Everything that could’ve gone wrong went horribly wrong, but Yamada still managed to pull out a show that looks better than the vast majority of anime I’ve seen. It was too artsy, too ambitious, but I’d rather have it be too ambitious than not at all. This shows that Yamada is still a top-tier director, but also a painful reminder that no artist is infallible. Despite all of that, Yamada continues to be my most favorite director—not just in anime, but across all media. Having one disappointing project doesn’t change the fact that she created what I believe to be 4 consecutive masterpieces, nor does it diminish the deep catharsis they brought me at points in life I needed it the most. Sure, it could be that this new direction is actually pretty good and I’m too close-minded to see her vision, so I do look forward to revisiting Heike Monogatari after several months of reflection. A powerful earthquake strikes the capital. Minamoto no Yoritomo's distrust of Minamoto no Yoshitsune grows. Yoritomo sends an assassin to kill Yoshitsune (fails). Then, Yoritomo kills Minamoto no Noriyori (Yoshitsune's half brother) who is reluctant to go against Yoshitsune. When Yoritomo sends a large force led by Hōjō Tokimasa against him, Yoshitsune flees from the capital to a northern province. Meanwhile, the Enryaku-ji complex is destroyed and a fire at the Zenkō-ji destroys a Buddhist statue. People believe these troubles to be signs of the Taira decline. Those exiled to Kikaijima build a shrine where they pray for return to capital. They make a thousand stupas (Buddhist wooden objects) with their names and throw them into the sea. One of the pieces reaches the shore. It is brought to the capital and shown to Yasuyori's family. The news reaches Retired Emperor Go-Shirakawa and Kiyomori who see the stupa with emotion. [18] Chapter 3 [ edit ]

In a famous passage, Taira no Atsumori (young nephew of Kiyomori) is challenged to a fight by a warrior, Kumagai Naozane. Naozane overpowers him, but then hesitates to kill him since he reminds him of his own young son. Seeing the approaching riders who are going to kill the youth, Naozane kills Atsumori, and finds his flute (later he becomes a Buddhist monk). The Taira are defeated and flee by boats in different directions. Sadler, A. L. "The Heike Monogatari", Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan. 46.2 (1918): 1–278 and 49.1 (1921): 1–354.Kitagawa, Hiroshi et al. (1975). The Tale of the Heiji. Tokyo: University of Tokyo Press; retrieved 2012-6-12. Others, while still accepting the importance of the military episodes and of heroic figures like Yoshitsune, would emphasise instead the Tale’s immersion in Buddhist thought, and its themes of duty, Dharma, and fate. [7] Announced at the very beginning is the Buddhist law of transience and impermanence, [8] specifically in the form of the fleeting nature of fortune, an analog of sic transit gloria mundi. The theme of impermanence ( mujō) is captured in the famous opening passage: The story of the Heike was compiled from a collection of oral stories recited by travelling monks who chanted to the accompaniment of the biwa, an instrument reminiscent of the lute. [2] The most widely read version of the Heike monogatari was compiled by a blind monk named Kakuichi, [3] in 1371. The Heike is considered one of the great classics of Medieval Japanese literature. Anyone who is familiar with both the later period of the Shogunate as popularised by the Samurai films of Kurosawa or the eponymous TV series or with the earlier period captured so perfectly in the Tale of Genji when Japan was ruled by a charmingly refined and effete court aristocracy, will find the Tale of the Heike a strange hybrid of the two with the warrior heroes of the feuding Heike and Genji clans dragging enemies from their saddles and twisting off their heads for later display but in the intervals between battle expressing their feelings with a refinement that belongs to the world of the Heian court.

