"Why do I suck so much at being a normal human?"
"Fictional girls are definitely better. The real ones are too cruel from my experience," says Itou Yuuto, Tsutsui's bestie. That's exactly how our ML, Tsutsui Hikaru, feels. He's the type of guy who worries about his perfect attendance at school.
So, when he's teamed up with a beautiful girl (who has a ❔? ¿questionable❓⁉ reputation) to clean the pool, he hates her already. The first thing she says to him is: "Don't you find it gross when your long bangs get into your eyes?" All he heard was 'you're gross'. He's mean to her before she can be mean to him. However, he keeps running into her. Next, she helps him out in a small way, so he defends her from a boy who's bullying her. Every time he doesn't want to help her, one of his cartoon crushes (the one with the blue ponytails) appears over his shoulder, chiding him as a fool or a chicken.
By the end of ep1, this couple of outcasts, one a misanthropic geek and the other a beautiful girl who doesn't comply with society's expectations, decide to go out. This is a pleasant stroll with pleasant characters. There's not much in the way of drama, tears, conflict, excitement, tension, or laughs. It's just a stroll.
But, is she too good to be true?
Based on a manga, RG is a oods Entertainment Studios release consisting of 2 seasons with 12 22-minute English dubbed episodes each. Currently, only S1 is available for streaming.
We've got another blushing-maiden male protagonist - Asia's answer to the Western Hemisphere's love of blushing maidens in period romances. Tsutsui is so pecked and beat down that he accepts losing and being wronged as the norm. It's expected. So, he waits to lose his new gf. He /can't believe/ he has a gf. She'd be better off with someone else, though.
He doesn't even fight back when false rumors are spread about him. They never last long. He can just wait them out. His tendency to get overlooked is so potent that even his mother doesn't seem interested in what he's going to do after high school! 'I don't care what you do as long as you don't become a NEET' (Young persons Not engaged in Education, Employment or Training). Tsutsui's mom set the bar low.
Our FL, Iroha, is the hot girl who was never appreciated as a human being. She finally meets a nice guy. She's actually a little awkward herself. She never put on the femme fatale glamorous girl mold, it was foisted onto her. She longs to just be herself, not a made up construct.
Iroha has Tsutsui engaging with others at school now. He's attracted more attention, and his life is no longer just his. He needs advice one day and plucks up the courage to ask Ishino Arisa. Ishino. Ms attitude. She says something horrible to him. He takes it as the proper form, like how one is expected to respond in a formal setting. Therefore, initially, I thought she'd be a distasteful character, but she makes the show! It's her spark and spunk that take RG from average to above average, and her character is the most fun. She has a crush on the guy who is determined to bag Iroha (Iroha is HOT. His ego tells him she's the gf he deserves). It takes a long time for him to notice Ishino. But he's hanging around Iroha, and Ishino is always around. Together with Tsutsui and Itou, they were forming a friend circle before they realized it. Them, and Ayado Sumie. I like her... when I don't hate her. Her anxiety is often in overdrive and it gets wearisome. She is often in need of a slap. That's why I love Ishino, she'll take care of things like that. Itou loves Ayado.
I love a good romance, and RG is a good romance. It's well written and well executed. There's nothing to complain about. (Except, maybe: Why doesn't he just cut those bangs❔¿❓ Seriously). RG is a trip back to HS in which things work out for a change. The animation has a fresh look with its pale pastels and very 2D flat-effect. It's unique, attractive and relevant to the theme. They work in how difficult the anime business is, and how hard the animators work after one of the group is employed in the industry post graduation. We'll see a shy guy's retreat that as cute as can be.
"Why can't people just leave us alone? I'm doing the things that I like to do just like everyone else," laments Tsutsui. That's a great question. Only a damaged person gets sick relief from (non-constructively) pecking at somebody else - social media included. A lot of what Tsutsui says and feels resonates with me. He values kindness and he doesn't want to be mean to anybody. He's earnest and caring, but that side of him has allowed in pain. The world is cruel. Kind people have a tougher time navigating it. Before the end, several characters decide that they're going to be better people. They are going to become more REAL. There's nothing to not like about that!
QUOTE📢 If Hearts were that simple to figure out then we wouldn't have suffering like this.
〰🖍 IMHO
🎬75 📝71 🎭74 💓75 🦋61 🌞68 🎨70 🎵/🔊74 😅30 😭25 😱0 😯20 😖0 🤔30 💤20 🔚 75
Age 14+ The show is clean cut but and the last third there's several couples deciding whether or not to have sex. It's not dealt with a simplistic or trade way, at least. Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older.
Re-📺? No against it.
