Not enough rom or com in any of these shows.
Oh Boy, Was I Wrong About Her Ep. 8
You might think Haruki’s surprise is having twintails, but no, it’s actually something else! She quickly reveals… uh, reveals… what? What the hell am I looking at? A shiny shoulder? But Hayato and Himeko both turn beet red, so I know it has to be something “scandalous.” That’s when I finally notice the black bra strap. Christ, that’s how you know these are children.
Anyway, these kids are country bumpkins, so they’ve never been to the theaters. That’s the primary excuse for today’s hang-out. Out of nowhere, Kaido crashes the party. Did he overhear their plans? Did he stalk them? I’m not really sure. After he practically begs the trio to let him join, Hayato relents (much to the girls’ chagrin).
The original trio oohs and aahs when they get to the movies. But this is actually relatable, because I remember my parents bringing my younger cousin to the cinema for the first time, and he pretty much reacted the exact same way.
Instead of watching the super popular movie starring that actress who is probably Haruki’s mom, they watch some Fate knockoff. Afterward, Haruki acts out certain scenes from the movie, and judging from the others’ reaction, she probably has her mother’s talents. Even so, Hayato grabs Haruki and bails when he notices that there’s an in-person event with Haruki’s mother.
When the group try to grab a bite to eat, Kaido’s former classmates walk up and start bullying him. We get the usual conflict resolution: telling the bullies that they suck. Still, it becomes clear that Kaido is just a lonely dude who wants friends. He’s not trying to score with Haruki at all.
After a long, fun day with friends, Haruki unfortunately returns home and gets a slap across the face as soon as she opens the door. Apparently, her mother doesn’t want her to even leave the house. So what was she doing? Literally just standing at the entrance, waiting for her daughter to come home. Shouldn’t a high profile actress have better things to do. And why exactly is she trying to hide Haruki anyway? They don’t have the same last name, but actors and actresses have stage names all the time. But they might also have different last names because she’s an illegitimate child. If that’s the case, then her existence alone is a potential scandal. Still, you think it would’ve leaked by now. The paparazzi is relentless, after all.
Despite slapping her own daughter for going outside, what we see next is Haruki wandering the streets alone. Clearly, she ran away, but I still find this a little silly.
Haruki thought about calling Hayato, but she ultimately decides against it. She’s still not ready to talk to him about her mother, huh? So she gets Minamo instead. Vegetable girl just happens to be walking her dog in the area. What a small world.
Love Unseen Beneath the Clear Night Sky Ep. 8
Everyone should find themselves a bro like Ushio. As soon as Kakeru and Yuko return from the hospital and their ill-fated encounter with Koharu, he has gyozas fresh off the griddle for them to eat. Personally, nothing beats depression like good food, and boy have I had to eat a lot of good food lately…
Unfortunately, neither Kakeru nor Yuko is coping well with Koharu’s sudden bout of amnesia. She claims she doesn’t remember them at all. Well, what about her phone? It should have tons of messages between her and her friends. Ah, but it’s cracked and the touchscreen no longer works! I dunno, man, that still sounds like bullshit to me. But hey, if the blind lady insists that she doesn’t know you, then you just gotta accept it. But they don’t.
Yuko notices an ad at the same hospital for student volunteers, so she has them all sign themselves up. Yes, including Ushio. See, in my mind, there are only two possibilities, and neither of them are great. If Koharu is lying about her amnesia, then she must be serious about cutting ties with her friends. I would not try to convince her otherwise. If she doesn’t think it’s worthwhile to be my friend for whatever reason, then so be it. But I’m petty like that. I’m not going to get on my knees and beg someone to keep me in their life.
The other possibility is that Koharu’s telling the truth. In which case, she has three strangers stalking her at the hospital where she’s getting treatment. Hell, this is true even if she was lying. It just seems like an all-around bad idea, man. But the children at the hospital have a blast playing with the gang, especially Ushio, so the show really wants to frame them persistently following Koharu around as a good thing.
