Abhiroop Das
Helmed by Minoru Ōta, Netflix’s ‘Sparks of Tomorrow,’ also known as ’20 Seiki Denki Mokuroku,’ tells the tale of an alternate world where steam became the engine of the world, and electricity as we know it doesn’t exist yet. However, that doesn’t stop a certain sibling duo from imagining a future where technology is revolutionized beyond recognition. Based on the eponymous Japanese light novel written by Hiro Yūki, this historical sci-fi brings together a young boy and girl who must learn from their past and carve out a future that the adults in their lives simply cannot comprehend just yet. However, as we see in episode 1, titled ‘The Electric Boy,’ ushering in a new era also invites a fair share of last-minute curveballs. SPOILERS AHEAD.
A Young Inventor Captures Lightning in a Bulb
‘Sparks of Tomorrow’ episode 1 begins at the height of the Meiji era, an alternate history 20th century, where a whiff of steam seems to have taken over the entire nation of Japan. With the invention of the steam engine, humanity has been in a technological boom beyond compare, but as a young Kihachi Sakamoto boards a train to Kyoto in admiration, his elder brother, Seiroku, has even greater plans. Along with this duo are two friends and a mysterious book called the ’20th Century Electrical Catalog.’ Though Kihachi doesn’t yet know what to make of the book, his brother seems intent on using it to change the world. We see a first-hand glimpse into what Seiroku means later that night, when he sneaks out during a theater performance to pull off a stunt in the middle of the town square.
Without his brother around, Kihachi feels isolated very quickly, but the fear soon gives way to pure awe when the street suddenly lights up with hundreds of little bulbs strung together across branches, walls, and poles. This is Seiroku’s grand invention, the electric bulb, and while he doesn’t have the means to make it mainstream just yet, he understands just how limitless its potential is. When the police come running, Seiroku grabs Kihachi and makes a glorious escape, not knowing that one of his teammates has slipped and fallen, likely coming into police custody. Nonetheless, Kihachi is now thoroughly gripped by the world of electricity, and is overjoyed when his brother promises to bring the ’20th Century Electrical Catalog’ to life, together.
Kihachi and Inako Find Themselves in a World That Has Come to a Standstill
Despite Seiroku’s lofty promise, the ruthlessness of reality soon comes knocking. Flash forward three years, and we learn that he went off to war, taking the book along with him. In his absence, Kihachi has been left all alone and makes a living fixing machines in Kyoto’s urban districts. However, his fascination with his brother’s invention isn’t quite gone yet and manifests in the littlest of ways. He’s fixated on the steam engine’s inability to be compact, but without the ’20th Century Electrical Catalog’ as a guide, he doesn’t exactly know how to perfectly harness electricity either. As he takes shelter inside a temple while fixing a phonograph, his path crosses with Inako Momokawa, a young girl infamous in her family for being a bit too clumsy and scatterbrained, but also immensely kindhearted.
Not knowing that Kihachi is inside, Inako prays to the temple, vowing not to break bowls anymore if she’s allowed to catch a glimpse of her deceased mother in heaven. Just then, Kihachi accidentally turns on his phonograph, and the dulled-out, but unmistakable sound of a kagura fills the entire scene. Inako, momentarily convinced that God has spoken to her, turns in admiration towards Kihachi, only to learn that it’s a real machine that can capture and record sound in real-time. Less impressed, Inako bids farewell to the stranger, but not before he leaves her with his card, in case she needs any repairs. By the time Inako makes it home, she finds out that she has visitors, that too from the biggest steam conglomerate in Kyoto, Mizoe Firm.
Kihachi Reunites With His Brother’s Book
The dapper visitor, who identifies himself as Yosuke Mizoe, isn’t too well received by Inako’s elder sister, Noriko, suggesting some messy history. After making himself comfortable, Yosuke begins by making a strange proposition. The loan Inako’s father took from the firm, which is supposed to be paid in a year, has arbitrarily shifted deadlines to today. Seeing that the family is clearly not in a position to pay back, the old man relents to the other, more twisted proposition, that Inako be wedded to Yosuke. However, this agreement only seems to be a formality, as Yosuke, now technically a family-member to be, begins tearing the Momokawa household apart in search of something. While everyone is left clueless, only Noriko understands what this means, which is why she rushes to her room, where lies hidden the only copy of the ’20th Century Electrical Catalog.’
Though we don’t know how Noriko got her hands on this book, she knows that it must be transported to somewhere safe. Her luck aligns when Inako casually recalls her conversation with Kihachi, which prompts Noriko to hand her sister the book and task her with getting it to the young inventor by any means necessary. Though confused, Inako makes her way to Kihachi’s shop, only to trip and fall unconscious inside. Remarkably, when she wakes up, the world around her is not how it used to look. Instead, it’s shrouded in darkness, save for a single projection of a heavenly light, which turns out to be a projector, made to screen Kihachi’s vain attempts at recreating the lightbulb.
Little does Kihachi know, however, that the book he’s been chasing for years is now finally by his side, except that there are more people who want to lay their hands on it. In comes Yosuke, having seen through Noriko’s attempts and raced his way to Inako’s destination, where he reveals that he knows exactly who Kihachi is and has been waiting for him this entire time. While we don’t know how much of this statement is true, it becomes clear that Kihachi is not the only one interested in changing the face of technology forever.
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