Category: Fuuka
Fuuka – 11
Ay Caramba was that a jumbled mess of an episode, full of people being selfish and awful, other people being pushed and pulled around like ragdolls, people saying things no normal people would ever say out loud, and peppered with seemingly even more superfluous fanservice than usual.
First up, Fuuka, who leaves the band she forced everyone into to begin with to sign a contract with a studio. You know she’s leaving the band because it’s too painful to be around Yuu, and I know that too, but Yuu doesn’t, because he’s an idiot.
This isn’t about pursuing her dreams. You can tell because throughout this episode she’s sad and saying out loud “I AM MAKING THE RIGHT CHOICE HERE,” as if trying in vain to convince herself.
As for the other girl whose feelings for him Yuu is totally unaware, Koyuki surprises him when he’s moping in the dark his bedroom, presumably a few days later. When Koyuki learns why he’s blue, she tells him it’s for the best, how she wants to be on stage with him, no matter how much he sucks at bass, then opens her blouse and pounces on him.
Yuu is just not feelin’ it, and Koyuki starts to sob, talking about how she knew she wasn’t the one, how she knew about the feelings he doesn’t know he has, and how he needs to “be honest with himself” before leaving the site of her almost comically brief and awkward attempt at seduction. I feel bad for Koyuki, not because she was rejected so utterly, but that she likes a schlub like Yuu in the first place.
Yuu isn’t just a schlub: he’s also a deeply selfish, destructive person. Mind you, it feels like only a few days have passed, but all the other members of the band have already moved on to other things; Fuuka was the now-absent glue that held them together. Without her, Nachi goes back to focusing on track, Mikasa prepares to move back home and be the finance bro his dad wants him to be, and the talented Sara instantly finds another band to play in.
The wound of the short-lived The Fallen Moon (ugh) is healing nicely for everyone…except Yuu. The band was, apparently, all he had, so he tears it back open, writing a song that “contains all his feelings” (ARRGH) and delivers them to the members one by one in person, totally ignoring their firm yet polite attempts to decline.
Mikasa’s egregiously soapy-yet-oddly robotic monologue to Yuu borders on self-parody:
Sorry, Yuu…I’d moved out of my family’s home as a rebellion against my father, but that’s over now too. I’ve decided to listen to my father. He’s literally promised me a happy future! So I won’t have to suffer or stress myself out chasing pointless dreams anymore!
Who talks like that? Who wrote this drivel??
Yuu doesn’t give a shit what you’re up to now. HE wants the band back together, and he knows if they just hear his song, they’ll come running back to Denny’s. And of course, one by one, the rubes prove Yuu right.
“You’re absolutely right Yuu! How silly of us to move on with our own lives after the most talented, charismatic member of our band quit. Let’s re-form the band on the recommendation of the least talented and charismatic member!” What are these people, lemmings?
The only one he’s not able to immediately bring back is the one who he let leave in the first place without a word of complaint, saying at the time, “if it’s her decision, there’s nothing we can do.” Moping in the dark, getting jumped by Tama-chan, and pouring his feelings into a song have changed him. Now he wants the band back, Fuuka included. Everyone has to do what he says, dammit!
It’s tricky, though, because Fuuka, perhaps not ready to face the band she started then abandoned, is using her mom to screen visitors to her house. She mopes much like Yuu mopes, clutching his feelings-song in her hands, insisting she’s on the right path despite all outward evidence to the contrary, to say nothing of the turmoil in her head.
The insinuation is that, like Yuu had been doing until now, Fuuka isn’t being honest with herself. So go ahead, pursue your dreams as far as your talents will take you…but only until Yuu incessantly hounds you to return to the band. You’re done with the band when he TELLS you you’re done.
I don’t like this show anymore!
Fuuka – 10
Fuuka still hasn’t written the lyrics. Everyone’s hounding her, but it isn’t until Yuu tries to offer some friendly help when she momentarily snaps. She’s sick of feeling the way she feels about Yuu, and seeing him flirt with Koyuki.
Of course, Koyuki isn’t satisfied either, because it’s not as if she and Yuu are really a couple. There something in between, something that just isn’t cutting it, and she can’t go on. So yeah, Yuu’s making precisely no one happy right now.
