#Spence does Essays (Given Edition)

[essayist-unexpectedly]

Mafuyu and Ugetsu: Friendly Foils

Within Given, an unexpected - yet sweet - friendship forms between Mafuyu Sato and Ugetsu Murata. While their friendship may have been unconventional at first, the duo manage to bring out the best in each other, while also highlighting some of the worst - at least in terms of their relationships as well as their reactions to love and heartbreak. After all, it is with each other that they are able to find someone who resonates with their pain and heartbreak, and it is because of each other that they are able to realize how they need to move forward. Within the broken shards of each other, Mafuyu and Ugetsu manage to find themselves, and repair what they thought was broken, all while being the perfect foils.

The friendship between Mafuyu and Ugetsu both makes perfect sense, and also no sense at all. These reasons are all what lead to them being such beautiful foils. From their personalities, their talent with music, issues when it comes to communication, and how they handle their respective relationships - which may not sound true, but when looking at it through the lens of them being foils, can be seen. Also, shoutout to the author of Given for making the foils friends instead of enemies or something, thank you Natsuki Kizu, you beautiful soul.

One of the most common ways to identify foils is through their personalities. Foils will often have similar - if not the same - personalities as each other but with opposite emphasis, as the protagonist's traits will be made good based on the foils’. In a few ways, Mafuyu and Ugetsu have mirroring personalities. They are both awkward, antisocial, and blunt to list a few. One of the big ways they differ is that Ugetsu seems to mask some of these traits, often appearing a lot more socially adjusted than Mafuyu has ever had to be. That does not change the existence of these traits though. Ugetsu outright admits that he has no friends to Mafuyu, he doesn’t seem to really interact with many people - the main ones being Akihiko, Mafuyu, random hook-ups, and whoever he’s performing with. Not too much evidence of there being an otherwise thriving social life for him. Ugetsu being blunt is also pretty evident, even if it’s not the nicest. He’s always honest about music though, as well as what he thinks of people and situations. None of these traits are portrayed in the most kind way though. Rather his antisocial personality can be seen as part of what led to his toxic relationship with Akihiko. His bluntness is outright rude quite often, which pushes people away, and really, that does seem to be his plan to some degree, but it’s still a negative way to give out this trait.

In comparison, Mafuyu has all of these traits but seems to be shown in a better light - as though they’re part of his charm more than why he’s problematic. Mafuyu is antisocial. In the past he appeared to have three friends (Yuki, Hiiragi, and Shizusumi), and now he seems to have upgraded to a grand total of six (Uenoyama, Hiiragi, Shizusumi, Akihiko, Haruki, and Ugetsu). Yes, Mafuyu does appear to be more social at the ending at their graduation, as well as in the 10 year mix, but for the majority of the manga he isn’t someone who socialises too much. In terms of being awkward, Mafuyu is bad at connection. He doesn’t always manage to say what he means to and he can be a little stiff in terms of interaction. Finally, Mafuyu can also be blunt - when he does speak, he speaks his mind. He is nervous enough that it overloads anything but the need to get the words out, making him blunt. Again, all of these are traits that the duo share, the difference is simply how they appear with the character. Mafuyu is shown in the light that he should be, especially with his history, as a teenager who doesn’t know how to properly connect because of past trauma. In comparison, Ugetsu is shown to use these traits as a defence and a weapon, which isn’t too bad, but it also makes him quite negative as the reader isn’t given as much information as to why Ugetsu is this way.

Another similarity between them is their talent for music. Both Ugetsu and Mafuyu are often regarded as prodigies with their music. Ugetsu is a famous violinist, regarded for his high level playing in spite of his young age. Mafuyu is part of the up and coming band Given, being their lyricist and singer, as well as playing rhythm guitar. Between Akihiko’s perspective as well as Ugetsu’s own perspective and career, it’s easy to tell that Ugetsu is indeed an amazing musician. According to Akihiko, Ugetsu is the first prodigy that he had ever met. This conclusion was reached after the two of them had competed against each other and Ugetsu took first place - which he had been doing in competitions across not only Japan, but also other countries. This skill only grew with time, as Ugetsu is now a concert violinist who is known around the world for his beautiful performances. Thus, Ugetsu earns and maintains his being a prodigy with his violin, allowing for the budding talent of Mafuyu to reflect this role.

Meanwhile Mafuyu only just started learning guitar and doesn’t exactly shine with it, there is no denying that his true potential flares when he is singing - and within his lyrics. In spite of only recently starting to do music, Mafuyu shows an immense inclination towards singing, songwriting, and is able to come up with melodies - as it is him who was known to hum the melody for Fuyu No Hanashi before Uenoyama fully fleshed it out. At that, it’s no recent thing, as in the ‘To the Sea’ short, Mafuyu asks Yuki what he’s humming, to which Yuki replies that it was the song that Mafuyu himself would constantly hum. From this, it could be seen as Mafuyu having a talent for music for a while now, and when he joined Given, he was finally given a place and chance to grow as a musician. It is with his growth that Mafuyu is called a prodigy, even earning the nickname “the kid with the song” by his fellow prodigy, Ugetsu. To make this less of them being parallels and getting more into foil territory, one could see how their being prodigies affects those around them. Mafuyu being an amazing lyricist and singer is definitely a positive thing. Once he joins Given and becomes their singer, the band is able to move further with their music instead of being just an instrumental band. That’s not to say being an instrumental band is bad, it never is in any genre of music, but having a singer is something that the other members clearly end up appreciating, and Mafuyu is seen as an amazing addition who furthers the bands talent. On the other hand, Ugetsu’s prodigal talent isn’t always given the same light - especially not with Akihiko’s story. Ugetsu’s prodigy status is part of why Akihiko lost his drive for violin, he thought he would never live up to the other’s talent. Even the phrasing when it came to describing Ugetsu’s winning streak was “From abroad, a genius has arrived - securing consecutive wins, as if to tear apart and destroy the dreams of this talented junior” (Given volume 4). This quote completely shows not only Ugetsu how immensely talented he was at that age, but also how Akihiko thought of him as someone who could just crush the dreams of any other aspiring violinists. The prodigy status that Ugetsu has undoubtedly earned is portrayed in a negative light to destroy soloists, unlike how Mafuyu’s is more of a guiding light for the band.

The next way that the two are definitely foils is their relationships - specifically their romantic relationships. Both Mafuyu and Ugetsu are people who struggle to communicate and find themselves tangled up in their pasts when it comes to relationships. With Ugetsu, this means that he doesn’t know how to properly communicate an ending to him and Akihiko, in spite of knowing that they’re terrible for each other, which goes hand in hand with his holding onto the past by staying with Akihiko out of not wanting to be alone. For Mafuyu, this is very much the same, he is unable to communicate properly with Uenoyama at times, which in part comes from his previous relationship with Yuki. The main difference here comes with the fact that Uenoyama and Mafuyu are able to work through this and learn, whereas Ugetsu and Akihiko had absolutely no hope of fixing their problems. For Ugetsu and Akihiko, their relationship is just purely toxic on both ends. The two know that they’re awful for each other - with Ugetsu keeping Akihiko physically close, but not emotionally connecting, and Akihiko constantly staying, refusing to leave when Ugetsu pushes - but neither want to let go of the first person who they connected to. With Ugetsu and Akihiko, their communication is awful because they don’t actually want to talk about their issues, as that means they would have to acknowledge that they’re terrible together. Ugetsu is afraid of being alone, afraid of having the one consistent person within his life leave because he would be happier elsewhere. Basically, Ugetsu and Akihiko had a push (Ugetsu) and pull (Akihiko) relationship where they were too focused on their past connection to want to communicate how they were hurting each other, which is what resulted in their breakup. The two were not a sustainable relationship, whereas Uenoyama and Mafuyu face similar issues, but still come out on top.

Mafuyu and Uenoyama are both teens who heavily struggle to communicate with each other, it’s an issue that leads to them both feeling insecure and even abandoned at times within their relationship. On Mafuyu’s end, the inability to communicate can be seen as being rooted in his past with Yuki - who grew up with him and could usually understand him even without too much verbal communication. It is after Yuki’s death though that Mafuyu retreats into himself, and struggles with connecting to other people, until he meets Uenoyama, who manages to connect to him through music. The two struggle from the beginning with their communication, but that’s fine, they’re still teenagers and they manage to work through it - sometimes alone, sometimes with the push of other people. Really, it doesn’t matter how the two work through their issues, what matters is that fact that Uenoyama and Mafuyu do want to communicate and figure out how to move forward, if they didn’t want to fix things, then they likely wouldn’t have communicated even when pushed to do so, or else the outcome of their talks wouldn’t have been that they are continuing to date. Mafuyu and Uenoyama positively contrast Ugetsu and Akihiko thanks to them being more willing to communicate and acknowledge the issues that are coming up in their relationship. The way that their relationships turn out by the end of the manga is a great show of Ugetsu and Mafuyu being foils, with Ugetsu’s ending and Mafuyu’s finding a way to continue. Luckily, this part being a foil doesn’t mean that Ugetsu is left unhappy after the ending of him and Akihiko, like he is still allowed to be happy, which may slightly lessen him being a foil as typically a foil doesn’t get the happiest ending, but both Ugetsu and Mafuyu get to be happy, even if it’s thanks to their relationship statuses being opposites.

