Chuunibyou Demo Koi ga Shitai! Ren - Episode 12 [END] Discussion / Poll

[novalysis]

Nothing happened. Rikka has hardly progressed in character, Romance revealing predictable insecurities that are barely resolved.

Did it really?

I get the sense that the Yuuta at the end of Season 2 is significantly more mature than Season 1. There's no longer the unbearable shame over his Chuunibyou, while there's a certain air of maturity that seems absent in the first season. This is the first time he felt jealousy, and out of jealousy, comes a better understanding of what it means to be considerate of the other side, in his relationship.

What about Nibutani, whose tendency to be the Bro of the group solidified and deepened? What about her road to finally rendering her Chuunibyou from a sense of shame, to something she moves towards embracing as another part of her identity? What about her attempts, clumsy as they might be, to promote Yuuta's relationship with Rikka, that produce growth? Or her evolution from a domineering tendency, to one of mentoring?

And that's before going to how well Satone was introduced in this anime built up, humanized, characterized, and how well executed her struggle with her love for Yuuta was carried out - even at the very end, even at the 12th episode, it's still clear that she holds a flame for Yuuta, but hides it - see how she pleads with Rikka at the final scene.

Perhaps, nothing has happened. Romance has progressed with a glacier pace. But, it's rather clear that it's going to happen as early as the second episode. Yuuta and Rikka seems to be a deliberately slow moving relationship, which is a quite interesting difference from many non-harem Rom-coms (though perhaps not Harems).

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Lord of Fire

One thing that bothered me about this show, and which I agree with Yuuta on is, why does everyone, and Shinka in particular, feel the need to tell them how to act as a couple? Why do people expect them to kiss and/or have sex on their first night out? And why does everyone have such a problem with Yuuta being the perfect gentleman, who has the patience of a saint towards his girl, who is (still) delusional to the max? I kinda like how he doesn't force himself on Rikka, and gives her the space she needs to sort things out on her own.

I think this is the problem. The anime narrative repeatedly draws attention to how slow-moving the Yuuta/Rikka relationship is by having Shinka et al repeatedly try to push it further ahead but to little or no avail.

The pacing of Yuuta/Rikka's relationship would probably not seem like an issue if the plot itself didn't keep drawing so much attention to it. For a point of comparison, the slowness of many of the other KyoAni romances never bothered me much (if at all) because they were narratives that largely lacked this constant push-and-pull within the relationship.

If Yuuta is truly happy with the current state of his relationship with Rikka, then there's no real need for him to push it into a more physical direction right away.

That being said, Rikka has sort of crossed a line for me. In my view, she's gone beyond a natural shyness or bashfulness over the thought of physical intimacy. To be blunt, Rikka strikes me as downright fearful of physical intimacy, of sex. In other words, I think she may have an actual phobia here. And if so, that's a serious issue that will ultimately need to be addressed.


I might have more to write later, but I'll leave it at this for now.

[Lord of Fire]

Originally Posted by Triple_R

That being said, Rikka has sort of crossed a line for me. In my view, she's gone beyond a natural shyness or bashfulness over the thought of physical intimacy. To be blunt, Rikka strikes me as downright fearful of physical intimacy, of sex. In other words, I think she may have an actual phobia here. And if so, that's a serious issue that will ultimately need to be addressed.

To be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if she does. She practically cried right before he kissed her.which I think is probably a big sign that something's not right in her head, which may yet be another reason why she won't shake off her delusions and grow up. If so, then this is something Yuuta can't handle on his own.

Also, how much did Rikka really want to kiss him? Just like how Nibutani and co. were pressuring him to take his relationship to the next level, Rikka might have been pressured into doing something she didn't really want. IOW, she did it because she believed it would make them happy, not because it would make her (and Yuuta) happy.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Lord of Fire

Also, how much did Rikka really want to kiss him? Just like how Nibutani and co. were pressuring him to take his relationship to the next level, Rikka might have been pressured into doing something she didn't really want. IOW, she did it because she believed it would make them happy, not because it would make her (and Yuuta) happy.

Yeah, I agree. I think both Rikka and Yuuta are more or less comfortable at where they're at.

In some ways they are a very fitting pair. Yuuta strikes me as having slightly lower than average sex drive - That's not to say he doesn't have any sex drive, but rather that he has more control over it than I think most guys his age do, and having sex is clearly not a high priority for him.

At the same time, Rikka may well be downright fearful of sex.


A lot of guys would not have the patience necessary to go this long in a romantic relationship without sex, or even anything remotely approaching it. But for Yuuta, it's no big deal. He genuinely seems content with the way things are, at least for now and the foreseeable future.

