I’m in kind of a funny place with Koori no Jouheki. I really respect what Koucha Agasawa is trying to do here. Restraint and reflection are qualities we should want more of in high school character dramas, that’s for certain. But somehow the connection just isn’t firing yet. I think too laid back is better than the opposite, but I do find this show to be low-key to the point of excess. It’s not fair to keep comparing but Seihantai just has so much more life, more spark. Is it demographics? Is it mostly down to the adaptation, or is it inherent to the source material?

I’m not sure it matters, to be honest. I can say with total certitude that to my taste the Seihantai adaptation is better. Snappier direction, more style. But Koori is fine. Maybe too fine to be honest, because everything about it so far is pretty middle of the road. Of the four main characters the only one I find really endearing is Youta, and he seems destined to the periphery of the real drama. I like Koyun well enough and of the four I most identify with her, but in narrative terms she’s been very passive. Miki is a bit of a cipher still (that revelation of how much of an image makeover she did after middle school is interesting).

And Minato? He’s kind of annoying, if I’m totally honest. I get that he thinks he’s being a nice guy by helping all those poor, isolated introvert types have some interaction. But damn, is he full of himself. No one appointed him to decide who needs fixing and fix them. Just let her be, Bro – she values her space, can’t you see that? He’s like a lamprey attaching himself to Koyun at this point. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt that he doesn’t understand how uncomfortable he’s making her, but that stems from the fact that he doesn’t really want to understand. He wants to feel good about himself.

Does he want more? Maybe. At this point he may be “attracted” to Koyun because he just assumes he can get any girl he wants, and she’s a challenge. To me, seeing Koyun and Youta together is a cleansing breeze. He respects her space – hell, he respects her. He’s nice without needing a reason to be. But if I know anything about romance in a shoujo, it’s that it never follows the path of least resistance. Koyun has to go for the guy who disrespects her, even if he thinks he’s being nice. Youta is probably crushing on Miki, based on the fact that he seems to have chosen this high school to follow her there when his grades (and brains) could have gotten him into a better one.

There are some intriguing little threads left hanging out there. Why did Minato say Koyun shouldn’t “go for” Youta – is it because he wants her himself, or he knows that Youta is into Miki? Another reason altogether? Miki expressing her concern that Minato would go after Koyun because he pities her was interesting too. I don’t blame her – that’s what the circumstantial evidence suggests. But does she have some sort of ulterior motive here? I can’t rule out an attraction chart of Koyun ➡️ Youta ➡️ Miki ➡️ Minato ➡️ Koyun here. I hope we don’t go there but it’s definitely still on the table.

Again, Koucha’s observational sense is the strongest part of the series so far. Koyun’s reaction when everyone was staring at her is a perfect example – it’s spot-on. There are a lot of really strong component parts to Koori no Jouheki but right now they’re just not forming a cohesive whole. How much of that is down to the writing and how much the adaptation is impossible for to say as an anime-only. But I hope it all clicks together Lego-style, because I really want this to work.