"A moving story about a huge whale who fell in love with a tiny submarine - reviews and recommendations"

"The Story of a Huge Whale Who Fell in Love with a Small Submarine" - A moving story and its appeal

■Overview of the work

"The Story of the Huge Whale, Who Fell in Love with a Small Submarine" is a TV special that aired on TV Asahi on August 14, 2004. It is based on a novel by Nosaka Akiyuki, directed by Yasumi Tetsuo, and produced by TV Asahi and Shin-Ei Animation. This is a moving story about the tragedy of war and pure love, conveying a profound message in a short 60-minute run.

■ Story

In 1945, after the fall of Iwo Jima and the invasion of Okinawa, boys aged 15 and 16 were sent to train to become kamikaze pilots. Among them was a short boy named Hayano Kota, who attended the kamikaze training school of the Air Force Academy. Kota had feelings for Akiyama Yoshie, a female student who looked after the cadets, but he couldn't express them.

During flight training, Kota is unable to fly the plane properly and is being scolded by his instructor when he discovers a huge black object moving through the ocean. Thinking it to be an enemy submarine, Kota and his instructor try to attack it, but it is actually a whale. Kota falls from the plane into the ocean while trying to avoid the whale, but is saved by the whale Kuusuke and is able to return to the plane piloted by the instructor.

Kuusuke was heading for the Rainbow Sea, the stage for the annual whale matchmaking party. However, Kuusuke was worried that he had grown too big, and because in the whale world, large females and small, sleek males are preferred, he fasted on his way to the Rainbow Sea.

As he approached the Rainbow Sea, Kusuke noticed a huge battleship floating there. The fleet was raining down shells on the island across the Rainbow Sea, and the whales already in the Rainbow Sea were dying one by one. Kusuke was left alone and felt hungry, so he left the Rainbow Sea.

Meanwhile, Kota, who has fallen into the sea, is assigned to a small submarine and intercepts a communication that the United States has dropped a new bomb on Hiroshima and Japan has surrendered. However, the crew does not believe it and decides to wait for contact from the Japanese military.

When Kuusuke finds the submarine, he thinks it's a girl from his crew and rams it to get its attention. At first, Kota and the others think it's an enemy submarine, but then they realize it's Kuusuke. The crew entrusts a suicide note to Kuusuke's tail, but an enemy destroyer approaches. The submarine hides behind a rock on the seabed, but Kuusuke keeps frolicking around. The destroyer, noticing the noise, drops depth charges, and Kuusuke is blown to pieces right before Kota and the others' eyes. After the destroyer leaves, news arrives that Japan has surrendered, and Kota and the others, having been saved in place of Kuusuke, salute Kuusuke's body.

■Explanation

This work tells the story of Kuusuke, a whale who lives off the coast of a southern island, and Kota, a boy who is self-conscious about his short stature and cannot express his feelings to girls. Kuusuke is self-conscious about his overgrown body and cannot get along with girls, while Kota is self-conscious about his height and cannot express his feelings to Yoshie. However, Kuusuke mistakes a Japanese submarine for a whale and falls in love with it. As an enemy destroyer approaches, Kuusuke saves Kota again, but the result is tragic.

This is a touching story about the misery of war and pure love, conveying a profound message in a short 60-minute film. It depicts Kusuke's pure heart and Kota's growth, leaving viewers with a deep impression.

■Cast

・Kota/Tomu Miura・Kuusuke/Yasuhiro Takato・Yoshie/Yumi Kikuchi・Captain/Arno Tahara・Instructor/Kouzo Shioya・Endo/Hideyuki Umezu・Ota/Taro Masuoka・Kato/Masato Kawanako・Mother whale/Junko Midori・Green sea turtle/Ryuji Nakagi・Killer whale/Takeshi Kusao・Dolphin A/Shigeru Shibuya・Dolphin B/Ken Narita・Whale A/Kaoru Morota・Whale B/Shino Kakinuma・Whale C/Yohko Wakana・Umeko/Kurage Otsuka・Narration/Fumiko Orikasa

