Yet the Town Keeps Going 12 – We Hardly Knew Ye, Hotori Arashiyama

Oh wow. Talk about leaving on a high note. The final episode of this show brought together everything that was good about this show into one hilarious, quirky, crazy, emotional, touching, moving package. What a great way to bring out the first episode in which just one story is told start to finish, with no gag transitions or lack of chronology. What started off as another story about Hotori’s naivete and rashness getting her into trouble ended up being a very touching look back at this show and all of its characters who have made it what it is.

The first half of the episode was innocent enough, with Hotori foolishly thinking she could win a literature contest to buy a new pen to replace the one given to her by her uncle, all because she excitedly modded it during the cold open with a magnifying glass without doing any research into the pen’s value. Never change, Hotori. The scene in which Hotori shows Futaba the cafe and reunites her with Toshiko served to remind us of when in the timeline this was taking place, in case we missed the title scroll. And seriously, Hotori’s mystery short story was horrible, but, of course, that was part of the charm. The super deformed adaptation was a gag that actually worked, thanks its quick pacing and wonderfully cliche writing.

But shit really hit the fan when Hotori got hit by a car in front of her house while fallen in despair over the rejection. Ironically, this accident was due to no fault of her own, as that truck really had no business going that fast that close to a gate where people might enter and exit. But regardless of whose fault it was, she was hit and quickly found herself ascending to the heavens just like the old man from a few episodes back.

There was a more mythical depiction of the afterlife using the Egyptian model, and Hotori's reaction was priceless and reminiscent of her berating of the policeman in episode 2.

There is no shortage of depictions of the afterlife in fiction, but if one were to exist in real life, surely SoreMachi’s vision of it being another typical government bureaucracy would come close. After all, why should things become all neat and tidy for us humans after death? Even after passing, it turns out, people have to wait in lines, fill out forms, work for money. Except here, a job might be of being one of the angels to guide up newly dead people, and one spends one’s earned money by “haunting” photos of friends down below using a photo booth. Very pragmatic, to say the least.

The heart and soul of the episode was getting to see how everyone reacted to Hotori’s hospitalization, of course. It was an emotional look at virtually every single side character in this show. I have to admit I teared up a bit during the scene with Takeru and Yukiko. Something about seeing those two younger siblings being left behind, the older one still just a child and telling the younger one that they have to be strong was particularly powerful. There was also Sanada, who again cursed his inability to tell Hotori he liked her. Except this time, he wouldn’t get another chance.

As it all finally hits her, Hotori begins to mourn her own death.

The finality of it all was what really got to Hotori, when she realized that she would never again get to try harder next time. This scene of her coming to terms with her own death was something unexpectedly mature from this show. What Hotori regretted the most was the life full of friends and relationships she would leave behind, but at the same time, her regret was proof that her life was worthwhile. The feeling of loss was both real and heavy, even as she quickly learned to look ahead to her new life after death.

Once again, I’m inclined to make a comparison to The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, with its finale. This is a comparison I don’t want to push too hard – Melancholy is a far better piece of work than this show – but there is definitely a parallel here, with the finale featuring the protagonist going through some powerful and possibly irreversible ordeal in an episode that we know takes place before many of the events that we’ve already seen. Indeed, there was never any doubt that Hotori would come back to life. It’s a bit of a shame that her memory of the afterlife was wiped clean, meaning that she was the same person before and after the events of the finale – a significant difference from the finale of Melancholy – but that didn’t take away from the emotional power of seeing our heroine face her own death. Also, having the story come full circle to her uncle’s pen was a nice touch.

Yet the Town Keeps Going also offers its own take on what "life flashing before your eyes" entails.

This was a far more emotionally affecting finale to this show than I could ever have expected. It truly lived up to its episode title, SoreMachi, by highlighting the importance of what was easily the most entertaining aspect of this show, the interpersonal relationships between the various characters. They were what provided the funniest moments in this show, but also the most powerful and touching ones. After all, more than anything, our relationship with others is what truly makes us happy.