Ave Mujica – The Die is Cast – Ep. 3

I’m already committed to watching Ave Mujica in its entirety but I must say, if I was going by the three episode rule, this show would certainly have succeeded. I don’t know what it is with the recent Bandori series, but they’re two for two on having a very strong and very evocative third episode.

So to save face after Mutsumi panics and collapses onstage, Sakiko improvises some dialogue that frames it all as a part of Mujica’s performance (which I probably should pay more attention to). The audience buys into the lie but I don’t know, you’d think they’d still feel a little ripped off to see the concert end prematurely. While I have to hand it to Sakiko for managing to salvage the show, her decision does create the problem of downplaying Mutsumi’s mental health and not really addressing it. This becomes increasingly apparent as the episode progresses and see how both the audience and the other members of Mujica treat Mutsumi.

After the concert, Mutsumi begins to hallucinate a one woman play about herself, with her Mortis persona serving as the host (that may or may not be foreshadowing). This as well as some other hallucinations that happen later is easily the best part of the episode. It reminds me of the first-person perspective used in MyGO‘s third episode, a surprising yet very creative choice that adds to the writing of the episode. In the play, Mortis narrates how Mutsumi struggles with the expectations of following in her celebrity parents’ footsteps and that she gravitated towards playing guitar because it’s an interest that’s entirely her own. I really like the choice of presenting Mutsumi’s family life as a doll house, as if to say that Mutsumi feels like nothing more than her parents’ possession or an object with no sense of agency for themselves.

Perhaps the most interesting part of the play is when it starts to explore her time in CRYCHIC. As Motris explains, Mutsumi’s shyness holds her back in expressing herself with her guitar. So when she was a part of CRYCHIC, she could not help but feel overshadowed by her bandmates. Knowing that, I finally get why she told the others that she never liked being in the band. Mortris also elaborates that Mutsumi blames herself for CRYCHIC’s breakup, particularly with how it affected Sakiko. Mutsumi admitting to her bandmates that she hates the band helped Sakiko quit the band but because of her comment, it created the rift the former members now have and it’s played a part in the current state Sakiko is in. In hindsight, Mutsumi did more harm than good and that has since riddled her with guilt.

You know, I was hoping for this show to turn around with Nyamu, who I’ve frankly been finding unpleasant. Maybe that’ll happen later in the show but that’s clearly not the case in Episode 3. Nyamu has yet to feel any remorse for her actions, let alone how it’s affected Mutsumi. If anything, you have Nyamu still trying to take advantage of Mutsumi. In one scene, Nyamu asks Mutsumi to quit Mujica with her and instead perform together, having noticed that Mutsumi’s popularity is giving her a bump in views. I get that Nyamu will do whatever she wants to get more famous but it really bothers me how she treats Mutsumi. Things get even worse when Umiri brings up that people are requesting for Mutsumi to replicate her collapse in future events. While Mutsumi is indecisive and Sakiko is against the idea, Nyamu is for it, arguing that it’s important for the band to appeal to the crowd. Under a normal circumstance, I’d say Nyamu raises a valid point. But since Nyamu is more or less encouraging Mutsumi to further deteriorate her mental health, I can’t help but think she’s being a really crappy person here. I want to reserve full judgment on Nyamu since, you know, I’m only three episodes into the show. But man, is Nyamu not making it any easier.

Mutsumi’s indecision causes her bandmates to argue on what’s best for her and the band. The infighting of course reminds Mutsumi of CRYCHIC’s breakup (though if I’m being honest, I’m starting to think CRYCHIC was a lot less dysfunctional than this). In her head, Mortis warns her that her mental health will only continue to worsen if she stays in Mujica though this argument only makes Mutsumi even more indecisive as she’s still compelled to stay for Sakiko’s case. Perhaps it’s fitting then Mutsumi breaks again when Sakiko lashes out at her over her behavior. I don’t want to be too mad at Sakiko because she’s clearly not in the right headspace either and she’s not entirely wrong that Mutsumi is creating problems for the band. That said, she completely screws the pooch here. Pinning all the blame on Mutsumi and making the conversation more about herself. It’s just not the way to go.

The ending of the episode is really interesting, albeit very concerning as well. Right before making a live appearance on TV, Mutsumi hallucinates one last moment with Mortis. This time, Mortis offers to take her place, resulting in Mutsumi expressing a different personality on camera. There’s a great visual here, where Mortis actually turns into a monster that then consumes Mutsumi whole in order to take control of her. It’s not terribly graphic but it manages to still unnerve because of how surreal it is. I never would’ve imagined this ever happening in Bandori, even as the franchise upped the drama with MyGO, but I stand corrected. What also gets me is the potential ramifications of this moment. Is Mutsumi effectively “dead” and we’ll be dealing with Mortis for the rest of the show or at least until the end? How is the rest of the band going to deal with this new personality of hers? It’s funny, Mutsumi represses herself and lets Mortis take the wheel so that the band doesn’t break up but I get the feeling that might not be the case.

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Watch Ave Mujica – The Die is Cast – on Crunchyroll