Forum - View topicEP. REVIEW: Run with the Wind
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11418 |
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After reading a number of articles (including the one linked in the review), I'm thinking this team is at least partially made up of representations of actual runners over the years. For example, the 2014 winning team had twins who both won their stages. "In his first year as a coach at Waseda, Seko put Seiji Kushibe in the race the day after he'd gotten food poisoning from sashimi donated by an alumnus. "There was great pressure for him to run: Kushibe's time was five minutes faster than the substitute's, and he seemed fine the morning of the race. But as he ran, he began to swoon, became delusional and could barely keep himself upright as he handed over the tasuki in dead last place." Hmmm... "Takashi Ito, who last year [2001] couldn't complete his leg of the race because of a fever, says frankly that he's 'still sort of depressed. I just can't forget it.' ... 'It's nobody else's fault but mine. It's also my fault that I had a fever the previous night.' ... Coach Seko agrees that, indeed, athletes are to blame if they get sick." "[Yuji] Nakamura ran with all his might on the second and longest leg of the brutal, 130-mile Hakone Ekiden relay a few years ago. But his bum knee kicked in, and for miles seemingly all of Japan watched as Nakamura--then an Olympic marathon contender--hobbled and grimaced but refused to throw in the towel." Uh-oh... This year, Kohei Arai sprained his ankle 30 seconds into the race, and yet apparently completed his stage, since his team came in 19th. While that's too recent to affect this series, I'm half expecting someone to break a leg now. >.> Anyway, I'd say all that was the point. Having him run sick is grounded in reality. As absurd and bordering on criminally stupid as it might seem to us, this is the essence of the Hakone Ekiden, and the author was never out to critique its ethos, but to offer a view inside the mind set of the people who participate in it, come hell or high fever or crippling injuries. Hopefully none of them will feel compelled to commit suicide, as has happened more than once after failing in this race. |
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AA751
Posts: 72 |
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With regard to Shindo, remember we did not hear what Haiji said to Shindo on the phone. Only Kakeru's response which was 'we would all feel the same'
spoiler[from what I understand he basically gives Shindo an out, and Shindo refuses to take it. And then he says to Kakeru, I could not ask him to run.] You can say after Shindo's run, that Kakeru is right when he tells Haiji nobody is forced to run in this. For all the manipulations and so on that Haiji had earlier, everyone was on board 100 per cent by the end, and you can see this clearly. |
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Merida
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Thanks, that was a pretty fascinating read. I really fear for Haiji now...but while it may be more deeply rooted in Japanese culture, it's not like we're completely averse to celebrating athletes who keep going despite of an injury/illness and "sacrificing themselves for the team"... That being said, idon't think anyone in the team would have blamed Shindo for giving up, but from all we know about him, he would have never forgiven himself....what hurt me the most about the situation was knowing that Shindo genuinely enjoyed running, especially uphill. This should have been fun for him, not torture... 
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Gina Szanboti
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This is true. "No pain, no gain," didn't just derive from soreness after workouts. And playing through the pain of injuries is practically expected as natural for sports like football, rugby and ice hockey. And boxing, of course. |
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meiam
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Going despite the pain is easy, that's not the problem. The problem is doing demanding physical activity while spiking a fever can cause very sever long term effect up to potentially death. The number 1 advice you give to someone with a flu is to stay hydrated, the number 1 advice you give to runner is to stay hydrated, doubling down on the dehydration is a terrible idea. It might seems like a running with a sprained ankle/broken leg would be worse, but it's far better than a fever. |
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11418 |
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I never said it was harmless or good for you. Just that they do it. Until 1996 it used to be that they were not allowed to give the runners water during their stage! Even now, I think it's only permitted once around the 10K mark, or in dire emergencies. "'It's only 20 kilometers. They don't need water,' says legendary marathoner and ekiden racer Toshihiko Seko..." Given his other quotes, I'm starting to think Seko is the inspiration for Haiji's father. oO
In looking over the rules (google translated, so...), it looks to me like the coach relaying Kakeru's message to Joji was probably illegal, as "cheering" from support cars is prohibited. Not sure exactly what constitutes "cheering" though. I'm also kinda sketchy on the logistics of the support cars. Having 21 cars following the runners seems like it would create quite a jam. 
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MiloTheFirst
Posts: 429 |
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I completely disagree with how much this series insists on disregarding the competence of the opposing teams, however I think my biggest problem with this anime will forever be how incongruous it is with its portrayal of each characters running speed. one thing is having great suspension of disbelief regarding how much 10 guys can go from couch to national top in less of a year but one would think an anime about running would be more serious about how it animates the actual running.