The final way that they are foils is within how music and relationships work for the two of them. After all, Ugetsu and Akihiko failed because of music - namely Akihiko’s self doubt and loss of passion for violin being paired with Ugetsu’s pride and inability to value a romantic relationship over his career as a concert violinist. Meanwhile, Mafuyu and Uenoyama were only able to succeed because they have music, they communicate within music and through music, pushing and pulling each other as they manage to say what they need to either through or because of music. This point is really an accumulation of the prodigy point as well as the relationship point, but it’s still very interesting and deserves its own spotlight. Music is the direct breaking point for Ugetsu’s relationship, while being what keeps Mafuyu’s relationship perfectly together. So, just to preface the Ugetsu and Akihiko section of this point - Ugetsu is not at fault for choosing his career over romance, there isn’t a problem with someone valuing and pursuing a career and fame over a romantic relationship. That isn’t the issue on Ugetsu’s end, rather the issue is that it causes him to be a toxic partner, as he and Akihiko were focused and wanting different things within their relationship. Music drives Akihiko and Ugetsu apart though, due to the fact that Akihiko seemed to want more that Ugetsu could give because of his pursuing a career as a violinist that travels internationally. Again, that really pairs with their push and pull dynamic, but the next part is how music affected them both within their relationship. Akihiko ended up losing his passion for violin when he was around Ugetsu, doubting his own skill because of how amazing the other was. This also gets paired with Ugetsu being a prideful character, this is a man who has been praised and not only knows, but owns how good he is. The pride contrasted with the self doubt made Ugetsu and Akihiko awful for each other as well, as Ugetsu would make comments that tried to tell Akihiko that he should have more confidence in his music, however they always came off wrong, sounding harsh - which only beat down Akihiko more. Music drove Ugetsu and Akihiko apart due to their own flaws and how those flaws would affect the other - oftentimes with Ugetsu as the offender between the two. Another note, this isn’t to say Ugetsu is the only one at fault, Akihiko knew that he and Ugetsu were bad for each other and he saw that they wanted different things in life but wouldn’t walk away, in spite of knowing it would be better for him. Their relationship was built on Akihiko’s admiration and self doubt paired with Ugetsu’s want for love and praise, with all of those emotions and wants surrounding music. Not only is music what made them toxic, but Akihiko and Ugetsu ended their relationship for the final time after Akihiko realised he loved music still and Ugetsu came to another one of Given’s concerts where he could see Akihiko and Haruki interacting, seeing how much Akihiko cared for Haruki. Their relationship starts with a violin competition and ends with a concert - not an orchestra (that would make a very different feeling), but a concert and I honestly cannot think of anything more beautiful than that. But the important thing in terms of foils here is how while music drives apart Akihiko and Ugetsu, it is what connects and completes Uenoyama and Mafuyu.

To put it frankly, there would be no story without music as the string that weaves together Mafuyu and Uenoyama. The two would never have met or at least not have actually connected if it weren’t for Mafuyu asking Uenoyama to teach him how to play the guitar. That day on the stairwell is the reason that the story exists, as Mafuyu reaches out and Uenoyama - albeit reluctantly - meets him in the middle, as he fixes and later agrees to teach the other guitar. This connection through music doesn’t only appear at the beginning, it stays a running theme throughout the series. Mafuyu is best at communicating when he is able to sing what he feels, Uenoyama can always understand what Mafuyu is saying when he sings. This is seen as going both ways even, as at the end of the series, Uenoyama manages to connect with Mafuyu even more after he plays with SYH. The two not only connect, but also find completion within music and each other. Mafuyu finds a passion for music, which he was said or at least implied to have not liked due to it coming between him and Yuki, as well as finding a voice and a way to heal. Uenoyama’s passion reignites when he plays for and with Mafuyu, lessening his burnt out gifted kid position in the band, he also discovers his sexuality thanks to Mafuyu, which wouldn’t have happened had they not played together in Given. It is within music that Mafuyu and Uenoyama are best at communicating with each other, they connect, and they complete each other as they realise that they want to play together, want to make a life with each other and music. Again, this is just such a beautiful way to make music and it impacts a foil between Mafuyu and Ugetsu, they are so different as music brings together and tears apart their relationships. 

Overall, Ugetsu and Mafuyu manage to be wonderfully crafted foils. They have so many parallels but they’re portrayed in such conflicting ways, it’s amazing to see and think about the thought that went into them. Yet, the two are portrayed as great friends as well, with Mafuyu being a confidant for Ugetsu, who does his best to support him in turn. They also praise each others music - Mafuyu being one of the people who congratulates Ugetsu when he sees he’s doing well (also being the only person who Ugetsu immediately replies to), while Ugetsu full on encourages Mafuyu to stick with music, knowing how good the younger is. The two started out a little more accidental and awkward as a duo, but they do indeed get along swimmingly, and it’s just really refreshing to see the two together. They aren’t people who connect easily, they aren’t amazing at communication, and they hurt people they love as much as they try not to. But it doesn’t make them bad people, as seen throughout the whole manga with Mafuyu, and understood with Ugetsu as his story unfolds. They’re foils, showing off the worst traits, but also bringing out some of the better once paired with each other. Loyal and steadfast, Mafuyu and Ugetsu manage to show the beauty of friendly foils.

[essayist-unexpectedly]

Love, Codependency, and the Accidental Toxicity of Mafuyu and Yuki

While Given is centred around Mafuyu and Uenoyama’s relationship, the lasting impacts of Mafuyu’s romance with Yuki are undeniable. The relationship between Yuki and Mafuyu was one from childhood that grew and evolved with them, eventually landing them in a romantic relationship. While some think that the two were made for each, one character being Hiiragi, a childhood friend who watched the duo evolve, however there can be another viewpoint to this. The other implication when reading Given can be the idea of codependency between Yuki and Mafuyu.

Codependency is defined as “excessive emotional or psychological reliance on a partner, typically one who requires support on account of an illness or addiction” by the Oxford Dictionary, as “a psychological condition or a relationship in which a person manifesting low self-esteem and a strong desire for approval has an unhealthy attachment to another person and places the needs of that person before his or her own” by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, and finally as “a relationship is when each person involved is mentally, emotionally, physically, and/or spiritually reliant on the other” by the VeryWell Mind website. While all varying, these definitions all seem to agree that codependency is an unhealthy/excessive psychological reliance on another person, often with negative reasons and consequences. Going forward with this definition created from the previous definitions, it could be seen that Mafuyu and Yuki were codependent on each other, rather than just a one sided codependency, like some people experience.

One of the first hints to Yuki and Mafuyu being codependent comes from their constant being together. From the moment that they meet up until they go to different high schools, Mafuyu and Yuki are known to always be together. Even if the two weren’t directly interacting, they are consistently within each other's radius, easily within sight of each other. When appropriate, the duo would also be touching, leaning on each other, or holding each other, really whatever touch could happen in the moment. While the constant togetherness and touch may not seem too serious, it is important to remember that codependency is reliance on another person. Their consistency and wanting to be together constantly is possibly a subtle but real sign of codependency.

The next sign is their general relationship with each other. The two were childhood friends to lovers, a trope that can be built on drama and love triangles, but in this case seemed to be a natural progression between the two characters. Yuki found Mafuyu when they were young children, likely around the age of 5, give or take a year. As the two grew up, they also grew together, becoming intertwined together, becoming inseparable. The duo were almost always together, and with that they also grew to have ‘complimentary’ personalities, as Mafuyu was a quiet and small presence while Yuki was a loud and massive personality. The duo seemed to mold themselves to fit into each other, creating a reliance for the other to be what they were not. One such way this would create a reliance is them needing each other to bounce off of. This is meant as in Mafuyu needing Yuki to speak for him and bring a sense of loudness, of life and excitement for him, while Yuki needed Mafuyu to provide a quiet and reliable space for him, someone to listen and be consistent. Not only do the two seem to have become what the other needed, but another part is their communication. The partners seem to have developed communication that didn’t always require speaking, at least when they were younger. The two seemed to be able to understand each other, understand what the other needed, and it made them even more suited for each other. Every factor of how the two were weaved together throughout their life contributed to the codependence that the two appear to share. It was the evolution from children to young teens together in such similar and at times lonely situations that caused them to grow so close, and likely so reliant on each other for a certain stability and love that they both needed, showcasing the psychological effects of codependency.

