Sure, there’s handholding, but it’s not fingers interlocked handholding. What’s funny is that I tend to memory-hole this show as soon as I stop watching it, so when there’s actual progress in Kyros and Marie’s relationship, it almost comes as a surprise. Like whoa, they’re holding hands now? Scandalous. Wait, have they held hands before? See, I wouldn’t know. I’ve shoved all but the most important plot points out of my mind. My excuse is that I still don’t really feel their chemistry. Can I elaborate on that? I’m not sure, unfortunately. This is a bit of a cop-out, but it’s like that landmark argument about porn, i.e. I’ll know it when I see it. What determines if two characters have chemistry? Well, I’ll know it when I see it. Some couples in this summer season have it, some don’t. Personally, I don’t think these two are brimming with chemistry.
But I’ve made my pretty stance clear in a previous post: someone with Marie’s… I don’t want to say the word “baggage,” because “baggage” has such a negative connotation. But someone with her backstory should really take this golden opportunity away from her evil parents to find herself, find out who or what she wants to become, and then worry about all the love stuff later. And if Kyros is truly a good person worthy of being the lead male protagonist of an anime, he should respect that. He should want her to be all that she can be (hopefully not a soldier). But logistically speaking, a romance series doesn’t have time for all of that. It sounds crazy to put it in writing, but we simply don’t have time for Marie’s growth and development. But who knows? Maybe this show will get a second season. I just get the feeling that once these two tie the knot, there won’t be any story left to tell. Cynical much? Maybe.
Speaking of sequels, a lot of shows don’t really deserve one, and yet those get announced all the time. Seriously, who on earth wanted a second season of The Farming Life in Another World? Or Reborn as Vending Machine? Who saw a middle aged man get isekai’d into a cutesy child wearing incredibly creepy short shorts in I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince and thought to themselves, “Damn, give me a second serving of that!”
But enough ranting. I feel like my point is proven when the possibility of Anastasia being alive causes Marie to spiral and collapse. This happens when she finally catches a glimpse of the blond boy from the very end of last week’s episode, and by glimpse, I actually mean the mere sight of the boy’s back. The resemblance must be so uncanny (read: it’s obviously her sister). Cue the feelings of guilt. Cue the shame in supposedly stealing her sister’s “ex.” But more importantly — way more important than the “ex” nonsense — is whether or not the poor girl has even had time to mourn her sister’s alleged passing. Of course, we can easily assume that Anastasia isn’t actually dead, but that’s besides the point. Maybe it’s a pipe dream to be your best self before you can even think about forming a union such as marriage. But shouldn’t you at least allow yourself to heal first?
To be fair, I’m an unmarried man nor am I looking to get married, so maybe my opinion doesn’t carry much weight. But if a friend like Marie came to me for advice, I know what I’d say. Why rush it? Perhaps the idea of dating that we’re used to is anachronistic in this sort of setting, so why not have an extended courtship instead? Y’know, without all the loaded terms and labels like “betrothal.” Maybe Marie and Kyros should kiss before incredibly rare “pink” diamonds even come into play. There aren’t exactly hard and fast rules to gift-giving, but I feel like expensive jewelry shouldn’t be thrown around this early. Most people would call it a red flag if the guy you just started dating suddenly has a diamond necklace in hand. Get her a nice book or something.
In any case, the shock and trauma from just seeing someone who shares Anastasia’s look from a distance allows Marie to reflect on their relationship as sisters. Funny how that always happens when someone falls ill. Still, Marie finally remembers how, despite the toxicity in the family, Anastasia truly tried to be the best big sister that she could be. This, I suppose, makes their relationship all the more tragic, but at the same time, it’s a bit inexplicable. How did the two girls turn out so well despite their environment? Well, according to Marie, her parents only started to mistreat her after her grandmother died. So up until then, everything was normal? In that case, I suppose you can’t just rewrite Anastasia’s programming. If she had been a good big sister all this time, why would she suddenly change simply because their parents changed? Maybe the final few episodes will finally shed some light on what broke the Shaderan parents. At the very least, I’m confident that Anastasia has to come back into her sister’s life in some form or fashion.
In any case, recalling all those touching memories with Anastasia seems to have done Marie a lot of good, because she finally allows herself to accept Kyros’s love. As a result, she returns his affections and the two of them share a kiss. Wow, it’s almost like she needed time to heal or something. That’s so crazy. Look, I’m just saying that Marie’s healing should’ve been the priority from the start. But hey, do they have chemistry now? Hmm… nah. But I won’t spoil the mood.
Stray thoughts and observations:
- Kyros takes Marie to meet one of his acquaintances, but the man happens to like sleeping in the nude. It’s one thing to go to bed naked, but doing it in the second story of your place of business? That’s crazy. Plus, if this is your day to day outfit, it’s such a hassle to strip down whenever you want to nap and put it all back on afterwards.
- Marie is very touched when she finds out that Kyros wants to buy a gem that matches the color of her hair. We have all those mean jokes about red heads, so I suppose this isn’t all that surprising. Still, I’ve never even thought twice about someone’s hair color being a detriment. I’m replaying Triangle Strategy, a game where an entire race of people are hated and despised just because they have pink hair, and it’s just so wild to me.
