Episode 3 (“My Song”)’s primary focus is actually not based
on Angel, or the outrageous tactics of the Battlefront, or Otonashi’s amnesia.
“My Song” primarily focuses on the parameters of the world around the
characters, and it tackles the issue of how people “disappear” or become
“obliterated” from purgatory. It was foreshadowed that Episode 3 would be
something different, and it is, for once, a breath of fresh air. I’m probably
giving “My Song” mercy points because it isn’t out-and-out bad; it has some
fairly considerable flaws, but it is a tiny masterpiece in comparison to the
previous episodes. It is actually worthy of being watched on its own terms. Everything feels top-notch in this episode, be it the voice acting, art direction, pacing, editing.
The character focused upon in this episode is the quiet,
red-haired Iwasawa, who was stated by Yuri as “the leader of the Diversion
Unit”; to be more precise, she is the frontwoman of the band called Girls Dead
Monster. Ignoring that incredibly strange name, remember how I said there was a
rock song near the end of Episode 1? That was courtesy of Iwasawa and her
bandmates; Girls Dead Monster is the diversion unit because their concerts hold
the attention of NPCs, which allowed them to rob them blind of their meal
tickets back in Episode 1. We’re treated to the details of Iwasawa’s backstory:
she had a bad home life back when she was alive, with her parents fighting
almost constantly, on a moment-to-moment basis. Iwasawa used music as a means
of escape, which naturally unearthed her creative spirit. She finds a guitar
and teaches herself how to play, with the endgame goal of being able to support
herself with her music and her grades. However, a blow to her head from one of
her parents caused a cerebral stroke and aphasia (the inability to understand
or express speech); she dies some time later in the hospital.
And the whole thing works wonderfully. Unlike Yuri’s
backstory, which was over-the-top and incredibly manipulative due to its use of
shock value, Iwasawa’s is almost frighteningly realistic and relatable; plus, it’s
consistent and adds to Iwasawa’s character and it doesn’t come out of nowhere
like Yuri’s backstory did. Iwasawa was proven in Episode 1 to be a talented,
passionate musician – her backstory adds weight and credence to that fact,
showcasing what her motivation to become a musician was. Sure, the whole
“cerebral stroke” edge is a little soap opera-esque, but I actually found
myself being able to both empathize with and appreciate Iwasawa more as a
character.
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| Why am I not the main character? |
But the narrative thrust of the story involves Girls Dead
Monster hosting a concert as a distraction for Yuri’s next operation, which is
to break into Angel’s room and hack her computer, enlisting the aid of some
nerdy kid who insists that he wants to be called “Christ”, who uses some
security exploit to bypass the whole thing. Yeah, it’s one of those awesomely
stupid / stupidly awesome things I’ve learned to roll with in the past several
years. They wind up not finding any valuable information because Girls Dead
Monster has been suppressed by the on-campus authorities and Angel; it’s
implied, however, that Angel actually does enjoy the music GDM puts on, and
that her sole reason for halting the concert was simply because it was the law,
and it was her role to enforce said law. It’s one of those subtle touches I
actually missed the first time I watched this, because they never directly say
any of that; they imply and infer it based on the emotion and body language of
Angel. Good directing? What the hell?
Iwasawa manages to break out of the faculty’s grasp and
grabs her acoustic guitar; she performs the titular “My Song”, an acoustical
ballad. During the performance of the song, she achieves zen and happiness, and
then suddenly disappears, leaving behind a stunned audience and her lone
guitar. Melodramatic? Yeah. Touching? Yes. This explains two very important
things: (1), Angel doesn’t get her powers from God (rather, she develops them
herself), and (2), you don’t necessarily have to obey the rules of the school
in order to vanish from purgatory. That 2nd fact is something that
will go on to alter the story’s trajectory entirely, but we’re not quite there
yet.
This episode is filled with style, logic, passion, and
thought; it feels like actual time went into making this episode, and “My Song”
is by far and away the series’ best twenty minutes. The plot points follow each
other in a logical procession from start to finish, and it resolves the
emotional arc of one character while opening new character threads for Yuri,
Otonashi, and especially Angel. There are problems in the episode, most of
which are unrelated to the story at hand; this is the episode that introduces
an ebullient, pink-haired half-pint by the name of Yui, a god-tier fangirl of
Girls Dead Monster, whom I can only imagine was made solely for comic relief.
Because a comic sadist, a comic Butt Monkey, a comic fat guy, a comic nerd, and
a comic ninja girl just weren’t enough comic sidekicks for Angel Beats. And
sure, while Yui’s hyperactive antics work in tiny doses, a little Yui goes a
long damn way, a lot longer than the 13-episode Angel Beats has time for,
anyways.
Still, the episode has a narrative energy that never lags or
strafes away. It acquits itself tolerably well, especially in the context of
the two episode that had preceded it. “My Song” looks pretty (some of the lighting
effects are gorgeous) and it tells a busy, character-driven story that pays off
really well, and I’m willing to give it points for that. Unfortunately, after
this high point, things start to get a little worse.
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