The Box

In "UFO in Kushiro," Komura is tasked with delivering a small box to his coworker's sister, Keiko. Though the exact significance of the box is initially opaque, it quickly becomes clear that the box in some respects stands in for Komura's sense of self and identity. In sacrificing the box to Keiko, he abandons his former self and is forced to begin reshaping his life in the wake of his wife's departure. This abandonment is presented as both sinister and positive.

Bonfires

Bonfires function as a means of both building and destroying in "Landscape with Flatiron." Junko and Miyake are jointly drawn to them in large part because they are fascinated by the flames and by the process that goes into making bonfires. Each character seems to want removal from their own lives but is also attempting to rebuild their fragile grip on their own...