Yofukashi no Uta (Call of the Night)

[Ryllharu]

Ko Yamori is relatively good at studies and amiable with his classmates, but he puts a lot of effort into maintaining this facade. One day after developing insomnia, he decides to sneak out and take night walks alone. Eventually Ko meets a weird girl who diagnoses the cause of his sleeplessness: despite making changes in his life, he is still holding himself back from experiencing true freedom. She says that he won't be able to sleep unless he is satisfied with how he spends his waking hours. The girl, Nazuna Nanakusa, invites him back to her apartment to share her futon as a way of curing his insomnia, which she claims is her hobby. Unaware that he is only feigning unconsciousness, which he has gotten quite good at practice, she leans over him—and bites his neck!

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As far as first episodes of a vampire series go, this covers very standard staples of the genre. Dissatisfied person meets stranger, stranger turns out to be vampire, person discovers their secret, and their relationship starts from there. Nothing even remotely surprising, innovative, or nuanced.

Vampire is charming (in her weird way), potential victim sees something in the vampire that might change their stagnant life, someone declares their intention to love to the other, and of course the victim's blood is super delicious.

But I do recommend watching the first episode anyway, at least.

The atmosphere of this series is completely different. There's a peaceful stillness to all of it, even with the soundtrack imposing itself at times. There's a vibe of timelessness and a slight chill to it all. I think it perfectly captures that extremely late-night calm that you only get where there's really nobody around but you and your companions. The entire city (or park, or field) is yours, and yours alone. That brings in that little euphoria of catching a moment/place that is up for grabs, and you got there first.

[Ryllharu]

Eps 2

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The music is so chill and relaxing in this series. I find it is actually something I can't finish if I start watching it too late because I just start to pass out from how cozy it feels.

Ko is a bit of a lonely kid, but I got the impression this episode that Nazuna has also been a little detached from everything before she met him. Sort of stuck in her own fugue state of consoling those still awake and feeding off of them. She looks for him every night too, to the point that they miss each other, and she gets really engaged in the activities they're doing because she's been a bit out of the loop as the city has changed around her the past 30 years or so.

[neflight86]

Took me a minute to try this one out. Agreed that the color palate and stillness, along with the almost synth BGM give this a unique feel. I like the character designs, though the plot isn't doing anything for me yet. The strongest draw currently is simply vibe. OP is unique too, in that it actually stops and starts up again mid-roll obviously on purpose. May not watch much more, but additional characters might give this some life.

[Ryllharu]

Eps 3

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I'm partial to the ED over the OP.

Yeah, the vibe of the series is the main draw. There's a stillness to the whole series, but it never for a moment even feels like a slideshow anime. It has that same static-yet-dynamic feel of a Shinbo-era SHAFT series. I mean...it should, given the director, and it works.

The voice cast really does the majority of the work selling this series, and this episode was a great example. These are some pretty capable VAs doing stellar work here. At least so far, roles that they'll excel at where others would falter.

Nazuna's expletive-laced shitfit is a great example. You don't even need to know a word of Japanese and you know exactly what she's saying. Akira's VA doing some of her best understated stuff. There's subtle hurt and longing behind most of her voicelines, and we really only understand what's causing the latter. And the noise when Ko tripped...I watched that five times.

[neflight86]

The kaleidoscope cityscapes really saved this episode for me. I'm struggling with such low stakes drama to stay engaged. That, and I'm not sold on the motivation of Ko yet. Saying he randomly decided that interacting with others isn't worth the effort (but becoming a vampire is!) is unrelatable to me and I think the show is relying on subtext too much to get that point across. One new character isn't enough- lets fill this place out so we can get some more stories/arcs going!

It almost crosses into spooky how empty the streets are.

[Ryllharu]

That, and I'm not sold on the motivation of Ko yet. Saying he randomly decided that interacting with others isn't worth the effort (but becoming a vampire is!) is unrelatable to me and I think the show is relying on subtext too much to get that point across.

Ko's problem is that he didn't want to deal with the drama. His issues are more deeply rooted than he's been letting on. He struggles to make friends because his interests aren't particularly mainstream to begin with. He'd rather watch bugs than play active games with others. He comes off as a very strong introvert to me. He longs for companionship, but really struggles with groups. His cognitive center believes that he struggles to feel that attachment, and thinks also he can't make friends. But that's obviously not the case. He always had Akira, and he's gotten instantly attached to Nazuna and vice versa.

On the other hand, it's also true that his limited energy for social activities means he struggles with wanting to be situations where he's uncomfortable. I've known that feeling where someone says they like you and you don't want to lie to them and tell them that you feel nothing for them. People want to be polite about it. Pressed into that situation, Ko turned her down because he's honest, and got ostracized for it. He had gathered a pretty decent social group (per himself and Akira), and when the drama happened, he had an epiphany about it. He was going to stop pretending to be a social person, and went back to being a pro-introvert full time.

