Mini-Review – Spring 2009 Pt.1 : Arad Senki, K-ON!

April 8, 2009 by shirokiryuu  
Filed under Anime, News

This season did not have many series I was interested in, so I decided to watch the first episode of anything I could get my hands on! (even shows that I normally would never consider) As usual with these types of posts these are only my first impressions of these shows and if you disagree with me, just tell me so I can reconsider them. I’m also watching these with a  blank slate, I didn’t do any previous research, so let’s see how this goes!

Slap-up Party Arad Senki

Interest level: 1.5/5

Synopsis (from ANN):”Swordsman Baron travels the world of Arad to find a way to heal his demonic left arm. Accompanying him is Roxy, the ghost of a woman who unwillingly unleashed the evil that also caused Barons transformation. On their travel they get to know other fighters who accompany them and soon they call their group the “Party”.”

Roxy and BaronCabensisWorthless minor character

Review: I was about to write off this show as a terribly cliche RPG anime. I could predict every scene and each piece of dialogue, it was that bad. (But not it’s not like RPG anime are renowned to be original) But then I looked on its ANN page and discovered there were only 9 Japanese staff members, everyon else is Korean. It’s a Korean anime in disguise! I’m not saying that Korean animation isn’t good (I haven’t watched any) but this is a sign that it’s cheaply made. Not surprising since Gonzo layed off most of its staff. While it wasn’t anything special, it wasn’t painful or anything. Just boring. I wasn’t too sure at first what type of show Arad is trying to be. At the begining it seemed like an action-RPG anime, then it turned into a RPG comedy, then back to action. Usually I don’t mind this sort of thing, but I felt in this case, the changes were a little jarring. I couldn’t take the dramatic scenes seriously at all. The comedy was overdone, but a lot better than the dramatic ones. The main character was the tough guy stereotype,  although the overly dramatic Cabensis  was a pleasant exception, He was probably the most interesting to watch, but he’s unfortunately been pigeonholed as a comedic character. It was okay, but it was too uninspired/bland for me want to follow it.

K-ON!

Interest level: 5/5

Synopsis: For some reason searching for a synopsis for K-ON! was more difficult than expected, since I’m lazy, here’s my terrible summary. (Someone please put a summary on ANN!) 3 girls (Ritsu, Mio, Tsumugi) want to form a band in the light music club. They need one more member to keep their club alive and in desperation recruit the clumsy Yui, who can’t play any instruments nor even knows what light music is.

YuiRitsu on DRUMSThe newly formed band

Review: That was really. Cute. Maybe a little too cute. Especially Yui, whose clumsiness seems to be too severe to be normal. Something must be wrong with her head. This show seems like a character-driven one, and so far I’m really enjoying the characters. Even if they they fall into archetypes : moe klutz, tsukkomi, boke, and the mature lady, there’s still potential. The humor wasn’t as laugh-out-loud-ish, more cute, but enjoyable. I especially enjoyed the cameo of Krauser from Detroit Metal City. I have high hopes for this series.

Also, this is bothering me, did anyone notice the scene when Yui was expecting horde of people trying to recruit her, her hairclip was different? This is going to bother me the rest of the day…

Sorry for the short post! I was planning to include more series, but unfortunately my ancient computer can’t handle large .mkvs. I’m going to get a hold better laptop tommorow!

-shirokiryuu

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Toradora ep.23-24

March 22, 2009 by shirokiryuu  
Filed under Anime, News, Toradora

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Last Saturday I came down with either the nastiest cold I’ve ever had or it could’ve been the flu. It lasted the whole week and I still feel a little miserable, but at least I can function properly.

I haven’t seen Toradora in a week, but the animation still looks pretty shaky. Everyone still looks a little out of place, even Taiga who usually looks fine during her close-ups looked terribly off character. Ryuuji looked the worst, looking inconsistent scene to scene.  It seems like they saved most of the budget for the end of the episode, but even those part looked a little odd. Usually bad animation isn’t a problem for me, but this time it was very distracting during the very dramatic and supposively touching scenes.

