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View Poll Results: Toradora! - Total Series Rating
Perfect 10 154 42.78%
9 out of 10 : Excellent 113 31.39%
8 out of 10 : Very Good 53 14.72%
7 out of 10 : Good 23 6.39%
6 out of 10 : Average 7 1.94%
5 out of 10 : Below Average 0 0%
4 out of 10 : Poor 1 0.28%
3 out of 10 : Bad 1 0.28%
2 out of 10 : Very Bad 1 0.28%
1 out of 10 : Painful 7 1.94%
Voters: 360. You may not vote on this poll

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Old 2009-05-20, 19:10   Link #141
hero147
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3 words....I loved it!
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Old 2009-05-20, 21:28   Link #142
Darknemo2000
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Keio View Post
Funny, I notice that there are more Ami supporters than Minori ones.
Yeah I noticed the same thing.

It is hard to tell how much there were actually true TaigaxRyuuji supporter and how much where just saying that it will end up this way so its no point for rooting for someone else though... But Ami was certainly a popular character, more popular than say Minori.
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Old 2009-05-20, 21:42   Link #143
Tyabann
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Darknemo2000 View Post
It is hard to tell how much there were actually true TaigaxRyuuji supporter and how much where just saying that it will end up this way so its no point for rooting for someone else though... But Ami was certainly a popular character, more popular than say Minori.
I was a TaigaxRyuuji supporter, Darknemo...
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Old 2009-05-20, 21:45   Link #144
yezhanquan
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Getting back to topic, I personally find Toradora one of the few LN-anime adaptations to do justice to the LNs themselves. Like Iriya no Sora, the anime series is a good summary, and it's an enjoyable ride to be in. 8/10, and comes with a "recommend" from me.
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Old 2009-05-21, 01:56   Link #145
Jiggy
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Short impressions:
Toradora's first thirteen episodes on their own would have been my favorite anime--simply delightful, loaded with twists that kept defying my expectations, and all the quirk and comedy I could ask for. I'd go 10/10 without hesitation for those. Beyond that point, Toradora headed for the serious realm and kept all of its wonderful characterizations but tossed out the element of surprise. Still incredible, but 10s are a little difficult to get out of me. The second half is more of a 9, so I voted 9/10 for the overall series.




Long impressions with examples:

I watched four episodes of Toradora one day--and completely shot my sleep schedule so that I could watch the other twenty-one the next. Needless to say, I loved it, but I loved the first thirteen episodes most by a wide margin and I think a lot of that has to do with the way Toradora kept surprising me. Before I go on, I admit that I don't watch much anime compared to what most people here probably do. I haven't even seen as many as sixty-five series and that's if I include standalone movies, so maybe surprising me isn't that difficult, or maybe I haven't watched enough for a decent basis of comparison... So, my apologies if any of this ends up sounding silly. Still, for what my limited experience tells me, these were my thoughts and how Toradora subverted them:

I expected Ami to go on with two-faced antics for fifteen episodes if not the entire series--instead, she turned around in two. I expected Taiga's self-consciousness about her body image to be the only conflict for that first swimming episode--instead, she couldn't swim. I expected the cosplay cafe idea to go through; it was tossed out two minutes later. I expected Taiga's father to work out; he was tossed out two episodes later.

I expected that Ami would beat Taiga in the swimming race and that Taiga would simply tag along with the group anyway (to make them both winners, basically), but I didn't predict ambush antics, leg cramps, or Ryuuji nearly drowning. I expected that the plan to scare Minori would fail, but I didn't predict she'd turn it around on them.

I expected Minori to be a typical weird girl with nothing much to her, and I expected to have no problem with that because I tend to love the weird girls and guys in anime. But Minori did have more to her character. She amazed me in episode three with her determination and clever phrasing in the old shed, and kept on delivering with wacky hijinx (e.g. cute girl radar), a phenomenal conversation about love in the context of ghosts, and many other character traits.

