**SPOILERS** There’s a light at the end of the tunnel in Watari-kun’s ***** is about to collapse
TLDR: If you dropped it at the end of the first cour/first half, I’d encourage you to give it another go from where you left off. It gets a little better, then much better.
I was hesitant to start it because I read many bad reviews about it. And during the first cour I agreed, I often wondered “what the hell am I watching?” and was close to dropping it. I’m super glad I sticked with it. There’s a gem hidden behind those many layers of anime bullshit, harem slop, fan service and tropes. It’s unfortunate they dragged the first part out so much before starting the character development.
Spoilers ahead, mostly regarding the second half:
A lot of the tropes do get subverted post episode 16, at least when it comes to Satsuki. Through the beginning and middle of the anime she is overtly sexual, to an extreme. She’s presented as a near nympho-Yandere. It seems it’s played for gags and fan service, but after getting details of her life, and paying attention to the later scenes where she acts this way, especially the last one, there’s a meaning behind it.
I’ve read people saying it’s unrealistic, she’s unrealistic, a troppy character, too extreme, etc. She’s not. She’s a teenager with deep abandonment trauma. She’s been failed over and over by everyone in her life. I grew up in the foster system and I deeply identify with her. I’m in my 30s now, mostly mentally healthy, married, I have kids, but it was a struggle to get there. In my first years dating I left a trail of emotional destruction behind me, in my teenage years I was toxic AF. Being unwanted as a kid fucks you up. It destroys your self esteem, your sense of self, it wraps your view of people and relationships. It takes a lot of time and therapy to heal from it even just a little bit. Your first core memory being abandoned like trash isn’t something you just get over.
So yes, her behaviors make sense. She both craves love and acceptance, and thinks she’s unlovable, which leads to the pushing and pulling and self destruction.
The anime has a beautiful conclusion. Satsuki finds family, acceptance, and starts having hope for the future. Watari finally grew a pair and decide to prioritize her. As infuriating as he was in the first half, he grew up, developed, and he found his own healing with getting closer to his aunt.
All that to say, I don’t think this anime deserve the hate it gets, it’s not JUST shallow harem slop. Yes it has a lot of issues; the harem is unnecessary, the fan service is too much, the start is too slow, the tropes are overdone, it shouldn’t take 18 episodes to get good. But behind all that there’s a beautiful story of healing from abandonment trauma that’s worth watching.
I was hesitant to start it because I read many bad reviews about it. And during the first cour I agreed, I often wondered “what the hell am I watching?” and was close to dropping it. I’m super glad I sticked with it. There’s a gem hidden behind those many layers of anime bullshit, harem slop, fan service and tropes. It’s unfortunate they dragged the first part out so much before starting the character development.
Spoilers ahead, mostly regarding the second half:
A lot of the tropes do get subverted post episode 16, at least when it comes to Satsuki. Through the beginning and middle of the anime she is overtly sexual, to an extreme. She’s presented as a near nympho-Yandere. It seems it’s played for gags and fan service, but after getting details of her life, and paying attention to the later scenes where she acts this way, especially the last one, there’s a meaning behind it.
I’ve read people saying it’s unrealistic, she’s unrealistic, a troppy character, too extreme, etc. She’s not. She’s a teenager with deep abandonment trauma. She’s been failed over and over by everyone in her life. I grew up in the foster system and I deeply identify with her. I’m in my 30s now, mostly mentally healthy, married, I have kids, but it was a struggle to get there. In my first years dating I left a trail of emotional destruction behind me, in my teenage years I was toxic AF. Being unwanted as a kid fucks you up. It destroys your self esteem, your sense of self, it wraps your view of people and relationships. It takes a lot of time and therapy to heal from it even just a little bit. Your first core memory being abandoned like trash isn’t something you just get over.
So yes, her behaviors make sense. She both craves love and acceptance, and thinks she’s unlovable, which leads to the pushing and pulling and self destruction.
The anime has a beautiful conclusion. Satsuki finds family, acceptance, and starts having hope for the future. Watari finally grew a pair and decide to prioritize her. As infuriating as he was in the first half, he grew up, developed, and he found his own healing with getting closer to his aunt.
All that to say, I don’t think this anime deserve the hate it gets, it’s not JUST shallow harem slop. Yes it has a lot of issues; the harem is unnecessary, the fan service is too much, the start is too slow, the tropes are overdone, it shouldn’t take 18 episodes to get good. But behind all that there’s a beautiful story of healing from abandonment trauma that’s worth watching.
Commentaires
It's a little above average for high school romcoms, particularly in the things it was willing to explore like all the sex stuff, but I imagine a universe where the author had the balls/skill/desire to just write a Satsuki/Nao version of this story and really spend more time seeing them deepen their relationship, and I think I would have liked that version more.