OP Sequence

OP: 「バイバイ」 (Bye Bye) by 7!!
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「ボクらの17回目の春に」 (Bokura no Juu Nana Kaime no Haru Ni)
“Our 17th Spring”

I can already feel that this won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. However, I hope that won’t prevent you from checking out at least the first few episodes of this awesome show.

So where do I start for a show like Kimi to Boku? In terms of revealing what this show is about or where it plans on going, this first episode went absolutely nowhere. Instead, we’re given a quick introduction to a group of friends who don’t seem like friends at all. It was actually a bit strange to watch the four interact with each other — especially when it felt like a constant battle between the head-strong Kaname (Ono Yuuki) and Yuki (Kimura Ryohei) the introvert.

However, it did feel like the groundwork for the rest of the show had been properly placed. Not only was this episode full of flashbacks depicting Yuki’s lack of social skills, but there were subtle hints about certain characters thrown in amongst the introduction. From the way Kaname phrased his words toward Azume-sensei to the stupid joke about indirect kissing, I’m hoping that the story will focus not only on our friends but things outside their circle.

The best thing about this first episode would have been the revelation that Kaname actually has a really big heart had that last flashback not been ruined at the last second. In a quite ironic way, even though Kaname’s kind offering was more forced than voluntary, I felt myself relating to all the strange quirks that these four friends share. From the constant bickering, direct insults straight to the face, and a feeling of no cohesion from within the group, it felt exactly like how a group of best friends should be. Unlike a bunch of shows that have this perfect group dynamic from the get go, I’m really enjoying how imperfect everything seems.

At the end of the day, there are only a few things I can say about this first episode of Kimi to Boku. At first, I wasn’t enjoying the way the character’s faces were drawn and I felt that the episode was moving really slow. But as I got into the gist of things and started to drop any reservations I had for this show, I started to really get drawn into the world that Kimi to Boku was trying to make.

 

ED Sequence

ED: 「なきむし。」 (Nakimushi.) by 沢井美空 (Sawai Miku)
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Preview

56 Comments

  1. Really trying hard not to, but Kaname makes it really hard to believe this won’t turn into a BL. I’ll have faith in the show however, and continue to watch, at least to the point where it stops becoming entertaining.

    In any case, fairly uneventful first episode. Hope it picks up fairly soon.

    Soiyeruda
    1. Sadly and unfortunately, for other fans, almost anything can be made into BL, with the right combination of hints. All you have to do, as a normal fan of shonen, is ignore the BL fans. Best of luck.

      Sissy
  2. When I played this ep and saw the opening, I was like ” this better not be gay.”
    Good thing it isn’t (YET) and I’m hoping it;ll stay that way.
    The stereotypes bother me a little bit, but it can’t be helped

    Alec
    1. I’ve checked with a few people to make sure that there isn’t any sort of BL involved here.

      However, when you’re joking around with friends, there’s bound to be intimate moments in terms of building friendships. And I believe that there is a distinct difference between that and BL.

  3. I have no idea what to expect from this story. So far, it’s a little to dull to me. This show needs more energy, period. And speaking of periods, what is with the period in the title?

    MrMartini
  4. hahah guys read the manga, definetely not gay. Besides there are a few hot girls coming out soon :D. I normally don’t give a shit about shows like this, but after reading the manga (forced by a fujoushi friend) i must say its pretty good. No BL or yaoi or any of those shit (no offense to majority of fujoushi’s).

    Riddlekiller
  5. Nichijou with penises.

    Why, oh why, is it too much to ask for a school-life series about guys where they act like guys? There wasn’t a scene in this episode that wouldn’t have worked as well (or better) with four girls. If you’re just going to do another “four cute girls” knockoff anyway, just make them girls and be done with it.

    Not terrible – I didn’t dislike it. But it wasn’t at all what I was hoping it might be.

    1. A lot of people seem to have the sames issues, but I don’t think the characters of Kimi to Boku are effeminate — not gay, just interacting as you would expect from girls. The thing is… the atmosphere doesn’t help. I can’t point exactly, it has to do with the way the scenes are presented. It gives off a very soft and delicate feeling, probably to show us a strong friendship and stuff like that, but it simply doesn’t work all the time. Nichijou had the perfect blend of random messing up and touching moments. This one? Not so much. There is still hope, though. Also, I’ve read a bit of the manga and it seemed way more dynamic and realistic, but that’s just me.

      Oersted
    2. You stole the words from my mouth, Enzo. Everything that was done here could have easily been done with females- and while that’s not my main problem, I came into Kimi to Boku expecting something that would, well, stand out- what makes the relationships between guys stand out, the things they share, I guess (not in a BL aspect but just as a bunch of guys getting together and having fun).