And episode 13's race was rapid-fire with the surprises. I expected that Ryuuji would cleanly make it to Taiga after something got in his way, but after he overcame various obstacles, Minori passed him by and I realized that was exactly what I wanted and started cheering for her. After that, I thought Minori and Ryuuji would be the only obstacles to each other near the end, but in came the track team. I thought Ryuuji would take them out, but instead Minori dealt with them and then in came another batch of four--so then I thought that since Minori took out the first two, Ryuuji would definitely take care of the rest to make him look like the hero. Nope, not so. Minori went back for a double round of heroism and finally I thought no way Ryuuji's going to accept this: it's been on his mind that Minori knew better for Taiga with her father situation than he did, so he'll hold back the last four and tell Minori to go on because she deserves it. No, expectations subverted again: he doesn't accept it, but they go to cross the finish line together.

If it isn't obvious, that was my favorite scene (and episode) for so, so many reasons.


The second half of Toradora stopped surprising me and I guess I was a little disappointed by the safer territory. I knew something was going to happen to Taiga's star the moment she mentioned it being precious. I knew Ryuuji would play Santa for her. I knew he wouldn't be able to give the hairpin to Minori. And again, most of all I knew that Ryuuji/Taiga was so set in stone that the drama was just a little lost on me. The two of them running away caught me off guard but not in a way that made logical sense to me (unlike Minori's great participation in the race) and so did Taiga leaving on her own, but that's basically it for the second half.

Also, with the way Taiga's character eventually played out, I ended up feeling like her progression was backwards. Near the end of episode 13, she was giving internal monologues that Ryuuji and Minori could stop worrying about her because she could stand up on her own, and she had proved it with her scene in the beauty contest. That was a strong Taiga who I liked. But as time went on I found myself stepping further and further in line with Ami's implications that Taiga was beneath Ryuuji.

If the theme was supposed to be that a dragon and tiger are an equal match for each other, then by the end I think Toradora missed the mark because it seems like she needs him--for moral support, for companionship, even for something as basic as food--but he only wants her. Reading over the other comments here, I guess the novels were better about this thanks to giving more of Ryuuji's inner thoughts, but of course I only watched the anime... And it seemed basically like Taiga had both physical and emotional attraction, while Ryuuji had physical attraction and a sense of wanting to take care of her, which isn't quite the same. Kind of one-sided.

And that disparity wasn't there halfway in (at the race), when she was asserting her independence--even if only in her mind. It wasn't there when she and Ryuuji were kicking a telephone pole together, which I found just inexplicably heartwarming--it painted a beautiful picture of what equal footing they were on. (That's another example of what I mean by surprise, now that I think of it. I honestly found that scene much more touching than the eventual kissing scene.) I'm not suggesting Taiga shouldn't have wound up so invested in Ryuuji, but that one way or another I think they should have appeared more equal in terms of dependence on one another to really fit the theme.

Still an excellent series, probably in the top four of what I've seen.
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Old 2009-05-21, 05:19   Link #146
CaptGloval
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@Jiggy

While I didn't actively make predictions or form expectations, I actually get the impression that ToraDora is predictable even in the first half, but I take that predictability as a good thing. That is, the characterization is logical and consistent enough that we could be "familiar" with the characters and sort of anticipate their reactions. I guess this could explain why the second half isn't that surprising anymore, because we have more or less known enough of the characters.

Having completed the series or perhaps on subsequent viewings, there might be surprises before that shouldn't really have been surprises at all. For instance the revelation in ep 7 that Taiga can't swim wouldn't all be that surprising given that in ep 3 she's shown to not know how to bike. And together these two little quirks about her could be considered clues to a deprived childhood which follows from the family problems we see later in the series.

As for the relationship dynamics between Taiga and Ryuuji, it should be noted that at the latter part of the series Taiga had been avoiding Ryuuji and wanted to show to him that she doesn't need it anymore. In some way she indeed has learned to fend off for herself when the visiting classmates commented how well kept her apartment was (and Ryuuji hadn't dropped by there lately). Also when you say Ryuuji merely wants to help Taiga, the question there is why does he want to help her? As the series was nearing the end, it was made clear that the reason isn't just out of pity or some vague altruism.
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Old 2009-05-21, 06:57   Link #147
roan
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jiggy View Post
Also, with the way Taiga's character eventually played out, I ended up feeling like her progression was backwards. Near the end of episode 13, she was giving internal monologues that Ryuuji and Minori could stop worrying about her because she could stand up on her own, and she had proved it with her scene in the beauty contest. That was a strong Taiga who I liked. But as time went on I found myself stepping further and further in line with Ami's implications that Taiga was beneath Ryuuji.

