Bloom into You: A Guide to Utilising your Medium

The Bloom into You manga, also known as Yagate Kimi Ni Naru, recently came to a close on the 27th of September last year. And with no news of new content, besides a light novel series, and stage play DVD release which both stay incredibly loyal to the manga, it’s probably safe to say the series is over. Which means it’s safe to pull it apart by seams and talk about it.

So what is Bloom into You? Well, if you take your typical slice of life yuri anime and throw in the occasional identity crisis, and combine some brilliant animation that ends up losing to Violet Evergarden in the 2018 Crunchyroll Anime Awards, (no I’m not mad, you’re mad), then you get Bloom into You.

Before I dive into this, let me first state, if you want a good series to read or watch then drop everything and go check it out before you continue and I ruin everything for you. It is absolutely beautiful and is more than a simple synopsis could ever explain. But I’m still going to make an attempt to do so.

The series is about a girl by the name of Yuu Koito who dreams of a day that she will finally understand the feeling of love that she hears so much about in the media. As we follow her story, through metaphors and symbolism, we find that something that sounds so simple becomes increasingly more complicated for her as she meets a very important senior student, Touko Nanami. Touko, after being unable to fall in love, finally does when she meets Yuu but through one complication or another is unable to let the other girl return the feelings, even going so far to make sure she doesn’t. The two end up going through a series of events that lead to understanding self-identity and the idea of what a relationship truly is.

The thing about the series is that unlike many anime, Bloom into You stays incredibly loyal to the manga yet manages to provide an interesting and unique experience when presented as animation. There is so much I could cover about this series. Everything from its nuanced perspective on love and relationship, the different character arcs that span the series, or its ideas of self-identity and the ability to move on. However, just for now, I’m going to take a look into a few symbolism-filled scenes and discuss how Bloom into You utilises both of its art forms to its fullest potential.

The River Scene (Volume 2, Chapter 10)

If you watched or read the series, you probably saw this one coming. It’s one of the most discussed scenes within the community, probably because it is so aesthetically stunning and also extremely content heavy.

Even though this scene held such a high merit, especially in the anime, at first glance it felt a little shallow. There was so much dialogue that it felt like we were being spoon fed this information. But once you started pulling it apart, panel by panel, frame by frame, line by line, you realised there’s quite a lot more going on than you’d think.

Both manifestations of the scene are fairly similar to each other with the anime just moving around the sequence in which the present information for the sake of cohesion and flow.

The scene plays out like this:

The two stop on their way home at a river so they can spend just a little bit more time together and for Yuu to open up about what she has on her mind. This leads to a long conversation about how Touko is trying to become her sister and keep up this life long facade that she’s “perfect”. During this, Touko steps away from Yuu. Every line about this fake identity drives her further and further away. She’s trying to keep a distance, quite literally and metaphorically. Yuu just continues to drone on expecting her words to change Touko, simply because it’s coming from her. It’s only when Yuu almost slips up and opens about her own desires that Touko turns to face her.

When the two are furthest apart, Yuu begins to take her own steps putting on her own facade and begins promising things she can’t keep nor desire to do so.

The scene was interesting to me due to its incredible use of cinematic shots and its conscious effort to create a captivating sequence that would otherwise be fairly dull. I mean, they are just walking and talking. The animation of the water was especially skillful. But in a series where oceans and water hold such analytical value, you bet that this was no different. The reflections only start to appear when Touko starts to put on her act. They reveal that alongside Touko’s words that we aren’t seeing her for her. We’re seeing her sister. She is the reflection of her sister. As she continues to tell her story, we never get a shot of her. We continue to see the water, that is until Touko turns her back on Yuu. This choice is made even more obvious when during this progression we are shown Yuu’s reaction. Simple shots of her face. When Yuu realises that Touko is drifting away from her and that her honesty is getting her nowhere, she chases after Touko, almost slipping in the process. It is then where we see her reflection. This is when she thinks about her own motives - what she’s trying to get out of Touko. She rises, now speaking only half truths. The two begin confessing what they want and the terms by which their relationship will continue on, as the two slowly but surely close the literal gap between them. Where Touko lies about who she is to everyone else, Yuu lies about who she is to Touko.

The idea of reflection is used later on in the series. I mean way, way later. As in Volume 8, Chapter 40 later. This is the actual and final confession scene. It is the most honest and open scene we get in the whole series. The two are in the club room and Yuu reveals to Touko that she broke their promise. She has fallen in love. She expects Touko to be mad or hurt by these words but Touko reveals to us quite the opposite is true. The specific angles that are chosen emphasise the girl’s reflections in the windows around them. These faceless figures are a representation of their past selves. As the two stand isolated in this empty room, Touko begins to close the curtains. She closes away the past and everything they had said to each other. Every white lie, every barrier in their relationship, as she finally allows herself to truly open up to Yuu. At that moment, the only thing that matters is each other. A callback to an even earlier scene when a third person walks in on the two sharing a moment, the act of closing the curtains also blocks the outside world from them. Not hiding away but more as a show of dismissal of other parties. They are no longer controlled by anyone else, be it Touko’s sister or otherwise.

