Kodomo no jikan

I think the whole anime can be summed up by saying it is a beautiful story of characters - both children and adults - wrestling with those exact questions: What is an adult? When did I become an adult? Much of the emotional weight hangs in the tension of trust between child and adult, and the show spins an amazing web of balancing tensions: uncomfortable and hilarious, love and hate, young and old, competition and companionship. No matter how much I tried to convince myself that this is just a random loli anime, I couldn't help but feel for the main characters. Kokonoe and Aoki are both very relatable characters in challenging situations with arcs that only resolve after a lot of wrestling both externally and internally. Even Reiji and Kagami, secondary characters, see some resolution to their character arcs.

My only disappointment is that Usa and Houin (and maybe Shirai) don't really ever change. They all get a decent amount of character exposition, so it feels odd that they never really develop much. Also while I love the character arcs and how they resolve, I think there could be more nuance, considering the show feels like it wants to be more of a high drama than a kids show. But perhaps that in itself is another tension of trying to be understandable to both children and adults.

The show really captivates my attention because the situations presented are actually very real. Humans all come from messy backgrounds in one way or another, whether child or adult; and the trust that we have lost with each other always eventually comes to the surface, whether consciously or not. And when your trust is being tested, how will you respond?

So I came across this anime ages ago because it was considered a uncomfortable anime to watch and my gut was telling me to watch it anyway. So I began watching it last night and I gotta say, it was pure cringe at first. Especially with the teacher lifting the little girl Rin up to her house and the fact the kid is head over heals on him.

As I progressed towards the series, it turned out pretty well done and hilarious in some scenes. I was surprised (but glad at the same time) that the teacher was more of a likeable respectable individual than a disgusting human being who would prey on children.

Don't judge by what critics say, I recommend to see the series for yourself...

Well i've never done one of these before but I felt if i didn't, no-one would. So what to say about this, the show is an adaption of a popular Japanese manga series, the animation is only available in Japan but I was lucky enough to find this lingering around on youtube and other internet sites.

The interesting thing with this title, is once you get past the lolicon exploits from the off, you find yourself divulged in an interesting story. The show starts with poking fun at the taboo subject of teacher/student relationships (no actual relationship takes place) then moves on to family dramas, responsibility, teenage troubles and a whole heap of things expected of something truly this rich in detail.

The versions i have seen are heavily censored so there is really very little to be offended by in this series, despite the fact that personally I think anyone watching it can see beyond the obvious controversy anyway, and wouldn't care really what was shown or said, its all available in the manga series anyway.

All in all, this is a lovely cute anime from japan, not being an expert in anime i couldn't say anymore than this, i only ever used to watch Dragonball Z. The characters are rich and worth watching, their relationships are genuinely funny and what we are left with is a complete story, with a little for everyone to enjoy, even if their tastes differ from mine.

I watched this series for the first time when I was 13. I'd heard about it and wanted to know what the fuss was all about. I've rewatched it many times. In a way, it's a huge part of my own childhood.

But was is also no surprise to me why this anime is considered extremely controversial. I believe that some fanservice in this anime was absolutely necessary for plot reasons. Especially the fanservice that was focused around the main character, Kokonoe Rin. Things such as flashing her panties were not shown to entertain perverts, but to make the viewers realize just how desperate Rin is, and how far she is willing to go to get the attention of her teacher, the male protagonist Aoki Daisuke.

However, if that was all there was to it, I would have given this anime more than 8 stars. But unfortunately there wasn't just fanservice that served the plot of the story. There were also some scenes that were extremely uncomfortable for me to watch and had no point in the story, especially the ones related to one of Kokonoe's best friends, Usa Mimi. Whereas the scenes where Kokonoe is trying to seduce Aoki and is saying provocative stuff helps the story progress, the scenes where Usa is shown making sexual expressions and whatnot are just uncomfortable and make you feel like a disgusting voyeur.

Overall I did like the characters, even the supporting cast was interesting. In a way, they all dealt with their own (very realistic) problems: the death of a beloved one, being neglected by one's parents because they are always out working, trying to understand the students you teach, afraid of being laughed at by your peers, wondering if your crush loves you back... Thatis also the reason why I liked the story a lot: this is not some superficial lolicon anime. This is a story that deals with a lot of difficult topics.

About some more technical aspects of the anime. The animation was decent. I liked the characters designs, but the motion smoothness was basically nonexistent and the whole series was lazily animated (for example people in the background who don't move at all for an entire scene, or panned shots that are basically just pictures).

The soundtrack however, was superb in this series: it contained the delicate balance between the funny and the tragic parts of the series. Not to mention the soundtrack always helped greatly in constructing the right atmosphere for a scene. For example the tragic music that plays when Rin suggests she and Aoki should have sex, tells the viewers that this is not a nice moment for perverts to enjoy, but a moment that should make us feel concerned about Rin's behavior.

Overall I think this anime has been misjudged in the Western world. I would be lying if I said this series was unproblematic though. Yes, there is some uncomfortable fanservice, and the animation is not great, but there are a lot of strong points to make up for it. The characters in this series are all interesting, the story deals with important topics that we will all come across sooner or later in life and the soundtrack suits the story perfectly.

The most important question that is being asked in this anime, and one that I find myself wondering about more and more, is: "When do you become an adult?" Uncomfortable or not: this series helped me to think about existential questions like that one.