Fuuka eventually does finish the lyrics, and they’re apparently awesome. Yuu seems to think so. But whether Yuu’s calling her on the phone and being nice, smiling at her, or praising her awesome lyrics, Fuuka continues to feel like shit.
The night of their big gig we get a little slice of all the band members’ lives. Fuuka perches precariously from her roof, but we don’t see her family. Yuu’s sisters promise they’ll be there. Nachi’s grandma sparks some flint for good luck or something. And Makoto? Makoto’s getting disowned by his asshole father for daring to be in a useless band. I wish I cared…but I don’t!
Fuuka’s pink alpaca strap falls off right in the middle of the street, and everything seems to be pointing to Fuuka getting clobbered by the classic “anime truck doing 70 mph in the middle of downtown,” with Fuuka either buying it or ending up in the hospital, probably with a ruined voice on the eve of her big break.
Instead, she avoids the truck (she is pretty athletic), and leaves the alpaca strap behind, which is like a symbol for her attempting to be move beyond the torturous slog of pining for Yuu, something I’m still not quite sure why she’s doing in the first place.
So The Fallen Moon (uuuuuuggggghhhh) performs their Hedgehogs (I’m sick of capitalizing it) cover for the millionth time, followed by a slower number, and then Fuuka’s big number. Throughout the gig, there’s more than one person singing, even though Fuuka is the only one singing, which is weird.
Also, because apparently there wasn’t enough animated material in this episode, we cut to a slow pan of the classic “impossibly starry city sky” again and again. Honestly, the episode went to that sky almost as much as the band goes to Denny’s!
The gig complete (and a huge success), Fuuka finally decides she’ll do that solo contract after all. Mind you, this is the band’s second public performance, and she’s leaving the band. The band Mikasa got disowned to stay in. Nice.
Really though, Fuuka is making the right choice. Even though everyone in the band is pretty good, the offer with the cash wasn’t for the band, it was for her. And you gotta look out for number one. I’m not sure where this is going, but this is actually a mildly intriguing development.
Fuuka – 09
Wow, we’re already nine episodes into this? Wow, that’s pretty far. What better way to celebrate than Yuu going on a date with Koyuki. Wait, whuuuh? Last time we saw them, they were locked in a hug on a pier, now they’re touring Little Edo, AKA Tiny Kyoto.
Koyuki starts out wearing a ski mask, but removes all disguises except for magic glasses that make it impossible for anyone to identify her. Also good news: her voice is “back to normal”…but I’ll believe her when I hear her!
In any case, inertia plus history plus chemistry equals these two becoming something of an item this week, which doesn’t go unnoticed by the band. Yuu is late for practice after all, and while Nachi jokes about him being busy with his girlfriend, Fuuka is less enthused.
After practicing the same damn HEDGEHOGS song for the thousandth time (aren’t they sick of it by now?) they go to Denny’s and Fuuka presents her Next Great Idea: she’ll write an original song…by ear. Yuu ducks out to talk on the phone with Koyuki, and when Fuuka goes out to see where he went, he hears their flirting and remains…not enthused.
A song-writing montage ensues, filled with still images, one of them showing them going to Denny’s again in short order. Honestly, how can these unemployed kids afford so many trips to Denny’s? They must get allowance out the wazoo! You’d think they were already a successful professional band what with all the cash they’re throwing around.
They get the instrumentation done, so all that’s left is the lyrics. I’ve never been in a band, so I supposed some bands do the music first then the lyrics, while others do vice versa, while still others do both at the same time. Fuuka, at least for this The Fallen Moon song (ugh, I forgot that’s the name they picked for their band), goes with the first strategy, but gets lyricist’s block, no doubt exacerbated by her heartache.
Then one day Sara’s brother asks Fuuka to have a meeting with him and a music producer, who heard her sing at the school riot. The guy is perhaps unreasonably obsessed with her from a single impromptu recording, but goes on to say she “ate Koyuki alive” on that modest stage, the implication being, for the first time, that Fuuka is just flat-out better singer than Koyuki.
But Fuuka doesn’t even say she’ll think over the producer’s offer to make her, and only her, a pro. She’s sticking with her unfortunately named band. Her selflessness is rewarded when she once more runs right into the middle of a private Yuu x Koyuki interaction.
