To the Shining You, Part 42: "Promise by the River"" Synopsis & Whatever You Want to Say This Week
Many years have passed since their childhood meeting. The two stand by the river again. Mahiro invites her to commit suicide, and Michinaga bursts into tears. It was a very moving episode!!
This week's M-man is here. Michinaga's conflict with Emperor Sanjo is deepening. He is stoned by monks on Mount Hiei and endures hardships, eventually falling ill. Mahiro rushes to Michinaga's side as he recuperates in Uji, the villa of the Fujiwara clan. The conversation they have by the river in Uji is truly moving. There are signs that the suspended "Tale of Genji" will be resumed.
"If the Emperor acts like this, then I will act like this." The endless battle between Michinaga and Emperor Sanjo
Emperor Sanjo pressured Michinaga to have one emperor and two empresses. Since he had set a precedent, Michinaga could not refuse. Michinaga reluctantly agreed, but he resorted to a sneaky tactic of deliberately clashing the date of the emperor's long-favored daughter Sukeko's enthronement with the date of his own daughter Kiyoko's entrance into the Imperial Palace.
Most of the nobles attended the banquet hosted by Michinaga to celebrate the accession of Empress Ushi, but only three people, including Sanesuke and Takaie, attended the banquet to celebrate Shoshi's enthronement. This is also said to be historical fact, but it is quite interesting to see the straightforwardness of Sanesuke and Takaie, who did not bow down to authority.
Michinaga declares that the Tale of Genji is no longer of any use.
Emperor Sanjo was reluctant to visit his daughter, who had become the Empress. This is only natural. He had a feud with his father, so he wouldn't want to go to his daughter's house.
Michinaga, in a dilemma, goes crying to Mahiro. What's more, he goes so far as to say that The Tale of Genji is no longer of any use, and tells Mahiro to write the next story. What a thing to say, Michinaga. To Michinaga, The Tale of Genji was nothing more than a tool, and Mahiro, who had worked so hard to create it, was also nothing more than a tool.
Mahiro doesn't get angry, but rather, with a look of resignation, gently refuses, saying, "Stories reflect people's hearts, but people aren't like stories." Good job, Mahiro!
Recently, Mahiro seems to have become a much stronger person, and even exudes a sense of ease and formidability. In contrast, it's a pity that the nobles are still running around in the power struggles of the Imperial Palace.
Maybe Mahiro himself is suffering from burnout syndrome.
But Mahiro is Mahiro, and I think she is feeling a mixture of accomplishment and exhaustion. She is suffering from burnout syndrome. After Emperor Ichijo passed away, Akiko became a mother and gained a strong presence as the empress dowager, and she may be thinking that "The Tale of Genji" has indeed fulfilled its role. In addition, she may be a little disillusioned with Michinaga, who made the outrageous move of making Atsunari the crown prince.
For Mahiro, the lovey-dovey relationship between his daughter, Kenko, and Futagimaru seems rather sweet. It's as if he is remembering his former self and Michinaga in his younger days. That's why, even when Ito worries about the two of them, he calmly says, "It's okay if something happens." Mahiro is strong.
I mistook "Kumogakure" for "Yukigakure" and was confused for a while.
Michinaga is struck by an illness after sneaking a peek at a piece of paper with just the word "Kumogakure" written on it. In fact, this scene appeared in the preview for the next episode last week, but the stupid masochist man had no idea that "Kumogakure" was the name of a phantom volume of which only the volume title was known, and he read the two characters he saw as "Yukigakure" and was left thinking, "Yukigakure? Toilet? What the hell is that???"
Viewers who are in the know are probably expecting the next episode to include the Phantom Chapter. I'm not saying it should be easy for a 5-year-old to understand, but I'm sure it's not just masochistic men who want it to be easy to understand even for those who don't know anything about Genji.
It seems that Michinaga's illness was a headache. There was also a high-pitched ringing sound effect that reminded me of a headache. When Michinaga presented his letter of resignation to the Emperor, the Emperor said, "I don't want to give it back."
