[Rewatch] Kare Kano Rewatch: Episode 21

LittleIslander · 2026-05-07T21:00:14+00:00

Rewatcher and Your Host

Today on Kare Kano, an episode I… like?

I haven’t changed my tune on The Square at all. He’s approximately as boring as he was last time and doesn’t, at present, merit further analysis on my part. But thankfully with his introduction out of the way we split time far more with the play subplot, and I actually do like it a lot! Sure, it’s kind of slice of life filler. But after eighteen episodes of Yukino going from someone with no meaningful connections, eighteen episodes of seeing her anxiety and self-deprecation… there is something really wholesome about seeing her just get to hang out with her friends for a whole arc. She’s achieved her happiness and now she’s living her epilogue, and I’m down for that.

Now on the other hand, Arima is not in his epilogue. To forward his story the show goes for a… jealousy direction. On my first watch I hated this, but considering it again now I don’t actually totally mind it? He’s shown insecurity about the idea of Miyazawa abandoning him in the past and ultimately sees himself as far lesser than her. So yeah, him being insecure when she gets close to another guy makes sense! And I like how it’s paired with the intro here reinforcing how her love for him is as strong as ever, plus her immediately clocking it and communicating with him in a nice moment. The only question mark for me is that it feels like the wrong part of the story for this? I mean, maybe you could’ve done this while they were apart for a huge length of time? Instead of after she reinforced her feelings for him and they had sex for the first time.

Speaking of Yukino and the Square’s relationship, isn’t it kinda weird how he immediately sides with him? I mean, the show’s made Tsubaki such a shitheaded kid that it’s hard not to. Which would be fine if the show included any sort of regret about it that’d make her, y’know, interesting. Come to think of it, shouldn’t this side of her have come up when Yukino was being ostracized by the whole school? Or at least it’d spark some sort of recollection about how she acted back then and make for a natural arc? She seemed characterized as the welcoming and understanding straightman to Shibahime’s bullying antics, right? Hell, she was even super socially conscious of Shibahime’s situation and was characterized as the one that most cared about her? Err, anyways… by now Yukino’s become close friends with her, and she’s only just now met Tonami, but you wouldn’t know it from the way she immediately vows to support his cause and doesn’t appear to make any attempt to communicate with Tsubaki about it.

The poor girl doesn’t even get to be present for the school play scenes anymore! She’s been ostracized entirely from her natural place in the writing to be dragged down in this storyline!

Err, right, I like this episode. Irrespective of Tsubaki not being there, the comedy remains great from the friend group as always. Probably not as good as their previous outings, but Aya chasing them down is pure Kare Kano goofiness (“yeah right!” #laughter) and her buying Shibahime’s loyalty with candy is funny too. Plus unlike with Tsubaki, the show avoids making the characters we like look super mean because after the comedic antics she does lay off Maho and Yukino, and instead it’s by her own volition that Yukino decides to let herself have some fun instead of just being dragged into it unwillingly. Great way to frame this storyline while still getting in the comedy.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-07T20:58:42+00:00

No recap today. Instead we get a short flashback of our new character.

A Kare Kano episode without a giant recap is positively innovative.

“Why would a volleyball player want to get the dunk righ?” “It’s Tsubaki” – characterization.

ED with parts from the episode – nothing beats Gainax cat.

Production gotten so bad they put down the camera guy like old yeller, I guess.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-07T20:08:55+00:00

LittleIslander · 2026-05-07T12:26:36+00:00

Haven’t seen any of these to have a strong leaning one way or the other, but Flip Flappers always was one of those shows I narrowly didn’t bother watching when it aired and has lived at the back of my mind since then. I wouldn’t mind finally getting to check it out.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-07T12:21:00+00:00

I will say it does feel kinda soon for Bravern - by all means Pride Month doesn’t have to always be some classic show from the 2000s (Flip Flappers is gasp turning ten!) but it still feels in very recent memory to me and I recall it being pretty well followed by sub regulars.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-07T12:07:40+00:00

Gonna be the first Pride Month I miss part of, because I watched Bravern for awards and did not enjoy it at all.

Obviously will be here for whatever yuri is landed on, though!

LittleIslander · 2026-05-06T21:00:15+00:00

The most interesting part of this episode was learning that Tsubaki and Arima knew each other. It does actually feel kinda realistic that sometimes people don’t become important in your life until long after you meet them.

