Hi Score Girl – 11

Hi Score Girl is one of those anime that’s so good I want to scream it out to the world, because it actually offends me on a personal level that so few people seem to know about it.  Maybe that will change when Netflix airs it in the West next season, but probably not much – if the lack of modern ani-pandering didn’t sink HSG, the CGI probably would.  It’s a real shame, too, because this is probably the first anime I can remember that actually incorporated its CGI into the plot (at at least in such a clever fashion).

That’s the thing – it’s certainly true that the biggest reason this series is so great is because the manga is too.  No one’s making a silk purse out of a sow’s ear here, don’t get me wrong, but the anime really is doing a splendid job of playing the cards it’s been dealt and utilizing the advantages of the medium to deliver things the manga can’t.  The entire sequence when Haruo was searching for Oono against a backdrop of game backgrounds was brilliantly executed – not anime-original, but certainly more impactful than seeing it flat on a page.

The messy tangle of adolescent feelings at the heart of Hi Score Girl certainly isn’t getting any less messy.  I’ve thought about this a lot, and while there are many reasons why this is (in)arguably the best romance triangle currently in print or on the air, a big one is that Oshikiri Rensuke writes it as if each of the trio is the protagonist of their own story.  Of course Haruo is at the center of both the series and the triangle. but it’s really three stories and not one story with two satellites revolving around him.  The contrast between Hidaka and Oono is a big part of that success, too – a girl whose every emotion must be read on her face, and one who seems to never have an unexpressed thought.

That contrast runs deeper than simply communication style, though.  Oono is basically passive in every sense, relationship-wise, while Hidaka is proactive in everything up to – but sadly not including – making her feelings clear to Haruo.  The scene in the arcade where she confronts Oono about her feelings for Haruo is splendidly awkward, even if it never devolves into the catfight Miyao-nyan fears it will.  A contest in gaming between the two of them would never be a true contest, but this isn’t about that and Hidaka knows it.  Sadly for her, she fears that the real contest would be similarly anti-climactic, and Haruo has given her no reason to think otherwise (her forlorn assessment of what “moving forward” means to him is sadly on-target).  There’s a selfish element to what Hidaka does here, no doubt, but she’s legitimately standing up for Haruo too in my opinion.

Meanwhile, Haruo continues to slave away at the bento factory (where he’s become something of an adopted son of the aunties who staff the production line), and he’s scored a NeoGeo CD off a rich buddy to practice on.  This gives rise to one of the greatest in-jokes in anime history, for of course the NeoGeo was legendary for interminable load times.  Seeing Haruo discover this the hard way (and “learn patience” from it) was another example of the anime soaring above the manga for (comedic, in this case) impact.  But the nub of it is that Haruo gets his mojo back, and heads out to the arcades again to find Oono – only to discover that she’s nowhere to be found.

Oono’s caged bird act is no act – she really is being smothered by her parents and their agent, her “tutor” Gouda-san.  Jiiya is wrong in saying that Haruo is her only friend, because he’s certainly her friend – and advocate – too.  But Haruo is more than her friend, he’s her knight in shining armor.  Hidaka certainly loves Haruo, but Oono needs him in a way Hidaka doesn’t – and that should never be underestimated as a powerful factor in the equation of attraction (whether it should be or not).  As much as I adore Hidaka (which is a ton), there’s great pathos in Oono and Haruo forever being star-crossed, always separated just when they reach the cusp of a real breakthrough.  The universe seems determined to keep them apart, but Haruo is incredibly determined and stubborn, and that just makes him want to be with Oono that much more (Gouda be damned).

It’s hardly surprising that Oono, desperate for air, finally cracks and runs away from the family estate.  Jiiya immediately comes to Haruo for help, and Haruo obviously isn’t going to say no.  His continual battle with distraction is hilariously on-point for a 15 year-old gamer boy, but even in glamorous Kawasaki he’s going to manage to find Oono sooner or later.  The optimist in me wants to cling to the fact that the anime has used almost exactly half the manga chapters, but he’s always been overmatched by the part of me that knows next week’s is the final episode. The story is just getting started, believe me, but in the cold and cynical world of a production committee that doesn’t count for much, so I’m already preparing myself for a very painful separation.