It seems like the creators are rushing to close all the ends of Toradora before the finale, making things kinda rushed and sudden. While bringing Ryuuji and Taiga together, we also fully close Ami and Minorin’s arc in the process. Since I’m late anyways, I’ll focus on my impression for these two episodes.

Paper airplane

I was going to complain how Ryuuji is acting stupid for not listening to her mother’s wish to go to college, but I’ll cover that at the end of the episode. Tsk, tsk Ryuuji, to think I respected you at the begining of the series. When Taiga said that she wouldn’t need to work since she was rich. In real life that wouldn’t made me very angry, but of course I reasoned she was lying. Taiga says that since she doesn’t really know her present self, she can’t really think about the future. Well, you guys are making some pretty stupid decisions, but whatever. Although I did think it was interesting how Taiga wanted to live a normal life.

Ami talks to Ryuuji

Next up was Ami. Ami was going to leave after the first semmester of school, but discovered after each day she wanted to stay. She especially connected which Taiga, whom she understood and wanted to save if no one else did.

Tug o War

Ryuuji finds out that his mother has fainted, probably from overworking. He gets all angry and leaves to get food for Yasuko, Taiga runs after him with his coat. Ryuuji is acting like a douche, blaming Yasuko’s fainting on him, breaking down, Taiga tells him to get a grip, etc. I really think Ryuuji’s regressed in terms of character. He used to be the only sane, mature one in the bunch. Now I’m not too sure why Minorin and Ami would like him. (Taiga I can understand though). His attitude makes Taiga’s look like a saint. My rankings for these characters changed quite a lot when I first saw this series.

Toradora character rankings

Overall, Ryuuji and Minorin especially feel down on the rankings.  Ryuuji, in most recent conversations just usually nods and says something to the equivalent to “I see”. Taiga improved trememdously, she’s like a completely different character. Although she’s lost a lot of her feistyness. Ami has gone to a pretentious bitch to taking the role of “the most sane one here”. Minorin went from genki-girl to absolutely batshit insane.

Ami endorsement

Anyways Ryuuji and Taiga sell chocolates in place of Yasuko. They meet Haruta, who surprisingly has a girlfriend (who I initially mistook as Kihara’s best friend). Noto also stops by, and Taiga says that he’s looking for Kihara and that he likes her. Since they’re not selling much, Taiga takes out her secret weapon and asks Ami to advertise. Ami reluctantly does it when onlookers start to recognize her and she then walks away (Did anyone notice she just walked off without paying?). Ryuuji runs after her and says that she should stay longer, since everyone adores her. Ami thinks to herself, she wouldn’t mind if everyone didn’t like her. There a probably a million ways to interpret this, but my assumption is that she doesn’t care what others think, as long as she gets Ryuuji’s approval or something.

Chocolates

Taiga brings chocolates for everyone in thanks for rescuing her at the ski resort. Taiga especially thanks Kitamura for carrying her on his back, which shocks Minorin, who realizes Ryuuji lied to Taiga.

Liar.

Minorin angrily confronts Ryuuji staring him down, calling him a liar with the nasiest face ever. Taiga tries to stop her, but Minorin grabs Taiga’s hand, shaking her asking her why she can’t be honest. Taiga tries to run away, but Ami and Kitamura are blocking the entrances. Minorin grabs on to her shoulders and tries to talk some sense into her, telling her that her (Minorin’s) happinesss depends on herself, not Taiga. Taiga runs away and escapes as Ami moves away from the door.

