Bakemonogatari / Monogatari Series / PV

 

Today I have the privilege of bringing a new PV to your attention (read: made to do). The ending single for the popular supernatural series Bakemonogatari, “Kimi no Shiranai Monogatari” (Your Unknown Story), was released today and along with it, the PV for the song.

Prior to hearing this song, I didn’t know anything about supercell. Even now, I still claim to know nothing except for the fact that they’re a unit comprised of Nico Nico Douga creators/performers. Centered around their composer “ryo”, who was responsible for a bunch of popular Hatsune Miku songs, and their vocalist “Gazelle” a.k.a. “nagi”, who was supposedly a really famous Nico Nico Douga singer before deciding to “retire” from the scene, supercell makes me wonder if the likes of Hollywood would ever look to YouTube to find amateur artists to perform the theme song for their next blockbuster hit. Hella unlikely I bet. However, this does go to show how you can make it big via online videos in Japan.

Being the “Internet people” that they are, apparently many of the members haven’t made any TV appearances yet. As such, it still remains a mystery as to how some of them look. According to Patrik, maybe they’re “ugly” and don’t want people to be turned away from their music based on how they look. We jest, but I’m inclined to think that way since people tend to be pretty shallow in showbiz. In any case, this probably explains why the PV features good looking actors/actresses in a story-like setting. Even if this kind of PV isn’t your thing, listening to the song alone makes it worth the watch.

Oh yeah, Omni said the main girl, played by Fukunaga Marika (福永 マリカ), is pretty cute. Personally, I’m edging towards Kitade Naho (北出 菜穂) but only after seeing her profile shot. Enjoy~

52 Comments

  1. …my first feeling is that those chicks are barely bangable, but: a 6/10 for both the girls mentioned + 2 points extra for the exotic, for a total of 8/10(i.e. perfectly bangable) in the infamous ten scale…personally i have quite high standards. 😀

    Actarus
    Reply

  9. If anyone has listened to ryo’s songs, it’s easy to tell that he is a very talented composer. Even the b-side track (LOVE & ROLL) of the single is awesome. Hopefully Nagi continues to provide vocals for ryo’s compositions. Imagine if supercell’s album was re-did with her vocals instead of lolMiku. Soooo much better.

    Mei
    Reply

  11. In terms of Internet people, the point about the looks might actually mean something. Took me some time to get over how the people in I’ve Sound looked like. Then I learned to stop worrying about crooked teeth and love the music.

    icie
    Reply

  13. i can’t wait for the staple stable OP to come out, but until then i’m happy I got these songs…

    the other songs that come with this are really good to o_o, even the instrumental was really awesome

    Putang
    Reply

  14. Patrik’s reasoning is the best; if you’re wrong, you’ve got a pleasant surprise. o_O The ‘ol shipping a couple on the school blackboard prank, great stuff – when I was in 4th grade. >_>

    Meery
    Reply

  18. @yowzers

    Nope nobody hooked up with anybody the guy just left. However it’s possible that he hooked up with the longed hair girl but stayed friends with the other one and if that’s true then the other girl throwing away the ice popsicle stick means that she got over him. And if you’re talking about them watching the stars together then no that’s like a flashback xD.

    I like the song btw.

    Antics
    Reply

  20. I never understood why niconico artists/posters don’t show their face either.

    Maybe they are in the same situation as the group GReeeeN who need to stay anonymous because their employers tell them to do so.

    O also, best ED of the year imo.

    marsdrivein
    Reply

  26. >marsdrivein

    Most people in Nico don’t show their faces (even the dancers and such) because they don’t want to be identified or made fun of their looks (happens a lot with otakus). Even the good-looking people who reveal their faces are insulted for either being “ugly” or for “wanting to become an idol”.

    The PV’s getting horrible reviews at nico incidentally

    Onetime
    Reply

  28. Chen^2:
    「当たり」 literally means “hit” or “success”, but on popsicle sticks it’s used to indicate a winner. You’re supposed to turn it in somewhere for a prize. (Maybe another popsicle for free? I’m not even sure.)

    divine
    Reply

  30. The PV is kind of cute, and it is more interesting than watching a band for nearly six minutes. In general I do not care what a band looks like, so if there is a music video to be made, then I would rather it be entertaining than veiled voyeurism. I like the song quite a bit, and it engendered a positive impression of the ending sequence from bakemonogatari. I must have watched the ending sequence a dozen times after being enchanted by the piano.

    mb
    Reply

  31. Can’t be arsed to read your note Divine (but I promise I’ll do it first thing tomorrow at work!), but anyway the song is great and really addictive. After listening to it for few hours straight I decided to watch the PV and I couldn’t stop laughing. Oh THE DRAMA, that’s just so laugh inducing for me. Thanks for puttnig it up here, cheers!