In the end, Koharu decides to single Kakeru out. She tells him she is only expected to live another six months, so she doesn’t want to remember them if she’s going to die anyway. Uhhhhhhh, I don’t think that’s the right mindset. People in her situation really need to talk to a counselor, therapist, social worker, or whatever. They should help her realize that having her loved ones around her before she passes away would be beneficial for everyone involved, including her. That doesn’t mean her friends should force themselves back into her life, but Koharu never should’ve cut them off to begin with (assuming she’s lying about the amnesia). But I’m just a layman, so take my thoughts with a healthy grain of salt. It’s just… the idea that you should isolate yourself before you die seems wrong to me.
Saved by the Ice Cold Prince’s Embrace Ep. 7
At one point in this episode, Katrina wonders to herself, “I don’t know how you feel, though…” This is after Clarence embraces her so hard that she can’t breathe, calls her precious, tells her that he’ll treasure her gift forever, and decides to introduce her to his parents. Gosh, I don’t know how he feels either, girlypop!
Finally, we meet the parents. At first, it looks like the queen is displeased. This is more than likely just a red herring. These shows are so painfully predictable. And it’s funny, ’cause I’m watching Draw This, Then Die! Teshima, one of the show’s main characters, basically gave up on her dreams because no matter what she drew, she couldn’t get her editor to serialize her work. Gosh, it must be hard to get your manga out there. Meanwhile, I’m watching this show, which is making me side-eye Teshima pretty hard. Just how bad were her attempts at manga?
Hana-Kimi S2 Ep. 9
Once again, the question is whether or not the kids will agree to model for the shady photographer. I guess the theme of the week is unresolved jealousy. Sano doesn’t just want to protect Mizuki; it bothers him that Akiha can see her as a girl. After all, he doesn’t see Nakatsu as a real threat, because Nakatsu can’t see Mizuki for who she really is. This privilege used to belong to Sano exclusively, but now that Akiha has entered the picture, Sano is completely unmoored. Unfortunately, he’s also a dumb kid, so he has neither the ability to put his feelings into words nor the courage to open up to Mizuki about it. So instead, we get to watch him flail and pout all episode long. It’s such a drag.
Meanwhile, Mizuki buys one of Akiha’s photobooks, and she is so excited to go through it with Sano. When she realizes, however, that there are nude photos of Akiha’s ex-wife in the collection, she freaks out. Ugh, she’s going to be one of those girlfriends who gets mad at you if a movie has a naked lady, huh? C’mon, there’s a huge difference between an artistic photograph and porn. Hell, men are not all cretins! We don’t all get hard the instant we see a naked woman! I mean, most do, but there are dozens of us who don’t! Dozens!
Mizuki continues to drive me up the wall. When Akiha opens up to her about his past — how his mother not only abandoned him, she pretended not to know him when he found her years later — he also confesses that he thought about killing himself. Thought, I must emphasize. He’s standing in front of Mizuki right now, so he clearly didn’t go through with it. Nevertheless, she fucking headbutts him outta nowhere and starts lecturing him about how wrong it is to even consider suicide. Bro, give the man some grace. Again, he’s standing in front of her, so it obviously didn’t happen. Second, we all have dark thoughts from time to time, especially when we’re dealing with traumas like being abandoned by our own mother. Hell, I had some dark thoughts while doing the dishes just earlier. I still dragged my ass back to the couch to watch this shit-ass anime. I don’t need any headbutts, thank you very much. Christ, let’s hope Mizuki never decides to become a therapist. She’s a bigger clod than Sano.
Smoking Behind the Supermarket with You Ep. 7
Yamada can get a raise if she studies and passes a corporate test. I guess doing a good job isn’t enough. Unfortunately, studying means she can’t work the registers, which also means she can’t see Sasaki as often. Even so, isn’t this why we have phones? At some point, this “love story” needs to make some modicum of progress. They’ve been hanging out for how long now? And they don’t even contact each other outside their impromptu hangouts? Sigh, again, it’s like watching two kids, not adults. The only adult thing about them is that they smoke, which some kids also do. I’ve actually seen people extol this show precisely because they’ve been jonesing for an “adult” romance. Does this show count, though? Does it really, really count? Be honest.
