Just Because continues to sidle along at its own (relaxed) pace, a stark contrast with the many rather urgent and plot-driven series of the Fall.   It’s rather an odd duck and ugly duckling both, this series – there’s not a lot of fanservice here either visual or narrative, and the animation isn’t going to win any beauty contests either.  It’s really a testament to how fulfulling a story can be just by coloring in the small moments, and how much of a visual impression can be made with a healthy dash of style.

There continue to be two very distinct but interconnected themes to Just Because, like two rivers which occasionally intersect but somehow manage to remain within their own banks.  Romance and impending adulthood combine most often in Haruto’s storyline, because from the beginning he’s been the one who’s most openly in love and most straightforward in thinking (and talking) about his own future.  But all of the kids here (bar Yoriko to any obvious degree, and I’m beginning to think of her as a member of the main cast) are feeling the strain of both.

Why is it, I wonder, that Haruto has decided not to go to college but to go straight to work in a factory?  Is he a poor student, or is it a concession to family finances?  Going to college in Japan doesn’t involve bankrupting middle class families the way it does in the States, so it’s hard to say – but it’s clear he’s bothered by what he knows he’s missing out on.  Souma is pretty unique among this group in that he knows exactly what he wants, both in romance and life – it’s just that he’s not (seemingly) getting any of it.  It was nice to see him have a glimpse of his future co-workers seeming to enjoy their lives, but still sad to see the pain on his face as he looks into a future he sees as no future at all.

Hastuki is giving some consideration to Haruto in the aftermath of his failed confession, and it’s not surprising to hear her say she simply didn’t know what to do when he confessed to her because she’d never had any experience with that sort of thing, and never thought of him that way.  But she tells Yoriko that even if she knows she should have given Haruto’s confession real consideration, she’d have come up with the same answer anyway – “no”.  Natasume is giving Eita some consideration too – for a change.  To her credit she at least realizes that she was wrong in dismissing his involvement in her life the way she did.  But Natsume is a serial avoider – won’t confess her feelings to the guy she likes, she uses responsibilities as excuses for not confronting her feelings, and she drags out her intended apology to Eita for far too long (and in the end, doesn’t really apologize at all).

It’s not as though Eita is in any position to lecture, of course – he’s been in love with Mio for years and still hasn’t managed to cop to the truth.  I’m not sure yet if Komiya is trying to push him into doing so or setting the stage for making a move herself, but at this stage I can’t see Eita developing feelings for anyone but Mio in the confines of the story.  The thing is, unlike, say, Tsuki ga Kirei there’s no sense that any of these connections could be fated, lifetime relationships.  They feel like the last idealized infatuations of youth, another thing that must be left behind before the realities of young adulthood can be confronted.  If you’re like me that’s a rather sad notion, and Just Because has a definite air of melancholy to it – the added element of leaving childhood behind is really what sets this show apart from most high school romances.