I loved the first episode. Its characters rang absurdly true for me, and good character writing/dialogue is pretty much my kryptonite. Let’s get right to it.

OreGairu – Episode 2

2:24 – I said this last time, but I think what separates this guy from other “I’m above it all, high school is for fools” loner characters is that the author has completely thought through his philosophy. It’s not just an anime-only front, it’s a fully articulated, though extremely narrow-minded and naïve, worldview. For instance, I really loved Hyouka, but Oreki’s initial “low energy philosophy” never really felt like something a real person would articulate – he’s certainly characterized well beyond that, but the disconnect between anime-reality and reality-reality there was somewhat off-putting to me initially. But this guy I can believe in completely.

3:03 – Hopefully this episode mirrors the last, in that its worst moment is a dumb cliched spinster joke that we can get out of the way in the first five minutes.

4:55 – Oh my god, that feeling – waiting for a pause in the conversation, not having the social clout to actually steer the conversation towards your needs, standing awkwardly off to one side. This shoooow.

6:52 – Hah! Yesss. I was a little worried our protagonist would actually be effective here. Nope!

10:05 – I guess this is the kinda stuff (“You could tell me if you thought my laugh was gross” – “No, I don’t like talking to you when you’re gross”) people were comparing to Monogatari? I don’t really agree with that one – Monogatari is all word games, dancing around your meaning, highly stylized vocal affections, and a hint of sadism. This is just two abrasive, over-analytical people having a conversation

10:20 – This is a great ending to this confrontation. Her friend uses the power dynamic to her advantage when she knows Yui is too upset to fight back, and demands she speak frankly. But now, when the dynamic has shifted and Yui is able to speak frankly, her friend immediately gets on her phone, pretends to only half-listen, and is only able to reaffirm their friendship with a “yeah, whatever.” Shields all around

13:14 – The direction and soundtrack didn’t really add anything in that first episode, but they’re doing a lot of work as Chuunibyou-enabling accomplices here.

15:06 – That notebook is amazing. “Called me gross 15 times today. Treated me like some sex predator. Tried making a joke, but she ignored me.”

16:58 – Wow, the Gungnir Hammer, eh? Man, they’re not being subtle about this one. Although I did like the “What’s Chuunibyou?” –show cuts away, because everybody in the fucking audience knows what Chuunibyou is–

18:22 – “Kill the bitch yada yada” – I can understand people not wanting to be friends with this asshole; I mean, obviously. He’s an insecure, dickish, narcissistic high school student. But not all good characters have to be either a version of you or a version of your best friend, and it’s refreshing to me to see a character the show is unafraid to paint as petty and dickish but still fundamentally empathetic and human.

18:33 – Okay, now I know this show is pandering to me specifically. A storytelling critiquing session within my romantic comedy? I don’t know who loves me up there, but thanks

20:55 – “Will you read my writing again?” Yeah, this show is just absurd. There was a little bit about this topic in the last episode with the “people use excuses like not having talent to give up without the effort needed to succeed at anything,” and here it comes up again – the core requirement for success in any art form is never, never, never talent. It’s perseverance. You’re going to suck. You’re going to suck for a long time – years, frankly, regardless of your rate of improvement. If it’s writing you’re attempting, you will suck for at least a thousand pages. But it’s the only way, and the only thing that separates a writer from an amateur is the willpower, self-hatred, or lunacy necessary to shove through them all

And Done

I can understand people not liking this show all that much. If you’re not interested in these very specific character portraits, in the way it goes deep on social dynamics and insecurity, and in a kind of snarky awareness of storytelling form (this show constantly plays bait-and-switch in small ways while still maintaining a classic narrative), then there isn’t that much else there. The romance is non-existent so far, the characters are nearly all somewhat unlikeable (because they’re, you know, insecure self-righteous teenagers, who are never fully realized people in the way most anime likes to pretend they are), the issues are mundane, the jokes are kind of mean-spirited, and the visuals are middling.

