Elmo Perguntador

• Anybody have a map? Is all about Evan and Connor’s moms trying to bond with them and get them to talk. Not only does Heidi and Evan’s bit work well with Langa and Nanako, but I think Connor’s section matches well with Reki’s relationship to the sk8 fam. To me, it felt like he never really let himself feel like a part of the group, like Connor and the Murphys were never really a family until it was too late despite them trying to connect.
• Waving through a window is very much a complicated song to place for the three younger boys; if we’re looking at the neurodivergent undertones of the song, it’s easy to place Langa or Reki into the role of Evan but I think this is actually a Miya song. After his friends left him, he’s so hesitant to actually let himself feel happy and content with his new friends and so he doesn’t let himself feel like “one of the guys” with the rest of the sk8 fam. He’s just kind of watching them from the outside, a part of the group but feeling like an outsider. 
• For forever is absolutely a renga song if I’ve ever heard it. Reki taking Langa around Okinawa to his favorite spots, them just slowly becoming friends and maybe even more, but just enjoying being with one another in the moment either way. The question is: Is it Reki’s POV or Langa’s? 
• Sincerely, me I feel like would be Joe and Cherry from Evan’s POV, and Reki, Miya, and Langa in Jared’s- matchablossom is reminiscing and trying to imagine a world where their childhood friend comes back and reforms himself. The younger boys are joking around, laughing, unaware that the other two are being serious. 
• Requiem is Joe and Cherry seeing Adam trying to lure Langa into danger and realizing that there’s no chance of bringing their Adam back. Joe, from the perspective of Connor’s dad, had already kind of accepted it. Cherry, from the perspective of Zoe, is just trying to cope with his perfect picture of Adam crumbling. There is no requiem for Adam. 
• If I could tell her is DEFFO Joe talking to Cherry; perhaps after they break down over Adam, they talk about the past and Joe tries to confess his feelings, but ends up backing out and telling Cherry that his feelings, his confessions, were things Adam told him about Cherry back when they were children. Joe doesn’t want to take advantage of Cherry’s vulnerability and thinks maybe one day he’ll be able to say them himself. 
• Disappear is a bit harder to place. I think this is Tadashi trying to convince Adam to quit skating, and Adam shutting him down and claiming that skating was the only thing he had, and don’t you think it’s cruel of you to take that away from me? The only time people look at me with adoration is at S, Tadashi. 
• You will be found is just a general anthem for S. So many people come to S to shut something out, whether that’s their own feelings or societal pressure, or fears of failure in their real life. S is a place where you can feel at home, and if you don’t, you’ll find people that feel like home. No one will forget you here. 
• To break in a glove is. Oof. Can we talk about Joe falling into a father figure role not only for Miya but for Reki too? I can imagine this scene being him teaching both of the boys about how to use grip tape on a board, or proper skate safety, or something- and he’s really happy to be allowed to teach this, he’s always loved teaching and taking care of people but Cherry has always pushed him away bc he’s independent and no one else really sticks around long enough to care. But these boys are so sweet and receptive, and even if they kind of already know they’re still so happy to listen to a veteran skater who loves the craft as much as he did when he first started. 
• Only us is the renga song. Reki is insecure, but so is Langa. Reki bc he’s always kind of the last to be thought about, being the oldest of all of the kids, and the only boy. He doesn’t think he’s worth loving, doesn’t understand why Langa loves him, even if he wants it so desperately. Langa is nervous jumping into a new relationship after moving, he’s insecure bc he’s still not the best at Japanese and he’s always been kind of socially illiterate, even in the states, and learning new culture and societal norms is scary, but he’s willing to learn if it means he gets to hold Reki’s hand and get to know him more. 
• Good for you is a fever dream for Reki. It’s not real, but in the midst of a panic attack, the intrusive thoughts take over and he imagines all of his friends leaving him, telling him he got what he wanted- for Langa to skate, and now that he’s better than Reki, they don’t need him and he’s being selfish for sticking around. Reki is just trying to catch his breath, begging his friends to please please let him stay, let him stick around please don’t leave him, no, no, nonono- 
• Words fail, to me, is also a renga song. Please don’t hurt me. But imagine this: instead of a solo, like in the original, it’s a duet. Reki and Langa, both thinking about the situation they’ve found themselves in; Langa is panicking because his only friend, someone he thought wouldn’t leave after his father left, is suddenly mad at him and won’t tell him why. Reki is panicking because he epically fucked up and there’s no way Langa could accept his apology. Langa is talking to his mom about the problem, Reki is talking to Joe. Specifically, Langa has the line “What if everyone saw?/What if everyone knew?” and Reki “Would they like what they saw?/Or would they hate it too?” 
• So big/so small is Reki and his mom. Reki finally has a breakdown and talks to her about why he’d been so distant/weird lately and she reassures him that he’s good. that everything will feel so small soon, and he could always ask for help. 

but what if…. vacation date…. :eyes: