Glad you enjoyed the series! It's probably my favorite anime of all time. Just a really good story, very well paced, relaxing but with fairly deep themes. I was surprised at how suspicious you were that there was going to be some sinister undertone coming around the corner at any moment lol. But ultimately it's a story about redemption. The town is the way it is because it's there to give a second chance to people who died in despair. The town is populated by saints to give the best chance to the Haibane to find the connections and meaning they weren't able to in their previous lives. The hand me down items are to promote a sense of humility, so the Haibane don't try to go off and find their meaning in material gain or wealth, everything in the town is geared toward providing them the best opportunity for self actualization on their spiritual journey, finding peace within themselves. It's a marvelous story.
It was an absolute joy to rewatch this series alongside your reactions and to listen to your thoughtful discussions, thank you for making these. This final discussion especially was absolutely amazing, the ending really brings the narrative together and laser-focuses on its main themes and messages. I really appreciate that this series finished on a hopeful note(despite how dark and challenging this ending episode was) and that there is nothing else really to tell in this story, it cycles back around to the next spring and new cocoons appearing. And I like that this time since Rakka already underwent her confrontation with her darkness, she will have an even greater capacity to welcome and help the new Haibanes, and the cycle can continue with hope and peace.
I love this show and this episode especially. That moment when Reki finally manages to ask for help always makes me emotional. Asking for help if you believe you are undeserving of it is incredibly difficult and the series does an amazing job of getting that across. It's one of the ultimate cathartic scenes in all of anime as far as I'm concerned. Anyway, just wanted to drop in on this real quick. I plan on re-watching the show (I re-watch stuff a LOT lol) next year, so I won't be watching your videos just yet so I won't "spoil" myself (kinda dumb considering I obviously know what happens, but re-watching a show myself after several years still hits different than just having watched a reaction to it). But I will definitely be back.
This episode broke me (or maybe healed me) the first time I watched. Reki and Rakka's journey will stick with me. Thank you for you're reaction. Also echoing the person that commented to watch Madoka next, know it's already on your radar but still
It's been quite the journey for this anime, two years or so! I'm glad you enjoyed it, it is one of my all time favorites, and the conclusion is so emotionally satisfying. A happy end and happy continuation for those still in Glie. Some points for this episode written before I watched "BrainDump": 21:31 Reki saying "Sayonara" puts a more final finish on leaving, instead of a more informal "mata ne". The nuance of the word is more "Goodbye, I don't know when I'll see you again". 24:07 I think the room Reki lives in is so indicative of how she views herself - cheerful/helpful on the outside, but a dark mess inside. 24:34 bringing a light, and one Reki gave her. But Reki gave Rakka a lot of of gifts that enabled her to become the one that rescued her. The confidence to confront Reki and not give up, even in the face of the subsequent rejection seen later, her own caring nature, the desire to help and be involved. All of that Reki had a huge part in that development. Reki's Room: I touched on this early in the series, Haibane framed by a window, but usually with light streaming through. In Reki's room, the window is shut and shuttered, closed off. The despair in her painted room is palpable, but even so Reki reveals a tiny glimmer of hope with Rakka, as she opens the window for her. Reki's last hope personified. 27:31 The Kanji for Reki (run over) is fascinating, the radical on the left looks like a wheeled vehicle, just the sort of thing to run you over. Horrible, but that meaning did let Reki remember her dream. 28:08 "I abandoned myself". Way way back when I first watched this, the fan translation was "I threw myself away". Similar in meaning, but I think that was a far more active and forceful way to say it. 29:47 I also think Reki is talking about her past there, but the sense of betrayal (which probably was the reason for her to be on the train tracks) followed her to Glie. Kuramori's leaving was viewed in that light, and I think dropped her into the Circle of Sin she couldn't get out of. "So at some point, I stopped trusting everybody". 31:08 Reki's angry lashing out at Rakka was so hard to take. "But, those eyes", that hard look on Reki's face, and driving Rakka out of the room. Maybe it was to protect Rakka, but I feel she was protecting herself from yet another betrayal, another one who can't stick with me, who can inflict yet more pain. She doesn't know how to let the walls down enough AND deal with the possible pain. Which keeps her from seeking help; as her inner self said, "you never actually asked for help". 34:48 Another window. This one though, as Abe-sensei said, opened by the hand of God. Without that, Rakka would not have found the journal in time. Man, that first entry get me every time. 36:54 When Rakka opens that door again, the supernatural aspects of the story are really on display. Reki's dream world made real, the name tag able to halt Rakka, and the breaking of said tag when Reki passes her final test, being able to trust someone fully. Just an amazing scene. On to Brain Dump!