Nothing to do with total series rating, but I think you missed what that internal monologue was trying to convey. Well, not just you, but a lot of other people have, I noticed. Maybe the animators should have added dark music with that and cut out the part where she said Minori just to make it more obvious.

By "I can stand on my own, I can live by myself", she meant, "I can live without you Ryuuji"

Or better yet, "I don't need your pity". She really had been pretty happy when she saw Ryuuji running, but then Minori came along and the "I want to dance with you" bit that she'd probably been hoping for turned into a "We're both here to support you" kind of moment.

The impression I got from the beauty contest scene was somebody who could fend for herself, same with how she was acting a little after. She sneezed, she was down, but she wasn't that emotionally hurt (same old stuff for her after all), but that was until the part where Minori joined in and when Ryuuji stopped to grab her hand, and at that point, it looked like she was a kid with a broken leg who just got her feet kicked from under her but was still standing with a smile on her face to prove to the kids that were pretending to be grown-ups that she was just fine - from the original text at least. She sort of degressed up until the end of Christmas but that was partially a reaction to being given the role of the weak little kid by Minori at the race to rationalize her relationship with Ryuuji.

Presentation failure? Mmmm.

Last edited by roan; 2009-05-21 at 09:16.
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Old 2009-05-22, 01:40   Link #148
velvet nightmare
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Quote:
Originally Posted by frivolity View Post
Lots of people say that the whole mess could easily have been avoided if just one out of the main 5 characters had been honest and open with their feelings.

1. Kitamura: If his feelings for Sumire had been stated earlier, Taiga would know from Episode 1 that he was off-limits, and Sumire might have responded.

2. Minori: If she had admitted her growing feelings for Ryuuji, both of them would probably become a couple before the latter's relationship with Taiga progressed beyond friendship.

3. Taiga: If Taiga had been honest about her feelings when she realised her love for Ryuuji, there would be no hairclip-misunderstanding, no snow accident, etc.

4. Ryuuji: If he had taken the direct approach with Minori early in the series, or if he had revealed his new-found feelings for Taiga, a lot of things could have been avoided.

5. Ami: Less QQ, more pew pew. Danger avoided.

i agree with this 100%, i guess it couldn't be helped that they didnt have everyone open up their feelings or else there would be no series. but personally there were just too many 'face palm' moments to make this series truly a keeper



as other people have already mentioned, the first half of the series was absolutely great with setting up plot/characters etc. but as we got into the second half and the drama unfolded it was just too unbelievable for me. i could not come close to relating or even seeing those situations happening in real life at all
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Old 2009-05-22, 03:15   Link #149
Jiggy
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CaptGloval View Post
While I didn't actively make predictions or form expectations, I actually get the impression that ToraDora is predictable even in the first half, but I take that predictability as a good thing. That is, the characterization is logical and consistent enough that we could be "familiar" with the characters and sort of anticipate their reactions. I guess this could explain why the second half isn't that surprising anymore, because we have more or less known enough of the characters.
Yeah, the characters were definitely so well-expressed that I adjusted to them after a while, which is a good thing. I'm more concerned about the plot events, like having someone nearly die to bring somebody else's hidden feelings to the surface--that's a very, very common plot device, and I'm okay with seeing it once at the pool, but then again in the snowstorm? It's still a minor thing because I'm all about character-driven stories over plot-driven ones anyway, but I felt like a little drama was lost because the series had done it already (even if on a much smaller scale).