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11 comments

  1. This episode is a good example for why I “don’t like” Akira.
    She is just a damsel in distress, waiting to be rescued by Haruo.
    If Koharu didn’t existed, ok, fair. But she exists in this story, she is fighting for what she wants. It’s hard to cheer for Akira when the just see her crying and doing nothing more. While Koharu changes her behavior Akira remains the same.

    Obligatory comment about games.
    I played the Neo Geo once.
    ONCE.

  2. G

    Oona appears to be a mute. You would think her parents would be more understanding of her situation and WANT HER to find friends.Looking at how her life is so planned out for her including an arranged marriage its no wonder the suicide rate of young people in Japan is so high.

  3. Well, that’s not exactly a normal childhood. Oono’s family are definitely 1 percenters, and while arranged marriage still happens here it’s only among very traditional or very rich families that it persists.

  4. D

    Like you, I adore this show.

    However, unlike you, I have to say I’m really glad it’s going to end after one cour.

    I say that because I’ve taken your advice and caught up to as far as the manga has been translated into English, and I have to say that I think the anime is leagues better than the manga, and particularly so as the story goes along. The manga, in my opinion, becomes progressively more silly and melodramatic as it progresses. The anime succeeds because it is taking a delicate and rather subtle approach. Do we really need…
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    (Note – manga spoilers below – Enzo)
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    to see a whole lot of Akira’s tutor mistreating her? Isn’t the story richer and more interesting by finding out about her suffering through her interactions with Haruo and others, rather than having to be hit over the head with how awful her home life is? That was my objection to episode 9, when the narrative suddenly grew blunt and hit us over the head with Haruo’s obvious feelings.

    Thankfully, though, that seems to have been a single misstep for the anime!

    The beauty of Hi Score Girl the anime is that for all of its loud comedy, the emotions within it are portrayed subtly, though always very deeply felt. Haruo searching all over Kawasaki for Akira doesn’t require him to loudly pronounce he’s doing all this for love, because it’s clear to see without uttering a word about it.

    As you point out, Haruo loves Akira because she needs him; more than that, he understands her such that the fact she doesn’t speak isn’t an impediment. Sure, they share a deep, real love of gaming, but there’s more to it than that. Hi Score Girl is a heartfelt, nostalgic depiction of teens coming-of-age, and more importantly, how relationships work on the most visceral level.

    Honestly, we don’t need to see much more than we’ve already witnessed to get the most from this story. Twelve episodes will work just fine.

    And the ending in the upcoming final episode doesn’t require any kind of love confession, because one really isn’t required. The show just needs to conclude with Haruo and Akira being clearly together with one another and I’ll be more than happy. If it does, Hi Score Girl will count among the best anime romances I’ve ever seen.

  5. Eh, agree to disagree on this I guess. I’ve certainly seen this same opinion expressed by others, so it’s not by any means unshared, but I think those elements of the story that you refer to add a lot to both the story and the characters arcs.

    But on the whole, it’s more manga-specific than I would like to get…

  6. Hey Enzo, what did you mean by the CGI is being used cleverly in this series? I just binged and caught up to the show, and can’t think of anything specific. The incorporation of actual video games could have been done pretty well even in a 2D setting I would think.

  7. It could have, but I don’t think it would have been as seamless as it was with CGI.

  8. R

    “Hi Score Girl is a heartfelt, nostalgic depiction of teens coming-of-age, and more importantly, how relationships work on the most visceral level” On point. Finished the anime just now and rushed to the mangas – and i’m not a manga reader – and we can’t stop thinking about the history.

    The final scene on this episode when he finds her and the end music start is just perfection.

  9. Hopefully somebody subs the extra episodes relatively quickly. I need my fix.

  10. R

    I think netflix will make it fast. I’m from Brazil and “chasing” someone to translate the final chapters of the manga – or i’m learn japanese. Yesterday read all your posts about Hi score girl Enzo, great job.

  11. Thanks, that’s very kind of you to say. And I certainly hope you’re right!

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