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「先輩はヒロイン。」 (Senpai wa Hiroin.)
“Sempai is the Heroine.”
This series sure takes me back — back when I watched romantic comedies and was anticipating heartbreak from all the teenage angst. Now that I’m older and (arguably) wiser, I know of a better solution to the problem — a harem ending with two guys and three girls. Problem solved. I say, why not? It’s the only way everyone can be happy with where things are headed. If not that, there needs to be a lot less pushing away and a lot more pulling in if anybody hopes to leave this series happy. Ichika has the right idea, but the same can’t be said about Kanna unless she’s already resigned to being alone in the end. It’s a lonesome sight indeed, especially for a “Girl C” fan such as myself, though I can’t really blame Kanna for feeling annoyed around Kaito and Ichika and unknowingly lashing out at Tetsurou in the most inconsiderate way possible. From an outside perspective, this series is almost depressing to watch at times, as I can’t help but feel for all these characters who understandably can’t get their feelings across. That is, unless you’re Remon and just enjoy trolling hard with haphazardly written movie scripts, aimed specifically at messing with everyone and telling Ichika, “I know you’re an alien, ufufufu.”
Of course, that’s not to say that I’m not enjoying every minute of Remon’s “directing”, as her perceptiveness and meddling make it feel like I’m watching a viewer who didn’t want to sit around and let everyone’s feelings amount to nothing and decided to jump into the show to stir things up. To that end, Kuroda Yousuke continues to work his magic, coming up with an ingenious script that doesn’t shy away from putting characters on the spot, unlike most romantic comedies these days that purposely avoid series-changing moments in order to preserve the premise. The dialogue is sharp and provides oodles of meaningful yet hilarious moments that I absolutely revel in. The jokes keep pouring in as well, from the impeccably timed one-liners that are targeted at us viewers to the M.I.B. parodies that have become an ongoing gag. Best of all, the writing really surprises me at times by being so bad for the characters but so good for us, like in the aforementioned scene between Kanna and Tetsurou, which finally burst the cap off the latter’s bottled-up feelings.
It may have been largely jealousy-driven, but I suspect Tetsurou’s actions were at least partly because he couldn’t bear to see what Kanna was going through any longer after seeing her forced smile. Either way, I’m glad he decided to stick his nose in, because no one’s going to benefit from not being clear about how they feel, not even Ichika. It’ll be interesting to see how hesitant she remains now, knowing how Kanna feels. What better place to make a stand than at the beach. I’m still waiting for Mio to speak up too, because that panda bear is in dire need of some competition.
* The only thing better than a timid alien girl is a timid alien girl in skin-tight latex. What would we ever do without you Remon?
* Full-length images: 01, 03, 04, 17, 26.
Preview
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This show is so good! It is cruel because it puts the characters on check, but at the same time it makes it impossible to hate on them. The biggest drama is that feeling that you don’t want any of those characters to have a bad ending, but it’s inevitable. 🙁
Hmph! More love triangle with this one. Complicated relationships and such. Why can’t they all be Just be freinds!
Because love conquers all.
Their all friends right now-that’s rather the problem because their secretly in love and can’t stand it.
+1 thumbs up for linking one of my favorites song. I love you (for doing that).
Don’t care what anyone says. I watch the show for Rinon. That creature is too cute!!! Na, nah naah~~
On a serious note, I’m really feeling a Toradora vibe, and it doesn’t help when the animation style is the exact same one used in Toradora. It’s like a crossover of Onegai Sensei and Toradora… which can only be good.
I think Remon is an alien herself.
ya, pretty obvious at this point
Or maybe Remon is actually from the MIB?
Remon: *puts on sunglasses* That’s Agent R for you. Ufufufufu…
Oh boy… Remon almost screams into Ichika’s face “I know what you are”
Her improvised script amazes me, it is a much needed catalyst to make everyone realise their feelings, if not act upon them…
Tetsurou must have been indoctrinated by the school of thought that true love is selfless and seeks only beloved one’s happiness – which he sees in Kanna’s gettting thru to Kaito, his own feelings be damned.
And I must admit Kanna’s sadness made me a little teary-eyed, a veteran of animewatching.
Oh, and this is one happy panda teddy…
That’s it. Remon has to be related to Ichigo (daughter?, sister?), she knows TOO much! Arrg!
Who’s Ichigo?
Ichigo Morino is Show Spoiler ▼
I think Remon *is* Ichigo. She just changed her name and never aged.
