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Romance
Hanover Fist:
Sukitte Ii na yo
<Say "I Love You">
Drama, Romance - MyAnimeList overview
Torrents: [Commie] 720p BD, [IB] 720p TV, [HorribleSubs] 480p TV
XDCC: Search for "sukkitte" on Ginpachi-sensei for [IB] 720p packs.
The basics of this show have certainly been done before: Popular and cute boy falls for the shy, socially awkward girl. Jealousy arises among the fangirls, bullying starts. Kimi no Todoke comes to mind. However, in Sukitte Ii na yo the story actually moves and it does so a lot faster: A relationship is sparked in the first episode and they’re going out soon after. There’s no waiting two seasons for things to progress here.
There is depth and real feeling in this show. The relationships build and change at a believable pace, whether they are romances or friendships. A lot of this comes from the main character Mei. She starts isolated and alone, but she is no shrinking violet. There is a core of strength within her and she really can take care of herself and others. You see it when she’s helps and defends her new friends. She steps out of her shy comfort zone for the first time in years. She does it because it's the right thing to do, even if it's scary and painful.
The cast explore ordinary but strong experiences: Overcoming years of isolation; overcoming one’s fears and moving onward; trying to be accepted by the others - even to the point of harming oneself; the meaning of real friendship and dealing with fake friends; handling the envy of others and dealing with fake friendships. These themes and more are explored and overcome with real growth and change in everyone. I was drawn along impatiently week to week because I wanted to see what would happen next. At least you’ll be able to marathon it. ;)
On the romance side of things, the characters show each other what love really means in how their relationships develop. They learn how to dedicate themselves to each other and still have their own lives. Overall it is a cute and sweet show that moves at a believable pace, with characters you care about. It’s not excessively sappy and worth a try, even if romance shows aren’t your standard fare.
Pictures
Screencaps courtesy of RandomC as usual.
(click to show/hide)Aside from her mother, Mei has lived alone in isolation for years.
She's never had a boyfriend and doesn't have any friends either.
The popular Yamato puts up with his friend Kenji's fixation on Asamicchi's boobs.
Kenji fools around, peeping up skirts, and goes a little too far.
Mei is enraged,
but roundhouse kicks the wrong guy.
Yamato becomes curious and interested in Mei,
even though she can barely talk to him, she still feels guilty about his injury.
She gives him band-aids and he gives her his cell phone number.
A creepy guy watches Mei at work,
... and follows her on the way home.
Her mom can't answer at work and Mei calls the only other number she has.
Yamato runs to her rescue,
and chases off the stalker by kissing Mei ...
... to Mei's complete shock.
Mei wants to learn more about Yamato, and a friendship is sparked.
Bitchy girls call Asami a slut because of her big boobs.
Mei tells them off, hesitantly, but defiantly.
It hurts, but it was the right thing to do.
Near the end of their first date.
Kuroneko:
Clannad / After Story
Comedy, Drama, Romance, Slice of Life
Clannad - MAL - Torrents & XDCC: [Doki] BD batch postClannad After Story - MAL - Torrents & XDCC: [Doki] BD batch post
Clannad
Clannad After Story
(click to show/hide)
Tomoya Okazaki is a high school delinquent resentful of life. His family consists of a distant and alcoholic father. One day, on the way to school, he meets an odd girl named Nagisa Furukawa who catches his attention. The two slowly become friends and Tomoya learns more about Nagisa's past. Claiming nothing better to do, Tomoya helps Nagisa with her dream of reviving the drama club. As time goes by, Tomoya finds his life shifting in a new direction. As he tries to help the girls of the drama club overcome their problems, he realizes life is better than he thought.
After Story continues Tomoya's story through his last semester of high school and onward.
Clannad is a staple of Doki. If you're here, it's just a given that you need to watch this if you haven't already.
Pictures
Screencaps from RandomCuriosity.
(click to show/hide)
Hanover Fist:
Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun
<My Little Monster>
Comedy, Romance, Slice of Life - MyAnimeList overview
Torrents: [FFF] 720p, [Commie] 720p, [HorribleSubs] 480p
XDCC: [FFF] 720p on the Ginpachi-Sensei packlist, search for tonari.
I think this is an excellent and hilarious show and I’m hoping for a second season. While Tonari starts off using all of the usual rom-com elements, it takes a much different path than the average show. I condensed and paraphrased the following from Zanibas’ final impressions on Random Curiosity:
Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun has many ups and downs. It challenges how we view the characters with a rare perspective on relationship growth. Each character has flaws and potentially unlikable aspects. Their relationships follow a rough road that adolescence often goes through, while also providing the character growth needed to follow that road to its end. There is no quick resolution, no problems neatly split into convenient arcs. It doesn’t build up to some pre-destined climax. Instead, a different side of the relationship story is shown, the long error-prone part of the social dynamic. It brings out frustrations, stupid mistakes, and sometimes downright irrationality. All the while it softens the tension (for the audience) with comedic humor.
A defining factor of this show is how blunt everyone can be to each other: Haru has no social restrictions at all. Shizuku tells it as she sees it. Natsume speaks out for her friends, and Sasayan speaks up when the time comes. The characters usually speak plainly to one another without any hesitant mumbo jumbo. Ideally, this would lead to flawless communication, but that doesn’t happen here. Each character, in their own way, gives out only partial truths with important information conveniently left out. This creates many of the conflicts within the show. People can sense conflict within each other, but are fooled by the plain speech, unable to read behind those seemingly clear words.
One fault in many romances is when a female character starts off strong and then becomes weak in situations when the male protagonist saves them. The female becomes lovey-dovey and never recovers, creating a “damsel in distress” scenario. Mitty mostly avoids this, finding a balance between her feelings for Haru without becoming powerless. Haru may be a genius without effort, but Mitty constantly works to improve her grades. While Haru may steal Mitty’s heart, she doesn’t give up easily, calling bullshit when needed. She may not make the best decisions, but she does things that make sense to her, maintaining her individuality. One does not need to give up their individuality to give themselves up to another person.
All of this gives us a show that stands out among the rest, that doesn’t make things easy. We get angry and annoyed at a character’s inability to do SOMETHING, but perhaps that is the point it’s trying to hit home. Life isn’t easy and real relationships take work.
Pictures
Screencaps courtesy of RandomC as usual.
(click to show/hide)Mizutani Shizuku values grades over any social life and is always studying.
Her teacher bribes Mitty to deliver handouts to the delinquent that never attends class.
Shizuku meets Haru and passes on the teacher's request that he come back to class.
Paranoia: Could Shizuku be a spy for the teacher?
And yet, this is the most social life Haru has had for a while.
In fact, he wants to be more than just friends ...
... and returns to class.
Shizuku ponders just what she's feeling,
but it's not all bad.
Classmate Natsume begs for help studying ...
... but it doesn't help much.
Mitty's class life is getting stranger and stranger.
It's uncertain whether Yamaken is actually interested in Shizuku,
but it pisses Haru off anyway.
Mitty and Haru's relationship remains a strange one.
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