Something else I just thought up: my viewing might have changed a lot if I knew before watching that Toradora was a light novel adaptation, just because of the inherent differences between mediums. For example, I said that I was surprised Taiga couldn't swim... That's probably at least partially because I figured it would be some sort of fanservice-y fluff episode instead of raising any serious issue, but I doubt I would have expected that from a book adaptation where visuals aren't driving the experience and music can't aid the viewer. There's no way to be sure either way, but I really wonder how much the fact that I thought it was an original anime affected the entire series for me.


Quote:
Having completed the series or perhaps on subsequent viewings, there might be surprises before that shouldn't really have been surprises at all. For instance the revelation in ep 7 that Taiga can't swim wouldn't all be that surprising given that in ep 3 she's shown to not know how to bike. And together these two little quirks about her could be considered clues to a deprived childhood which follows from the family problems we see later in the series.
Actually, the fact that she couldn't bike led me to think she was just making things up... I basically thought she was trying to deflect attention from her body image by claiming to have some other worry, so she made up not being able to swim because she thought Ryuuji would believe it after seeing that she couldn't ride a bike. And since not being able to swim would have been a very serious thing if it was true, I thought that the fact that she didn't press the issue after he dismissed it was confirmation that it was a lie.

Maybe I seriously overthink things, though. I can't deny that.


Quote:
As for the relationship dynamics between Taiga and Ryuuji, it should be noted that at the latter part of the series Taiga had been avoiding Ryuuji and wanted to show to him that she doesn't need it anymore. In some way she indeed has learned to fend off for herself when the visiting classmates commented how well kept her apartment was (and Ryuuji hadn't dropped by there lately). Also when you say Ryuuji merely wants to help Taiga, the question there is why does he want to help her? As the series was nearing the end, it was made clear that the reason isn't just out of pity or some vague altruism.
Oh, I definitely didn't mean to imply Ryuuji doesn't love her. I just think that Taiga goes beyond even love and into need... Although yes, keeping up her apartment and especially sorting her trash correctly revealed a lot about her and I was glad they showed it. I think only one or two more things like that would have been enough for me to not say a word.




Quote:
Originally Posted by roan View Post
Nothing to do with total series rating, but I think you missed what that internal monologue was trying to convey. Well, not just you, but a lot of other people have, I noticed. Maybe the animators should have added dark music with that and cut out the part where she said Minori just to make it more obvious.

By "I can stand on my own, I can live by myself", she meant, "I can live without you Ryuuji"

Or better yet, "I don't need your pity". She really had been pretty happy when she saw Ryuuji running, but then Minori came along and the "I want to dance with you" bit that she'd probably been hoping for turned into a "We're both here to support you" kind of moment.
So it's not that she didn't need his love/friendship (my interpretation), but that in her mind she was just rejecting the need for pity (without commenting one way or the other on anything more)?
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Old 2009-06-15, 17:26   Link #150
Larthak
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Whoa, I kept delaying this anime for quite some time, fearing it would end up like any other of its kind. Finished watching it yesterday, still in a bit of a shock. Sorry for such a late review, just felt like sharing the thoughts.


As a high-school/slice-of-life anime genre predator, I found Toradora! to my liking already after a couple episodes. Got used to characters, their VAs as well (all hail Rie Kugimiya) and kept going on my 4-ep/week run.

At first, I didn't really believe this anime to be seriously romance-fueled at all, just a bit of a tease, like Hayate no Gotoku was. But the swimming pool episode said otherwise.

Until I reached the midway point, Toradora! felt like a typical comedy; a funny story with interesting characters, nicely contrasting with each other. Given my taste, I wouldn't have been disappointed if the whole series was like that. Though I know that's not enough for a lot of people.

Then, we turn the page and find ourselves in the midst of the school festival, with a prophet, hinting the inevitable change of mood for the rest of the series. Yeah, I'm talking about Taiga's father. Still, I thought everything will go back to a full-scale comedy after he was "dealt with". But then, the unavoidable became more and more obvious, returning again with the Christmas ep. At that moment, me feelings were kinda mixed about all the stuff happening.

