There is no doubt that “ Hibike! Euphonium ”
is one of the most representative works of Kyoto Animation, one of the most
popular studios in the industry. And although changes had been made to
the original story (mainly because it is impossible to fully adapt a
novel to anime), the most recent episode made a tremendous change that
has left the fan community divided.
In this new season, the members of Kitauji High
School's concert band now aim to win a gold medal at the national
competition. For third-year club president Kumiko Oumae and her
friends, this is the last chance before graduation. Filled with both excitement
and anxiety, Kumiko worries about whether she will be able to successfully lead
the band.
In the midst of all these hardships, Kumiko meets
Mayu Kuroe, a transfer student. From her kind demeanor to her talent with the
euphonium, Mayu was a member of the Seira Girls' Academy's concert band, a
regular participant in national competitions. Although Mayu is
friendly, Kumiko can't help but have an indescribable feeling from their
meeting.
And so we come to the most recent episode, where we
see the protagonist Kumiko Oumae and the transfer student Mayu Kuroe have a
showdown at the national solo contest, specifically at the audition. In
this episode, to the surprise of all the fans of the original novel, the
protagonist Kumiko Oumae completely loses.
And why was it a surprise? Because in
the original novel, the protagonist wins. It's a
tremendous change to the story, and although there is still one episode left to
air in this third season, this change has already divided the fan community.
However, to start, we must review what Ayano Takeda, the author of the
work, thought about it . She wrote on Twitter:
- « I
am concerned that some words I have never said are being spread as if they
were facts (I don't think there is any bad intention, so please don't
blame those who are sharing them). As for my stance, the anime is
an independent and very wonderful work in its own right, which has been
created by respecting and reconstructing the original novel. If
there are parts that exceed my tolerance, I communicate it and it is
reflected in the script, so I am calm and satisfied with the result. In
short, “I would like you to enjoy the anime as anime and the novel as
novel”, I hope you can understand that ».
Meanwhile, Jukki Hanada, the scriptwriter
for the anime adaptation, also shared an update on Twitter:
- « I
would like to thank director Tatsuya Ishihara for accepting a different
development from the original novels, assistant director
Taichi Ogawa for the storyboards, the entire team, and most of all, author
Ayano Takeda. The next episode will be the last. I am very grateful to
everyone . »
But here comes the most important part, what
did the fans think about it?
- « Sometimes
this person creates masterpieces, but he also ruins other masterpieces
that we have followed for nine years with horrible modifications. What
happened to the Kumiko and Reina solo that I was looking forward to so
much? Of course they should be chosen for their skill, but I wanted to see
Kumiko surpass Mayu ».
- « Winning
a national gold medal is not that easy. In life, you come across many
things like this .»
- « I
really wanted to see Kumiko's solo. Very disappointing. Horrible edit »
- " I
will never watch season 3 again ."
- « In
the original novel, Mayu is just a hindrance to Kumiko, so it's
understandable. Hanada-sensei did a great job ».
- « Hanada-sensei's
plot towards the end is as reliable as our current government .»
- « I
love it, but I can understand those who wanted a happy ending complaining.
Those who read the original novel say that the Kansai tournament part of
the anime was cut out a lot to emphasize meritocracy, so there were signs
of that .»
- « With
this, it could be possible that Kumiko leaves the band and does not appear
in the final episode, and that Reina and Mayu win the national gold.
Hanada has no mercy for losers .»
- « Definitely
complete garbage. Make the adaptation faithful to the original. It's too
unfair »
- « It's
not about whether the modification is good or bad, there are too many
people who don't understand what value this anime shows. Both scripts are
really wonderful. Hanada-sensei has brought out the value of Euphonium in
an impressive way. One should not speak from personal preferences .
»
Source: Otakomu
