Yuri Kuma Arashi and What the Flying Flip it Means

So about a week ago, I met with a friend of mine that I hadn't seen in forever, and she mentioned that she and some of her friends at college got together and watched Yuri Kuma Arashi. I got really excited, getting ready to exchange some notes on the symbolism I'd found in it when she said that, "Man, that ending was freaky!"

It wasn't quite what I had expected, but, looking back on it only a moment later, was a perfectly understandable reaction.

For those that are not aware, Yuri Kuma Arashi (Literally translated as "Lily Bear Storm," to the best of my knowledge) is an anime created by Kunihiko Ikuhara, one of my favorite anime directors for his work on Revolutionary Girl Utena and Mawaru Penguindrum, some very... strange anime with meanings and symbolism that can be difficult to decipher. (He also directed part of Sailor Moon, but I don't like to talk about that.)

So, if you are unused to Ikuhara's storytelling style, of course it can seem off-putting and confusing, especially since Yuri Kuma, much unlike Utena and Penguindrum, jumps headfirst into its strange symbolism and metaphors, rather than waiting around for about ten episodes before making things completely crazy. I'll admit that even I, who had almost no problem in understanding his other two anime, was very put off by this at first, but I think I managed to catch on around episode four.

I'm going to put up a warning here, first:
There are spoilers to the ending of Yuri Kuma Arashi up ahead. Just be warned.






Now, I'm not going to bother giving a run-down of the plot here, because that could take a while, and this is solely for discussion, thoughts, and theories I have about what the anime could mean as a whole. Meaning you should only be reading this if you have already watched Yuri Kuma. If you are really that curious, feel free to look it up elsewhere.

The first thing that clued me in on some aspect about what in the world the bears could represent was, believe it or not, the Disney movie, Brother Bear. I remembered some time within the first few episodes of Yuri Kuma that in the beginning of the movie, Brother Bear's main character's spirit animal was revealed to be a bear, and so he was being teased by some of the other boys his age due to the bear being a symbol of love. Love. And it fits, doesn't it? Every single bear in the anime acts in the ways that they do because they love someone else, eight? The catchphrase of this entire anime is practically "Is your love the real thing?" Yuri Kuma is essentially about proving your love to another, through promise kisses, becoming someone you're not, or even giving up the things you treasure most.

So, the theme is love. Proving love. All that jazz. Now what else do the bears, themselves, represent? Well, I thought that this was the simple part. The bears not only represent love, but a different person, whether it be their race, sexuality, religion, the way the behave, or the way they think. There's something different about the bears, something that makes the humans resent them. And, in turn, that resentment from the humans makes the bears turn on them. Aside from their one friend or one person that they love, they have no desire to be accepted by anyone else. And that's what leaves the humans, the normal people, feeling threatened the most.

What's sad, however, is when Kureha wishes for Ginko, her best friend, to turn into a human just so that they can both live an easier life. Kureha wants her friend to be the one to change, not because it could make Ginko's life better, but because, Kureha, herself, doesn't want to be bullied for being friends with her. But that wouldn't make the situation any better, as Ginko would no longer be herself. Kureha is asking a very selfish thing of her friend, and this is what truly shows the difference between humans and bears, and why Kureha is a human: she cares too much about what others think, whether she wants to admit it or not.

The only true way to give these two a truly happy ending, then, is to do just as Kureha's mother told her in the story book she left behind:

She must smash her own reflection, letting go of her own image and crossing the boundary that forces her to stay separated and miserable. She has to let go, to stop caring about what the others say about her. Otherwise, she won't be able to "survive" the "invisible storm" that "killed" Sumika. Sumika wanted Kureha to be happy, to figure out how and why she needed to shatter her mirror on her own. She wanted her to know that she can still count on others, that she shouldn't give up on love.

And, when Ginko was there, standing in front of Kureha as she read her letter the second time, "The person standing in front of you is your new friend," it became clear the Sumika knew it would be someone who would still love Kureha, no matter what the others may think. And she wanted Kureha to be able to think the same way: "I like myself, and I have a good friend. And that's all that really matters,"

So that's why Sumika is the Goddess Kumalia at the end of the anime. That's why her appearance in the last episode had so much impact. She's the one that teaches Kureha this lesson, in the end, that she should be herself and love those that she cares about without worrying needlessly about what everyone else thinks.


And isn't that just a beautiful thing? Being able to be yourself without feeling ashamed? It's the kind of lesson that makes me firmly believe that this is the kind of anime that a younger audience, particularly those in middle school, should watch.

Just try not to be this hipster, who thinks that you can like someone because they're different and ditch them the minute you find something more "special". I think we have enough Yuri Tokikago's in this world.

Any questions, comments, or theories of your own? Disagree with anything? I don't know exactly how Blogger works yet, but if possible, try leaving a comment of your own and discuss the anime amongst yourselves!