That would explain the uniform. In a world with aliens and fantastic technology like Mizuho & Marie it could seem plausible that Ichigo would find the way to be THE ultimate troll.
I call daughter…
Ok, CRAZY THEORY TIME
Ichika is Mizuho’s as-of-yet-unmentioned bigger little sister, and Ichigo was sent by Mizuho to keep an eye on her.
Ichigo, being Ichigo, decided the best way to do this was infiltrate the school under the name “Lemon” and then proceed to troll the hell out of absolutely everyone.
There.
OR… Ichika and Lemon are the daughters of Mizuho and Ichigo respectively. Lemon was sent by Ichigo on Mizuho’s request and told where is Ichika is landing for a visit. Ichika who was living with her grandmother and loli-aunt all this time decided to secretly visit.
My theory is more along the lines that Ichika is the mother to Mizuho, but that would mean some anachronistic stuff earth technology wise.
Somehow I have gotten the thought/idea/misconcepton that Mizuho said her father was an earthling, can anyone confirm deny that?
The problem with the theory that Ichika is Mizuho’s mother is that Mizuho’s mother visited her in Onegai Teacher. Her name is
Show Spoiler ▼
Ah, forgot about that. It was over 10 years since I watched it so not surprising. 🙂
It surprises me how sharp Lemon really is. from the alien setup to the MIB, it seems really well played.
What are the odds that its Lemon who is writing the script for Ano Natsu ITSELF???
Love is so cruel. To die while in love has got to be the sweetest death of all.
That said the show is still a bit far-off from wetting my eyes but you can never be sure with such shows: They might pull a wham episode anytime soon.
Girl A is undecided about Boy B but Boy B likes Girl A back. But Girl A finds that Girl C likes Boy B all because Guy D likes Girl C and decides to stick his nose into the fray. Smiling behind him is Girl E who likes Guy D.
Someone is gonna cry with us by the last three episodes…. (=_=”)
There’s going to be some angst with Girl A as she tries to put Boy B and Girl C together because she knows that she herself can’t stay with Boy B. Girl A will, obviously, realize that she loves Boy B.
Yea Girl A will definitely try to set Girl C and Boy B up.. till its too painful to bear and blows up in Boy B’s Face 🙂
Lol at Remon and her “Hong Kong-style” write-as-you-go-along scriptwriting.
But seriously, Remon’s role amongst the group in reality mirrors her role as de facto director in the making of their movie: she can only
trollnudge the main characters in the right direction, but the rest is up to them. So good job to Tetsurou in getting the ball rolling at last.This man speaks the truth. 🙂
Next week: Kaito and Tetsurou compile a goddamn chart to settle this thing once and for all.
Mega offtopicness:
Hey is this post yours by chance?
Da5id | October 28, 2009 at 1:35 pm
Everyone owes it to themselves to check out Bal Sagoth’s song ” Shackled to the Trilithon of Kutulu”. They make numerous references to both Lovecraft and Howard. Check it out – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j893OnQrd6w
Reply
If it is, I didn’t know you like Metallica and Lovecraft.
Woah, what the hell?
Nope, not me. I didn’t start using this username until I read Snow Crash, which was around…late 2010? Also, I’m not into lovecraftian stuff enough to recognize any Elder God other than Ct’hulu, and definitely not into death metal…if that’s what that is.
What board is this comment from?
http://lolthulhu.com/2008/03/20/metallica-gitz-mai-name-wrong/
God, THAT instrumental build up for the ED always gets to me.
Which is exactly like Toradora – which is awesome – which makes this show even better. I’m really liking this. I wish it was 24 episodes long because it’s so good but the amount of angst required to stretch it that long would kill the quality.
Focus Divine! You mentioned very little about next week’s
skinstatutory beach episode!So far, this series is amazingly well thought out and balanced. I love Remon’s “insight”, too, as a catalyst to
the different situations in each episode, and trolling Ichika about being an alien.
I believe the reason Tetsurou told Kaito that Kanna loves Kaito was because Tetsurou actually loves Kanna.
IMHO, it was clear when Kanna scolded Tetsurou saying (paraphrased) (you) don’t know what it’s like to be in love.
His look said it all – and in previous episodes, too. (I hope I got all of the character’s names correct.)
This series (in a way) reminds me of Level E – we’re not learning a lot about Ichika, really.
I predict that Ichika and Kaito will pair and she’ll break the law and he’ll go with her; Kanna and Tetsurou will pair, too.
