When you said Rin has to explain his relationship with Haru to Ikuya, that he doesn't do "be there by his side when he's recovering", did they show us or hint at what Rin was doing when Haru's recovering?
Also, and this is purely to satisfy my dying curiosity šš Given the nature of their relationship, say, in a romantic AU, do you think they could develop into sth more than rivals?
While Haru was recovering, Rin was swimming his own finals -- and then once that was done, he went to the Team Coach with Natsuya to convince him to put Haru in the medley relay. Rin isn't one for sitting around waiting either way, no matter how close he is to someone, so he put his feelings into action, which involved getting Haru back into the pool where he belongs.
During his conversation with Ikuya, Ikuya comments that 'now it's our turn to support Haru' (as they've all been realizing how much of a beacon Haru is to them), to which Rin replies with a hearty hell yeah--"That's what we're gonna be swimming for now."
(and as for what he's doing while Haru is in rehabilitation after the event, between then and Hungary, it sounds like Rin has been making his mark as a professional swimmer -- which is precisely what Haru would want him doing, keeping in top form and waiting for Haru to come back)
And well, I think it's entirely possible something deeper than friendship could form between them XD but that's always going to be biased by people who WANT something deeper than friendship to form between them lol. Still, they'll be on the road together a lot now--though they won't be alone. There will be Natsuya and Ikuya and Sousuke and the others as well who are all aiming to go pro. Makoto is probably the only one who won't be out there with everyone, since it's repeated several times in the movie that his dream is to teach little kids how to swim. He doesn't have to do that in Japan, obviously, but that's not exactly a job that requires you to jetset around the globe with the Japanese National Swim Team.
Haru's dream is to swim with Rin, full stop. Not anyone else--just Rin. That will probably evolve over time, but Rin will always be an irreplaceable existence that changed his life and a core part of his swimming. When Haru races Rin in their rematch in the night pool, he remarks afterward that it doesn't hurt when he swims with Rin--whereas training hard as he had been always left him feeling exhausted and weak. For me, they're already more than 'rivals' (which is why I like the comparison of Rin and Ikuya, who seem like much more classic rivals, similar to Rin and Sousuke).
Whether or not that could, in time, shift to something more romantic--if the romance isn't already there underneath all the layers, which if you ask me I feel like it is, just unacknowledged or unrecognized, because of the ways in which they affect each other, stirring one another up and calming one another down just by being near each other--is up to interpretation. But the simple situation they find themselves in now: long days on the road, training together beside each other, possibly sharing hotel rooms again, seeing the sites and bonding over victories and defeats, building each other up to keep their respective dreams alive...that's gonna lead to something. For sure.
Hey there! I know most of the other characters are sidelined for the RinHaru of it all (and I am thrilled with the RinHaru of it all), but could you talk a little about Ikuyaās trajectory in this? And thanks for your Q&As!
Ikuya, for better or worse, doesn't have too much drama going on! His arc is more about supporting Haru and making his mark in the professional circuit (with his bronze medal and all!), and he's the only one who swims in BOTH the semi-finals AND the finals for the medley relay. It's mentioned earlier in the movie as well that he's an absolute powerhouse, able to keep up a fast pace for long stretches, when even others like Hiyori and Sousuke are begging for a break. Ikuya is fucking badass.
I also love the brother moments he gets with Natsuya, which are especially prominent in their relay (since Ikuya swims breaststroke and Natsuya takes the handoff from him for butterfly).
One thing, though, that was pushed heavily in this movie is: Rin and Ikuya are rivals. They had their moments back in Part 1, and those are underscored in Part 2. They have a relationship that's kind of like a combination of Rin's relationship with Sousuke and Rin's relationship with Haru. It's very easy and bromancy (there are fistbumps!), and it's interesting how different it is from the "rivalry" Haru and Rin share.
Like, Rin and Ikuya's rivalry feels like your traditional sports anime rivalry. Very fun and easy and poking and prodding each other.
But Rin and Haru's is a different beast altogether. There's so much baggage, so much history, and Rin wasn't kidding when he told Ikuya that their relationship isn't the kind of easy, close, warm one that Haru and Makoto have. It's something deeper and darker and a little bit bad for each other but more than that so very very good for each other because of the difference they've made in each other's lives.
Seeing Rin and Ikuya, it's clear that is what rivals are.
Seeing Rin and Haru, it's clear that is what a destined pair is.