The two main themes are set in the famous introduction (the bells of the Gion Shōja): impermanence and the fall of the mighty ( Taira no Kiyomori). What we know today as “Tale of the Heike” was probably first recorded in the late 13th century, barely one hundred years from the events and people it describes, but there was also a strong oral component of the account, as told by the Hoshi, blind singers and storytellers who repeated the tale and others like it as entertainment, a tradition which lasted for centuries, thus turning the chronicles into the stuff of legend which, to a great degree, had already begun even before the war ended. A mesmerizing tapestry of verifiable history and legend, The Tale of the Heike can be intimidating for the casusal reader with its long lists of "rosters" in court and battle, characters who have several different names, and large number of locales, but the excellent introduction to this work goes along way to allaying those intial fears. The patient reader will be richly rewarded. Buddhist monks used the narrative as a means of promulgating Buddhist teachings, which are reiterated throughout the story. The narrator details each iniquity committed by the Taira, predicting their downfall for at least seven years. The fates of the characters are preordained, by the good or evil deeds of prior existences. Often characters seek enlightenment, or atone for their sins, by entering religious life; Koremori takes the tonsure before committing suicide, and the Imperial Lady lives out the last years of her life as a nun. Greenall, Jonathon (November 30, 2021). "Best 2021 Drama Anime on Funimation, From Fruits Basket to The Heike Story". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on December 10, 2021 . Retrieved February 20, 2022.

Synopsis

Genji and Heike. Selections from 'The Tale of Genji' and 'The Tale of the Heike'. Stanford: Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-2258-7 Horii, Kenichiro (February 9, 2022). "The Anime The Heike Story is a "Masterpiece" that One Can Call a "Treasure"; Why is it so Close to Your Heart?". Yahoo! Japan. Archived from the original on February 9, 2022 . Retrieved February 9, 2022. Farris, Christopher; Jones, Steve; Clewis, Mercedez (December 28, 2021). "The Best Anime of 2021 – Christopher Farris, Steve Jones, Mercedez Clewis & The Best Moments". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on December 31, 2021 . Retrieved January 4, 2022. All upcoming public events are going ahead as planned and you can find more information on our events blog Meanwhile, the Taira regain their strength and assemble a strong army. Yoshinaka sends forces against them, but this time the Taira are victorious in the battle of Mizushima. Their influence grows even more after the victory at the Battle of Muroyama.

Collected into its present form by an editor of genius called Kakiuchi between 1340 and 1371 and handed down to posterity by a guild dedicated to the performance of this work alone, the Heike has inspired countless traditional dramas, ballads and poems and in 20th century Japan has been used as the basis of best-selling novels, films, TV serials and comics. One of the episodes describing Kiyomori's arrogance is the famous story about the dancer Giō who falls out of Kiyomori's favour and becomes a nun. The illness of Kiyomori's pregnant daughter, Taira no Tokuko, is attributed to angry spirits of the executed (such as Fujiwara no Narichika) and the exiled. Taira no Kiyomori, interested in becoming a grandfather of the Imperial prince, agrees to a general amnesty. Fujiwara no Narichika's son Naritsune and Yasuyori are pardoned, but Shunkan is left alone on Kikaijima for letting the anti-Taira conspirators gather at his villa. A famous tragic scene follows when Shunkan beats his feet on the ground in despair.

Streaming Platforms

Watson, Burton and Haruo Shirane. (2006). The Tale of the Heike (abridged). New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231138024; ISBN 9780231510837; OCLC 62330897 To make matters worse, the show feels tonally all over the place because Yamada was trying to get TOO artsy with it. I never thought Yamada would be one to use vapid metaphorical imagery, but alas, I was wrong. The most egregious example is in episode 6 where Kiyomori sees smoke in the shape of skulls to symbolize his guilt and fear of the recently deceased. Wow, how deep. I swear it looked like a parody scene straight out of Adventure Time; it was horrendous. If it was any other director, I would’ve burst out laughing. In the east, Taira forces are successful in some battles, but are not able to defeat the Minamoto forces. Divine forces punish and kill the governor appointed by Kiyomori to put down Kiso no Yoshinaka's rebellion. Kiso no Yoshinaka wins a major battle at Yokotagawara (1182). Taira no Munemori, the leader of the Taira clan, is conferred a high rank in the court administration. In 1181, Retired Emperor Takakura dies, troubled by the events of the last several years. Kiso no Yoshinaka (cousin of Minamoto no Yoritomo in the northwestern provinces) plans a rebellion against the Taira and raises an army. Messengers bring news of anti-Taira forces gathering under the Minamoto leadership in the eastern provinces, Kyūshū, Shikoku. The Taira have trouble dealing with all the rebellions.