasn't dissociated from the squadron. When they were talking about comets and dogs, Lena was laughing with the squadron and the squadron was also actively engaging in the questions from Lena. Lena even actively confronts the awkward issue which has been the dramatic irony that's been eating away at us: "do you hate us?" At this point, there might have been a huge weight off of everyone's chest. Dramatic irony feeds off of the lack thereof and thus even if for example, the squadron answers that they absolutely hate Lena, at the very least that will be our starting point. We no longer have to be sitting on our fence thinking, 'when is the pot boiling over? We can have comfort in knowing that characters at least understand where each of them stand and can now work forward even as enemies.
But oops, that wasn't where things headed was it? Kaie might have given some speech about how not everyone was the same, and we shouldn't discriminate individuals as a race, but was that truly how she feels? Look at the subtle dissociative act on her continuing to play cards throughout her speech. There is a difference of giving your full attention to someone when talking to them and only mouthing off textbook replies half-heartedly. And even if she really does feel that way, what about the others who kept quiet and didn't share their own feelings? Kaie is just one member of the squadron, and we still have people like Theo who is just waiting to be the pot that boils over.
And the conversation eventually devolves to Kaie telling Lena that she is too naive for the job as well, which we know from Lena's idealistic ambition that she damn well would never take that advice. So once again, the irony snowball continues rolling down the mountain.
These moments of dramatic tension all compounds together, with every reaction that isn't shared, with every word that is slightly misunderstood and with every topic that triggers the wrong emotions. Dramatic tension as defined by literature is the pleasurable anticipation regarding the outcome of a conflict. And that is what we are all waiting at the edge of our seats for -- For the pot to boil --
Which brings us back to this masterpiece of a scene. Theo could not withstand the seemingly superficial consolation offered by Lena and lashes out all his inner turmoil onto her. He calls her a hypocrite for trying to establish some sort of trust with them, he accuses her for not caring about them and he even bashes on her ideology itself, saying how she simply wants to feed her own ego with her incessant "communication". All these words that are left unsaid in the previous conversations, left hidden, hinted only by flashes of their reactions, all rush out onto Lena, and also onto us. It was the payoff of all the dramatic tension that has built up for three whole episodes.
I started out this essay by saying that every thematic arc needs a question and an answer.
The question: How do you form trust with someone you have never met or seen?
And the answer: You can't. The disconnect between both the 86 and the superior-breed Lena was too much to handle. There is too much stigma and distrust existing between the each of them for any meaningful bridge to be built. And even if both parties only have pure intentions, the physical distance between the each of them creates too much uncertainty and doubt for any trust to be formed. And thus, the accusations fly.
Why this show is so fucking good
You know what I love about this thematic arc? This is all achieved by the simple decision of giving both Lena and the squadron separate POVs, changing not the 'what' but the 'how'. A simple decision but it allows for the central conflict of the 86 and Lena to be elevated to such a degree.
Most stories would have these two parties meet to begin with, with the story going something like this: Lena meets and faces difficulty leading the new squadron due to their disobedience. They argue, they fight, but through all of that, they will amend their relationships and slowly learn to trust each other.
This show builds a step before all of this. By separating them on their "first meeting", we can have an entirely new conflict built on the idea of dissociative communication. And what is even better, this opens up to its own intense climax for when they do have their first meeting. Now, we have our next conclusion we can anticipate: When they do see each other, and come face to face for the first time. For most shows, the meeting is only the beginning. But for us, it is both -- The ending of an arc, and yet the start of another story. Now tell me that isn't the hypest and most beautiful shit you ever watched.
>The question: How do you form trust with someone you have never met or seen?
ReplyDeleteIt's completely possible to form trust with someone you've never met. What about internet friends or pen-pals? Are you saying that it's impossible for you to develop genuine friendships with people you speak to online?
In episode four spearhead all seem to unanimously agree that as long Lena remains within the comforts of the walls of Saint Magnolia, they will never truly be able to view her as their equal.
Perhaps a better question may be how are you expected to trust someone when you're unable to even view them as your equal?