Oshi no Ko – 11 (S1 Fin) – O Children of the Star

I like how this Oshi no Ko starts out from the POV of two strangers; first an idol from another group who is curious about a “cutie” in B Komachi, then from an older idol otaku who is the only one in his circle who remembers the original B Komachi, and how special Ai was.

Those who saw Hoshino Ai could never forget her. That’s what Ruby, Kana, and MEM-cho are up against. Their first song in their first concert goes off without a hitch, but the otaku is #notimpressed. Then Ruby hits him with the same kind of charismatic look Ai once made, and he immediately reassesses his skepticism.

As the the trio transitions from the first group to the second, Kana takes note of the color of the lightsticks in the crowd. Most are for the famously online MEM-cho, while a smattering are for Ruby, who is a natural idol. None are white for Kana, and she descends into a spiral of despair even as she performs competently.

All she wants is for someone to look her way, to need her, to praise her. When a single white lightstick shoots up, it’s in Aqua’s hand. He shows off the same lightstick dancing skills he had both in his previous life and as a baby with Ruby. Not only does he almost make Kana laugh in the middle of her set, but more importantly he cheers her up.

Right then and there, Kana decides she’s going to make Aqua fall in love with her. Her performance kicks into another gear entirely, and she not only starts holding her own against Ruby and MEM’s charisma, but truly comes into her own as the center. Aqua can’t help but take notice. Indeed, he can’t take his eyes off Kana.

On the car ride home, the seating arrangements in the van are crucial. MEM is riding shotgun as Miyako drives, while Ruby and Kana are in the middle row, the former fast asleep. Behind them is Aqua. Kana asks how they did, and he says pretty good for their first time. She wants him to give them—give her—more props, but he does her one better, saying he’s only withholding loftier praise because he knows they’re only going to get better.

Miyako expresses relieve Aqua and Kana are talking again, but to MEM’s eyes, they don’t get along at all. Miyako then lays the perfect bait: asking Aqua how things are going with Akane since the show. Aqua responds exactly how she expected: honestly. He hasn’t seen Akane since, and it’s only a work relationship. Kana hides her glee by mocking Aqua’s bad luck.

Watching Kana’s reactions, it dawns on MEM that Kana has feelings for Aqua, causing her to draw a diagram of the love triangle of Aqua, Kana, and Akane in her head. Since MEM considers herself Akane’s friend, she’s not sure who to root for. She’s a great audience surrogate, because I’m not sure either!

Right on cue, Akane receives a piece of correspondence that indicates to her that she and Aqua will be working together again very soon, but in the meantime, Kana takes full advantage of the fact she and Aqua are talking again to poke and prod him, which Ruby tells MEM is the only way to really get to her brother.

She notes that Kana brings out the “old” Aqua, before his personality became twisted. Like MEM, I leaned more towards Kana here, as Akane will have a steep hill to climb. But I also know Akane is perfectly capable of climbing it!

As we watch Kaburagi having another opulent dinner with a younger, more flamboyant producer Sumiaki Raida, we learn why Akane knows she’s working with Aqua: they’ve been cast in a 2.5D stage version of the popular anime Tokyo Blade. Selfishly, I wished the story would have been that Starship Troopers-style ED of Kaguya-sama: Ultra Romantic.

But I’ll admit, Tokyo Blade looks cool too, especially when Akane, on a date with Aqua to take Insta pictures to lend their relationship legitimacy, describes the cast. She’ll be playing Princess Saya, while he’ll be playing Touki. She goes on to say fans love speculating whether Touki will end up with Saya or his associate, Tsurugi.

As soon as I saw Tsurugi’s character design, I knew what was coming even before Akane wondered who would be cast to play her. Of course, it’s Kana! Kana herself tells Akane and Aqua, interrupting their “work date” to warn them not to livepost in identifiable outdoor locations unless they want stalkers.

As it happens, Akane and Kana know each other…and do not like each other. They exchange barbs, and Aqua is powerless to stop the sparks that the two emit towards one another. The two are perfectly cast as two women in a love triangle with Aqua, playing characters in a love triangle with Aqua’s character.

Kana’s little visit is a declaration of war, but we know Akane, whom we know to possess obsessive tendencies, isn’t going to back down, and fully intends to win such a war, as she harbors feelings for Aqua too. Add to that the fact that Akane, while acknowledging Kana’s talent, still resents her for stealing all the good roles back when they were child actors together.

The solidification of the love triangle and the announcement of the Tokyo Blade play are excellent setup for the second season, which is definitely coming; it’s only a question of when. As for Aqua’s quest for vengeance, he’s agreeing to the role because he knows becoming a famous and successful actor is the only way he’ll learn more about his target.

In this case, working with Akane on this production will get him closer to Lala Lai, where Kaburagi says Ai fell in love with someone. He’s still determined to find that someone by any means necessary. But it’s my earnest hope that between Akane and Kana doing their best to win his heart, and his and Ruby’s careers taking off, he’ll one day ditch the quest and enjoy his life, as Ai would surely want him to.

Oshi no Ko – 10 – The Rookie

When Ruby and MEM-cho foist the position of center onto Kana, she rejects the honor, and when they praise her voice, it forces her to bring up that dark past when her disaster of a music career crashed and burned spectacularly. They praise her, but she takes no joy from it, telling them in no uncertain terms that she’ll never accept being the center.

Then she practices singing with them, and it’s clear that she has to be the center if the new B Komachi is going to survive its infancy; Ruby and MEM are that bad. But despite not at all wanting to be the center, Kana grudgingly agrees anyway, talking and acting in a manner contrary to her feelings, just like she’d done with Aqua last week.

With the center matter settled, Miyako presents someone who will help get train them into peak idol condition: It’s the return of Pieyon! I like how Kana had initially expressed excitement it might be Aqua. Pieyon subjects the women to a grueling exercise regimen designed to forge them into idols able to smile and perform at their best even when dead tired.

After a training montage and during a well-deserved breather, Kana tells Pieyon how an idol center isn’t a position for “little ol’ her”. When Pieyon praises her, she gives him a dark look, saying he doesn’t know the first thing about her. Then Pieyon rattles off a string of qualities that clearly demonstrate he knows quite a bit about her.

