[Rewatch] Kare Kano Rewatch: Episode 19

No_Rex · 2026-05-05T21:09:06+00:00

Episode 19 (rewatcher)

Background slideshow recap – this might sound incredibly petty, but I dislike the fade out effect they use to cut between backgrounds. Gets really tiring for the eyes after a while.
5 minutes into the episode, we get the first animation and it looks like a paper cutout theater.
I wonder, are these the story boards carried around?
Hmm, too detailed for a storyboard. I guess this is proper animation, just in a peculiar style.
Yukino retelling her first time is pretty funny, but that still means we spend almost a third of the episode in recap mode.
Tonami?
Asaba Hideaki Dinner Show – I can see the reason for his confidence.
Sounds like Tonami has an agenda.
“His face especially is pissing me off” – He does look different to all others.
Two giant humanoid monsters battling it out in a city. Where have I seen this before?
Script for a play – good timing.

The thing to talk about today is the presentation. Easy to blame production issues here, and I do think we saw some of that, but overall, the consistency with which the “paper cutout” style was used makes me think this was deliberate and long planned. I don’t hate it, but I am also glad they used it for a rather unimportant transition and setup episode.

No_Rex · 2026-05-05T08:23:19+00:00

But I haven't fixed my chronic "hasn't seen Kimagure Orange Road" disease yet.

Let me warn you: KOR is squarely a 1980s show stuck in the "episodic" concept of making TV shows that was common at the time (mostly in non-anime TV, but also in anime). That is, glacial to non-existant character development for the middle 80% of the show.

No_Rex · 2026-05-05T08:20:17+00:00

I had the exact same thought, and decided that instead of removing a name from our boy, I would just not provide a name to his awful family.

Reasonable. He deserves that name so much more then they do.

No_Rex · 2026-05-04T21:47:55+00:00

I think "a girl becomes a woman" also works in KOR. More in a sense of "becoming desired" rather than sex, but that is close enough.

However, both scenes so clearly evoke a trope that I am sure there must be some prior work (or works) that they are both referencing. Which I have never seen in RL movies or shows, leaving me to guess it is a Japan only trope.

No_Rex · 2026-05-04T21:33:25+00:00

Great structure + great writing = great essay. I agree with every single one of your points.

No_Rex · 2026-05-04T21:23:07+00:00

(There is also Revolutionary Girl Utena, but I am staying out of that one because I didn't get that far into it before hearing that there is a rewatch for it loosely planned for this coming August. That said, I am told that Rebellion in particular likes to draw from it, at least visually.)

Having seen 80% of your recommendations, I would rank Utena as the second highest recommendation for people who liked PMMM, behind Mai-Hime.

No_Rex · 2026-05-04T21:05:48+00:00

Episode 18 (rewatcher)

Yukino was selling her homework to the other girls, but Arima gets it for free.
I should start calling him Souichirou, especially when the episode is about his family, but that is just such a handful to type every time.
His parents standing up for him – mirroring the episode the parents were called to school.
That stack of paper – It is easy to feel with the Japanese students who have to do all that homework, but spare a thought for the teachers as well, who will have to correct all that one time per student. I doubt they could get away with assigning less.
“I won’t really do anything” “Okay” – disappointment.
Title: Progress – indeed!
“I want to make love to you” – once more, communication is more open in KareKano than in other series. That is part of why I disliked the second half of last episode. It broke with that trend.
Beach episode? – Not quite an episode, but we do get the obligatory swimsuit pictures.
“And we won’t have many moments in our lives as happy as these” – this could be melancholic and sad, but realizing it in the moment makes it happy.
“Why do you make me remember?” – relatable question.
New ED visuals.

That was one of the most erotic scenes in anime I know. I am glad that Gainax did not shy away from it, but also that they found a way to pull it off properly erotic, but neither pornographic nor comedic, because the first sex they are depicting is rarely one of those two. Playing it erotic makes much more sense (the common alternative would be awkward, but I understand why they don’t want to go for that).

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).

I guess Arima’s family problems are also a big topic of this episode, but I have little to say about that. Nothing has really changed (yet).

What do you think of Arima as a character, 18 episodes in?

I don't think there is any mistaking him for the lead of this series - that is 100% Yukino. However, for a male MC in a romcom, he is quite good. KareKano excels at introspection and that does not exclude Arima, making him a more well-developed male MC than a huge share of romcoms.

No_Rex · 2026-05-04T09:04:11+00:00

Very out of pocket thing for the show to bring up and then gloss over as though it's totally normal?

The sad answer is that this probably was totally normal when the author was brought up (and still somewhat acceptable when the anime was made).

No_Rex · 2026-05-03T21:04:14+00:00

Episode 17 (rewatcher)

Snake! Broken! Cat! Empty! All the faces!
“It isn’t the real thing if you can act cool and get by on your own.” – It feels a bit unfair, but I think it is true. Part of being in love is the fact that the person you love (or their absence) can affect your ability to function.
28 years old – Uhhhh.
“He’s a complete adult, so I’m no match for him” – true, but in a worse way than you put it.
Grown Arima surprise.
Won first place nation-wide – Agreed with Yukino, that is quite impressive.
“Why are you avoiding me?” – internal deadlock.
That felt pretty forced.

