The loser of the week is… drumrolls… Minato. After just a bit of pressure from Momoka, he finally agrees to go out with her. Man, he is such a jackass. I don’t care if he ends up with Koyuki. That’s not the point; I’m not even that big on them as a potential couple. The problem is that he never learns. He keeps entering into relationships with girls even though he’s not serious about them. Minato thinks there’s nothing wrong with giving these girls a chance, but he’s lying to himself. The reality is that he just doesn’t want to be the bad guy. He doesn’t want to have to reject these girls, push them away, and have them get mad at him. When we first met Minato, we learned that he liked to seek out people who had problems. He’s always been a people pleaser. This doesn’t work with relationships, because their problems become him. As a result, he gets into a half-assed relationship with girls until they get so frustrated with his lack of commitment that they dump him. But in his mind, he’s not at fault, because he didn’t do anything wrong. He didn’t actively push them away. If they were not happy, that was their problem. Wait, isn’t this just him getting to the same destination with these girls but with extra steps? Yeah, but now he doesn’t have to feel like the bad guy.
Sadly, Minato is doing the same half-assed shit with Koyuki without realizing it. We all know how he really feels: he likes her. If he would full-ass his feelings, then he would confess and live with the results, whatever they end up being. If she’s disgusted, then so be it. But again, he doesn’t want to face the consequences. As a result, Minato thinks dating Momoka will preserve this limbo where he gets to be close to Koyuki as a friend without ever offending her. See? I’m safe! I have a girlfriend! You don’t have to worry about me having feelings for you (even though I do)! Of course, this only works if Koyuki doesn’t have feelings for him… which she does. Not only that, he would be emotionally cheating on his girlfriend. And don’t get me wrong, ’cause Koyuki’s a coward for not confessing her feelings as well. But she’s a numbskull when it comes to romantic relationships, so… eh, I’m not the biggest Koyuki fan, but I can excuse her actions (or lack thereof) a little. Meanwhile, Minato has dated how many girls now? He’s had so many girlfriends, people think he’s a playboy! And he still hasn’t learned a thing.
Like I said, Koyuki isn’t faultless either. Sadly, she is her own biggest enemy. She can’t be honest with Minato, but how can she when she can’t even be honest with herself. Koyuki tries so hard to convince herself that she would be fine with the status quo — that as long as they remain friends, she wouldn’t get hurt. Guess what ends up happening anyway? As soon as she learns that Minato and Momoka are dating, Koyuki is devastated. But like I said, I can’t be too mad at her, because she is clueless. Part of that cluelessness is, of course, her own doing. By ostracizing herself from others for so long thanks to middle school drama, Koyuki lacks the experience necessary to navigate these social situations as well as coming to terms with her sudden attraction to Minato. But if she had just been honest with herself to begin with — if she weren’t so preoccupied with avoiding rejection — then she wouldn’t be in this mess.
As soon as she gets the chance, Momoka immediately lords her victory over a stunned Koyuki. As the former turns to leave, she tells herself that she no longer has to care about Koyuki, but she does. She so does. None of these jerks are honest with themselves. I bet you anything she’s going to become increasingly jealous of Koyuki over the next episodes, and it’s because she can’t get what she wants from Minato. He won’t ever genuinely love her, and the girl is going to redirect her frustrations onto Koyuki. In essence, Minato is going to be partly responsible for Momoka picking on Koyuki.
The Ramparts of Ice annoys for all the same reasons that You and I Are Polar Opposites doesn’t. Misunderstandings and interpersonal conflicts never last more than an episode in the latter, and thank god for that. Of course, you might say that’s unrealistic. After all, we’ve all been in relationships. We’ve all had fights with our lovers, family, or friends that have lasted more than a day or two. So I get it. The Ramparts of Ice has a certain appeal for drama-hungry fiends. On the other hand, You and I Are Polar Opposites feels too squeaky clean at times. Suzuki and her friends are so mature — and this even includes the tragically cynical Taira — that it defies credulity. But is The Ramparts of Ice actually believable? Or is it just the same problem from the other end of the spectrum. But I suppose it’s moot. At the end of the day, all we really want is a show that entertains us. My problem is that I prefer smart, mature characters. Watching idiots like Minato create his own mess is frustrating. But here’s the kicker: it’s just the second episode of the second cour. In other words, how much worse is it going to get?
Stray thoughts & observations:
— Momoka looks so much like Honda, who was a great character in the other show. Honda had very little interest in romance, though. I guess that kinda makes Momoka something akin to her shadow.
— Minato would probably spoil his kids.
— Now that Miki knows who Koyuki likes, she’s completely flipped the script, i.e. she’s trying to engineer situations that might put those two idiots together. Alas, Koyuki is too scared to make a move, and Minato is the turbo idiot…
— No one can be honest with anyone. Minato makes one last “play” at conveying his feelings. He invites Koyuki to spend time with him over the summer, but he leaves the door open just enough for plausible deniability. And guess what? Koyuki runs with it. She says it would be a lot of fun… with other people. And just like that, Minato is convinced she doesn’t have feelings for him. These fucking idiots.
— Speaking of not being honest, Momoka tries to rub it in, bragging about how she was at a concert with Minato. She, of course, fails to mention that he brought his boys along. Koyuki is right to find this suspicious, but everyone puts on a happy face in public. No one wants to be rude and actually say what they really feel. Nobody wants to confront the other person and really say what they want to say. Koyuki’s gut instincts are correct: Momoka wants to hurt her (emotionally), but everyone just runs and hides from their feelings. I guess that’s why it’s called The Ramparts of Ice, but ugh… I’m a direct person. Sometimes, it has been to my detriment, and I’ve had to learn how to read the room. Even so, I prefer not beating the bush even if it might offend others rather than putting on a fake smile and make bullshit small talk with someone I despise.
— Therefore, it doesn’t surprise me that Momoka gets what she wants, because she can directly confess to Minato. Of course, her victory is hollow, because he doesn’t actually like her back and he never will. She just gets to call him her boyfriend for however long this failed relationship is going to last. But if her goal was to simply stick it to Koyuki, then she succeeded. And, again, all she had to do was be direct. If only the other two could realize that.
— The show tries to throw you off at first by having Minato reject Momoka. But she doesn’t give up, and Minato is a coward.
— Miki and Giraffe Guy are mostly back to normal, but now she can’t take any compliment he gives her at face value. Oof, awkward…
— We get to see the rest of Momoka’s confession, and it is so… obviously a disaster in the making. She’s completely right: he can’t like her back because he likes someone else. So any attempt to date him would just end in abject failure! Minato’s not going to love her back! But Momoka pushes on anyway, and it’s like.. damn, you kids are dumb. Ah well, better to fuck up now than as an adult.
— Momoka sheds a few tears and Minato folds instantly. Ugh. He thinks he’s being a good guy here, but he’s the villain. He’s the villain of his own story! He’s creating more pain for everyone involved, because he is spineless. No one should wear such a look of resignation after just getting a girlfriend!
— The sad thing is, you can see how Minato and Koyuki will end up together. He’ll realize the errors of his ways eventually — after many long and painful episodes — then confess to her. And Koyuki will be so over the moon that she won’t put any blame on Minato for leading Momoka on.