Then it came down to the last two episodes. What can I say? I was immensely surprised by the production's boldness, seeing how far they went with it. The kiss scene? The very best of its kind, EVER. Emotions came off like I was a freakin' fountain. Then came the parting and a happy reunion a whole year later. Frankly, it took me some time to process all the stuff that happened, but it was a great ending nonetheless (though I would welcome a small OVA).

I'm sorry to admit my weakness, but this is where I become a mindless fanboy . But honestly, I have to admit, Ryuuji×Taiga are by far my most favorite couple I've ever seen in anime. Never before did I feel so sure about a fictional couple like that, how they actually fit each other so well. Even Clannad pales in comparison.
The above paragraph is highly subjective; therefore, if you don't agree with it... *looks at Clannad fans* ..., there's absolutely no need to reply, for I have no right to say which series is better and neither do you. It's just an opinion.

Long story short:
For me personally, this was the biggest surprise of 2009 so far. It was a very nice story with a lot happening on screen, constantly keeping me glued to my LCD with a lot of emotions felt in the process, making me both smile and watch with anxiety (can't wait to rewatch it someday). I'd hardly find a substitute for this for a long time, now that it's gone - 10/10.
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Old 2009-06-20, 07:29   Link #151
Shinichi_Uruhara
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Thumbs up

I finished watching Toradora! today....and the only thing that I can say is that...

...err...I was speechless, really...

It was definitely, an anime to watch...10/10 for me...Another one of those slice-of-life animes that really captured my attention...

...it is one of my recommended series now, with True Tears also on the list...(IMO, True Tears and Toradora both have great plots and twists without involving anything out-of-normal (magics,monsters,etc) events...)

... I was really looking forward for a second season (uh...if possible)...

From the start, I was really rooting for Minori X Ryuuji but as the show progressed, I thought that it was much better if Ryuuji and Taiga would come out as couples, and yes, it never let my expectations down (...though I really felt my heart flinch after seeing Minorin confess her feelings while running in the hall...and the part where she cried on Ami's house.......)

Haha..in the end, it was satisfying to see Minorin smiling again...I enjoyed watching her weirdness and at the same time, notice her vulnerability...and how she tries to hide it...(err...do I sound like a Minorin fanboy now? ~tee-hee~ )...

...hontou ni, hontou ni suuuteeekii da yo!!..
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Old 2009-06-20, 12:37   Link #152
Tyabann
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Shinichi_Uruhara View Post
Haha..in the end, it was satisfying to see Minorin smiling again...I enjoyed watching her weirdness and at the same time, notice her vulnerability...and how she tries to hide it...(err...do I sound like a Minorin fanboy now? ~tee-hee~ )...

...hontou ni, hontou ni suuuteeekii da yo!!..
Yeah, Minorin is awesome.

The problem is that she's ruined every other Yui Horie role for me forever.
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Old 2009-06-22, 06:15   Link #153
Shinichi_Uruhara
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@Kaisos

Yeah, haha...she sure did...

Anyway, she was a unique one, IMO...

A very perceptive person in spite of her weirdness...heheh...

I expected her to love Ryuuji, yes, but I never expected that she'd give up her feelings just for Taiga...

<*sigh*>

And yes, I never expected Horie Yui to play that role, hahaha...

A really nice love story...
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Old 2009-07-02, 12:19   Link #154
KitsuneNineTails
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9/10

Quite simply an amazing series, I thought. Touching, thoughtful, funny, and honest. There were no world shaking events. Nations weren't threatened, lives were never really on the line. But for these characters, the small drama WAS the world to them, like our small section of life is to all of us.

Character development was terrific. These characters were all very tenuous and timid about displaying their emotions, but they danced around their true feelings like teenagers often do. Watching Taiga and Ryuuji play out with each other was frustrating (in a good, edge-of-the-seat way), with an amazing payoff at the end (quite possibly the most clumsy, awkward, genuine, honest, and downright heartwarming kiss scene I've watched). The other characters were given very quirky, yet still believable personalities. Ami's mature insight trying to break out of the "silly, cute idol" exterior, and her hidden affection for her friends. Minorin's oddball fantasies hiding her true fears. Kitamura's natural leadership rebelling against his desire to make his unique self known.