Kana presumes he’s always been a fan, and they engage in an easy, breezy, and thoroughly enjoyable chat. Kana even smiles and laughs! She considers casting Aqua aside and making room for Pieyon in her heart, despite the fact she’s never seen his face. It’s around this point, and when MEM mentions Pieyon doesn’t look as buff in person, that my suspicions about him being Aqua in disguise found purchase.

The way he spoke to and then described Kana in such accurate detail was the first evidence, but it’s revealed to the audience that Aqua is indeed under the chick mask, and he’s in contact with the real deal (who is at the beach) via skype. The real Pieyon pushes back on Aqua’s notion that Kana would never accept him as her trainer. Aqua says he’s “actually rather feeble” in response.

The night before JIF, Ruby is too excited to sleep, despite Kana paraphrasing a university study on the specific deleterious effects of sleep deprivation on idols. When Kana asks how she can be so pumped up about this, Ruby simply says she’s longed for it. When she was Sarina, and before she discovered Ai, she felt she had no future and no hope, trapped in that hospital room.

But then her life suddenly brightened and became a lot more fun when she became an idol otaku, especially when she met her “first love”, our boy Gorou. The happiness and comfort these memories give Ruby cause her to fall asleep, and Kana in turn gently pats her head. Never would she have pegged Ruby for a former shut-in!

When Kana goes downstairs, she spots Pieyon with his mask off, and when she gets a closer look, discovers it is indeed Aqua. As a result, despite her scolding Ruby, it’s she who is sleep-deprived, and whose head is in a total whirl due to the ramifications of “Pieyon” having been Aqua all along.

It’s no accident she fell for “Pieyon”, because he was the same kind, thoughtful, attentive, supportive, and encouraging person she knows Aqua can be when he’s at his best, which she’s believed he’s been far too rarely of late. But was he kind to her as Pieyon just to get her motivated to perform? Were the sentiments he expressed genuine, or more useful lies from a gifted actor?

There’s no way for Kana to be sure either way, even if she had the courage to ask Aqua about it. And “Pieyon” isn’t around for their big JIF day. What is crystal clear to Kana is that their pre-concert accommodations are complete and utter shit. All of the underground idols and those with little to no fanbases are stuffed into one large conference hall like sardines.

Kana tries to get some rest in, and Miyako asks her if she’s nervous. Kana puts up a front, stating her lengthy experience as a performer and promising to look after Ruby and MEM. Even as she says this, a part of her resents having to be the one on which everything falls.

It’s not exactly resentment; it’s fear. When things were arranged for her to make her big singing debut, it was a horrific bust, and she knew it. When she asked for more work and her agency rejected her for being too old, it sucked. When even her mother left her alone in the city to take care of her aging mother, she felt like she wasn’t needed.

As Kana starts to wonder when exactly she started to make self-deprecating comments about herself that matched some of the stuff that was said about her online, suddenly she is needed in the present: it’s finally hitting Ruby that she’s about to go on stage as an idol for the first time, and she’s kinda panicking.

When she asks if Kana feels the same, Kana tells her the same thing she told Miyako, but Ruby can tell she’s lying. She holds her hand, which is ice cold, and correctly deduces Kana is not just nervous, but scared. Kana finally breaks down and admits that yes, she’s scared: scared of failing and bringing Ruby and MEM down with her.

But Ruby, who is able to calm down from her own anxiety seeing Kana in a similar state, assures Kana that to her, she’s just another cute, hardworking rookie idol. And rookie idols fail all the time. All they need to do is have fun out there, go for it, and give it their all. Ruby’s words are enough to bring a smile even to Kana’s face. She realizes she’s been overthinking things, and follows Ruby to the stage hand-in hand.

Once they’re in their outfits, there’s no turning back, but Kana has no intention of doing so. With Aqua’s help, she’s built up her stamina. With Ruby’s help, she’s washed away her painful memories and fears. Donning the armor of an invincible, indomitable, eternal idol, the center of the resurrected B Komachi, there’s nothing Arima Kana, Rookie Idol, cannot do. And even if there is, that’s okay.

If it’s wrong to be more invested in Kana’s whole deal than Aqua’ slow-burn revenge arc, I don’t want to be right! Han Megumi continues to knock it out of the park with her performance. She’s a prickly, pessimistic, often impossible young woman, but she’s also incredibly tough, talented, and sensitive. I just know she’s going to rock on that stage.

But I don’t want to sell Ruby short either: Igoma Yurie, herself a real-life rookie in the seiyu game, has shown incredible range when her character is given focus. It was super moving hearing her talk about her time as Sarina, and why it’s such a momentous thing to achieve what you’ve always longed for.

As for me, I don’t long for much: just a solid finale, and the prompt announcement of a second season’s air date!

Oshi no Ko – 09 – It’s Feeling Official

During her interview with Miyako to join B Komachi, MEM-cho reveals a little secret: she’s been flubbing her age to the public. She’s not really 18…she’s 25. Miyako is both enraged and impressed! But MEM-cho has a very good reason to fake her age.

Her original dream was to be an idol, and despite her being one of three kids to feed, her awesome single mom told her to pursue that dream. But her mom ended up in the hospital from overwork, and MEM’s window to enter the idol world closed.

By the standards of the idol industry, anything past 20 is not only ancient, but forbidden. MEM feels she’s being presumptuous to ask for a chance, but it’s Ruby who first offers her hand and tells MEM that age doesn’t matter. Kana, who was shitcanned at the tender age of 15 from her child actor agency (shudder), empathizes with MEM’s pain.

Ruby and Kana, two girls whose motivations and personalities couldn’t be more different, are the same in that they’re both warm, caring, and welcoming people, at least when it comes to MEM-cho. It’s enough to make MEM cry. It’s here where Aqua gets his first cold shoulder from Kana.

Back at school, Frill overhears Ruby and Minami talking about Love Now and joins in the conversation with gusto and dry frivolity that belies her public image. Both Ruby and Miami sit chastened and rebuked for judging a book by its stoic cover. For believing the lie when they knew it was one. But as Minami says, funny girls don’t often get work, since they’re viewed as rivals by male viewers.

