The aquatope on white sand

Episode 5

Episode 5, “Mother Arrives,” heralds the arrival of Fuuka's very concerned mother who's come to Okinawa to see her wayward daughter. And who's gonna blame her? Fuuka basically obfuscated her plans around her sudden departure from Tokyo, and hasn't really kept in touch (at least from our point of view). It's only natural that her mother would sojourn down from Iwate Prefecture to the tropical island in search of her, and where else would they meet but at Gama Gama, where Fuuka's quietly trying to find herself?

That's our setup for episode 5, and really, what we spend the bulk of this episode wrestling with: it's a wholly Fuuka-centric episode predicated on her desire for independence, autonomy, and her new life in Okinawa with Kukuru. Naturally, that leads to some antics that feel wholly fictional – I'm not sure how many parents would play island hide 'n seek with their kid, though I firmly believe in Fuuka's community rallying around her to help her duck and dodge until she's ready to do something about the situation. Still, it works for aquatope, culminating in a genuinely tender scene at the end that had me smiling and thinking of my own family.

But that's not what I want to focus on in this review. What I'd really like to think out loud (well, type out loud) about is Fuuka and the character growth she shows here. As I said, episode 5 is an incredibly Fuuka-centric episode: this episode only happens because she's in Okinawa, working at an aquarium in Okinawa, and is ultimately determined to stay in Okinawa. While that's ultimately not the decision Fuuka and her mother come to, it reflects just how passionate Fuuka has become about wanting to make Gama Gama her new home.

Up until this episode, Fuuka has been a fairly serious, quiet, and kind young woman who wears her heart on her sleeve. Fuuka's definitely still that same girl, but here we see her starting to really settle into her niche at Gama Gama, enough that she gives up running away to come back and assist Kukuru with a sick fish. When that fish dies, Fuuka sends it off as part of her work as a caretaker at Gama Gama. It's a scene that marks Fuuka's transformation from a visitor to fully a part of the community, solidifying her role at Gama Gama as the place Fuuka is meant to be right now.

Make no mistake, Fuuka is still searching for her ultimate purpose: she's still somewhat adrift, and while she's now definitely a Gama Gama staff member, there's the lingering sense that her ex-idol life is going to boomerang back to her before September comes. And now, she's on a time limit. But there's this wonderful softness to her now, a carefree attitude taken from Kukuru's friendship that permeates her character. It has me very hopeful for aquatope's particular brand of slow-burn friends-to-lovers (in this case, friends-to-girlfriends) story, which is definitely keeping me engaged.

Now, that's not to say that episode 5 is necessarily a five-star episode: there's something unsatisfactory in the way that Fuuka resolves things with her mother, and it left me wanting. Actually, a lot of episode 5 left me wanting. Perhaps it's because I wanted to see Fuuka's mother let Fuuka live her life for more than until September. I also would like the plotline to have a bit more tension, though you could argue Fuuka evading her mother was the tension. That said, big life choices don't always conclude with a bang. Sometimes, you come to a decision that's sudden and definitive, with very little build-up or drama. There's a sense of realism to how the conversation between Fuuka and her mother played out, and I commend aquatope for that. I'm not sure an argument or big blowout would have made sense: they played the scene how Fuuka would, which makes everything slot into place in a pleasant enough way.

That said, I'll also admit to being a bit upset that we didn't follow up on my whole “I think episode 4 is a transition episode” idea, though… that might be a bit of a disservice to episode 5. It is a transition episode, in large part because it gives Fuuka a deadline (September) and also gives her solid character development, but that doesn't negate how it moves the plot forward. It might not have been the episode I particularly wanted to see this week, but like I said in my review of episode 4: if this is aquatope at its weakest, then it's still a really beautiful, tender show that I'm still excited for.

Ultimately, this week's episode of The aquatope on white sand feels like a follow up to a follow-up episode, as well as a character study into Fuuka's tendency to evade her problems. It's the best way she knows to avoid conflict and more pain, and I can't fault her for that. Plus, this episode is well-written enough that Fuuka's actions and general train of thought feel authentic. I've got my gripes with it, but… what can I say? I still really like Fuuka and every character in aquatope, even if the show is taking its time meandering in the story it wants to tell.

Shoutout goes to Tsukimi's plus-sized fortune teller momma, Meisa, who has my entire heart and is such an excellent adult to Fuuka this episode. She's one of many callbacks to Fuuka's first days in Okinawa, and is just so vivacious and encouraging. She was absolutely my favorite part of this episode: I really hope we get more of her being a kind-of aunt/good adult to Fuuka, who definitely needs a support system behind her if she's going to find her stride as a young woman. Aunt Meisa's definitely anime crush material, and let me tell you: I'm crushing hard.

In the end, this episode was just meaty enough to keep me firmly interested in aquatope. Now that I'm thinking of it as a slow-burn instead of a single-cour show, I'm finding myself going with the flow instead of trying to rush the series to get to the end when it's got a second cour in Autumn/Fall 2021. Plus, there's something nice about seeing this story play out beat by beat, even if that means some episodes are a bit less plot-forward than others. That said, I'm really hoping that episode 6, “Sweets Rhapsody,” will be a return to the larger plot, and maybe start to delve into the glimpses of magical realism we keep seeing in every episode. I'm hungry to know about the little fish-devouring god we keep seeing: maybe episode 6 will give me a tidbit to tide me over until the plot fully kicks in.

Rating:

The aquatope on white sand is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Mercedez is a JP-EN localization editor & proofreader/QA, pop culture critic, and a journalist who also writes for Anime Feminist, where she's a staff editor, and But Why Tho?. She's also a frequent guest on the AniFem Podcast, Chatty AF. When she's not writing, you can find her on her Twitter or on her Instagram where she's always up to something.