GARGANTIA #8 - - Watch & Learn

| Friday, June 14, 2013



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GARGANTIA #8 - - Watch & Learn



I watched this right after that internal-monologue-laden ATTACK ON
TITAN
episode and it served as a nice point of contrast on the merits of
understatement. Not one moment, in all
the minutes of screen time devoted to the commander’s funeral, has any character
explaining why sand is being gradually sprinkled on this corpse.
We’re able to infer so much about this society - - and of the
sacred scarcity of dry sand therein
- - by simply observing actions in sequences
that are almost totally silent.

It’s far more engaging way to tell a story, no? Can you imagine how much
less powerful it’d be if we had close-ups of Ridget staring at the body during
the funeral, and we also heard the voice in her head explicating
how sorry she felt? Nah… that’d be no good. == TEASER ==

Of course, while we’re speaking of ‘scarcity,’ I suppose it’s intriguing that a shorter series like this would have enough screen time to
devote almost an entire episode to one supporting character. Certainly, Ridget’s
transition into a more senior position is a decently compelling drama, but I
can’t help wondering how her little conflict might tie into the larger themes of
the series. My best guess might be a little tenuous, but I’ll go ahead and put
it out here…

Urobuchi said his intention with this show was to send an encouraging
message to recent graduates trying to adjust and integrate into a rougher job
market. You can see some pretty obvious parallels in how the premise essentially breaks down to a warrior being forced to get a new job. I
have a feeling that Ledo’s going to go all the way down to the bottom of the
sea, find that whalesquids aren’t a threat, come back to the surface and
realize… it’s all OK, anyway.

How does that relate to Ridget then? Well, the fact that this funeral
doesn’t feel overwrought with sorrow makes a point that major transitions
don’t have to be daunting, existential threats. Change comes. It’s rarely
that dramatic. And we can all handle it.

Watch this episode, "Separation"
here and decide for yourself, then read my comments on the previous episode
here.

About the Author

Tom Pinchuk’s a writer and personality with a large number of comics, videos and features like this to his credit. Visit his website - - tompinchuk.com - - and follow his Twitter: @tompinchuk







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