{"id":3622,"date":"2018-08-23T20:55:42","date_gmt":"2018-08-24T03:55:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/?p=3622"},"modified":"2026-11-12T11:31:27","modified_gmt":"2026-11-12T19:31:27","slug":"laughing-under-the-clouds-gaiden-part-1-and-2-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/2018\/08\/23\/laughing-under-the-clouds-gaiden-part-1-and-2-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Laughing Under the Clouds: Gaiden Part 1 and 2 Review with EXCLUSIVE FILM CLIPS!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Laughing Under the Clouds: Gaiden<\/span><\/i> Part 1 and 2 are sequel movies to the <\/span>Laughing Under the Clouds<\/span><\/i> anime. The anime aired Fall 2014, and having been a fan of the anime series\u2014so much so that I actually ended up reading the manga too \u2014I jumped at the opportunity to watch the movies, thanks to Eleven Arts.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Kumo Brothers<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Laughing under the Clouds<\/span><\/i> is a story about the Kumo brothers whose family had historically protected their hometown from criminals as well as supernatural creatures. Tenka, the eldest son, assumes the caretaker role for his two younger brothers after their parents are tragically murdered by an unknown assailant. Having reached the end of the Meiji era, Japan\u2019s safety had been considerably compromised as people of the olden ways (samurais and ninjas) continued to cause trouble in the public eye. Tenka must do everything he can to keep his family safe and happy all the while confronting a bigger problem \u2013 the upcoming reincarnation of Orochi, a mythical snake monster.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Part 1<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

The first movie of Gaiden starts off exactly where the anime ended. The surviving characters had moved onto new lives, with some unsure of where they want to go. As Tenka struggles with finding a purpose now that his mission in life had been fulfilled, his old friends come to visit and finally reveal to his younger brothers what Tenka was like in his younger days, which neither brother has many memories of. It is a sequel and a prequel, showing viewers what happened at the end of the anime series and giving background on what had taken place before the series as well.<\/span><\/p>\n

One thing I remembered when watching the anime series was that the plot was very streamlined. It moves forward without pause, so there isn\u2019t really any divulging of secret information from the past. We take the characters as they have been presented to us, and we don\u2019t really have time to question how or why they became a certain way.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Complex Gaiden Tenka<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I found Tenka to be a pretty simple character. He\u2019s goofy, he\u2019s relaxed, he\u2019s very powerful, and he\u2019s responsible despite all his jokes. He\u2019s not an unusual protagonist to find in stories, and though he is very likable, there is a lack of depth that comes with his predictability as a character (despite his actions often being unpredictable to the chagrin of his friends and brothers). <\/span>Laughing Under the Clouds: Gaiden Part 1<\/span><\/i> finally adds that shade of complexion to his character. Tenka is no longer simply a protagonist; he\u2019s someone who\u2019s very human.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Throughout the film, though the moments where he does show his vulnerability are small and slight, we see him struggle to keep up that smile and laughter, something that he once so effortlessly kept up in the anime. It\u2019s more than just a temporary emotional stage. Tenka is actually lost in life. Having completed what he had promised to do in what he saw as mediocre, the once always-laughing brother suddenly finds his entire emotional state crashing down on him without the stress of saving the future. Much to his displeasure, it was almost as if he had to put his mourning and pain on hold in the series, and only in the movie was able to let his emotions run wild and uncontrolled.<\/span><\/p>\n

Through the revelation of his past, we are introduced to conflicts through Tenka\u2019s point of view without the filters of being stable and strong. The backstory also explores how Yamainu was created, the Kumo brothers\u2019 deceased parents, and the overall relationship Tenka had with the Yamainu members.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The Yamainu<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I did think the backstory was a bit longer than necessary. There were funny moments like the Yamainu members in training and their dynamics as teenagers, but it did not really change from how the adult characters interacted. Instead, the real gem of the backstory is near the end where Tenka\u2019s parents had been brutally murdered. You watch him essentially break down from his choice of becoming a responsible older brother instead of a dutiful Yamainu member as he had been trained to become.<\/span><\/p>\n

The movie could not have ended more beautifully, and Yuuichi Nakamura can act his chops off. Tenka\u2019s abrupt switches between dark and heavy with lightheartedness and jokes feel effortless and smooth. And when the emotions begin to run high, you would\u2019ve never guessed that Tenka was someone who drove people nuts with pranks as a man who held so much pain and insecurity inside. However, this is still a story about the bond and love between three brothers. When Soramaru, the second son, picked Tenka up to run home, bringing laughter back into the jokester brother, I could not have smiled any wider.<\/span><\/p>\n

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