      I don’t want to be too harsh, but I’ll admit it- this was the most dragging premiere by far. 🙁

      Snowolf
  6. lol. I found this episode moving too slow for me. Maybe it’s just due to the introduction, but the interactions don’t seem to interest me much. Will continue to watch a few episodes at least, though I don’t have much confidence that will come to enjoy this.

    x
  7. Such an enjoyable dynamic between the characters- the interactions between Kaname and the twins remind me a lot of myself and my own friends, really- ah such fond memories! I was initially worried about character stagnation over the course of the series, but after reading some of the manga, I thought I saw sufficient character development in the source material to make things great, if the creators play this right.

    Zen
  8. “HEY LOOK AT ME, I DON’T LIKE BL AT ALL.
    I’M SO STRAIGHT, AND NOT GAY, BECAUSE I AM UNCOMFORTABLE WITH ANYTHING REMOTELY GAY.”

    …is the sentiment I get from some people who comment on this (and NO. 6) show.

    You don’t need to prove how straight you are by telling us how much you don’t want this show to become BL. For one, I don’t care. Secondly, your fear of being seen as anything but super hardcore straight is pretty apparent when you make a big deal out of an anime about boys that happen to be friends.

    james
  9. It wasn’t an amazing episode, but it was alright.

    Also find all the homophobia a little amusing. Oh well, I guess some people are just too sheltered or just plain close minded (I don’t enjoy BL either, but it’s not like I don’t respect it. Gay people exist.)

    lol
    1. I don’t think it’s homophobia; I just think it’s the fact that we were all looking for something that was fresh and light and KTB kind of went off track in terms of that.

      But if they do put in BL flavored scenes like the whole ‘indirect kiss’, I won’t mind; it’s just making those scenes fresh and emotional that I want, instead of seeming misplaced and just…awkward.

      Snowolf
  10. It was okay; it wasn’t brilliant and my main problem is that it’s shown right after the other slice of life series, Tamyaura, which I feel does a better attempt at making Slice of Life interesting. My problem was that Kimi to Boku (at least this episode) just….dragged. I didn’t feel much vibrance from the characters, and while I understand that the show’s trying to take the ‘making usual events seem interesting’ route, like you said, that just got bogged down with the bantering between two of the four students instead of fleshing them out properly (I did like the flashback scenes though) and ruining the last scene at the last moment.

    Not sure if I’ll keep up, but I’ll give it another few episodes to work out, and if it’s still that dull, I’ll sadly have to drop it. 🙁 I don’t mind the slight BL aspects, but it would be nice to have a show that just focuses on friendship between males rather than being BL (like Natsume Yuujinchou, I feel).

    Snowolf
  11. “I checked to make sure there is no BL”
    “It better not be gay.”
    “No BL so far!”

    One thing I found hilarious is that when there’s yuri, the women suck it up and grate through it. But come one hint of possible BL (in a series that doesn’t even have any) and the boys become shizophrenic (excluding the open-minded ones). This is fandom paranoia at its most amusing.

    Never change, boys. Never change.

    freya
    1. Well, I don’t know if I would go that far-Here’s my take: I don’t mind BL tones. I don’t. I’m completely comfortable with them- if they are done properly. The problem with anime and its deal with yaoi tends to be the following: male figures are often feminized to the point where it seems like it’s yuri, but between two guys/woobifying the relationship between males and creating a dominant-repressed relationship, where one is the typical tsundere, and the other is the doubtful, emotional kid/all the Bl scenes completely being there for the sake of fanservice and not actually developing the individual characters/strengthening the BL tones at the expense of completely slutshaming or regressing the females in the show/BL elements (not tones, which are lighter) being there just to satisfy the fetishes of fangirls (there, I said it, and I do mean it; take a look at Junjou Romantica)

      I am not saying that there’s no chance for BL series- there is, and I have yet to actually find one that deals with BL in a very realistic fashion (if you do have one though in mind, let me know!) , but when you have all of these factors playing into a BL elemented show, I think people have every right to be wary of a male cast. I am not saying we should all be quick to judge and jump on the spot and criticize it; for example, Natsume Yuujinchou, which features a very male-dominant cast, handles friendship and slight (extremely slight- if anything, the fandom makes the pairings than the manga itself) BL tones very excellently. Likewise, I don’t think people should be like “OH, there’s slight BL in KTB so we all have to side eye it now!” because that IS homophobic. However, the reality is that the problem with BL shows tend to be a medium for overfangirlization, not a true, meaningful take on the relationship between guys. I have yet to see a show that actually does this. As for yuri, I have seen more well-done stories than yaoi. Aoi Hana is perhaps the finest example I can come up with; I don’t think I’ve seen a more realistic take on the relationship between girls more than anything. Of course, there is also that part where yuri comes off as cute girls talking in chipmunk voices, but at least serious yuri does exist. I can’t find serious, refreshing BL anywhere as of yet (once again, I may be wrong- I’ve only seen so much anime, so).