I figured Taiga and Ryuuji had to end up together from the start. They just got along so well together straight off. The ability to be honest with each other, to tease, even to pick on the other, all came down to the ability for each of them to be themselves when together, and that's probably the most important thing. They saw each other's true selves, without the masks and walls they put up with the others. The class's show of support and friendship when Taiga left summed up the development of the show. Would they have done that in the beginning?

The music is some of my favorite. I love both OPs and both EDs, most of them with touching lyrics that match so well with the series (especially 'silky heart', which, though sung by Horie Yui, could equally apply to Minorin or Taiga).

The plot was standard romance fare with very few twists, but so well executed with tension and character device that it was refreshing and genuinely enjoyable at a very human level.

All in all, that's probably the best term to describe Toradora: genuinely human.

Ciao!
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Old 2009-07-14, 18:44   Link #155
Takasu
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The storyline really is touching and real. There are true emotions and the show was really fun. Anime but also human.

It is real because it can happen to real life provided that it is true love. Just watch it and you'll see.

It has nice musical score so you will really get hooked with the story.

i gave it a 10/10.
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Old 2009-07-21, 07:55   Link #156
Liddo-kun
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The ending was so emotional = 8/10.

Was not shipping for a Taiga x Ryuji ending, but I'm still satisfied on how things turned out at the end.
Another thing that Toradora has aside from a good story are the excellent music tracks, "Holy Night" effectively gave the Christmas episode a real Christmas feel to it.

Last edited by Liddo-kun; 2009-07-21 at 08:15.
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Old 2009-07-23, 12:42   Link #157
JiYoN
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10/10 FTW

I'm rating it on overall enjoyment here, and i definitely enjoyed it a lot...
aside from this, another strong point for this anime is the emotional involvement, i really felt very involved especially nearer to the end when i just couldn't stop watching once i reached 20+ episodes (i downloaded the entire series before i started thankfully)
as for everything else, it ranges from strong 8s to 10s in my opinion

the only downside i felt was that it had to end, lol... (at only 25 episodes too T.T)

however, i'm just in the mood for tsundere characters right now so my opinion of mine may change but i doubt that i'll let it go lower than a strong 9/10 even if i wasn't into tsundere characters right now.
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Old 2009-08-16, 21:37   Link #158
Olaguer
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10/10. Perfect.

Honestly when I first watched the anime, I thought it's another shitty one but I'm wrong, totally wrong. Like JiYoN said, the only downside is it had to end. I wish it will have more episodes.
Btw, what's a tsundere character?
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Old 2009-08-24, 10:27   Link #159
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Originally Posted by Olaguer View Post
10/10. Perfect.

Honestly when I first watched the anime, I thought it's another shitty one but I'm wrong, totally wrong. Like JiYoN said, the only downside is it had to end. I wish it will have more episodes.
Btw, what's a tsundere character?
That's actually a long story, but I'll try to type up a short explanation.

The tsunderekko is a female character with a tsuntsun side and a deredere side, hence "tsundere". Think of tsun as cold, cranky and dere as a softer side which usually makes the character seem more vulnerable, more shy and lovestruck.

Originally the tsundere was a character that went through a certain character development - "the defrosting ice queen". She was a character that started out being very cold towards everyone or possibly only the protagonist and ended up being much softer and much warmer, usually after having fallen in love with the protagonist and after having finally managed to come to terms with her own feelings.

Today the phrase refers to someone who is switching back and forth between her tsuntsun side and her deredere side. You can also split these characters up into two different groups depending on if their default state (the side most commonly shown) is tsuntsun or deredere. Type A or "Type Tsun" is way more common. In this category you'll find lots of famous tsunderekkos like Asuka from Neon Genesis Evangelion, Kaname from Full Metal Panic!, Kallen from Code Geass or Kyou from Clannad... just to name a few.