…but, I’ve made bad calls before…
There’s little doubt that Tetsurou’s in love with Kanna. This was already hinted at in episode two (during the underage drinking) and made much more obvious in episode three.
This is not my favorite show but I have to admit it’s one hell of a romantic comedy.
I mean it’s the show with the less annoying characters EVER.
Usually we have to wait 20 episodes to have this much “confessions” (plus we know pretty much all the characters’s feelings).
Great work guys.
Remember in Onegai Teacher Ichigo had the same decease as Kei? That was what the witty tiny character there shared with the main character, I think here that shared topic is Remon herself being an alien because seriously…that script was frighteningly accurate. Also either Tetsuro is an extremely nice guy for trying to help his friend or as you said a jealous dude who wants to force things to move and see if Kanna gets rejected so he can move in. Though with that move of his now he is the only one now who is unaware of the affection towards him.
The glasses guy is a bit too nice for his own good. Pretty sure he’s going to explode one of these episodes (along with everyone else, maybe) and go all bat-shit angsty.
Oh, by “glasses guy”, I meant the tall one, not the delusional shorty.
This show is a rare gem on Anime history – in terms of being straightforward on the plot and not wasting any minute (or episode) for both character development and story progression. I mean, Guy D directly blowing off Girl C’s feelings on Guy A (and Girl B eavesdropped) at the 5th episode — how many series have we watched that were as brilliant as this?
Actually, Kaito’s Guy B. Ichika’s Girl A. That way it goes in a straight line.
Girl A < Guy B < Girl C < Guy D < Girl E
I don't know who to feel worse for: Girl C or E. Girl C knows Guy B likes Girl A, but that Guy D likes her OR that Girl E likes him. Meanwhile, Girl E is only one of two people in their entire group (the other being Girl L) and is too nice to do a damn thing about it.
I agree, Girl E is too nice (for this love-vector-whatever), that’s why I feel worse for her.
“This series sure takes me back — back when I watched romantic comedies and was anticipating heartbreak from all the teenage angst. Now that I’m older and (arguably) wiser, I know of a better solution to the problem — a harem ending with two guys and three girls”
It’s not gay if the balls are not touching and there is no eye contact.
Harem ending, with a twist of Lemon.
Shaken, not stirred.
Remon, you win, you evil-genius-in-progress. That really is the bottom line! XD
I really would have no problem with Kanna getting Kaito since she’s so friggen cute it hurts at times, and those sad eyes melt my heart. That said, I don’t see it as possible unless she makes her move soon, or if Ichika just completely puts Kaito on ice now that she knows. I could see the later happening, or maybe even likely.
I’m really glad Tetsurou stuck his nose in as well, even when he was shooting himself in the foot. Someone needs to direct his attention to the fluffy, adorable, panda-loving girl beside him. Or better yet, Mio could make a move! She won’t because she knows his feels probably better than he does, but still, she needs some attention.
The ending of each episodes always leave cliffhangers. The director know how to create hype making us dying to know what’s going to happen next.
This anime executes the most perfect cliff-hangers ever.
I think Tetsurou was about to confess when the rain stopped but was interrupted by Kanna.
Since Tetsurou told Kaito that Kanna is in love with him then Tetsurou should also tell Kanna that Kaito now knows her feelings to push her on.
This is closest I can see an anime becoming the real thing. The jealousy, angst, passion is all real here and despite the premise being about aliens and love, the story is really down to earth and relate able in all levels.
I love how during the show, Kaito is doing the narration as if he was from the future and this whole show is like a vivid flashback all recorded in his camera.
Slice of Life in its Finest form.
I’m beginning to suspect the characters are descendants of the Onegai series main characters. Ichika may be looking for the lake scenery from Onegai Teacher/Twins. Remon seems directly descended from “ufufufu” Ichigo, and it’s not too much of a stretch that her mother or grandmother told her stories of hot alien chicks and their bio-terminal interfaces like Marie and Rinon.
Who are Ichigo and Mizuho? I keep hearing their names everywhere and I haven’t seen any characters with those names unless it was something I missed a few eps back.
Characters from the show Onegai Teacher w/c comes before Onegai Twins.
Watch it and you’ll understand.
In addition to comment above, Onegai Teacher and AnoNatsu is written by the same author, and similar initial premise of alien girl + love triangle. That’s why many peoples relate and compare them.
Anywho, if you like this show then you’re obligated to watch Onegai Teacher (and Onegai Twins) too. 😀
I’m calling it right now, Remon is a 31 year old MIB agent. It explains her name and uniform.
