Why Rockstown?

As you can see from the title, this post is primarily about the trip to Rockstown — it also serves as my response to the comments of CatFoodDispenser. You can read her intriguing thoughts and perspectives in the comments section of Lost in Translation (Part 12). 🙂

CatFoodDispenser has raised some good points. “If Terry abandoned Susanna to be with Candy, Candy would not be able to love him.” Yes, this is precisely what I have understood from the story — Candy and Terry had to break up after Susanna’s accident mainly because Candy and Terry could not be happy ever again, knowing that Susanna had sacrificed herself out of her love for Terry, as discussed in Her happiness and Susanna and Candy.

I also agree with the point “Candy was suffering mostly because Terry wasn’t happy, not because she couldn’t get back with him as a couple.” Right on, CatFoodDispenser!  Many have misinterpreted this part, thinking that Candy was crying over the old newspapers because she was depressed she could not reunite with him.

Now, about the Rockstown episode, it is an important turning point in Candy Candy story in the manga version. For your interest, I have written at least half a dozen posts concerning the Rockstown Incident, like Second farewell for example. The equivalent one in the anime version was the fighting in the bar, where Albert punched Terry hard in the face. Yet, I think the Rockstown plot is way more powerful than the forceful strike of the fists. In fact, this trip to Rockstown is one of my favourite episodes in the manga, which has inspired me to write some fanfics:  Afternoon Nap, Reunion and A Man in Love; the Japanese version of Reunion, 再会,  translated by my friend Aya-san, has remained the top read posts ever since it was published in March 2016. Its number of hits keeps going up steadily, for which I am more than glad. ❤️

Unlike me, some fans actually prefer the anime equivalent, and one might even reason that the outcome is the same — Terry and Candy did not have a chance to talk to each other, and they continued their separate ways afterwards. However, as written in Second farewell, those who knew nothing about the manga version blamed the Albert in the anime, believing if Candy had a chance to see Terry herself, then the story could have taken a completely different turn.

That’s why I prefer the Rockstown trip in the manga, because that was precisely what took place. It was Candy who saw Terry from a distance and yet she left him without saying a word.

Note that Albert was involved in both cases. He was the one who ‘brought’ the two together in one place, although the intentions differed. For this post, I will focus on the plot in the manga, where Albert was apparently behind the scene, leading Candy to Rockstown to run into Terry.

When I first read the manga, I scratched my head trying to understand why Albert sent a parcel to Candy in his name and even wrote a brief note that he was thinking of her (for details please see my post To truly love someone…). In other words, Candy was being misled or even fooled into believing that Albert was dropping her a hint, that he was somewhere in Rockstown waiting for her.

Here, I can’t agree more with CatFoodDispenser that the fact that Candy rushed to an unknown place Rockstown simply because there was a chance Albert was there proved that Candy was already in love with him (though she might not be aware of it). Too bad some people are not in agreement with us, but other than her longings for her ex-roommate I don’t know what else could have driven Candy to Rockstown, even wearing the spring coat he had given her and bringing Dr. Martin’s drawing of Albert. Beyond a shadow of a doubt, Candy blindly headed to that small town because she wanted to look for Albert, as in my aforementioned fanfic Reunion.

Nagita sensei confirmed this in Candy Candy Final Story (CCFS). In Candy’s letter to Miss Eleanor Baker, Candy in her own words told Terry’s mother that she was there to find her 恩人 (a friend who had helped her a lot). This term is often translated as “benefactor”, but here Candy referred to Albert the vagabond, not Granduncle William. (In the manga, when Candy was quarreling with Dr. Leonard, she had referred to the amnesiac patient as her 恩人.) Back to the letter, Candy was seemingly telling Miss Baker not to misconstrue her ‘mission’ — she had gone to Rockstown not for Terry but for another guy.

As a side note, if Candy and Terry had loved each other very much, why didn’t she move to New York to be closer to the Broadway star? She could transfer to a hospital in New York , and if she was worried about her patient, he could have gone with her. Neither did Terry come to Chicago. 🤔

I heard that some readers did not really appreciate Albert’s attempt to play cupid. Why didn’t Albert tell Candy, directly or anonymously, that Terry was found? Candy was mature enough to decide for herself what she could do next or whether she would console Terry or not. However, these readers might want to put their opinions aside and put themselves in Candy’s shoes. On her way back to Chicago, she came to realize that Albert had sent her to Rockstown to find Terry. Was she mad at Albert or felt manipulated? No.

CatFoodDispenser suggested that Albert did not send Candy to Rockstown “to get back with Terry, but actually to have a closure by comforting him and encouraging him to go back to Susanna” and “set up the Rockstown reunion to enable Candy to comfort Terry which Albert knew…  she wouldn’t get back with Terry because she wouldn’t be able to do something cruel to Susanna.” Hence, CatFoodDispenser thinks that “Albert might be testing Candy’s feelings towards him”.