Speaking of rivals, there are several dozen of them vying for the best view of Aqua reading in the courtyard. His turn in Love Now made him an instant celebrity at school—not that he’d engage with it in any way—but that only adds fuel to the already smouldering fire in Kana’s gut.

Back at Strawberry, the New B-Komachi gets off to a running start online thanks to MEM heavily promoting them to her hundreds of thousands of subscribers on Twitter and Instagram. As for the songs, Kana says Miyako is still speaking to her music people, so there’s nothing to do but sit tight.

Not so fast, says MEM, already taking the reigns. They have the entire B Komachi back catalogue to practice, since Strawberry owns and controls it. So the trio starts that practice, and Kana finds it increasingly hard to match Ruby and MEM’s energy. While sitting out in the hall alone, Kana begins to wonder why she wanted to be an idol in the first place.

That reason—Aqua, the one who asked her—appears with a cold bottle of water and a “good work.” But again Kana tells him to buzz off. Aqua tells her if she keeps it up, even he’ll get hurt by it. This sends Kana into a spiral of resentment and regret. Before she can say anything more to Aqua, he’s gone.

That night, Aqua meets with Kaburagi in a fancy austere restaurant where the sushi is $300. After giving his young friend every opportunity to back out before he hears too much, he gets into what he knows about Ai. We see an Ai neither Aqua nor his past self ever saw: an “country bumpkin” Ai who hadn’t a clue how to play the game.

But from the beginning, the stars were in her eyes. She didn’t have to develop them, she was born with them, just as Aqua and Ruby were. Kaburagi, an expert in reading people due to all of the bluffing done in his line of work, could tell when Ai started seeing someone. It’s when everything started clicking for her.

Ai got her start at a workshop at the Lala Lai theatre company, the same place Akane is from, though it wasn’t as big back then. Now it makes sense how she became a master of lies; like Akane, she was classically trained in acting. Kaburagi gives Aqua his next lead to follow, and in exchange, Aqua will be obligated to him. In an industry that is essentially nothing but obligations made, given, and exchanged.

In addition to life experience, MEM-cho also brings connections to the Love Now staff, one of whom got her and thus B Komachi an in at the famed Japan Idol Festival (JIF). Kana thinks it’s too early; they’re nowhere near the shape they need to be in to make a good impression.

Ruby thinks it will be fine—her optimism and hope has yet to be sapped from her—and she steers the conversation to who should be the group’s all-important center. Kana says it doesn’t matter, while Ruby and MEM get extremely competitive about it.

When they both wonder if perhaps Kana is the perfect center, Kana vociferously declines, then launches into a self-deprecating tirade so specific, Ruby asks if she’s okay. But in the finest joke in an episode full of them, Ruby rejects the notion Kana is a troublesome, cynical girl one moment, then calls her a troublesome cynical girl the next.

It should come as no surprise that neither Ruby nor MEM-cho are the strongest of singers, as judged by their subpar scores at their center-deciding karaoke competition. After going a few rowdy rounds, they browse for something calmer and quieter, and discover a treasure trove of Arima Kana tracks.

MEM-cho brings up a music video on her phone, and the two of them watch it. We the audience are drawn into the music video, and we see an whole new Arima Kana: One she played in front of the camera. It’s a gorgeous, classy presentation, and Han Megumi provides the beautiful vocals.

Ruby and MEM-cho are in awe. In the next karaoke booth, Kana puts up a 97 without breaking a sweat. Her character took an emotional beating this week, so I’m glad she could score some well-earned points at the end. Will she mend fences with Aqua, or come to grips with her feelings?

I really liked MEM-cho’s simple but poignant backstory, which seems like a classic case of obligated eldest child syndrome, but Kana remains my Best Girl in this series. I’m pulling for her all the way, even if I already know it’s the kind of show that’s more likely to pull the rug out from under me.

Oshi no Ko – 05 – My Love With a Star Begins Now

Ruby and Kana are like two cats who for whatever reason just don’t like each other. Yet Kana is Ruby’s best chance to become an idol ASAP, so Aqua agrees to help set up a meet. Kana’s preferred junk food comes in the form of positive online buzz. When she reads a comment that, like her, has all kinds of feelings about the creepy hot guy, she can’t help but blush,

Then she gets a text from that very guy, and it sounds like he wants to confess. Kana’s disappointment over it being a meeting for Ruby’s sake is overcome by her fascination with Ruby. Kana’s been around long enough to know when someone has “It” in the way Ai did, and Ruby has that same “It”. Remember that Kana has no idea Ruby and Aqua are Ai’s kids.

That promise she sees in Ruby, combined with Aqua reading her like an open book and picking the proper method to persuade her, results in Kana signing on the dotted line to become a Strawberry idol beside Ruby. With that settled, Kana at least looks forward to having more opportunities to see and work with Aqua. Then she asks Ruby what Aqua is up to.

Ruby pulls up the reality dating show bearing the title of this article, and features six gorgeous entertainers looking for love. The Aqua who appears and introduces himself bears no resemblance to the boy Ruby and Kana know, but as Miyako points out, he’s putting on the performance he needs to in order to make the show a success.

Ruby and Kana’s reactions to Aqua flirting with other pretty girls are fun, but Miyako snaps them out of their initial resentment and gets them to remember it’s all an act. But even if that’s the case, Kana is disheartened by the prospect of Aqua actually ending up in a relationship with one of those girls…even kissing her.

But as Miyako says, that comes with the territory. Aqua is doing this for vital intel on Ai’s male companions he can’t obtain by any other means, so he’s going to give it his absolute all. Even if the bubbly YouTuber Mem-Cho is a tremendous bore, he’s going to smile feign interest.

It’s when he ends up beside the pretty first-year model Sumi Yuki that a bit of small talk ends up becoming a conversation about the complicated love he’s “trying to get over”. Sumi is intrigued and digs deeper, eventually drawing in close to say they’ll just have to get him over that old love.