21:31 The "sayonara" was the same as Kuu used towards the Cafe Kartie owner. 24:34 Reki in the open window, watching Hyouko's fireworks in episode 12, gave the audience hope for the final episode. 27:31 Yes, the left radical 車 means "car". "rekishi" = 轢死, of which 轢 = "run over" and 死 = "death". 28:08 "I threw myself away" is the translation that Google Translate nowadays offers for the original 自分を捨てたんだ. (捨てる (v1) to throw away, to cast aside, to abandon, to resign). There have been extensive fan discussions about whether Reki willingly committed suicide or was just 25:46 "too tired to think". 31:08 Reki's "eyes of stone" when she pushed Rakka out of her "cocoon room" were stunning. (It was Reki who told us in episode 1: "if she can’t break the shell by herself, she won’t grow up to be strong." Reki speaks from experience: 28:38 "This room is a cocoon. I was unable to get out of this dark dream after all." Now we understand why Reki wouldn't let Rakka look into this studio in episode 3.) 35:31 diary (snowmen): "Snowmen made by the Young Feathers. They really show all our characteristics rather well. Nemu's is especially good. " Left to right: Reki (cigarette in mouth), Rakka (twigs indicating "Halo Hair"), Hikari (eyeglasses & ponytail), Kana (shouting with fork & knife - remember episode 1), Nemu (sleeping). 35:33 diary (clock tower): "Kana repaired the clocktower clock! (Kana has) secluded (herself), working the last few days (on the clock,) but finally ended up getting it working. That's a great accomplishment! But now it won't stop ringing... " There is a translation (Kanji + Roumaji + English, with discussions about many lines) of the complete series in the "clock tower" section of the "Old Home Bulletin Board" (OHBB).
This anime is of exceptional quality and has withstood the test of time, continuing to resonate with audiences even after 22 years. I highly recommend that you consider watching Madoka as your next anime selection!
It was fun re-watching it along with you (think I'm in the double digits for re-watches now) and hearing your thoughts and perspective evolve as the mystery unfolded. Thanks!
This will be a "darker" take of the events in Haibane Renmei (including some "frightening magic"), but I will try to back it up with facts from the series itself.
Reki's "original name", i. e. her cocoon dream name, was "reki" based on 轢死 = "rekishi" = "death by being run over and torn apart by a car or train" (English Wikipedia page for this: "Roadkill"). But she didn't (fully) remember her dream, so she could not be given a name by Kuramori. When Reki and Kuramori visited the temple because of this, Washi put his hand on Reki's head - just like he did with Rakka in the Western Woods. My interpretation of this is that Washi needed physical contact to a Haibane to be able to read their cocoon dream from her (partially blocked) memory - in both scenes the conversation deals with the Haibane's dream after this "head-pat". So Washi knew Reki's cocoon name. But Reki would not have had a fair chance to find her way in Glie with this name. Therefore Washi "bent the rules of Glie" and gave Reki her true name instead, hoping that she would "grow into it" and become the stepping stone for the weak. Unfortunaltely, Reki misinterpreted her name in the way you described and "went the wrong path". Washi was desperate about how his intervention to help Reki get her DoF ("I... no, the Haibane Renmei wants...", Washi to Rakka, episode 11) had backfired, and "recruited" 40:23 Rakka as the Bird for Reki (likely breaking some more Renmei rules in the process). And Washi "won his bet": At the crucial moment, Rakka in "tunnel vision mode" 38:57 showed no more concern for her own safety than she did in episode 2 when she "saved" Hikari on the suspension bridge. And Reki was not allowed to move away from the rails by herself! She had to 38:40 "play her bet to the very end" and stay there, to experience that Rakka would indeed save her, that she was not "all alone" when she finally cried for help. The "System of Glie" has turned out to be far from perfect. But what else can we expect when the fate of the new Haibane is placed in the hands of those who failed to make their own Day of Flight?