■ Main staff

・Original story/Nosaka Akiyuki・Art/Kuroda Seitaro・Planning/Kimura Junichi (TV Asahi), Kato Yoshio・Director/Yasumi Tetsuo・Screenplay/Fujimoto Nobuyuki・Character design/Seki Shuichi・Animation director/Otake Masae・Art director/Nishida Minoru, Tazaki Mariko・Director of photography/Kaneko Tomohiro・Editor/Okayasu Hajime・Sound director/Okuma Akira・Music/Sagara Masae・Sound effects/Muto Akiko (Soundbox)
Color designation: Yoko Miyamoto Producer: Jun Kaji (TV Asahi), Sojiro Masuko, Kumi Ogura Production: TV Asahi, Shin-Ei Animation

■ Appeal and evaluation of the work

"The Story of the Huge Whale, Who Fell in Love with a Small Submarine" has attracted many viewers with its unique setting and moving story. It has been particularly praised for its depiction of Kusuke's pure heart and Kota's growth. It has also been highly praised for its portrayal of pure love and friendship against the backdrop of the tragedy of war.

This work conveyed a profound message in a short 60 minutes, and touched many viewers. In particular, the final scene of Kusuke moved many viewers to tears. Kota's growth and his feelings for Yoshie were also moving, leaving a deep impression on viewers.

■Production background and intent

This work was created based on a novel by Akiyuki Nosaka. Director Tetsuo Yasumi and his staff made a lot of efforts to express the original theme of the misery of war and pure love in the form of animation. In particular, character designer Shuichi Seki and animation director Masae Otake worked hard to portray the character of Kusuke. Even the composer Masaru Sagara played an important role in enhancing the atmosphere of the work.

The production staff wanted to convey the tragedy of war and pure love through this work. In particular, they wanted to deeply move the audience by depicting Kusuke's pure heart and Kota's growth. They also wanted to give hope to the audience by depicting pure love and friendship against the backdrop of the tragedy of war.

■ Viewer reactions

This work was highly praised by many viewers. It was especially praised for its depiction of Kuusuke's pure heart and Kota's growth. It was also praised for its portrayal of pure love and friendship, despite the horrors of war. Viewers commented, "I couldn't stop crying at Kuusuke's final scene," and "I was moved by Kota's growth and his feelings for Yoshie."

This work also conveyed a profound message in a short 60 minutes, which moved many viewers. In particular, the final scene of Kusuke moved many viewers to tears. Kota's growth and his feelings for Yoshie were also moving, leaving a deep impression on viewers.

■ Recommendation points

"The Story of the Huge Whale, Who Fell in Love with a Small Submarine" has attracted many viewers with its unique setting and moving story. It has been particularly praised for its depiction of Kusuke's pure heart and Kota's growth. It has also been highly praised for its depiction of pure love and friendship against the backdrop of the tragedy of war.

This work conveyed a profound message in a short 60 minutes, and touched many viewers. In particular, the final scene of Kusuke moved many viewers to tears. Kota's growth and his feelings for Yoshie were also moving, leaving a deep impression on viewers.

Here are some reasons why I recommend this work:

• The fact that it depicts Kusuke's pure heart and Kota's growth
• The fact that it depicts pure love and friendship despite the horrors of war
• The film conveys a profound message in just 60 minutes.
• The final scene of Kusuke is very moving.
• The way Kota grows and his feelings for Yoshie are touching

■ Related works

The following works are related to this one:

• Grave of the Fireflies: A moving film depicting the horrors of war
• "The Wind Rises": A film depicting pure love against the backdrop of war
• "Howl's Moving Castle": A fantasy work depicting the tragedy of war and pure love

■ Summary

"The Story of the Huge Whale, Who Fell in Love with a Small Submarine" is a work that attracts many viewers with its unique setting and moving story. In particular, it is praised for the depiction of Kuusuke's pure heart and Kota's growth. It is also highly praised for the depiction of pure love and friendship against the backdrop of the misery of war. This work conveys a deep message in a short 60 minutes, and has touched many viewers. In particular, Kuusuke's final scene brought tears to many viewers. Kota's growth and feelings for Yoshie were also moving, leaving a deep impression on viewers. The points that make this work recommended are that it depicts Kuusuke's pure heart and Kota's growth, that it depicts pure love and friendship against the backdrop of the misery of war, that it conveys a deep message in a short 60 minutes, that Kuusuke's final scene is moving, and that Kota's growth and feelings for Yoshie are moving. Related works include "Grave of the Fireflies", "The Wind Rises", and "Howl's Moving Castle".