The series slows down considerably to show some not so obvious character development and let comedy take center stage. Phryne slowly opens up, while Clain discovers manual labor. But where is Nessa? Fractal: Reiterated continues with HD screencaps and revised text.
One of these days I’ll try to make an animated GIF out of the opening sequence. Fractal patterns have always fascinated me and I really like the opening credits. By this point, the opening theme had really grown on me as well.
At first Journey feels like a filler episode, albeit one with some good character moments. After all the madness in the prior episodes, the pacing mellows out and in some ways it is a slice of life story. Most of the story is about normality, but most telling is how alien that is to Clain.
The episode takes place on board the Granite’s fascinating airship, which is not named. The sheer size of the thing is impressive and we get something of a tour of its insides throughout this installment of Fractale. Being on the run from the Temple attack that happened in the prior episode, the rebels are carefully staying in the dead zones of Fractale’s failing coverage. For the moment, there is peace and an opportunity to see their daily lives more closely.
The status of Phryne and Clain is made very clear by Sunda – Phryne is a captive/potential ally while Clain is dead weight. If the teen is to stay on board, he’ll have earn his keep. The other option departing by parachute, which Sunda throws to the boy. With that option out, work must be done. No matter how you feel about the rebel leader, he has style and a certain vicious wit about him.
So begins Clain’s first encounter with doing actual work in his short life. Once again, pointed social commentary on pulling your own weight enters the show and I enjoyed how they worked it into Clain’s personal journey. Yeah, I don’t think the title is just about the group traveling on the airship through the sky. With wounded pride and being physically taxed, he struggles mightily with the labors assigned to him. Of course, Enri is right there to give him grief.
As always, she accuses him of naughty (ecchi, or mildly perverted) thoughts in the running gag that has already worn thin. But this time, she has Clain wondering a little since he finds himself thinking about Phryne falling into the ocean. It is a rare moment where the gag leads to something deeper -- for Clain is slowly becoming aware of his feelings for the priestess.
That ends quickly as the shy teen ends up being subjected to a humiliating stripping of his dirty trousers by the older women on the deck where the laundry is hung to dry. So here we are subjected to a loin cloth shot instead of a panty shot of a girl. Once again, I’m getting the impression that the creators of the show are mocking the whole “pantsu” obsession of the industry. It is far more likely script writer Mari Okada is indulging in her obsession with all things sexually strange. It is played for comedy, but I don’t find this kind of humiliation amusing.
The absence of Nessa alone slows this episode down and made me realize what a vital part she is. Having been left behind because of her anger at Phryne for slapping Clain, the doppel hasn’t been seen onboard. But who is the littlest Granite playing with?
The family dinner is an eye opener for Clain that has him find out how a real family should behave. Compared to the opening scene of the series with his doppel parents, it is quite a contrast. Phryne refuses to attend and is conspicuously absent. An interesting digression into theology reveals just how much Sunda despises religion of any kind and that this view is not universally held in the family. It is an interesting juxtaposition of traditional and “progressive” attitudes. Sadly for Clain, the rest of the dinner conversation turns to running him down.
Things brighten considerably for the teen when hauling a load of wet laundry turns into a chance for some time with Phryne. As he enters the deck, he stumbles upon her changing into civilian garb. While he is embarrassed, Clain is also entranced. Phryne proves to be unflappable about being caught, or more accurately oblivious to the effect her being disrobed has on the boy. There is no nudity or salaciousness to the scene and it becomes something genuinely sweet when she asks him if she looks weird in the clothes. His sincere reply produces an endearingly shy smile from the priestess.
This is a welcome return to some of the atmosphere that had been in the first episodes. An errant pair of boxers leads to laughter, which in turn leads to the two sitting together and having their first real discussion since episode one. It becomes clear that Clain brings out a softer side in Phryne and their feelings are mutual, even if they appear to have no clue how to interact with each other. The questions pour out from the confused boy and he decides that she only needs to answer one: Why does she dislike Nessa? Her answer is cryptic, to say the least.
Then things heat up dramatically, but not between Clain and Phryne. Things are heating up because the airship’s environmental controls are malfunctioning. But that doesn’t stop a snide comment about the cause, of course. Poor Clain has been labeled a player and it doesn’t look like he’ll escape it.
But things get worse as the system malfunctions spread to the control systems and puts the lives of everyone on the airship into jeopardy. From there it becomes a race to find out why things are going wrong and the only ones who can save the day are the least welcome on board…
Thoughts
Episode five is a real change of pace and I remember thinking the series was losing some steam. Having seen the entire series I now have a completely different view of it. Some important relationships are established or deepened while small hints about the twin mysteries of Phryne and Nessa are dropped. The focus is on the journey that Clain and Phryne are on rather than any earthshaking developments. In showing that, it lays an important foundation for the rest of the series.
It could be viewed as the weakest of the show in the first viewing of the series, but a repeat viewing shows it to be more important than it seemed at the time. More on that in the spoilers section.
BEWARE, HERE BE SPOILERS!
Clain’s slow growth is shown most in this episode. He is at first reactive to the situations around him, but then becomes proactive. The best example is how he is the one who figures out it is Nessa in the ship’s computer systems causing the trouble. While he may be weak physically, his hacking skills prove him of worth to the Granite’s after initially rejecting his help.
But it is his attempt to keep Phryne from killing herself that shows his growth the most. It also elicits the truth about what Phryne had intended by running away from the Temple, thought it is very cryptic and the boy does not understand what she is talking about.
Phryne’s decision to throw herself off the ship to save everyone illustrated just how emotionally fragile she really is. That was driven home as she huddled in fear after Clain’s impassioned talk with the girl upset her resolve and brought out a glimpse of her hidden demons. I also have to give credit to the sound editing during this sequence when the creaking and groaning noises of the ship overwhelm Phryne.
Which leads us to our favorite doppel. The hide and seek game played by Nessa through the airship shows just how much of a child she is. There is no thought to consequences or the harm being done to the systems. But that same childish mind is what makes it possible for Phryne to save the day, as Nessa can’t hold a grudge for long – especially after seeing the older girl in such distress.
Of course, there is another possible reason for Phryne wanting to end it all. That, of course, is the awful dancing of the Granite clan. Yes, it was that traumatic.
But my favorite screen capture (along with the shy smile earlier) had to be this one at the end:
It is pretty clear that Phryne likes Clain there. I love well executed subtlety.
MASSIVE SERIES SPOILERS!!!
I was surprised to see how much this episode tied to the final episode. From Phryne opening up to Clain, to his attempt to walk her back from the brink of suicide, to the game of hide and seek there were a lot of things that linked directly. Explaining that Nessa was “it” was profound foreshadowing on many levels. So was Phryne being “caught” by Nessa. Once again, it shows how tightly integrated the episodes throughout the series really are.
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