So, he didn't randomly decide to stop interacting with others. He decided to stop faking that he was a social person and be honest to himself as well. He'd always been that way. Akira even said she was surprised that he had become a lot more outgoing and had made a lot of friends...and noticeably, "missed her chance."

Akira is the same way, which makes her equally fascinating. The "missed her chance" thing got straight up passed by this entire episode, but it is very obviously a confession of regret. Throughout the episode, Akira throws flags all over the place that she has an equal number of issues that Ko has. The obvious stuff is the regret and longing she has for Ko specifically, culminating in her subtle plea to choose her over this creepy new weird older woman who claims to be a vampire and looks like an exhibitionist.

Putting aside the constant hints about how much she still romantically likes Ko now, Akira has always connected with Ko more than anyone else. She cherished the gift "he left her" more than anything else. Akira leaving early and going for hours long walks is very similar to what Ko's doing and indicates some problems at home or at least disengaged parents like his are. Akira isn't really as straight-laced as she came off, because she didn't disapprove that he's out late, just that he's having "risky fun" with this strange woman. But she isn't really bothered or hurt by the fact that he's interested in Nazuna either (maybe she's relieved that he does feel those kinds of things?).

I really like the way they've set up Akira to be Nazuna's complete thematic opposite. She's the girl he hangs out with at dawn instead of midnight. She's awkward instead of charismatic. She holds her problems in close like whispers instead of yelling in the street (though both are pretty open about them, a very un-Japanese trait). She's accepting of his interest in other women instead of throwing a tantrum over it. She's authoritative and direct instead of teasing and roundabout. She's got big boobs instead of small ones, heh.

And they're both upset that Ko is drawn to the other.

The series might be low-stakes and subtle, but it is comprehensive, very elegantly crafted, and detailed about interpersonal stuff while being indirect about conveying it. I'm glad I never got around to reading the manga, because the voice acting adds so much to it.

[Ryllharu]

Eps 4

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The series has outstanding sound design. The soft subtle tap-tap-tap as Nazuna's fingers press against Ko's jacket before she bites him, the noises of Akira's pencil tapping on her desk, the teeth brushing, the squeak of the bed, the mpah noises Nazuna makes.

You can 100% tell this was directed by the -monogatari pervy spinoffs guy. But now he's leveled up in elegant use of it. Their Sound director also has some impressive titles in her portfolio.

[Ryllharu]

Episode 5

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Nazuna has got it bad.

[neflight86]

Late catching up. Thanks for the in depth analysis, Ryll. You are certainly getting more out of this than I am, buy your insight is appreciated.

That massage was sultry, indeed. I'm looking forward to how Ko screws up his first time giving a paid massage course to some office lady.

Episode 5

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Nazuna has got it bad.

Has got what, exactly? I'm not getting a particularly romantic vibe from her yet, though she was restless at the beginning of the episode, it didn't point to her awaiting Ko, did it?

[Ryllharu]

Has got what, exactly? I'm not getting a particularly romantic vibe from her yet, though she was restless at the beginning of the episode, it didn't point to her awaiting Ko, did it?

She's definitely in love with Ko already, just like Akira.

Wakes up too early anticipating meeting him again; kills time playing video game, vows never to play it again, only to immediately think about playing it with him in the future; can't stand smelling like a stray cat before they meet so she takes a bath; immediately leaps out of it when he sets off the 2-way radio watch; hasn't bitten anyone else since they met; actually doesn't want to see an old and reliable previous client, etc.

She's using her teasing to cover it up.

[neflight86]

When you spell it out, it all adds up. I guess I'm not paying much attention to this as all of that flew over my head. I promise I understand the concept of romance, at least!

[David75]

I knew it felt like watching a monogatari like show.
With some chill instead of hyper hyped Durarrra atmosphere+music

Although everything is extremely well knitted, it gets a little boring.

A nice chilling anime.

[Ryllharu]

Although everything is extremely well knitted, it gets a little boring.

We have a lot more cast to go through, and when they added Akira, it got a lot more interesting. Because now there were opposing philosophies going on, and even more hints that all really isn't that well.

If it was just Nazuna and Ko playing around, like a rehash of SHAFT's Tsukuyomi MoonPhase, I wouldn't enjoy it this much.

[David75]

I'm more interrested in Nazuna's background and who she loved that made her a vampire for example. Unless it was a lie or there are other ways... or none, you are just born a vampire.

Akira feels like a lifeline, a connection to Ko's everyday life. But for now she's not much of a threat to Nazuna's and Ko's little world.