And I get the vibe that Yuuta likes feeling in control of his relationships with others, and of taking "the lead" in his romances in particular. He'll almost surely always have that with Rikka.

So while an unusual couple, perhaps they're also a very fitting and complimentary one really.

[SuitUp]

As I said before, the problem it's not the continental drift slow pace of their relationship, it's Rikka herself; you two just made a very good point of her possibly having a sex phobia, but I think that's not the main problem, the main problem would be Rikka's delusions being a actual psychological condition, to the point we don't know/aren't being showed anything besides her delusions, she at least appears to have no personality/thoughts besides those related to her delusions, she approaches every little thing in her life with her chuuni, unlike the other chuuni in the show, and that's where the whole Rikka dislike (including mine, especially mine) steams from.

[Klashikari]

^ I disagree based on the fact that Rikka was genuinely jealous of Satone, despite Yuuta was crystal clear about the two of them.

Simply put, if Rikka was solely on her chuuni delusions, she wouldn't care much about what "Sophia" could represent as a menace, due to the nature of her "contract" with Yuuta.
Instead, Rikka was shown extremely insecure about that. Not because she doesn't trust Yuuta, but rather she doesn't know how to handle love at all, quite a bother as Shinka already stated several times.
That's also why Rikka couldn't do anything but follow that subplot which are the 3 medals from Dark Flame Master.

While Rikka's delusions were shoved quite persitenly during this season, they are used as a metaphor for her uneasiness in her growth and perception of her romance relationship with Yuuta.

[Gohan78]

My big problem with Rikka is that she never turns off her chuunibyou. While Yuuta makes an effort to play the DFM to entertain her from time to time, Rikka never once tried to be serious with him.

I understand that the end of Season 1 established that being chuuni is ok (in moderation!) and that Rikka without her chuuni is dull and depressed, but I expected that once in a while she would come out of her delusions. It's a pain to always have to decipher her chuuni speech. This makes me feel that the relationship is unbalanced, with Yuuta being more of a tutor for Rikka than a boyfriend.

[Triple_R]

At a meta level, my sense is that the writer(s) behind Chuunibyou simply haven't thought up a way to write non-chuuni!Rikka that doesn't leave her seeming dull and depressed.

In other words, they haven't crafted an interesting or endearing core personality for her that's independent of chuunibyou.

If you look at Yuuta, Shinka, and even Dekomori to a degree, they all have "normal mode" personalities that come across well. And as for Satone, she never takes the mask completely off, but she sort of thins the mask sometimes, making it clear that there is a fun and likable "normal mode" core personality beneath it all.

[SeanJD]

I know many are probably disappointed about the ending but I think I enjoyed watching season 2 even though there were some major developments that could have been fleshed out. I almost wanted Yuuta to kiss Rikka but some things don't happen the way people want them to. I feel so bad for Isshiki and his partner which he thought was a girl but that was so weird on some many levels. I would agree with those that Shichimiya was put out of the background in supporting Rikka despite the way she felt about Yuuta and their past life together. Overall, S1 was more emotional to me than S2 but I think this season did at least shed some light on some of the characters, especially Nibutani trying to accept her dark past being Mori Summer though she probably still regrets it by now. Anyway, I found it very hilarious in some episodes while some did feel like fillers which is present in any anime nowadays.

[Itlandm]

It is easy to underestimate the realism in a show where main characters regularly roleplay magical superheroes (complete with visual effects in their heads). But there is actually a lot of realism in this series. One event that changed everything was Yuuta and Rikka cohabiting, however accidental it was. This is widely seen as establishing a marriage-like relationship, which means sex, and it is painfully obvious that neither Yuuta nor Rikka really intended it that way. They are still high schoolers, and don't be fooled by the official 14 year age of consent. High school couples living together wouldn't even be normal here in Scandinavia, and Japanese children develop more slowly than ours. Not to mention that Rikka is clearly developing more slowly than other girls her age, both physically and not least psychologically. So we have a very real conflict between the accidental projection of a mature romantic relationship, and the reality of two nervous teens, one of them still halfway a child.

That said, the "final" episode only really makes sense if KyoAni are absolutely certain of a third season. I guess that is good news for us who enjoy a family-friendly show with slice-of-life fun, endearing characters and gorgeous action scenes with no actual casualties. Here's hoping we will see our more or less deluded friends again in a year or two!

[Primary Consult]

I find it humorous that Chimera is the one who got the most action this season... followed by Isshiki

Originally Posted by Itlandm

That said, the "final" episode only really makes sense if KyoAni are absolutely certain of a third season. I guess that is good news for us who enjoy a family-friendly show with slice-of-life fun, endearing characters and gorgeous action scenes with no actual casualties. Here's hoping we will see our more or less deluded friends again in a year or two!