FENCER'S HUGE-ASS SPOILER-LADEN DAY 1 REVIEW OF FREE! THE FINAL STROKE PART 2 or How KyoAni Said, "You WILL experience 10 years' worth of emotions in 2 hours and you'll like it!!"
Let's cut to the chase. You know why you're here. I know why you're here. So I won't make you wait any longer. You wanna know every gory detail from this glorious sobfest of a movie? THEN GET THEE BEHIND A CUT!
(warning that this is probably only mildly coherent and has a HEAVY HARURIN BEND. Mostly because THE MOVIE HAS A HEAVY HARURIN BEND. Sorry I don't make the rules I just report on how much boys stay winning)
Now, I was so scared of this movie.
I have a thing, see. If a series ends, and it doesn't end EXACTLY the way I wanted it to? If it does something that I think is a sour note to end on, or even if it just makes some narrative decisions I disagree with?
I can't watch it anymore. I can't read it anymore. Everything I used to love about it turns sour to me and I can't enjoy it. It happened with Haikyuu, it happened with Evangelion. It's happened with dozens of series over the years. A series is pretty much never going to end the way I want it to, and in my case, for whatever reason, that means I can't enjoy it AT ALL anymore. I can't just imagine what happened DIDN'T happen. It's there. I can't forget it, and it ruins the story.
So I was scared of this movie. Because it was the end. Decisions would be made about characters' futures, and I probably wouldn't agree with them. Might even hate them. I was of course under no delusion that there would be any SHIPS confirmed--so that wasn't something I was worried about or excited about--but everything else. Everything else was something real and final that would be canon now.
I went anyway, though, knowing I'd never forgive myself if I just let someone else spoil me. I fought the knot in my stomach, settled in, and watched.
And I cried. Oh boy did I cry. There was definitely a moment there where I knew oh this is it, this was going to be what made me never able to watch this series again. It wasn't disappointment--it wasn't anger--it was just...sadness. A deep well of sadness.
But then they fixed it. And I won't bore you with those out-of-context details now. I'll just say read on, and you'll understand.
And then you'll start to see how amazing it was.
Movie opens with a semi-recap. Not a recap in so many words, but characters remembering things and flashing back to those scenes in the previous movie. No biggie.
Except. Except then KyoAni said, "Hi we're here to kick you in the stomach so settle in for two hours of emotional trauma :)))))" and RIPS INTO AN ACOUSTIC DRIED UP YOUTHFUL FAME. OH YEAH, THEY WERE IN. THIS. BITCH.
"But wait, flashbacks to previous scenes from the last movie? You mean we have to live through That Fight all over again?"
Oh, no don't worry. You don't have to live through it again as it happened.
You have to see how Haru imagined it going and then see his heartbreak when he realizes it didn't happen that way.
You have to hear him tell Rin, beaming and whole-heartedly committed, "Rin, I want to swim in the lane next to you in our next tournament. I want to keep walking forward with you."
Yes, he was explicit in that he wanted to go there with Rin. He wanted his future to be, explicitly, swimming alongside Rin. Competing alongside Rin. Forever.
But then, of course, that's not how it happened.
A lot of this movie takes place in imaginary sequences, dreams and nightmares and memories that never happened. It's very cool, but also a little weird XD So, par for the course for Free! For example, early on as Haru is reliving his fight with Rin, we see lots of flashbacks to them as kids, but viewed in a movie theater (whoa trippy) with baby Makoto and baby Nagisa giving commentary. Scenes of young Haru and Rin fighting morph into them as Power Ranger standins (blue and red ofc), fighting but then deciding to work together, their union being stronger than either of them alone.
Haru has nightmares that play out over and over and over--most of the time of Rin leaving himā¦but occasionally of him leaving Rin, of him pushing Rin away and avoiding him for so long, refusing to swim with him. Haru resents Rin for his decision to 'leave' him, but he also recognizes that it's his own selfishness and stubbornness that has hurt Rin too.
Elsewhere, the coaches discuss their students. Mikhail remarks that Rin was crying.
Part 2 is set one year after Part 1, for context--and in that time, Nagisa and Rei and Nitori have all graduatedā¦and moved to Tokyo! Rei and Nitori have joined the swim team at Ikuya and Hiyori's school, while Nagisa has joined Kinjou's school's team. The gang's all back together again!
Haru has been training HARD this whole timeā¦to the point that he's hurting himself. He's working himself to exhaustion, and after nearly fainting after one training session, Azuma makes him take a break to rest, warning him that he's trying to do the equivalent of strapping a huge engine into a tiny car--it's going to destroy the car eventually.