What happened in episode 1 between Reki finding Rakka's cocoon and Kana plus Hikari arriving at Old Home? Knowing the map of the town of Glie, this isn't difficult to imagine. Reki had run away from the cocoon in sheer excitement (35:37 "The first time I found a cocoon"), jumped on her scooter and drove to the library, telling Nemu to ride home on her bicycle and take Kuu with her (the Cafe Kartie is south of the library and thus lies on Nemu's way back home). Then Reki drove to the clockmaker's shop and told Kana she should get Hikari and ride home together on Kana's bike (we have seen Rakka being transported on both bikes during her search for a job). Now Kana must have suggested to ride home alone while Hikari would ride along on Reki's scooter (like we see it many times 22:33 in the OP sequence) - but Reki replied: "I can't do this, the scooter is only for one person." (Reki had "a license from town" for this scooter, as she told us in episode 5 during her confrontation with Hyouko on the bridge - maybe she cited some rule of the town in her response.) But why did Reki do this? She must have calmed down from her excitement and suddenly understood what this cocoon could mean for her salvation. This was the moment when the idea of 31:31 Reki's bet was born. But in order to implement this, Reki needed time to 36:25 talk to this new Haibane alone (which Rakka remembers only after reading the diary - "what you lost in the dream inside the cocoon cannot be retrieved", Washi to Rakka in the Western Woods, episode 9). Reki had to prevent Hikari or Kana watching her conversation with Rakka-to-be at any cost. Therefore Reki had to be the first one to return to Old Home, and both bicycles with two persons would be a lot slower than Reki on her scooter.
So Reki's narration about her manipulative attempts to earn salvation is basically the truth - this is confirmed by Washi's second story about "Reki the Stepping Stone": 41:25 "This was merely pretense." And Rakka had a bad start, not fully remembering her own dream (an alarming signal for Reki!) and her halo not working properly (thanks to Hikari). But the turning point in this story was the moment when Reki hugged Rakka and took away the scissors from her hand. Reki closed her eyes - and decided that she couldn't consider Rakka her "bet" any longer. Regardless what this would mean for Reki's fate, she couldn't "sacrifice" Rakka for her own salvation (after both Kuramori and Hyouko had almost died while supporting the "cursed" girl - even 41:17 Washi uses 呪い = "curse" in his final story about the Stepping Stone). In this moment she began to honestly support the Newborn just because Rakka needed help that only a "fellow tsumitsuki Haibane" could give her. This scene in Rakka's room, right in the middle of this series, was the beginning of Reki's healing. But Reki couldn't value her own change enough, she was trapped in the Circle of Sin and needed a Bird to find the way out. "Reki is this stepping stone": And in this very moment 41:40 her Ray of Light ascends into the sky. In your reaction to episodes 10+11 you said "You know, Glie is meant to be a stepping stone of a place", leaving me speechless for a moment how well you read the imagery of this series (the "stepping stone" had been shown in episode 6 when Rakka found Kuu's halo).
Who opened the window in Reki's room? It was closed when 24:04 Rakka entered this room, and without it opening Rakka would not have found Reki's diary. When he was asked this question in an interview, the author ABe Yoshitoshi answered: "This was the hand of God." My personal take is that it was the (metaphysical) hand of Kuramori (with exceptional permission by the Wall, allowing Kuramori to fulfill her promise to "be always by Reki's side"), and the air that blew away the cover from the Kuramori painting was Kuu. And all of this would not have happened without "Sleepy Nemu" staying awake this whole night, 41:25 sitting at the table and praying (to whom?) for Reki's salvation. Nemu is 43:32 looking up into the sky on the veranda during the epilogue - now she is free to have her own Day of Flight, and it may be the same with Hyouko who 42:11 no longer needs to hide his Haibane attributes (poor Midori will lose her two best friends, but she may find new friends via more frequent contact with Old Home, including that "frizzy-haired chick"; so much symbolism in this story, like 29:35 Midori throwing a small stone at Reki's head, of all things). Rakka's next job will be "reliable senpai for the twins" (she will not allow Hikari to be the "ring bearer" for them...), and she needs a bit more of "letting go of Kuu" (her final "fall counter" value is 12, after saving Reki and 44:14 falling down the stairs when she found the twins). Hikari's challenge is to learn how to act responsibly, that's what she will need as the "next generation CEO" of Old Home; Kana needs to learn how to be a team player (instead of always shirking community tasks), and Hikari might become Kana's guide for this (as we saw in episode 12 already, and the epilog shows 43:26 Kana treating the Young Feathers quite differently from episode 1).
