It’s funny, but I was singularly unimpressed with The World God Only Knows. That, of course, is by a good measure Wakaki Tamiki’s biggest hit. I found 16 Bit Sensation modestly interesting but tired of it fairly quickly. But 365 Days to the Wedding is so well-written that it makes me start to question my own judgment. Did I miss something? Probably not, it just comes down to personal taste. But Wakaki was my biggest cautionary note going into this sleeper series, and all concerns there have been put to rest.

Well, I have been here before with marriage shows. Tonikaku Cawaii’s mangaka has a much bigger hit that I like a lot less too, and the adaptations have the same director. The thing with Kekkon suru tte, Hontou desu ka is that it’s a more comprehensive reflection on the concept of marriage itself, and the way society shapes our views on it. Especially from the perspective of those of us (which I think is secretly most of us) who find serious relationships baffling and frequently terrifying. If there’s an overarching message here I think it’s that marriage is just really hard and really scary. And that it doesn’t have to be everybody’s answer in life.

To quote a certain anime writer from last week: “One common trait among really good romcom is a supporting cast that’s distinctive in their own right while mainly serving to advance the story of the main couple.” And history repeats itself here, as the wheel of misfortune turns to Gonda-san. Shinshi-san, by the way, has freaked out over his separation and dyed his hair blonde (which in Japan is pretty radical). Gon-chan has turned to a dating app, and turns further to “shishou” Takuya for help in navigating the results.

Dating apps are a bit of a third rail topic but I think Kekkon sure tte took a pretty nuanced look at them here. I personally know people who’ve gotten married through them (whether that was a good thing is a matter of opinion), so there’s no denying they’re a vital part of the modern romance landscape. For somebody like Gonda, desperate to get married (which is a problem in itself) and lacking self-confidence, I certainly get the appeal. But he has the usual problem guys like him do – the girls he’s interested in are way out of his league, and the ones he feels he can approach are terrifying.

Kaori (Taketatsu Ayana) certainly seems to be in the Goldilocks zone. What bonds them is a shared love of a certain idol group.  Whatever on that, but in the big picture there are far worse things to spark the fire than geeking out over the same thing. Kaori hid her face on the app so she’s cautious (not wrongly) but she was hiding a lot more than that. Adorably, Gon-chan brings Shishou along on the first meet up to bail him out if Kaori turns out to be scary, but he quickly realizes his services aren’t needed. All goes well and the pair of them revel in their shared otaku theme of choice. She’s cute too, and while a few years older than Gonda not enough to present a real obstacle.

However, it’s clear immediately (to us if not to Gon-chan) that something is up with Kaori’s elusiveness about her schedule. All sorts of ideas ran through my head – a secret family, even that she might be a cross-dressing male. Gonda decides that he’s going to ask her to marry him (in slow-play fashion, but still). Takuya’s instincts that this is way too soon are absolutely correct, but just having spunked a confession to Rika he feels in no position to say that. Gonda is coming at this from a bad place – I’m undesirable, my life is hollow, I need a wife and kids to have meaning. None of that means his connection to Kaori isn’t real, but he’s starting out in a pretty big hole.

Kaori’s response to this rather shocking proposal is to take Gon-chan to see the reason why she’s not free on weeknights. It is indeed a big deal for a woman to show her kid in a situation like this – she’s going right past “Go” and forcing Gonda to show his true colors. And he sort of does – he freezes like Rika did. I’m reminded of a certain Australian actor who defended a virulently anti-Semitic rant by claiming it was only because he was drunk. But the alcohol doesn’t hide one’s true nature in such cases, it reveals it. You’d think with his claims of wanting a family Gonda would be fine with this – it’s a head start. But his reaction betrays his true feelings. He was a deer in the headlights if anyone ever was.

But I can’t blame him. Nor can I blame Kaori for checking out – or sending a friend to break up with Gonda when he tries to patch it up. This is really, really hard. Going instantly from loser single to married father is a terrifying chasm to stare into. Which are Gon-chan’s true feelings – the ones he reflected by instinct, or projected after having time to think? Who knows – this is complicated. I hope he doesn’t give up on Kaori but the larger point it just that, how complicated and difficult all this is. That’s true for Gonda, for Shinshi, and certainly for Rika and Takuya. Making light of marriage the way they did was kind of disrespectful of that, and in a sense I think they’re paying for that disrespect now.