Over the course of a mere two episodes, Kimi to Boku went from bishounen exclusive to a mild mix of bishoujo meets bishounen – its gender crisis aside, it proves to be a rather refreshing slice of life.
Kimi to Boku is a coming of age story about a group of high school students told in “slice of life” flashbacks. The core group consists of four boys, friends since early childhood, later to be joined by a half-Japanese transfer student and a prickly first year girl. Tsukahara Kaname is the leader of the group. The top student of his class, Kaname is a somewhat stereotypical glasses wearing character – he’s bossy, prissy, a little bit stuck up, but nevertheless fiercely loyal to his childhood buddies.
Next is Matsuoka Shun. A bishonen with a girly face, long hair (later to be chopped off) and an almost equally girlish demeanor, Shun is the glue that holds the little group together. His sunny disposition offsets Kaname’s bossiness, as well as those of the twins’ seeming gloominess and apathy.
Twins Asaba Yuuki and Yuuta may tempt you to think of a certain pair of twins, but Hikaru and Kaoru they are not (at least not very noticeably in episode 1). The two appear to be rather apathetic about life, especially Yuuki as Kaname pushes him to expand his horizons by joining a club at school.
Tachibana Chizuru is a half German, half Japanese boy who is rather hyper and easily excited. Although not introduced until several episodes later, Chizuru proves to have a childhood connection with one of the boys. He tends to make weird and exaggerated comments, much to Kaname’s annoyance.
Lastly, Sato Misaki, a temperamental and prickly girl who is a first year at the high school. Fiercely independent, she doesn’t like taking anyone’s help, to the point of sabotaging the daily life of the person who tries to help me (ie. Shun).
Put them all together and you get a solidly simple slice of life anime about a group of high school buddies growing up, rather than the typical shoujo lineup, which isn’t bad in itself. The story so far follows the manga rather closely, which will not disappoint fans of Kimi to Boku.
The first episode was funny, but not in the slap happy way. There is no fanservice, jiggling boobs, or flash of panties, which is refreshing in itself. Kaname is hilarious in his own pissy way, trying his best to get Yuuki to join a club, any club. In the end after he does give up does Yuuki finally join a club, but not after putting others to shame with his hidden athletic prowess.
The second story mainly follows the introduction of Misaki, as she begins to torment the good-natured Shun after he tries to help her. Like the previous episode, there are little lessons to be learned, like, something small and delicate can be a lot hardier than you think (tulips).
Kimi to Boku is funny and entertaining in a gentle way. There are no bells or whistles, just a group of high school boys experiencing life, remembering their shared past, and growing up. The animation style is nice and the opening and closing songs complimentary. In all probability the only group of people this anime will mostly appeal to are fans of Kimi to Boku, since its style of storytelling can drag in most places.
Apr 23, 2013 @ 1:41 CDT
I found it to be refreshing as well.
I’d like to ask, what’s your opinion on the series in general? ( or do you watch it until the last episode / drop it ?)