Minorin tries to force the truth out of Taiga

This was a pretty intense moment and I was absolutely caught off guard. I could feel all the pressure building when Minorin heard Ryuuji’s lies, but I didn’t expect Minorin to absolutely blow up, even being quite violent and forceful with Taiga. It was pretty scary (it was like Minorin could just murder Ryuuji with her eyes), I’m thinking a lot of it stemmed from Minorin’s own guilt of leading Taiga “astray” from Ryuuji because of Taiga’s dedication to her. But if I didn’t know the circumstances before, this scene looked a lot more like some sort of alcohol or drug intervention, not “confronting your romantic feelings” intervention. Well it’s safe to say Minorin’s batshit insane. However she was right that it’s up to oneself to be happy. I don’t know if this scene went so well with me, as I felt more uncomfortable than emotionally touched.

Episode 24

You should have him!

Takasu decides to run after Taiga with Minorin. Minorin calls out to Taiga, admitting she does like Ryuuji (in front of Ryuuji too), but wants to give him to Taiga, because she needs him the most. Taiga hears her, but leaves the entrance before the two could make it.

Go Ryuuji!

Minorin collaspes, but only has a nosebleed. Ryuuji takes her to the nurse office and they take the time to explain Minorin’s background. What. the. Why now? Anyways Minorin explains that she was saving up all her money to go to a sports college so she could prove that women can play baseball. And that she can that Ryuuji likes Taiga, in which Ryuuji confirms it. Minorin cheers him on after he runs after Taiga.

Angry mothers

Taiga goes to the pastry shop, surprised to find Ryuuji there. Ryuuji says that Taiga is honest enough to not miss work. Taiga tells him to meet her after work and if she tries to run away,  to stop her. However as the two walk together after work, they’re confronted by their two angry moms, Yasuko and Taiga’s real mom. Taiga’s real mom wants Taiga to live with her and Yasuko is furious that Ryuuji is working without telling her. Ryuuji yells at his mom for pushing all her failure on to him, when in reality she’s the biggest failure of all (well he said something equivalent to that, but he was still being a big douche). Taiga takes Ryuuji’s hand and they both make a run for it.

At the bridge

Taiga explains that her father’s business failed and he ran away. He asked Taiga’s real mom to take care of her, but Taiga didn’t think she’d fit in her new family. Ryuuji says that he think that if he weren’t born, his mother’s life would’ve been better. She’d gone back to high school and not have such a burden. Taiga looks distressed and tells Ryuuji that the reason why she is alive is because Ryuuji was there for her. And if her weren’t born, she wouldn’t know what she would be doing. (At this point I finally get teary-eyed, you’re letting me down Toradora!)

Su...su...ki

Taiga accidentally pushed Ryuuji over into the river. Ryuuji proclaims that he’ll run away until he’s 18, then he’ll marry her. Taiga interrupts him saying that she promised that she would tell Ryuuji (her feelings) before that. She jumps down into the river, and Ryuuji says they should do it at the same time. However they’re interrupted by Kitamura who tells him to hide from their parents at Ami’s house.

Let's eloping!

Friar Lawrence agrees to let Romeo marry Juliet, despite being Romeo being infatuated with Rosaline not too long ago.

The two tell their friends of their plan, and although they disapprove of their decision, they decide to give them support.  Minorin lends her life savings, Ami gives the key to her villa, and Kitamura gives them… some sort of papers I’m not too sure what those are…

Let's become lesbians Ami!

Since we’ve been both dumped, let’s become lesbians Ami!

After they leave, Minorin starts bursting into tears. Ami is thinks she’s upset about giving up Ryuuji, but Minorin says she’s not even sure herself why she’s crying. She compares getting a nosebleed from tripping in the hallway, to crying when you trip in life. Ami points out that they can’t talk about life since it’s always going on and on. (Ami, you’re still my favorite character)

Train

Ryuuji goes home to get his stuff, but finds that Yasuko has also ran away, leaving his grandfather’s watch and a note to go to his grandfather’s. I was mad at Ryuuji for not treating his mom like an adult who can make desicions,etc, but Ryuuji was right about her afterall… I mean Ryuuji should go to college to have a better life, but forcing to not work is a little unreasonable.