It’s just ambiguous enough whether Sumi is putting on a show for the cameras she only later reveals to Aqua (a rare case of not minding his surroundings brought on by her charm), or she’s being genuinely open and friendly. It’s probably a bit of both truth and lies, like so many real interactions! In any case, Aqua scoffs internally at her self-professed timidity.

Back home, Ruby tells Aqua she’ll be choosing the girl he should go out with, and ends up picking Sumi. What a coinky-dink! As for her nascent idol group, they don’t have any songs or even a name, but Miyako jump-starts their notoriety by having them collaborate with Strawberry Productions’ top earner: a muscle man in a chick mask named Pieyon who is super popular with the kids.

I shared Kana’s bewilderment with what young people are into these days and how that reflects on how warped society has become, but when Pieyon tells her how much he rakes in a year, she immediately apologizes for negging him. Pieyon offers pointers on quick ways to gain lots of subscribers, like having him pull a prank on them. But Ruby wants their very first gig to be bereft of lies.

While she’ll soon learn that always being honest in show business is literally impossible, she and Kana do a fine job keeping up with Pieyon’s hour-long workout dance. He was fully prepared to edit the video to make it seem like they danced for the full hour, but between Kana being a regular runner and Kana being full of youth and determination, there’s no need for movie magic.

Then the big moment comes when they get to remove their chick masks and reveal true faces and names. Ruby gives the camera the old Hoshino charm, while Kana is a little more self-conscious, which is actually fine: demonstrating different personalities will help them cast a wider net of fans, the first group of which will come from Pieyon’s followers.

When Pieyon asks what the name of their unit is, Kana leaves it to Ruby, who goes with the nostalgic choice of B-Komachi. That’s right, from these humble, goofy, swole beginnings, Ruby aims resurrect her mom’s legendary group, for which Strawberry retains the rights.

Oshi no Ko – 04 – Big in Little Circles

Unlike the lead of the TV drama, Aqua prepares diligently for his time in the spotlight, and while he admits he only has a fraction of Ai’s talent and charisma, he’ll still utilize any and all tools at his disposal to put on a good performance.

This includes sidling up to the lead and calling him ugly, which actually provokes him into a better performance. Aqua sets the stage for Kana to flip on the waterworks and perfectly perform the most important scene in the manga; the one that people couldn’t stop crying over.

The sleep-deprived mangaka who created the source material tells her assistants that she didn’t expect a perfect adaptation, as she’d been warned by other creators not to get her hopes up. The assistants almost feel bad for her continuing to watch the series to the end.

But then the final episode airs, and it makes the creator cry, and feel grateful that her work was adapted. At the afterparty, she makes sure to tell Arima that her performance carried the show to a strong ending. It doesn’t go viral, but everyone who stuck around praise the last episode online to everyone they can.

Arima also not-so-subtly asks Aqua if he has a girlfriend, then looks at him and makes a little interested noise. Unfortunately nothing more comes of that, as the producer of the show chats with Aqua about his interest in appearing in a reality dating show.

Aqua will be fine doing this, as in return the producer will feed him gossip on the people Ai hung out with. The DNA test ruled the producer out as Aqua and Ruby’s father, but now he’s a useful ally in his investigation. I just hope he can fit some dates with Kana in amongst all the sleuthing!

On their first day at Youtou High, Kana appoints herself their unofficial guide, and reminds them that while this is basically a normal high school, it’s overwhelmingly packed with entertainers who are used to the spotlight one form or another.

Despite having Ai’s genes and the resulting good looks, Ruby is nervous. I think part of that stems from how isolated she was in her previous life, but also because she’s not quite an idol yet. The first person she interacts with is Kotobuki Minami, who sports a thick Kansai accent that’s, as she says, “just, uh…a vibe?”

Minami is a well-endowed gravure model, but while Ruby was staring at her chest, she was admiring Ruby’s gorgeous face. Not long after agreeing to become friends, Ruby introduces Minami to Aqua and asks if he’s made any friends. He hasn’t, and he didn’t come here to make friends, but he also tells her she doesn’t have to worry about him being some kind of antisocial loner.

Another one of Ruby’s classmates arrives late because she was doing a live TV promo. That girl is none other than Shiranui Frill, who sports cat-like lemon-lime eyes and is a popular triple threat (singing, danging, acting) and Ruby’s current #1 Fave.

Aqua tells her to just approach her naturally as a classmate, not a fan, then he proceeds to do just that, and learns that not only has Frill seen him in Sweet Today, but she liked it. She also recognizes Minami from a magazine, then turns to Ruby … who has no answer when Frill asks “What is it you do?”

Later at the Strawberry office, Ruby begs Miyako to hurry up and make her an idol, but Miyako tells her it’s not a quick or simple process. She still needs to hire a scout, and is having trouble finding cute and motivated girls who are not already affiliated with other agencies.

That leads Aqua to recommend Kana, whom he knows to be freelance and in need of gigs … and has a cute face. I hasten to note that his recommending Kana has nothing to do with his big revenge plan. He’s just doing it out of fondness and respect for his charming, talented friend and colleague. Our starry-eyed boy may not be so cold and hopeless after all!

Oshi no Ko – 03 – Struggling Out Here

The moment Arima Kana saw Aqua, he should have known he’d be going down the path of acting, regardless of whether he’ll be studying it in school. She’s just so goddamn charismatic, and she also cares deeply about the art of acting, to the extent that she just wouldn’t allow someone with Aqua’s talent to sit on the sidelines.

Due to her celebrity, they can’t just meet up anywhere, so Aqua takes her to Taichi’s house, where she reunites with the director she worked with a decade ago and gets a home-cooked meal from that director’s mom. Kana tells him about an streaming TV drama she’s the lead in, an adaptation of a popular shoujo manga.

What ultimately gets Aqua to relent and agree to act in the drama as Kana desires is a name: Kaburagi Masaya. Aqua first learned that name when he unlocked Ai’s third and oldest cell phone, which took over four years and well over forty thousand attempts. Kaburagi was among the contacts on that phone, and this acting gig is an opportunity for him to investigate him.

