Aku no Hana, in my experience, is a series that is difficult to appreciate.
The most immediate barrier to said appreciation is certainly (what I perceive as) the series's School Days-like approach to its relationship with the viewer. Rather than taking the viewer along for the ride, as most shows do, it opts to challenge them by presenting unlikeable characters in situations that are hard to approve of. Since I watch anime primarily as entertainment, this makes it harder for me to achieve proper investment in the show.
More importantly, though, I find that Aku no Hana cannot be properly appreciated on its own; it requires external context – namely, knowledge of Baudelaire's original Les Fleurs du mal.
When I first started watching Aku no Hana, I did so without having read the original poems beforehand. My impression of the series, therefore, was that it was a story about Kasuga's fall from grace. I viewed Kasuga as an average and (mostly) innocent boy who was coerced into committing "perverted" acts against his will, until he slowly began to develop Stockholm syndrome regarding his tormentor. Under this interpretation, Kasuga's outbursts in the second half of the show, and indeed the Big Scene in the classroom, seemed out-of-character for him. How could someone so passive and indecisive suddenly turn into one capable of impulsive reactions, and how could he willingly (if impulsively) do what he resisted having done to him earlier in the series? It didn't feel right.
As the series progressed, my interest was piqued enough to lead me to read the original Fleurs du mal, and doing so made me realize that it's possible to see the events of the series differently. Baudelaire used depravity as a vehicle of protest against what he saw as a stifling society, a context that parallels Kasuga's situation in Aku no Hana rather well. And if Kasuga enjoys such a work (even if he admits to not understanding it), then surely Nakamura's evaluation of him is correct? Surely the potential for his outbursts and other perverted acts has always lain within him, only hidden by the façade of civility that society imposes? One could argue, indeed, that Kasuga's initial act of subversion points in this direction; he would not have taken Saeki's clothes if he weren't capable of acting on his darker impulses on at least some level. Thus, rather than seeing the story as one of Kasuga's fall, it may be better to see it as one of his maturation; taking Nakamura at face value, she is helping Kasuga bring to the surface what has always been hidden in his heart.
After rewatching the series, I'm still not sure which of these two interpretations is correct. The second one more easily fits the seeming transformation in Kasuga's personality (though I don't have any evidence that this "transformation" isn't just a misreading of his character on my part). However, if Kasuga himself doesn't really understand the contents of the work he so adores, can his love for it really be taken at face value? Then again, perhaps both interpretations are valid, and their coexistence is intentional on the writer's part. If so, that may be the true genius of Aku no Hana.
In any case, it's certainly true that I would not have arrived at the second interpretation without knowledge of what Les Fleurs du mal is about, which would in turn have significantly reduced my enjoyment of the series. While this dependence on an established work of literature is appealing in a way, and might even be held up as a demonstration of the literary nature of the series, it is also what makes the show difficult to appreciate on its own merits.
Whichever interpretation I choose, though, I can't argue with the ending of the series. Nakamura isn't exactly a very nice character, and so I view her comeuppance at the end as an undeniable triumph. Kasuga turning the tables on Nakamura – Nakamura realizing that she has bitten off more than she could chew – does not only depict Kasuga's maturation into the pervert Nakamura thinks he is, but also the victory of his authentic depravity over her half-hearted rebelliousness. If there is to be a sequel, it would be interesting to see whether Nakamura is as much in control of their relationship as she thinks she is.
Finally, a comment about Aku no Hana's artistic direction, regarding which I have little to complain about. The rotoscoped art style is not only daringly unique, but also very fitting for the mood of the series. The way the characters' features fade into and out of view as the camera distance changes, and the way their outlines shudder (but sometimes become absolutely still), effectively convey a sense of unease – tapping into the uncanny valley, so to speak. The show is also very good with atmospheric setpieces; I have to rank the several-minute-long silent walk scene after the destruction of the classroom as one of the most emotive scenes I've seen in all anime. Scenes depicting Kasuga's inner thoughts tend to feel out of place, however.
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