Bringing a tied and naked Isami in the room of his departed “boyfriend” veers toward romantic, erotic and melancholic. I feel for Isami. I feel for him.
“bang brave bang bravern” more like “what if your mecha partner boyfriend soulmate loved you so much it saved his life and yours, forwards and backwards into infinity. what if he adopted and played up the persona of a superhero because acting as your knight was the only way he felt like he could stand by your side. what if he believed in you so hard that belief persisted even after he died. TWICE!!! and what if all that love taught you how to be brave enough to save everyone - but most importantly him - in return.”
A day before the Bang Brave Bang Bravern finale I finally found peace with the one thing that stopped me to completely believe the "Smith is Bravern" theory before it was confirmed:
'If Smith is Bravern, why didn't Smith as Bravern save Isami in episode 2 when he was waterboarded?'
Because if Bravern already lived through everything as Smith he would know about the water boarding and he would've saved Isami.
And the answer was right there.
Bravern didn't save Isami because him as Smith had to be the one to do it.
This was the moment that changed their relationship and gave a solid base to the development of their bond. This part, as cruel as it sounds, had to happen. Because without this happening the two wouldn't have felt that strongly towards each. One wouldn't defeat death itself and travel back in time to save the one he loves. The other wouldn't accept the role of a hero in memory of the one he loves.
In Isami's darkest moment Smith was his knight in shining armor (HAH!) who saved him.
This was the moment Smith became Isami's hero.
Smith said several times that he always wanted to be a hero. And him becoming Bravern is a realization of that dream.
But what he needs to understand is that he doesn't need to become something so extravagant to be a real hero. A hero doesn't need to save the world to be a hero.
A hero can be a person who pulls someone out of a situation they don't believe they can ever escape.
So that's why Bravern didn't save Isami in episode 2 :D
And for the next 24 hours I'll be living on hopium because I really want this to be addressed in the last episode and I want Isami to convince Smith that he was already his hero ಥ‿ಥ
And I now found peace knowing that my problem with the "Smith is Bravern" theory has a narrative importance (◔◡◔)
genuinely so happy that i caught this show early enough to be able to follow it weekly. it's been a wild ride from start to finish, and my only wish is that there was more of it.