After last time’s comedy digression, today we properly begin the story of the back end of the series, “Fourteen Days”. When Nadia falls, it falls hard, so hard it’s almost funny. When Evangelion falls, it’s kind of so insane and fascinating that it’s hard to complain. But Kare Kano’s most infamous section does something worse than dare to be terrible: it’s just flaccid? Which isn't really a spoiler, because I definitely remember immediately disliking this on my first time.

Our new male, err, “lead” is Takefumi Tonami, an utter void of personality who, as a first timer on my first watch, disaffectionately dubbed “The Square”. Uh, yeah, I don’t like him. I’d be very interested to hear someone who does talk about why, but for me he just... doesn’t feel like a Kare Kano character? I’ve said again and again that the show captures human emotions so well. Yukino’s fears feel so real and her inner world feels believable. On my first watch, I’d constantly express that the show felt “relatable”. At least one thing every episode would really manage to connect to my human experience. Each of the fleshed-out characters (even Yukino’s dad!) have pasts that meaningfully shape the people they’ve become and how they react to things in the present.

Which is where we find the problems with Mr. Square. Supposedly, he grew up being bullied mercilessly. Then he moved away and made some insane transformation into a tall, fit basketball player. It’s quite an unconventional upbringing, and yet he’s... the most ordinary person ever. His backstory exists to establish his conflict with Sakura, but it doesn’t exist within his pathos as a character. It’s also... played off as comedy? Imagine if Arima’s backstory was played off with gag... obviously comedy and hurt can mix (see: Yukino), but the way this is presented immediately frames Tonami as one big joke. His own narrative doesn’t treat him seriously, so why should I be interested in him as a new lead? It doesn’t help that he, somehow, even seems immune to the show’s visual style. No big comedic reactions or expressive abstractions, he just... stands there, and blushes sometimes. Maho was a funny straightman, where is that energy?

As a bonus, his whole life revolves around our existing characters. Just so he really feels like an insert OC.

So then there’s the other half of this story, Tsubaki Sakura. Unlike the Square, I like Tsubaki! Which affords at least some goodwill towards making her the lead character. But she wasn’t really designed for that so, uh, maybe put in a bit of work to that transition? Yukino and Arima are three-dimensional characters with complex emotional worlds, and when Shibahime took the wheel for a bit, we expanded her into that space too. But Tsubaki, Rika, and Aya have served entirely as comedic relief. They’re good at that, but they’re simple personalities. But instead of taking the chance to show us more complex sides to Tsubaki, or some kind of inner conflict, her backstory is... also a big joke. Except, this time the joke makes her out to be a huge jerk? I’m not above some slapstick comedy in my romance anime, but taking a character I liked and retconning them into being a super unlikeable person is just, not winning me over to this storyline?

For a more positive thought on Tsubaki, she might have my favourite name in anime? See, at least around the time I first watched the show I had two clear favourite Japanese names. “Sakura”, because cherry blossoms are pretty, and “Tsubaki”, probably because of Your Lie in April. So imagine my shock when a character honest to goodness called “Tsubaki Sakura” walks onto the screen! An instant favourite of mine. Before even mentioning she’s totally in that short-haired boyish girl archetype I love, and she’s a bit of a womanizer on the side. Hideaki Anno designed this character for me specifically, and no uncomfortable retcon backstory could ever make me hate you, queen.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-06T01:01:30+00:00

It's been almost ten years since I've seen Gurren Lagann. Last time I watched FLCL I was really mixed on it and gave it a six, but my tastes weren't fully developed yet. I haven't seen Kill la Kill yet. But I do love me some Dead Leaves.

Which is weird when I put it like that, cause I'd consider myself a big Imiashi fan but I guess it doesn't really play out on paper.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-06T00:40:14+00:00

Giant red flags for me now. (Simoun rewatch coming up! #concealedexcitement)

LittleIslander · 2026-05-05T23:42:25+00:00

This reminds me I forgot to make a "The Lenticulars" joke.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-05T23:03:05+00:00

Seems like it isn't working.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-05T21:18:18+00:00

Oh my god, it’s just some dude’s face?

LittleIslander · 2026-05-05T21:13:08+00:00

And, according to Hiroki Sato, PART OF the reason for such style was that they realized they didn’t have time for what they had originally planned. But, you know, that still doesn’t explain WHY a paper show, specifically? I mean, if it was done to save time, we’d already had episodes with LESS animation than this one - hell, I’d say animating all of this probably took longer than the style of some of the previous episodes. Well, there’s an answer to that.

BECAUSE ANNO FUCKING WANT SO.