Yamada has Sasaki write an encouraging message on a slip of paper, which she eventually uses as motivation to pass the test. Normally, this would be a cute moment, but their lack of progress ultimately makes the gesture feel hollow. Case in point, when she tells him that she’s going to give the note to “Yamada,” i.e. herself, he predictably freaks out. Ugh… c’mon, dude, you’re in your 40s, and you’re losing your shit over something so innocent. It’s just a nice gesture, and he’s blowing it out of proportion. I’ll say this as gender neutrally as possible: fucking nut up.
I barely paid attention to the second half of the episode. I think she tries to spook him by telling him that their hangout spot is haunted, but Sasaki is too tired and beaten down from work to be scared. But she is…? Then she gets back at him another night with a water gun. Yep, what a truly adult romance.
Please Excuse My Younger Brothers Ep. 8
It’s the obligatory cultural festival episode, and Ito spends the majority of her day slowly coming to the realization that she is in love with her brother (gag). But of course, it comes with the usual caveats like “I love my family, so don’t want to ruin what we have right now.” Basically, there won’t be a confession anytime soon (how ’bout never?). It’s the same BS we always see in romance anime, just with the added zest of incest. Then to top it all off, the episode ends with the middle brother ominously observing Ito from a moderate distance. Well, I guess we never really focused on him and whatever issues he might have. Sigh, I probably spoke too soon when I said all the major bosses had been dealt with.
As usual, whenever a show bores me, I just default to taking screenshots of the characters looking goofy.
Rich Girl Caretaker Ep. 8
Mirei finds out Itsuki has been lying to her about his current situation, so she challenges him to an impromptu bout of kendo. As soon as he confesses the truth to her, however, she relents and instantly forgives him. Just like that, the two of them reset to the status quo, i.e. she continues tutoring him on how to be an upper class snob. This whole conflict is a microcosm for the show in general: what’s the point of, well, anything if everything will eventually reset to the status quo? Case in point, Mirei reveals that once her arranged marriage is official, she will leave the school and move closer to her fiance. Obviously, Itsuki will make sure this doesn’t happen. He offers to have her spend time with him one day and see what it’s like to live as a commoner. Something’s going to happen between them, and Mirei will finally tell her adopted parents that she doesn’t want to get married for business reasons. But will anything change between her and Itsuki? Nothing can change. She has no chance of winning his heart. We’ll just return to the status quo, so again, I ask, what is the point?
Of course, the show could easily prove me wrong. Go ahead, I would welcome it. Have Itsuki and Mirei end up together. Or better yet, have her go through with the arranged marriage. Either would be fine, because I’m so tired of the status quo.
The Duke’s Son Claims He Won’t Love Me Yet Showers Me with Adoration Ep. 8
Ugh, even the drama in this show is utterly toothless. To take stock, Elsa still hasn’t mentioned her new part-time job as a teacher to her husband. It would take a couple minutes to explain the situation, but she’s a child. She’s not mature enough to be married and yet here we are. So guess who she suddenly bumps into one day on the streets? Why, it’s Jarmo, of course! I’m sure he didn’t plan this out at all! Also guess who decides to leave work early for once to surprise his wife? Why, it’s Julius, of course! He proceeds to see his wife interact with Jarmo from a distance. He proceeds to see Jarmo grab a lock of Elsa’s hair. He proceeds to see his wife walk off with Jarmo. Bro, are you gonna do anything? If she started fucking the guy, would you just sit there and watch? Christ…
As you can imagine, Julius begins to stew in his negative thoughts and distance himself from Elsa. Meanwhile, Elsa is concerned, but she also doesn’t say anything because nobody fucking talks to each other, especially not a married couple. Infuriating. But like I said, this show’s drama is toothless, because at work, Julius bumps into a nun who is here to petition for more funds. This same nun is the one who hired Elsa, so she inadvertently spills the beans on what the girl has been up to. Yup, a husband and wife literally cannot communicate. God has to send his bravest sister to fix their woeful relationship.
