Garasu no Kamen (The Glass Mask)
[Episodes 1-23 Reviewed]
[Reviewed by Bethany]

I'd wager very few people have heard of Garasu no Kamen. It was made into an anime back in... 1985, I think, and the animation shows it. It was never licensed in the U.S., and unless something very, very strange happens, never will be. The manga was started in the 70s and is ... still running. Which is why the anime covers so little of what is one hell of a story. And is probably also why time flies by in Garasu no Kamen — over two years are covered in only twenty-three episodes ... and while I was amazed that it was going so quickly, it didn't detract from the story at all.

The Glass Mask has a sort of magic.

Even without gorgeous visuals or incredible music, there's something very compelling about it. (Not to mention addicting, oy...) It pulled me in and would not let go: I've rarely been this affected by an anime, and as you know if you're even slightly acquainted with me, I'm affected by things easily. Some of the things the characters say can be applied to the show itself — while people see the darkness Maya moves in has Helen, we see the emotions that pull the characters toward and away from each other. We hope and fear with them.

We also want to throw pillows at Yuu and accuse Masumi of looking like a woman. But anyway...

Story
Meet Maya Kitajima, who longs with all her heart to be an actress. Maya is thirteen and really has no money to speak of; she and her mother live in a ... ramen shop (I... think), where her mother works and Maya makes deliveries. At the beginning of the series, Maya has been made a promise: if, against all odds, she can make all the deliveries before midnight, she can have a ticket to see a play. Of course, there wouldn't be much of a story if she didn't make it: she does, and the vindictive woman who offered her the ticket throws it into the water. Maya jumps after it, and clutches it to her. ...And against her knowledge has already become the focus of attention of one Chigusa Tsukikage.

The story follows Maya as her life changes dramatically — that one ticket leads her to the life she'd dreamed of: the chance to become an actress under Tsukikage's tutelage. And to possibly be given the opportunity to play the part of the Crimson Goddess, the main part in the much sought after play of the same title — a role only once taken, by Tsukikage herself.

What Else?
Garasu no Kamen is amazing in its storytelling. It gives us a main character who is childish but mature; vulnerable but with courage enough to fight tigers; flawed but beautiful. More than once it flips on itself and makes us re-evaluate our perceptions of its story and its characters... as they act on stage and toward each other. They have bursts of intuition and painful failures. They struggle with their feelings and don't always win out. They make you love them.

How? A lot of Garasu no Kamen is about taking roles — both the ones on stage and off of it. Masumi becomes both protector and adversary to Maya — and pushes her toward her successes in both capacities, even while he can't seem to sort out himself just what he wants to be to her. Tsukikage looms as someone wise and all-knowing, Maya's mentor and unyielding disciplinarian... but is more attached to Maya than she'd ever let on. Ayumi and Maya become rivals, but without any marked hatred or envy — in fact, unlike most rivalries we see, Ayumi and Maya are very much equal, simply with contrasted talents. It isn't a vain stuggle between them to be best, but something more subtle and personal. Rei mothers Maya and protects her... but Maya's longing for her own absent mother is on occasion so sharp within her she cannot perform. Yuu cannot seem to separate Maya's acting from her reality, despite being an actor himself. And then there's Maya herself.

Maya is uncertain of herself and her ability, but always learning (if not growing... she's a short thing, she is). She's very passionate—everything she does is with exteme emotion... yet she has little difficulty distinguishing her acting from her reality... perhaps because acting is Maya's life, and she has learned to wear her masks well. I don't think you can help but like her.

The romance is something I was very iffy on at first — and since I'm a hopeless romantic, I need people to be paired off, acceptably. But in Garasu no Kamen, I was really rather uncaring about the romance direction — I was watching it for the rest of the story, for the mystery and drama involved ... but by the end of it, I had done an almost total reverse in that aspect. I'm actually surprised how much my opinion on this changed. I won't say much beyond that, except that if you're watching for romance, it's well worth it.

The music is very pretty but not mind-blowing — and the art certainly shows its age. But that just means we can concentrate on the characters rather than squealing pretty-pretty! every so often — the fact that Garasu no Kamen is a show of outstanding quality without the visual treat really does speak for its story. And in Maya (as in Momoko), I've finally found an M-named heroine I don't want to shove off a cliff.

The Bottom Line
Garasu no Kamen is one hell of an anime series. It is, perhaps, not like Hana Yori Dango in its almost univeral appeal, but most fans of shoujo should love it. Be careful, however, not to fall into my trap: seeing it, and wanting more... and having little chance of getting it.