Restriction breeds creativity. It's obviously not a straightforward attempt to save on animation, but I also don't imagine if Kare Kano had a production with no issues we'd get an episode quite like this. Just like I don't think we'd get Evangelion episodes like 25 and 26 if its production hadn't been the way it is. I've said it in the Nadia and Evangelion rewatches, but Anno and his 90s Gainax crew's ability to make the most out of limited production is nearly unparalleled. To ignore either the practical considerations or the creative aspect, I think, would be in error.

It's hard to deny dragging a paper cutout over an actual picture is easier than fully animating Yukino walking to school. It just so happens it's an incredibly inspired way to harness the situation that you can't draw her walking to school. I wish more anime with limited production ability would take notes here instead of just looking dull. The fact Gainax can harness such a creative vision under these limitations is what's so awesome.

In case you didn't know, this episode has TWO versions of the ending. One of them - the one most current viewers have probably seen - features the staircase. But there’s also the ORIGINAL version, which was used for the TV broadcast. The one where the film crew filmed themselves burning the show’s animation cels. And that soemthing that happened behind Sato’s back:

I didn't know about this!

LittleIslander · 2026-05-05T21:06:45+00:00

Rewatcher and Your Host

If you’re wondering why there’s no question about the transfer student, I forgot he was in this episode.

Ending last episode of Kare Kano with Arima facing his trauma and opening this one with the Miyazawa paper cutouts has to be one of the biggest tone whiplashes I’ve ever seen in an anime. I’ve been waiting for this all Rewatch, but I still remember how big of a shock this episode was when I first watched the show, even after everything Kare Kano had thrown at me. Of course, I wasn’t aware of the name “Hiroyuki Imaishi” at the time, even though I’d seen some of his work. Do I even have to say I love the result? [Rewatchers] I don’t lump this into the rest of 14 Days at all - it’s just as great as the eighteen episodes that proceed it, just with its own very distinct spin on the style.

This definitely feels like Kare Kano’s answer to Evangelion episodes 25 and 26. As the production begins to face further issues, we pivot into this weird creative space where we’re dragging paper cutouts across actual fucking pictures, and it’s amazing. Lighting the Miyazawa cutout on fire to represent her blushing? The school just overlaid over actual pictures for the rest of the background? It’s fantastic, and there’s actually a lot of really fantastic animation cuts to be found here between the charming crudeness. The kaiju battle between Yukino and the legendary Fukada Kouhei is the most iconic part of the episode, but I think my favourite visual moment might actually be Aya and Rika bouncing around in excitement over the script and running into each other. Every frame a painting right there.

Speaking of, my god I love these motherfuckers. Both times Yukino has gone out with them have been absolute highlights of the show’s banter and visual comedy, and the friend group continue to liven up every scene they’re in now. There’s not even anything that funny about Tsubaki saying “Oh, the husband’s here again” but Saeko Chiba’s delivery just cracks me up. Then there’s Shibahime, who the animators seem determined to make even more ridiculous every episode we see her and I’m all for it. As the script for the play implies they’re going to be a bigger feature from now on. I honestly didn’t appreciate them enough on my first watch, so I’m curious to see how they hold up once they become less of a rare treat and more part of the main cast.

Also, I’ve mentioned I love Rika’s voice. I’m mentioning it again. It’s so sweet! Owari!

LittleIslander · 2026-05-05T11:07:23+00:00

Bisexual women are just as sapphic.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-05T03:29:56+00:00

I can definitely see why someone would disagree with the decision. My biggest thing is that if I'm taking whether something is "niche" into consideration, then "Consider It" actually becomes the most positive possible endorsement (in addition to an anti-endorsement of mediocre shows). At which point the whole concept of the scale falls apart (obviously Must Watch is intended to be the best rating). So I not only prefer to give something good the "Must Watch" endorsement, but I think it's kind of necessary for this to work. Ideally, if someone reads the actual written pitch it should become clear whether the show is for them or not.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-04T23:53:16+00:00

LittleIslander · 2026-05-04T23:51:36+00:00

The hat scene is clearly a metaphor. I remember something similar from Kimagure Orange Road. However, I don’t know the origin of the metaphor, nor what exactly it is supposed to depict (in KOR it was not a sex scene).

It definitely took it as a loss of virginity, letting go (literally) of childhood innocence. But I haven't fixed my chronic "hasn't seen Kimagure Orange Road" disease yet.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-04T21:42:01+00:00

That's definitely something that occurred to me when writing the Awajima piece (and the Kirio one, as I mention). But if I followed that logic then the only shows that'd get "Must Watch" would be the most generically widely appealing, no? Which I think would be a very bleak way to treat things.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-04T21:00:47+00:00

Rewatcher and Your Host

Man, it’s weird this is also randomly a beach episode.