When Ruby hears from Miyako that Aqua is going back into acting, she’s legitimately touched, since now both she and her brother are going to be an idol and an actor like their mother intended. But unlike Ruby, fulfilling his mom’s dream isn’t Aqua’s primary motivating factor. There’s also the matter of the show Kana is in and Aqua is about to appear in…kinda sucking?

The fact of the matter is, the tv drama is being produced as glorified promotional material for a number of attractive male models who are on the rise. Kana has herself wrapped up in a frikkin’ Zoolander joint! As really, really, ridiculously good-looking as her co-stars are, they suck at acting, and she’s holding back her true powers lest she make them look even worse.

That adaptability and pragmatism is why Kana is still in the business at all, as she admits she had an extended rough patch after her peak child actor years. She’s been in this industry long enough to know that good acting and making a good show are two different things. But she’s going to make the most of this opportunity, even if she has to do “lousy” acting.

When she was little, she flaunted her talent and was branded a difficult prima donna, and gigs gradually dried up. She was down, but she’s far from out. The hunger to perform and appear on camera and move people is still there, and having Aqua acting by her side again—lousily or not—means everything to her.

Having heard Kana’s genuinely heartfelt appeal, Aqua re-watches the show thus far and gains a greater appreciation for the aspects of the production that make the show look much better than it should considering the pitiful acting abilities of all the model bros. He also holds Kana in the highest regard when it comes to acting talent, to the point he’s actually pumped up about performing, even if his primary goal is to score some of Kaburagi’s DNA.

The day of his shoot arrives, and the male lead doesn’t even bother properly introducing himself, which Kana says is typical of young rising stars. We get a detailed primer on the usual shooting process for a show, and the accelerated and abridge version being done by this show on a shoestring budget and narrow schedule.

The bottom line is, now that Aqua is on set, he’s fully committed to putting in the maximum effort. That professionalism isn’t just a result of him being mentally much older than he really is, but Ai’s upbringing, and a desire not to cause any more trouble than Kana already has.

There’s a dark irony to the fact he’s portraying a stalker villain not too dissimilar to the man who murdered Ai, but he does his job when called upon, and in between shooting Kana tells him his acting feels like he put a lot of preparation into it. Like her, she can tell he’s put his ego aside and thrown himself into the story. Kana is energized from the realization that in this “world of darkness” there was someone other than her struggling.

She may not know the precise source of Aqua’s struggle, but is perceptive enough to sense that he is struggling. As their relationship progresses, it will be interesting to see if Aqua considers truly “letting her in”, even as he overhears the producer and director talking about how they couldn’t care less about acting and they only snagged Kana because she’s a dirt-cheap freelancer with a recognizable name and face.

Suffice it to say, I love Arima Kana to death. Han Megumi’s voice performance and Kana’s body language and expressions are phenomenal, and both her arc and her chemistry with Aqua are effortlessly compelling. While she’s not quite Hoshino Ai, in just one episode Kana has managed to vault herself near to the top of my very favorite characters of the spring.

Ore Monogatari!! – 22

YAY! It’s Suna and Yukika’s time to shine! It’s their turn for falling into love and floating around on a cloud like Takeo and Yamato! It’s time for Yukika to create a new PURAIMUTAIMU to replace the one from Kindergarten! They go to the zoo with the show’s lead couple, and both seem to enjoy themselves. We’re headed towards a foregone conclusion, right?!

Well…not so fast, there.

Yes, they do have a good time at the zoo; initially Yukika talk to Suna or even be too close to him without becoming paralyzed, but when the other couple encourages her to make some memories, she pipes up, gets them into an animal trivia competition, and singlehandedly wins it, but only because they were counted as a couple when Suna takes her hand. It all looks very fun and pleasant and awkward in all the ways first dates can be.

But the problem isn’t whether they had fun; it’s a matter of magnitude. Suna had a nice enough time; he didn’t not enjoy himself. But from Yukika’s perspective, it was categorically THE HAPPIEST DAY OF HER LIFE. It’s the same with how they feel about each other: Suna doesn’t dislike Yukika, but Suna is the love of Yukika’s life and has been for most of her conscious life.

She’s placed him on so high a pedestal that his comparative wishy-washiness actually ends up hurting her. Last week I entertained the possibility Suna actually liked Yukika, but she didn’t let him finish his sentence, but in the absense of further evidence, we have to conclude he doesn’t like her enough. As much as we may want it to work out, and for Suna to finally start dating a nice girl, it’s just not going to work.

Soon Yukika becomes unable to continue working towards something she can’t imagine ever working out, due to that magnitude problem, and resolves to cut herself off from not only Suna, but Takeo and Yamato, cold turkey. This is an obvious overreaction,but an understandable one considering where she’s coming from socially (there’s a reason she’s so good at zoo trivia; she spends much of her time reading). What I like is that Takeo and Yamato don’t try to force the issue or over-meddle, they just give Yukika the opportunity to reassess her next move.

In the end, she too thinks severing all ties with the three others would be too sad, and Suna meets with her to give her a gift for her ten years of chocolates, and they reach a kind of closure, agreeing to remain friends. I appreciate the show didn’t try to hard to force Suna into what in hindsight was a pretty long-shot relationship. Suna is, despite his forelorn appearance and lack of girlfriend, actually a pretty content fellow, and it would take a much more powerful romantic spark than the one Yukika was capable of mustering to convince him to leave that place of contentment and try something new.

And so it is with a sense of logical resignation we consign Yukika to Ore Monogatari!!’s roster of “Losers”, joining Saijou and Ai and underlining that sometimes even when conditions are right things don’t always work out as perfectly as they did for our lead couple.

Ore Monogatari!! – 21

For White Day, Takeo gives Yamato cookies he baked. You heard that right: gives her cookies he baked. And while he’s his own toughest critic on said cookies, the fact that they even exist bowls Yamato over; she declares them too precious to eat—and meaning it—but still takes a bite and is delighted with them. Finally, Takeo gets to experience what she’s been able to since they met: watch someone he loves enjoying something he made.