The next time Elsa goes to work, she sees her students beaming because they have new books and learning supplies. Not only that, the orphanage is getting much-needed repairs. Most of all, Julius is here. I’m sure you can imagine what Julius did next after his conversation with the nun. With his wife now in front of him, he proceeds to mark his territory. He can’t even do his own thing; he has to copy what Jarmo already did. Even worse, it’s odd how he couldn’t stake his claim on Elsa when Jarmo was around. Maybe Julius is scared of other men. The difference between him and Jarmo, however, is that him touching Elsa actually has an effect. Oh my god, what are these newfound feelings! Good lord, don’t tell me this is the first time Elsa has ever been in love. Again, she’s still a child mentally! Even worse, she fell for such a frigid, pathetic dude too. Guy practically let another man walk off with her!
Look, I’m not saying you should be enraged every time you see your significant other interact with members of the opposite sex. You shouldn’t assume that every single conversation is an attempt to cheat; that would be insane. Don’t marry someone if you can’t trust them. But if you’re going to have a problem — and Julius clearly does! — then speak the fuck up. Don’t just mope until you receive divine intervention.
The Ogre’s Bride Ep. 8
After Karin’s fox fiance drives the guards away, she has her parents confront Yuzu. Their father literally pushes their grandmother — his own mother — to the ground in an attempt to drag Yuzu back home. And then what? Even if they had succeeded, Reiya would eventually come looking for his bride and kick their asses. What’s even the point? But why do I bother asking these questions? We all know these characters are written to be colossally, inhumanly dumb. They just act as needed to drive whatever inane plot of the week forward.
I half-expected Reiya to show up outta nowhere to protect Yuzu, but the lesser ogres are finally useful for once. They keep blasting blue fire at Yuzu’s family until they shamefully retreat. As Youta drags Karin away, he receives a call from the head of the fox clan. Reiya has found out what they’ve done, and he demands retribution!
In front of the ogre, Youta whines that he had no choice. He couldn’t refuse Karin! He’s just a helpless little demon boy in love! The head of the fox clan even remarks that human brides seem more like a curse than a blessing. Well, she’s not wrong. We only have three examples to work with — Reiya, Youta, and that cat demon who is engaged to Yuzu’s BFF — but they’re all weirdly obsessed with their respective partners. As soon as they meet the girls of their dreams, they seem to lose their grasp on their own free will and all sense of rationality. It’s a bizarre dynamic where the demons are seen as status symbols in society — wealth, power, beauty, you name it! — but in reality, they can’t even control their own feelings around their future wives. These demons run the biggest, baddest conglomerates in all of Japan, but they can’t disobey their partners. It’s weird.
But I suppose some relationships are just full of contradictions. I’m reminded of the fraught one between Hinako’s parents in Silent Hill f. On the surface, Hinako’s father had to project the image of a strong, infallible family man whom his wife and daughters must unquestioningly obey. He predictably lashes out when he can’t deal with Hinako’s rebellious phase. But behind closed doors, Hinako’s mother had her father’s spirit so thoroughly broken after an argument that he got on his knees and bowed deeply to her, i.e. head to the ground. Purposeful or not, maybe The Ogre’s Bride hearkens to the paradoxical, complex dynamics between a husband and wife. I won’t give the author too much credit. This could all be accidental. Still, it’s interesting food for thought.
Anyway, the head of the fox clan wants Youta to prove that Karin can control herself, so the sisters will be meeting soon enough. I’m sure Karin will embarrass herself yet again.
Hanaori-san Still Wants to Fight in the Next Life Ep. 7
A cursed ring “corrupts” Meteor and turns her into a dark knight of sorts. Rest assured, it doesn’t make her evil or anything. She just really, really wants to fight the Demon Lord, a.k.a. Ryusei. Meteor even takes out a few monsters while looking for him. So they clash and clash and clash. Eventually, Ryusei comes out on top, which conveniently breaks Meteor out of the curse. I was half-expecting him to snap her out of it by confessing or even half-confessing. Give me some kind of romantic gesture to move this damn story forward! But no, just literally beat her up, I guess. Oh well, I guess they can’t really fall in love as long as Ryusei is still hung up on some princess from his previous life.
