Kurosagi (Episodes 1-2)
Hello! I started a rewatch of Kurosagi a few days ago, and have been commenting like crazy on my LJ. I meant to x-post here, but never did... Anyway, here are my thoughts on episodes 1-2 (it's super-spoilery).
It's funny how much more you notice the second time around, and how much I think about each scene. Like, the opening scene, the incredible moment where Tsurara and Kurosagi lock eyes for the first time, when he's saving her from the oncoming train? Holy crap! See, look:
It's a total instant connection. Kurosaki is all about being alone, not letting people into his life. But with that one split-second moment, jumping down to save her from the oncoming train, he opens a door to the one person who will never be shut out, because she's far too stubborn and pushy. You can see it afterwards, as he's walking away - he looks back at her, which is unusual for him, because he's always walking away and never seems to hesitate at all. I just love how this dynamic to their relationship is established right away, and without any words. They don't say anything to each other in this first scene, it's all done through eye contact (which makes Hope melt).
I also noticed something going on with pictures in this series. Because, pictures are so important to Kurosaki - it's how his informant introduces him to his next target, by giving him a picture. All Kurosaki knows about the person he's going to "destroy" next is what they look like, and what their scam is. You see later on in the series the way that this will come back to bite him in the ass, but in a way, it works really well with his character, because Kurosaki is ultimately a good guy whose been handed a bad card in life. The only way he can keep doing what he's doing (swindling, being something he hates) is to keep everyone out of his life, to make no human or emotional connections (both because he doesn't want to risk being hurt or losing everything the way he did when his father killed his entire family but also because he believes that swindlers are everywhere and you don't know where you'll find them - we see the impact of this is ep 2), so that's why the pictures are important. They're superficial - you can't learn too much about a person by their photograph.
Also, there's the family picture that he has, of his parents and siblings, with his face blacked out. It's never explained, never talked about, the viewer just sees it every now and then, but I love its effect so very much. Because with THAT ONE PICTURE, we have SO much information about Kurosaki. He's the only that survived, therefore he's the only one that's been left alone. Being alive is what makes him different from the other members of his family. But in the same way, he DID die that day, because that was the day that Kurosaki died, and Kurosagi was born. And he can't look at himself that way, before that happened, because that would mean facing what he's become - what he hates most in the world.
Here's a shot from the first episode that I really love, with the picture in at the forefront, with him in the background (working on a fake photo-id to support one of his crazy aliases and disguises):
And on that note, we come back to Tsurara. Already, she's had an impact (he saved her, the looking back, etc), but at the end of ep. 1, he reveals a lot more to her than we ever see him reveal to anyone else (even in ep 2, when his old friend from high school is back, he doesn't say anything close to this). He actually loses his temper and yells (not at her, though, just yelling in general), which he really never does. He, for the most part, is calm and cool, even when he should be panicking. But she pushes and pushes, and finally he breaks and yells that he hates ALL swindlers and he's going to destroy them ALL. I've emphasized the ALL because he IS a swindler. And he knows that what he's doing is completely self-destructive, but... going back to that picture, I don't think he cares too much. He died that day, so what does it matter? I just love that she pushes him into losing some of his control.
Here's a pic of him during his little temper tantrum, looking all stoic and slightly vengeful:
And in episode 2... Kurosaki runs across an old friend from highschool and seems as if he's about to reconnect... but it turns out he's a swindler and Kurosaki is left with a choice - to destroy him, or to let him go.
But it could never be that easy, not with this dorama. Because this just isn't any friend. This is a friend who, in highschool when Kurosaki would climb over the fence to sit on his own, would climb over after him to sit with him. So that they'd be on the same side of the fence. God, the symbolism, it kills me.
This is a really pretty picture of Kurosaki sitting ALONE on the other side of the fence:
And here's his friend sitting with him, after climbing over so that they're on the SAME SIDE:
Kurosaki decides to go through and swindle the friend and his sister (and actually uses the friend to gain information and then sends it to the police). Of course, there is a dramatic scene as the two siblings are taken away when the friend sees Kurosaki sitting next to a tree (on the other side of the fence, naturally) and confronts him, asking him why he did it, as he thought they were supposed to be friends.
