「Chance」

What I thought was going to be an arc about Suppon’s illness doubled up as one about Lily as well. It was unexpected but not a bad thing whatsoever, as it draws upon their past together and how Lily got Suppon the black market job he’s been getting by on all this time. Now it’s the time for him to repay that favor, seeing as the American military officer she’s been living with left her with false promises about taking her as his wife and living together in America. What’s more, he even took the money she was secretly stashing away in preparation for this happening, meaning she has no place to live and no money to get by on. The shift of focus in that direction and talk about how Lily would be back on the streets as a prostitute made this feel like her arc more than Suppon’s; however, the latter’s firm resolve to prevent that from happening bridged the gap between the two subplots. After learning that Suppon lives in a small two tatami room and how he’s suffering from the after effects of the atomic bomb that killed his family, the concern he showed for Lily and his consideration of her as family were even more pronounced. All this time, I assumed he was making a good profit from all his dealings too.

Admittedly, I’m still a bit wary of the old man, Sugi-san, who’s taken Suppon under his wing as a money lender who charges one percent interest per day (i.e. the freelance banker), but hope he proves to be the chance encounter he’s been made out to be. With the way things have gone terribly wrong for Lily, the last thing Suppon needs is to be in a financial pinch of his own when he wants to help her. The one reassuring thing is that all the guys are in on this one right from the get-go and there’s nothing preventing Suppon to continue asking them for additional help. I always find conflict or lack of trust within the group the worst kind situation for them to be in, so it’s good to know that isn’t the case this time around. One thing that I do see becoming a problem as this mini arc moves on is Suppon’s health condition. I threw out the idea in my last post that he’s suffering from radiation poisoning, but the story hasn’t made it conclusive as to whether or not he is. All we do know is that when his body locks up and he’s about to collapse, nightmares about the bombing and how it rained blood (i.e. nuclear fallout) afterward fill his mind.

So far, Lily and Suppon’s predicaments don’t seem nearly as messed up as the ones seen before. No one seems to be out to make their lives even more difficult than they already are, which is why I’m a bit suspicious of one of the prominent character introduced here — the old man. For now, that will remain nothing more than a suspicion though. The preview indicates that the new soldier who took over the officer’s house will be the problematic individual next time, so the other possibility is that he wants to make Lily his plaything.

 

Preview

16 Comments

  1. Wow, American’s are screwing people over left and right (though I am sure it is historically relevant).

    Has there ever been an Anime where American’s were not jerks in one way or another? I do not think I have ever seen one.

    XxDestinyXx
    1. According to a friend of mine who is studying in Japan at the moment, the Japanese history of WW2 victimises Japan, and omits anything that would tarnish its reputation. Therefore, most anime depictions of Americans come across as jerks because very few Japanese actually take the time to study things from the other side of the fence.

      Ever met someone in Japan who knows what went down in Pearl Harbour, for instance?

      Skins Thunderbomb
    1. At the moment, we are at the end of volume 9 of the manga. Since there are 22 volumes, my guess is they’ll either continue the series for a second season later down the track or continue on.

      Skins Thunderbomb
  2. When I saw the old man’s eyes, I immediately thought he could be a possible bad guy. I guess we will wait and see. It’d be nice to have someone give Suppon (and Lilly at the same time) a chance after what happened to them.
    Infinite> you are right, a lot more people died from the atomic bombs after effect.
    Destiny> there might have been some where the American are suggested as employers or support for some series’character out there. Funny how I don’t recall any where the Americans are actually the real good guys (that is without any ulterior motives).
    Fanaberia> It’s supposed to be 26. If it’s longer, it’d be a real treat since Rainbow is an amazing series. Too bad it doesn’t seem to have a much larger following.
    D, the blood you were referring is probably what they called Black Rain.

    Shinjiro
  3. Is interesting how different our cast react for Eri and Lily. Eri being a cheap whore wasn’t welcomed for Baremoto but Lily being an “expensive and/or steady” one (and the fact that she indeed helped Suppon)everyone is ready to pitch in and help her. Double standard anyone? Anyway fun girls aside there were many mutation reports after the bombing and Suppon height could be another indication of the after effects. It will be interesting to see how this pair end. Lily is smart and witty (still remember how she cheered in the boxing match of Mario and called for nihon otoko pride) and should bounce back from this. Hopefully not in the dirty hands of the new lieutenant. As for Suppon I’m not sure how he will survive this because there aren’t many symptoms hinted. Call me a softie but I liked the old guy. The cigarette was a good test to see if Suppon could inherit his business.

    Island Esper
  4. Has there ever been an Anime where American’s were not jerks in one way or another? I do not think I have ever seen one.

    Kaleido Star. Takes place in the US, and there are plenty of positive American characters.

    Anonymous
  5. I noticed that Americans seem to be jerks in Blood+ first. We drop the bombs, screw the people, and then turn into monsters… I’m an American first and foremost, so Japan’s take on us makes me… Wait a sec.. Didn’t they bomb us first? How come that little gem is never mentioned?

    Can'tTouchThis
    1. They did indeed bomb us, although it was technically a military instillation, so the ethical finger thats poked at the U.S. on the use of the nuclear weapons stems from the fact that they were used on nearly a 90% civilian ratio in each bombing, and caused long-term suffering for the environment and people via nuclear fallout. (although this was a last resort due to a refusal to surrender two-three times.)

      @divine, i assumed the ‘blood rain’ was actually just ‘dirty rain’ from nuclear fallout. Then again Suppon’s symptoms may exist because he simply tread on ground zero. God i hope he doesn’t leave us due to some bullshit like brain cancer… since he doesn’t show radiation sickness’s side-effects, especially since it’s been so many years i can only hope it isn’t the remaining possibility, the ‘after-effect’; cancer.

      While it sounds weird to say ‘hopefully’, i’d much prefer he’s suffering from a kind of post-traumatic stress? Damnit, with anchan gone i’m gonna refuse to let the back bone of our heroes go too.

      Dawn
    2. Get the obscure facts. There are plenty of reasons why the Japanese decided to gamble an attack Pearl Harbor and the economical one remained the strongest. The Americans did poke at Japan first with an embargo. If you study the era, Roosevelt wanted to go to war and support Churchill. Problem was the American people didn’t want to get involved and having more economical interest in the Pacific, who best to poke at if not Japan (who had already the world being ticked at them for Manchuria)…Anyhow, “The day of infamy” is overly discussed and still, fingers being pointed at one another tend to poke themselves in the eye.
      Anyhow, maybe not the best place to discuss this but whatever.

      Dawn, the dirty rain is called kuroi yume aka black rain. I mentioned it in my post above.

      Shinjiro
    3. Forgot to also mention that Rainbow happens to start after the war. Yes, the Japanese were defeated and yes, much like Germany, the allied forces (in this case, the Americans) built bases in these two defeated countries. I’m pretty sure, the Japanese population didn’t enjoy having the bombers in their soil. I’m certain we would all feel the same if we were the ones in that situation. Rainbow, in a way, reflects this overall feeling and atmosphere.

      Shinjiro
  6. I’m starting to watch Rainbow the same way I read Umineko’s VNs, I don’t trust any of the new characters. Maybe I’m getting paranoiac because I got trolled so much but I’m sure the old man will turn out to be evil. Even the colonel guy was a bastard in the end even thought he helped An-chan a bit back then. Still I agree it’s pretty nice how they’re talking about Lily again during Suppon’s arc, I almost forgot her.Glad to see the author doesn’t forget his side characters.And doesn’t the guy who almost punches Mario in the preview looks like the G.I he fought during the second boxing match?

    Rockmanshii

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