The show is really piling it on in terms of Yuu and Koyuki rubbing their longer relationship all up in Fuuka’s face. Girl can’t catch a break! But she can’t worry about stuff like this right now; The Fallen Moon (UGH) is opening for other bands in like, no time at all, and she needs to get those lyrics written or she will LET EVERYONE DOWN.
Still, I’m sure no matter what happens, cash will somehow continue to appear out of thin air for the band, with which they’ll continue to buy fried food and sundaes at the local Denny’s. Eat more fish, kids.
Fuuka – 08
Um, so yeah, I don’t know why I didn’t mention it last week, but band solidarity aside, it was really really dumb and selfish to stride out on stage before such a hostile, volatile crowd. By doing so, they put not only themselves, but everyone in that room (including Yuu’s sisters) in unnecessary danger.
It only takes a spark from a couple of n’er-do-wells for the audience to become a mob. So what I wanna know is, where in the hell were the adults in this? Isn’t this a school auditorium? Did no one bother to inform any of the festival organizers of the circumstances surrounding the performance, or the potential hazards?
The bizarre, total absence of any of the controls that would have put the kibosh on this show before it even began were conveniently missing so that “the show could go on.”
So Yuu gets his bass wrecked and his head cut open from a bottle (which is pretty rock-and-roll, now that I mention it), and the crowd grumbles loudly, starts shoving Yuu’s sisters when they protest, and start to crush Koyuki when she reveals herself (another dumb move on her part).
And yet, like the flip of a switch, everyone in the rowdy mob just kinda…shuts up as if suddenly a single unit, and are so charmed by Fuuka’s powerful voice, her unison duet with Koyuki, and the talent of the other band members, their heckling and hostility turns to joy and cheers.
Are you takin’ a piss, Fuuka? Seriously? Quell the crowd with lame J-rock? Sorry…but I ain’t buyin’ it!
After Koyuki is shuttled off by her minders, the band heads to Denny’s to celebrate their bafflingly successful concert, which was streamed on the internet and greatly boosted by Koyuki’s presence. They then come up with a band name, The Fallen Moon, which is, well, there’s no other way to say it, the worst name for a band ever, no hyperbole.
What did elicit a laugh was when Fuuka protested over using her surname to name the band, making it seem like she forced everyone to join, followed by everyone else confirming that yes, she did indeed force them. But why did you let her force you? Is she just that really, really, ridiculously charismatic?
On the other side of the charisma spectrum is Koyuki, who is gently warned by her manager not to pull any more shit, and to stay away from Yuu lest she cause more riots and brawls. Yuu calls and calls, perhaps dozens of times, but Koyuki lets it vibrate, and he doesn’t seem to leave any messages.
All those ignored calls, combined with her guilt over what transpired and her production company cancelling all of her TV appearances (since she’s proven she’s a loose cannon no doubt) conspire to stress her out so much she literally can’t sing when called upon to do so, and has to cancel the last show she had left: the Christmas concert she invited Yuu to.
While walking on the beach, Yuu calls once again, and it looks as if Koyuki feels she has no choice but to answer, or else he’ll just keep calling. The call is brief and curt. Yuu, not satisfied, hops on a train to track her down; not obsessive behavior at all! He finds her at the pier where Fuuka found them in the rain.
Why did she go there? Why did he know she’d be in that specific place at that specific time? Not sure, but Koyuki becomes a wreck upon seeing him, breaking into tears, blaming herself for everything, and begging him forgiveness “for loving him.” Aw jeez. Yuu’s answer is to rush at and embrace her, which…the sea’s right there dude. Be careful!
But it just doesn’t seem like Yuu loves Koyuki…at least anywhere near the extent she loves him. It seems more like an obligation hug, a comforting a friend hug, not an “I love you too” hug. But hey, at least they didn’t fall into the ocean, right?
Fuuka – 07
As expected, the photo of Yuu and Koyuki goes viral, creating problems for both. Yuu’s sister and mother chew him out for being so reckless with his celebrity childhood friend. He’s mobbed at school by both classmates and total strangers.
Fuuka is disappointed that when she told her she saw Koyuki, he didn’t feel the need to tell her he saw her too. But with their first concert coming up at the cultural festival, they decide not to get too bent out of shape out it.