Another point towards their relationship being unhealthily dependent is Hiiragi’s view of their relationship. In some ways, Hiiragi seems to view the two as a perfect love story, perfect harmony, due to how they seem to compliment and grow with each other. In some ways, Hiiragi appears to consider Yuki and Mafuyu as perfect for each other. It was Hiiragi who, in the manga, called Yuki a “dominating and moody” person, while claiming Mafuyu to be “submissive and reserved” in terms of personality. It was observed by Hiiragi that Yuki seemed wholly and purely in love with Mafuyu. Through the chapters where Hiiragi narrates his own view on the two, there is a rose-tinted glasses look at the duo. Every character holds a bias when it comes to memories of Yuki as well as his relationship with Mafuyu, with mayhaps Shizusumi being the least biased of the old group. It is because of this bias though that Hiiragi’s view feels like he considers the two to be true love and harmony in romance, he idolised Yuki, and always cared for Mafuyu, making it difficult to point out any flaws in their relationship because of this care. It also seems that Hiiragi, likely accidentally, can be used to point out how close they were, and how reliant they were. Hiiragi stated that “Yuki needed Mafuyu, and Mafuyu needed Yuki” within episode 8 of the anime. The use of the word needed specifically is what matters so much. To claim that they needed each other, Hiiragi was admitting that it wasn’t as simple as them wanting to be together, it wasn’t as much of a choice or a want, but rather the word need has a more definitive feeling, they had to be together, never straying far or else they would suffer - which ended up being true. The truth of Hiiragi saying they needed each other was realised when Mafuyu went to a different high school and Yuki got a job, distancing them. And everything comes together during their fight, which Hiiragi and Shizusumi were witnesses to. This fight is another time where one can spot Hiiragi’s rose-tinted view of Mafuyu and Yuki’s relationship, as Hiiragi claims that the fight was a small, dumb fight, one that every couple experiences. The reason this is seen as optimistic at best is because it is clear to readers and watchers that the fight was big, it was yelling and it was mean - cemented by Mafuyu’s final sentence in the argument. Everything that Hiiragi says about Yuki and Mafuyu’s relationship feels like he was observing with rose-tinted glasses, keeping optimistic about it even as it became worse towards the end. The clear bias may mean this section shouldn’t exist, but it can also be seen as someone witnessing a codependent relationship and thinking all is perfect, when they are watching an active trainwreck. Hiiragi thinking about how the two were an opposites attract relationship, saying they needed each other, and downplaying their fight, all feels like him trying to make sense of what appeared to be his definition of a perfect relationship, and it was as if he himself could not see the codependency that someone reading or watching the series could see through him.

The fourth reason one can see them as codependent is Mafuyu's social life outside of Yuki. While yes, he also had Hiiragi and Shizusumi, it appears like he didn’t have anyone else, and even the other two were not as close to him as Yuki was. That statement isn’t meant to diminish Hiiragi, Shizusumi, and Mafuyu’s friendship, rather it is meant to lift the relationship between Yuki and Mafuyu as being on an entirely different level. It’s easily seen that Mafuyu does mainly socialise with Yuki and the other two, but more Yuki than anyone else. It feels like the two were together first, before anyone else could join, creating their little bubble of just Mafuyu and Yuki. Where this truly becomes a concern however is when one looks at Mafuyu’s social life outside of Yuki. As previously stated, at times it seems like Mafuyu felt a certain disconnect at times to Hiiragi and Shizusumi, and this suspicion is furthered by his complete shut down after Yuki’s death. While not everyone will be able to reach out and talk to others while going through grief, perhaps part of their cut off was not only Mafuyu’s depression but also him worrying that he was not close enough to the other two to be able to reach out. Ignoring that speculation, one can take into account the character page of Mafuyu, which states that he was never a part of any clubs or teams, meaning he never really branched out socially. While not much is explored about Mafuyu’s life before Uenoyama outside of what is with Yuki, this feels intentional to show that there wasn’t a lot for him outside of the other boy. The flashbacks seen in Mafuyu’s point of view are consistently with Yuki - their first meeting, their school days, dates, their fight, and finally, Yuki’s death. Nothing else seemed to truly exist, it was as if Mafuyu could ignore all others for Yuki, as he was his world. The lack of a social life can definitely be seen as a sense of reliance on Yuki, solidifying the idea of him being codependent on the other.

The second to last point within Strawberry Swing, specifically the fourth part being a supposed dream sequence that honestly feels like an actual connection to Yuki in the afterlife that Mafuyu has. This dream is where the two actually seem to say goodbye to each other, a certain feeling of peace and melancholy flowing from this section of the manga. Within part four of Strawberry Swing, Yuki and Mafuyu talk on a swing set, with Yuki telling Mafuyu that the redhead has to go, and Mafuyu then leaving. After this, Yuki states that there is a gaping hole within Mafuyu left behind from Yuki’s suicide, and while it may get smaller with time, it shall never be fully repaired, and Yuki would always reside in that hole, listening to Mafuyu as he sings. Overall, this section of the story is a beautiful look into Yuki’s mind on Mafuyu’s healing, and totally feels more like a spiritual encounter than just a dream thanks to the point of view appearing to be Yuki’s, and the outside look at Mafuyu and his grief. Its beauty is only enhanced by the tragedy that speaks within this section though, as it seems to admit that Mafuyu will never fully be able to move on from Yuki or heal from his death. That being said, grief is of course an extremely long process, and it isn’t a linear path to moving on or somehow getting rid of grief, that is simply not how it works. It is not the grief itself that is interesting in this section, but rather the way that Yuki swears to always be in Mafuyu’s heart. Even in death, Yuki will forever stay with Mafuyu, even if he isn’t alive or physically there. Not necessarily a sign of the two being codependent, but definitely an interesting aspect of the manga to consider when it comes to their relationship.

The final point is a line brought up in the Strawberry Swing story within Given. This line is said by Yuki’s mother, Saeko, who states that “Mafuyu… I selfishly believed… that you were that child’s anchor”. She believed that Mafuyu was Yuki’s anchor to the world, that he was the one who kept the other boy alive and stable, tethered to the world. There is also a line where she mentions how Yuki was “like his father”, who is either outright dead or at least implied to be dead, and this line also basically tells the audience it was suicide, and a mental disorder was likely passed down to Yuki from his father. It is made clear in Strawberry Swing that Saeko believed that Mafuyu would be able to keep Yuki alive and well, which isn’t something two children/teenagers should have to do for each other, which she even admits to, saying she was selfish in believing Mafuyu was his anchor and that it was wrong of her to think. This part screams of a mother who watched her son become extremely psychologically reliant on another boy, and only after his death is able to reflect and see how unhealthy it was for both of them. After all, the role of the anchor is extremely dangerous for both parties, as it puts so much pressure on the anchor to keep a good and stable presence, while it leaves the other person with one person who truly connects them to the world, rather than them feeling as though they have a full support system. These roles become even worse in the case of Mafuyu and Yuki, who are two teenage boys in love with mental health issues. They were not stable enough to be in the roles of anchor and tethered person, even if they wanted to be that for each other. So, while terrible for them, the anchor comment definitely implies that Yuki was extremely reliant on Mafuyu to keep him tethered to the world, keep him living, which is a sign of codependency.

In the end, there are codependent tendencies that seem to exist in Mafuyu and Yuki’s relationship. The two boys appeared to rely on each other mentally and socially, which can qualify people for a codependent relationship. While peers, especially Hiiragi, appeared to see them as two perfect halves of a whole, idolising the weaved together nature of Mafuyu and Yuki, it can easily be seen as a rose-tinted view to the duo’s relationship and end up revealing more negative than expected. The additional view of an adult, specifically Yuki’ mother, Saeko, seeing Mafuyu as an anchor for Yuki only enhances the idea of an imperfect and overly reliant relationship. Although it is painful to admit, there is little doubt that one can pick up on hints and read Yuki and Mafuyu as an accidentally toxic codependent relationship.

[essayist-unexpectedly]

First, I'm sorry for my grammer, English isn't my first language.

I just watched the final movie and re-read the manga. I have to say I hate Hiragi... he purposefully took Ue away, even though he knew that Yuki neglected Mafuyu bc of the band... He knew of Mafuyu's past, and that Yuki saved him from his abusive father, still, he took away Mafuyu's boyfriend- again. And when Shize told Mafuyu that he should break up with Ue and the band? Mafuyu, who has separation anxiety and PTSD is on the breaking point and his "friends" are being horrible to him. Both knew that Yuki was being neglectful and horrible to Mafuyu and they did nothing, despite being also his "friends".