Why do Haibane get wings and halos? We've seen the function of the wings in the case of two tsumitsuki Haibane: They are a window of this Haibane's soul, thus 27:48 showing them (and everyone else!) whether they are on the right track to their Day of Flight. The halo has a double function: On one hand it protects the Haibane from accidently dying (like when falling from a factory platform, a suspension bridge, a 29:25 high ladder, or into a deep well), but it also keeps the Haibane inside Glie (that's why Rakka found Kuu's "burned out" halo at the stepping stone). And remember that these halos are build from light leaves, i. e. they are made of "Wall substance" - they are effectively a mobile part of the wall for each Haibane. Can we say that these light leaves are the physical manifestation of "love"? (For these light leaves, named "kouhaku" (with a long "o"), there is an "almost homonym" 琥珀 = "kohaku" (with a short "o") meaning "amber" - which would have the same color as Hyouko's fireworks.)
Congratulations on reaching the end of my very favourite anime! It's been lovely to revisit it alongside you. Your analysis has been really spot-on! The comment about the things that can't be said with words, and therefore aren't, that's a really good one. There's a quote from Shimeji Simulation (same creator as Girls Last Tour) that I can't find, something like. "Compared to books that are loud with restless meaning, music and poetry are profoundly silent." Yes, the show really does fantastically at making you believe it's not gonna end as happily as it does. Yet at the same time, we can see in retrospect every element that was leading up to it - everything but the lucky gust of wind to point Rakka to Reki's diary, up to and including the window being open to receive it (oh hey, thematic), was established beforehand. I think that's part of why it's considered - why I consider it - such a special story. It doesn't *push* you into healing, but rather leads by example. Looking forward to the next one!
This show is one of those hidden gems that is sometimes overlooked. I'm very pleased at how good it is.
Glad you enjoyed the series! It's probably my favorite anime of all time. Just a really good story, very well paced, relaxing but with fairly deep themes. I was surprised at how suspicious you were that there was going to be some sinister undertone coming around the corner at any moment lol. But ultimately it's a story about redemption. The town is the way it is because it's there to give a second chance to people who died in despair. The town is populated by saints to give the best chance to the Haibane to find the connections and meaning they weren't able to in their previous lives. The hand me down items are to promote a sense of humility, so the Haibane don't try to go off and find their meaning in material gain or wealth, everything in the town is geared toward providing them the best opportunity for self actualization on their spiritual journey, finding peace within themselves. It's a marvelous story.
It was an absolute joy to rewatch this series alongside your reactions and to listen to your thoughtful discussions, thank you for making these. This final discussion especially was absolutely amazing, the ending really brings the narrative together and laser-focuses on its main themes and messages. I really appreciate that this series finished on a hopeful note(despite how dark and challenging this ending episode was) and that there is nothing else really to tell in this story, it cycles back around to the next spring and new cocoons appearing. And I like that this time since Rakka already underwent her confrontation with her darkness, she will have an even greater capacity to welcome and help the new Haibanes, and the cycle can continue with hope and peace.
I love this show and this episode especially. That moment when Reki finally manages to ask for help always makes me emotional. Asking for help if you believe you are undeserving of it is incredibly difficult and the series does an amazing job of getting that across. It's one of the ultimate cathartic scenes in all of anime as far as I'm concerned.
Anyway, just wanted to drop in on this real quick. I plan on re-watching the show (I re-watch stuff a LOT lol) next year, so I won't be watching your videos just yet so I won't "spoil" myself (kinda dumb considering I obviously know what happens, but re-watching a show myself after several years still hits different than just having watched a reaction to it). But I will definitely be back.
This episode broke me (or maybe healed me) the first time I watched. Reki and Rakka's journey will stick with me.
