Koi wa Ameagari no You ni – 01 (First Impressions)

Tachibana Akira is a quiet, soft-spoken high schooler who works part-time at a family restaurant. Despite one of her older co-workers always shitting on the manager, Akira actually has a thing for the guy, even though he’s much older. Where others see weakness or spinelessness, she sees kindness and gentleness.

The manager is divorced and also a dad, and when the kid is hanging out in the break room, Akira shows the kid how to play the recorder properly, noticing he has his dad’s eyes. It’s here we see that Akira is every bit as warm and kindhearted as the manager, and that, if she was, you know, an adult, they might be a fine match for each other.

While Akira’s school friends are fixated on the dreamy soccer captain, Akira doesn’t give that guy a second’s look, and when asked what her type is, basically describes the manager, open fly, loud sneezing and all. They kinda laugh it off, unable to relate to her taste. We also learn that Akira has been working at the restaurant since a leg injury forced her to retire from the track team prematurely. Still, she and Haruka, her former track captain, remain close.

The episode allows us a moment with the manager, as Akira brings up “types” with her co-worker Yui, then brings up the manager as a possible type, and Yui dismisses that possibility immediately, complaining that the manager has a weird smell. The manager accidentally overhears this, and later makes a note to be mindful of the smells he emits as well as take care not to eavesdrop on conversations.

Finally, we learn how Akira and the manager met. Akira, fresh off her surgery, gets out of the rain, and the manager gives her a free cup of joe while she waits. It was just a little gesture, but well-timed Akira was likely feeling very lonely and down, from having to quit track.

Presumably, she applied for a job at the restaurant to get closer to this kind older man, and despite the fact he caught her smelling his shirt, he’s still very much unaware of her feelings, and when he spots an annoying stalker-y classmate who bothers Akira, assumes the prick is her boyfriend.

I’m sure she’d like to tell the manager how she is, but is obviously apprehensive due to the extreme age difference. No doubt this show will explore her attempts to get to a place where she can do so, or failing that, be content with the way things are.

I’d describe this show as fresh and breezy, and yet also warm and very thoughtful. Despite the controversial nature of the premise, it’s handled with all due delicacy and respect so far. The aesthetic is crisp and detailed; everything from the clouds in the sky to the steam on the food, there’s a keen realism to everything, which plays off the somewhat retro character designs nicely.