Fog of the Funeral Planet

 Fog of the Funeral Planet

Manga Chapter 5-5

TV Episode 66

Manga Chapter Summary:

The chapter begins with us seeing a cathedral type structure, hidden by deep fog, with a bell ringing in the background. As the 999 approaches the planet, Maetel asks Tetsuro to put on a cloak, one that appears to be like funeral attire. The Conductor announces their next stop as the Funeral Planet, with a layover time of 3 hours 40 minutes. Maetel tells Tetsuro to not underestimate the planet, despite the short layover time. A dense fog covers the planet and the smell of incense is in the air.

We see many cloaked people as the 999 passes by overhead. They consider the 999 rude for making such noise and claim that they have no respect for the souls of the departed. They scream at the train, saying its tourists are blasphemers. As they head out of the station, Maetel insists Tetsuro lower his head and walk. They will need to get their passes stamped from the travel agency while here. Also they should keep their eyes downward if they meet any people walking in single file. They eventually come across two lines of single filed people. Maetel tells Tetsuro to not look behind and to rush to the next building.

 

Suddenly a bunch of shots ring out towards them. Maetel tells Tetsuro these people want to kill them so they can arrange their funerals. A building collapses around Tetsuro and Maetel due to the blasts. The cloaked people come and, while knowing they are not dead, still desire to bury them. The bell rings and Tetsuro finds himself in a casket! At that moment the cloaked people are burying the caskets holding Maetel and Tetsuro and hold a funeral ceremony for them. They eventually depart, and Tetsuro wonders how long the oxygen will last. Tetsuro’s throat starts to burn and he passes out.

 

We see the bells continue to ring and the cloaked crowd continue on, saying they have to commence another funeral. Tetsuro wakes up, outside! Maetel is right next to him and he finds their caskets dug up next to them. Tetsuro wonders how they got out and she says he’ll understand someday. She tells Tetsuro another funeral is taking place; those on this planet have very short life spans due to being murdered. Without death, people on this planet can’t hold funerals. In fact it is the act of holding funerals on this planet that people find pleasure in. They love the sadness of the rituals.

 

Tetsuro and Maetel notice the same crowd blowing their path back to the 999. Maetel hands Tetsuro his gun. They again pass by them but this time its Tetsuro who fires first, knocking them out. Maetel claims that these people, even though they are just unconscious will be buried themselves. The bells continue to ring and a large crowd of more cloaked people approach. We cut to the 999, having departed the planet. Tetsuro is surprised that there are people who enjoy burying others. Maetel says when she dies she doesn’t want any ceremony, she just wants Tetsuro to never forget about her. Tetsuro thinks to himself about how this is the first time Maetel has talked about her own death and that he’s never seen her so sad.

TV Episode Summary:

The first half or so of the episode is fairly faithful to the original episode. A few scenes have some slight changes. When the 999 arrives, Tetsuro says he doesn’t feel like getting off, causing Maetel to head off on her own. We soon see that Tetsuro has changed his mind and he’s rushed out into the streets of the town around the station, soon catching up with her. Tetsuro and Maetel are shot and knocked out as in the manga, although it’s just a small statue that it is done next to in the episode. 

 

The second half provides more original content. We see a blond-haired woman, Machiru, ringing the bell who feels sorry for Tetsuro and Maetel. Machiru ends up rescuing Tetsuro and Maetel from being buried alive. Tetsuro wakes up in a small stone room with Maetel instead of waking up outside. Machiru explains to them how they started enjoying funerals on this planet around 120 years ago. We see a flashback to a rocket ship crashing on the planet. A girl and boy crawl out, and the girl is surprised to find that those on this planet don’t know of what a hospital is or what dying means. Those who live here haven’t experienced it as they don’t age or die. The boy with her passes away in her arms. A funeral is then held for him. Those on the planet become interested in the funeral and stab the girl to death with pitchforks. Machiru explains how those on this planet then started to create weapons that enabled them to kill. Having funerals freed them from their boredom.

 

Tetsuro tells Machiru of how he is going to Andromeda to get a free mechanical body and he’ll never grow bored with eternal life due to all the things he has to do. She says to visit her once he has eternal life. The crowd of cloaked wearing people realize the bells have stopped and want to hold a funeral for Machiru next. Machiru rushes back up to the bell and starts ringing it again. Two women climb up the bell tower and shoot Machiru several times in the back until she falls over and down the stairway. Tetsuro and Maetel look over her body and Tetsuro gets angry about her fate.

 

After this we return to the sequence seen in the manga where Tetsuro and Maetel pass the crowd again but come out on top this time. Maetel participates in the shooting as well this time. On the 999 as they depart, Tetsuro wonders if he will enjoy funerals when he attains an eternal life.

TV Episode Cast:

Tetsuro Hoshino – Masako Nozawa

Maetel – Masako Ikeda

Conductor – Kaneta Kimotsuki

Woman A – Nana Yamaguchi

Woman B – Kazuko Matsuzawa

Machiru – Mieko Nobusawa

Toto – Keiko Han

Tato – Banjou Ginga

Narrator – Hitoshi Takagi

I’m assuming Toto is the girl in the flashback. Tato is named in the episode, but she is not.

Non-Spoiler Analysis:

This chapter takes Tetsuro to a planet where people are obsessed with funerals, enough so that they are willing to bury people alive in order to get them! I’ve read various horror stories throughout the years and one concept I remember is that one can get a certain level of enjoyment out of a funeral. When one dies and a funeral is held, usually any personal beefs are put aside and people have fond remembrance of that person. It can also be an opportunity to celebrate one’s life. They are not all bad. Still, on this planet it is more the act of the funeral itself than the person who is being buried that is important to those doing it. A simple act of passing by a crowd of those obsessed with funerals is enough for one to lose their life to it!

 

The concept of being buried alive is a horrifying one and another one I’ve read in many horror stories over the years. One of the most effective horror movies I’ve ever seen, “Spoorloos” (a Dutch film) features it in a big way. I was quite scared for Tetsuro when he woke up and found himself in a coffin! I’m usually not that claustrophobic, but I absolutely would freak out like crazy if I ever woke up in a casket, buried underground. Unfortunately this is the one place where Matsumoto whiffs during the chapter, as Tetsuro and Maetel are suddenly dug up and back above the surface with no explanation whatsoever. Maetel doesn’t explain it to Tetsuro and he doesn’t really question it either. To have a deus ex machine type moment like this was quite frustrating! The episode wisely adds a new character, Machiru, who feels sorry for Tetsuro and Maetel and digs them up. Machiru helps flesh things out further, explaining how those on this planet don’t age or die, so they started holding funerals due to the boredom! Speaking of Machiru, with her blonde hair and black clothes, I thought she was Maetel at first.

 

As we approach the end of the chapter, Tetsuro and Maetel find themselves coming across the same group again, but this time they’re ready and Tetsuro is able to knock them all out with his gun (quite kind, I must say, as this weapon has instantly killed often in previous chapters). I love the rather ironic twist that those who buried alive Tetsuro and Maetel are going to be facing a fate of being buried alive themselves. And if they don’t have some deus ex machine digging them up too, it will be permanent for them! Even better yet, in the episode, since they live forever, they will be permanently stuck in their graves, basically a fate worse than death.