The Valentines/White Day proceedings were an effective and logical segue to the next arc, “Find Love For Suna.” Turns out there was no one to find; someone was watching him and circling him from afar all along, becoming a little bolder every year, especially after Valentines, and possibly borne out of the knowledge she’s running out of school years to follow Suna. This girl, Amami Yukika comes close enough that she enters Takeo’s keen “follower radar”, misjudging her as someone with malevolent intentions, then rescuing her letter from the river.

If any show can make a stalker girl sympathetic, it’s Ore Monogatari!!, as well as the talented voice of Kayano Ai, who gives Amami the right blend of delicate femininity and forthright determination. Judging from Suna’s photo album, Amami has literally been in the background of Suna and Takeo’s lives since kindergarten when she fell for him when him after he saved her from a thrown dodgeball. The trouble is, she hasn’t made any moves to get him to acknowledge her (all her Valentines letters were anonymous), so she hasn’t been acknowledged.

“Takeo Cupid” wants to help in any way he can, but he also realizes it’s Amami who will have to do the heavy lifting like, you know, talking to Suna. All she really needs is a push…or rather, several pushes, as she’s so overwhelmed by suddenly being in the foreground with Suna (rather than watching him from afar) it’s hard to breathe, let alone talk. Still, when he not only refers to her by name but the fact he’s known of her existence since kindergarten, she confesses her love to him right there in the street, with Takeo looking on. Then she runs.

This is where a second nudge by Takeo is needed. He brings her back to Suna (who almost seemed to be waiting for them), where she tells him she wants him to watch her and learn more about her before he gives her his response. I thought this was overly cautious on her part, since it wasn’t completely outside the realm of possibility he’d say “sure, let’s go out.” Suna isn’t opposed to going out with girls, just girls who talk shit about Takeo.

They exchange cell numbers, and an initial bond is formed, to my relief. But Amami needs a couple more nudges, as she finds it hard to break out of her usual routine of stalking-kinda-not-stalking. Takeo sends Suna off to walk her home, but she still can’t talk, so Takeo then brings in Yamato for a female perspective on the thing. She shares her experience having difficulty making moves toward a relationship, but as we’ve seen the benefits of making those moves have been more than worth the stress involved.

Ultimately, they determine the best way forward is for Amami, Suna, Takeo and Yamato to do a double date, in this case to the zoo, which Suna promptly agrees to. Takeo tells him he doesn’t have to, but Suna knows that, and wouldn’t say he’s going if he didn’t want to. That doesn’t mean he’s going to say straight-up “Yes, I want to go on a double date with Amami to see if it will work out because she seems like a genuinely good person and possibly a good match as well.”

Even if asked directly, he won’t answer that directly, but the seeming lack of enthusiasm can’t be taken as an actual lack of it. I imagine he’s just as interested to see where this goes as Takeo, Yamato…and me. Lord knows Suna has demonstrated throughout the show that he deserves a good woman, and not just because he’s good-looking.

Ore Monogatari!! – 20

In a show full of romantic firsts, it’s pretty amazing OreMono!! has kept the Valentine’s Day/Chocolate episode in its back pocket…where one would assume it would melt! But here it finally is, with only four more episodes to go, and I think holding out was a good move, what with Takeo and Rinko so well-established as a loving couple.

I like how once more Takeo’s secondary friends come to him looking for help by having a group Valentines Day with Yamato’s friends. Suna, ever the stalwart best mate, deflects them, saying they had their fun for Christmas (and one of them, Osamu, even ended up dating one of the girls).

Even better, while Takeo appreciates Suna standing up for his right to be alone with Yamato, the truth is he doesn’t mind making it a group thing at all, nor does Yamato, for they are always looking for ways to spread the love they already have in droves for each other. Suna calls him a “do-gooder”, but c’mon now…so is he.

Yamato is also eager to spread her wide knowledge of baking chocolate-making with her girlfriends (including Nanako, who wants to make something for Osamu) while working on a secret side-project specially for Takeo. It’s great to see both the boys looking so forward to getting chocolate while the girls look forward to giving it.

Valentine’s Day arrives, and we’re reminded how popular Suna is with the ladies when a small avalanche of chocolate pours out of his locker. Takeo asks a question on my mind as well—what does he do with it all—and he simply says he accepts it, gives reciprocating gifts on White Day to those who gave him their names…and that’s it. As much as Takeo may want his buddy to find love, no one has “clicked” for Suna the way Rinko clicked with him. That many of the girls who pursued Suna talked ill of Takeo behind his back surely contributed to that lack of clicking.

The after-school Valentine’s Day group date goes swimmingly, with the guys convincing the girls to distribute the chocolates they made as if they were giving them to guys they liked. Each successive group event has had the girls gravitating less towards Suna alone and more evenly to the other guys. In a perfect world, each girl would click with each boy like Rinko x Takeo and Nanako x Osamu, but for now they’re content to exchange contact info and hang out sometime even without Takeo or Rinko around. Progress!

But Takeo is confused—stunned, really—when Rinko suddenly says she’s in a hurry and scurries off. He’s so shocked he can’t quite walk in a straight line and mistakes a vending machine for his front door, because he expected to get chocolate from the girl he liked, for the first time…and didn’t.

Now, I was pretty sure, with so much time left, Rinko was “busy” getting Takeo’s chocolate. Then Takeo remembers two things: she actually did give him cookies at the cafe, and he simply neglected to savor them; and she spoke with great longing for fancy expensive chocolates.

Takeo then decides to make up for the fact he didn’t properly enjoy Yamato’s chocolate buy buying her the chocolate she said she wanted, a nice subversion of the whole “Girls give on Valentines/Guys give on White Day” system.

But on his way out—and thank GOD Rinko was a safe distance from the outward-swinging door, or she would have been launched off the balcony—she’s standing out there with the biggest, prettiest chocolate dessert she’s ever made for Takeo.

And while they don’t end up locking lips, Takeo does send one hell of an air kiss off his balcony to Rinko, who catches it with giddy elation.

So all in all, it’s a great Valentine’s for Takeo. The next day, he gets one more surprise (as do we!) when a very pleased-looking Mariya presents both him and Suna with obligation chocolate, a day after Valentines out of respect for Rinko. After she takes her leave Suna says she’s a good person, and that people who fall for Takeo—his sister, Rinko, Mariya—tend to be good people.