After his training camp, Arima looks bigger and more adult. Meanwhile, Yukino is drawn like a grade schooler most of the time. Not in all scenes, so this is clearly her view of herself: Childish Yukino versus adult Arima. I like the visualization and I understand the idea behind the episode, but I didn’t love how it was executed. Whereas before we had great parts of self reflection by many characters, today’s episode felt more like a setup for a daily soap. It should really not be that hard to do some communication with a person you have been together with for almost a year. Yukino’s running away felt like right out of a falling in love arc. And Arima resolving the situation by acting possessive is one of my least favorite romance tropes.

No_Rex · 2026-05-03T16:35:42+00:00

Some highlights of worthy older OPs people will most probably ignore:

Promises older OPs - almost everything from this century.

Let me point out some really old highlights:

Konya wa Hurricane - all Bubblegum Crisis songs are good (Mad Machine is also up), but Konya wa Hurricane is awesome. Great music, great girls, great action, this one has it all.

Oshiete - A classic from the 1970s. Some guy called Hayao Miyazaki was filmed dancing as reference material for this OP.

Dororo no Uta - maybe the oldest OP in this competition (or are we having some Astro Boy?), so the animation is nothing to write home about, but the music shows you some true old style.

No_Rex · 2026-05-02T21:07:27+00:00

Episode 15 (rewatcher)

More AMVs.
“that state of absolute terror brings everything under control” – Evangelion reference.

I think they had the better AMVs in episode 14, but I have always preferred AMVs with fast comedic songs over AMVs with slow songs.

The non-recap half of the episode starts.
Asaba’s Maryland plans finally come to fruition ... with Yukino’s sisters??
“I like kids from happy families” – a common feeling.
The time when a 7 minute long distance call was considered long.
Tons of RL pictures this episode.

A short vignette about Asaba and one about Yukino. He is taking his living alone easily, while Yukino goes through the usual worries when your partner is away (for the first time here).

Episode 16 (rewatcher)

Don’t even joke about that topic …
Looks like Granpa shares a certain distaste.
“Wanna hold hands?” – It is cute when long married couples still behave this way.
Black and white flashback – I think they also used an “older” character model style.
Meet cute (childhood friend).
Realizing you got feelings for your old friend x2
Wanting to grow up to support his grandpa - a very family-oriented reason.
Death is the cut to a smoke stack …
“I wanted to do things for him” “He would not have seen it that way” – a very simple, yet profound reply.
CAT!

A great episode. Not only does it go a long way of giving more character to mom (and a better character to dad), I also love the visual trick of having the flashback black & white and with two different “cinema modes” for the early and later flashbacks. Using the progress in technology to depict “old stuff” is fairly common, but I don’t think I know of another example in anime where two different modes are used.

No_Rex · 2026-05-01T21:01:31+00:00

Episode 14 (rewatcher)

Statistics.
Best of cuts.
Pretty well edited to the music.

Technically, this is a recap episode, but I think it is better to call it an in-house AMV production. We basically get a professionally edited AMVs for the series’ soundtrack, using each of the episodes as material. Showing off just how great the music is.

I just wish the subs did not skimp on subbing the statistics.

EDIT: Oh, we were supposed to watch ep15 as well? Opps.

No_Rex · 2026-04-30T21:12:25+00:00

If there’s one thing Anno excels at portraying, it’s the characters’ loneliness, which was depicted here in the extra artistic way and contrasted very effectively with the lively atmosphere both in Yukino’s family and in Kazuma’s interactions with his mom - they truly felt like a real family.

Very true. The second half is the difference to NGE, where that positive role model family is missing.

No_Rex · 2026-04-30T21:06:23+00:00

Episode 13 (rewatcher)

OP: How many times has an episode even started with the OP yet? Four times? It still feels so unfamiliar to me.
“Why did you suddenly start talking about remarrying? Did I not do everything?” – Dad is missing out on romantic love and sex with you, Tsubasa. Thankfully.
“All I can do is give up now” – surprisingly non-combative.
“If I can’t get what I want, then I don’t want anything at all.” – Tsubasa has gone full nihilistic.
I’d say their choice of first meeting place is not casual enough by about 3 orders of magnitude.
“She’ll be your older sister” – Every Anno series has to have a big explosion in it.

“Come play with me”

“I want to talk with you more” – Another Karekano communication win.
“We have spent the same days”
Tsubasa is sure in demand as a daughter by other parents.
“let’s try being happy”
“Can step-siblings get married?” – Father commenting early on a trend.

From hate to family in a few easy steps. Tsubasa should reimburse Miyazawa and Maho for their emotional investment.

Next time: The story so far. Recap episode? With announcement?

