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[Last Sinner]

Originally Posted by Frontier

I don't think this really needs an "edge," I think some of the characters have genuine hangups and emotional issues but it's not exaggerated or debilitating which makes it feel fairly natural in my opinion.

It felt quite exaggerated to me. A certain amount would be believable, but things get to the point it's psychological torture. Cutting the protagonist down a bit, sure - the gap between her social skills and her studies is huge and needs to adjust - but to couple that with overcoming it over the top reaction/drawn out dramatic scene every time really burnt out any zest I had for this.

Originally Posted by serenade_beta

I don't really think there are any slice-of-life, school life romance anime that are edgey?
Maybe you are talking about how it doesn't have a gimmick, like
Tenkousei Guigui -> Protagonist's eyes look weird and guy is incredibly dense
Insomnia -> Name says it all
?

I was referring to what makes this one stand out from the pack.
Overcoming social awkwardness can be endearing but it is not remotely unique and needs something to make it appeal. And the only thing that reached out after several episodes was schadenfreude. Nothing that stood out with the secondary cast. Nothing standout with the visuals or music. No origin of (or a hint of) why the protagonist is this way (aside from place/routine being disrupted). Overcoming a schadenfreude author is the only motivation I see and that is not remotely a good enough reason. It's almost like a fetish the way it's dished out and downright uncomfortable.

[Frontier]

Originally Posted by Last Sinner

It felt quite exaggerated to me. A certain amount would be believable, but things get to the point it's psychological torture. Cutting the protagonist down a bit, sure - the gap between her social skills and her studies is huge and needs to adjust - but to couple that with overcoming it over the top reaction/drawn out dramatic scene every time really burnt out any zest I had for this.

I was referring to what makes this one stand out from the pack.
Overcoming social awkwardness can be endearing but it is not remotely unique and needs something to make it appeal. And the only thing that reached out after several episodes was schadenfreude. Nothing that stood out with the secondary cast. Nothing standout with the visuals or music. No origin of (or a hint of) why the protagonist is this way (aside from place/routine being disrupted). Overcoming a schadenfreude author is the only motivation I see and that is not remotely a good enough reason. It's almost like a fetish the way it's dished out and downright uncomfortable.

Honestly it feels more natural and subdued compared to other shows in my opinion...though to each their own .

[Last Sinner]

Originally Posted by Frontier

Honestly it feels more natural and subdued compared to other shows in my opinion...though to each their own .

Indeed, respect your stance. Having lived through a similar mentality in my teens, I can relate to a point but I can't take the stance of every minor success as a victory. It dulls the meaning and would cheapen the big ones for me - which were rare in those years. For a comparative point, I consider the journeys of Sawako in Kimi ni Todoke and Mei in Say I love you as the most believable for me. In terms of ambitious female learning to mix in the social aspect for the better long-term, Yukino from Kare Kano (manga only) would be the character I valued most.

I would suggest this title to other people, though. The overall mix is not my thing, but I can still respect it to a point.

[serenade_beta]

Originally Posted by Last Sinner

I was referring to what makes this one stand out from the pack.
Overcoming social awkwardness can be endearing but it is not remotely unique and needs something to make it appeal. And the only thing that reached out after several episodes was schadenfreude. Nothing that stood out with the secondary cast. Nothing standout with the visuals or music. No origin of (or a hint of) why the protagonist is this way (aside from place/routine being disrupted). Overcoming a schadenfreude author is the only motivation I see and that is not remotely a good enough reason. It's almost like a fetish the way it's dished out and downright uncomfortable.

From the compliments I've seen of the anime, I actually think the visuals and music have done a good job at giving the anime a good heartwarming atmosphere. It never gets too dark, the characters aren't too evil or overexaggerated, and I can't really see what misfortune you have seen in this anime for this "schadenfreude"
So what stands out?
The OP
The heartwarming atmosphere
The character designs
The protagonist's voice
The story being down-to-earth and we don't have exaggerated stuff like a protagonist that can't be seen or pretty much any heroine in a "something something-san anime"

No origin of (or a hint of) why the protagonist is this way

When was the last time you saw that in a daily-life anime? It's like if you asked yourself why you are yourself

[Frontier]

The way Nao-chan dresses, I'm not surprised she's a stylist, which makes her the perfect choice to coordinate Mitsumi's look for her zoo date with Shima! Not that she's all that invested once she realizes what Mitsumi was dressing up for...though I have to admit, the Panda shirt was very Mitsumi .