Meanwhile, Koyuki’s handlers coach her on the proper PR response to the photo. Yuu tweets that they’re just friends, while Koyuki’s company was ready to deny it was her and decline further comment.
Instead, Koyuki stays true to herself, and in a bit of a personal coup, blows things up even more, stating on live TV to the masses that the boy in the photo is not just some friend, but her unrequited love and muse for all her songs.
While admirable, Koyuki’s decision is a bit selfish, and only results in more potential problems for both Yuu and his band when the day of their first show arrives. Koyuki arrives in disguise, not wanting to miss it, and sees that legions of her fans—and haters of Yuu, the guy who apparently won’t love her back—are amassed, ready to shit all over Yuu’s show…figuratively of course.
Yuu apologizes to Fuuka and his bandmates over and over, but they understand it’s not his fault, nor is it Koyuki’s. What happened happened, and all they can do is put on the best performance they can. You can’t please or appease all the haters, and trying is a proposition of diminishing gains.
That being said, we’ve essentially jumped two months from last week to now, so all the bonding the band has done was done ‘off-camera’ (not that I particularly wanted to watch more band practice, mind you). It also seemed a bit anti-climatic to end the episode before the big performance takes place.
As for Fuuka’s dilemma about her feelings for Yuu conflicting with her pledge to Koyuki, well…at this point I still see Fuuka winning out. She’s the title, after all.
Fuuka – 06
This episode of Fuuka has no band/light music club practice, no Mikasa, Nachi or Iwami, and precious little Fuuka. Instead, true to its title, it’s all Hinashi Koyuki all the time, starting with a particularly bad day at the recording studio. Koyuki just can’t manage to find her voice, and it’s likely largely due to “Nico-kun” being back in her life.
First, we look back on their friendship, when she seemed to have much harder edges and a tomboy streak. Yuu was a crybaby prone to moping, but took direction well, and genuinely seemed to enjoy spending time with Koyuki, adventuring and such. Indeed, at this time, Yuu liked Koyuki, he just couldn’t muster the courage to say anything.
As for Koyuki, her home situation isn’t great, as she cries herself to sleep as her parents war downstairs. When she becomes a child of divorce and moves to Tokyo with her mother, her friendship with Yuu is tragically cut short, just when they’d made promises not just to make snowmen, but to start a band like their mutual favorite – HEDGEHOGS – and share the stage one day.
I understand Koyuki’s attraction to Yuu and vice-versa a little more now now – they were largely each other’s only and best friends. People fall for their besties all the time. Yuu, for Koyuki, was an escape from her unpleasant home. Koyuki drew courage and chivalry out of Yuu.
It’s just a bit unfortunate Yuu tells her he “likes it better when she smiles”, because it plants a seed in her head that her smile around him is some kind of prerequisite for him liking her. I’m sure ‘lil Yuu didn’t mean it that way, but still…
Fast-forward to now, and when Yuu admits he avoided contacting her out of fear she hated him—when she avoided contacting him out of fear he hated her—the assertive Tama-chan comes back out, inadvertently bringing out the mopey, submissive Nico-kun. It’s a nice scene, because A.) it lets us see another side of Koyuki and B.) it shows how quickly their old dynamic from when they were kids can reassert itself.
When Yuu talks about the band Fuuka made him and others join, it really irks Koyuki, to the point she can’t listen anymore and has to go. She leaves on cordial, even upbeat terms, however, as she gets Yuu to renew their deferred promise to share the stage someday.
Koyuki then gets splashed by a truck just when Fuuka happens to be running by, and invites her into the bathhouse she lives above. Koyuki gets to take the measure of her potential rival, and Fuuka’s bubbly exuberance and physicality contrasts nicely with Koyuki’s more modest, solemn bearing. Koyuki also learns Fuuka has never even thought of being in a relationship, which buoys her spirits as she heads home: maybe regaining Yuu’s affections won’t be so hard after all, eh? Riiiight.
And because we can’t have two episodes of Fuuka in a row end on an upbeat note, we end instead with two amateur photogs in a “Starbuccos” looking over a shot of Koyuki and Yuu pinkie-promising in his street. I wouldn’t be surprised if this ends up on a tabloid magazine cover Fuuka happens to notice while walking by a newsstand, or something.
