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MARMALADE BOY VOLUME 4
IKUTSU MONO DEAI WO KASANE NAGARA
~ ROMANTIC ALBUM ~
Apollon APCM-5056
¥ 3,000
November 21, 1994
—by Roderick "Agitator" Lee
[Part I. Mukashi - Chuugaku no Tokimeki (Past - Junior High Excitement)]
| 1. |
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Umarete Hajimete no Love Letter (Miki kara Ginta he) |
2:35 |
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Love Letter Born for the First Time (From Miki to Ginta) |
| 2. |
|
Egao ni Aitai [TV size/Hamada Rie] |
1:32 |
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I Want To See His Smiling Face |
| 3. |
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3 kagetsu no Kagayaki (Arimi no Omoide) |
1:54 |
|
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Three Months of Radiance (Arimi's Memory) |
| 4. |
|
Taiyou wo Sagashite [instrumental] |
4:11 |
|
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Searching for the Sun |
| 5. |
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Toshokan nite (Meiko, Deai no Hi) |
2:31 |
|
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At The Library (Meiko, Day's Rendezvous) |
| 6. |
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Saigo no Yakusoku [instrumental] |
5:03 |
|
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Final Promise |
[Part II. Ima - Renai Shinkoukei (Present - The Progressing Shape of Love)]
| 7. |
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Egao ni Aitai (Chu-Chu-La Scat Version) |
4:19 |
| 8. |
|
Yuu to Date no Hi ni.. [Atashi, Chou Shiawase!] |
3:50 |
|
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On the Day of the Date with Yuu (I, Ultra Happy!) |
| 9. |
|
Kyou no Owarini [instrumental] |
3:58 |
|
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Today's End |
| 10. |
|
Ginta, Otoko toshite..[Suzuki-san he no Kimochi ga Konnani Ookikunatte..] |
3:23 |
|
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Ginta, as a Man [Feelings for Suzuki-san Becoming Stronger] |
| 11. |
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Kanashii Tokiha Itsumo [instrumental] |
4:15 |
|
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Always Sad Times |
| 12. |
|
Miwa-kun Ganbaru [Akizuki Meiko ni Kakannaru Attack!] |
2:53 |
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Go Miwa-kun [Bold Attack on Akizuki Meiko!] |
| 13. |
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Ryoko no Omoi [Jibun ni Shoujikini Ikiyouto..] |
4:01 |
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Ryoko's Thought [To Live Honestly With Myself] |
| 14. |
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Suteki na Serenade [TV size/Fujiwara Miho] |
1:36 |
|
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Splendid Serenade |
[Part III. Korekara - Sorezore no Jounetsu wo Muneni (Future - Each Passion in my Heart)]
| 15. |
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Moment [Piano hensoukyokuban] Piano Reprise Version |
5:15 |
| 16. |
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Kei no Monologue, Sunaoni Narenai Bakkarini.. |
2:50 |
|
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Kei's Monologue, Because I Cannot be Gentle |
| 17. |
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...for You [Kei kara Miki he no Piano Solo] |
5:08 |
|
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Piano Solo From Kei to Miki |
| 18. |
|
Anju, Ima mo Kawaranu Omoi |
3:11 |
|
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Anju, Feelings Change Again Today |
| 19. |
|
Rain [instrumental] |
4:26 |
| 20. |
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Suzu no Hitorigoto, Koi no Sekai tte Yokuwakaranai! |
3:56 |
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Suzu's Soliloquy, I Don't Understand the World of Love! |
| 21. |
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Ikutsumono Deai wo Kasanenagara, Miki Ending Narraration |
3:07 |
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For The Many Encounters One After Another |
| 22. |
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Karebairo no Crescendo [TV size/Mizushima Yasuhiro] |
1:31 |
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Crescendo of Fall Color |
Cast
*English transliteration fan convention has been to
romanize this as "Yuu" to avoid confusion with the personal pronoun,
but in Japan, all Marmalade Boy merchandise romanizes as "You"
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Funny thing about vocal collection CDs—they
do not have any
instrumental tracks on them. For fans of the popular shoujo romance
TV series, MARMALADE BOY,
this means a voyage into the possibly unfamiliar waters of the
image CD collections. Not counting the
MARMALADE BOY BEST ALBUM, which
was released after the end of the series, there are eight
original MARMALADE BOY CDs,
only three of which are vocal collections
(and this reviewer has covered MARMALADE FACE
in an earlier issue), thereby leaving five image CDs.