Thank you for you're reaction. Also echoing the person that commented to watch Madoka next, know it's already on your radar but still
It's been quite the journey for this anime, two years or so! I'm glad you enjoyed it, it is one of my all time favorites, and the conclusion is so emotionally satisfying. A happy end and happy continuation for those still in Glie. Some points for this episode written before I watched "BrainDump":
21:31 Reki saying "Sayonara" puts a more final finish on leaving, instead of a more informal "mata ne". The nuance of the word is more "Goodbye, I don't know when I'll see you again".
24:07 I think the room Reki lives in is so indicative of how she views herself - cheerful/helpful on the outside, but a dark mess inside.
24:34 bringing a light, and one Reki gave her. But Reki gave Rakka a lot of of gifts that enabled her to become the one that rescued her. The confidence to confront Reki and not give up, even in the face of the subsequent rejection seen later, her own caring nature, the desire to help and be involved. All of that Reki had a huge part in that development.
Reki's Room: I touched on this early in the series, Haibane framed by a window, but usually with light streaming through. In Reki's room, the window is shut and shuttered, closed off. The despair in her painted room is palpable, but even so Reki reveals a tiny glimmer of hope with Rakka, as she opens the window for her. Reki's last hope personified.
27:31 The Kanji for Reki (run over) is fascinating, the radical on the left looks like a wheeled vehicle, just the sort of thing to run you over. Horrible, but that meaning did let Reki remember her dream.
28:08 "I abandoned myself". Way way back when I first watched this, the fan translation was "I threw myself away". Similar in meaning, but I think that was a far more active and forceful way to say it.
29:47 I also think Reki is talking about her past there, but the sense of betrayal (which probably was the reason for her to be on the train tracks) followed her to Glie. Kuramori's leaving was viewed in that light, and I think dropped her into the Circle of Sin she couldn't get out of. "So at some point, I stopped trusting everybody".
31:08 Reki's angry lashing out at Rakka was so hard to take. "But, those eyes", that hard look on Reki's face, and driving Rakka out of the room. Maybe it was to protect Rakka, but I feel she was protecting herself from yet another betrayal, another one who can't stick with me, who can inflict yet more pain. She doesn't know how to let the walls down enough AND deal with the possible pain. Which keeps her from seeking help; as her inner self said, "you never actually asked for help".
34:48 Another window. This one though, as Abe-sensei said, opened by the hand of God. Without that, Rakka would not have found the journal in time. Man, that first entry get me every time.
36:54 When Rakka opens that door again, the supernatural aspects of the story are really on display. Reki's dream world made real, the name tag able to halt Rakka, and the breaking of said tag when Reki passes her final test, being able to trust someone fully. Just an amazing scene.
On to Brain Dump!
21:31 The "sayonara" was the same as Kuu used towards the Cafe Kartie owner.
24:34 Reki in the open window, watching Hyouko's fireworks in episode 12, gave the audience hope for the final episode.
27:31 Yes, the left radical 車 means "car". "rekishi" = 轢死, of which 轢 = "run over" and 死 = "death".
28:08 "I threw myself away" is the translation that Google Translate nowadays offers for the original 自分を捨てたんだ. (捨てる (v1) to throw away, to cast aside, to abandon, to resign). There have been extensive fan discussions about whether Reki willingly committed suicide or was just 25:46 "too tired to think".
31:08 Reki's "eyes of stone" when she pushed Rakka out of her "cocoon room" were stunning. (It was Reki who told us in episode 1: "if she can’t break the shell by herself, she won’t grow up to be strong." Reki speaks from experience: 28:38 "This room is a cocoon. I was unable to get out of this dark dream after all." Now we understand why Reki wouldn't let Rakka look into this studio in episode 3.)
35:31 diary (snowmen): "Snowmen made by the Young Feathers. They really show all our characteristics rather well. Nemu's is especially good. " Left to right: Reki (cigarette in mouth), Rakka (twigs indicating "Halo Hair"), Hikari (eyeglasses & ponytail), Kana (shouting with fork & knife - remember episode 1), Nemu (sleeping).
35:33 diary (clock tower): "Kana repaired the clocktower clock! (Kana has) secluded (herself), working the last few days (on the clock,) but finally ended up getting it working. That's a great accomplishment! But now it won't stop ringing... "
There is a translation (Kanji + Roumaji + English, with discussions about many lines) of the complete series in the "clock tower" section of the "Old Home Bulletin Board" (OHBB).