Puzzled grandparents

Ryuuji and Taiga are looking at their future selves here

Taiga and Ryuuji go on a train and they then visit Ryuuji’s grandparents, introducing himself and Taiga as his wife.

Okkkkaaaaayyy. Where to start. You know I was really enjoyable all the romance and the proposal made me a happy fangirl. However, everything just popped out of nowhere and had to be respectivly explained in a few sentences. Oh! We forgot to explain Minorin! Oh! How about Taiga’s real mom? It was a little too much for me, and didn’t give me any time to think about those topics. While I always rooted for a Taiga and Ryuuji ending, they’re going for full blown Romeo and Juilet-esque stupidity. Eloping without thinking? You guys just admitted you liked each other this very episode. It’s rash, but dramatic, which well, what this anime aims to be anyways.

Preview: Things sound a little ominous in the next episode with Taiga apologizing to Ryuuji….IT BETTER BE HAPPY DAMMIT.

Looking forward to the finale!

-shirokiryuu

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Toradora ep.22

March 8, 2009 by shirokiryuu  
Filed under Anime, News, Toradora


Taiga is not at school after her accident, and Ryuuji is worried. Everyone is talking about the future, but Ryuuji seems unsure. Minorin takes a new approach to her feelings and Taiga unexpectedly shows up at Ryuuji’s doorstep.

Ryuuji is worried about Taiga and is unsure what to do after hearing Taiga’s unintentional confession about loving Ryuuji. He screams out Taiga’s name in the middle of class after waking up from a nightmare. He talks with Kitamura and tells him that he hasn’t been able to get in contact with Taiga ever since. Taiga is apparently staying with her real mother. Ryuuji tells Kitamura to tell Taiga that she was rescued by Kitamura. Kitamura picks up that this is related to when he met up with Taiga at New Year’s Eve (meaning he knows that Ryuuji knows Taiga’s feelings).

Noto and Ryuuji at the Ramen restaurant

Concerned about Ryuuji, Noto, and Haruta take him a ramen restaurant. They talk about the class assessment which asks them to fill out their future plans. Noto wants to be an editor for a music magazine, while Haruta says he has to work for his father. Ryuuji isn’t sure if he should go to college at all, despite his good grades.

LIBERAL ARTSSSSS

LIBERAL ARRTTZZZZ

Noto asks Ryuuji about Minorin but are interrupted by Minorin herself who declares she’s going into liberal arts. Then some crazy ramen stunts happen and I’m confused.

Ramen X-treme

Ryuuji talks to his mom about his career assessment and is reluctant to go to a 4 year college due to the costs. Yasuko reassures him that it’s not a problem and that he should strive for his full potential. Yasuko tells him not a get a job either and should study. She says that’s always another way.

Ami is dissapointed

Minorin is now the boy’s softball team captain. Ryuuji asks how she can manage all these jobs and responsibilities and why she’s doing it. The reason she gives is that she doesn’t want to hinder anyone and it is something that “can be seen”. There’s probably an obvious interpretation of what this means, but I can’t figure it out. I personally think it’s humanly impossible to do the amount of work Minorin does with the same amount of energy. Anyways, Ami is avoiding both Minorin and Ryuuji, criticizing the “father” of playing around when the “child” here. Minorin follows after Ami to her usual stop. Ami looks disappointed to see Minorin (it appears she was expecting Ryuuji).

There's a ghost!

THERE’S A GHOST IN THAT GAP!!!!

Minorin exclaims that there’s a ghost that lives in that gap between the vending machines. Ami is shocked and jumps up, asking why she was never told that. It was a big surprise for me, because Minorin hasn’t done something this crazy in a while. It reminds me of the earlier episodes. However, Minorin switches back to her serious self. Minorin then goes on about how ghosts have personalities and want to be seen by people who understand them. She admits she had seen a ghos, she didn’t want to yearn for them and get so lost in her feelings she can’t see reality. However she declares that she won’t hesistate anymore. Ami tries to act uninterested, but seems annoyed. I’m not sure what is Minorin is trying to accomplish by telling Ami this. Is she trying to tell Ami to butt out? Or is she trying to prove that she’s not the weak girl at the ski resort anymore? It would be interesting if Ami and Minorin started yelling at each other with doll house and ghost metaphors.