In other words, the Emperor was keen to accept the resignation and relieve Michinaga of his position as Minister of the Left, but reluctantly followed the precedent that it would be a precedent to return it. However, it seems that the Emperor kept the resignation letter for over a month before returning it. He must have really wanted to accept it.
Mahiro boldly invites you to "Ujigawa Shinju"
Thanks to Mozuhiko's quick thinking, Mahiro travels to Uji. It's more than 20 kilometers from Kyoto to Uji, so it takes almost a whole day. I'll leave aside the small question of whether Mahiro came alone, and the touching scenes continue.
Michinaga was sick and weak, and looked really weak. I had been calling him a black Michinaga, an insensitive Michinaga, and so on, but when I saw him like this, I was shocked. Mahiro was also in tears.
Then we go to the riverside. Naturally, everyone is watching the scene of Mahiro and Saburo by the riverside as children overlapping. This meeting in their younger days was planned in anticipation of the development at the end of the film, so it's a truly magnificent development.
Unable to bear the sight of Michinaga in pain, Mahiro comes to his rescue, telling him, "Please forget about your promise to me," and that he doesn't have to try so hard. Michinaga says, "My life is over." To which, to her surprise, Mahiro says, "I'll join you. Would you like to be swept away in this river together?" Is she inviting him to commit double suicide? Suddenly, "Sonezaki double suicide"? His bold and powerful words make the viewer's heart race.
Michinaga says, "You must not die before me," a slightly condescending confession of love that makes the person who hears it very happy. Mahiro is not to be outdone, and confesses her love in return, saying, "In that case, please live, Michinaga. If you live, I can live too."
And Michinaga burst into tears. The M-man cried too. It couldn't be a more soulful connection. It was a deep scene in broad daylight. Moreover, there was no screaming or exaggerated dialogue, and Mahiro's calm expression made it even more awesome.
There have been many memorable scenes so far, but as a masochist, this one might be the best.
Mahiro is reborn on the riverside of Uji. And he begins writing "The Ten Chapters of Uji" anew.
After returning to the capital, Mahiro begins writing again. This is the beginning of "The Ten Chapters of Uji." Michinaga also seems to have regained some of his strength, judging from the preview of the next episode.
In other words, the two people who confirmed their love for each other in Uji each found a reason to live and began to walk the path of rebirth. Moreover, the resumption of "The Tale of Genji" is exquisitely woven into the story. I see, that's how it unfolded, and I am once again impressed by Oishi Shizuka.
In fact, the year of Murasaki Shikibu's death is unknown. Does this mean that a surprising ending is possible?
Now, this is an unnecessary remark and a bit of a spoiler, but there are many different theories about the year of death of Mahiro, also known as Murasaki Shikibu, who Michinaga said to her, "You must not die before me," and it seems that nothing is known for certain.
The earliest theory is that he was born two years after the first year of the Chowa era (1012) depicted in this painting. Some scholars claim that he lived for nearly 2 years after that. Incidentally, it is clear that Michinaga died in the fourth year of the Manju era (20).
I would like to know the truth about how long Mahiro lived, but since we don't know the year of his death, it is possible to depict how he lived in his later years, and it is even possible that he lived longer than Michinaga? Does that mean there will be a surprising ending waiting for us?
Will Michinaga's famous song "The Full Moon is Broken" actually appear? Will Mahiro be there in the scene? Or will the song not appear at all? There's not much time left, but the excitement is endless.
What is the review of “To Shining You”?
"Premium Japan Literature Club" (exaggeration) was formed by people who love literature within the Premium Japan editorial department. For literature lovers, the 2024 taiga drama ``Hikaru Kimi e'' was a perfect opportunity to discuss this and that. Volunteers from the editorial department will continue to freely review articles. Editor S and Editor N reviewed the differences between historical facts and dramas, a deep dive into foreshadowing, and more!
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