Kurosaki's answer? That he did it BECAUSE they were friends, and he didn't want his friend to become a swindler. So, in effect, instead of "destroying" his friend the swindler, he's actually saving him from that future. It's amazing and I love this series. And I love it even more, when Investigator whose determined to catch Kurosaki confronts him and tells him that he can help him more by coming over to that side of the fence. Ooh, the symbolism, it makes me shiver. Even more so when Kurosaki just walks away, alone on his side of the fence again. Because he can't stop, he won't stop, even though climbing over would be salvation from his self-destructive way of life, he doesn't want to be saved. Because he's a swindler and he wants to destroy them all.
And it's also so interesting, as Kurosaki's biggest beef is with the legal system that he believes can't truly protect people as it failed his father (his dad went to the cops after he found out he'd been swindled and been told there was nothing they could do for him), and yet, in a way, it is the one thing that could save HIM from himself, because it would make him stop.
At the end, we get another delicious scene with Tsurara and Kurosaki, as she confronts him, demanding to know how he could do that to his friend and why he hates swindlers so much. She just keeps at it, demanding an answer, but her questions bring him back to that awful memory of his father trying to kill him, and she's getting too close so he naturally has to slam that door shut.
He askes her to move out of the apartment building (they live next door to each other, and he's the landlord), telling her to go as soon as she can, but she keeps asking questions and it gets to him:
So, he changes his mind and orders her to leave immediately, and walks away, this time without looking back at all. Effectively, he thinks, shutting her out and saving himself from having to deal with someone who makes him think, feel and remember too much.
He made the choice that he is alone on his side of the fence (figuratively and literally), and he's going to do what it takes to make sure he stays alone. Even in his family's picture, he's alone because his face was scratched out.
SERIOUSLY. I love this drama.
I've also posted on episodes 3 & 4, but be careful, as the comments are rife with HYD2 spoilers.
It's funny how much more you notice the second time around, and how much I think about each scene. Like, the opening scene, the incredible moment where Tsurara and Kurosagi lock eyes for the first time, when he's saving her from the oncoming train? Holy crap! See, look:
It's a total instant connection. Kurosaki is all about being alone, not letting people into his life. But with that one split-second moment, jumping down to save her from the oncoming train, he opens a door to the one person who will never be shut out, because she's far too stubborn and pushy. You can see it afterwards, as he's walking away - he looks back at her, which is unusual for him, because he's always walking away and never seems to hesitate at all. I just love how this dynamic to their relationship is established right away, and without any words. They don't say anything to each other in this first scene, it's all done through eye contact (which makes Hope melt).
I also noticed something going on with pictures in this series. Because, pictures are so important to Kurosaki - it's how his informant introduces him to his next target, by giving him a picture. All Kurosaki knows about the person he's going to "destroy" next is what they look like, and what their scam is. You see later on in the series the way that this will come back to bite him in the ass, but in a way, it works really well with his character, because Kurosaki is ultimately a good guy whose been handed a bad card in life. The only way he can keep doing what he's doing (swindling, being something he hates) is to keep everyone out of his life, to make no human or emotional connections (both because he doesn't want to risk being hurt or losing everything the way he did when his father killed his entire family but also because he believes that swindlers are everywhere and you don't know where you'll find them - we see the impact of this is ep 2), so that's why the pictures are important. They're superficial - you can't learn too much about a person by their photograph.
Also, there's the family picture that he has, of his parents and siblings, with his face blacked out. It's never explained, never talked about, the viewer just sees it every now and then, but I love its effect so very much. Because with THAT ONE PICTURE, we have SO much information about Kurosaki. He's the only that survived, therefore he's the only one that's been left alone. Being alive is what makes him different from the other members of his family. But in the same way, he DID die that day, because that was the day that Kurosaki died, and Kurosagi was born. And he can't look at himself that way, before that happened, because that would mean facing what he's become - what he hates most in the world.