This anime is of exceptional quality and has withstood the test of time, continuing to resonate with audiences even after 22 years.
I highly recommend that you consider watching Madoka as your next anime selection!
It was fun re-watching it along with you (think I'm in the double digits for re-watches now) and hearing your thoughts and perspective evolve as the mystery unfolded. Thanks!
This will be a "darker" take of the events in Haibane Renmei (including some "frightening magic"), but I will try to back it up with facts from the series itself.
Reki's "original name", i. e. her cocoon dream name, was "reki" based on 轢死 = "rekishi" = "death by being run over and torn apart by a car or train" (English Wikipedia page for this: "Roadkill"). But she didn't (fully) remember her dream, so she could not be given a name by Kuramori.
When Reki and Kuramori visited the temple because of this, Washi put his hand on Reki's head - just like he did with Rakka in the Western Woods. My interpretation of this is that Washi needed physical contact to a Haibane to be able to read their cocoon dream from her (partially blocked) memory - in both scenes the conversation deals with the Haibane's dream after this "head-pat". So Washi knew Reki's cocoon name. But Reki would not have had a fair chance to find her way in Glie with this name. Therefore Washi "bent the rules of Glie" and gave Reki her true name instead, hoping that she would "grow into it" and become the stepping stone for the weak.
Unfortunaltely, Reki misinterpreted her name in the way you described and "went the wrong path". Washi was desperate about how his intervention to help Reki get her DoF ("I... no, the Haibane Renmei wants...", Washi to Rakka, episode 11) had backfired, and "recruited" 40:23 Rakka as the Bird for Reki (likely breaking some more Renmei rules in the process). And Washi "won his bet": At the crucial moment, Rakka in "tunnel vision mode" 38:57 showed no more concern for her own safety than she did in episode 2 when she "saved" Hikari on the suspension bridge. And Reki was not allowed to move away from the rails by herself! She had to 38:40 "play her bet to the very end" and stay there, to experience that Rakka would indeed save her, that she was not "all alone" when she finally cried for help.
The "System of Glie" has turned out to be far from perfect. But what else can we expect when the fate of the new Haibane is placed in the hands of those who failed to make their own Day of Flight?
What happened in episode 1 between Reki finding Rakka's cocoon and Kana plus Hikari arriving at Old Home? Knowing the map of the town of Glie, this isn't difficult to imagine. Reki had run away from the cocoon in sheer excitement (35:37 "The first time I found a cocoon"), jumped on her scooter and drove to the library, telling Nemu to ride home on her bicycle and take Kuu with her (the Cafe Kartie is south of the library and thus lies on Nemu's way back home). Then Reki drove to the clockmaker's shop and told Kana she should get Hikari and ride home together on Kana's bike (we have seen Rakka being transported on both bikes during her search for a job).
Now Kana must have suggested to ride home alone while Hikari would ride along on Reki's scooter (like we see it many times 22:33 in the OP sequence) - but Reki replied: "I can't do this, the scooter is only for one person." (Reki had "a license from town" for this scooter, as she told us in episode 5 during her confrontation with Hyouko on the bridge - maybe she cited some rule of the town in her response.) But why did Reki do this? She must have calmed down from her excitement and suddenly understood what this cocoon could mean for her salvation. This was the moment when the idea of 31:31 Reki's bet was born. But in order to implement this, Reki needed time to 36:25 talk to this new Haibane alone (which Rakka remembers only after reading the diary - "what you lost in the dream inside the cocoon cannot be retrieved", Washi to Rakka in the Western Woods, episode 9). Reki had to prevent Hikari or Kana watching her conversation with Rakka-to-be at any cost. Therefore Reki had to be the first one to return to Old Home, and both bicycles with two persons would be a lot slower than Reki on her scooter.