But I’m pretty sure this is going to end up being one of my favorite shows of all time.

It’s honest, it’s smart, it’s viciously true to life, and it actually does have a lot of heart and passion: for these characters, for the trials of youth, and for, apparently, writing as an art form. If it can keep it up, this will be the romantic comedy I’ve been waiting for.

OreGairu (or whatever). Yet another romantic comedy, but unlike many studios, Brain’s Base actually makes good things. The synopsis seems pretty standard, but these things are all in the execution anyway – I don’t want gimmicky twists, I just want believable characters having believable conversations that result in believable drama. So let’s get to it.

Episode 1

3:00 – Hah! That’s awesome. Start off with one of those standard “nothing ever happens to me, I’m too mature for high school” speeches every back-row-seat-next-to-the-window protagonist starts with ever, and then have it immediately be ripped apart for the juvenile tripe it is by an actual adult. Beautiful.

3:29 – Oh jeez, a female teacher insecure about her age? Fresh!

5:47 – Remember what I said about “believable conversations?” I don’t think this whole premise-establishing one qualifies. Come on, Brain’s Base – impress me.

6:17 – This stuff I like. Establish him as actually coming from a place of actually caring about things, so his current personality isn’t just “Angsty Protagonist,” but a person who’s been led by circumstances to their current premature cynicality.

6:40 – My god, they truly are starting this protagonist as a full-on Fedora-wielding Nice Guy. Alright, I’m intrigued.

7:50 – Wow, these little asides are really sharp. The believability meter is wavering well into the green.

8:26 – Waving that fedora flag high! I’m kind of surprised there haven’t been more characters that are ostentatiously this archetype, but I guess that might be either because it’s kind of hard to make them likeable, or because they’re basically the opposite of a self-insert or power-fantasy protagonist.

I’m a big fan.

9:45 – “Isn’t changing yourself the same as running away?” An excellent retort, undercut visually by his self-satisfied look. I think that first conversation was an outlier, this stuff is really sharp.

11:47 – “The type that doesn’t have friends even though people would kill to talk with you…” This show is brushing off with single genre-savvy asides concepts that would literally take up full episodes of weaker shows. It actually reminds me of the first episode of Tonari – hopefully this one can keep up the pacing and intelligence.

13:00 – Maybe it’s just because I can deeply relate to protagonists who are as inwardly focused and self-analyzing as these two, but I’m loving this so far. Normally “the world is cruel, people suck” character types are written as much more shallow in their ways of viewing the world – these two are both intelligent, but they’re young and insecure, and so that intelligence doesn’t result in friends or happiness, it results in self-consciousness and isolation.

13:57 – We’re introduced to a new character’s tits before her face. Okay.

15:54 – “I can’t be this serious with my friends, either.” Another line that cuts to the core of high school in one offhand aside.

17:20 – The amount of good points this show is making is kind of unnerving now – that “talent is kind of a fake concept” speech so mirrors my own thinking on the subject that I’m wondering if I’ll be able to maintain objectivity reviewing this thing.

18:05 – And now she’s impressed by the honesty of our jaded protagonist, a turn perfectly foreshadowed by that offhand remark about lacking honesty with her other friends.

20:50 – I love how both of them have very logical and well-reasoned trains of thought, but his emotional immaturity causes him to form that into some kind of superior shield, while her lack of experience and insularity causes her to project absurd standards onto the world. These are the kind of characters I want to follow, and watch learn from their mistakes.

And Done

Damn, this is shaping up to be an incredible season. After this ridiculous feast of immature but well-reasoned philosophies, sharp comments on youth, and incredibly believable characters, I can’t believe I spent last season filling this niche with Kotoura and Sakurasou. I don’t want to jinx it, but I think this might be the one I’ve been waiting for – the mythic romantic comedy with as much brain as heart. Congrats, Brain’s Base. I think you’ve arrived.