    Zenzen
    Reply

  32. The video is kinda corny, but cute. And I personally find the main girl to be very cute. The long haired girl looks fine, but I kinda think the guy chose the wrong girl. Anyhow, in real life, a love triangle for a genuinely nice guy is something of a colossal nightmare. It’s nice to watch things like harems in anime, because in theory, it’d be nice to have be the object of so much female affection, but in reality, it’s not so great.

    Aquifina
    Reply

  33. … They can actually go on the roof of their school!?! How exactly can the backside of your foot bleed from walking !? I thought Piggyback riding a girl and classmate would only be in animes! They actually have these kinds of relationships like love triangles !? How come I never see this crap happen in real life!? Where have I been all my life!? That ending sucked! The didn’t even meet again like most anime endings. I feel like I’m watching a Real Life Anime. This video is just so corny! but besides all that I loved it ^_^ lol

    Anonkun
    Reply

  36. Anonkun:
    Apparently yes, you can go to the rooftops of Japanese high schools. I think it makes for a nice lunch hangout place if I’m not mistaken.

    Also, I’ve had the same kind of cut on my foot before from walking in really hard, uncomfortable, dress shoes. Basically, the upper back part above the heel has no padding and just scrapes against your foot when you walk. Pretty painful.

    I would offer to piggyback a girl who can’t walk. >_>

    Personally, I’m edging towards the idea that this isn’t a love triangle story like everyone’s thinking. I believe that’s the impression they want to give you, but if you take into account the lyrics (which fit each scene pretty nicely), the relationship with Naho’s character comes off as misunderstanding since Marika’s character (the main girl) doesn’t really know the guy’s real situation at first.

    i.e. He’s moving away from graduation and actually likes her, but was trying to be distant about it to make it “easier”. He did invite her to the Summer Triangle stargazing thing, but she declined thinking he was going with Naho’s char. The scene with Marika crying is what she imagined would’ve happened if she ran into the other two that night. Near the end, Marika got the popsicle stick back with the guy’s new address on it though. The PV’s all about his “unknown story”, which the girl understands at the end.

    divine
    Reply

  37. Author says
    “supercell makes me wonder if the likes of Hollywood would ever look to YouTube to find amateur artists to perform the theme song for their next blockbuster hit.”

    I expect something great from that comment but the PV is seriously not a big deal, the music is unspectacular atbest, meh …

    whats with this hollywood bashing

    Asteroth
    Reply

  38. divine:

    Yeah, I think I buy your interpretation of the video. I don’t really read Japanese, but looking at the popsicle stick, that does look to me like a Japanese address, and while I don’t know what the lyrics say, your explanation of the scenes (in particular the dream sequence, which always struck me as *odd*, but now actually makes sense to me as a *dream* sequence) makes a lot more sense to me. That being said, it does look like a love triangle to me–just that the guy actually picks Marika instead. After all, Naho certainly looks like she likes the guy, but her goodbye looks pretty final. Marika in contrast gets an address–written on the same popsicle stick she had thrown on the ground in frustration, but which the guy had picked up later. Anyhow, if nothing else, I like this interpretation more, because I think Marika’s really cute, and the whole piggyback thing was just too sweet.

    Aquifina
    Reply

  40. I get what you say man.
    It’s pretty much the same everywhere. It’s just human perception.
    In our country, we usually say “average actress never gets a chance on-screen” even though other actresses are way better compared to the pretty ones.

    brainscratch
    Reply

  44. I hate the story and think it’s terrible, a C grade romance story, worse than B grade. Just can’t stand it.

    But the song is OK, and the voice of the singer is OK.

    My review: not good enough that I strongly want to buy the song, but I don’t feel at loss if I shell out money buy it.

    gatariotoko
    Reply

  46. @DxJ
    I’ve been looking for an english lyrics too but so far not a single clue on where to find 🙁

    google failed me. well, let’s hope someone would post an accurate translation of Love & Roll. BTW gazelle version of Melt 3M MIX was pretty good too 😀

    ?????
    Reply

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