Petite Princess Yucie: Episode 8 Commentary
Sparkle, the Me Within Myself
It’s official: neither Yucie nor Glenda has any art ability greater than that of a ten year old. Let’s never mind the wonderful artwork of the other ten year olds in their art class. Cocoloo may not feel she has what it takes to compare with Yucie and Glenda as a candidate to be the Platinum Princess, but at least she has talent in the fine arts. Come to think of it, if Cocoloo has art, and Glenda has magic, what does Yucie have?
So Cocoloo is the Platinum Princess candidate from the spirit world. Her steward is a ghost able to change his form, and she can run through walls. This makes me wonder if, when Cocoloo says she “doesn’t have much of a presence”, if the others around her actually cannot see her at times. When the two girls took the tea pot away, could they really have not noticed Cocoloo standing just behind them? That would also explain Yucie and Glenda not noticing Cocoloo in the church in a prior episode. That, or Cocoloo was sitting quietly by herself. That’s the quickest way to not be noticed by others.
Chawoo is very confident in Cocoloo’s ability. He knows her better than anyone else knows her, and he doesn’t know much about Yucie and Glenda and their goals, so of course he’ll see Cocoloo as the most qualified candidate. He’s so proud of her, but he can only take so much self-pity from Cocoloo. He supports her in everything, but can’t understand why Cocoloo doesn’t want to put herself out in the open, declaring, “I’m a Platinum Princess candidate; I’m Nicolay’s model.” The little guy also seems to be able to be visible or not to others, as Yucie doesn’t acknowledge him until after she brings the tea for Cocoloo.
Nicolay sees a different Cocoloo than Cocoloo sees herself. It was Yucie who remarked Cocoloo’s self-portrait as being quiet, whereas Nicolay saw the Cocoloo who cheered up a friend, the Cocoloo who smiled and laughed. Will the boost in self confidence carry through to the following episodes? Either way, she’s sure to remain quiet, timid, and without much of a presence to those around her. So, when do we get visit the spirit world and see if her father’s anything like Yucie’s and Glenda’s fathers?
While Glenda wasn’t happy to find out about Cocoloo being a candidate, Yucie was right about Glenda. When she approached Cocoloo, Glenda was acknowledging her as a true rival. She didn’t see Cocoloo as some pushover she doesn’t have to worry about.
