This week’s Mononogatari episode became one of my favorites so far, as it finally, officially, dropped the big bomb to Hyoma. I know that it has been hinted very clearly in the OP and ED, but I was still saving it until they make it official in this episode.
After the whole fiasco in the previous episode, Yu gave Hyoma her signature as compensation for troubling him, which she emphasized as a tentative acknowledgment because she still can’t fully trust Hyoma and vice versa. Hyoma has admitted that he felt the connection that the Nagatsuki household members have that the others doesn’t, but it doesn’t mean that he has trusted them. Gaining their signatures is the first step for his plan to ascertain whether they are tsukumogami that he can trust or not. For Nagi and the rest (except Yu), however, they have already accepted Hyoma despite having only known him for three days and quickly decided to reveal to him their true purpose and the reason why Hyoma is invited to live with them.
Haori, the tsukumogami that Hyoma’s grandfather made an arrangement to take Hyoma to live with the Nagatsuki household, revealed there’s actually a hidden agreement that they didn’t tell Hyoma before hand. She and the rest of the Nagatsuki tsukumogami were actually planning to observe him for one year and make their judgement, but Hyoma has earned their trust just in three days time to push them to tell Hyoma what is their purpose in accepting Hyoma. The way Haori explained things and Hyoma’s reaction to her explanation made it looked like whatever this purpose is a very serious thing. It is serious, but not in the way that Hyoma expected it would be: He has been chosen as a candidate to be Botan’s husband.
All the Nagatsuki tsukumogami, like their own kind, were born from objects. In their case, they were born from a set of trousseau – objects offered by the bride upon marriage. Following the purpose of the objects they were based from, the Nagatsuki tsukumogami’s goal is to find a perfect match for Botan. They are very dedicated to this purpose that they already started making assessment of any potential husband since she was little. They are like parents trying to find the perfect spouse for their one and only daughter, something that I found both touching and hilarious. At the same time, Hyoma’s grandfather, Zouhei, also agreed to it because even though Hyoma has already reached adulthood, he hasn’t shown any sign of being interested in a woman and hope for his late bloomer grandson to find romance by pairing him with Botan.
Hyoma’s reaction was GOLD! I always admire how Hyoma is able to keep up a poker face. When the bomb was dropped to him, it only took him a few seconds for him to recollect himself in front of them and calmly respond to their revelation with neither accepting nor rejecting it, only for him to lose it and became a blushing mess when he was out of the house where no one could see him. He’s in denial of the arrangement that he called his grandfather to confirm the truth. Ahahahaha XD
In regards to this arranged marriage, Botan herself has very low self-esteem. She believed that it’s just impossible for her to get married. Not being confident is one thing, but I feel there’s another meaning behind Botan’s words when she said it’s impossible for her. Putting the meaning aside, I can’t blame why her tsukumogami would went that far to find a husband for her. Though I’m a single, if I position myself in my parents’ place, I would want to see my child to get married and live happily with their partner.
This is not the first time the premise of two people being arranged into marriage, but so far, I haven’t seen one with a pair like Hyoma and Botan. I’ll have to save my final judgment for later while watching their relationship progress. However, I can say that they need each other. Hyoma is the type who is kind and considerate but he is bad at expressing himself properly that it’s easy to misunderstand him. Hyoma means well, but the way he talk sometimes gives the impression he’s being rude that he needs someone else to point out what’s wrong with his choice of words. Botan, on the other hand, is also a kind and considerate young woman who doesn’t hesitate to defend what she thinks is right, but is lacking in self-confidence in many things. Hyoma can boost Botan’s confidence and in turn Botan can help Hyoma to be more sensitive to how other feels and to be more careful in picking his words.
Now that this has officially become a love story between Hyoma and Botan, I’m looking forward to see how their relationship would grow in the future episodes. (^w^)
