So it’s pretty rare for me to get emotional over anime in a “manly tears” sort of way. But not unicorn-rare – I mean, it happens occasionally. But not typically for the sort of reasons it did with this finale. Here, it was just “aware” – basically I turned into Momo-sensei in the end. I didn’t quite tear up (and no blood) but I definitely had that tug in the chest you get when you’re really feeling it, and it all comes from affection for the two adorable oddballs at the heart of Aharen-san wa Hakarenai. The rest of the cast is really good too, but these two – they’re really special. And so is this series.
As to (almost) closing with Oshiro-san, well – admittedly it wouldn’t have been my first choice. As her archetype goes she’s one of the better ones, but she’s still the weakest character here and her part of the story the least engaging. But I’m good with it, because the writing effectively used her as a bridge to get Raidou and Reina to the next stage of their relationship. I won’t swear to it but I think this part may have been anime-original, a way to give the season some closure not present in this part of the manga (for obvious reasons). Maybe there were other ways you could have done it but this worked well enough.
This interlude also filled in the blanks on what exactly went down on that camping trip. Oshiro has come away with the impression that Raidou rejected Reina and that’s ostensibly (though not really) the reason for their duel. But in point of fact Reina chickened out and never told Raidou how she felt. But not even Raidou is so dense (she even called him dense, ROFL) as to miss the handwriting on this wall. Emboldened, he did tell her – which prompted the kiss. And unfortunately Reina took Raidou’s (understandably) surprised reaction as evidence that she’s spooked him.
So… That added layer of closeness was a result of Raidou feeling as if a barrier had been lowered. And Oshiro is out of luck romantically, which is what this duel really comes down to. Fortunately for Raidou it’s Reversi (or “Baby Go” as I call it) rather than swordfighting she chooses, and the power of love actually enables him to win – with his pieces in the shape of a heart, no less. Best of all he announces in no uncertain terms to Oshiro how he feels, and Reina has snuck up behind him and heard it. There’s no room for ambiguity at this point, which is a tough break for Oshiro but sometimes you can’t fight fate.
With that pretty much settled, the board is cleared for Aharen-san wa Hakarenai to close with Raidou’s imagination and some heartwarming earnestness of the sort this show especially excels at. That imagination has leveled up to include relationship delusions, as Raidou convinces himself that Reina disappearing after class is a sign she’s enforcing a “cold spell” on their relationship. He soon discovers she’s just tending some plants, but upon realizing they’re cassava (they’re not) a whole raft of Raidou-isms come pouring out of that limitless imagination.
As it turns out those are lupinus flowers, and a more fitting bloom Reina couldn’t have chosen to cultivate. They represent a bunch of stuff (as all flowers seem to in Japan), and Raidou is well aware of the “imagination” meaning – which is pretty on-the-nose. There are other meanings too, but “greed” is definitely not what Reina was going for. It’s pretty funny that she makes that face and calls Raidou dense, but what I really love about this is that she’s so damn nice that she has to apologize almost immediately for that mildest of jibes.
The tea ceremony (do schools really have tearooms like that?) was really just a way to tie everything together, and a lovely one at that. Reina thanks everybody for the turn her school life has taken, but it’s no secret who the real knight in shining armor is. And those other meanings for lupinus – “You bring me peace” and “I’m always happy” – are just as fitting for this irresistible duo as the first one. What a sweet, lovely, endearingly weird pair these two are – they wore down whatever resistance I had a long time ago, so I was defenseless for that final aware onslaught which closed the series.
Naturally enough we didn’t get a sequel announcement, and while that never makes me happy with a series I love, I was very much resigned to it. Aharen-san is a show that had one cour written all over it – it’s not nearly pandering enough to compete with the inferior spins on the premise which have broader appeal. Shows like this basically exist to be advertisements for the source material, and this did that job as well as it could possibly be done – it certainly worked on me, and if not a huge audience, it’s certainly built an enthusiastic one.
Aharen-san wa Hakarenai was my sleeper pick for spring, so I’m going to take full credit for nailing another one of those. Nevertheless it cleared my expectations bar by a huge margin, and it’s easily the series with the biggest gap between my overall regard and those initial expectations. Reina and Raidou ended up being one of my favorite anime couples in years, and the show works equally well with both halves of the “romantic comedy” label. There just aren’t a lot of anime that engender so much positivity, and when they come along we really should treasure them – because they’re doing us a great service. How can I give a series higher praise than to say it makes me happy?