So Reki's narration about her manipulative attempts to earn salvation is basically the truth - this is confirmed by Washi's second story about "Reki the Stepping Stone": 41:25 "This was merely pretense." And Rakka had a bad start, not fully remembering her own dream (an alarming signal for Reki!) and her halo not working properly (thanks to Hikari). But the turning point in this story was the moment when Reki hugged Rakka and took away the scissors from her hand. Reki closed her eyes - and decided that she couldn't consider Rakka her "bet" any longer. Regardless what this would mean for Reki's fate, she couldn't "sacrifice" Rakka for her own salvation (after both Kuramori and Hyouko had almost died while supporting the "cursed" girl - even 41:17 Washi uses 呪い = "curse" in his final story about the Stepping Stone). In this moment she began to honestly support the Newborn just because Rakka needed help that only a "fellow tsumitsuki Haibane" could give her. This scene in Rakka's room, right in the middle of this series, was the beginning of Reki's healing. But Reki couldn't value her own change enough, she was trapped in the Circle of Sin and needed a Bird to find the way out.
"Reki is this stepping stone": And in this very moment 41:40 her Ray of Light ascends into the sky. In your reaction to episodes 10+11 you said "You know, Glie is meant to be a stepping stone of a place", leaving me speechless for a moment how well you read the imagery of this series (the "stepping stone" had been shown in episode 6 when Rakka found Kuu's halo).
Who opened the window in Reki's room? It was closed when 24:04 Rakka entered this room, and without it opening Rakka would not have found Reki's diary. When he was asked this question in an interview, the author ABe Yoshitoshi answered: "This was the hand of God." My personal take is that it was the (metaphysical) hand of Kuramori (with exceptional permission by the Wall, allowing Kuramori to fulfill her promise to "be always by Reki's side"), and the air that blew away the cover from the Kuramori painting was Kuu. And all of this would not have happened without "Sleepy Nemu" staying awake this whole night, 41:25 sitting at the table and praying (to whom?) for Reki's salvation.
Nemu is 43:32 looking up into the sky on the veranda during the epilogue - now she is free to have her own Day of Flight, and it may be the same with Hyouko who 42:11 no longer needs to hide his Haibane attributes (poor Midori will lose her two best friends, but she may find new friends via more frequent contact with Old Home, including that "frizzy-haired chick"; so much symbolism in this story, like 29:35 Midori throwing a small stone at Reki's head, of all things).
Rakka's next job will be "reliable senpai for the twins" (she will not allow Hikari to be the "ring bearer" for them...), and she needs a bit more of "letting go of Kuu" (her final "fall counter" value is 12, after saving Reki and 44:14 falling down the stairs when she found the twins). Hikari's challenge is to learn how to act responsibly, that's what she will need as the "next generation CEO" of Old Home; Kana needs to learn how to be a team player (instead of always shirking community tasks), and Hikari might become Kana's guide for this (as we saw in episode 12 already, and the epilog shows 43:26 Kana treating the Young Feathers quite differently from episode 1).
Why do Haibane get wings and halos? We've seen the function of the wings in the case of two tsumitsuki Haibane: They are a window of this Haibane's soul, thus 27:48 showing them (and everyone else!) whether they are on the right track to their Day of Flight. The halo has a double function: On one hand it protects the Haibane from accidently dying (like when falling from a factory platform, a suspension bridge, a 29:25 high ladder, or into a deep well), but it also keeps the Haibane inside Glie (that's why Rakka found Kuu's "burned out" halo at the stepping stone). And remember that these halos are build from light leaves, i. e. they are made of "Wall substance" - they are effectively a mobile part of the wall for each Haibane. Can we say that these light leaves are the physical manifestation of "love"? (For these light leaves, named "kouhaku" (with a long "o"), there is an "almost homonym" 琥珀 = "kohaku" (with a short "o") meaning "amber" - which would have the same color as Hyouko's fireworks.)
Congratulations on reaching the end of my very favourite anime! It's been lovely to revisit it alongside you. Your analysis has been really spot-on!
The comment about the things that can't be said with words, and therefore aren't, that's a really good one. There's a quote from Shimeji Simulation (same creator as Girls Last Tour) that I can't find, something like. "Compared to books that are loud with restless meaning, music and poetry are profoundly silent."
Yes, the show really does fantastically at making you believe it's not gonna end as happily as it does. Yet at the same time, we can see in retrospect every element that was leading up to it - everything but the lucky gust of wind to point Rakka to Reki's diary, up to and including the window being open to receive it (oh hey, thematic), was established beforehand. I think that's part of why it's considered - why I consider it - such a special story. It doesn't *push* you into healing, but rather leads by example.
Looking forward to the next one!