Anyway I’m Falling in Love with You Episode 1 Review: The anime adaptation of Haruka Mitsui’s manga of the same name (Douse, Koishite Shimounda) is in the hands of director Juichi Yamamoto, with Yu Murai composing and scripting the series. Nagisa Nario also contributes later.
Episode 1, “An Awful Birthday”, initially takes an anime approach to life as Mizuho Nishino (Sakura Shinfuku) returns, remembering the teenage chapters of her past. As the story flashes back to the year 2020, she believes she was treated to what is the worst 17th birthday ever. Not only have her parents forgotten about the big day, but she is also unable to bridge the gap between her favorite senior and herself.
Furthermore, all fun-filled events like school trips and tournaments are canceled due to the spread of a new disease. Just when she’s convinced herself that the romantic vision of youth she wants is out of reach, her childhood friend, Mizuki, suddenly asks her out.
Anyway I’m Falling in Love with You Review: Episode 1
As soon as you glance at the panel of primary characters in the first episode, there’s a slight feeling that this is possibly a reverse harem that traps you. However the opening sequence fills you with hope that we are possibly moving towards a slice of life that can help ease the pain of the hurried and tasteless grind that leaves you feeling empty and restless during those moments when you Find ourselves alone, but that’s not really our destination.
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The premiere initially envisioned aesthetic rings colored in blue themes of isolation, which accurately captures the underlying vision associated with a potential discussion over the COVID-19 pandemic – an anime yet to be addressed sympathetically. remains to be done. On the contrary, what this show offers us is a missed opportunity. One could argue that this is barely the beginning of a new journey, and there’s plenty of time to build on those grounded and somber themes.
However, this is not what you have been led to believe. The supposed “new disease going around” with lethal connotations is given hardly any space to ameliorate its serious implications. The symbolic inclusion of a reality-based story from the distant past that profoundly shook the world sheds light on the influential discussions surrounding it.
The one character who actually addresses the connection between the creation epidemic and the dwindling powers of hope immediately becomes a victim of Mizuki’s forceful attempts to distance herself from her own weak vision.
Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You Episode 1 works hard to bring out the sense of community and belonging built over the years by the titular group of childhood friends.
However, here too, something seems wrong. Despite the reliance on predictable flashbacks, the lack of build-up provokes the feeling that their friendship is being shoved down our throats, just as Mizuha is blatantly reminded of Mizuki’s potential as a lover. Have to shake.
Douce, Koishite Shimounda: Nothing more than a guilty pleasure?
Indirectly, the audience and the female protagonist are being led to accept things we are not particularly comfortable with. Yet we all know what’s going to happen. With Mizuha ultimately being forced to believe that she needs this relationship in her life (or the developing equation of a possible reverse harem) for it to work as a character, viewers will be stunned and the show will love it. Will be ready to accept as a “guilty pleasure”. Despite our initial hesitation and ambivalence about Mizuki, this is a clear red flag.
The more we become immersed in the story, the more we lose our ability to question whether this is really the kind of romance we expect to see in anime projects. The undercurrents of a suspiciously specific binary between male and female characters in romance have already been set in motion.
Featuring scenes depicting Mizuki’s athletic inclinations and Mizuha losing her balance, resulting in her glasses breaking, as well as other female characters fawning over Mizuki, to the extent that they were pushed into the background with high-pitched voices Screams, confined to their presence, emerged as a deliberate move. ,
This again relieves the characters of their layered multidimensionality. This minimizes their contribution to the problematic representation of who people are not, thereby sparking a more important debate over how shounen and shoujo titles in general approach gender politics.
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Despite setting the foundation for a very real, life-changing event – the pandemic – this anime again falls back on bad practices that don’t prioritize grounding characters with a conscience. And then, to top it all off, it lacks animation style. Background scenes are presented virtually as an afterthought, blurred out of focus. Conversely, what is centered on the screen restricts movement. The art style is devoid of fluidity, giving a bad case of moving images on the screen.
New Anime Review: Inevitable Comparisons with Blue Box
Although the upcoming second episode will determine how watchable and likable the show will be in the future, I couldn’t help but compare the new anime to Blue Box. I was reminded of how some viewers had derided the game, the coming-of-age series, as a clichéd high school romance. However, with memories of this new premiere in mind, I have only come to appreciate the other series more.
Putting that heartwarming show parallel to this latest anime premiere sets it up for inevitable failure. It’s a reminder of why Blue Box – for all its minimalism – is heavy on building its characters and their emotional centers.
Anyway, I’m Falling With You immediately introduces us to a panel of characters that seem to be far more than those we met in Blue Box Part 1. With a serious focus on its potential evolution as a reverse harem, the new premiere rarely takes a moment to pause. To make us care about its characters. Ultimately the question arises whether we even want to return for a second episode.
Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You starts streaming on January 9, 2025, on Crunchyroll. Episode 2 will arrive on January 16. (P.S. I haven’t read the manga.)