Makoto hears about Haru being made to rest because he'd worked himself to exhaustion and immediately tells Rinā¦who absolutely wants to MURDER Azuma. Makoto has to almost physically restrain him, begging him not to do anything rash when Rin confronts Azuma in a rage over the state he feels he's brought Haru to. Azuma snaps back, "If something's really that important to you, then you shouldn't have let it go in the first place!" Makoto and Rin split up, looking for Haru, who's nowhere to be found.
Rin runs himself ragged searching all over the city, regretting how selfish he'd been. Muttering, "I'm so lameā¦" he collapses on a sidewalk and rolls overā¦and sees a beautiful glimmering sakura tree towering over him, lit up in the night. He squints at its brilliance--and just beyond it, standing atop a building, he finally spots Haru.
Rin calls Makoto and tells him he's found Haru, and they meet up at the top of the building, where there's a night pool you can swim in. Haru is floating aimlessly on his back in the pool alone. Makoto moves to go to him--but Rin holds out a hand to stop him. Then Rin jumps in the pool and approaches Haru.
Apologies are made, challenges are issued. "You have a duty to race me," Rin says, harkening back to their first real clash when they reunited in Season 1.
They race. Rin keeps glancing over, watching Haru, as they push each other further and further.
They reach the finish, both panting, and in Haru's mind he sees himself standing once more at that railroad crossing. Rin is there, on the other side. And this time, the crossing guard lifts and Rin rushes toward him.
Back in the present, Rin launches himself into the neighboring lane, wrapping Haru in the biggest, tightest hug. (in a booth, monitoring pool usage, two night guards stare gobsmacked at each other: "Was thatā¦was that a WORLD RECORD?" but of course it isn't official.)
Haru reflects that it didn't hurt this time. It doesn't hurt when he races Rin--or at least he doesn't feel the pain, if it's there.
Makoto approaches the poolside and reaches down, this time to help out not just Haru but the both Haru and Rin. They respond by clasping his hand--and yanking him into the pool with them.
Randomly, but here's where one of the funniest moments imho of the entire movie came, where there's a flashback showing baby Makoto and Nagisa searching for an omamori to give to baby Haru. They find a nice one from the shrine that (they think) reads "Peace of Mind." When Makoto gives it to Haru after much dithering, Haru frowns in confusion at the kanji on the trinket: "Safe Birth" (meant to be given to pregnant women to pray for a healthy, safe delivery XD).
Rin declares that he wants to help Haru find his dream again--he's going to train with Haru directly. This training with Rin blooms into training with just about EVERYONE, as everyone pitches in to help get Haru ready for the World Championships Selection Event coming up soon.
But even with all his friends' help, Haru is still pushing himself, and when the tournament comes around, Kinjou tells Haru, "Looks like you're about at your limit." When Makoto asks Azuma about this, Azuma confesses that he's pretty sure Haru only has one more good race in him--and it's this one, where rumor has it Albert is going to retire. If Haru wants to race Albert again, it has to be now or never.
Ikuya wins his own heat, and Rin wins his butterfly heat -- but when Hiyori hops in the pool for his backstroke heat, who's there in the lane next to him but SOUSUKE. Yup, Sousuke has been brushing up his backstroke since Part 1, as Nao has informed him that it's much easier on the shoulders than butterfly (I bet you can see where this is going!)
Haru takes first in his heat as well--but nearly collapses and has to be taken away to rest before the finals where he'll face off against Kinjou and Albert.
Ikuya wins Bronze in breastroke, and Rin finally gets his first bronze as well. Rin lets Gou wear his medal, and she reflects on how heavy it feels. Rin's mother then tells Rin that he should go do now the thing he really wants to do.
Haru, sleeping, confronts his younger self. "You're you and I'm me." Their experiences and feelings are both valid. They don't need to beat themselves up over it.
When Haru wakes up, he's slept through the 100-meter freestyle finals and his last chance to race Al.
But there's still one more chance for him to swim with his friends--and it's here that Rin, Ikuya, and Sousuke beg their coach to let Haru swim the freestyle leg of the relay with them. This is unorthodox, as Kinjou is the faster swimmer, and the relay team is already established. They therefore decide to split the difference: one team will race the semifinals, and another will race the finals. Of course, the finals team being allowed to race will only happen if the semifinals team does good enough.
Swimming the medley relay in the semifinals is: Hiyori (back) Ikuya (breast) Natsuya (butterfly) Kinjou (free). Kinjou finally gets to see that sight, even if he's not swimming with Haru directly.