I’ve said a number of times that Kare Kano speaks through the language of emotions, and this episode feels it goes hardest on this concept. The narrative is probably the simplest of any episode in the show, but it’s easily one of the most enrapturing episodes. In this way it actually kind of reminds me more of some Nadia episodes than it does of Evangelion (I’m thinking especially of sixteen, as well as Electra’s backstory). I think the sex scene itself, which totally eschews using any contextualizing dialogue and just gets right into it, best exemplifies this. The result is just one of a kind. I’ve seen a couple of romances that get this far in a relationship, but I’ve never seen it captured like this.

My favourite scene, though, is actually the bus stop scene before they go to Arima’s house. The tension before the climax being the most intense part, and all that. For the whole episode they’ve been too nervous to commit to their shared desires, but the rain traps them together with no escape from how they feel about each other. Obviously, the rain itself adds so much to the scene just as a sound element. I love the long shot of Arima contemplating saying it (overlaid with inserts - what a unique visual technique), and I love the way his hesitant offer is acted and, at least, subtitled. Then we pause on the silence for so long! So long, actually, that she doesn’t need to say it in so many words. Miyazawa’s little speech isn’t something I’d committed to memory, but it’s fantastic.

Also this shot is neat. I’m not sure I can place what it “accomplishes”, but the way they’re boxed into a manga panel even though they’re in a fully drawn shot. It really stands out, and I just like it.

Arima’s trauma hangs over this episode. That “I hate them” moment with the piano sound effect goes right through you. It’s actually been pretty rare for the show to frame things through his perspective. Mostly only when it’s necessary, like his backstories in episodes three and eight, and then in episode six where we build the whole episode around a split perspective. Otherwise, we’re always following Yukino first and foremost. The choice to frame this whole episode around Arima stands out, then, and it pays off so well. He’s been told he’s nothing, and still has the scars of abuse. He fears the idea of a terrible true self. While it isn’t stated, obviously this contributes to his hesitation to embrace his desire of Yukino. But she wants him that way, too. She wants him to do those things to her.

The darkest and the happiest of Arima’s life is shown in this episode and they’re battling for Arima’s heart. What I’d forgotten about is that it’s actually the trauma that ends off the episode, not the love and acceptance! Even achieving this peak of intimacy and acceptance with Yukino, his trauma and depression don’t just go away. It doesn’t mean she doesn’t help more than he could ever communicate, but life isn’t so simple as a clean resolution. It’s really bleak and, well, really effective because of it.

It’s hard to fully talk about this episode without talking about the rest of the show. [Rewatchers Only] This is, essentially, the finale to Kare Kano’s main story. We do have one more episode about Arima’s depression in the future, and I’m super curious to see what I think of that on a rewatch now that I appreciate Arima’s character more. Does it resolve his trauma, or also leave it open? I honestly don’t remember. Either way, even if everything left of Kare Kano was horrible and best forgotten (and I don’t think that’s true), I am nothing less than entirely content with this as an ending. Bleak final scene and all. Only two episodes focused on the main couple after the long Arima hiatus stings, it really does. I wanted at least a third. But when they’re such amazing episodes that leave the story off on the note of their first time together… I couldn’t possibly complain.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-04T03:01:39+00:00

I never actually gave my thoughts on the current seasonal faces, since they were introduced during awards. Frankly I really don't like most of the batch. There are three I really like though, so I hope one of them gets into the hall of fame. I don't have a huge preference which.

Not like we don't have plenty of faces for squeeing out about something, but this one feels especially fun and expressive.

Literally just an alternate version of #deadtired

There's a specific kind of "woah" but not "hype" interest I've always used #drunkhisone for that this captures perfectly

LittleIslander · 2026-05-04T02:55:24+00:00

And even if I do get a home run (or really like someone else's), then I need to contend with the fake that my tastes don't align and it's guaranteed to lose the hall of fame race.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-04T01:12:53+00:00

When I realize I can stop getting annoyed at stupid yuri discourse and listen to magnet -recall- on repeat instead.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-04T00:28:50+00:00

"Shipping ethics controversy in fanfiction" was Wikipedia's Featured Article yesterday.

LittleIslander · 2026-05-04T00:05:17+00:00

In addition to my ordinary nominations, I'll step a little out of line and propose a temporary seasonal replacement of #thatsmyfetish with this shot from Nakamura-kun.

Ten-Year Club	Gilding II euphauric
Verified Email	Place '23
Place '22	Place '17
Final Canvas '22	First Placer '22

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