Alright Araragi, what the fuck are we doing here. When last we left off, Nadeko had just offered the team a succinct explanation of what this mirror world represents. Rather than simply “reversing” characters in the manner of a traditional mirror, this reality is presenting the “other side” of the characters we know. In effect, what this means is we’re being introduced to other personal and psychological paths that all of our heroes could have taken, whether it’s Kanbaru being totally consumed by the Rainy Devil, or Sodachi enjoying a healthy adolescence as Araragi’s houseguest.

In true Nisio Isin fashion, this revelation also serves as a rejoinder to the entire thematic trajectory of Monogatari. Where the original Monogatari emphasized that self-knowledge and self-love were the route to happiness and connection with others, Zoku is quick to reply that the “self” is a mutable and contextual organism, not an ironclad set of personal attributes. It’s a thematic expansion appropriate to Zoku’s general broadening of this story’s scope; while our experiences and opportunities throughout adolescence are limited enough to support some fantasy of a “true self,” the open canvas of adult life presents myriad opportunities, and thus myriad possible future identities.

In the face of such broad opportunities for defining the self, it’s understandable that Araragi is suffering a little decision paralysis. Ultimately, what Araragi needs to realize is that it’s okay to be scared or uncertain. Though we all wish we could identify the most fruitful possible path forward, the truth of it is that life is brimming with crossroads and opportunities, and it’s impossible to min-max all of them. Though Zoku’s additions complicate Monogatari’s message, they do not alter its ultimate takeaway: whatever path you choose, the important thing is to find peace with your decisions, and to love the person you’ve become. Let’s see if Araragi can inch closer to that peace, as we return to Zoku Owarimonogatari!

Episode 3

“How much difference is there between a world switched from left to right and a world seen from the other side?” I’m not quite sure you’re grasping the magnitude of this distinction, Araragi

Ooh, nice. Loving this theater framing and cut-paper backgrounds for detailing what Araragi has deduced so far. One of Monogatari’s greatest features has always been its diversity of aesthetic, a quality founded in Tatsuya Oishi’s restless approach to medium and style over the course of Bakemonogatari. After Oishi departed to work on Kizu, the franchise went through a rotating cast of artists, with the diversity of staff talents offering an (admittedly less wild) echo of Oishi’s diverse visions. Individual sequences like Taiki Konno’s Kiss-Shot tapestry or the shadow puppetry of Hanamonogatari maintain the franchise’s restlessness of aesthetic, and though the show has developed a more reliable “house style” in the years since Oishi’s departure, it still makes sure to embrace diverse art design digressions whenever possible

Monogatari’s self-aware and theatrical presentation certainly makes it easier to justify such ostentatious digressions in aesthetic, or rather minimize the friction of such non-naturalistic interjections. But to be honest, I’d love to see more shows embracing the idiosyncratic aesthetic interests of individual artists and animators. Naturalism or cohesion of aesthetic are not inherent dramatic virtues; they’re merely preferences, preferences which can seem all-consuming (like in much of Hollywood cinema) or largely unrepresented (like in much of Bollywood cinema). Many audiences are indeed skittish about aesthetic choices that break the spell of shows or films mirroring reality, but the only way to overcome that is to experience aesthetically variable or impressionistic works of art, and come to appreciate the beauty and dramatic potential of such stories

It appears the “other side” identities are most clearly identifiable for those who already have an alter ego – like Hanekawa and Kanbaru, who simply slipped into their oddity forms

For Karen, it appears that her sense of self was deeply tethered to her physical form. By making her smaller, this world has essentially flipped her identity from confidence based in her height to insecurity based in her lack thereof

Loving these sketched title cards for all the mirror-form heroines

For Yotsugi, her personality hasn’t changed, but she’s flipped from being unable to express any of her feelings to loudly expressing all of them

Some incredible ornate backgrounds for Hachikuji’s story. I wonder if they got Inu Curry to collaborate on this sequence, as it definitely looks like their style

For Hachikuji, she has flipped to express externally the experience she gained from eleven years wandering as a physically unchanging ghost

Araragi readily admits that his assumption that Sodachi’s current personality was always hidden beneath the one he knew is an optimistic conjecture, and perhaps giving his own influence in her life too much credit

And of course, Nadeko’s new persona is just the “serpent” side of herself that she’s had all along – the rude, boisterous elements of her personality that she repressed in order to play the perfect demure child

Oh my god, they even have Nadeko do the Misato Beer Chug in order to demonstrate what this other side is like. Shots at Misato, apparently

