Sensei, could I...
Yes?
Kobuchizawa.
From my grandma?
Yes, please return home at once.
Did something happen to my grandma?
Well...
It was almost like a dream.
"Oh. I'm not waking up.
Why aren't I waking up?" I thought.
That feeling never ended.
It still hasn't ended.
A Place Further Than the Universe
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#DearMom
Lavatory | Bath Washroom
For three weeks?
It's not too far, but we can't get there via helicopter.
You mean...
...we take the snowcat?
Righto!
Yeah!
We finally get to take one!
It's not particularly fun.
They're very slow!
We have to avoid crevasses and other dangerous places as we go.
We'll be going one way, then have to alter course a bit...
Kanae.
I meant to do that! Totally meant to do that!
You're the one always complaining about how annoying long hair is, aren't you?
Please make sure to turn the tap off after doing laundry.
Well, it's better than when Takako used to cut it, at least...
What about you?
Can I?
Of course! That's why we're inviting you.
Could you give me time to think about it?
Understood.
I thought she'd be jumping at the chance...
The hole in the ozone layer was discovered during an expedition here,
and they were the first in the world to report it.
These weather balloons are released twice a day,
simultaneously, at places all over the world.
Three, two, one. Release!
Shirase-san didn't come, did she?
She probably needs time to be alone and think.
She hasn't had much to say since the captain made the offer...
It's here.
This is the point where we lost communication.
To: Mom
Cc/Bcc:
Dear Mom
Sent from myPhone
The ridge snack station is back in business!
Any beers?
Right...
Here you are!
They're nice and cold!
That's nice of you.
Thanks!
What's the matter?
Nothing! We finished our recording, so I thought...
Oh.
Hey! It's pretty warm today, huh?
Is it? It seems a bit chilly for the middle of summer...
Yeah, I guess...
They launched a weather balloon earlier!
Could you see it from here?
Yeah.
I hear today's pick-me-up is anpan!
What is it?
N-Nothing...
It's just... you know...
How to put it...
What now?!
That's my line.
Special
Today's Menu
Farewell BBQ Party
Meat Meat Meat Vegetables (eat them!) Meat
There'll be beer, too!
Team A
About my mother?
Kimari, your lack of planning is making this more complicated than it should be.
Why did you even say you'd go talk to her?
Because...
Sorry.
I'm not particularly depressed or stressed out about it.
I actually feel pretty normal, I guess...
Maybe... too normal, I guess?
Normal?
I was convinced that when I arrived in Antarctica, I would start crying.
A Place Further Than the Universe Kobuchizawa Takako
"These are the same sights my mother saw."
"My mother was so moved by these sights."
"This place is so wonderful, it's no wonder she wanted to come."
I thought that's what I'd be thinking.
But that wasn't what I ended up thinking at all.
The most I could muster was "Wow, it's just like in the pictures."
Is that why the first thing you said when we got here was "in your face"?
It was?
You don't remember?
But you came here because your mother was waiting, didn't you?
You wanted to come here because your mother was here, right?
Yeah.
That's why you asked Kanae-san over and over,
took all those jobs, worked so hard to get here...
I know that.
You said that your mother was waiting for you here!
Kimari.
That's not a nice thing to say to Shirase-san...
I know all that.
It's like, why did I even come this far, then?
But...
But?
But... once we get there, there's nowhere left to go.
It'll be all over.
If I go, and nothing changes, I think...
I'm going to spend the rest of my life feeling the way I do now.
So, before we head inland,
I'd like to talk for about thirty minutes about the civilian research projects
that will follow Challenge For Antarctic.
I'm freezing to death.
The beer's icing over.
I'm kidding.
We just have a few simple words to say.
Gin-chan?
Let's go.
Cheers!
Okay, this one's cooked!
Cold!
If you don't gobble it up fast, it'll go cold in no time!
No time to lose!
That's the thrill of the Antarctic barbecue.
I dropped my marshmallow!
You got it too close.
By the way, I heard... Kobuchizawa-san's unsure she'll go?
I suppose...
Are you sure you don't want to say anything to her?
"To act is not necessarily compassion.
True compassion sometimes comes from inaction!"
More nonsense...
But that's basically what we decided.
I envy you guys.
The ability to give each other space is the proof that you're good friends.
What the hell are you doing?!
Did she say we were good friends?
Yeah.
We're good friends!
Aren't you going to go?
You should know by now that I'm not good in party situations.
What do you think?
About what?
Mom.
If you have to ask me that, you probably shouldn't go.
I may not want to believe it, but the fact is that Takako is dead.
I can talk about dying wishes and what she would have wanted,
but none of us know if that's how she really felt, if it's what she really wanted.
Then why did you come to Antarctica again?
Because I wanted to come.
Because I latched on to the idea that Takako wanted me to.
At the end of the day, those ideas we latch on to aren't enough to motivate us.