That gets Takeo thinking that a good person is what Suna needs, not just some fangirl who thinks it’s cool to talk shit about his friend. And as they shuffle off to class, someone who is potentially another one of those good people watches them go from around the corner…a silver-haired girl who must’ve given Suna chocolates. Could love finally be on the horizon for our boy Suna? I’d be down for that!

Ore Monogatari!! – 19

For most of the run of this tremendously touching and often uproariously funny show, Gouda Takeo has been portrayed as both a mensch (a person of honor and integrity) and an Übermensch (a goal for humanity to set for itself, given form). Yamato certainly sees him as a virtually flawless mate.

Yet when Yamato gets to sit with Takeo’s tough (and very pregnant) mom Yuriko, she—and we—get an entirely new perspective on Takeo. His mom still sees him as a little kid who will run out in the street and get killed if you don’t stop him. She’s also pretty confident Takeo is a wimp, in that he, like his father, worries about her too much.

Yuriko is basically handing her grown son on to another woman so she can care for him. She’s teaching Yamato a valuable lesson that she already intrinsically understands: Takeo is tough and strong about some things, but not definitely not everything. That’s where she comes in: just as his mom did, Yamato needs to protect him.

In Takeo’s cool dad’s flashback, we see that Yuriko has always been tough and selfless, putting herself in danger to spare others pain, a big part of being a mom. Those qualities made her future husband fall for her right then and there. Yuriko isn’t overestimating her abilities when she keeps a fellow pregnant woman from falling down steps, she’s acting reflexively.

Yet the rescue ends up hurting Yuriko, and when Takeo has to get her in a cab to go to the hospital, we see the weakness she still sees in her boy: he kinda falls apart. It’s thanks to Suna that things don’t get worse. Takeo may be great at saving strangers, but when it’s his mom, who he’s always seen as an invincible, indomitable force of nature, in trouble, his worry overwhelms him and prevents quick and rational decisions.

When we see Yamato during these trying times for Takeo, she’s never frowning or outwardly worried, but has her usual cheerful, glowing smile. She goes to Takeo’s and cooks dinner for him. She comforts him with a simple touch of his arm, like a magical girl. She takes care of him, in a preview for how things will be for the formal hand-off (i.e. marriage one day). Yamato may be much twee-er than Takeo’s mom, but she shows she’s just as tough and able to protect Takeo.

Witnessing these strong women around him inspires Takeo to pull himself together. When his mom gives the wheelchair meant for her to another mother going into labor, Takeo picks his mom up and carries her to the delivery room, surprising her. It’s a gesture that makes her realize he’s not a dumb little kid anymore; he has grown up a little, and he’ll keep growing up into a good man, a good big brother, and if all goes well with Yamato, a good husband and father as well. I’m sure as hell pullin’ for him!

Ore Monogatari!! – 18

Ore Monogatari!! isn’t one to stray too far from its main couple for too long, so it’s back to the Rinko x Takeo Show this week, and as expected, Nanako and Kurihara’s quick first kiss puts pressure on the two, if for no other reason than kissing is now on their minds. Takeo is content to wait until the “autumn of his third year” of high school, but Rinko wants it to happen sooner. A lot sooner. Like, New Year’s, which is the day after she asks Suna and Ai for advice. Which is also Takeo’s sixteenth birthday.

This is one of those episodes that brings up a certain fact about a couple—like, for instance, how they haven’t kissed yet, at least while both parties were awake—and thus commits to giving the audience some payoff. That is to say, if this episode had ended with no kiss, due to whatever circumstances (and early obstacles like Takeo’s prying mom or Takeo’s horde of childhood friends), that audience, i.e. me, would have been most displeased. I want mah damn kiss, yo.

So I was a bit tense about the couple’s day together—right up to the moment Rinko shifted over to where Takeo is sitting and planted a kiss on him while his eyes are closed for his birthday wish. HOWEVA, it seems like Takeo didn’t notice the kiss at all, which makes sense: he’s a bit dude with big lips; if you want to kiss him, you’ve got to go all out. So, would Rinko’s little closed-eyes peck be all we get this week, after Rinko promised Takeo she’d give him a birthday he “wouldn’t forget”?

I suspected not, since the episode still had a bit of time, and I seriously doubted it would cut away to Ai or Nanako x Kurihara at a time like this. Instead, as Takeo describes his birthday with Rinko in detail to Suna, his description of the “bug” that landed on his lips as he wished is the tidbit Suna needs to set him straight. Ashamed he didn’t recognize Rinko’s kiss for what it was (and remembering her body language throughout), Takeo goes to Rinko’s place to make things right.

And then, without too much fuss, the two kiss, for real, for a long time, in the snowy night. We got the payoff, thank God. Yes, Takeo is comically taller and bigger than Rinko, but that doesn’t matter in this moment, just as it’s never mattered throughout the show’s run. These are two hearts beating as one. They’ve shed their embarrassment and misunderstandings in the past, and they do so here as well, thus progressing to the next level in their relationship: the post-first-kiss period.

Next up: the second kiss! A couple’s work is never done.

Ore Monogatari!! – 17

With Takeo and Rinko’s relationship secure (as if there was going to be any doubt) after the Mariya Incursion, and Christmas approaching, Rinko asks Takeo if it would be okay to celebrate with her friends and his friends, and he’s find with it. After all, they’re on cloud nine, and they’re united in their desire to spread the love and happiness; paying it forward, if you will. And with one of each of their friends, Nanako and Kurihara, at the dating ten-yard line, they want to do everything they can to help.

They end up doing just that…and it’s just too much. Combined with their own usual lovey-dovey behavior towards each other, Rinko and Takeo carefully set everything up so Nanako and Kurihara are together, and it puts a lot of pressure on both of them. Kurihara deals with that pressure by doing a lot of nervous laughing and joking, while Nanako seems to coil up into a ball of irritation, not to mention confusion over Kurihara’s words and gestures and the meaning behind them.