And the last chapter, when Hiragi is like "If you want him back, be better", is just as horrible. Because it sounds like that Mafuyu has to be better at music in order to have his boyfriend. In my mind, both should have stayed away from Mafuyu. Now, 10 years later, Mafuyu still "competes" with another band in order to spend time with his boyfriend. I think that this will break their relationship. At some point, Mafuyu and Ue will reach a breaking point bc they still seem not able to honestly talk about their emotions with each other. Hiragi could have found another guitar player in the 10 YEARS easily! He purposely tries everything so Mafuyu can't escape again, it doesn't matter to him if this breaks Mafuyu's relationship. Again. Think about how angry Mafuyu was when Hiragi said that Ue is their guitar player for the near future. He was furious, bc he is worried that history will repeat itself. And that could cause a self-fullfilling prophecy. If he thinks his worst nightmare would come true he will behave like it will. He will resent Ue and the rest and then it might come actually true.

What many people seem to forget: Mafuyu was abused by his father (who would always hit him when he talks), in toxic relationship with his first boyfriend which ended in his death, which Mafuyu thought for a long time is his fault. And when he found love again he was frightened that a simple fight will result in death, again. Hiragi goes through the world without any thought. He is egotistic and doesn't think about anyone else, he wanted to form Syh so he could bind Shizu to him. Shizu is his exact opposite, he only thinks about Hiragi (which is also toxic, bc he would do anything for him, even don't pursue dreams of his own). Hiragi doesn't think about Mafuyu (he said so when he gave Mafuyu the ticket). Shizu knew that Mafuyu would feel that way and did nothing. How disillusioned do you have to be to force the new boyfriend to complete the love song of the exboyfriend? Hiragi did it because he wanted to know how they would sound. Purely selfish reasons. Ue's sister got it in a heartbeat that this would be torture.

okay - so first and foremost, completely valid to hate Hiiragi, I am not one to tell someone they have to like a character. that is until they dislike them because of common mischaracterization - so, I'll give out my own interpretation of Hiiragi here! also - sorry this is coming so late, I've been quite busy (essay's I upload here are all written in advance, asks can take a little longer to get to)

also, warning in advance, this is a long one!

So the first thing to address is Hiiragi's reaction to Uenoyama - especially his thoughts when he finds out he is dating Mafuyu. To preface this, Hiiragi and Mafuyu view each other as little siblings - at one point Hiiragi claims to see Mafuyu as a younger brother, Mafuyu is said to claim Hiiragi is like a little sister, and one of the first lines in the Hiiragi mix is that they were more like brothers than friends. Hiiragi idolized the relationship that Yuki and Mafuyu had, believing that they were truly in love and perfect together. This made Hiiragi fairly hostile when Mafuyu introduced Uenoyama as his boyfriend, he's protective over Mafuyu - who he once stated he viewed like a younger brother - and he was likely shocked that the other was already dating somebody new. Him 'taking' Uenoyama away wasn't him trying to steal someone from Mafuyu, it was more akin to him trying to see what Mafuyu saw in Uenoyama - a test of worthiness in a way. Was this action the most thought out? No, not at all and it hurt many people, but Hiiragi didn't have outright bad intentions within this actions. He is protective of Mafuyu, and he wanted to see what Uenoyama was like because of his high standards. Also, this includes Hiiragi requesting Uenoyama to finish Yuki's song - he knew that Uenoyama was the only one who could understand fully that love for Mafuyu that Yuki was sharing through the song. He wasn't purposefully trying to hurt Uenoyama, rather he was trying to heal in a way that isn't the most conventional - while also trying to help Mafuyu. The song being finished meant that Yuki's voice would be heard, and the best person to do so was Uenoyama. Hiiragi recognized this and when he finally found out that Uenoyama is good, he was able to trust this task to him. It wasn't necessarily the right thing to do, it was incredibly taxing for Uenoyama, but that doesn't change that it was him trying to heal.

Onto Hiiragi knowing Mafuyu's past - does he actually know about the abuse by his father? This isn't something that's confirmed within the manga nor anime, rather it almost appears like they could have met after Yuki had already gotten Mafuyu's father arrested. While it may have come out at some point, Hiiragi doesn't necessarily know about the issues that he has which stem from his father. As for Mafuyu's past with Yuki - yes, Hiiragi watched it go down, but he by no means had the same perspective as Mafuyu had. Again, Hiiragi had on some heavily rose-tinted glasses when it came to his view on the duo, as he thought that they were perfect for each other, not noticing the toxicity within their codependency. Hiiragi didn't realize the full extent of the neglect that was happening between Yuki and Mafuyu, which can be hard to spot, but even harder when close to the people in the relationship and idolizing it because it seemed so perfect. After Yuki's death, Mafuyu disappeared - not because Hiiragi didn't try to reach out, he was clearly distraught about Mafuyu's distance when they finally see each other again. Rather, Mafuyu purposefully distanced himself from both Hiiragi and Shizusumi, not allowing himself to grieve with them because of his own deep depression and guilt. Hiiragi does not know the full extent of Mafuyu's trauma, he cannot know it because he is not Mafuyu, and he can't know the full extent of someone else's mental state.

As for the idea of Hiiragi 'stealing' both Yuki and Uenoyama for SYH. The founder of SYH was Yuki, not Hiiragi. He was eager to join and play, but he was not the one who started the band. He could not have stolen Yuki when Yuki was the one who first started to play guitar and fell in love with music. This also applies to Shizusumi, Hiiragi himself didn't recruit or force him into the band, he agreed to play in it because of Hiiragi, yes, but he still chose to join. The original SYH trio were not forced into the band by Hiiragi, Yuki started the band and Shizusumi chose to join to stay close to Hiiragi. Nobody here was stolen, Hiiragi was simply eager to join the band and was happy to play with his friends. This includes when rehearsals increased, Yuki was in on that too, he was completely able to choose whether or not he would increase practises and he chose to do so because of his passion for music. The one who 'stole' Yuki from Mafuyu was not Hiiragi but Yuki himself, as his passion for music was at an all time high. As for stealing Uenoyama - no, Hiiragi and Shizusumi approached Uenoyama and Hiiragi asked him to play for them. Uenoyama agreed because he thought it sounded fun. Hiiragi did not force Uenoyama to play for them, rather he asked him to because they hadn't found a permanent guitarist for SYH after Yuki's death. Uenoyama gets so focused on music that he starts to unconsciously focus on SYH instead of his relationship with Mafuyu. Uenoyama himself acknowledges that he was brushing off Mafuyu for the band, he takes responsibility for his actions, just as Hiiragi does when it happens and he realizes. They both see themselves as in the fault, and when Hiiragi says he 'stole' another one of Mafuyu's boyfriends, it's not that he actually stole them, it's the guilt eating him up and therefore his view on the situation. So while Hiiragi did recruit Uenoyama, he had a choice about whether or not he would join and he chose to join. Uenoyama because of this choice, also accidentally neglects Mafuyu, just shows that nobody is perfect. This includes at the ending, when he says that he already got permission to borrow Uenoyama from higher ups, yes he goads Uenoyama into doing it, but in the end it's still a choice that Hiiragi gives him. Uenoyama could've refused, but he agrees to play with them.

A little on Mafuyu's reaction to Hiiragi choosing Uenoyama as the fill in guitarist - he never gets angry at Hiiragi. Mafuyu's reaction is fear that he is once again allowing a relationship to fall apart, he recognizes that he cannot speak up and he grows fearful because of his own issues, not because of Hiiragi's actions. Mafuyu is mute, he is this way because of trauma. He isn't always mute, but when overwhelmed or falling back into old fears, he is mute. Even when he can bring himself to speak, Mafuyu isn't always able to express himself - that is what happens when he realizes that history has repeated itself with Uenoyama joining SYH. Then, when he finally does confront Uenoyama - essentially proposing as Hiiragi claims - Mafuyu shows his determination to continue playing. Never does he actually show anger. Even when Hiiragi secures Uenoyama as their replacement guitarist for even longer, Mafuyu appears more flustered than angry. Him and Hiiragi clearly have a relationship built on banter, teasing each other ruthlessly - with Mafuyu being just as bad as Hiiragi is. So when Hiiragi comes back with approval to continue to use Uenoyama as their backup guitarist, Mafuyu's reaction is less actual anger, and more flustered annoyance, more of their sibling dynamic than anything else.

Then the bit on Shizusumi. While yes, he did recognize that Mafuyu wasn't doing great when Uenoyama joined SYH, he also appears to have thought that the other two also noticed and were working on it. Shizusumi had figured that at least Hiiragi would notice the pattern repeating itself, not realizing that Hiiragi was caught up in music and didn't notice. He doesn't account for the human fault of being unable to read the mind of someone who is distant and can put up a pretty convincing facade of emotionlessness. Shizusumi's fault is that he also doesn't always realize when he needs to speak up - again, he thought that it was pretty clear what was going on and that therefore the other two would have noticed. Nobody is purposefully at fault in this situation. Rather, this is just good writing of flawed teenagers, Hiiragi isn't egotistical, he's passionate and unable to read a situation all the time, and Shizusumi isn't apathetic or uncaring of Mafuyu, he simply doesn't know when to step in or point out a bad situation. This is just common teenage idiocy, a typical miscommunication trope between the entire group.

