Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You – Episode 1

What is it about? Nishino Mizuho is having a terrible birthday. Her father forgot, the summer fireworks were canceled, and her crush categorically rejected her confession. The highlight of the whole thing is when her childhood friend, Hazawa Kizuki, says he wants to be her boyfriend. She’s never seen him like this before, but now…?

If you stuck your nose in it Honey lemon soda premiere and thought, “That’s nice, but my high school romance shoujo needs to contain at least ten times as much melodrama,” then I have excellent news for you. Seriously, it’s nice to give people a season of two very solid-looking shoujo adaptations, although I wish genres outside of contemporary high school romance would get a little more love (kudos to the beautiful Work). A sign of affectionwhose watercolor look definitely reflects this series).

Mizuho is a fairly unremarkable protagonist, but it would be a mistake to call her shallow or self-serving. It’s designed to give off an “average teenager” vibe, and although I might have rolled my eyes at the suggestion “Wow, you look so much cuter without your glasses on!” Beat, I realized I was warm to her. Having a more reserved protagonist helps keep things in perspective when it’s… well, a melodrama. There’s a lot of talk about “sparkling youth,” and that means examining all the incredibly big feelings that come with being a teenager. And while I don’t think it will be for everyone, I can imagine this series becoming an extremely popular series.

Mizuho’s constant insistence that Kizuki’s confession must have been a joke feels a little contrived at first, but after several scenes of watching her friends berate her for not being a real girl, I started to buy into it understand. Even though Kizuki is a total golden retriever who starts giving vocal compliments almost immediately, it’s difficult to change lanes. We at home know that the conventions at play here are unavoidable, but from a character perspective, Mizuho lives with a double-edged sword of the worst kind. She’s friends with the hottest guys in school, and they’ve probably been doing it to her since puberty shoddy, shitty comments.Other girls probably saw her as a threat, but fortunately, the script doesn’t emphasize this much. And the big dramatic finale? Perfect for that “just one more” popcorn must-have atmosphere of a good soap opera.

I found it disappointing that this story, explicitly set in 2020, only vaguely acknowledges COVID. An unnamed “mystery illness” cancels public events and school sports, frustrating the characters as they miss out on cherished high school experiences before graduation. Which is interesting in a way – the manga itself started coming out in late 2020, and I don’t doubt that many readers were able to channel the nebulous frustration. Maybe it would have felt too real and overwhelming to include all the details of daily pandemic life when it’s mostly an escapist romance. I commend the manga for even being willing to tackle the concept – it’s certainly the first anime I’ve seen – but it feels like a missed opportunity and also a bit unsettling, still a group of students crowded together to see a fence inside July. I guess it doesn’t do much good for a sexy teen soap if everyone is afraid to breathe around each other.

It seems like a minor miracle that this production looks so polished. considering that both the director and one of the series’ composers last worked together on the unfinished, indefinitely postponed hot mess HAIGAKURA. It really shows that you like it if one ever forgets the level of collaboration required when creating animations. Then again, maybe I shouldn’t be so quick to count my chickens. because Typhoon Graphics’ resume is just a series of Joseimukes that got dirty in the last year. I can only keep my fingers crossed and hope that Anyways breaks this streak in the end.

While I wouldn’t put this title at the top of your watch list, I think it has the makings of a solid mediocre romance title. It might even end up developing some interesting thoughts about the pressures that come with a magical high school experience if it ends up thinking about using its adult Mizuho framing device more often. But honestly? Even if it’s just the high school romance, this middle of the road is still miles better than any single example of isekai churn that has premiered so far this season. Show him a little love.

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