IKUTSU MONO DEAI WO KASANE
NAGARA—ROMANTIC ALBUM
is the fourth MARMALADE
BOY disc, released between the first and second vocal
collections (MARMALADE VOICE and
MARMALADE FACE). Therefore, it
serves as an effective transition disc between the first and
second "seasons" of the show. As image albums go, this is a
very good mix; that is, it is not overly dominated by drama
tracks. In fact, half of the disc's twenty-two tracks are
musical pieces, of which seven are instrumentals. Meanwhile,
the drama tracks consist of both new and TV
scenarios. For
example, the third track, "3 kagetsu no Kagayaki (Arimi no
Omoide)" [Three Months of Radiance (Arimi's Memory)], is taken
straight from the flashback sequence when Arimi is telling
Miki of her three months with Yuu.
The disc is laid out in three parts, representing
past, present, and future (and they are even titled as such).
Readers should beware, as early series spoilers follow.
Part I, Mukashi (Past) consists of six image tracks
depicting events that precede the series. The opening track
is "Umarete Hajimete no Love Letter (Miki kara Ginta he)"
[Love Letter Born for the First Time (from Miki to Ginta)],
which, as the name implies, relates the events leading up to
the love letter that Miki snuck into Ginta's bag two years ago.
As the track opens, a soft instrumental of the series OP,
"Egao ni Aitai" [I Want To See His Smiling Face], plays in the
background. Thus, appropriately, the second track is a TV
size version of "Egao ni Aitai." (Apparently, there is some
unwritten rule that all MARMALADE BOY
discs include the series OP.) Similarly thoughtful
choreography follows. The aforementioned third track of
Arimi's flashback leads into an instrumental version of her
theme song, "Taiyou wo Sagashite" [Searching for the Sun] (of
which vocal version by Hisakawa Aya
is available on MARMALADE VOICE). Then,
it is Meiko's turn as "Toshokan nite (Meiko, Deai no Hi)"
[At The Library (Meiko, Day of Rendezvous)] recalls her clandestine
liaisons with Namura-sensei. And like Arimi's drama track
leading into her song, so does Meiko's image track lead into
an instrumental of "Saigo no Yakusoku" (Final Promise).
Part II, Ima (Present) is an eight track section
dealing with the relationships as they have now progressed
about a third of the way into the series. Thus, Namura has
left town, opening the door for Miwa Satoshi to approach Meiko
while Miki and Yuu have gotten together, forcing Ginta to come
to terms with his rising feelings for Arimi. The drama tracks
star Miki, Ginta, Satoshi, and Momoi Ryoko. As before, the
instrumentals tie in closely with the preceding track. Miki's
"Yuu to Date no Hi ni... (Atashi, Chou Shiawase!)" [On the Day of the Date
with Yuu (I, Ultra Happy!)] precedes the aptly titled
instrumental of "Kyou no Owarini" [Today's End], of which a
vocal version by
Kouda Mariko
appears on a later vocal disc (MARMALADE SUMMER).
By the same token, Ginta's drama track in which he acts out
his new attraction to Arimi serves as a prelude to the
instrumental of the Kanemaru Junichi
seiyuu track, "Kanashii Tokiha Itsumo" [Always Sad Times].
This section closes out with a TV size vocal of "Suteki na
Serenade" [Splendid Serenade]. What better way to close out
the present than with the first "season" ED?
Of course, it is Part III, Korekara (Future) that is
the highlight of this disc and the reason why most people
would buy it. The star of this section is Tsuchiya Kei, who
plays an instrumental role in three of the eight tracks.
Astute fans will therefore know that the star track of this
section and of the entire disc is "...for You," the wonderful
piano instrumental that Kei dedicates to Miki as a Christmas
present. Even without the accompanying video imagery of Kei
and Miki, this is a beautiful piece: a multiple movement
composition, with each repetition varying in intensity, mood,
and tempo. To serve as an appetizer, Part III opens with a
piano version of "Moment," also played by Kei, which is an
admirable piano rendition of the popular insert song. And
sandwiched in between is the drama track, "Kei no Monologue,
Sunaoni Narenai Bakkarini" (Kei's Monologue, Because I Cannot
be Gentle). Rounding out the disc are drama tracks by Anju
and Suzu, a "summary" drama by Miki, which is also eponymous
with the disc itself, and a TV size of "Karebairo no Crescendo"
(Crescendo of Fall Color), the second ED, which fittingly
closes out the disc.
The disc also comes with a healthy sized fourteen
page songbook (sixteen counting the front and back cover
images), all in color. The arrangement is well planned, and
the drama tracks are the right mix of recall and new material
to capture the mood. Seiyuu fans will appreciate the
diversity of characters (Since Ryoko has her own track, the
only noticeable omissions are Tsutomu and the four parents.).
Those fans who are buying this just to get "...for You" may
find themselves pleasantly surprised.
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