The Osananajimi Series, Part 2: PDA

It's been a long while since I initially started the Osananajimi Series, where I look at one of anime's favorite romantic interest archetypes and how it reminds me of the relationship between God and a Christian who has grown up in the church. This time, what I will be talking about is pretty applicable to all Christians, and there won't be a specific anime series that I will be drawing from, instead drawing from the osananajimi archetype in general.

The subject of this post is PDA. However, it does not stand for Public Displays of Affection here, but rather, Promises, Deeds, and Attributes--what childhood friends have to do with them, and what they have to do with our relationship with God.

It's a promise that transcends... well, you'll have to watch Kanon to see.

A Divine Childhood Friend (The Osananajimi Series, Part X1)

A while ago, I wrote a post about how childhood friend (osananajimi) relationships can mirror a “born into the faith” Christian’s relationship with God, and had intended that as part of a longer series. I haven’t forgotten about that series, but this entry is not a direct continuation of that series, but rather a “gaiden” series dedicated to a special case of this, in which there’s no actual romance involved and the “childhood friend” is actually pretty close to a deity himself.

 

The show in question is the newly-airing Gingitsune, which features shrine maiden Makoto Saeki who, when she was four years old and after her mother died, met Gintaro, a “messenger fox of the gods”. Makoto is the next “oracle” in line after her mother and is such the only person that can see and talk to Gintaro. As for Gintaro, he is a messenger from the Shinto “gods” and has the ability to reveal things about the future, which Makoto can then use to help out people. In addition to this religious connection, Makoto and Gintaro are also close companions, having been together for over ten years.

 

Despite the fact that this show is based around the Shinto religion, the religious-yet-personal nature of Makoto and Gintaro’s relationship does provide an interesting look at the Christian’s relationship with God, and right from the first episode, too. As usual, expect spoilers from that episode after the jump.

Sorry, bishounen lovers; Gintaro is much more beast than hot guy. Art by 

くりねこ.

The Osananajimi Series, Part 1: Growing Up With God

As a preface, I'd like to apologize for the lack of posts lately. This post was one I really wanted to do, and it did take a while to fully compose. Here it is, though.

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This subject is one that is quite important to me, personally, and this entry is very likely not going to be the only entry I write about this. For now, consider this an introduction to one of my favorite types of characters, not just in anime, but in all types of stories (though it most certainly has a large part in anime culture).

The Osananajimi

Osananajimi is a Japanese term that translates to “childhood friend”, and indeed means just that. In and of itself, the term has no romantic connotations and can refer to any unrelated person, male or female, with or without romantic connections, with whom a person has grown up with. From what I gather, culturally the Japanese value those whom they have grown up with as having a special connection with them, and as such, the childhood friend has been a popular character in classical fiction, including as a romantic interest.