Dreams of the Quill

No research was conducted for the writing of The Last Season other than watching a slew of bad anime. As such, no true knowledge of actual medical practices was implemented in the crafting of the story. This was for two reasons- one, I wanted to make this reek of fiction. Two, it’d be far too serious if it was “real.” I don’t want it to be too serious because then I need to live up to something like Narcissu. Then I need to make the feelings more real. It’s far more demanding as a writer, and it’s not something I feel up to at this point in my life.

Now, a few notes on things I know for sure-

1. Very few twenty-seven year olds are capable of graduating high school, college, and med school, getting PhD’s, rising to the top of a prestigious hospital, and conducting confidential research on mysterious, undocumented diseases while single-handedly fathering healthy children. Don’t try this path in real life if you’re a young, single parent. Also, Reo-sensei’s pain over losing Akane to the disease would have made things even more difficult.

2. The disease in TLS, that Akane and her onee-chan have, is very fictional. There is no way such a disease could exist in real life. The exchange of life is nigh on magical. The disease is most likely a deadly virus, in which case being near more people would kill off everyone, not exactly half the people who catch it.

3. Hospitals don’t just discharge patients who are scheduled for rehab and can barely walk without support. In the real world, Akane would not have been allowed to simply walk out of the hospital.

4. Akane would not have managed to even hobble for twenty minutes. She wouldn’t have been able to leave her room without a wheelchair. In “Fuyu” she needs a wheelchair to get around after a couple months of deteriorating muscles; in “Nananen” she gets up and walks out of the hospital after being bed-ridden for seven years. The exchange of life doesn’t explain this, though the seven years probably contribute to the weakness seen in “Fuyu.” Needless to say, some suspension of disbelief is required for Akane to leave the hospital.

More notes to come as I think of them. If you encounter anything particularly unrealistic in TLS (aside from the ways in which the characters’ emotions and minds work) add your thoughts in a comment on this page.