Episode
Hell Girl: Soft Paper Balloon
Overview
A young woman is trying to get her ex-boyfriend to get back together with her for the sake of her and the child she's carrying. She has the straw doll in case he refuses, but she is obsessively pursuing a reunion. Her story is intersected with Hone Onna's story. Originally, Hone Onna was a young woman named Tsuyu who was sold into prostitution to cover the debts of her lover. Tsuyu used to make paper ball balloons to sell. After a few years, Tsuyu is joined by a younger prostitute named Kion. Kion feels inferior to Tsuyu and ultimately betrays her, resulting in the violent death that transforms Tsuyu into Hone Onna. Back in the present day, the young lady sends her ex to hell, then attempts to jump off a bridge. Hone Onna realizes the spirit of Kion, who was wounded by her lover after she revealed her pregnancy and then jumped off a bridge, has been possessing women and forcing them to kill themselves by jumping off bridges. Kion tells Hone Onna it was nice to see her again, then vanishes, still on her path of vengeance. Hone Onna asked Ai to please pick Kion up someday, as Ai saved her from an eternity of sorrow and anger.
Details
- Series
- Hell Girl
- Season
- Season 2
- Episode
- Episode 21
- Air date
- 2007-03-03
- Runtime
- 25 min
Episode context
Soft Paper Balloon is Episode 21 in Hell Girl: Two Mirrors of Hell Girl. It aired on 2007-03-03. The runtime is 25 min.
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Episode 20: The Young Girl's Album
A girl named Mari is in an abusive relationship with her former friend (who happens to be identical to her), Juri. Juri contacted The Hotline to Hell because she and Mari had a close relationship that was ruined in her eyes when Mari briefly considered having an upperclassman as her tennis double instead of Juri. Juri has been forcing Mari to do exactly what she says, otherwise she'll pull the string. Ichimoku Ren becomes involved when trying to get more background on Mari and figuring out why Juri hasn't pulled the string yet. Juri gives Mari an album of pictures of them together. After going to get Juri's lunch, Mari runs into Ren and hugs him when he comforts her. Juri, having followed Mari in order to tell her she's decided to forgive her, is angry that Mari could be close to anyone else and runs off to pull the string. Mari tells her they'll always be together, but at that moment Juri is hit by a car and fatally injured. Mari pulls the string on the doll so that they'll be together in Hell and, shortly after she's taken, Juri arrives in Hell. Somehow, Mari has taken the album with her.
Episode 22: Longing
After the recent tragedies that have occurred in his family, Takuma is suspected of having murdered his mother and gravely wounded his father, but has not been arrested due to the lack of evidence. The townspeople continue to suspect him, and call him the "devil's child". As Takuma tries to piece his life back together, he meets a young girl, Seri, who happened to live near him before her house was torn down to make way for a train station that never materialized. Having been emotionally attached to the house, she intends to have her revenge against at least one of the persons who had ordered her house's destruction in the first place.
More episodes from this season
Episode 19: Steamy Hell, Travel Lodge
The story of how Wannyuudo came to join up with Ai while modern day humans who run a hot springs run into the same trouble their ancestors deal with the same problem 400 years earlier.
Episode 23: Distrust
Mr. Kimiko insults Mr. Narito's singing during a community choir practice. Mr. Narito becomes so enraged by this petty insult that he sends Mr. Kimiko to Hell, and blames Takuma for Mr. Kimiko's disappearance. To keep up the ruse, Mr. Narito sets up a vigil outside Takuma's house with other neighbours.
Episode 18: That Person's Memories
A girl comes home from work one day to find her mother, who went away when she was still young, has returned. Not only that, but her father wants her to have to pamper her mother every day, causing problems for the girl. She uses the Hell Hotline to get try to get rid of her mother, and tries to do so eventually, but finds that she cannot, because her father used the Hell Hotline and therefore got the straw doll she had. She rushes over to where her father is taking her mother for a walk, but finds her father has already sent her mother to Hell. He father tells her the truth: she is not the daughter of the woman she thought was her mother. After discovering his wife was infertile, her father had a her with another woman. This caused his wife to get angry, and eventually she got involved in a car accident to try and kill herself. The girl then remembers that her mother did accept her once, but knows it is too late.