Also, in the preview, is that who I think it is? Is she gonna fall in love with Kaito? Does she still have a dog with her?
Why are they still wearing their school uniform if it’s summer vacation?
It’s the mystery of <a href = "http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/LimitedWardrobe" title="Limited Wardrobe")
Haha. HTML fail XD
its because its summer vacation!! ^_^ i know it doesn’t make any sense but you know how animes are. high budgeted anime can have a lot of wardrobe, but lower budget ones have limited wardrobes. (thats what ive noticed.) but i dont believe this anime is a low budget anime.. the animation styles are superb, even the story telling (says me who rages at every attempt to spice the story e.g. Tetsurou’s decision to tell Kaito how Kanna feels)
P.S. I rage at Amagami too. I am so envious of Junichi! Haha!
Haha, I get your point. That’s why I remember Senjougahara pretty well when it comes to having different clothing. So far, she’s the only character to change her set of clothes and hair style that I can remember pretty well.
I am just glad that someone finally got the ball into other ppl’s business by actually confess and say it out plainly how their friends feel, nothing more annoying is dense char and other refuse to say whats in their heart, if a retard dense main char don’t know how the others feel, they just gonna wait for god’s miracle to somehow magical think they might realize one day. Ppl need to start taking initiative and grab what they want, damn anyone who stand in their way.
Remon is so on top of things that I suspect she is not entirely human herself. I’m probably wrong, but it’s one of those sneaking suspicions.
Damn they did it again. Those ending moments aren’t good for my heart. And the speed that this series is going at to put all this story in a single season is amazing. Unlike other romantic comedies there’s never any break for you to get bored.
Also as I stared at her, the half face of Remon at the end of the preview got scarier and scarier.
Guhhh, Kaito’s cluelessness with Kanna is getting a little annoying. I mean, how could you not think Kanna is adorable??
Not sure if it’s just me, but Tetsurou was giving me a bit of Kamina vibe in this episode.
He looks smug and cocky with the sunglasses, is in love with a tsundere, and is a lot more perceptive than he is letting on and only acts clueless.
Show Spoiler ▼
Show Spoiler ▼
“That would be impossible” – most hurtful line. I personally want IchikaxKaito , TetsurouxKanna since Tetsurou is such a nice guy =/
Totally with you on this one. I hope Tetsuro wins Kanna’s heart. Ichika and Kaito-kun really seem to mesh. Kanna almost seems like an interloper- and the worst part of it- she knows it. I choose Ichika because she is a truly nice person.
Ugh that line at testurou stung quite a bit.
But what he does at the end kinda balances it out ._.
Cmon kanna!
Would be just amusing I guess if some guy from Ichika’s planet came AFTER HER.. some sort of childhood friend, to throw into the mix just to make a nice swing party.
Where can I buy a Rinon? Best animal ever.
OMG tell me that line “Kanna loves you” at the end didnt just make your mouth drop! Perfect execution!
I mean im used to these things taking forever to fester and I forgot about the old school romantic comedy styles(excluding a few).
OMG, for an anime to make me feel like im watching a soap opera Friggin bravo! These pple are real to me!
MY inner anime-nerd is havin an orgasm right now!……. Too much?
I was disappointed by this anime, for it didn’t become a complex genre, and not going to they direction I want it to go to. I mean, I was pretty convinced that this anime was going to be good after seeing its picture on the line up….Turns out I was right.
While I was really dissapointed by the first three episode, the last 2 episodes, which I watched the same day, got me hooked up in the series. It’s pretty nice to see an anime that breathes life to its otherwise dying genre.
Some people seem to think that the tall dude is unrealistically good natured, but I think it’s the opposite. He wants the childhood friend with the unrequited love to hurry up and get rejected so he can move in on her for his own desires. He was so impatient that he spoiled her chance to confess to the MC, which is a really selfish thing to do. Other than that, I do think he’s a really decent guy–especially for someone with such good physical traits.
Regardless, I hope he ends up with the soft spoken girl. That scene a few episodes ago where the sound momentarily went silent while she reached out and grabbed the cuff of his shirt really got to me. And I think she needs more screen time and focus anyway.
Sorry I don’t remember any of the characters’ names. I’ve been in and out of watching this show.
I have not watched the recent episodes, but from your reviews it sure looks like another generic rom-com. Well, maybe I will check it out again when it is finished.
Something I don’t understand is why they are wearing their school uniform when it’s summer vaction? It doesn’t make sense to me…