The symbolism of the river scene also spans from it’s connections to others in the series. One such parallel is to that of the conversation between Sayaka and Touko in the last episode. Both are of yearning, a desire for a deeper relationship with Touko. Sayaka’s scene ends with her letting Touko go, letting her walk away and slip out of Sayaka’s grasp while Yuu has her bringing Touko towards her. In the anime, the similarities between the two scenes are emphasised. They are the only two scenes in the entire thirteen episode run that use the track “Watashi o suki ni naranaide” or “Don’t fall in love with me”. The use of this musical motif allows us to connect the two moments and associate the tune with the themes that are presented. A train also passes through in these scenes. It appears with Yuu’s conversation when Touko turns around, the train passing to create a dramatic effect, blowing Touko’s hair in its wind. The same is done in Sayaka’s. The difference here being that the train does not appear in Sayaka’s scene in the manga. The story advances as normal but in the anime, a deliberate decision was made to insert the train into the moment, showing how similar these two situations are yet also how their different personalities and approaches end up changing the outcome.

The Relay Race Scene (Volume 4, Chapter 16)

Before the manga finished, it was widely debated within the community whether Yuu fell in love in the end, and if she did, when was the exact moment she knew. Well, I’m putting an end to that as, in my humble opinion, the anime does a brilliant job of showing you the answer. So what is it?

It is undoubtedly, episode nine, the relay race scene. You cannot watch a scene where Yuu watches Touko so intently that the world starts to fall away leaving only the two of them together while Yuu reminisces of all their treasured memories together and still tell me that she has no feelings for Touko. If the visuals weren’t enough to convince you, the anime takes this opportunity to insert a track called “Rise” that references just about every motif and symbol the series takes advantage of.

Let’s start with the title of the song itself. Love throughout the series has been represented by two things, those being the stars and the surface of the ocean. We are reminded countless times that Yuu cannot reach the stars. No matter how hard she tries, she remains stuck at the bottom of the ocean, isolated, and unable to surface. The choice of the word “Rise” simply tells us that she has managed to begin surfacing, finally being able to feel what she hadn’t been able to before. This is only further supported by the lyrics that speak of a brighter future and a call towards these feelings, “a song long sought after''. What is even more important about this scene is that although it is the point where Yuu realises she’s in love, it doesn’t provide us with the expected satisfaction of her being able to bring herself out of the deep end. Because simply put, the idea of love isn’t instant, it’s a process and the series makes it very clear to us that this is the case.

The scene is also significant for a completely different reason. The idea of trust. The episodes leading up to this scene show us that Sayaka Saeki , Touko’s best friend, and our protagonist, Yuu, do not get along. No matter what Yuu tries to tell us, they have clear troubles between them because of their respective relationships with Touko. Sayaka pines for Touko’s love and is afraid that one day she will leave when Touko finally gets a lover, most likely in the form of Yuu. When Touko chooses Yuu over Sayaka to represent her in the Student Council President assembly, Sayaka's trust in Touko falters as she watches her slip away. Sayaka even has a moment where she tries to intimidate Yuu, reminding her that she will never be able to understand or achieve the same closeness that Sayaka has with Touko. Yuu and Sayaka end up silently butting heads without even realising it. It’s only when one of the other juniors mentions it that Yuu speaks up and the two talk out their feelings.

This brings us to the relay. We get to watch the two practice over and over to no avail, with the two stumbling as they attempt to pass the baton, representative of their inability to work together. After their discussion, we see them at sport’s day, Yuu successfully handing over the baton. Finally, we see the two trust each other, being able to work in tandem. But it doesn’t stop there. We hear an internal monologue from Sayaka as she runs towards Touko. She finally gets over one of her own pitfalls, crossing the bridge as she shows her full unconditional trust and love in Touko.

In this one scene, we watch the growth of these characters that had been built up over the last eight episodes. To finally be able to see it all come together and as the song states, to be able to work towards the future and move on, is incredibly important. Not only for the characters, but also for us as a viewer.

The Aquarium Scene Episode (Volume 5 chapter 24)

The aquarium scene marked the end of Bloom into You anime. When I first watched the series, I did not realise there were thirteen episodes. Instead, as the credits rolled at the end of the twelth, I was left absolutely broken. Fast forward a month or so I realised that there was another episode and something to soften the blow of the last one.