Minorin's hairclip

A sign of the changing times??

Yumi-sensei asks about Ryuuji’s career assessment and Ryuuji says it’s normal to not want to go to college. However Yumi-sensei wants to know how Ryuuji feels about it, not how others do. Ryuuji returns home and finds out that his mother is working a part-time job. I can see why Ryuuji is concerned about paying for college and doesn’t want his mom to overwork herself for him, but I think that going to college would make Yasuko very happy. Well, I’m still looking for to see what Ryuuji’s planning to do with his future. He could probably just be a live-in manwife or something.  Ryuuji puts away Minorin’s hairclip into his box of “embarrassing things” that Ryuuji showed Taiga in the first episode. Looking back, the art looks almost completely different. The characters look a lot more grown up now, it feels like they were showing a different series in that flashback.

There's always another way!

I’m not too sure what the V sign means in this context

The doorbell rings and Ryuuji thinks it’s Yasuko. Much to his surprise it’s Taiga. He starts stuttering and frantically grabs Taiga and questions her. Taiga beats him up and end up facing each other, causing each other to blush. (This made the fangirl in me go “kyaa~!” despite how awkward that moment was). Ryuuji is still blushing and says he’s just surprised after not seeing her for so long.It turns out that Taiga was not seriously injured and skipped school so she could spend time with her mother. I’m curious how Taiga’s real mom is like. Especially why Taiga isn’t living with her despite how much Taiga loves her mom.

Taiga with Ryuuji

jiiiiiiiii~

Taiga came to Ryuuji’s house because she forgot her keys and wanted to break into her house from Ryuuji’s balcony. Ryuuji tries to get Taiga to stay, offering dinner and then saying Inko-chan wants to say hi. Taiga stays to play with Inko-chan, and Ryuuji thinks to himself that being with Taiga is the best. Taiga realizes that Ryuuji is staring at her and crying. Not only was that really awkward, I thought it was a little creepy the way Ryuuji’s face was drawn.Taiga gets up to leave and sees Ryuuji’s box of embarrassing things. She sees the pin and says she’s clumsy, but serious and can’t stop thinking about it. I’m still sure what she means by “it”. She then changes the subject, reassuring Ryuuji that things will be fine between him and Minorin. Ryuuji looks a little frustrated since he now knows Taiga’s feelings.

Taiga on the railing

Don’t do it Taiga! You have so much to live for!

Before Taiga jumps to her apartment, Taiga tells Ryuuji she had a dream when she was unconscious that she said something “stupid” to Kitamura. Ryuuji assures that it was Kitamura who carried her and that she was dreaming. Taiga is relieved and crashes into her apartment.

Taiga crashes into her apartment

Note: jumping headfirst into an apartment isn’t always the best idea.

Things are awkward between Taiga and Ryuuji, but at least Ryuuji admits he prefers being with Taiga. Minorin has terrible timing, just when she decides she’ll seriously pursue Ryuuji, Ryuuji is realizing his feelings for Taiga. It seems he’s dependant on Taiga’s companionship. I’m also curious about Ryuuji’s future because it seems like he’s never done much for himself. Same goes with Taiga who seems a little too self-sacrificial. I would’ve said the same for Minorin, but I can’t really say about anything going around in her head. However it seems now she is doing things out of her own will.

Waitress Taiga?

I spy fanservice.

The next episode looks pretty light, however it seems like we will get a look into Ami’s feelings as well. I’m glad we’re finally out of the Minorin “arc” and now I hope it’ll delve a little into Ami. (Taiga of course is last.)

