Or a simpler more straight to the point title would be:
I effin’ Love This Show
So, not too long ago I wrote a post about the stages of love in Anime. Sometimes it moves to fast, others it moves to slow, and then there are even less that get it just right. Last season we had a show called Ano Nastu de Matteru that developed our main romance at a reasonably fast rate compared to some other shows, but even then it took eight episodes for them to finally let the cat out of the bag. It was humorous, so I wasn’t all that mad about the main relationship moving at the pace it did, it felt realistic and natural to the point one can expect from a show about aliens. However, Sakamichi No Apollon just tore up that love story and threw it to the curb.
I’m mean, whoa, we’re only on episode 3. . . Let me repeat that for you: all this awesomeness happened in episode three, not eight or the second to last episode building up for the finale. We still have eight more episodes for this beautiful mess of love to sort itself out, and I’m absolutely enjoying the heck out of it. Sure, some might complain that it’s happen a bit to quickly, but to those naysayers I say (in an accent that lies somewhere on the cusp between French and Jamaican), “feel the love, man.”
At first I was a bit cautious when the story seemed like it would head down the road of miscommunication and misunderstandings, but thank god for Kaoru. I vote him for male character of the year.
Two things that stood out to the romantic in me was the inclusion of “Someday My Prince Will Come” by Bill Evans and Koaru’s last statement to Ritsuko. For those of you that remember my second post ever, I talked about a bit about myself. I was never a girly girl, playing with dolls or wearing all those princess dresses. You were more likely o find me playing football with the boys or kicking some ass in kenpo (just kidding, I was never really one for fighting, though I did take martial arts and still do today). The funny thing was, as I grew up the boyish side of me faded. It never did disappear but the romantic in me was slowly developing. While I believe that a woman doesn’t need a man to live a fulfilling life, I like the idea that the song ”Someday My Prince Will Come” portrays. To me it’s not so much about waiting idly for someone to save you, but more along the lines that there’s someone out there just for you.
Secondly there’s Kaoru’s line: “I just wanted to let you know that there’s somebody here who’s in love with you.” It kind of reiterates my previous statement. However, switch around the words a bit and you get: “…there’s somebody here who loves you.” It changes the meaning slightly (and leaves how its interpreted to the receiver), but I like the message. It’s a comforting statement at the heart, after all. Yeah, Ritsuko’s going to have quite a bit of trouble figuring this out, but knowing that someone does care has got to count for something.
Don't give up Kaoru, I'm rootin' for ya!