But when we run around on the injustices of reality,
they're the only things that can break through,
make the impossible possible, and allow us to proceed on.
That's what I believe.
You're saying I shouldn't leave it to anyone else?
That's right. But...
That's how you've always done things, isn't it?
Moving.
Cashier.
Cleaning.
Newspaper delivery.
I know that!
I know I'm being unreasonable!
Cashier.
Moving.
Traffic surveys.
Cleaning.
Factory.
Cashier.
Delivery.
But... I really want to go.
Cashier.
Because... my mother is waiting there.
Amazing!
Right? They said it's hand-drawn.
Apparently we're taking this on the trip inland!
Really?
Good luck!! Inland Exploration Squad!!
Team Girls
Is that your luggage?
Yeah!
Too much. Halve it. You have five minutes.
No way!
Good morning.
And so, our final journey began.
14,000 kilometers from Japan.
To that place further than the reaches of the universe.
The place that seemed out of reach.
I thought we were taking the snowcat...
That's S-16, the departure point for the inland expedition.
Today's mission is loading materials onto the snowcats stationed there.
Hup.
So cold!
It's going to be a lot colder here than it was at Syowa Station, yeah.
This scenery is more like how you imagine Antarctica, right?
It really is...
Slow, isn't it?
Well, have you got two sevens?
Two sevens.
Okay.
You had them?
Have some sympathy for person who's lost three times straight...
114 here. We've passed through S-18.
112 here. Roger.
What's going on?
It's time to work.
We'll be going outside, so get ready.
Ouch! Just breathing hurts my chest!
I've lost all feeling in my nose!
It's going to get colder as we get higher up.
Think I can manage it?
You brought that?
Here.
Thank you very much!
I can't feel anything!
Eat fast or it'll get cold!
We're turning off the engines at night, right?
Yeah, we don't have enough fuel to keep it running.
Syowa here. Syowa here.
Inland team, do you read? Over.
It's a regular check-in.
Practice it.
Because none of us knows what's going to happen out there.
It's going to get very windy tonight,
so when moving between cars, make sure to use this rope.
Don't assume you'll be fine because it's just a few meters.
If you end up out in a blizzard, you're never making it back.
What's that?
What?
It's the sun... right?
Looks kind of apocalyptic, huh?
It's called a "sun pillar."
It's an optical illusion caused by ice crystals.
Did my mother see this, too?
Yes, she did.
You could say she gazed at it as she slept there.
It's here.
What, a blizzard?
There's no question.
Don't worry.
As long as we stay in here...
I can't see anything!
Neither can I!
I see. This is your first time seeing a real one?
Yes...
Was it like this when my mother went missing?
We think she left something at the inland station,
or maybe she slipped...
Takako?
The next thing I knew, she was gone.
And moments later, a blizzard was raging.
It's beautiful...
Takako!
It's so...
very beautiful.
Shirase-chan.
Are you okay?
You can't sleep?
No... I'd been asleep, but I just woke up.
Do you like Antarctica, Kimari?
Yeah, I really like it.
I see.
But I'm not sure if I would have liked it if I were here by myself.
Really?
It's because I'm here with you guys.
As long as I was with you guys, I'd probably feel the same way about the Arctic.
Hey, Shirase-chan...
Thanks for taking me.
Thanks to you, I got the most out of my youth.
Dear Mom.
I've made friends.
I, who thought I'd be fine by myself forever, now have friends.
They're all a little weird,
a little frustrating,
a little broken...
But I have friends who were willing to travel to Antarctica with me.
We fought, we cried,
we had problems...
But they were willing to travel this far with me,
to this place where you were...
I was able to come this far because of them.
Mom,
what can you see from where you are?
Will I be able to see the same sights that you saw?
I'm going to be there soon...
the place where you are.
Challenge For Antarctic 1st Team Observatory Site
It's been a while, huh?
Sorry for the wait.
Though we're going to keep you waiting a while yet, still...
Is this okay like this?
Of course it's not.
Challenge For Antarctic 1st Team Observatory Site
We need to fix the foundation, build the building,
carry supplies piece by piece, create a telescope...
It's going to be a long time before the Kobuchizawa Observatory is finished...
But...
Kobuchizawa...
She's probably remembering...
seeing this with my mom...
Shirase...
We're not going to find any traces of my Mom.
It was three years ago.
You don't know that!
Yeah.
The fact that no one's been here for three years makes it more likely that we will!
It's okay! We're not going to find anything!
You can't give up!
Anything at all... even one single piece!
It's fine!
No, it's not!
You won't find anything!
How can you be sure?
It's okay.
Just making it here was enough.
I've accomplished my goal.
I made it to the place my mother was.
The 1st Challenge For Antarctic
Thank you. So it's okay now.
No, it isn't!
You've come this far!
You've come this far, that's why...
Just one piece!
There has to be one piece of proof that your mother was here!
Kimari!
Shirase-san!
Here!
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