Boys deserve adorable shoujo romances, too – even giants of men who happen to be just out of middle school.
What They Say:
Takeo Goda is a giant guy with a giant heart. Too bad the girls don’t want him! (They always go for his good-looking best friend, Sunakawa.) Used to being on the sidelines, Takeo simply stands tall and accepts his fate. But one day when he saves a girl named Yamato from a harasser on the train, his (love!) life suddenly takes an incredible turn! Takeo can hardly believe it when he crosses paths with Yamato again, and he finds himself falling in love with her… But with handsome Sunakawa around, does Takeo even stand a chance?
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
MADHOUSE has been my favorite studio by far for many years. And what have they done in the past few seasons? Hunter x Hunter wrapped up, making it my favorite from the studio and one of my favorites of all time, immediately followed by Parasyte, which was almost my favorite new show for the six months since (only surpassed by the amazing Your Lie in April), and halfway through that we also got the original Death Parade, easily the best show of its season to not be a sequel. Against the probabilities one might assume, MADHOUSE has only been making its name a stronger and stronger selling point, and guaranteeing that I’m on board and excited for any new project they bring me. With both of those series now over, there’s one new one to replace it this season, an adaptation of well-received shoujo manga My Love Story!!, not only animated by the finest in the industry but directed by the studio’s strongest choice for delivering beautiful shoujo series, Morio Asaka, who has shown his talents through the likes of the classic Cardcaptor Sakura and the more recent Chihayafuru. The character designer of the latter also comes along, combining with the other commonalities to result in the female leads of the series looking remarkably similar in many instances.
One big difference that this series has from most of its genre and demographic is that the protagonist who we experience the story through is in fact male. Furthermore, the usual shoujo conventions involving aloof bishounen for the often timid female protagonist to swoon over and hope to capture the heart of in sync with the intended reader/viewer are shaken up and we instead see that paradigm play out with the protagonist’s handsome friend attracting most of the cute girls around while the gentle giant in the lead wishes that they would pay him any mind. The cute female lead appears in the eyes of protagonist Takeo to have the same feelings for his friend Suna as any other and despite his own feelings toward her he chooses to cheer her on in her pursuit, but Yamato clearly breaks the mold a little bit, and as the title implies, this is sure to blossom into Takeo’s own love story for the first time, ironically also the first time that Suna appears to have the potential to reciprocate some of the feelings that likely aren’t even there.
I love the image of this hulking beast who somehow is only just out of middle school as the romantic who bawls his eyes out when graduating and just wants to find love in the springtime of his youth, especially since the entire series is awash in lovely shoujo sensibilities, with the rich, solid coloring filling the world to match the warm personalities of the main characters who have only begun to connect. There’s always the worry that the story may not reach much of a conclusion in anime form, which is always greatly detrimental for such series, so I can only hope for now that it finds an acceptable enough stopping point and that the journey is emotionally resonating beyond just being very pleasant. I will say that as much as it shows how good of a person Takeo is, starting a romance from saving a girl from being molested is not the most healthy or the deepest formula, but while spending a series without the protagonists ever actually expressing their feelings is irritating at best, I would hope that they form much deeper bonds as friends before it reaches that level.
I’ll also say that I’m very happy with the seiyuu cast. Takeo is voiced by Takuya Eguchi using a voice far deeper than I ever expected from him, showing his beastly form but also his inner vulnerability, Parasyte lead Nobunaga Shimazaki is a pretty perfect choice for someone who doesn’t care much for the excitement felt by those around him, and Megumi Han, always Hunter x Hunter’s Gon to me, has already proven her range well enough that I’m not surprised it can be this adorable and tender.
In Summary:
Another series with a promising team behind it begins with beauty but not that much substance. However, this is clearly the beginning of a romance story that will lead to much more, so I’m more than happy to follow it through and see how it develops going forward. MADHOUSE is unlikely to let me down.
Grade: B-
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
Review Equipment:
HP Envy 14.