I said it once when prince was measuring a 10 km/h speed (a really decent jogging speed, not competitive at all but still an honest to goodness actual jogging with proper form speed) while flailing like a titan and walking slower than I commute to work, but this time again after we got the aftermath of shindo's section, he only finished 3 min later than the guy before him. I get that they wanted to highlight his pain but he was animated as if dragging his poor soul uphill and even was shown stopping once. how much does the show must keep wanting to have its cake and eat it? further in, what was even the point of this conflict? we had already had an arc in which Haiji overworked himself into a fever, was it the point to show us that they learnt nothing from it? they certainly didn't present it that way. if the illness was an excuse to make them lose the ludicrous momentum they gained in the first half, then what was the point of making them gain it to begin with? from the beginning Shindo was presented as being one of his team's aces, so why not work his running piece around reinforcing the idea that Kakeru and Haiji aren't the only ones making up for the rest of the team. the author didn't needed to come up with some last minute drama for his character arc, his theme of self sacrifice had already been shown before when he broke up with his girlfriend, why not make this about the pay off instead? instead of just doubling down on the simple "look at how much will power this really nice guy has" thankfully Yuuki's and Nico's pieces were just great they actually had more substance, even though the show once again insists on suggesting that our team was the only one seriously training for this race. since I am on a complaining mood, my last gripe with the show is how it threats Sakaki. I am not against a show having asshole characters, not at all. but the show just makes Sakaki whatever it needs him to be further more it throws him wherever it needs hims to be in order to bitch at people for no reason, as if he didn't have his own training or performance in the race to worry about. wanna have a jerk antagonist? great. but don't make every cut he is in a routine of antagonizing our main characters because he apparently doesn't have anything else to do in his life |
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AA751
Posts: 72 |
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If Kansai was the only team seriously training they wouldn't be like 14th or 15th out of 20 teams.
They would be first. Obviously the other teams are stronger, yes they have been training. I doubt Kansai will win. Or even get in the top 10 |
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MiloTheFirst
Posts: 429 |
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Is it that crazy though? it is only half a marathon. I do jog 20k myself every so often (I do long distance running 3 times a weak, just shorter distances, and alternate with calisthenics other 3) and while of course I don't do it even close to their speed I have never felt the need to drink water in between, if anything I think it would mess up my breathing far more than it would help me, I can drink all the water I need after I am done (less than 2 hours) |
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MiloTheFirst
Posts: 429 |
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this are the very same 19 teams that all ranked above them in the qualifiers, unless they utterly rested in their laurels why would Kansei do any differently in this race, leave alone after having a seriously ill runner |
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AA751
Posts: 72 |
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I'm not sure what you are saying? You said originally that the anime is suggesting that Kansai is the ONLY team seriously training. I respond by saying obviously not because if that was the case they would win. But they won't win, even Sakaki points out they can't make up time, even with Kakeru to seed in the top ten. Other teams are working very hard. The anime never suggested otherwise. |
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MiloTheFirst
Posts: 429 |
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until shindo (who is supposed to be on the faster half of their team when in good health) they were in 10th place, and that is after prince had run yet kakeru and haiji had not. that suggest that they had become better than half the teams since the qualifiers. that doesn't happen in a world where the other teams also continue training seriously
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11418 |
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Thanks for pointing that out. I missed it, since it didn't stand out much against the purple and pink and reading subs distracted from really looking at it, especially since my brain then went off on a reverie about the implications of what he said. 
Anyone remember which episode this was? I don't recall it at all, and this coach didn't look the same as Haiji's father, nor did the track environment shown in the two flashbacks. I'm wondering if it was a tl problem when it was mentioned, since I've never gotten the sense that they had any history. And since I'm on a roll, I'll take "Obvious Things I Missed" for 300, Alex, and ask, how do we know Shindo was only 3 min behind the next runner? All I saw was a total for the day, and the difference between each team and the leader. Since (I think) we don't know our other 4 runners' individual times, or anyone else's for that matter, what's the calculation here? |
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MiloTheFirst
Posts: 429 |
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when the second half of the race begin and the announcer was explaining that the teams would be start running separated by their time difference on the first day, when he is saying all universities that finished more than 10 min after the first one will begin together, there is a list of their time behind the first place on the right side of the screen. I actually got it wrong, apparently Shindo finished only 18 seconds after the guy in front of him him.
also, I can't remember either anyone mentioning that Nico and Haiji had been on the same high school track team. I know they said on a couple occasions that Nico had been staying at their dorm since before Haiji even enrolled, but nothing further than that |
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rahzel rose
 Subscriber Posts: 828 |
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I don’t remember this either. I guess I’d have to go back and watch, but I’m pretty sure they were strangers when Haiji moved into the dorms. |
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