I’ll just close by saying I didn’t much mind the dearth of music or band practice this week, because, if I may confess, I don’t much care for that part of this show. It may yet change my mind, but for now I’m content with the relationship stuff.
Fuuka – 05
Fuuka continues to cement its role as my guilty pleasure of the Winter, thanks to its utterly shameless tendency to put protagonist Haruna Yuu in the most favorable situations imaginable, and still have him complain about it. That might sound unpleasant, but it’s actually pretty fun.
Adorable childhood friend coming by his house to reminisce? Sure, why not? Flipping through photo albums, where most of the pics are of Koyuki yelling at Yuu for various reasons, most of them related to him being a pushover? You got it! Yuu managing to blurt out that he liked her then…b-b-but not now! Seriously! (Now as well.)
Koyuki leaves suddenly, which Yuu takes as meaning he said the wrong thing, but little does he know she’s weeping tears of joy at the news her love wasn’t one-sided. I still don’t see her beating Fuuka. Fuuka’s the title.
You know what this show didn’t need? Another girl! Especially not one who is impossibly tall and gorgeous, like she just jumped out of a magazine or something. But we get one nonetheless in the person of Iwami Sara, who seems very standoffish and aloof but I’m sure is really sweet deep down.
She also happens to be the sister of Hisashi, one of the members of Hedgehogs (styled as HEDGEHOGS…because you have to YELL IT) who also graciouslly offers the use of one of his studios for the new light music club to practice…free of charge. Where’s this guy’s sense of entrepreneurialism?
In any case, the band…kinda sucks, particularly Yuu and Fuuka, but Sara is kicked off her third band and Fuuka decides to invite her into theirs, and the girl can not only play, but look very cool doing it.
After practice they head over to Denny’s, I mean Danny’s, which—wait a second…
Kuzu no Honkai – 03
Oh, that was Banny’s, not Danny’s. Nevermind…
…Back to Fuuka – 05
Anyhow, the whole band is at some Denny’s ripoff, when all of a sudden everyone has somewhere to be…except Yuu and Sara. Did I mention Yuu’s face accidentally made contact with Sara’s boobs? Yeah…that happened, and then she smacked him in the face with a guitar, which should have caused a lot more damage to Yuu than it did. The magic of anime!
I’ve been ragging on this episode up to this point, but I have to say, I did not expect Sara to end up being one of Yuu’s best Twitter buddies, @0704-yamato.
It happens so subtly as you expect Sara to be bored and checking her phone with just Yuu there struggling to find words to say. Turns out Sara’s the same way: finding it far easier to communicate through tweets than with her vocal cords, which so often uses the wrong words, or the right words the wrong way, resulting in misunderstandings (and getting kicked off bands).
When Yuu first started tweeting I was like “Oh great, this gimmick again,” but it paid off big league here, from the sundae, to Sara’s sudden change of character, for which she actually apologizes for by saying “sorry for the sudden change in character!”
The next practice, held not at the full-up studio, but at Nachi’s ideal place (which he withheld so it didn’t look like he was as into this band thing as he really was), everyone has practiced a lot more, and they play a much smoother version of the show’s theme song, “Climber’s High!”
When Sara’s praise of Yuu’s progress is interrupted by Fuuka’s praise, and Yuu thanks her, Sara punishes him for allowing the interruption by jamming her guitar into his back. So this is how it’s gonna be, huh? Look out Koyuki: you’ve got more competition. (Note: next week’s episode is titled “Hinashi Koyuki”. Should be interesting.
Fuuka – 04
In what was for most of its running time the quietest and most emotionally engaging episode of Fuuka yet, Yuu gets caught in his web of omission, then the two have their first fight, as they both stumble over how to properly make up.
First of all, Fuuka has every right to be upset that Yuu was on a dock in the rain embracing her favorite idol. However close he is to her, Fuuka at least felt that at this point in their friendship he could tell her about Koyuki.
Proving his inexperience in such matters, Yuu only makes things worse with his first attempt at an apology, inadvertently likening Fuuka to a “stranger”, which would be cruel if he weren’t so clueless.
For his inability to explain himself, Yuu gets the cold shoulder from Fuuka, making every moment of the day that follows a living hell where food tastes like ash and the beach at sunset is lonely as hell.
