Petite Princess Yucie: Episode 11 Commentary
Thoughts Will Get There. The Girl I Met at the Beach
It’s understandable that Gunbard would not know much about what’s happening in his daughter’s life, but even Cube is left out these days.
It was nice of Yucie to invite the other candidates and their stewards along with her. Reactions to the beach as well as the happenings with the stewards added more characterization, something important in any good series. We learn that Glenda had anticipated seeing the ocean of the human world. (Does the demon world have any oceans?) On the other hard, Elmina finds herself quite unimpressed by the sight, leaving immediately. Glenda’s disposition is for her to leave as well, but deep down she can’t just walk away from a day of fun at the beach, even if it is with a couple of “brats” like Yucie and Cocoloo. (She also gets to later accuse Mr. Gaga and the other stewards of electing to go fishing for a meal, even though she, as she says, didn’t want any. This is, of course, all building a reason for her to stay while looking as if it’s against her own wishes.)
Upon Glenda’s request for fish (her excuse to stay at the beach, of course), Mr. Gaga instructs Cube to join him. Would he have requested this is Cube wasn’t from the demon world? I gather he only takes Cube along because he expects a sense of loyalty to the demon princess from Cube. Chawoo appears to be the type who’ll help out without being asked, and is perhaps glad to be of assistance.
So, what’s up with swinging a stick at a watermelon on the beach? This appears in Azumanga Daioh and other anime as well.
This is a game played in Japan, called “スイカ割り”, or “watermelon splitting”. Typically the watermelon on a bucket, or another surface, but any anime I’ve seen the event in has put it right on the sand. A person puts on a blindfold, then is spun around. After the spinning, then must swing their stick at the watermelon and crack it open.
This popular Japanese summer beach game is similar to the piñata game in the Americas (primarily southern America), where a candy-filled piñata hanging from a tree is swung at with a stick.
It’s rather strange to see the girls playing a culturally Japanese beach game in a world that’s set outside of Japan.
When the owner of the beach house (a man whom Gunbard helped out in the past) tells the legend of the Mermaid’s Light, Cocoloo finds the story to be romantic. Glenda of course would think it’s stupid. But I have to ask, does Glenda really eat that large a helping of meat? It’s amazing how much these girls can eat.
I’m not sure if I should be surprised or not about Elmina agreeing with Glenda that the legend is stupid. My thoughts here are directed toward her excuse for returning to the beach. Night flight is unsafe due to evil spirits? Just how far are they from civilization that she couldn’t leave when she did (when the sun was up, so perhaps before noon) and not make it somewhere before dark, only to have time to return to the beach house by the time the sun set? Could Elmina have been trying to find an excuse to spend more time at the beach, as well?
While Glenda tries to pass off kissing as a greeting, and Cocoloo doesn’t believe when Glenda says she’s been kissed, Elmina is once again casual about the concept, saying she’s been kissed before. I should probably wonder about this and have inquiries, but the way she says it so casually, it feels like something common, not to concern oneself over.
The stewards are apparently no good at catching fish, as by nightfall they have nothing. This doesn’t explain how they catch a feast by the end of the episode, though. While still on the boat, though, Mr. Gaga’s pride and dignity as a steward shine again, as he says his duty as a steward will not allow him to return empty-handed. Naturally it was Cube who was ready to retire for the night. Balizan needs to learn concepts such as weight and force, and not to crush or smash his way around. Mr. Gaga’s pride continues when Balizan ends up at the bottom of the ocean. With Chawoo ready to search for Balizan, and Cube prepared to tell Elimina about Balizan’s fate, Mr. Gaga objects. A steward’s problem is to be solved by stewards. Cube is still green when it comes to being a steward. Perhaps once he, too, has 1,000 years of stewardship under his belt, he’ll have the level of pride seen in Mr. Gaga. (If Mr. Gaga’s been around for 1,000 years as a steward, does that mean he remembers anything about the previous Platinum Princess?)
When Yucie feels embarrassed to wear the magical mermaid outfit Cube bought, Cube compliments how nice she looks in the outfit. Was he saying this so she’d feel a little less embarrassed, or does he compliment her on her looks/outfit from time to time? I’m sure we’ll never know.
Speaking of outfits, Glenda continues to wear outfits which don’t cover her arms and legs (as well as stomach, when it comes to her swimsuit). Cocoloo naturally wears the most conservative swimsuit, and a very proper night outfit. Cocoloo doesn’t seem to be one for dresses or gowns (outside of the school uniform and job uniforms), with Yucie more likely to wear a dress, skirt, or gown.
Whereas Cocoloo and Elmina see a definite change in Yucie from the day before, does Glenda honestly not see any difference? Or is this part of keeping up her image? Hopefully time will tell.
