In the seventh episode of the second season of Princess Tutu, a woman from Fakir’s past arrives in town with a startling revelation about what Fakir can do. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Princess Tutu.
Once upon a time, there was a young woman. The young woman was to marry a groom chosen by her parents, and not her sweetheart, whom she loved. She knew that her groom loved her very much, but did her sweetheart care for her even more than that? The young woman wasn’t certain. In the end, after wavering between the two of them, the young woman even became unsure which one of them she really loved.
Lord, this show is getting intense, which is impressive considering how many episodes in the second half of this show end with a very similar pattern. Mytho tries to steal a girl’s heart, and Tutu convinces the women not to do it. And yet, every single time, I am gripped with fear and suspense about the outcome of these confrontations. As we get closer to the end of this show, I am kind of terrified about how this is going to end. At one point, Drosselmeyer (FUCK HIM) says that these characters are becoming more and more desperate, and it’s totally true! The writers have managed to increase the risks with each episode, and I can feel it.
Amidst all of this, the show gives us perhaps the single biggest revelation yet. A woman named Raetsel shows up in town, and she’s openly affectionate with Fakir. It’s a bewildering moment for Lilie and Pike, who are still convinced that Ahiru has ~really adorable feelings~ about Fakir. Oh god, they’re like real-life shippers. IT’S SO CUTE. But Raetsel is not the romantic interest that Ahiru’s friends think she is. She’s been in Fakir’s life as a mother figure to him, helping Karon raise Fakir after his parents passed away. (Plus, she’s a romantic interest for someone else, but we’ll get to that in a moment.)
I didn’t really expect to learn anything monumental about Fakir, despite that we were presented with someone from his past. When Raetsel spoke privately with Ahiru on their walk, she opened up their conversation by saying she was jealous of Ahiru. Okay, I thought, perhaps she is interested in Fakir in some way? And why was she so insistent that Ahiru had changed Fakir? I wasn’t quite sure how this all fit together or what Raetsel’s purpose was within this episode.
BUT THEN SHE JUST CASUALLY REVEALS THAT FAKIR USED TO WRITE STORIES THAT CAME TRUE. What? What?!?!?!!? That seems like an AWFULLY IMPORTANT DETAIL to reveal as if you’re just sharing an interesting quirk about a person! I knew this had to be significant because… well, hell, look at the show we’re watching! Clearly, this about how storytelling, agency, and how characters interact within a fictional world. Drosselmeyer can obviously affect the way the story unfolds at times, and now we have the reveal that Fakir was once able to create stories, too? I’M SORRY, THAT CANNOT BE A COINCIDENCE!!!!
I was so distracted during everything else because HEY, EPISODE, CAN YOU JUST GO BACK TO FAKIR BECAUSE I NEED TO KNOW SO MUCH MORE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. So you can understand my continued confusion when Ahiru came up with a brilliant idea that basically gave Fakir a nervous breakdown. It seemed so logical that Fakir should write a story to save Mytho if he really did have the power to make stories come true! EXCEPT FAKIR SHUTS DOWN AND TREATS AHIRU LIKE CRAP and what are you doing, dude? Why did he just react that way? Obviously, he was a little ~sensitive~ about it, but why? Why was this such an offensive suggestion?
Oh god, I had no idea. So unprepared, y’all.
Understandably, Ahiru was upset about how she was treated. Who wouldn’t be? Ahiru has always been kind to Fakir, and she doesn’t deserve that sort of behavior. So she goes to Raetsel to tell her, and you know, I was actually surprised by this. I often complain about how characters in fictional stories don’t just talk to one another. (I always bring up LOST as an example because DUDE. Half the problems on that show could have been resolved with a simple conversation.) So, despite that sharing the whole mythical past of Mytho and Fakir might have been a bad idea, I was impressed with Ahiru for just talking about this.
EXCEPT THEN RAETSEL REVEALS WHAT REALLY HAPPENED ALL THOSE YEARS AGO. No, y’all, I refuse to ignore the parallels and similarities between Fakir’s past and the present. Crows??? Fakir’s writing brought crows to his town? What the fuck?!!?!?! THAT IS NOT A COINCIDENCE. Unfortunately, the rest of “The Forgotten Story” never gives me any more information beyond what Raetsel provides. What other stories came true? What was the story Fakir wrote that brought around the crows? WHY IS FAKIR SO EERILY LIKE DROSSELMEYER IN THIS REGARD? All I found out from this is that this was the forgotten story referenced in the title. Fakir shut the event out of his mind to protect himself from the trauma it caused him.
I WANT MORE.
I’ve spent a lot of time on Fakir because HOW CAN I NOT, but I did enjoy this episode’s thematic tale regarding Raetsel. It struck me during the final confrontation between Mytho, Fakir, and Ahiru that Ahiru does something spectacular to each of the people affected by a heart shard or Mytho’s hypnotization: She refuses to shame them. So much of her little monologue to Raetsel was about how it is perfectly valid to be confused by love, that she shouldn’t feel bad for loving more than one person, and that it isn’t wrong to want to be loved. My god, THAT IS SO BEAUTIFUL ON SO MANY LEVELS. Ahiru knows that if Raetsel gives herself up simply because she doesn’t want to make a difficult decision, she’s missing out on what life can give her. It’s interesting, then, that Mytho’s position is one of pure selfishness, especially when it comes to what he’ll gain from this. Ahiru wants Raetsel to live, and that’s important!
And so this episode ends with Raetsel bidding Karon goodbye, knowing that she does love her fiancé, Hans, and that she wants to love him, too. Even Fakir comes to have hope as well. Despite that the story he wrote about Raetsel didn’t come true, he believes that he can hone his ability to possibly come true. Oh god, THEN FUCKING DROSSELMEYER IS BASICALLY ALL ~CONCERNED~ ABOUT FAKIR AND SHUT UP, DUDE. Are you worried Fakir is going to change the story? Oh my god, can there be a Fakir/Drosselmeyer story battle? YES PLEASE.
The video commission for this episode is now archived on MarkDoesStuff.com for just $0.99!
Mark Links Stuff
– I am now on tour!!! I have 26 events spread out across the eastern HALF of the U.S. and Canada. They are all free and all-ages. Come see speak about the Mark Does Stuff Universe and read terrible fanfiction live!
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- Commissions are still open while I am on tour! There may be a day or two delay to get them done, but I am accepting them graciously to help fund my tour!