I skip OP and ED's (unless I love the music) to not get spoiled with staff and characters.

[David75]

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So we get a massive new characters appearance.
All female vampires. Since they want to either turn Ko into a vampire or kill him... we know for sure male vampires exist.
We also confirmed that you have to be in love with the vampire sucking your blood to turn into one.
I'm somewhat surprised by their way of handling people : vampire or death.
Ok they need to remain hidden. But killing people will attract attention. Though their targets are outcasts with night lives-almost nobody cares enough to provide quality info about them- and it might be easy to sink their bodies far from the coast since they can fly and all.

Ko qualifies as a good vampire candidate since he wants to be one and wants to have offspring, the only problem is choosing Nazuna it seems.

I like the conclusion scene, it seems Ko doesn't have years ahead of him... since that show follows most vampire codes, maybe Ko turning into a ghoul is the problem ahead ?

[Ryllharu]

I really loved the record scratch sound effect used to emphasize the punchlines as Ko devastates the ego of each of the other female vampires, especially when it isn't actually interrupting any BGM. It's a neat stylistic touch to hit the vibe of the show, but also still chill in the silence that this series excels at. You just hear the faint wind & general city noise in the background of that whole discussion scene, which is brilliant sound design.

But wow, what a genre shift. Feels right.

Nazuna's an outcast because she plays around. The others kill their food if they get found out. Nazuna doesn't really care, and she's generally just making them feel good. I also kind of understand her aversion. The others seem obsessed with Girls Talk subjects in a very obnoxious gyaru manner. Nazuna seems to appreciate much deeper connections like with Ko and Akira.

I was kind of hoping one of the new women would try to make a breast size appeal to Ko, and he'd fire back with a quick comment that his childhood friend is bigger.

[shinta|hikari]

I was kind of hoping one of the new women would try to make a breast size appeal to Ko, and he'd fire back with a quick comment that his childhood friend is bigger.

This would've been epic. What a waste of opportunity!

I actually liked Ko for the first time since I started watching this. The dood is totally aromantic, even though he is clearly NOT asexual. It'll be an uphill battle to get him to fall in love with, not just have love for, anyone.

I don't understand how these vampire girls are so confident with their looks and appeal. I only remember the suit lady, and the rest sort of blended into one black-haired type. They must've been targeting incels or something...

[Ryllharu]

I don't understand how these vampire girls are so confident with their looks and appeal. I only remember the suit lady, and the rest sort of blended into one black-haired type. They must've been targeting incels or something...

It wasn't meant to be their looks that are distinct. Their personality aesthetics are meant to differentiate them, though I couldn't tell you what the last one is. The normal anime tropes of the -dere types don't apply because they're all actively pursuing "sex." They explained most of them in significant detail and even showing off their techniques in a mini-battle with each other. They're low key and blend in because they're vampires, in stark contrast to the gyaru one and Nazuna.

Seri is pretty obvious, as is Niko.

Kohakobe is the type who fakes being shy, "suddenly gets interested" in someone, and then drowns an individual (specifically virgins) in attention to make them rapidly fall for her. Then throws them away when she's done. It's really neat that the OST shifts to align with the vibe she goes for in a poppy synth, before shifting back to the calculated faster beat track when they jump to the others analyzing the technique being used.

The whole episode does this with the soundtrack actually, from cutting out the refined strings track that the vampires start when Ko tells them he only wants Nazuna, and then bouncing through multiple tracks that cut out to emphasize a joke. It's incredible.

Kabura is the type who either steals others' boyfriends or specifically hunts younger men. Her track is a faster-paced track dripping in danger vibes. The mature older lady, seductive where Niko is more mature ("I think we'd get along" casually said).

Suzushiro supposedly uses the same techniques as Niko, but I guess targets virgins more, so I guess she's somewhere between Niko and Kohakobe. She didn't get a lot of time this episode, probably because she's actually the most dangerous to Ko for Nazuna's goals.

[David75]

A little surprising was how calm Ko is. Ok he knows he stands no chance and he'd already be dead if the vampirettes decided so.
And he already felt the fear of death.
It's also probable he doesn't care much for his life provided he doesn't suffer dying.
But he felt both detatched and sharp.

Regarding the vampire secret, I guess Nazuna is a special case ? Because she doesn't care Akira and that office lady knows about it. Ko's bite marks are easy for anyone to see.
We have to infer the other girls kill most of their preys ? Because it feels it's not that easy to get your prey to love you without them spilling your secret.

[shinta|hikari]

@Ryll - I included their "personality" and approach when thinking about their appeal. I just barely remember the details because they felt absolutely meaningless to me. Like, are normal humans really susceptible to these "tactics"? Seems like only desperate people will fall for them.