MPL Ep 75 - Author Chat

I wanted to take a moment to reflect on and chat about the Moonbright arc and touch on some of the previous episodes briefly. I've had many scattered thoughts I didn't manage to capture because life has been a little nuts, but off the top of my head, these are the few major things that come to mind.

As many of you have brought up in y'alls incredible episode analysis, there are several parallels to be drawn in S2's Moonbright and Ares Street arc. Both of these S2 arcs build on some of the themes I'd briefly visited in Season 1 - like Tora wondering what it's like to see the world through Poppy's eyes, and Poppy's metaphorical and literal descent into Tora's world.

The S2 Ares Street scene is a continuation of Poppy's tentative foray into the 'underworld', giving us a teaser of what we might come to expect. And now with this S2 Moonbright arc, we have Tora descending (or ascending, if you will) into Poppy's world - and this is one of the major themes of this arc.

To me, there are a few layers of meaning to this.

Here at Moonbright, this isn't just Poppy's regular life in Narin city, but the very heart of her existence. So I see this as a metaphor symbolising Tora's venture, straight into the heart of civilian life. And it's something that, as we can imagine, he's never had many chances to experience.

At the beginning of Season 1 in the balcony scene, Tora wonders what it's like to experience the world through poppy's eyes. And before he even realises, he's now getting a taste of all that, with Poppy patiently (or not so patiently 😂) encouraging and nudging him every step of the way.

Tora experiences many first-times in this Moonbright arc, like a toddler experiencing the world around him under the guidance of a grown up. In my opinion, his (perhaps) wondrous excitement for this brand-new experience shines through in several moments - his very awkward glasses nudge, like a teenager caught in an awkward social situation and isn't quite sure how to react; him obediently handing the reins over to Poppy, sitting as still as he can at the back of Poppy's scooter while she takes the lead and attempts to steer them through this tricky situation; his quiet, boyish enthusiasm as Poppy hands the reins back to him, and he quietly but aggressively revs the scooter, anxiously eager to ride off with Poppy into the dark unknown. And now in Ep 75, we get to witness his unexpected anxiety attack at the lake (I know - not quite as funny when you're experiencing it yourself but Tora's here to take one for the team 🙌🙌🙌😂).

Under the magical moonlight, his "cold"," dead" heart slowly comes to life in the safe, gentle, warm (if spider-infested, lol) waters of the lake. After Ned and June leave and Poppy and Tora are alone again, Tora begins complaining frantically to Poppy about his nervous breakdown. And although he's all grumpy and whiney, part of me feels like he secretly relishes the quiet mundanity and security that comes with a regular civilian existence, where your biggest anxiety-inducing moment is being attacked by an overenthusiastic spider, and then getting caught red-handed by nosey neighbours in the middle of a lake whilst frolicking with your crush.

Cradled gently in the arms of this quiet moonlit moment with his little flower by his side, Tora finally feels safe enough to crack his heart wide open and allow his emotions to flow through, instead of keeping everything firmly clamped down (because in his world, that could potentially cost him his life) This moment is a rare first for him as he very expressively and openly rants about his unhappiness, and really experiences what it's like to be fully human and alive - cue heart palpitations and anxiety attacks. To me, although definitely a very unpleasant experience, I see this as a healing step for Tora, and a step towards true vulnerability and the full emotional experience of being human, along with its ups and downs, pleasures and pains.

For Poppy, this Moonbright arc is also a metaphor symbolising Tora's journey straight into her heart and soul, where she is simultaneously at her most vulnerable and also at her strongest (not unlike a werewolf on a full moon, lol).

These last few episodes at Moonbright have served as an unexpected closure and catharsis for Poppy, after ending her many years long relationship with Julri. And given how this was a relationship that started when she was just a teen, it can also be seen as Poppy leaving her adolescence behind, once and for all. Adding on to that - while it might seem like a nice bonus to have, having Tora by her side during this moment of great distress also makes a world of difference (I can personally vouch for this - I've been there ;) Just wish I could convey with this scene how breathtaking and deep that experience truly was for me!), and things for Poppy might have turned out very differently if Tora hadn't been there for her.

With all that out of the way, we perhaps see that Poppy's finally ready to begin shedding her inhibitions she'd experienced in Season 1, as she steps out of her old, if worn-out adolescent skin, into a brand new cloak of adulthood. This comes to a head at the scene at Granny's house, where Poppy appears before Tora at the stairs in a simple but sexy attire.

As one of you (please forgive me for not recalling who, though!) so beautifully pointed out in one of our previous episode discussions, clothes are a key symbolic component in MPL. In this scene, Poppy putting on these sexy clothes is her first, real acknowledgement of her maturity, sexuality, and womanhood, as she prepares to leave behind the colourful prints and patterns of her teenage years. Even if she's far from embracing it fully, she's now ready to hesitantly test the waters, as she stands at those stairs, cautiously presenting to Tora the 'new' - or maybe the 'real' - her. And because this metamorphosis was partially brought about by Tora's constant encouragement that's come in more forms than one, although at this stage it might still be just a subconscious choice, I think Poppy's also coming to see Tora as that one man who's a worthy recipient of the key to her journey to womanhood.

Anyway, that's all from me for today. A few other thoughts I've had over the past few eps have slipped my mind, unfortunately, but I'll be back if I have more. To all of my beautiful, brilliant minds here on Patreon, I would love, love, love to read any further ramblings you might have after reading my thoughts. Whether they're related to what I've just talked about or not, doesn't even matter! I am here for it all <3