Adachi to Shimamura episode 1 was so surprisingly full of wonderful visuals that I couldn't help but make a thread about some of the amazing symbolism and shots that were shown in its first episode!

The audience can immediately identify that these two characters feel trapped in one way or another. The netting of the fence reinforces this idea, but the fact that both of them are behind this netting, happily playing ping pong, means they find solace in each other.

We actually get to see Adachi's feelings towards Shimamura develop and grow. The instant she looks at Shimamura, a ping pong ball bounces, she looks at her more and another ball bounces towards the screen, showing that her feelings are being metaphorically served to Shimamura.

Shimamura questions why she finds hanging out with Adachi so much fun. It's obvious that their feelings for each other are mutual, and it's reinforced by Shimamura returning the serve by mimicking a volleyball player.

I really liked how this was depicted much like a desert. I think it makes it clear that Shimamura is definitely dealing with extreme feelings of isolation or loneliness that we've yet to really delve into with the show.

I think that the aforementioned idea of loneliness is shown in this scene where Shimamura feels as if she'll become hurt if she gets too close to people. Both Hino and Nagafuji are darkened while Shimamura is lightened to signify how she separates herself to feel at ease.

With this in mind, I think it's important to note how Adachi is lit up in this shot since Shimamura very much doesn't want to be separated from Adachi, she wants to become closer in comparison to her relationship with Hino and Nagafuji.

This recent event caused a bit of strain on their relationship. Both of them feel awkward about what happened, thus the two bars put them scrunched together, thus feeling more suffocated which is why Adachi decides to leave. Adachi doesn't know how to handle these things.

Shimamura realizes this awkward tension which is why she offers to walk home with Adachi in order to reassure the fact that she does indeed care about Adachi and her feelings. Adachi's response shows that she feels mutual about this, especially since Shimamura is her only friend.

I will once again bring up how umbrellas represent security, and how both characters being underneath an umbrella means that there's a close connection between the two to the point where they feel safe with each other under one shield from negativity, as represented by the rain.

In contrast the the moment before, the rain here could symbolize how they feel healed and thus more cleansed within the presence of each other. This is certainly true for Adachi as she has raindrops on her yet looks extremely happy while being accompanied by Shimamura.

On the literal surface, Adachi misses the ping pong ball because they were interrupted by Shimamura's other friends, however, on e symbolic level, this shows how much of a disconnect she feels from Shimamura once other people are introduced into the situation.

This divide is shown more by having the edge of the table create an almost symmetrical wall between Adachi and the group. Also, having Adachi be framed on her own shows he she feels separated from everyone else.

One of my favorite shots in the episode shows how Adachi is separated from the group, but Hino is the only character that is invading Shimamura's space since she's trying to get closer to her. Also worth noting how the divide between Adachi and everyone else is much larger.

Shimamura begins playing by herself and misses the ping pong ball as she realizes that she wants more of a relationship with Adachi rather than the other two girls. Missing the ball represents how she failed to communicate this to Adachi.

Once again, Shimamura begins serving her feelings back at Adachi like a ping pong ball. Shimamura feels a complete sense of happiness being walked home by Adachi, being reassured that Adachi wants to stay close to her, and Adachi feels this reassurance hence why she blushes.

These two are living in a world where their feelings are being bounced back and forth, being missed and hit, much like ping pong balls. I'm curious to see how their relationship will develop and blossom over time. Anyways, that's it for this thread, thank you for reading!