      Snowolf
      1. And that’s fine.

        I’m talking about a whole new category, the fanboys that run around like headless chickens. We’ve seen them in No.6 forums, and we’ll see them here.

        I mean look at them:

        Homophobic fanboy: THERE BETTER NOT BE GHEI.
        Me: *pokes with a yaoi stick*
        Homophobic fanboy: EWWWWWWWWW COOTIESSSS.

        Lol.

        freya
    2. I don’t care one way or another about BL. A series about four guy friends, one of whom happens to be gay? Great – if they’d just act like guys. My problem is that the interactions in the first episode were interchangeable with a “four cute girls” series – there was nothing distinct or different about them to tell us this was coming at us from a different POV than all those cookie-cutter shows.

      1. I mean, let’s be real here- have you seen any typical group of guys brush each other’s hair? No, I didn’t think so. If anything, that’s definitely more of a feminine trait (I’m not being sexist here, I’m being quite honest- in reality, most guys I know do not give a crap about their hair, so.)

        Snowolf
      2. Have you ever seen a group of girls fondling each others’ breasts or forcing the shyest one to dress up as a maid? Me neither.

        In other words, this is fiction written by a female for females, of course it’s not going to be an accurate description of every boy’s high school years. It’s a simple feel-good series (with some perfectly safe het romance) that should not be taken too seriously. Furthermore, it’s going to get much better after the last main character gets introduced.

        Carroll
      3. @Carroll: Not sure if the author of the manga is male or female (Only source I could finds says female and the artstyle does seem pretty feminine) but the manga is apparently shonen demographic; aka, targeted at a younger male audience.

        Soiyeruda
      4. @Carroll: But that’s my point. That is a feminine trait. Fondling girl’s breasts is feminine because boys do not have breasts. I understand that it doesn’t happen in real life, but I’m not comparing this to a show where girls fondle other’s breasts- that’s an anime trope- but brushing some dude’s hair is unheard of, and it doesn’t happen amongst guys. I’m not comparing KTB to a slice of life female cast, I am comparing it to what I thought male relationships consisted of, and I am sure that brushing people’s hair does not consist of them. I’m not taking it seriously, I’m just simply pointing out that right now for the first episode, there wasn’t much in this show that stood out to me as something no other SoL could handle with a female cast.

        Snowolf
      5. Argh, the last comment was pasted weird. What I meant to say is that I’m not specifically comparing KTB to a certain show that has those sorts of anime tropes, that’s all. This could have been a girl show for all we know and it wouldn’t have made a difference- which is my problem because I cam into KTB thinking it would be about genuine friendships amongst males, that’s all. Of course it’s way to early to judge, but I won’t deny that I was kind of disappointed with the premiere 🙁

        Snowolf
    3. For me personally, there’s nothing wrong with homosexuality. No. 6 last season for example, had light almost irrelevant BL tones and even did 2 kissing scenes; the first of which did not deter me from the show. I’d say that anime created a perfect line that shows which anime viewers find boys kissing to be the dead end point, and which can suck it up.

      For Kimi to Boku, I’m just a tad disappointed. I expected a slice-of-life about high school boys, and, as Guardian Enzo summed up quite well, the show really just feels like a “slice-of-life about high school girls with male seiyuu.” There isn’t really anything to distinguish it from shows like Lucky Star, Azumanga Daioh, etc. so everything that’s said really just comes off as sounding “slightly gay.” It really doesn’t help that the opening and ending feel girlish, and the show just feels “fluffy” in general. It’s a story about boys-life. Try to separate it from the flood of girl slice-of-lifes.

      For yuri (or implied, yuri, for that matter) in general, I’d say this trope sort of sums up any shows that aren’t immediately labeled as such: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RomanticTwoGirlFriendship

      Soiyeruda
  12. “I checked to make sure there is no BL”
    “It better not be gay.”
    “No BL so far!”

    Never change, boys. Never change.”

    In complete agreement with freya. Definitely hetero fandom paranoia that is laughable.

    Utena30
  13. Homophobic idiots in here, how disappointing.

    The episode as a whole was odd for me, for the first few minutes I hated how their eyes were drawn and did not get into it at all, but as it went just like Takaii I was drawn to it. I loved the slight bits of humour eventually and I’m totally loving all the characters and how their personalties clash.