Episode 24: Chain
People are disappearing one after the other in the town of Lovely Hills - Mr. Mariyama is sent to Hell by his daughter who hates him for scolding her. A woman named Akiko sends her husband to Hell because she regrets marrying him. Then Akiko's friend sends her to Hell, because she's always hated Akiko, and so forth. All of the disappearances are blamed on Takuma. While the disappearances are happening, Detective Meshiai goes to the library and finds the book written by Shibata Hajime about Hell Girl.
Episode 17: Gaze of Silence
A girl named Nene, contacted the Hell Girl to send her mother to Hell, because she thinks her mother, Honami, kills her father; although the truth is, Honami sends her husband to Hell because he was abusing them (Honami and Nene) eleven years ago. Honami then finds out that Nene is trying to send her to hell, but then kills herself so that Nene doesn't need to go to Hell too. Also where Ren's past is revealed showing that he was once a sword.
Episode 25: Wandering
Mr. Tsuyuki and Mr. and Mrs. Hasue, among others, have formed a mob. Mr. Tsuyuki convinces the others that they must kill Takuma. Hotaru looks for her brother, who is nowhere to be found, but she finds the book about Hell Girl, and runs away with Takuma.
Episode 16: A Wicked Woman's Desire
A girl named Ran tries to send a man who betrayed her to hell, but meest a geisha woman who said she'll help her get revenge. Ran disguised herself and seduced the man. The woman steals all the man's money and he finally commited suicide. Ran eventually finds out that the woman has been using her and is attacked. She managed to send the woman to Hell before she finally dies (after being attacked by that woman).
Episode 26: Indigo Dye
After the death of her brother, a grief-stricken Hotaru sends Takuma to Hell, promising to follow him so he won't be alone. She insists to Ai that everything will stop when Takuma dies. Ai begins to ferry Takuma to Hell, but stops when he asks her to take him back. They both return to the mortal world, with Ai reverting to her human self. She has no memory of her time as Hell Girl and doesn't remember her assistants at all. Kikuri reveals herself to be a host body for the Lord of Hell, who is punishing Ai for failing to perform her duty. Ai is now mortal. Takuma finds Hotaru's body washed up on the shore of a lake, tells Ai he no longer has any patience, and runs to his house to burn it down. He is confronted by the mob as he does so and is almost killed until Ai intervines, calming the mob and leading Takuma away from the burning house. The man who send Hotaru's brother to Hell snaps and begins beating Ai over the head so he won't go to Hell. The rest of the mob joins in. Ai's assistants are unable to prevent her death, but see Ai smiling calmly at them. Takuma tells the mob to stop hurting Ai and she dies holding his hand saying "It's over." Her body turns into sakura petals and floats away. The Lord of Hell releases the souls of her parents (presumably to Heaven). A narration reveals that Takuma's pursuers have fled Lovely Hills and that the town itself has become dilapidated. All charges against Takuma have been dropped, Takuma's father is shown to have woken up, and his friend, Hotaru Meshiai, is miraculously alive and in the hospital. At the end of the episode, a young girl is seen receiving a text message from Hell Girl (which is probably Kikuri) saying that her request has been accepted.
Episode 15: For This Country
A young woman and her father have devoted themselves to the cause of a political candidate running for office. While they complain about how the current government is making everyone poorer and Japan worse, the mother works herself sick running their factory. While the daughter goes to see her and misses an important rally, her drunken, angry father causes a scene. Insisting it was her fault, the local campaign manager and her father hire two men to attack her in an alley the current government said they would improve, but failed to. While she's being attacked, Wanyuudo saves her. Returning to the headquarters, she discovers her father went along with the plan. She runs home to send him to Hell, but it turns out her mother (who'd been putting up with years of abuse) already has a contract on him and finally pulls the string on her doll.
Episode 14: The Tragedy of V
A washed up writer decides to take revenge on a producer friend of his who became famous. During his attempted revenge the producer's wife is killed and their son is framed. The son contacts Hell Girl but decides not to go through with it. Shortly after this the producer is killed by the writer, but before the writer can kill the son a woman whose child he killed sends him to hell. This show is significant because it introduces character Takuma Kurebayashi, whom Ai empathizes with.