I did not expect the Mika and Nao-chan pairing, but it worked surprisingly well as they spied on Mitsumi and Shima's zoo date and watched the two have a pretty fun time together while Mika is still ruminating and reflecting on herself and her own feelings and the conflict between her feelings for Shima and friendship with Mitsumi. But Nao-chan gained a liking and affinity for her, which was nice. Also that shift from "uncle" to "aunt" mode was pretty cool .

Shima as considerate of Mitsumi as always! Hopefully this is just the first of many zoo dates !

Shima has a little brother? Seems like he feels kind of disconnected from him though. Actually, I'm wondering if Shima is even living with his biological family the way Mukai talking about him having a complicated family situation .

Time for the Pajama Party! All the better because they end up at Mitsumi's place !

I see Nao-chan isn't that hung up about her trans status, at least now. Not that it effects how Mitsumi's friends see her at all .

I think that's the first real honest and friendly conversation Yuzuki and Mika have ever had, and unsurprisingly it's about fashion (and of course Mitsumi had to chip in a very Mitsumi way). Seems like Yuzuki isn't that much different from Mika in the sense that she had a troublesome middle school life and never had any real friends and tried to project herself as something different in high school before she met Mitsumi .

Nao-chan also knows what it's like to struggle with your identity and what you want to do, especially when you're not living the life you want, so I'm glad she gave Mika the advice to be true to herself and her desire to really bond with and be true friends with the other girls .

Makoto being the only one unaffected by the horro movie was so on-brand .

So Ririka is Shima's childhood friend and they were acting together, but it seems like the underage drinking controversy that Ririka was connected to was because Shima roped her into a party with older people and there was alcohol around them. It seemed like ruined her acting career to the point where she had to become a model afterwards, and she still blames Shima for it. Though there is still that affinity and connection between them because they're childhood friends .

[Blaat]

Originally Posted by Frontier

I did not expect the Mika and Nao-chan pairing,

I don't think anyone could have predicted Mika and Nao-chan bonding while stalking being concerned for others together.

[SeijiSensei]

Shima has to resolve his being blackmailed by Ririka. How do you know Ririka was "roped in?" Didn't she have just as much agency in that situation as Shima did? She wasn't kidnapped; she could have left at any time, or not gone at all.

[Tenzen12]

Originally Posted by Last Sinner

Indeed, respect your stance. Having lived through a similar mentality in my teens, I can relate to a point but I can't take the stance of every minor success as a victory. It dulls the meaning and would cheapen the big ones for me - which were rare in those years. For a comparative point, I consider the journeys of Sawako in Kimi ni Todoke and Mei in Say I love you as the most believable for me. In terms of ambitious female learning to mix in the social aspect for the better long-term, Yukino from Kare Kano (manga only) would be the character I valued most.

I would suggest this title to other people, though. The overall mix is not my thing, but I can still respect it to a point.

I don't think you are supposed take stance of every minor succeses as a victory in first place. Mitsumi is socialy awkward, but that's her charm point that attract people to her, not some flaw that needs to be fixed and I don't think story tries to do so either. You expect some big emotional journey even though it's just stroll to convenience store for tasty snacks in neighborhood.

I would go as far as to say, you are projecting teen experience you spoke of into this show and ended dissatisfied because it doesn't fit instead accepting it for what it is. Of course I might be wrong, in which case I hope you will forgive me.

[Kanon]

That was a very unusual pair that did the typical stalking of the main couple. Never thought I'd see Mika bonding with Nao-chan of all people.

I was happy we got to find out more about Yuzuki who has remained pretty mysterious until now. She's just a regular girl who is too pretty for her own good. Thankfully, she's found a group of friends who don't judge her based on that.

Originally Posted by SeijiSensei

Shima has to resolve his being blackmailed by Ririka. How do you know Ririka was "roped in?" Didn't she have just as much agency in that situation as Shima did? She wasn't kidnapped; she could have left at any time, or not gone at all.

It's always easier to blame others. And I wouldn't say she's blackmailing Shima, what she's doing is guilt-tripping him and he's a nice enough guy to let her do so.

[grecefar]

We just need to wait until it backfires ririka beautifully, karma is going to come.

I like how mika is getting development, she got some hard trues in this chapter.