Here's a shot from the first episode that I really love, with the picture in at the forefront, with him in the background (working on a fake photo-id to support one of his crazy aliases and disguises):
And on that note, we come back to Tsurara. Already, she's had an impact (he saved her, the looking back, etc), but at the end of ep. 1, he reveals a lot more to her than we ever see him reveal to anyone else (even in ep 2, when his old friend from high school is back, he doesn't say anything close to this). He actually loses his temper and yells (not at her, though, just yelling in general), which he really never does. He, for the most part, is calm and cool, even when he should be panicking. But she pushes and pushes, and finally he breaks and yells that he hates ALL swindlers and he's going to destroy them ALL. I've emphasized the ALL because he IS a swindler. And he knows that what he's doing is completely self-destructive, but... going back to that picture, I don't think he cares too much. He died that day, so what does it matter? I just love that she pushes him into losing some of his control.
Here's a pic of him during his little temper tantrum, looking all stoic and slightly vengeful:
And in episode 2... Kurosaki runs across an old friend from highschool and seems as if he's about to reconnect... but it turns out he's a swindler and Kurosaki is left with a choice - to destroy him, or to let him go.
But it could never be that easy, not with this dorama. Because this just isn't any friend. This is a friend who, in highschool when Kurosaki would climb over the fence to sit on his own, would climb over after him to sit with him. So that they'd be on the same side of the fence. God, the symbolism, it kills me.
This is a really pretty picture of Kurosaki sitting ALONE on the other side of the fence:
And here's his friend sitting with him, after climbing over so that they're on the SAME SIDE:
Kurosaki decides to go through and swindle the friend and his sister (and actually uses the friend to gain information and then sends it to the police). Of course, there is a dramatic scene as the two siblings are taken away when the friend sees Kurosaki sitting next to a tree (on the other side of the fence, naturally) and confronts him, asking him why he did it, as he thought they were supposed to be friends.
Kurosaki's answer? That he did it BECAUSE they were friends, and he didn't want his friend to become a swindler. So, in effect, instead of "destroying" his friend the swindler, he's actually saving him from that future. It's amazing and I love this series. And I love it even more, when Investigator whose determined to catch Kurosaki confronts him and tells him that he can help him more by coming over to that side of the fence. Ooh, the symbolism, it makes me shiver. Even more so when Kurosaki just walks away, alone on his side of the fence again. Because he can't stop, he won't stop, even though climbing over would be salvation from his self-destructive way of life, he doesn't want to be saved. Because he's a swindler and he wants to destroy them all.
And it's also so interesting, as Kurosaki's biggest beef is with the legal system that he believes can't truly protect people as it failed his father (his dad went to the cops after he found out he'd been swindled and been told there was nothing they could do for him), and yet, in a way, it is the one thing that could save HIM from himself, because it would make him stop.
At the end, we get another delicious scene with Tsurara and Kurosaki, as she confronts him, demanding to know how he could do that to his friend and why he hates swindlers so much. She just keeps at it, demanding an answer, but her questions bring him back to that awful memory of his father trying to kill him, and she's getting too close so he naturally has to slam that door shut.
He askes her to move out of the apartment building (they live next door to each other, and he's the landlord), telling her to go as soon as she can, but she keeps asking questions and it gets to him:
So, he changes his mind and orders her to leave immediately, and walks away, this time without looking back at all. Effectively, he thinks, shutting her out and saving himself from having to deal with someone who makes him think, feel and remember too much.
He made the choice that he is alone on his side of the fence (figuratively and literally), and he's going to do what it takes to make sure he stays alone. Even in his family's picture, he's alone because his face was scratched out.
SERIOUSLY. I love this drama.
I've also posted on episodes 3 & 4, but be careful, as the comments are rife with HYD2 spoilers.