They could be banking on wrapping things up with an OVA. Or, like FMP and Haruhi, they might not care about not wrapping it up...

Either way, another season of c2byou would be nice...

[KeiichiTaiga]

Wow, this episode actually made a big hole that needs answers. I dont think this would have been the best way to end it unless they guaranteed a next season.

[teja208]

The ending wasn't the high note end I was hoping for, but nevertheless, it remain consistent with how Yuuta and Rikka were written prior to this episode. So while I don't feel like this episode fits what should be considered the final episode of the season, it does makes sense judging from YuutaxRikka dynamics. Although, I dislike how anime writer rely too much on cliche like having phone interruption when about to kiss. I mean, who cares about the cats anyway.

And so it appears that Sophia saying her farewell at the end of last episode is really a false alarm after all. I thought something would happen to her this episode. Actually does this mean the anime storyline diverge from the novel even further or not I wonder? Let's see if Kyoani is planning to go for a 3rd season with the upcoming new novel.

All in all, it's a weak but understandable ending. 7/10 for this final episode.

[Marcus H.]

I think I understand it all, why this season did not end in a kiss. It's not actually the important thing in the series. The fact that Rikka actively worked for the development of her relationship with Yuuta was probably a big step for the two, and it was echoed by her exchange of kisses on the cheek.

All in all, the second season was quite a refreshing take on the romantic comedy story. The development was slow and steady, quite realistic for high schoolers to have, and there wasn't too much drama involved. Satone did end up looking like a tragic character, but seeing her give everything to Rikka was a commendable deed considering her own circumstances. Shinka also shone as another supporter to the main pair and eventually got over suppressing Mori Summer from everyone. It's just too bad that Isshiki ended up being the butt monkey throughout the season.

Honestly, I don't know if Chuunibyou would be fortunate enough to get a third season, since KyoAni's not really a studio that gives their franchises (even the bestseller K-ON!) more than two seasons. Personally, it would be great if it does, since the glacial pace of their love affair will definitely leave some fans wanting for more.

For now, series #194 GET.

[The Green One]

This may come as a shock, but a couple does not have to swap spit to progress in a relationship. It has been known to happen other ways.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by The Green One

This may come as a shock, but a couple does not have to swap spit to progress in a relationship. It has been known to happen other ways.

I don't think it's fair to fault people for wanting to see a kiss, though.

We're talking about the main romance in the 2nd season of an anime show, with the romance having been established in the mid-to-late stages of Season 1. And romance is a big part of the show.

It's only natural that people would like to see a kiss. And coming very close to such a kiss before pulling the old horrible "interrupted by a phone-call/door-bell" cliche... I mean, that's the ultimate romance troll/tease.

And what harm would there be if they did kiss? Honestly, I think KyoAni made the wrong call here, at least if there isn't a third season.

[Frontier]

I can understand people wanting to see a real kiss between them, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to see one myself, but I think in the context of what the show is trying to say about Yuuta and Rikka's relationship it works. They genuinely love each other, and they shouldn't try and rush things to match the expectations of their friends and peers, rather they should move at their own pace and act as they feel they should in the relationship.

Their relationship as a couple is already unconventional to begin with, especially with the influence of Chuunibyou, so I think it's understandable that Yuuta and Rikka would be fine with not forcing things in their relationship and letting it be what it is. It may move at a glacial pace, but it is progressing, and that's enough for them.

And honestly? That exchange of cheek kisses was enough for me

[Birdway]

Is kiss on the cheek that bad?

[iSuckAtWriting]

On the other hand, Sanae and Shinka smacked lips and that's all that matters.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Frontier

I can understand people wanting to see a real kiss between them, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to see one myself, but I think in the context of what the show is trying to say about Yuuta and Rikka's relationship it works.

This is entertainment we're talking about here. The question shouldn't just be "does this work?" The question should also be "Is this the best approach to take for telling a good story and entertaining the fans/viewers?"

And I think the answer to that is no, it's not. Showing a real kiss would have been an excellent way to reward the fans and viewers that have stuck with this show for two full seasons. It would have been a sweet cathartic moment with great buildup. Instead, KyoAni decided to troll/tease the viewers. They made a clear creative choice there, and they could have easily made a different choice. There's nothing wrong with saying "I disagree with this creative choice, and I would have preferred a different one". Just because someone is a fan of a show doesn't mean s/he has to support every creative choice that show makes.

Originally Posted by Birdway

Is kiss on the cheek that bad?

It's not as good as the alternative, and there's no real reason why we couldn't have been given the alternative (i.e. a real kiss).