Ten years later when Uenoyama is still playing with SYH also seems like a choice. I haven't read the 10th year mix really, but from what I could tell Uenoyama was still enjoying playing with SYH. If he wanted to quit, he probably could, but there isn't a problem with him still playing with them. Given is still around, and Uenoyama is still happily a member there as well, with him and Mafuyu lovingly fighting over their music - which is stated to be good for them and part of why their relationship is still working, them not budging and being stubborn shows they love each other and their music, unwilling to bend because that could be a sign of fading passion. If Uenoyama is shown to be handling playing for both bands, not quitting as SYH's guitarist, then I don't think we need to question his choices. Also, Mafuyu is shown to be extremely close with Hiiragi and Shizusumi, going to them when he and Uenoyama fight and he needs a temporary escape, and even having a room in their apartment - likely thanks to Hiiragi. Overall, the quartet seem to have a good and healthy relationship, stronger than seen within the manga.

again, I cannot stop you from hating Hiiragi or possibly disliking Shizusumi. I have tried to show another side to these characters and the situations they go through, because it's important to try to see it from all sides. these characters are flawed teenagers, they aren't perfect and they aren't supposed to be. Hiiragi has faults - plenty of them - but not everything bad is his fault. his actions that hurt people are accidents, not purposefully calculated actions meant to alienate Mafuyu and bring misery to Uenoyama and Mafuyu's relationship or mental health. I hope to at least have shown a different side to these characters, but in the end your thoughts are your own.

also, I want to apologize again for the lateness of this reply. I've had a lot to do, and I wanted to address this fully, so it took me quite a while to finish up - like a few days of working on this in between assignments!

[essayist-unexpectedly]

say what you want about Mafuyu’s “la-la-la”s - they remain one of the most important parts of the series

(i get it’s a joke typically but also they’re just so important)

(like it’s a little awkward - but it should be? he has no real experience singing and yet he was able to do a little tune!)

(also it’s so important because of emotional levels for Mafuyu - he was also secure with Yuki that he could do them unconsciously, he wanted to be comfortable with Uenoyama so he sings with him, and then he wants to release his pain so he sings to the audience!)

(they’re also about reciprocated love - and how it feels for him. with Yuki, he loved Mafuyu so much that he started to write a song for him. with Yuki, they also show that Yuki wanted to do things for Mafuyu without realizing he should do things with Mafuyu (a common theme in their relationship). for Uenoyama - they show how he wants to continue with Mafuyu, never leaving him out, making them a more intertwined duo!)

(anyways i know the la-la-la thing is a joke but it also just riles me up. might write a full piece on this at some point) (the significance of the la-la-la’s, not the joke. kind of like my guitar essay)

[essayist-unexpectedly]

A Bleeding Red Gibson, Mafuyu’s Heart

The iconic red Gibson guitar, bought and played first by Yuki, but later given to Mafuyu, has always been a clear metaphor. It’s meant to represent the heart of Mafuyu, seen and understood clearly from the very beginning of the series, from the moment he is seen holding the guitar and snapping the strings. The beautiful guitar is the bleeding heart of Mafuyu Sato, it has its ups and downs, and its story is just as important as the boy himself.

The guitar and its symbolism start with the strings. Through the strings of the Gibson, one can read Mafuyu’s emotional and mental state. At the beginning, when the first string is snapped, Mafuyu finds Yuki’s dead body. In this moment, there is nothing good about his emotional and mental state, there is something within him that has snapped. The string stays broken as Mafuyu stays disconnected and emotionally numb, he cannot process his emotions, cannot process his grief. It is once he meets Uenoyama, once the other repairs the strings and tunes the guitar, that Mafuyu is able to start his journey of healing. It is the replacing of the strings that show healing is starting in his heart, and the tuning by Uenoyama shows who will help him in this journey, shows that he is not alone - no matter what he may feel. The same is true later on as well, when another string snaps right before Given’s first performance together. With emotions high and tensions between Mafuyu and Uenoyama, the string snaps with Mafuyu’s fear and worry. This time, the replacement happens sooner, Mafuyu and Uenoyama are able to patch things up between them, leading to an easier repair to Mafuyu’s heartstrings than the first snap. These snaps as well as the repairs of the strings to the guitar easily match and reflect Mafuyu’s emotional state.

Another way that Mafuyu’s heart is represented through the red Gibson is the possession of the guitar. The first owner of the guitar is Yuki Yoshida, Mafuyu’s late boyfriend. This symbolises how Yuki was the clear holder of Mafuyu’s heart, how the two truly did fully encompass each other. With Yuki being the owner of the guitar, Mafuyu’s heart does not belong to him, and his state of being relies heavily on Yuki's treatment. It is only after Yuki commits suicide that Mafuyu receives his heart, no longer heavily tangled into Yuki, instead having to keep it himself and figure out what to do with it. In Mafuyu’s possession of the guitar, he is lost, still disconnected from the world. He does not know how to treat the Gibson, he does not know how to treat himself. As Mafuyu learns to accept who he is without Yuki, he also learns more about how to play guitar. When Yuki possessed the guitar, Mafuyu was one with him, but once he was given the guitar, Mafuyu learned how to live and love, all on his own terms. The Gibson is able to show how he needed to learn to be his own heart and his own person once more.

Finally, there is the playing of the guitar. When Yuki plays the guitar, Mafuyu is wrapped up in him. The playing goes very hand in hand with the possession of the guitar, with the difference being that the playing represents communication rather than who his heart belongs to. With Yuki being the one who plays the guitar, Mafuyu’s communication skills are limited. He is unable to speak up, to talk to people, to tell Yuki how he feels. Yuki playing it represents how they could read each other, but it became limited as they grew apart, and Mafuyu felt unable to reach Yuki, forcing them to rely on how they can read each other rather than actually talking with one another. When the red Gibson is possessed by Mafuyu, but remains unplayed, it shows how the boy is lost and still unable to communicate with others around him. At that time, he has no idea what he is doing with himself, and he doesn’t talk to others. But Uenoyama fixing and then tuning the guitar, strumming a chord, once more opens up an opportunity for Mafuyu. He takes the chance and asks the other for lessons. When Uenoyama finally agrees, and Mafuyu starts to learn how to play, he is also able to learn how to communicate once again. Of course, both learning guitar and learning how to communicate are difficult, something shown with how rough Mafuyu is at both of them throughout the series. While there are times when he is successful, like when performing, there are also times when he struggles, such as when Uenoyama becomes a substitute for SYH, and he stops both playing and communicating with those around him. Overall, the playing of the red guitar is able to subtly show how Mafuyu struggles to communicate with others.

In the end, the symbolic red Gibson is able to encompass different parts of Mafuyu’s character seamlessly. It shows his emotional state, who his heart belongs to, as well as how well he can communicate in different ways, keeping them separate and together at the same time, as they are all different elements of the same character. From the moments he holds the guitar with a string snapping, to him ending up on stages while playing the guitar, it is clear that the heart of Mafuyu Sato is symbolised through the beautiful red Gibson.   

[essayist-unexpectedly]

hi it's me again!!

okay so here you go : i was thinking about how ugetsu was suffocating with akihiko during their relationship, so he wanted to break up to perform the best with violin. now, was it specifically akihiko that was not good for him, or is it just love in general that interferes between him and music ?

or, do you think after moving out to new york and basically starting his life over, ugetsu could find a new partner with whom he could have a healthy relationship without choking his music ?

i was thinking that he could but it would have to be someone who has no link with music or whatsoever. if he were to like someone who has no bond with music, he wouldn't think of him as a potential obstacle, i guess. anyway, it seems like he's having a hard time moving on from his first love, even by the end of the manga.

i'd be glad to have your opinion on that!! and i'm asking this before ugetsu appears in the 10th mix because he definitely will!!!

ooh okay, so when it comes to Ugetsu and romance, I do think he would be able to have a relationship, he just has to want it.

I am of the belief that Ugetsu may be too career orientated for a romantic relationship at the point where the manga ends. While yes, of course a person can balance romance and career, they have to want both of those things if they're going to make them work, and I don't know if Ugetsu holds the idea of a partner in the same regard as his career as a concert violinist. he's already established to be famous, and he has been for years as he was known within competitive violinists to be a big winner - always claiming first, and doing so nationally. so pair this reputation of fame as a teenager along with his family - as his father is a diplomat and grandfather a politician - Ugetsu likely has a lot of pressure to be someone great, even if he doesn't acknowledge it. so with these factors, I do believe that Ugetsu is currently ill-prepared for romance, as he focuses on his career.

for the record, totally valid to focus on a career over love life, what wasn't valid was that turning into a mutually toxic relationship between him and Akihiko, that was a mess.

and a bit more on him and Akihiko, is that while music was definitely the biggest factor as to why they broke up, I do believe that to some degree it only amplified other issues they would have had.

these issues being about how their personalities were probably not going to work together in the long run, as violin showed that Akihiko can be fairly insecure, while Ugetsu is arrogant. I think music amplified how Akihiko is a strange mix of cocky and his own brand of not so great person, while also being soft and truly looking for love - whereas Ugetsu is harsh and wasn't ready for the commitment, while still being afraid of being alone. it leads to a toxic dynamic that likely wouldn't have let them stay together, even if music wasn't entered into the equation.