Haraga
June 18, 2022 at 5:58 pmNow that the show is over, I can definitely see it in Top 11-20 at the end of the year.
Guardian Enzo
June 18, 2022 at 7:02 pmFor sure – just a question of where. Fall will have a lot to say about that. There have definitely been years it would have made the top 10.
sonicsenryaku
June 18, 2022 at 6:22 pmIf the whole Oshiro bit and Raido needing to explain what happened at the camping trip wasn’t anime-original, then my interpretation of said camping trip prior was both correct and incorrect. Correct in that for sure Raido confessed to Reina, but incorrect in that Reina’s tears were a sign that she thought she had messed up when she kissed him, which then I assume Raido and her acting close the next day was Reina’s assurance that she didn’t mess up their relationship the way she thought she did. Either way, I appreciate this show for actually making the couple in question feel like they were getting closer over the course of the show without obsessing over every single romantic implication the way a typical romcom does; my god does that get annoying. It’s so refreshing to see a show where the two leads grow close to each other naturally and genuinely show that affection towards one another. It’s sweet without being cloying (thank god) while being restrained enough to feel somewhat relatable, despite ours leads deadpan personalities. I really enjoyed this show, enough to go check manga even. One of the better romance stories this year. Overall, I’d give it a 6.5/10 for now…it’s may be even closer to a 7; maybe but I’ve got the rest of the year to figure that out. 2 for 2 so far with Aharen-san and My dress-up darling in terms of romance shows of 2022 I have some affection for that aren’t sequels. Now let’s see if Call of the Night can make it 3 for 3
It’s Penguin’ Time
June 18, 2022 at 6:37 pmI remember reading your first couple of posts wondering about the romance, and I was pretty much chuckling in anticipation.
This was a series I knew you’d love from beginning to end as long as the adaptation stayed true to the manga. I’m glad it got its time in the limelight, and while I do hope it gets to see more screentime in the form of a second season, knowing that the series has done well enough for the manga to chug along quietly and comfortably is good enough for me.
Guardian Enzo
June 18, 2022 at 7:03 pmLike I said, I’m resigned to only getting one season, it just fits the profile. Anything more would be a massive surprise.
Collectr
June 18, 2022 at 9:30 pmI too am sad that Aharen-san will be a “one season wonder,” but in a way, it’s an improvement over the past. In the 90s and early 00s, anime “teasers” or adverts for manga and light novels were usually very short OVA series. So Sanctuary (ten volumes) got one episode; Elf 17 (six volumes) got one; Hayou no Tsurugi (40!) got two; Nozomi Witches (48!!) got three; etc. With the demise of the standalone OVA as a viable format, the norm for an adapted property is a minimum of 11-12 episodes.
Perhaps we’ll get an OVA or two as promos in future manga volumes.
Guardian Enzo
June 18, 2022 at 9:35 pmNo better example than Yokahama Kaidashi Kikou, possibly the greatest manga ever written.
Marty
June 18, 2022 at 9:48 pmOnly Raídou would have an imagination wild enough to think Reina is giving him the cold shoulder literally the same afternoon (or the next day) that they became an “official” couple. I love this guy.
I got to admit, for anime Romances that aren’t Seinen, Reina and Raídou became official with lightning speed. If their development happened in the Manga as well, that’s some confidence in the writer’s part.
While it won’t nearly be remembered by the anime community as much as Komi or Kaguya, I’m extremely glad this series was even made in the first place. There are Plenty of great stories that remain unadapted, so I’m gonna echo the positivity of this series and blog post and cherish those that are, even if it’s 1 cour (maybe I could be proven wrong, that character shown at the crédits might hint at the slightest chance of a sequel season.)
Guardian Enzo
June 18, 2022 at 10:00 pmYeah, she sure stood out. But I think that was just a nod to the upcoming manga chapters.
Princess Usagi
June 19, 2022 at 7:32 amThis series was such a breath of fresh air-no contrivances or extended rival drama. The way Raido and Reina fell into their romance gradually felt so natural and graceful. I find it interesting that Reina went with lupins-not what I usually associate with romance (then again, it could be because I can’t help but associate it with Monty Python and lupin-robbery), though it’s a perfect fit for them, knowing the meaning. Raido’s imagination really is the best!
Guardian Enzo
June 19, 2022 at 8:14 amAs I said, the world would be a much more interesting place if we saw it like Raidou did.