Neither Yuu nor Fuuka want things to go on like this, so Mikasa takes Yuu aside and asks him to tell him straight up what’s going on. Yuu is able to articulate things, and also how upset he is he and Fuuka are fighting and how badly he wants to make up. Fortunately for him, Mikasa brought Fuuka along to eavesdrop, and she heard everything, and they finally exchange apologies.
Fuuka also thanks Yuu for having her back when her track senpai shows up to harass her, then questions her designs on a band. Yuu has heard her sing and knows she’s good, and she proves it again when three of the five members of HEDGEHOGS (who were hiding in plain sight, including the restaurant owner) let her perform vocals while they play an impromptu trial concert that not only calls off the track senpai, but attracts a small audience from the beach.
Fuuka even recruits the senpai as the drummer of the band, pegging Mikasa for the keys, herself for guitar and vocals, and Yuu for the bass (which he has no idea how to play…yet). All’s well that ends well, as Fuuka and Yuu, free of their row, are able to sit on the beach and admire the stars.
Fuuka even snuggles up beside him in his sweatshirt, but he panics, slips, and ends up with his hand up her shirt, ruining the lovely mood, both for Fuuka and me, the viewer, as I was enjoying the subtlety of their interactions to that point.
Naturally, when Yuu returns home, who is in his house waiting for him but the triangle’s third vertex Koyuki, no doubt unwilling to let some loud blue-haired girl snatch away her Yuu.
Fuuka – 03
So, we’re doing this, are we? Yuu seems to ask, as Fuuka founds a light music clu-excuse me, association, with him as a member, right before his eyes, with minimal resistance? Yes, yes they is doing this, because he let himself get swept away in Fuuka’s energy. So did Mikasa, but he’s a go-with-the-flow kinda guy. Yuu is complaining, but only to himself.
Things seem to get even worse for him as he tags along with Fuuka and Mikasa to the beach. Wait, we’re going to the beach in the third episode? That seems early for a show that doesn’t take place near the sea. Whatever; Yuu finds himself waiting tables. He tells himself he can’t do it, and so he sucks at it. (Is he getting paid, by the way, or is this just child labor? No one says.)
He’s rewarded by getting to push a giant inflatable orca around, with a Fuuka on top – a Fuuka who in past episodes thought this guy was taking pics of her undies somehow doesn’t see how Yuu might be flustered by the angle he’s viewing her from.
Of course, the flustering takes them too far out to sea (of course) and the extremely athletic Fuuka suddenly develops a cramp and sinks like a stone (of course) and Yuu has a perfect opportunity to save Fuuka’s life. The show redeems itself somewhat when it’s Yuu, not Fuuka, who ended up passing out and requiring mouth-to-mouth. Fuuka also freaks out about how he almost died.
The “kiss” gets Yuu all riled up and confused; he knows it was rescue breathing, and even hears how Fuuka doesn’t mind indirect kisses since she’s “not a kid”…but later Fuuka tells him to keep the kiss a secret, since it was her first.
SO Yuu decides not to tweet what would have been the most interesting thing he’s ever tweeted. It would be as if the Dos Equis guy wasn’t constantly followed around by cameras.
Speaking of celebs Koyuki is headed to the same one as Yuu for work, but wants to get together post-haste. Sure, why not. There are only so many beaches in Japan, right? That being said, I enjoyed the relaxed nature of the two meeting – for the first time since grade school – and slipping right back into an easy interaction, only now, as Fuuka said, they’re not kids.
It’s got to be an exhilarating feeling, and it would make another interesting tweet, but for the fact the Twitterverse would not believe him if he simply said he was meeting up with his childhood friend Hinashi freaking Koyuki, and if he provided photo proof, a lot of people would have problems with it, because…it’s Twitter.
One person, I imagine, already has a problem with it: Fuuka, who goes out in the rain at night to look for Yuu perhaps forgetting about things called cell phones (Koyuki, for the record, had just gotten done saying how if it weren’t for cell phones, she and Yuu might never have seen each other again.).
And she finds him: on a dock, with her favorite idol in his arms after a freakish wind blew her umbrella away. She also seemed on the verge of saying something important to Yuu. Will Fuuka be upset Yuu never told him (not necessarily fair, as their relationship has so far been, essentially her making him do stuff and him quietly assenting), or will she just be happy to meet Koyuki, even if she’s a rival for Yuu’s heart?
