© NEGAPOSI-ANGLER PROJECT
Another week comes and goes with another woman dragging Hiro deeper into fishing hell. This time, it's Kozue's turn to take Hiro's hand and she guides him through the surprisingly expensive world of sports retail. The Positively Negative Angler has settled into a comfortable rhythm at this point, so there aren't too many surprises in this episode — although I'd say there's at least one big surprise. Either way, a good character drama doesn't need surprises to make an impression, and the writing continues to navigate the flow of human experience with a refreshing breeze.
As the current central character, Kozue rates very well. She's a familiar archetype: one of those people who exudes kindness in a completely genuine way and who can befriend almost anyone. In other words, she is the complete opposite of the moody and moody Hiro. And, being an excellent social savant, Hiro naturally interpreted her kindness as flirtation. He spends the first part of this episode under the impression that she's getting close to him, and the anime does some clever manipulation with this believable misunderstanding. Hiro is not immune to those emotions, but the story also shows the audience how responsible he is for his delusions. The best example is how he reacts to Kozue's serious educational tidbits about the devices and their costs. She's helpful, but Hiro sees this as an opportunity to “be a man,” which means throwing his entire salary into a hobby in which he's barely present.
I like Takaaki as both a figurative and literal representation of Hiro's conscience. If we take the story at face value, Takaaki is the nicest guy in the universe; he paid off a complete stranger's debt and let him move into his apartment. However, NegaPosi Angler is telling a story about second chances, and Takaaki represents the good side of the person that Hiro blinded himself to when we first met him. However, “good” does not mean “ugly,” and Takaaki, both real and imagined, must be tough with Hiro to break his self-destructive habits. Spending your paycheck on fishing gear is a little more responsible than putting it in a pachinko machine—at least one that allows you to feed yourself delicious fish—but it's not exactly adult behavior. . Hiro still has quite a bit of time left for rehabilitation.
Recovery and healing are rarely linear. Going back to fishing as a metaphor, it's not as simple as casting out the line, reeling in big bass and repeating. It requires luck and perseverance, and everyone does it differently for different reasons. For example, Kozue admits to Hiro that she finds fishing mostly disgusting. The episode addresses this through a clear demonstration of how bad your baiting can be, something Kozue has mastered the art of dissociation to do. It was a funny but touching scene. Life is full of unpleasant and unpleasant things, but we navigate those parts because the good moments are worth it. It can be the thrill of catching a big catch of fish. It could be the comfort of a consistent hobby. Or maybe it's the serenity of spending time with your wife.
That's right, Kozue has a crush on Hana! It's great that NegaPosi Angler casually mentioned this—it happened to pass Hiro by. After all, he spent most of the episode thinking she was coming on to him, but her language and behavior around Hana were definitely goofy. Hana doesn't seem to reciprocate (though they're definitely close friends), so it's too early to tell whether this will fuel drama later or just be a bit yuri. Regardless, though, it gives Kozue more depth and makes her a more interesting character.
That wasn't the only manifestation of queer romance to be found this week, either. Their enthusiasm inspired Takaaki to let Hiro keep his stick, and Hiro in turn had a ball to play with it. Penis symbolism aside, their conversation is far more intimate than any of Hiro's other interactions. Takaaki is completely open about what made him love fishing—how his desire to be the best in the eyes of others turned into something more personal and fulfilling. I like how much the show leaves out in the subtext. Takaaki's brother could have become a tragic figure given his current kindness towards Hiro, but the writing shows this without writing any words. It was all wrapped up in Takaaki's small gesture of handing something precious back to him.
Hiro also grew up a bit. His two major purchases of fishing equipment were both irresponsible, but they had different flavors of irresponsibility. At first, he considered the more expensive equipment to be versatile. He is trying to impress Kozue, and he also sees the expensive fishing reel as a shortcut to achieving fishing mastery. However, at the end of the episode, there was a subtle change. He sees the device not as a quick solution but as a means by which he can continue fishing. At the urging of both Takaaki and Kozue, he realized that he had now developed a passion for the hobby, and he wanted better equipment as an extension of that passion. That doesn't make this a smart decision, but it does mean Hiro has accepted something he could have expected. He has future plans. He decided to embrace a life not weighed down by debt or a cancer diagnosis. He's taking his chances and throwing his fishing rod out into the vast and unknown sea, because that's what he wants to do.
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Negative Positive Angler is now streaming on Crunchyroll.
Steve is on Twitter while it lasted. Fish are certainly not afraid of him. You can also see him chatting about trash and treasure on This Week in Anime.