I expand on this - really both of these first two things - in the Mafuyu-Ugetsu essay, as it highly contributes to how the two are foils, so this will come back as a topic within that essay.

as for him starting over in New York, I think that he would use this period of time to focus on his career and to heal, figure himself out.

like I said, he needs to want a relationship, and I believe Ugetsu does know that he isn't right for one yet, that it isn't his time to try to find a new partner. I find that Ugetsu is a self-aware character, he knows and acknowledges that he and Akihiko were bad for each other, which leads me to believe he would know that he's just looking for a more casual friends-with-benefits at most relationship. so rather than New York bringing him an opportunity for love, I think Ugetsu would use it to further his career and focus on himself.

maybe it's just a pipe dream, but I would actually hope that Ugetsu takes this time to reflect on who he is. maybe he would distance himself from some of his previous connections - other than those in the music world, Mafuyu, and any other good friends he has. I name Mafuyu because Ugetsu claims to have no friends, but those two do grow to a healthy friendship, so Mafuyu gets to be named. any other good friends is a connection I don't know if he has or not, but he implies that it's one of his good friends in New York, and given his level of fame, he probably does have a small social circle, in spite of claiming to have no friends earlier on to Mafuyu. to some degree, I do take this alone as a sign of self improvement, maybe Ugetsu was able to open up to connections after his and Akihiko's relationship ended, I don't know. but I would love to see a Ugetsu who has come to learn more about himself outside of his career and toxic past with Akihiko. I would love to hear about a Ugetsu who went to therapy to help get rid of some of his toxic traits.

after he has gotten this help and once he is in the mindset to hold a relationship and a career equally, I do believe Ugetsu could totally find someone within or outside of the music world. I don't think that Ugetsu has to avoid people within the music industry in order to find a relationship, he just needs to find someone who is equally as confident within their music as he is. I think that would prevent most issues, as Ugetsu seemed to easily pick up on how insecure Akihiko could be about his own music (as he would compare himself to Ugetsu), and therefore would try to use that to force Akihiko to leave. if someone who is confident were to come along, Ugetsu wouldn't be able to use that to push them away like with Akihiko. I can also see Ugetsu having a good relationship with another musician because maybe they could help tone his ego and music is a great bonding point between people. the competitiveness you mention isn't inherently a toxic dynamic, sometimes it's one that makes people thrive so long as it isn't to a toxic degree.

that being said, I also completely get your point about him avoiding people within the world. Ugetsu appears to be a competitive character, so if he does see another musician (especially one within the same field as him - as in orchestras and concert violin) as competition and competition alone, then yes, he probably wouldn't date them. he seems like he knows what kind of person to avoid when dating, especially after him and Akihiko. and yes, to not date someone within music completely avoids the issue of jealousy or another toxic dynamic where one can push the other around. by avoiding musicians, Ugetsu could also save himself the stress of once again becoming an issue in his relationship. he probably wouldn't have to worry about himself becoming a trigger for the other person's insecurity if he dated someone outside of the music world, which can ease the mind.

in total, all of these points can be summed up to me believing that yes, Ugetsu can totally have a healthy relationship if he learns to value it and music at the same time. that I believe that while music was the deciding factor, him and Akihiko would have ended up not working out even if it wasn't for the violin. that Ugetsu hopefully would take New York as a time for healing himself and figuring himself out. and finally, that he should be able to be in a relationship, be it with a musician or someone completely outside of the musical world, it just depends on him and how he ends up healing after his relationship with Akihiko.

I hope this answered all the aspects of your question, which thanks again, you have really though provoking questions, and that this wasn't too bad of a ramble/looser essay!

also, I really hope to see Ugetsu in the 10th remix! I try to keep these essays mostly to the Given manga without the 10th mix in mind - mainly because I haven't super kept up with it - but I really hope to see Ugetsu and how he's doing!

[essayist-unexpectedly]

The Cracked Mirror: Mafuyu’s Contrasting Romances

When reading or watching the series Given, Mafuyu Sato’s two romances are impossible to not compare and contrast. The series itself notes how similar his relationship with Uenoyama is to his relationship with Yuki, as Given is largely meant to show how Mafuyu is able to move on after the loss of his first friend and love. The issue comes when the two relationships are seen as the same, completely mirroring each other, when they’re more akin to a cracked mirror, similar, but not the same. It is the differences in Uenoyama and Mafuyu’s relationship that allows for the two to be happy in the end, unlike the tragic ending to Yuki and Mafuyu’s relationship.

The series of Given revolved around the budding romantic relationship between Mafuyu and Uenoyama, and the ups and the downs of falling in love after a traumatic loss. It can be said that Mafuyu’s healing starts the moment that he and Uenoyama find each other on the staircase by the gym, from the moment that Uenoyama fixes his broken guitar, or rather, his heart. As the series progresses, the two grew closer together, catching feelings for one another that went beyond platonic. Nerves in every step, the two do enter a relationship, only for history to start to repeat itself for Mafuyu, as the two grow distant.

 The differences between the relationships truly shine through when Uenoyama and Mafuyu enter their relationship, as well as when they start to grow apart. One of the biggest contrasts in Given is the progression of the relationship between Mafuyu and Uenoyama, especially how awkward they are. Rather than clicking together seamlessly, the two often struggled to be on the same wavelength when not playing music. It is only after they perform for the first time, able to understand and realize his own feelings, that Uenoyama is able to make a move on Mafuyu, who returns the feelings, but doesn’t know how to process after his performance. They stay in a state of awkward romance until the day they go to the beach, where Mafuyu himself is able to admit his feelings for the other boy. Even after they get together, the two have a clumsy relationship, they feel like a new and uncertain couple in most of their scenes - or at least, Uenoyama does. The newness of the relationship, their inability to be two perfect halves at first, also leads to one of their biggest flaws: communication. It is a severe difficulty to communicate that leads to the disconnect between the duo, that leads to the major conflicts of Uenoyama feeling like not enough, and Mafuyu feeling like history is repeating itself when Uenoyama joins SYH as a substitute. It is an inability to communicate that leads to the sense of abandonment within Mafuyu. 

However, it is the newness of the relationship that also allows Ugetsu to help Mafuyu to communicate. Ugetsu is able to push Mafuyu to communicate by literally forcing him into the concert, allowing him to see and realize his love for music and for Uenoyama, making him see that he has to tell his partner how he feels. While terribly clumsy, their issues with communication are still overcome due to either one of them speaking up or else with the help of someone else telling them how to. Mafuyu and Uenoyama are a flawed relationship, they are both characters who struggle with things such as expressing and identifying their emotions, with communication, and with feeling like they are enough at times. But they have strengths too, they overcome issues together, learning and adjusting to one another, growing into what each other needs and can understand.

Even though he only appears in memories, Yuki is a prominent character throughout Given. The times readers are able to see Mafuyu and Yuki together, it is clear that there are key differences to Yuki and Mafuyu’s relationship. The two met at a young age, growing together throughout their years, becoming a couple who were rarely apart from each other until they went to separate schools and struggled to find time together. They were inseparable throughout most of their life, sticking together, being known as a duo by basically everyone that met them. Their relationship was seen as naturally progressing from childhood friends to lovers, observed by Hiiragi, who seemed to admire their seamless dynamic and flow.

Issues for Mafuyu and Yuki started early, even if it didn’t seem that way. Because the two grew up close, Mafuyu and Yuki seemed to become two halves of a whole in every way. In personality, Yuki was considered a dominating and moody presence, compared to Mafuyu, who was called submissive and reserved. Opposites who complimented each other, allowing each other to grow into their diverting personalities. None of this mattered to each other, as they were already bonded together, and it appeared like they were able to read each other, no matter how the other appeared to feel outwardly. However, their ability to read each other ended up becoming Mafuyu and Yuki’s biggest weakness, as it led to them being unable to truly communicate with each other. When they grew apart, Mafuyu was unable to figure out how to tell Yuki that he missed him, that he wanted to join him, not be on the outside watching him. This tension is what led to Mafuyu snapping, and it all goes back to an inability to communicate that Yuki and Mafuyu were unable to overcome.

