The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity

Episode 6

One of the worst plot contrivances is, in my opinion, when characters don't talk to each other. I don't mean in the sense that they don't have uncomfortable conversations at all, but rather that they deliberately withhold information solely to force the plot along. The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity could very easily have fallen into this trap with Subaru's discontent. After asking Rintaro to stay away from Kaoruko, she could have allowed her unhappiness to fester alongside her guilt, driving the story towards a confrontation that would have served no purpose but to foment drama.

But that's not what happened.

Instead, Subaru acted like an actual human being. She's still stewing in her guilt and discomfort, but she also realizes that Kaoruko is too important to her to just let things spiral out of control. So she tells her everything – that she confronted Rintaro, what she asked him to do and why, and that he refused. It's a painful moment for her because she's not sure that Kaoruko will truly accept her actions, especially since she more or less already knows that Kaoruko has a crush on Rintaro, even before the words are spoken aloud. In Subaru's mind, she may be ripping off the band-aid of losing her best friend, something she believes will happen no matter what, somewhere deep inside of her. But she also wants to do the right thing, and since she's already crossed a line by asking Rintaro to stay away from Kaoruko, that means confessing what she's done.

It's a beautiful illustration of both Subaru's deeply rooted insecurity and self-loathing, and how good a friend Kaoruko is. Seen through both Subaru's and Rintaro's eyes, Kaoruko is more than human, an angel in a school uniform, and that's not a fair view of her. But this week makes it easy to see why they think that way. She's a genuinely nice person, and she does tend to see the best in everyone. Subaru sees her as her personal hero, and she recognizes that that may be holding Kaoruko back – or at least, making Subaru want to hold her back so that there's no change in their relationship. By admitting her wrong, Subaru is trying to loosen her grip on her friend in the belief that change won't destroy their friendship. She may not be able to believe in herself, but she can filter her fears through her belief in her friend.

Rintaro, too, proves that he's not going to let silly plot contrivances get in the way. He knows how important Kaoruko is to Subaru, and he doesn't want to be the cause of a falling out between them, even if he meant what he said about not giving Kaoruko up. By making the first move to talk to Subaru again, to really talk to her, he's proving his worth in her eyes while also holding his ground. And really, the two of them are more similar than they think – they're both worn down by people's assumptions about them based on their looks, and that may mean that they can help each other to feel more comfortable in the world. Rintaro doesn't have to be friends with Kaoruko's friends, but in this case, I think he and Subaru would get along even without an intermediary. They just have to realize it.

What Subaru does isn't easy. She likely truly feels like she's risking everything by confessing to Kaoruko. But she does it anyway, and that's both true character growth and a marker that everything's going to be okay, even if “okay” doesn't look like what she expected it to.

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The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity is currently streaming on Netflix.