Tasogare Otome x Amnesia 2 ~ I harbor no regrets or grudges

Another visually compelling episode.

I hadn’t intended to blog Tasogare Otome x Amnesia (Dusk Maiden of Amnesia), but last week’s episode was so interesting that I just had to do so. Still, I intended to let it be, but this episode was packed with interesting visual ideas, so I can’t help but comment.

Great use of primary colors and simulating a fisheye lens on the "camera".

Yuuko Kanoe X Teiichi Niiya.

The shot of the couple on the roof is amazing for several reasons. First, it has some very bold color choices (apparently scenes with our ghost maiden at dusk are going to be a recurring subject for this series). But the most extraordinary thing about it is the unconventional approach to composition. This sort of composition, with the two characters bunched right in the center, and practically nothing around them, shouldn’t really work, but it does. This composition is almost entirely dead space, but through the use of shadows, and the columns, and the fencing, and especially that crazy sky, it looks dynamic and really holds one’s attention. Brilliant.

This scene used framing devices as well as illogically breaking up pieces of the character and incorporating calligraphy.

Momoe Okonogi. Here thick, black borders frame the subject who is set against a cheery floral background for comedic effect (and to indicate the cluelessness of the character depicted).

This is a fascinating shot that would be at home in a Shaft/Shinbo production. It appears to be a shard of the mirror that is broken in this episode. Because it reflects the tops of people's heads, and the dark lines running across it seem to be wire or string, it appears someone has tied this so that it is suspended from the ceiling.

A lot of scenes used framing devices in some way. A few are depicted above, including the unusual triangular frame caused by the mirror shard. An extreme version of this framing motif was played out with Momoe’s story.

Picture Play 1: A wooden panel opens in three directions.

Picture Play 2: This reveals an image set into a literal frame, that acts as a stage for the story.

Picture Play 3. The images in the frame are shown in a different style, with heavier lines to give it a more graphic feel.

Picture Play 4: As the drama unfolds, the images are slid out from the side, to reveal the next image in the story.

The visual ideas used in this episode were not only bold, they were very well executed. There were also other parts that used painted scrolls, and a whole sequence of very quick jump cuts that moved backwards through the events in the episode. Visually I find this episode even more interesting than I did the first episode. The storytelling was assisted by the interesting visual ideas.

Yuuko Kanoe. One sexy ghost.

Of course none of this addresses my central concern as expressed in my review of the first episode. The underlying subject matter is still an ecchi Harem Rom-Com. Can Amnesia rise above the genre on the basis of its obvious quality production?