See you next time!

-shirokiryuu

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Toradora ep. 21

March 1, 2009 by shirokiryuu  
Filed under Anime, News, Toradora

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Hey everyone! Sorry for disappearing for a week, my senioritis is kicking in and my school work piled up. But anyways, I’m back and here’s this week’s episode of Toradora!

I tried to write about last week’s episode, but it was difficult since it was mostly exposition

It’s coming to an end!I didn’t blog the last episode since it was mostly exposition, thus not too much stuff happened. However this episode was far more exciting. I also noticed the animation really went down this episode. Sometimes I can see if the animation is a little off, but this week was quite noticeable. I’m assuming they were saving the budget for around the end of the episode.

Kihara and Noto argue

Blah blah blah Maruo is mine!

It’s a school trip, but the characters of Toradora! are bickering more than usual. Kihara gets in a fight with Noto because he doesn’t like the fact she tries to trick Kitamura into hanging out with her. But was interesting was Ryuuji’s surprise at Taiga’s mum reaction to Kihara’s attention whore-ness. It’s a definite sign that Taiga’s not interested in Kitamura anymore, which Ryuuji should’ve picked up. Also anyone notice the Ami “Aaah” that Taiga imitated?

Taiga and Ryuuji can't skii

I don’t think ski resorts let you sled on the ski slopes…

I’m still confused about Kitamura’s denseness. I can’t tell if he knows Kihara likes him, since it’s as obvious as the bright orange house in the neighborhood. (I spent about 5 minutes trying to think of a simile, and this was you get.) By the way, I still hate Kihara, but it’s supposed to be that way.

Minorin discusses her omniscience.

I know you’re depressed and all, but let’s not talk about your problems. Let’s talk about our friends instead!

In the next scene Ryuji is being mopey about the fact Taiga didn’t tell her anything about meeting Kitamura. Ryuuji decides to be anti-social and angst in the comfort of the lobby when he’s interrupted by Minorin. Ryuuji gets his hopes up, thinking Minorin was going to talk about their relationship. However Minorin just wanted to talk about why everyone’s fighting.  I got annoyed when Minorin said she knows everything about Taiga and started showing off the hairclip she got from Taiga (which was originally Ryuuji’s present for Minorin). But she is right about Taiga not liking Kitamura. I just think it’s a little odd, since I always have this feeling that Minorin isn’t that close with Taiga (as demonstated when she confessed about not going to Taiga’s house since freshman year). Since Toradora! is told mostly from Ryuuji’s perspective, there aren’t many scenes showing Minorin and Taiga opening up to each other. I do suspect that Taiga might have spent more time with Minorin and told her things that she can’t tell Ryuuji.

Ryuuji has a male bonding moment

Whut. Kushieda? NO WAY!

Next, Noto, Haruta, and Kitamura try to cheer Ryuuji, who then confesses that he likes Minorin. It’s interesting that both Taiga and Ryuuji are opening up to more people and are making new friends when they are apart. They go to girl’s room to give them a surprise. However they aren’t there and they’re horrified by the mess. (Ryuuji for the most part). Taiga walks into the room and the boys hide in the closet. She hears a noise and goes to the closet, however the other girls come back and in desperation the boys grab Taiga into the closet.

Girl talk

Gagging Taiga, they try to keep their cover, but also unexpectedly listen to the other girls’ “girl talk”. The topic turns to Taiga and Kitamura, but Minorin dodges the question. Ami, pissed, brings up Minorin’s rejection of Ryuuji. Ami critisized Minorin for not being clear to Ryuuji about her feelings. Minorin becomes defensive and challanges how much Ami knows about her.