As for the music clu-er, association angle, well, there’s almost no movement, though the beach restaurant guy tells Mikasa not to touch his drums, and Yuu tells Fuuka he can’t play an instrument, but is ignored. And we’ll probably never know if Mikasa got that hot bodyguard’s number…
Fuuka – 02
There’s something…annoying about ready-made, built-in love in a show like this. We’re introduced to Hinashi Koyuki, the famous idol (Hayami Saori!), who damn near has a crisis upon hearing back from Yuu, whom we know she hasn’t seen in years. So she’s been madly in love with him all this time, or was it just a spark that was lit when contact was made after so long? I don’t know, but it’s too neat and tidy.
Fuuka attempts to be coy, but she’s not fooling anyone; she could’ve gone with anyone to the Hinashi concert, but chose Yuu, who had to turn down Koyuki’s offer to come, only to end up there anyway. More coincidences = more frustration there’s very little emotional legwork going on on either side. It’s like Yuu’s in a very formulaic dating sim.
Caught between the blue-haired wild child who seems to be sizing him up for boyfriendship (and is apparently the spawn of Suzuka, though I never watched that show) and the famous celebrity idol childhood friend Fuuka adores, Yuu stays cool. After all, he hasn’t the slightest notion of just how infatuated with him Koyuki is, nor how much elation she expresses when he says things she wants to hear.
But a reckoning is coming. Surely at some point some combination of Yuu, Koyuki and Fuuka will meet, and not only will Yuu have some explaining to do to Fuuka, re knowing Koyuki, but he’ll face an impossible choice. That being said, considering the title of the show, Fuuka seems positioned to win, though I can only speculate about how Yuu will react if and when he finds out about Koyuki’s feelings. I shouldn’t, as he’s wont to do, jump to the wrong conclusions here.
Oh yeah, and after hearing her sing (she’s pretty good), Yuu suggests maybe Fuuka get into music, and she starts a light music club (ugh) at school, like, a day later. Am I supposed to believe she never considered getting into music until Yuu made that glaringly obvious observation?
I dunno man…this show could be trouble.
Fuuka – 01 (First Impressions)
Twitterphile Haruna Yuu has moved to Tokyo with his younger sister to live with his two older sisters. In a misunderstanding, a blue-haired girl breaks his phone; he later transfers to her class. After more interactions, the girl comes to trust Yuu, gives him her name, Akitsuki Fuuka.
She accompanies him to a movie, the theme to which is sung her favorite idol (and Yuu’s childhood friend) Hinashi Koyuki. After a surprisingly pleasant date, Yuu gets a cryptic photo text from Koyuki, asking if he remembers her.
From the creator of Suzuka and Kimi no Iru Machi (Seo Kouji) comes Fuuka, about a guy with an unconventional family situation, an old friend who is now a celebrity, and a weird but charming girl with which he gets off to a rough start, but gets smoother as the episode progresses.
The episode is the same way, relying on a super-lame upskirt photo-based misunderstanding that’s followed up by a second instance of Yuu pointing his camera at Fuuka and just happening to catch a glimpse of her panties.
This is a show with the sheen of a serious, naturalistic romantic drama, but too often leans on exaggerated actions and coincidences that strain credulity.
It doesn’t help that while he seems to be a nice guy, Yuu is pretty dull, and is more defined by outward things, like his many sisters who don’t mind being undressed around him, or his patently awful Twitter feed. No one cares what you’re doing every waking moment, brah.
As charming as she is, Fuuka also seems at times to be trying too hard to be the hyper sporty weird girl. Minorin you ain’t, kid.
Still, neither party is as loathsome as the couple from Kimi no Iru Machi, but I have a feeling the could become so at some point, as the love triangle forms. For now, I’m still barely on the guy’s side. I’m just hoping the fact that Fuuka’s favorite singer being Yuu’s childhood (and likely another love interest as well) doesn’t collapse under the weight of its own coincidence.
The idol herself was only on the margins of the episode, lurking; I imagine we may see more of her in the next episode…which I’ll be reviewing soon, as it aired right after the first. For now, I’m hedging.
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