It also leads to the other major contrast between the two relationships, the way that Mafuyu couldn’t seem to exist outside of Yuki. Where Mafuyu was able to build himself to be more than just Uenoyama and the band by befriending Uenoyama’s other friends and joining in with basketball during lunches, managing to befriend Ugetsu, as well as rebuilding his relationship with Hiiragi and Shizusumi to be even stronger, this didn’t seem to be the same way with Yuki. Rather, the two were more like one entity at times, due to their inseparability. They were consistent together, they were happy together, but it also appeared that to be happy, they had to be together - at least, until Yuki found music. It is stated within the manga that Mafuyu hadn’t joined any clubs or teams in middle or high school, and his friend group - Yuki, Hiiragi, and Shizusumi, all went to a different high school, making Mafuyu isolated majority of his time, until he was able to see the others. In contrast, Yuki did find music, he was able to hang out with their childhood friends, and he was much more social, so he didn’t appear to struggle socially as much as Mafuyu did. This caused a divide, even with Yuki and Mafuyu’s previously strong relationship. It is the moment they are unable to be together that the cracks of their relationship show, their codependent tendencies aren’t substantial. Their relationship is built on them being together constantly, so when they can no longer be with one another, they break down, they are flawed.

While the relationships appear to mirror each other, there are clear differences, clear cracks in this view. Uenoyama and Mafuyu are able to work together, overcoming their flaws, even if they need others' help and advice to do so. The reflected relationship of Yuki and Mafuyu were unable to overcome the same flaws, unable to learn how to communicate, how to be people outside of one another. Mafuyu’s romantic relationships are two of the best to compare and contrast to one another, thanks to their similarities and differences. Both relationships have depths to explore and reflect on, creating two beautiful and, at times, heartbreaking romances. So, as the stories unravelled, and Mafuyu healed and grew as a character, the mirroring relations were cracked, showing how while Yuki and Mafuyu were a beautiful tragedy, Mafuyu and Uenoyama are a joyous union.

[essayist-unexpectedly]

HIIII!! hope you're doing great! here i'd like to have your opinion on a given theory and i usually don't like the "what ifs" BUUUT this one keeps me up at night-- well, do you think uenoyama and mafuyu would have broken up if mafuyu didn't show up at the live of syh? likeee he was sure of his career path when he heard the song to the sea buuut if not, how would he have made this choice? would uenoyama have lost faith in mafuyu's love for music? would they have kept playing with given?

by the way, would hiiragi and mafuyu still be on good terms?

i just feel like ugetsu is a blessing because i really have no idea of what would have happened if he hadn't pushed mafuyu to the concert🥹

i'd be glad to have your opinion as i can't manage to have one here!!

Hey, I've also questioned this from time to time and it's such a good question! Uenoyama and Mafuyu have so much potential as a couple, but their relationship is also largely based on their bond over music. As much as I would love to say "yeah, they'll always work through things", I cannot - if Mafuyu hadn't gone to the SYH concert it would be the beginning of the end for them.

I believe I've talked about this before (if not, I will be in the future), but music is a massive factor in the Uenoyama-Mafuyu romance. Their relationship is built on music, on learning to play the guitar, leaning how to express emotion, on learning how to love - both love again and love what was hated. Without music, Uenoyama and Mafuyu wouldn't have met and wouldn't have bonded in the first place. Without Mafuyu and music, Uenoyama would likely end up being a burnt out prodigy. Without music and Uenoyama, Mafuyu would still be stuck in a period of numbness and grief. Music is the ground which Uenoyama and Mafuyu were built on.

So with that little base set, the two need music to be with each other. As seen within the manga, Mafuyu was collapsing in on himself, while Uenoyama was crumbling from stress and nerves during the SYH arc. They weren't musical together, not even in terms of listening to one another, and this led to them both feeling rejected and alone. Had Mafuyu not gone to the SYH concert, he wouldn't have heard Uenoyama, and wouldn't have fully been able to dive into music with full confidence. When talking to Ugetsu, Mafuyu was contemplating giving up music to try to make things work with Uenoyama. He might have actually done so if he hadn't heard To The Sea. Uenoyama was able to show off his own heart by finishing the song and playing with SYH, Mafuyu was able to understand and connect fully at the same time. With this connection, Mafuyu realized that he wouldn't want to give up music, as he didn't want to lose Uenoyama and the connection it gave them. Uenoyama and Mafuyu may have been able to work their relationship for a little longer if Mafuyu didn't go to the SYH concert, but in the long run, it's possible that Mafuyu would have given up music if he hadn't gone, and with music, there is no foundation to their relationship. They wouldn't have been sustainable in the future.

So yeah, I am a firm believer that they wouldn't have worked out had Mafuyu not gone to SYH. It feels likely he would have given up music to try to make things work with Uenoyama. In fact, Mafuyu does acknowledge this to some degree in the beginning of Hiiragi Mix 18 with Ugetsu. The only thing is that he sees them breaking up no matter if he pursues music or gives it up, and an outsider - be it the reader, or even Ugetsu - can see it differentlyy, see how Uenoyama and Mafuyu will fracture without music, but will stand strong with it holding them together.

So that's on Mafuyu and Uenoyama.

As for Hiiragi and Mafuyu - I cannot see Mafuyu being allowed to escape from Hiiragi again, no longer how hard he tried.

They consider each other as little siblings - Mafuyu seeing Hiiragi as a little sister, and Hiiragi sees Mafuyu as a little brother. It's actually pretty adorable (and hilarious) to see how they view each other, and their relationship definitely has the bickering you see in some sibling duos. This relationship dynamic has existed before the events of the manga and can be seen within the flashbacks. Hiiragi very clearly cares about Mafuyu and his wellbeing, even when they're distant from each other, and Mafuyu - while he may not show it as clearly - does also care deeply for Hiiragi. This is a bond that may have been temporarily weakened after Mafuyu disappeared after Yuki's funeral, but it's back and probably even stronger now that they've reconnected.

While the two may have rough spots, I cannot see the relationship between Mafuyu and Hiiragi ending even if Mafuyu didn't go to the SYH concert. They two are meant to be a duo, whether they're together or apart, they have and will always care for each other.

At least, this is my view on everything between those duos.

I am also definitely grateful for Ugetsu stepping in and helping Mafuyu to see that music doesn't have to be left behind for him and Uenoyama to work, otherwise I fear what would have happened between the two of them.

Thank you for the ask, I likely wouldn't have thought to analyze this on its own, so I hope that this isn't unbearably long and sufficiently answers your questions!

Hope you have a great day!

[essayist-unexpectedly]

hi! how you doing? you told me you would be more specific if i put an ask but you seemed busy so i didn't want to rush you smh? well here it is anyway take your time

do you think hiiragi liked yuki ?

okay uh put like that it sounds a bit easy but i'm really confused about this part of the story because when i read given for the first time, hiiragi made clear that he didn't like yuki this way and i went like "okay whatever shizu was wrong and hiiragi was only admirative of yuki it's okay" BUT.... by re-reading i've obviously learnt that you can't trust hiiragi whenever he says something because even he is unconsciously lying to himself. and the way he's convincing himself that shizu is his only love interest since forever is quite conflicting... it feels like he doesn't want to admit that shizu is right. he can't accept the fact that he had a crush on his friend's lover, or that he loved someone else than shizu even though he had apparently always wanted the perfect romance with him. shizu's revelation is crushing his feelings and offending him. he even confesses to prove him that he's wrong. but saying "i like you" is not a real proof? and that's what shizu reproaches to him?

so yeah, i first thought that shizu was wrong. but when you get into shizu's character a bit more, he's absolutely not the type to get wrong about people's feelings. usually when you're the quiet type it means you have more time to pay attention to the others' feelings. he spent so much time with both yuki and hiiragi, and from an external point of view anyone could clearly tell either there was love involved between the two or not. shizu already showed that he could see ritsuka's inner conflicts, mafuyu's hesitation, and even hiiragi's feeling of loneliness after yuki's death. it's crazy how he can read people, so how could he be wrong on hiiragi's feelings? just because of jealousy deceiving him? i don't know it doesn't match to me...

BUUUUUT at the same time (the reason why i want to hear about your opinion), hiiragi thinks about it thoroughly and figures that the answer he was looking for was simply admiration of yuki's love to mafuyu. like he just wanted to have that with shizu. but if it was really the case, why realising it only after his death? because he listened to umi e completed? really? why didn't he understand his feelings for shizu when yuki was still here? even though they had always been stuck together? hiiragi was clearly blinded by yuki back then. it's even an obsession that kept him from seeing shizu's love (which was obvious since long enough according to mafuyu) SO I DON'T KNOW BECAUSE because this moment hiiragi is kind of depressed, it seems like he's making up arguments to prove himself again that shizu has always been the only one. and i get him, it would be tough to admit that you loved your friend's ex, and that the one you love now isn't the one you've always wanted to be with even if you know him since forever (the most unclear sentence i'm sorry lololol)

AND another thing that i've just thought about, but it'd almost feel devious from hiiragi? maybe him liking yuki in the past would explain why he had never talked about mafuyu and yuki's relationship. maybe he didn't make it to real jealousy but he clearly didn't do anything about that, not even supporting them, even though he's someone pretty open about what he thinks of others. he immediately gave his opinion about mafuyu and ritsuka's relationship but didn't have one on mafuyu and yuki's? could it be because he simply couldn't lie to them by showing support? or by claiming he's against their relationship? even he didn't know how he felt but maybe it's true that shizu had understood it from the beginning?

i leave you with my 2am inner-conflicts about given again good luck girl

first and foremost, this has taken me so long - my bad, I had what I'm nicknaming a hell-week of assignments and midterms.

