There's a lot of things that the anime changed that I'm fascinated by (in a mostly good way) but I keep thinking about how Tanaka is reframed in the beach scene.
I think a lot of the changes done to tho show were done to make the conclusion and anime as a whole feel more cohesive, which is smart. This also means we see way more of Tanaka way earlier than we do in the manga. Which, again, is smart. It gives the audience way more time to wrap their head around him and his whole deal instead of relying on getting another season to convey those same ideas.
He's way more a sympathetic character way earlier in the anime and it's way more clear that he's maybe not as much of a threat to Yoshiki and Hikaru as he initially appears to be. Which is the exact tonal difference we get in the beach scene as well.
This is a peace offering.
This is a threat.
In the manga he actively interrupts their argument before it can really get kicked off. We don't get Yoshiki's big internal monologue or the fight turning physical here. We don't get Hikaru yelling back at Yoshiki. We get Yoshiki starting to insistent Hikaru isn't a replacement and then Tanaka appearing out of nowhere, interjecting himself into their drama in a way that makes him read as a threat. We don't see him walk up. We don't see him watching them. He is suddenly behind Hikaru, touching the head he just cut off in the same way we have seen Hikaru consistently enjoy being touched by Yoshiki. It's supposed to feel physically and emotionally invasive and it hits that mark extremely well.
Which isn't to say there's nothing sinister in the anime either.
I really love this inclusion. It feels very Tanaka and is still invasive, just in a more passive way. And gets the bonus of giving us the tasty imagery of a witness to them baptizing each other and being born again together.
But it's so interesting to me they chose to make his approach here feel more considered and less antagonistic. He's observing. He's letting them finish their conversation. He's returning something they lost to them. He's giving way more respect to their space and their situation. They clearly didn't want to leave the audience with a bad taste toward Tanaka in their mouths. And, impressively, they managed to convey Tanaka well enough throughout the show that such a huge change doesn't feel out of character. It's sort of remarkable.
And it was the right call. It's just so cool to see an adaption willing to do stuff like this and I'm so so curious how this is going to shift the read of him going forward both to the audience and the characters themselves.