These characters are usually showing off their tsuntsun sides but certain "objects" (usually their love interests) manage to trigger their deredere sides. This usually comes with heavy blushing and stuff like that, as if they themselves are embarrassed by their own feelings. Most Type As generally deny their behavior. As soon as they regain their composure they often try to force themselves back into tsuntsun mode in order to "save face". These "modern" tsunderekkos usually go through character development that is very similar to that of the defrosting ice queen, but these girls seldom end up having suppressed their tsuntsun sides completely. It's much more common that a Type A transforms into something that resembles a Type B (as in "dere" being her default mood instead of "tsun"). Anyhow, it's not like the "current" definition has completely overwritten the old one but when one refers to someone as being "tsundere" he or she is most certainly getting at the fact this character is switching back and forth between tsun and dere due to her being triggered by "her object(s)". Kyoto Animation spent an entire Lucky Channel segment (from Lucky Star) talking about how tsundere used to be defining a certain character development but that it's now defining a character switching back and forth between these two states.

One problem with the modern view of the tsunderekko is that she is often badly handled by directors, producers and writers. The tsundere behavior is considered an effective moe-trigger these days, and a lot of shallow characters appear that simply "are tsundere" and they don't have much else that they bring to the table. These characters simply exist in order to be put into situations where their deredere sides are triggered, just so that they can blush like there's no tomorrow and light flames of moe in the chests of the viewers. I personally have no respect for these characters. Then again, there are lots of really well written/well handled tsunderekkos out there. My two favorite female characters (of all time) are Type A tsunderekkos.
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Old 2009-08-25, 22:43   Link #160
Olaguer
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Meatrose View Post
That's actually a long story, but I'll try to type up a short explanation.

The tsunderekko is a female character with a tsuntsun side and a deredere side, hence "tsundere". Think of tsun as cold, cranky and dere as a softer side which usually makes the character seem more vulnerable, more shy and lovestruck.

Originally the tsundere was a character that went through a certain character development - "the defrosting ice queen". She was a character that started out being very cold towards everyone or possibly only the protagonist and ended up being much softer and much warmer, usually after having fallen in love with the protagonist and after having finally managed to come to terms with her own feelings.

Today the phrase refers to someone who is switching back and forth between her tsuntsun side and her deredere side. You can also split these characters up into two different groups depending on if their default state (the side most commonly shown) is tsuntsun or deredere. Type A or "Type Tsun" is way more common. In this category you'll find lots of famous tsunderekkos like Asuka from Neon Genesis Evangelion, Kaname from Full Metal Panic!, Kallen from Code Geass or Kyou from Clannad... just to name a few.

These characters are usually showing off their tsuntsun sides but certain "objects" (usually their love interests) manage to trigger their deredere sides. This usually comes with heavy blushing and stuff like that, as if they themselves are embarrassed by their own feelings. Most Type As generally deny their behavior. As soon as they regain their composure they often try to force themselves back into tsuntsun mode in order to "save face". These "modern" tsunderekkos usually go through character development that is very similar to that of the defrosting ice queen, but these girls seldom end up having suppressed their tsuntsun sides completely. It's much more common that a Type A transforms into something that resembles a Type B (as in "dere" being her default mood instead of "tsun"). Anyhow, it's not like the "current" definition has completely overwritten the old one but when one refers to someone as being "tsundere" he or she is most certainly getting at the fact this character is switching back and forth between tsun and dere due to her being triggered by "her object(s)". Kyoto Animation spent an entire Lucky Channel segment (from Lucky Star) talking about how tsundere used to be defining a certain character development but that it's now defining a character switching back and forth between these two states.

One problem with the modern view of the tsunderekko is that she is often badly handled by directors, producers and writers. The tsundere behavior is considered an effective moe-trigger these days, and a lot of shallow characters appear that simply "are tsundere" and they don't have much else that they bring to the table. These characters simply exist in order to be put into situations where their deredere sides are triggered, just so that they can blush like there's no tomorrow and light flames of moe in the chests of the viewers. I personally have no respect for these characters. Then again, there are lots of really well written/well handled tsunderekkos out there. My two favorite female characters (of all time) are Type A tsunderekkos.
Very well said. Thank you, I learned much from it.
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