Blogging about my Torikae baya manga translation project.
Summary and observations on Volume 9: Repercussions all round!
The summaries continue today, now moving to Volume 9, which largely revolves around the fallout from Suiren (now “Sara”) being caught trying to visit Togu at the end of the previous volume.
Summary and observations on Volume 8: New relationship drama for Sara and Suiren
This is the first of five posts summarising the volumes of Torikae baya that cover the period after the siblings’ big switch and before the manga’s conclusion. Something to bear in mind as we go on is that although I’ll continue to refer to Sara and Suiren as the characters we know, most people at court think that each sibling is the other – making everything a bit confusing!
At the end of Volume 7, Sara was working as Togu’s naishi no kami alongside San no Hime, and getting the first inklings that he might have a thing for the Emperor. That situation and its ongoing developments take centre stage in Volume 8.
Thoughts from Episode 35: Naishi no kami
I’m back for the final chapter before the volumes I’m skipping over! (I explain that plan a bit more here) At this point in the story, Sara and Suiren are settling into their new roles as each other, but there’s a catch: their personalities seem to have changed since before they went missing. Men at court think that “Sara” is no longer as bright and fun as he was, and suspect it is because of Shi no Hime and Tsuwabuki’s affair; meanwhile, the returning “Suiren” doesn’t seem like the modest, ladylike individual San no Hime has heard about. Now fearful of raising suspicious, both Sara and Suiren take extra care about how they come across as they deal with the drama of this chapter.
Thoughts from Episode 34: The sky is falling
The cliffhanger last time saw Sara, now ready to take over Suiren’s old position as naishi no kami, coming face to face with San no Hime (daughter of Kakumitsu and sister of Sara’s former wife Shi no Hime). It soon emerges that in the wake of the invasion of Togu’s quarters, Kakumitsu had most of her existing staff dismissed in favour of San no Hime and her attendants, leaving Togu isolated and distrustful. When Sara finally gets to see her in private, she quickly confirms that he is not the Suiren she knows, and San no Hime takes him away.
Just as Sara and Suiren are scrambling for a solution, an ominous falling star appears in the night sky. Suiren seeks advice from Yoshino no Miya, who writes back telling them that it will recur for three nights. The siblings then devise a plan.
Thoughts from Episode 33: Life is but a dream
Episode 33 begins with the image of a tengu, appearing in Marumitsu’s dreams as a voice informs him that his children’s karmic debts have been repaid and they will return shortly. He then wakes up to learn that it’s true! Sara and Suiren are back to pick up each other’s lives where they left off, and their parents are overjoyed.
The news of their return soon reaches others: Kakumitsu, who is persuaded to take Shi no Hime and her children back in, and Tsuwabuki, who is too shocked about “Sara” coming back to even think about Shi no Hime. Tsuwabuki makes his way to the palace on the day Suiren arrives to take over Sara’s old job, approaching Suiren with his typical degree of discretion and earning himself a kick in the head. Later, the Emperor receives Suiren and expresses his relief that “Sara” is back at court.
Thoughts from Episode 32: Trading places
The manga reaches a key turning point in the story now, as Sara and Suiren plan their return to the capital to fill each other’s former roles. They teach one another how to look and behave to avoid suspicion, and Yoshino no Miya helps Suiren overcome her anxiety around men.
But what Episode 32 concentrates on mostly is events in Heian-kyo. In an effort to alleviate Marumitsu’s stress, the Emperor declares that he is rescinding his request for Suiren’s hand in marriage – much to the jealous Umetsubo’s delight. Meanwhile, Kakumitsu tries to have his as-yet unseen daughter San no Hime installed as Togu’s naishi no kami, but Togu rejects him, wanting to wait until Suiren recovers from her alleged ailment.
Thoughts from Episode 31: Return to Yoshino
After spending quite a bit of time on the previous chapter (two posts over three weeks), let’s finally move on to Episode 31, the beginning of volume 7! Sara and Suiren have been reunited, Sara instructs Aguri – who imagines she’s seeing two of the same person – to let Tsuwabuki think Sara has vanished into thin air while the siblings head for Yoshino. There, they tell Yoshino no Miya of their intention to take up religious vows, and lament together about how they have ended up in this situation.
More thoughts from Episode 30: A sarasoju by any other name
I’m back! There was no blog post last week because at the time I’d normally write it, I was in Torino, at the InTO MANGA: Critical Paths in Manga Studies conference. It was a privilege to be on a panel and get to talk about part of my project alongside such clever people! In my presentation, I focused on something I touched on a bit in this post from last August, using Episodes 15 and 16 as an example of how Saito expands on smaller plot points, adds cliffhangers, etc in service of telling the story of Torikaebaya monogatari the way she wants to tell it. And apart from that, I had a lot of fun throughout the conference, and I was really struck by the variety of subject matter – people had so much to say about manga from all kinds of angles!
Now that I’ve returned, I actually want to stick with Episode 30 just a wee bit longer, as it offers a good jumping-off point for another topic I wanted to return to. A couple of months ago, I wrote about the significance of the word 散る (chiru – to fall, to scatter, to die nobly) in relation to Sara’s departure from the court and in relation to his name. So just as I foretold back then, today I’ll say some more about the meaning of sarasoju!
Thoughts from Episode 30: Two for the price of one
At the end of the previous chapter, Sara was having a medical incident, and at just the same time, Suiren came to the conclusion Sara couldn’t be found in Uji. In Episode 30, Tsuwabuki rushes back to his villa to learn that Sara’s baby was stillborn. Tsuwabuki is shocked, but Sara insists that he return to Shi no Hime, who is ready to give birth herself.
Having unknowingly caught sight of Sara last time, Suiren is worked up over the fact that she can’t stop thinking about the mystery woman. After worrying about being drawn to somebody other than Togu, it finally occurs to her that Sara too might’ve changed his appearance.