Shy

Episode 10

Life isn't fair. If the universe does balance its karmic checkbook, then it happens with numbers and ledgers far beyond our mortal ken. Everyone learns this at some point and adapts in some way, but it is frequently a source of despair. It cloaks the world that Letana once entered and rejected, and it fuels the icy sheath she now stretches over the one place that gave her food, shelter, and a chance.

Letana's memories make for an effectively tearjerking and infuriating episode where Shy directs its ire at the systems that failed Pepesha's mother. A few weeks ago, the show reminded us that the cessation of war has not been synonymous with the erasure of society's other injustices. That message is clearer and bleaker here. At the same time, the problems that wear down Letana hit close to home for those of us stuck in the real world. An economic recession, a dismal job market, and unmanageable rent are just a handful of issues I wish I were not familiar with, and they make Letana's slide into despair and revenge powerfully sympathetic. While she may have been predisposed towards depression, these conditions only accelerated her downward spiral.

Things aren't all bad, of course. She loves her daughter, and her daughter loves her back. She still finds pockets of kindness, like the baker who cuts her a break. These, however, are no substitute for a societal safety net that can catch struggling people like her. Problems with money and food invariably strain even the most unconditional of loving relationships. However noble, a single person's selfless deed cannot undo widespread poverty. The tragic culmination of Letana's life comes when the homeless man, seething with spite, shoves her into the river. While it's tempting to target our anger at him, he and Letana are both victims in this situation. They both fell through the cracks. They're both bitter and resentful. All that happened was that Letana found a sliver of good fortune when he did not. That's not her fault, but there's also no avenue through which the man can enact actual justice against the leaders and systems that failed the two of them. The only people he can reach are on the same level he is. That's a feature, not a bug.

It's no wonder, then, that Letana/Tzveta reappears as a young girl who hones in on the orphanage and traps it within the icy diorama of her dream world. That orphanage was the one modicum of social welfare she was afforded. The prospect of putting Pepesha there—giving her daughter a chance to be fed, sheltered, and cared for properly—drove her suicidal ideation to the brink. There's a sickening rationality to it, even though, fundamentally, this is not a choice a single mother should have to weigh in a functioning society. Letana should have been able to love her daughter without believing she was hurting her by existing.

This is a heavy topic, and Shy deserves credit for handling it so starkly, succinctly, and sympathetically. The adaptation nails the emotional beats, and I got choked up while watching it. It's also much less soap-boxy than this review, and that's okay. It's clear to me what Shy is trying to say with Letana's story, and I'm happy to frame it more overtly around a call for more welfare. I predict its ultimate culmination will likely be more personal because resolving the conflict between Letana's and Pepesha's hearts is now the main dramatic arc. Pepesha has to be honest with her mother, and Letana has to accept that her daughter loved her no matter how much she hated herself. I like, too, that Pepesha's wavering heart meant that her bracelets and powers stopped working for a spell. This is a good recurring metaphorical motif in Shy. People have to muster the courage to help themselves—and accept help—before they can help anybody else.

My complaints about this episode are all minor. I thought the mise-en-scène did a fine job focusing on the small candle in Letana and Pepesha's apartment, and it was pretty darn obvious it symbolized both Teru and the persistence of hope. Teru literally has fire powers, so I don't think the writing had to take the extra step to explain this connection. You can trust your audience more than that. I found the flashback more compelling than the conflict afterward, too. Don't get me wrong, I love to see Teru stand up for her friends, and I like the callback to Iko as evidence of how much she's grown as a friend and hero. However, as I said earlier, the meat of this conflict is between Tzveta and Pepesha, and it's a little frustrating to have to wait until next week for that. But I can't tell you how I'd fix the pacing. Under no circumstances would I accept cutting Kufufu's screentime.

This was a great episode, and maybe even Shy's strongest yet. Teru's confrontation with Iko was my previous high-water mark for its frank handling of self-hatred. Still, I'd give Letana's segment the edge for her more fully realized backstory and the more explicit intersections with systemic failings. The series could still fumble this arc's conclusion next week, but I'm optimistic it can match this ambition with an appropriately nuanced resolution between a mother's and daughter's regrets.

Rating:

Shy is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Steve is on Twitter while it lasts. He is a recovering shy kid. You can also catch him chatting about trash and treasure alike on This Week in Anime.