Pissed Ami

Ami tries to push Minorin’s buttons by threatening to tell Ryuuji that Minorin hates her, so he can finally have his “answer”, however Minorin says she doesn’t care and snaps at Ami. Ami replies that Minorin is a good faker. . Kihara and her umm.. friend tell them to stop, and they both decide to “forget” about it.  While Ami was at fault for bringing up the topic, Minorin responded like a cornered dog and was clearly distressed.I was surprised how hostile Minorin was when she snapped at Ami, and I also felt that Ami was projecting some of her feelings onto Minorin. I don’t feel sorry for Minorin because Ami asked the questions that I, too, wanted answered. That was a pretty intense scene.

Ami patting snow

The next day, Ryuuji finds Ami patting a hill of snow by herself. She tells Ryuuji she’s probably the reason why Minorin rejected him. She explains that she had a fight yesterday with Minorin. She says that she aways gets pissed at Minorin because despite how hard she pushes Minorin, she still can’t understand how she really feels. Ami then says that she hates Ryuuji and herself because they are idiots, and that she felt guilty and exploded. I reflected last night what she meant by “guilty”. Maybe she felt jealous that Minorin rejected Ryuuji, whom she knows will never look at her? Or does she hate herself for not being honest as well? Ami’s feelings usually resound with mine, as she tries to understand the people around her from an “outside” perspective, similar to that of us, the viewer. I also can’t understand Minorin, and it does frustrate me.  However when Minorin and Taiga crash into Ami, she unexpectedly tries to pick a fight with Minorin, claiming that she’s jealous of her having a chat with Ryuuji. I can’t tell if this is true or not, since it’s not like Ami to accuse someone in this manner (angry versus her teasing/sarcastic personality), but I can’t tell from Minorin’s actions if that’s what she intended.

Slapped Minorin

Ami and Minorin get into a cat fight, with Ami claiming that Minorin is being egotistical and Minorin claiming that Ami is jealous. In the process Minorin’s hairclip flies off and Taiga goes to retrieve it. Ami and Minorin’s fight is interrupted as everyone wonders where’s Taiga.

The slope

I was anticipating a stereotypical “we’re stuck in a blizzard together and so let’s bond situation”, but despite all the stereotypical situations Toradora jumps into, it surprises me every time with something new.  Search teams from the ski resort are sent to find her, but it’s already dark out and everyone is worried. Minorin, Ryuuji, and Kitamura decide to go out and look for her.  Ryuuji spots the hairclip and discovers Taiga had fallen and is barely conscious. Taiga mistakes Ryuuji for Kitamura and confesses that despite what she does, she can’t help but love Ryuuji. Ironically Kitamura and Ryuuji’s roles have switched, as Ryuuji is the love interest and Taiga is getting help from Kitamura about how to deal with Ryuuji.

Ryuuji saving Taiga

Although Ryuuji is a nice guy and all, I do agree with Ami that he is an idiot. I don’t mean he’s stupid, but I believe he’s the “true airhead” out of everyone (with the exception of Taiga who’s just clumsy). Not Minorin or Ami who pretend to be airheads to hide their true feelings. Only now when Ryuuji has heard from Taiga herself that she loves him, does he realize how she feels. Ryuuji obviously has feelings for Taiga as he is jealous of everyone trying to pair her up with Kitamura and misses her constantly. I hope this makes Ryuuji’s gears turn and realize he likes Taiga more than Minorin.

Besides, Minorin is probably the least compatible with Ryuuji because how dishonest she is to people and herself.  What I like about Toradora! is that I can always guess about what a character is thinking, but since they’re not one-dimensional, it’s hard to tell if I’m right or not. There are always hints here and there, but I can’t tell if they’re bait or the truth. Only Ryuuji’s feelings are easy to tell, since we’re watching from his perspective. But Minorin who at the begining of this series was just a dense, genki girl is someone I can’t understand at all. I’m both sad and happy that this series is coming to an end. I’m hoping for a good satisfying ending, but I hope all the characters get even more development.

Bonus picture!

Ryuuji the Cleaning machine

Ryuuji’s obsession with cleaning always makes me laugh. =) See ya next week!

-shirokiryuu

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