[blakstealth]

Ahhhh, so glad Mika went back to the sleepover!

[Frontier]

Originally Posted by SeijiSensei

Shima has to resolve his being blackmailed by Ririka. How do you know Ririka was "roped in?" Didn't she have just as much agency in that situation as Shima did? She wasn't kidnapped; she could have left at any time, or not gone at all.

She looked visibly uncomfortable in the flashback. I'm not ruling out that she had agency but I can totally see it her being a kid that got roped into something she wasn't ready for, especially since they were serving alcohol, and she might have gone along with it because Shima did.

[Cloudedmind]

*clears throat* Nao-chan's a goddess. That is all.

[frubam]

Great episode =03.

I like how Mitsumi hasn't fell into the typical shoujo pit-trap of worrying about the "secret beauty the love interest knows" trope. I GUESS technically Mika was the one who fell into that trope... really her interest in Shima is so terrible; she has no chance, yet, still clings onto hope. The pairing with her and Nao in the 2nd half felt kinda forced to me, but it was still a good scene between the two regardless.

Hearing about Yuzuki's past was very heartwarming. Music did a great job at establishing the mood, and I just love how earnest her feelings were. You can really see how much she's glad to found friends she can be herself around.

A very small thing, but I really liked that they didn't overdramatize about Nao's gender identity here. It feels like there's always an agenda being pushed when a character is like this in television. Here, she makes a mention to tell Mitsumi to tell the girls so they'll know, and the matter is no longer alluded to, despite it being Japan(though, honestly, I have absolutely no clue as to how well[or terrible] people who are like this are treated, but stereotypically and naively, I'd assume it is tolerated, but not encouraged). I'm sure it'll be expounded upon, since we see Nao flashback panel regarding lack of confidence and hurt feelings, but now is not the time for it.

[Marcus H.]

Man, I didn't know that Kyouko Kouda (from 3gatsu) is in this series!

[Alchemist007]

Originally Posted by frubam

A very small thing, but I really liked that they didn't overdramatize about Nao's gender identity here. It feels like there's always an agenda being pushed when a character is like this in television. Here, she makes a mention to tell Mitsumi to tell the girls so they'll know, and the matter is no longer alluded to,

It's nice when a character is allowed to be a character and not have some aspect be their whole identity.

[Frontier]

Mitsumi is heading home for the Summer! And she's going to arrive with her best City Girl vibe! Not that it lasts long because her family can totally see through it :teehee:.

Mitsumi's siblings! Her parents! Her grandma! It's nice to see more of her family as Mitsumi backs in the nolstalgia of home and how great it is to be back .

Fumi!!! Man, it's nice to see these two finally together again. And Fumi has a boyfriend! She managed to snag that guy she told Mitsumi about! You go, girl !

Nothing beats fireworks with your childhood friends !

So...beach episode, I guess? Mitsumi's swimsuit was very her .

Drowsy Mitsumi with bedhead after sleeping in is quite the sight .

I love how Mitsumi greets the dog when she comes back. And is immediately on cloud 9 when she sees Shima again. And exchanging gifts with her gal pals. Makes it nice to be back at school .

Time for a school festival arc! And Mitsumi is all hyped to be getting her first high school anime school festival going on! She'll be Vibing to the max, as the kids say !

Shima is definitely feeling pretty bummed after what happened with Ririka, so much so that he feels distant from Mitsumi and even she can tell he's depressed...because he feels like he can't move forwrad like she can. But Mitsumi still cares about him and is there for him, in her own way, and that means more than anything .

Kanechika made his shot to get Shima roped into a play again and fails...only for their class to end up doing a play for the school festival anyhow. Yep, looks like Shima is going to have to deal with his mental trauma over acting sooner rather than later .

[Kanon]

I thought they were separate issues but Ririka might be the reason Shima gave up acting. That girl is ruining his life.

[grecefar]

Fumi-chan is moving up in the world... happy that thing work out and manage to get a boyfriend.

I doubt shima-kun spend and nice summer and it seems everything is going wrong for him, now there is a play for the festival. I don't know about drama but he can refuse any part or just skip the festival.

[Frontier]

Originally Posted by Kanon

I thought they were separate issues but Ririka might be the reason Shima gave up acting. That girl is ruining his life.

I don't know if it's Ririka specifically so much as just the scandal they were involved in that she was implicated in (even though he was also there).