The last episode was slower than the others. The ending was simple, the two girls go on their first “date” at an aquarium, the perfect place to make tons of references to water, oceans, drowning, and love. Don’t worry, I’ll explain, that’s what I’m here for.

The thing about this episode was that it was quite sweet, especially in comparison to the previous one. After reading the manga, however, the choice to end the anime at that specific spot (literally in the middle of volume five), finally made sense. It was the end of an arc. This aquarium scene was the inflection point of the series.

This episode wasn’t filler. They made sure that every moment of this sequence was littered with symbolism and the absolute tiniest of details. It was a perfect end now that I think about it. The director of the series put so much thought into breathing life into the pages of the manga. The twenty-five page scene was transformed into a fifteen minute scene that drew links to established ideas, motifs, and wrapped up the series by creating a parallel between it and the very first episode.

(Image credits to u/uniquezilla)

The first scene utilises warm colours throughout. During this, Touko expresses her “love” for Yuu. She leads Yuu’s hand and with a certainty in her eyes reveals, that unlike Yuu, she can fall in love. It was an unusual change of heart, that after hearing Yuu confess that she will never be able to feel what everyone else does, that Touko’s interest piques. As the colours suggest, the scene is warm yet it somehow leaves an emptiness. Most likely because of the context. Yuu doesn’t feel anything. From an outsider’s perspective, we’re supposed to believe the scene is sweet but we know there’s nothing there. Not yet at least. Touko is confident at this moment, but as the series progresses this facade fades and going back to the scene changes its meaning. The scene is an invitation for Yuu to learn more about Touko, yet somehow not one that invites change. And that proves significant as we shall find out.

So that brings us to the last scene, with a primary focus on cool colours. With all that has happened in the series - learning about the death of Touko’s sister, her opening up more, Yuu’s change of perspective on love - we finally see what their relationship truly is. The colours of this scene reflects that of Touko. We finally understand that what we first saw as passionate, inviting, and warm, has become something filled with sadness, guilt, and most importantly, loneliness. We followed the journey of these two characters for a whole twelve episodes and now we get to see the more open and much more truthful side to Touko. In this scene, the tables turn, leaving Yuu to guide Touko through, not only the rest of the aquarium, but also through the process of falling in love and developing a meaningful relationship. The scene switches from the water of the aquarium to isolating the two figures under the surface of the ocean. As previously mentioned, the surface represents love. The fact that the two continue to walk forward instead of reaching upwards shows that they are content with where they are. The characters often express that they want things to stay as they are, that being them keeping at a “safe” distance to one another.

And so the two walk off together, Touko with a softness of love in her eyes instead of harsh infatuation and Yuu with a confidence that she can change, not only herself but also Touko. There’s a shot that isn’t present in the manga. A simple one, that of a bright light at the end of a tunnel. It’s interesting for the fact that it isn’t there for aesthetic purposes. It’s a well known symbol of new beginnings and a literal brighter future.

The song that plays during this is called “Suki, igai no Kotoba de” which translates to “With words other than love”. This song plays instead of the regular ending theme “Hectopascal” (which, by the way, is a unit of measurement for pressure and I could say so much about that, but I’ll save that for another time). This is important because it literally changes the tune of the series. It’s new. We don’t get to hear the ramblings of not wanting to fall or the inability to do so. We don’t get to hear about what tomorrow will bring or the wishes for it to stay like today. No, instead we get a song about accepting the fact that these feelings are here. Things have changed but there is still a denial or conflict on the words to describe this feeling.

And that's where the anime ends. There's an after credits scene depicting the two girls on their way home. The two once again bask in the soft, warm light that began the series and Yuu takes the step of embracing Touko herself. Something she had trouble doing before. Then cue the title card.

Conclusion

The three scenes that I’ve mentioned are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to all the symbolism and analytical material within Bloom into You. There are so many other moments that don’t necessarily focus on the relationship between Touko and Yuu. I’ve only covered the major ones in this post but will most likely come back to revisit the series and talk about all the others that I’ve missed, especially those concerning characters like Maki or Sayaka. But based purely on the ones here, it’s pretty safe to say that Bloom into You takes itself extremely seriously. They take advantage of their formats and present a great narrative with equally stunning visuals. I think it's quite respectable that when moving from manga to anime, they stayed true to their source yet still managing to add unique details that don’t necessarily change the story but add to its overall value. The addition of the themes and songs definitely added to the series and made it quite the experience to view.

I said this at the beginning, but really, if you’ve got the time, go check the series out. I assure you it’ll be worth every second. And if you’ve already finished it, go read or watch it again with what you know now. Maybe your perception of the series has changed, who knows?