Episode 10 – Blue Box

Man, I knew it. blue box Daiki and Chinatsu aren’t suddenly randomly thrown together after just ten episodes, but you have to sympathize with the kid. Intimate moments like the ones they shared during the fever would have Daiki wondering if and how he should have taken more decisive action to get closer to her, but Chinatsu flat-out told him that they should “forget that this ever happened?” That. harm.

This is also where the show starts to hurt me, though not necessarily because of anything inherently wrong with it. quite, blue box It just deals with tropes and story beats that are understandable and expected in many Japanese romances, and it never fails to be upfront about its intentions. Believe me, I understand that to Japanese kids, doing something like Taiki instinctively grabbing Chinatsu’s arm forward is like fifth base to someone who hasn’t even gone through the whole “confession” ritual Half a base however. However, I am a product of my own culture, and no matter how much I love that the best anime and manga capture that special, vibrant, flavor of youthful romance, sometimes I wish these silly kids could just be very small Their emotions and communication are more direct.

My biggest concern is that while Daiki’s series of internal conflicts are the focus of almost every episode, Chinatsu’s side of this brewing romance is getting dangerously close to being completely submerged. Again, I get the point of her character being that she’s so conservative and focused on making practical decisions that she doesn’t distract from anyone’s long-term goals or disrupt the status quo. Daiki’s father even points this out after an awkward ritual with Chinatsu at a family barbecue. She’s only a year older than their silly son, but she’s so serious About everything. This isn’t an issue for her characterization, but it may end up being an issue for my investment blue box‘s central love story.

For those who have watched enough anime to understand all the unspoken, subtextual, intentionally indirect and sometimes irritating nuances of the genre’s storytelling, it’s so obvious that Chinatsu likes Taiki Returns , even as she tries to put some distance between herself and the boy she lives with. “It’s not that simple,” she says to a friend after being teased for living in a romantic comedy cliché. It’s getting harder and harder for me to keep cheering and cheering for Chinatsu as much as I’d like because she’s so sullen and withdrawn as she allows a little bit of emotion to break through her shell of composure. I’m the kind of person who likes love stories where both parties are present final Equally crazy about each other and able to express that in the most personal and intimate way. Sometimes, this can manifest as emotionally charged but heart-pounding drama. Other times, I’ll happily settle for a few rounds of spontaneous song and dance. You can tell my favorite movie growing up was singing in the rain and Eternal sunshine of the spotless soul?

The thing is, I struggle when anime spends too much time on all those sneaky glances, self-doubting monologues, and melancholy smiles. Do I want these kids to get so out of control? blue box down to a Scumbag’s wish-The abyss of desperate sex of angry self-loathing and emotional manipulation? No, of course not! I mean… probably not. Correct? Then again…if Daiki somehow ends up hooking up with Kengo in a badminton-fueled, bisexual tryst…and then Chinatsu resorts to seducing Hina to stay close to the love she left…then they both Heading to America to get Tom Wilkinson to erase their memories of the whole mess…

No, just as incredible as mine. fan fiction The pitch might be that all I want is to feel half as close to Chinatsu as I am to Daiki or even Hina. While keeping her at a distance from the audience makes perfect sense in order to get us into Daiki’s headspace, I’d be happy if our protagonist’s romantic interest actually seemed more interested in a romance with him. I’m sure it will all happen in due time, but I’ll be turning 33 in a few months. I know the characters in these high school love stories are forever stuck in a haze of high school nostalgia, but I’m not getting any younger!

grade:

blue box Currently streaming on Netflix.

James is a writer with many thoughts and feelings about anime and other pop culture, which can also be found in twitterhis blog and his podcast.