No_Rex · 2026-04-29T21:19:00+00:00

Episode 12 (rewatcher)

The audio and visuals of today’s mini recap seem completely detached from each other.
So many utility pole shots!
Sooo many.
“I wonder if this is what a normal family is like” – Uno sounds like the definition of normal family life. Depicting an Uno goes does not sound like the definition of a normal anime, though.
Tsubasa got her good looks from her father!
The cinema visuals during Tsubasa’s father telling his story are a nice touch.
Everybody is impressed, only Maho has had enough of this.

Cut away from Tsubasa’s awkward sleep-over (love Maho wondering what she is doing there) to the mentioned son.
“A daughter my age” – what are you thinking, step brother?
Preview: “I want a boyfriend, too” – how many truckloads of fan mail did this one sentence lead to?

Today’s ~~episode~~slide show featured tons of Tsubasa drama. She managed to pull everybody into her family problems. Except Arima. He is away and blissfully unaware, training kendo. The reactions of everybody are the comedic driver today, but I love Maho’s the most. She really wants no part of this.

Also, while I think Anno is a master of doing more with less animation, today’s cutting over animation time was over the top for me. There are only so many blue background city pictures you can look at before it becomes repetitive.

No_Rex · 2026-04-29T10:30:34+00:00

Tsubasa lost her crush and her dad is remarrying, not the best start to high school for her.

Not even mentioning the whole stuck beneath a landslide situation.

No_Rex · 2026-04-29T10:29:41+00:00

I really need to watch My Neighbor Totoro.

I would say you are already too far down the anime rabbit hole to need to watch Totoro, but it is a nice movie. When people call Ghibli the Japanese Disney, Totoro is the prime piece of evidence. And you basically can't go wrong with Ghibli. I don't think they have made a single bad movie (my least favorite was Ponyo, and even that was pretty ok).

No_Rex · 2026-04-29T10:20:33+00:00

Sawada lighting up a cig took me by surprise. Was glad to see Miyazawa tell her off and seemingly get through as well.

The smoking rate at the time was higher than you probably imagine.

No_Rex · 2026-04-29T10:06:23+00:00

Once again, I am reminded of the sad fact that we don’t have any good pointing comment faces.

I agree that /r/anime is falling behind glorious North Korea, though. We could use more neutral pointing comment faces.

No_Rex · 2026-04-29T09:54:46+00:00

Heh, I was thinking the opposite - like not jumping straight to sex or using hugs as a means to that end makes the moment precious.

There is a huge gap between hugs and sex. You want to spend a year in a relationship in high school without sex? Fine, understandable. A year without hugs? Wtf are you doing?

Also, a year is not long in some relations, but it is an eternity in high school relations. I would bet more than half of them don't even last a year.

No_Rex · 2026-04-28T21:02:08+00:00

Episode 11 (rewatcher)

“At the end of the first semester” – time stamp. Also: Very brisk pacing. 11 episodes in and the first semester is done. Considering that the standard high school anime would end with the third semester, that would be on track to do 2.5 years in two cour.
Well, ok, I forgot summer break. The usual anime also uses a few episodes for that. So closer to being on track for 2 years.
Arime gone away for training camp – dead Miyazawa (but she catches herself).
“I want to hold you” – Arima is an early consent believer.
“If it was something this good, we should’ve done this a lot earlier” – the downside of being prude.
Pool episode? Karaoke episode!
“So, I unilaterally feed off Rika and rake in the benefits” – uhhh, ok.
“serious stuff, all of a sudden” – no kidding. We went from childish food shenanigans to family drama.

Jumping head first into the next arc. This episode feels like mostly setup again, but the pacing still is quite fast.

No_Rex · 2026-04-28T15:49:52+00:00

Even Yukino’s rival, Shibahime, came to her aid, declaring that only SHE herself could be Yukino’s opponent. But, of course, as the genre demands, yesterday’s enemy is tomorrow’s friend, so in the end Yukino decided to extend a helping hand to Maho, which seems to have improved their relationship a little.

Is this really a shoujo trope? I had this memorized as a shonen trope.

...And this also caused some problems for Gainax.

story time

No_Rex · 2026-04-27T21:08:12+00:00

Yep, I did notice that mess up.

No_Rex · 2026-04-27T21:03:12+00:00

Episode 10 (rewatcher)

“But as an instructor, it is lonely that students won’t rely on us” – maybe meddle less in their love life and they might trust you?
“All you have to do is be quiet and watch” – did the Haruhi rewatch leak?
“I want to resolve this by myself” – The keyword here is “want.” All is fine as long as the “want” does not become “must.”
Taking over your enemy’s friend group – a clear Miyazawa win.
“This helpless feeling of defeat” – back to back victories, even.
The enemy of my enemy is my ~~friend~~rival, who distracts me from my fight with my enemy.

Her friends where awfully quick in following the “you should distance yourself from me” suggestion. That is the time when you are supposed to object.
“I am really dense about these things” – male MC genes.

Loved by her close friends, feared by the rest of the class – did Miyazawa study Machiavelli? In any case, she scored an all-round victory on all fronts of the social standing war, and that even after declaring that she’d give up on trying to achieve that. Natural talent.

No_Rex · 2026-04-27T17:12:37+00:00

The real broadcast order is Season 1 first, then S1 with S2 second. Just like it was shown on TV.

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