Wolf's Rain – The End
13 August 2007
Wolf’s Rain reminded me a bit of Bebop, which wasn’t surprising looking at the people who worked on both. Though I still prefer the light-hearted and incredibly sentimental nature of Bebop, there’s something altogether different about Wolf’s Rain. It’s a modern day legend, a fairytale of sorts, a gray and bleak world where a new beginning awaited those who dare to follow the path to Paradise. Just the mere notion of Paradise was inspirational. Even if the beginning was a bit slow, even if the four recap episodes in the middle of the series seemed pointless, Wolf’s Rain was beautiful.
The show had the two things I deem most important in any story: good characters and a satisfying ending. There was a comforting warmth to the friendships formed that accompanied Kiba, Tsume, Hige and Toboe across the barren and snowy landscape. The love that Hubb felt for, his wife, Cher drove him to such unimaginable extremes, he literally gave everything to find her and be with her. Quent, the old man, searching relentlessly for revenge, finally understood and found resolution. Toboe, innocent and naive, found his own paradise lying to the man he swore to protect, satisfied with the memories of the old lady who once took care of him. The conversation Tsume had with Toboe, the very last conversation they had, was heartbreaking. Hige, the always hungry playboy of the pack, beneath his jocular and lax exterior is a maze of perplexities. Hige and Blue made for such a lugubrious couple, together even in their last moments. Tsume, quite literally the lone wolf, even found his place in this myriad of characters and emotions. Kiba, the leader, the chosen one, the white wolf who opened the door to paradise, is as enigmatic as ever. A borderline stereotypical hero, saved by the hues and tints of his characters that really shone through his interactions with Cheza and the rest of the wolves.
By the end of the series, I couldn’t help but feel a tremendous love for each and every one of these people. Even the ‘villains’ of the series, Jagara and Darcia, did everything out of love. Such a paralyzing and agonizing scream he gave when Darcia found his dear Harmona dead. Each of these people, their personalities just stay with you. It felt like if I reached out far enough, I could feel them.
The last four episode, simply, were epic. One of the most endearing and fulfilling endings I’ve seen. Everything I wanted to happen, happened. Toboe’s death really struck a chord, excruciatingly painful chord. He was such a sweet kid, those lively and cheery eyes, how he had grown over the course of their journey. Tsume’s reaction was even worse. Ever since the first few episodes, I could feel a certain friendship between the two. I bit my finger really hard trying not to cry, but I couldn’t help it. Watching everyone die so close to finding paradise was the most horrendous, tragic and emotional rehabilitating experience. But you know, you know in the back of your head, Kiba’s going to open paradise and they’re bound to see each other again when the world’s reborn.
And, what do you know? That’s basically what happened. Paradise is the world as we know it. City streets sleek with rain, motorcycles and car, hamburgers and fast food, little kittens in alleyways, Paradise. That last shot of Kiba running gave me such a sense of conclusion and comfort. Despite being just a little abrupt, I would’ve loved to stay in Paradise for a while longer, loved to see a shot of Blue and the old man, Hubb and Cher, I loved the ending anyways. Like Kiba said, a future lies in Paradise.
Wolf’s Rain is like snow in New York, light and sparing, melts on contact, never sticking, leaves but a faint impression and a craving for more, like the cool and delicate kiss of a snowflake, ephemeral. Elegiac and profound, the journey for paradise, the complexities and shades of each character, the mesmerizing and haunting soundtrack, the fluid animation were perfect ingredients for a legend. For a moment, just for a moment, you think you’d found paradise, too.
when it comes to wolfs rain, ive realized u either reeeealy love it or hate it. and i remember when i finished it my sophomore year of college i was in such awe…. i was staring outside my window for hours and it was raining. and my room mate and ex were like yo, u ok man. and i was like yea… i just had a profound experience…. and the soundtrack… yoko kanno, God bless you. glad u liked it. posted my review on that other post.
@kauldron – I bug the hell out of my friends and family with my anime infatuation. Sometimes, I just won’t shut up about how amazing some series was and no one would understand the brilliance of anime. Tragic, until I started blogging and met everyone. Rain has such a weighty undertone, love it when it rains. Yoko Kanno, if could I’d marry her. Going to watch every anime she worked on. Glad you made me watch it, =D! I should have just consolidated my two posts, made life a whole lot easier, but I read your review. =D
I thought it was really cool how the opening animation is the ending of the series.
Interesting enough, I am entranced by neither Cowboy Bebop and Wolf’s Rain. I have no idea why. Logically, they are the type of animes that I actually enjoy watching, animes that required more watcher’s participation in the form of thinking and feeling. Still… I don’t like either of them.
For Wolf’s Rain, I think can pinpoint the fact that 1) I watched a really crappy version, and 2) the plot is extremely sloooooooooow. And 3) I hate the middle 4 episodes. Also paramount is the fact that I didn’t have any special feelings for any of the characters, which is weird because logically they are quite interesting and well crafted.
It’s the same with Cowboy Bebop. Maybe I’m just not meant to enjoy it. But I’m glad you found something that you enjoy so much.
I couldn’t understand some parts of this article s Rain – The End, but I guess I just need to check some more resources regarding this, because it sounds interesting.
@cclragnarok – I know! After watching the last episode, I finally realized why the settings for the opening and the actual series were different! A total moment of revelation right there!
@Briar – I know what you mean, I know what you mean. There are things that everyone likes and that, for one reason or another, just didn’t click with me. Evangelion is like that. It’s good, I should have really liked it, but I wasn’t entranced. Bebop, on the other hand, is pure gold. XD I’m actually surprised I liked Wolf’s Rain this much, O_o…The plot was pretty slow, the middle four episodes killed me, but I had such a nice feeling afterwards. lol
That was a great review, Xerox! I can’t help but agree with everything you said – some aspects of the ending were a bit tricky to make sense out of but overall it was a fitting end to a fantastic series. I think the characters as always make it so special, especially the warmth shown between Hubb and Cher.
With those notorious recap episodes aside, this was an exceptional show that probably makes it into my top ten. I really need to rewatch this…
@Martin – Thanks! =D! The ending was a bit hard to understand from a purely intellectual point, but I guess it’s more about feeling, more of an emotional ending…Or something like that. I really can’t see the show without Hubb and Cher, albeit not entirely necessary to the plot. I just can’t, they added something touching to the show. Those four recaps came out of nowhere! I swear, it was when the plot started rolling and, recaps!? You really ought to rewatch it, ;P!