In the finals, the lineup is Sousuke (back) Ikuya (again, breast) Rin (fly) Haru (free). Albert is swimming the freestyle leg for his own team too. It's a heated race--and one of the absolute best parts of it for me was that we got to see one last time the image of Rin, glancing up, eyes wide, screaming Haru's name, as we see Haru dive over him in slow motion, his form reflected in Rin's goggles.
It's a bit ambiguous if they win, but we do see in a picture later all four with huge smiles on their faces wearing gold medals. They won that bitch.
But victory is bittersweet: Haru has indeed pushed himself too far, and he collapses.
The next time we see Ikuya and Nitori discussing how he's doing, we learn that after that race, Haru retired from swimming.
I want you to know it was at this point I was absolutely legit bawling in my seat. I was so, so fucking sad. It wasn't an angry sadness, it wasn't really frustration. It was like someone had just died. Because swimming is Haru's life--and not just swimming, but swimming with Rin. Professionally. Competing. Forever. The whole damn movie OPENED WITH THAT. And now it was closing telling us that Haru's dream had been cut short.
ETA: lol ignore the above, I gave myself stress ulcers from mishearing taiin (discharged from a hospital) as intai (retire). Haru does NOT retire. He's discharged from the hospital. He still takes a break from swimming, but it's not that serious.
Haru goes back to Iwatobi after he retires he's discharged from the hospital, and we find out he's entered into some lucrative advertising deals, his face plastered in prominent locations in Tokyo advertising swimwear. He's popular, he's famous, even though he's not swimming professionally.
This is where the credits rolled. It was calm and tasteful, a montage of all the official art from the series over the years. The tears continued. I prayed. I begged. I hoped.
let there be a post-credits scene. please.
Someone heard me. For there was a post-credits scene. Rin is traveling the world. Nagisa and Rei are training in Tokyo with their friends and sempai. Everyone's got their eyes on the next step in their careers, professional and otherwise.
And then we learn: Albert's coming out of retirement.
Why?
"Because there's someone he wants to race again."
Yes. Haru's rehabilitation is finished, and he's returning to the circuit. His first major tournament is in Hungary--where Rin has already arrived and Makoto joins him. It's clear Haru hasn't seen either of them in quite some time (which makes sense--Haru went back to Iwatobi after he took his break from swimming, but Makoto would have needed to stay in Tokyo to study, and Rin has been globetrotting).
Haru heads to the tournament site--and stops at a railroad crossing to let a trolley pass. Between the passing cars, he can see someone on the other side. Rin.
The crossing guards lift, and they walk towards each other, finally reaching one another.
"I dreamed about a race between us," Rin says.
"Me too," Haru says.
Rin grins. "Wanna see how it ends?"
Haru smiles. "Absolutely."
The movie ends with Haru and Rin finally standing alongside each other in matching lanes. On Haru's other side, we can see Albert, who looks equally excited to be back and racing Haru again.
Final clip of the movie: A letter Haru wrote that says "Even once I'm a normal person, I'll keep on swimming."
The final words of the movie are Haru's voice: "I think I'll wait a little bit longer before I become a normal person."
The opening sequence of Timeless Medley: The Promise never fails to tug at my heartstrings, and upon rewatching it (while waiting in agony for The Final Stroke pt 2 lol), I just can't get over this:
Look at this cute little bean! After an emotional telling of Rin's childhood from his point of view and how he stepped up to take care of his family, he then met and became best friends with Sousuke. And then we get THIS
Rin walked in with his group of friends and IMMEDIATELY noticed Haru. Not only that, but Haru noticed him right back! And this is BEFORE they even raced each other! Then they had their first race together, and afterwards-
LOOK AT THIS!!!! WHAT THE HECK. This is some romantic framing if I ever saw it. Look at how fixated Rin is on Haru. He hasn't even exchanged a single word with the guy yet he's already captivated by him. Ever since the beginning, Rin has had strong feelings for Haru.
We even have a jealous Sousuke to boot! How can you show me a heart wrenching story about a cute, cheerful boy who lost his father at a young age, was forced to grow up quickly yet still put on a smile and have fun, and then met his shining who literally changed his life forever, and NOT expect me to see it as romantically coded??! And Haru's life was changed by him, too! I swear the first few minutes of this movie are like the beginnings of a love story. Honestly, though, it's hard for me to see Haru and Rin's story throughout the "Free!" franchise as anything but a love story. All of the pieces are there.
Kyoani you're killing me right now. I need part 2 to get here faster ;_;
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