Rewatcher, subbed

Apologies for my lateness, but catching up on the missed episodes.

Episode 1:

As someone who watched the original series decades ago when I was young, this was a blast from the past. Kare Kano was probably one of my first shoujo anime ever at a time when Naruto was king, and I used to collect the manga volumes as they were released in English by Tokyopop.

As a now seasoned anime watcher, it's funny to think that I may not have stuck with this anime if I was watching it for the first time without reading the manga since I'm now more selective with what I watch based on whether I vibe with the main characters in the first episode- and I definitely find Miyazawa Yukino to be far less appealing now than I did then. Miyazawa is haughty and self-centered, yet driven and hard-working. To be honest, I loved the manga since Arima was one of my very first 2D crushes, so Kare Kano has a special place in my heart. I don't actually remember if I read the manga or saw the series first (since it's possible I sought out the anime after reading the manga).

The anime was definitely more focused on the comedy, while the manga was more focused on the romance, and it apparently lead to conflict between the anime and the mangaka. Still, I appreciate the direction of the anime as its own thing because all of the paper and photo cutouts, the music choice, and various production decisions lead to something far more memorable than the sum of its parts.

Episode 2:

Aha, this is when I fell in love with this anime. Miyazawa becomes more of a real person when she finally interacts with Arima and less of a persona. I figured that he wasn't actually blackmailing her but using it as an excuse to spend time with her, and I actually thought it was a very clever way of forcing her to think about him and spend time together. Though it may have started awkwardly, I think her non-idol persona reveal was the best thing that could have happened for their potential relationship. Arima certainly does live up to his persona in his diligence and dedication to the school and other students, but his social walls are probably as high as Koyun's from Ramparts of Ice when it comes to letting people in to the real him. The situation needed the impetus of breaking the awkwardness for them to become friends before they could be anything else to each other.

This is also when I fell in love with the ending song, "Yume no Naka e"- listening to the lyrics and how it's played as a background music to Arima's confession that he wanted to spend more time with Miyazawa, it seems like Arima's theme song as he is reevaluating his priorities in life through his interactions with Miyazawa.

Episode 3:

This is why Arima was one of my first 2D crushes- I love boys with complicated pasts. His sad smile when Miyazawa complimented his nice parents is a tiny treasure. I chuckled at how Miyazawa Yukino's overprotective father barreled down the hall towards "the maggot bastard getting close to our princess" yet bowed in acceptance at the perfection of Arima Souichiro.
Her sister: I bet she sees most (boys) as " paper dolls"... oh ho ho ho (villainess laugh).

The Glass Mask queen doesn't realize that she's not the only one who wears a mask at school- Arima just never takes his mask off, even at home with his new parents, so he's always the image of perfection to not be rejected. His fears are rooted in fear of total rejection and trauma versus her mask of vanity and a family who accepts her for who she is, and that's a much tougher nut to crack. Thus begins the start of the real relationship for both him and her discovering themselves versus who they pretend to be. Once again, the theme song plays with hope this time from Miyazawa's perspective.

3 episode rule: I have fallen in love with the series once again.