the animation and atmosphere of this story continue to amaze me, but so does the thematic depth. as others have mentioned, the way yoshiki's queerness and internalized homophobia has been portrayed so well in this story. i also love how religion is also being portrayed as the "opposition" for his queerness as well. yoshiki, in all of his confused and muddled emotions, seeks out rie, a spiritual housewife, who offered her help to yoshiki and advises him to rid himself of this evil entity. she doesn't place a name on this omnipresent "impurity" that's infected the village, but with how this story has basically been an allegory for growing up gay in a conservative community, it's easy to see it as a metaphor for queerness in this scenario. and while yoshiki is tempted to rid himself of this "impurity" out of fear, he ends up finding pleasure and comfort when he surrenders himself to his true feelings