    For the last time for those unsure, there is no Bl in this, in fact there is hetero crushes within the group for other girls in the series.

  14. I’m a huge fan of the manga, but even for me, this episode was a bit slow. I did enjoy it, but I don’t know if I would have if I weren’t already such a fan of all the characters.

    If they do it right, it should pick up. The series is fantastic and their friendship is wonderfully developed. Takaii said it perfectly- how realistic their friendship is, is the charm. Once they introduce Chizuru, things really picked up, so he should arrive in episode 3 or 4. Next week is Masaki!

    And to all those discussing it- this isn’t BL. The main characters may be boys, but there are female supporting roles and all of them eventually get involved with some sort of romantic situation at one point or another. It’s not traditional though- sometimes it’s one-sided from the girl, sometimes it’s short-lived. Those romantic subplots don’t overtake the show, which is focused on the friendship between the five boys.

    Aisu
  15. Calm down, homophobes in the closet. I don’t like fags, but you won’t ever see me act all crazy about their way of living and be judging them all the time. As long they show me respect and keep their mouth shut, it’s all good. Now back to the main topic, think of this show as Lucky Star; only with male protagonists.

  16. Don’t know if I will watch this show yet. I’m a girl, but even I can tell that these characters just don’t feel like guys. When I think of male friendship, I don’t think of girls in boys’ bodies. I recognize that they’re different, and the way they act is different. I applaud the people who wanted to make this show counteract more stereotypical shows about “bros,” but I think they went too far in characterizing these protagonists as “in touch with their feminine side.” They come off as gay, which from what I hear, is not the intent of the story, so I find that very distracting. How can I enjoy a slice of life show if I’m seriously wondering whether the main characters are gay or not? That’s completely distracting me from what the show is really about; the friendship of these five boys.
    No hate for BL from me, but I wish they would just make a clear divide between BL and non-BL. It’s distracting and confusing when they throw in all the elements for BL and don’t act on it.
    https://randomc.net/image/Kimi%20to%20Boku/Kimi%20to%20Boku%20-%2001%20-%20Large%2028.jpg
    I mean, COME ON! If that’s not cross dressing, I don’t know what is.

    innerchihiro
  17. I absolutely adore the manga so when I heard there was going to be an anime I got so excited. This show is actually very relaxing to watch, with dry humor mixed in, it is certainly my sort of show. I am looking forward to watching the manga that I adore becoming animated. 🙂

    Adrienne
  18. Really liked the episode and this slow and calm feeling it gives off. Looking forward to next week. This is the sort of anime I can watch when I have nothing to do yet don’t want to get too sucked into the complex plot which many animes have now-a-days.

    Corn
  19. Also before this anime even aired, the fanart of this series was one of the top favorited in pixiv, so it just shows how much people in Japan were looking forward for the start of the anime haha

    Corn
  20. @Soiyeruda: As a fan of the manga I can tell you it’s most definitely NOT shounen, Monthly GFantasy hasn’t been a real shounen magazine for years and most of its series are clearly aimed for girls. ^^’ Kuroshitsuji, anyone?

    @Snowolf: I think I see your point, but like you said, it’s still too early to judge the series. I can guarantee it’s going to be more than just your average “cute girls doing cute things” genderbent, since all the boys will eventually get romantic interests (which is something that would never happen in a series like K-ON!..)
    Then again, feminine moe boys simply aren’t everyone’s cup of tea and I can understand that. 🙂

    Carroll
  21. I don’t know why you have to be homophobic to not find effeminate “boys” interesting. Personally, I couldn’t care less if someone is gay or not.

    Though I’ve always wondered why so many gay men try to act like women. I realize I’m looking at this through the lens of a straight man, but I’d think if I was a gay man, the last thing you’d want is a man who acts like a woman. Doesn’t that kind of defeat half the purpose of being gay? :/ And, yes, I have known a few gay men who were not effeminate, but they have been the minority through my life (and were never able to really answer this question).

    And, yes, I know, I know. Despite all the pastel colors and hair-brushing, these boys are apparently straight. And, no, I’m not snickering. :p The only surprise is that they haven’t pumped out a “boys” show like this a billion times before. It’s got all the markings of being a hit with a subset of the Japanese female otaku.

    Drew
    1. A gay friend of mine once described being gay as like being ‘a woman trapped in a man’s body’ but not to the extent of wanting to become a woman, if that makes any sense. But from my experience, every gay man is different, just like every straight man. ^^

      Skins Thunderbomb
  22. Haters gonna hate. Lol.

    Anyway, found the show quite funny in parts. I’ll probably keep watching this series.

    ….And was that “Stand By Me” playing near the end, sung in Japanese? O_O Had the same tune.

    Skins Thunderbomb

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