She finally just leaves the karaoke booth, and as Rinko chases after her, a trio of roughs start bothering them. Kurihara does the practical thing: when he sees what happens, he runs off to get Takeo (who intimidated these same roughs in the cold open without even trying or, indeed, knowing they existed). But that makes Nanako even madder; why couldn’t he rescue her himself? She continues fleeing, and when Rinko tries to follow, she snaps at her that not everyone can be like her and Takeo.

It’s a bit harsh, but it’s also true, and Takeo and Rinko know it. They came together naturally without overt outside assistance (they both recall Suna simply sitting back and quietly supporting/rooting for them without getting too hands-on. Yet again, watching a secondary relationship in the making helps this couple grow.

Kurihara decides to be a man and make up for his misstep with the roughs by performing a feat of manliness: climbing the giant Christmas tree to the top to grab an ornament that, it is said, will help you get the person you like to go out with you. Obviously there’s no real power in the thing; it’s just a totem, but the gesture of getting it (as Takeo spots and ultimately catches Kurihara when he falls) and the feelings behind it are what move Nanako, who returns when Rinko tells her what Kurihara’s doing. The two have a very public mutual confession, to the delight of all around them, especially Takeo and Rinko. It happened, without them having to push too hard, or at all. They just had to let it.

The aftermath to this is fantastic, with Kurihara and Nanako starting to act totally differently, and just as lovey-dovey as Nanako poo-pooed before her own relationship bloomed. Indeed, the lovebirds were holding hands before they were a couple, and literally hours after they became one, already got their first kiss out of the way.

That gets Rinko feeling down, and all of a sudden the tables are turned as now it’s Nanako who will offer advice—but hopefully not do too much—to see to it Rinko gets her first kiss from Takeo. And just like that, we have a fun new couple different from the main one, whose portrait was very quickly and efficiently painted this week. The love is spreading. Soon no one will be safe.

Ore Monogatari!! – 16

—”I wonder if I can like someone again.”
—”I’m sure you can.”
—”When?”
—”Eventually.”
—”I’m sick of this! I want to now! But I can’t right now!”

That exchange between a fiercely honest, freshly-heartbroken Saijou Mariya and a savvy, supportive, tissue-providing Suna, says it all: Falling for someone who’s already firmly in love with someone else SUCKS. But it’s also a near-universal feeling we all have at some point in our lives. Even “Nature Is My Master” Takeo felt that way, when he thought Rinko liked Suna and not him.

As such, it’s a near-ubiquitous theme in romance anime. But rarely have I seen it so beautifully—and efficiently!—handled than these last two episodes. Saijou’s arc went by breathlessly quickly, yet still allowed us to get lost in it, in her head, and in all those swirling emotions people in her situation tend to have.

When she added “…as a person” to her confession to Takeo last week, I knew she actually liked him as a man, you knew she actually liked Takeo as a man, and after a couple periods of class, Suna knew she actually liked Takeo as a man. But Takeo? Forget it. In exchange for all his wonderful qualities, he’s an appallingly oblivious fellow, and that’s okay; I don’t need a perfect protagonist.

But more to the point, he simply trusts Saijou’s words as she spoke them, because he has no reason he knows of not to. He’s convinced he’s not popular with girls…and because neither Ai nor Saijou confessed their love, he has no reason to doubt that assessment of himself, either.

Similarly, Rinko trusts Saijou, and even decides to cultivate a kind of friendship with her, as they find it easy to talk to each other. Rinko is worried about other girls falling for Takeo, but not Saijou, because she said she likes him as a PERSON. That’s enough for Takeo, and it’s enough for Rinko, and neither will be hurt by Saijou continuing this charade indefinitely.

No, the person who will end up hurt is Saijou herself. When Suna approaches her, she expects to be castigated and comes clean to him: “Yes, I know I’m a cheat, and I’m lying about the extent of my feelings. So what?” She knows the answer: because she’ll never be happy with things like this. At the end of the day, she’s a good person, and isn’t going to try to break anyone up. To her surprise, Suna isn’t concerned with her actions thus far, but rather the emotional toll they’re having on her. He…he cares about her! AS A PERSON!!

Thanks to Suna, Saijou decides to nip things in the bud. The limbo she’s in is untenable; she has to be honest about her feelings, because Takeo and Rinko will never accuse her of being dishonest. The scene where she finds Takeo alone in the dark classroom, which then fills with gorgeous golden light, is as good a visual metaphor for a weight being lifted as one can ask for. It’s also mighty purty.

Takeo briefly sports an appropriately stunned look, followed by a quick and categorical rejection. But he’s not saying no because he already has a girlfriend; he’s saying it because he loves Rinko with all his heart, for any, all, and no reasons at all. He’s oblivious about a lot of things, but his heart never lets him doubt his love for Rinko for a minute.

Saijou tells Takeo she wasn’t lying when she said she liked him as a person too, and is able to withdraw with dignity, but once she hits the bench outside, the tears come hard and fast, so it’s good Suna’s there with two(!) boxes of Kleenex to help her through this trying but ultimately necessary time. She fell for the wrong person, but it will pass, and she’ll fall for someone else eventually. Hopefully Suna, AMIRITE!?!

As for Takeo, the sudden realization that there are girls besides Rinko who do like him, make him look upon his constant protestations to the contrary with contempt. All this time he was telling Rinko something he believed was true, but wasn’t. So as soon as Saijou is gone, he runs as fast as he can to Rinko to make everything sparkling clear: it doesn’t matter whether other girls like him or not (sorry Ai!); Rinko is the only girl for him.

As they walk home hand-in-hand, tears suddenly come to Rinko; tears of happiness, which finally spur Takeo to say “I love you” out loud. Woo! And she says the same. Saijou may have felt like a rival and a possible antagonist last week, but turned out to be neither, but something much, much better: a lifting of the misconception of Takeo’s popularity with girls, a catalyst for the deepening of his relationship with Rinko, and, as we see the next day, a new friend who still wants to call him “master.” Saijou Mariya was another revelation in a show positively stacked with ’em.

Now, start falling for Suna. Immediately.