Ghost Hound Episode 4 – “Altered States of Consciousness”

As expected, this episode is probably the end of the introduction of the characters. The supernatural aspect of the show has been greatly upped, and it’s clear that the three will have a very special experience when they reached into the internals of the hospital. What will they find in there? What will their experiences be? What has Miyako got to do with this spiritual experience felt by the three?

The connection is still blur, but the new experiences that the three will encounter will give us a better understanding of the world in Ghost Hound

Episode summary

The three entered through a broken window, as the main door was locked. As they entered the hospital, Nakajima suggested to find the secret basement room. Nakajima turned on the flashlight, as Tarou was surprised at his preparation. Tarou found it funny that there was such a secret room in a hospital, but Ogami said it was not surprising since his house (a spiritual medium’s temple) also has one. Ogami asked Nakajima about him killing someone before, and Nakajima said he did so indirectly. His classmates including him bullied this boy to the extent that he suicided, but not before the victim cursed everyone who bullied him. Nakajima said he moved over since his father did, and he agreed somewhat that he was escaping from the place he was from.

Tarou asked if it was suicide, but Nakajima said such people should die. Nakajima felt that he was cursed and he could not forget what happened. Miyako was buying some things, before realizing that the mountain was “crying”. Ogami said he would enter alone if the basement was true. Nakajima replied that Ogami probably felt that killing anyone was nothing wrong, and asked if Ogami felt that his father’s suicide had something to do with the kidnapping. Ogami said that he was once thrown by his mother during his infant days and hit his head, conducted a huge surgery. Due to the incident, Ogami said that no matter what the truth was, his brain worked differently from normal people.

Tarou said killing was wrong, but could not give an answer when asked why it was wrong. Ogami said people who killed others often had a brain that functioned differently from others. Tarou asked if Ogami felt that he had the killer’s mentality, and Ogami said he wanted to go to the basement to find out. Tarou felt the steps of something, as a headless woman was chasing him. As he finally reached the turn, the spectral being disappeared. The two wondered what’s wrong, but they found a path to the basement that was sealed. They then tried to find the place where Tarou and his mother were held.

While Miyako was preparing her dish, she could feel something was wrong. Tarou suddenly saw the image of his sister as all of them were breathing heavily. They had entered into the realm of the spiritual world. Ogami found himself in front of his father’s suicide scene, while Nakajima saw a mirage of the student he bullied as the floor below him fell apart. He also dropped his torchlight in shock as they knew that they had to escape. They ran off rapidly, only to find that they had a out-of-body experience. Their bodies were still in the room.

Nakajima was shocked that his body was different now, but the other two explained that their bodies were still within. The spirit had escaped their boy, and Nakajima was stunned as he did not experience such a thing before. As such, the two proposed to return to their bodies, as there were other deceased animal spirits. Ogami replied to Nakajima’s question that these spirits were around before they were even born. On their way back, they found their bodies and Ogami said the only way was to re-enter their spirits into their bodies. As Ogami successfully did so, the other two also re-entered their bodies.

The three regained their consciousness as Ogami explained that they could not see those spirits in reality. They decided to get back before night approaches, as a strange silhouette looked over the three boys who were walking back home. They actually wanted to go to another path, but they had to go through a very steep slope. Hence, they walked the forest path, only to find Miyako and his father waiting for them in temple clothing. Miyako’s father explained that the place they went was no longer inhabitable by humans, and he conducted a ritual in order to cleanse their spirits. Miyako’s father recognized Tarou, and Ogami’s family as a spiritual medium, and found Nakajima extremely resistant to cutting a bit of his hair. Only after Miyako told him to “have some manly guts”, was he stunned enough for Miyako’s father to conduct his ritual.

Thoughts

It is apparent now that the killing is resulted from bullying a certain wimpy student in the class, albeit in a very indirect way in the form of suicide. I find that rather than delighting in the killing, Nakajima is particularly disturbed by the “curse”, which is haunting him in the visions that he is getting. Unlike the two other boys who have suffered quite a long time ago, Nakajima’s event probably happened not too long ago since he just transfered in September. I cannot imagine how much his fear of heights is affecting him since he saw the person he bullied shattered after killing himself by jumping off the school building.

In a way, I guess that the attempts of phobia exposure on himself is not working, as he is not truly fearful of heights but fearful of the curse resulting from the suicide. I am also surprised at Miyako, who definitely has the experiences of a spiritual medium unlike her father, being able to feel the mountain “crying” as the sacred land is invaded by the three men. However, the spooky feeling when Miyako started breathing hard is quite strange and a bit obstructive to my viewing pleasure. Nevertheless, the mental tensions pertaining to the supernatural side of the show is definitely showing up.

Another thing that I must mention is the amazing soundtrack that accompanies the background of the show. I am extremely impressed with the mood that the sound sets up whenever something supernatural appears. I did not get any scary vibes as yet for Ghost Hound does not go into the true Hollywood style of horror but more of the psychological tension that is Japanese imprinted. I remember the scene where the heavy breathing got me a little shocked as I start to wonder what is the issue about the breathing.

Ogami’s admission that he does not see killing as anything wrong somewhat perplexes me. Does he truly have the mind of someone who does not understand the notion of killing as a deprivation of humans’ need to live? Anyway, it seems that the hospital is the domain of spirits as it makes you wonder if there is any relation to their kidnapping and all. Miyako’s “be more like a man” statement made me laugh, especially at how Nakajima literally freaked out when he had an out of body experience. However, on retrospective, who would not? It is perhaps the nonchalance of the two who stated it so simply that has a more chilling effect.