Touka's Suicide

Let me just start off by saying that if you want an answer at the end, prepare to be disappointed. There just isn't one.

I was an intern at Gonzo Studios for a year in 2010 for my degree in animation. It wasn't paid of course, most internships aren't, but it did have some perks beyond education. To adults it might not seem like a big one, but most kids at the time would crap themselves over it.

Now, since I worked with the editors and animators, I got to view the new episodes days before they aired. I'll get right to it without any unnecessary details. They had very recently made the Saki anime adaption and the entire staff was sapped from creativity so it took them longer to start up the new season. But the delay lasted longer for more upsetting reasons. There was a problem with the series 2 premiere that set everyone and everything back for several months.

Me and two other interns were in the editing room along with the lead animators and sound editors for the final cut. We received the copy that was supposed to be &quot;Friends&quot; and gathered around the screen to watch. Now, given that it isn't final yet animators often put up a mock title card, sort of an inside joke for us, with phony, often times lewd titles, such as &quot;How sex doesn't work&quot;. Nothing particularly funny but work related chuckles. So when we saw the title card &quot;Touka's Suicide&quot; we didn't think it more than a morbid joke.

We watch the tape and Touka committed suicide in it. Koromo booed with a lot of malice along with everyone else. Touka looked forlorn. There was some pictures of dead people popping up on screen. Then the video ended and Stephen Hillenburg came in and demanded to know what the hell was going on. Now I think twice about things.