The Runaway Theory - A Mahiru 2nd Trial Analysis
I want to begin with addressing the idea of Mahiru being an abuser and my issues with this perception of her. I know the stalker and mannequin theories are very popular but my issue with this characterization of her is the fact that Mahiru is a very weak person. In both voice dramas Mahiru constantly belittles herself, painting herself as a someone who isn't smart. When Kotoko hurts her to the point of being in a critical condition- she herself doesn't feel hurt and justifies what Kotoko has done to her. Even was Es was the one who voted her guilty- she seems to harbor no resentment towards him, and tells him to do his best in her voice drama.
This all very important to consider because it shows Mahiru is willing to get hurt to paint others in a positive light. So with that- what makes us think that she isn't doing the same for her boyfriend. Both songs focus so heavily on Mahiru's warm feelings for this man, but little do either songs actually characterize him. We don't know his motives, and it's only in the second song that we even know what he looks like.
Which brings me to my main thesis: Mahiru fixates so much on her feelings of love as to not focus on the fact she is settling for a shitty guy and shitty relationship.
With that I want to address what is happening in the second song. That is, what exactly is Mahiru and her boyfriend doing in the forest. I understand the "symbolism" of Mahiru leading her boyfriend to a suicide forest, but that doesn't really make sense. Mahiru doesn't want him dead, and even actively state that she wishes she could bring him back to life if he could.
So- why are they there?
This brings me to the runaway theory. As established already, Mahiru does have money. She is a college student and its said that she is living off money that her parents send her. Not to mention the fact she is seen wearing very nice clothes and able to go to a stylist.
Which brings us to the question- why is Mahiru in a state where she is looking for things like shelter and food ("Clothes Food Shelter - Love and Miss you"). In fact this phrase is repeated through her 2nd trial, emphasizing that these are things she is constantly on the lookout for. We know the forest was where Mahiru's boyfriend was killed, implying that both Mahiru and him must have consensually went together. But like we established, Mahiru isn't in poverty, nor has she commited any grave crimes that would make her have to go on the run. If she were a stalker, and that's why she needed to go on the run, then why would her boyfriend be with her since he would have had to report her to the police?
Well this brings us to an interesting conclusion. The last known entry in Mahiru's diary indicates that she was staying at her boyfriend's place. This is also where she is wearing the same outfit as in the second MV. We can assume this happened prior to her boyfriend's death in the suicide forest because she was waiting for him to come home. The following shot in the MV though implies that- he didn't come home, as Mahiru is instead sleeping on the couch, seeming from waiting for him all night. This is where we then get this shocked expression:
We know this expression couldn't be because of her boyfriend's suicide, because we know this occurred in the forest. The attached image showing Mahiru's information along with where her murder took place, depicting a forest. So if not for her boyfriend's death, what could possibly make Mahiru look like this?
-I don't really know. That's the issue with the Milgram MV's and a similar issue I noticed with Mu's MV's where they showcase the beginning and end of the prisoner's crimes, but not so much what happened in between. My guess though, is that the reason they had to become runaways had to do with Mahiru's boyfriend. Like I said, we don't know much about this guy and I think that's intentional. Mahiru is desperate to make this guy look like a victim and like a good person even if it means endangering herself. I think more than likely, that shocked look on Mahiru's face came due to the boyfriend having to come home, likely planning to go on the run after he did something, and ending up having to confess this to Mahiru. As a result of her unconditional love, Mahiru then decides to go with him.
I think one thing that's interesting in the MV that reveals about this guy's character is that while he's willing to give Mahiru cake, it's a lot less than what Mahiru is willing to give.
Mahiru is already shown to be someone who makes the most out of bad situations as shown by her more delusional perceptions throughout the video. If I had to make a guess as to why her boyfriend commited suicide, it's because he was stuck in a situation that he couldn't get out of (he was already shown with a blood stain on his chest in the MV) and one that he couldn't idealize. Mahiru on the other hand, was able to live through the awful conditions. In her first trial she fixates on the days before their relationship switched to the point where they had to become runaways.
In this case, what I think Mahiru feels guilt about is the fact that she couldn't stop her boyfriend's death. What that carousel symbolizes in that sense is their relationship. Sure, it's working and it's constantly moving, but it's stuck and place, gradually breaking down more and more, until her boyfriend is literally shown hanging from it. The carousel for Mahiru is something she uses to keep herself going, to her boyfriend it was another thing to drain him.
OKAY SO I WAS PARTIALLY RIGHT ABOUT THEM BEING RUNAWAYS. i do wish we got more insight on mahiru's boyfriend and who he was but ugh. I had no idea how I didn't see the arranged marriage plotline coming.