“Surprisingly, ‘let’s save my thoughts for last’ proved not to be a bluff.” Araragi and Hachikuji are such a complimentary pair of idiots. They’re probably the most comfortable “friends” of anyone in this franchise

Ahaha, these tiny munching Nadeko cuts as Hachikuji explains her position. They’re having a ton of fun with Nadeko in this arc, and she deserves it

And Hachikuji raises a very good point: where are you, Araragi? We have yet to see his mirror form, and I’m frankly a little frightened to see a fully Ougi-integrated Araragi unleashed

Yep, he agrees that Ougi must be out here somewhere

I like this minimalist portrayal of Nadeko’s exit, where she starts to rise, we see one of the shrine ropes sway in the breeze, and then she’s gone. She might be a lazy and largely useless god, but she’s still a god

Araragi returns home, and discovers his bedroom actually belongs to Sodachi in this universe. Nice use of blocking to emphasize his shock here, with his head marooned at the bottom of the frame to emphasize his sense of disorientation. Given we are accustomed to seeing subjects positioned in the center of the frame, a shot like this gives us much of the same momentary “wait, what?” feeling that Araragi himself is experiencing

If these breathless cuts of animation are anything to go by, Sodachi’s charm point is apparently her collarbone. Well, you gotta specialize in something

They actually share the room via bunk beds, though the décor seems largely defined by Sodachi’s tastes. Fortunately, that incredibly awkward-looking banana sofa is still here. Some things are sacred

“Reflecting all light is impossible, so mirrors only reflect about 80% of it.” Seeming to imply that these mirror-people are not full alternate selves, but partly simplified simulacrums. That would help explain why they’re all so committed to their differences here, as opposed to at times embodying both selves like in the real world

“We can only look at ourselves using mirrors, but that means we can only see ourselves blurred.” A lament that applies to all of Monogatari – we will never fully understand the Other, and we will never fully understand the Self

Araragi is awoken by Yotsugi, who seems to now be her normal self. She promises to bring him to this world’s Shinobu

It seems even this world’s Yotsugi realized something was wrong when she interacted with Araragi earlier. This world is a collected bouquet of alternate potentials, and as such, it’s hard to imagine that it actually functions as a universe in its own right. All of these alternate selves are framed in terms of their opposition to Araragi’s original reality – if they all coexisted together in this reality, surely they’d be more influenced by the characters they’re actually sharing a world with

As a doll, Yotsugi is apparently able to reconstitute her personality, and that’s precisely what she did

“Changing my own character like this is pretty far outside the limits of acceptable behavior for an oddity.” I’d imagine so. Yotsugi is one of the few oddities in this show who isn’t another aspect of an existing human character, but a full identity in her own right. I’d guess that limits what she’s supposed to do, given we’ve already seen elemental forces hunting down other oddities for stretching beyond their purpose

“I wouldn’t be surprised if the darkness showed up.” Bingo

We run through some delightful 16 bit simulations of Araragi’s adventures as they continue talking. Nisio Isin’s propensity for long, rambling conversations almost necessitates this series’ consistent visual digressions, if only to add some visual intrigue to static monologues

Yotsugi’s really hyping up this new Shinobu form, and goddamnit it’s working

“Don’t pretend we’re in a buddy cop film.” Araragi, basically every arc you share with Yotsugi is a buddy cop film

After a great deal of making fun of Araragi, Yotsugi leads him towards the old cram school

In this world, the cram school has been replaced by… Disney’s Magical Kingdom? Huh

“I thought Shinobu wouldn’t be here, because vampires don’t show up in mirrors.” “Well, that has to do with this world not needing to make sense.” Fuck you Isin

It’s an annoyingly coy Isin-ism, but it’s basically just an expression of what I was reflecting on earlier: this world is not a coherent, cohesive reality in its own right, it is merely a series of signifiers that only bear meaning in relation to their connection with Araragi’s original world

And ah shit, it seems this Kiss-Shot is actually human!

And Done

Oh, you goddamn bastards. I’m so eager to crack this case, and here this episode goes and spends half its running time just luxuriating in Yotsugi roasting Araragi. Well, no one has ever accused Nisio Isin of being punctual in his storytelling, but we at least got that intriguing reflection (no pun intended) from Sodachi, as well as lots of neat visual digressions across the first half. Every Monogatari arc tends to have an episode or two of just walking around and reflecting on the journey so far, and though we’d largely guessed most of what this episode revealed already, it’s certainly nice to know we’re on firm ground here. Time for the bizarre spectacle of non-oddity Shinobu!

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