I also want to say thanks for this ask, every part of this was so fun to write because Hiiragi is such an interesting character! I do want to preface though and say I suck at romance - do not let me other essays trick you, so I apologize if anything doesn't make sense, it's because of my own lack of understanding on romance. that being said, I do think I did decent at least on putting Hiiragi's possible feelings into some sort of a light - probably a dramatic red spotlight.

also I wrote this super late, if anything doesn't make sense I was running on 3 hours of sleep and stress, so please ask for clarifications when needed!

anyways, now onto Hiiragi! (with appearances of others)

so in terms of Hiiragi having a crush on Yuki - yes but also no. I believe that he had one, but it was never something big enough that he realized it. in fact, I think that Shizusumi would be the only one to pick up on it - and that's for a reason I'll get into.

I think that he idolized him deeply, admired him in a way that was more than friendship but also not quite love. There was a thin line that Hiiragi would walk between the types of love, but he always stayed platonic in the end. he was always thinking of Yuki in the highest way that one could, and he loved him fully. still, I don't think he ever wanted a relationship with him, I don't think he ever had a crush that was fully developed - it was minuscule at most.

another thing is, he knew about Mafuyu and Yuki's dynamic, which I think would help him to not realize his own feelings even more. I do believe Hiiragi is a complete hopeless-romantic archetype, so I can see him believing in soulmates. Hiiragi is the one who really mentions how Yuki and Mafuyu's personalities grew to compliment each other and how their dynamic was a natural shift, something that I believe he felt like he couldn't question. I think that Hiiragi would think of the two as soulmates in a way, perfect halves meant for each other. with this, Hiiragi would likely then shove down and not realize - really compartmentalize - any possible attraction to Yuki. he wouldn't acknowledge it because he saw them as the standard.

so that's the basic on whether or not I think Hiiragi had a crush on Yuki. he toed the line, leaning towards idolization with a petite cute little crush that he would never actually realize. I think that would be in part because he's a hopeless romantic who saw Yuki as someone who already had his soulmate.

now as for Shizusumi. he is incredible at reading people, but I am willing to suggest that his feelings around Hiiragi would be able to skew his ability to read him. I believe there's a high probability of projection because of jealousy.

I believe that Shizusumi picked up on the tiny crush that Hiiragi had and then proceeded to exaggerate it. Hiiragi is his first friend and the first person who he'd ever had a crush on. in a healthier way than Mafuyu and Yuki, Hiiragi is Shizusumi's person since childhood. in order to defend himself from any sort of possible rejection, it's possible that Shizusumi decided to focus on the idea of Hiiragi having a crush on Yuki, ignoring how in reality it was barely there, so much so that Hiiragi himself didn't know about it.

in the end, when Shizusumi confronts Hiiragi about his feelings, I think him bringing up Hiiragi's own possible feelings for Yuki is still a defence mechanism. it's a way for him to explain why Hiiragi would reject him. he projects his feelings for someone he considers his life onto Hiiragi, who held Yuki on a pedestal as well. Shizusumi believing that Hiiragi has a crush on Yuki is his way of defending himself for the possibility that Hiiragi wouldn't return his own feelings.

I think that this also means that Shizusumi cannot read Hiiragi as well, not in terms of romance.

(also, Hiiragi's mood shifts are on the high end, the man scores high in neuroticism, I promise. I think that Hiiragi would be hard for anyone to read, including Shizusumi. I don't mean this in a bad either, I just think that Hiiragi's a very expressive person.)

now, onto the point of Hiiragi on Yuki and Mafuyu. I've said it before and I will say it a million times more, even if I'm screaming into a void - Hiiragi looked at those two with rose tinted glasses, both idolizing and romanticizing their relationship.

Hiiragi by no means had a healthy view on the Yuki/Mafuyu dynamic. he saw them as the ideal relationship - childhood friends to lovers, hero/damsel, quiet + loud dynamic. he saw them as soulmates (which I mentioned before, I don't think he would ever really realize his feelings because of that, he would just be admiring of that dynamic and therefore think 'how could they love someone else when they're perfect?').

but this view absolutely blinded him. he was so totally not able to see the flaws within their toxic codependence. so, Hiiragi kind of being like 'hey, I super idolized that relationship, that's probably why Shizusumi thinks I had a crush' ain't the wildest thing. I also do believe that those can be confused - him wanting their relationship versus him wanting someone in the relationship.

I do think that Hiiragi solely brushing it up to this is inaccurate, I think he was in denial about anything else being the truth. he probably doesn't want to be that person who's in love with his dead best friend who was fully enamoured with his alive childhood best friend. it would be a weird situation, and I can't blame him if that was part of the denial.

overall - this section is me saying that Hiiragi may have brushed off the small feelings he had as him idolizing the relationship, but overall it's not too wrong for him to say that as it's very true.

(I would not be surprised if him romanticizing Yuki and Mafuyu's relationship is also part of why Shizusumi thought he had a crush. he mistook the romanticization to be actual, deep romantic feelings. I just think that the projection argument is better and that this fits better down here as I just thought of it.)

as for Hiiragi possibly not being outwardly supportive because of his feelings? I think he's grown bolder. not as a person, the audacity has always existed, but specifically around Mafuyu. I also think he's grown more protective.

Mafuyu and Hiiragi, while childhood friends, kind of had an interesting dynamic. Mafuyu was, in a way, very much Yuki's. Mafuyu was introduced through Yuki when younger and he was always at Yuki's side, complimenting Yuki's personality, keeping comfortable with Yuki. while Hiiragi tried to get close, there was always a gap between them that could be bridged, the gap was Yuki. as dark as it sounds, Yuki's death created a bridge to let them really be around each other.

I think that Hiiragi is more open about his feelings around Mafuyu and Uenoyama because of there no longer being someone connecting them, instead they're able to actually communicate.

another reason would be how I keep bringing up the idea of him thinking of Yuki and Mafuyu as soulmates. who could criticize soulmates, meant to be together? he couldn't, he wants his own soulmate to hold like that. his own other half like they appeared to be. he couldn't see a flaw to speak out against and their relationship developed naturally to him, so when would he comment on them? to compare this with Uenoyama and Mafuyu, they don't have that prestablished soulmate dynamic to Hiiragi, they formed later and so he was more able to speak up, speak his mind on their relationship. one of the key ways this is seen is how he says that the Mafuyu and Yuki fight was 'small' and over 'something pointless', whereas he is more than willing to tease Uenoyama and Mafuyu over their arguments.

this is the main focus of the essay I have planned - how Hiiragi views the relationships between Yuki/Mafuyu versus Uenoyama/Mafuyu and how that affects his relationship with Mafuyu and his partners. that's why I was like - if you want something more specific on Hiiragi and Yuki, ask me that outright because otherwise I may not get exactly what you want.

thank you so much for this ask, I do hope that I managed to shed some lights on a way to think of this. the whole messy mystery behind Hiiragi and his feelings. I can never be confident when I analyze him, and I know that this is probably kind of confusing because I'm saying that he both did and didn't having feelings, but I am also really bad at even understanding romance, so that's probably why.

I think that Hiiragi may have had very minor feelings, that Shizusumi picked up on those feelings but exaggerated them as a defence mechanism (aka projection), and I think he didn't comment on Mafuyu and Yuki because he not only romanticized them but also because he was kind of not close enough with Mafuyu the same way that he was now.

again, sorry this took so long to get back to you on, I should be around more often with random mini things - as I do want to start to do mini analysis pieces that aren't massive even when informal like this is haha

(also, writing this has also lead me to conclude I straight up might do an essay on the quartet because yeah, they're really complicated to think about in terms of dynamics. it's a great group, they're close, but there's still holes within them and their bonds. but that would be after the Hiiragi essay which is my next one after I'm done one for a completely different fandom. my Given Essays will probably return late November to early December, because I've grown to be a bit more obsessive in my writing. but thanks for the new topic idea)

[essayist-unexpectedly]

hey, i’m Spence - i do essays for different fandoms/pieces of media i like

all of my essays are organized under the tag

#Spence does Essays (fandom)

(for Given it is Given Edition, anything else is just the fandom name)

so if you’re interested in a specific fandom, check that out

my asks are open - i love to discuss different things for fandoms i’m in. i try to keep this strictly essays, so i will probably answer with less formal essays to any questions i’m asked here

(if you want my unrestricted rambles check out my other page @spence-does-life ! it’s more rambles and headcanons as i want to keep this page for actual essays that i’ve done. so that’s the place for more casual chat and questions i guess!)