Did I understand you correctly, CatFoodDispenser?

As a matter of fact, at one point I did share similar thoughts, but not anymore.

Like CatFoodDispenser, I used to wonder if Albert was testing Candy’s feelings for him by sending her a present with his own signature and a brief message of his feelings. Honestly, I won’t rule out the possibility that he might be subconsciously doing this without even realizing it, but I’m inclined to think that Albert misled Candy to help himself. Let me explain.

First, how could Albert be 100% sure that Candy would not reunite with Terry upon seeing him in such a miserable state?

Candy might not be able to keep her resolve. The tension and negative reasons of their “unwanted” breakup had disappeared, so there was a good chance her strong feelings for Terry might be rekindled. Come to think of it, the once famous Broadway actor had left New York of his own accord — he had left Susanna behind, not because of Candy this time. For how long? Several months already? Needless to say, Terry no longer had the motivation or strength to keep his promise to Susanna. He would return to New York (Susanna) if he wanted to, but arguably, nothing and nobody, not even Candy, could make Terry take that first step.

Therefore, if Albert did not want Candy to get back with Terry, would he risk his happiness with her by sending her to Rockstown? I highly doubt it, because he was essentially playing with fire. 🔥

I personally feel that Albert might have troubles trying to forget Candy and their heartwarming days together, even though he had vanished in her life, deliberately hiding from her. As written in my short story Afternoon Nap, if Candy took no action after receiving a parcel from Albert, that means he meant no more than a friend to her. Yet, if she did go because of Albert she would likely run into Terry in that place, and who knows what would have happened? Again, there was no way Albert could have predicted this, because it could be Terry who saw Candy from afar, not the other way around.

It’s interesting that CatFoodDispenser said that “I think Terry and Candy deeply and genuinely loved each other and because of that they took their promise to become happy very seriously. So for them to show that their love was real was to become happy.” I’ve never thought of that, my friend.

Hence, “Candy thought that Terry will go back to Broadway because she loved him. In other words, by moving on and become happy separately is the only way that they can show each other how real their love was. I think this way is much more profound and beautiful for Terry and Candy. And Albert knew that only Candy could help Terry.”

In a sense, that’s true, but back in Rockstown, Candy did not actually help Terry. He even believed she wasn’t there. What he had seen was some sort of hallucination. Nevertheless, her tears had woken him up and enabled him to emerge from his depression.

What CatFoodDispenser wrote about Terry’s letter to Candy in CCFS is plausible too. For anyone’s interest, one can read my series about this, Terry’s brief letter to Candy.

Though it was not shown anywhere in the manga how Albert perceived Candy’s actions in Rockstown, like CatFoodDispenser said, “he was confident she saw him more than her big brother even though Candy probably wasn’t fully aware of it”. This explains why in CCFS Albert could safely tease Candy that it was just right to him that she now looked older, rather than being taken for his little sister. Yes, CatFoodDispenser, I also figure that “He wouldn’t have said that if he suspected Candy might feel awkward about it.” 😉 Yet, “Albert was hiding his feeling so well, while she was probably like an open book to him, and I think that’s why she thought 憎らしいったらない.” About this Japanese expression, you might want to read my old post, Argh, he’s driving me crazy…

CatFoodDispenser, thank you for sharing a couple of Japanese expressions about love:

“恋愛の駆け引き(tactics of love) to attract a person one likes, and also 押して引く(push and pull, meaning approach actively and suddenly pull back and see the person’s reaction). ”

I’d like to hear what the other readers think. Do you think Albert used some tactics of love, with regard to Rockstown?

IMHO, if Albert had indeed sent Candy to Rockstown to test her love, he would have revealed to her much much earlier that he was her mysterious Prince on the Hill in CCFS. 😉 Thus, I have a feeling that Albert was merely lovesick. Denying his own feelings, he wanted to help Candy and Terry by bringing them back together but ended up discovering the shocking news. 😉 Yet, he did not respond to Candy’s undeniable feelings for him right away, and it was both Neal and Georges who helped leading Candy to him. 💞

I like what CatFoodDispenser said about why Albert had taken time before his important confession on the hill. “Albert showed her what he felt about her background (he cherished it) while mentoring her how to expand a nonprofit business … He continued supporting her to be strong and independent lady, who would be totally capable of choosing her own husband, and when they were both ready he revealed that he was her prince, to offer himself for her consideration.”

Like her, I wish I knew what are in the French version that are not in the original CCFS. Nonetheless, what had happened in Rockstown had remained the same, and the fact that Albert could openly display Candy’s childish drawing of him in his office speaks volumes indeed. 🙂