Kimi ni Todoke Seasons 1 and 2
(Fall 2009 – 25 Episodes & Winter 2011 – 12 Episodes)
Yes, I will be writing on both seasons of the anime at the same time because since the 2nd is a direct continuation and I watched both in succession I will write on both. I also wanted to note that there is a live action movie that covers the first season of the anime and I found it very well done for the most part. Obviously there are things that are done in the anime that can’t accurately be represented in the movie but nonetheless it was a good adaptation.
(In Kimi ni Todoke) Sawako Kuronuma’s one wish in life is to make friends. That’s a difficult proposition when everyone who meets her cowers in terror, due to her resemblance to Sadako (after whom they nickname her) from the Japanese horror movie series The Ring. Shunned by her classmates, her life starts to change after she befriends her classmate, Shōta Kazehaya, a popular, easygoing and 100% refreshing guy who is nice with everyone, even with her. (Source: ANN)
This main thing from this story that I really liked was that probably everyone can relate to this situation in somewhat. You don’t need to be a teenage girl to understand the feeling of wanting to have a friend or someone that you can just hang out with and not needing to worry about living up to societal norms. This may be more pertinent in Japanese society where being part of a group is more valued over individuality but I’m sure those in western societies can also relate.
As for the characters, the main character is just adorable, the way she expresses herself in public and when she turns into not necessarily chibi-mode but the animation style is more round like in the picture above there are some laughs to be had. The male main character is also adorable in his own right, being able to properly express himself among other things. The supporting characters are also very well done, each hitting a kind of stereotype itself but it didn’t bother me since they complimented the main characters well.
In terms of the 2 seasons, if I were to pick I much rather like the first season over the second. To me the second second goes too far into misunderstandings that just annoyed me and I disliked the new character as well. So, while I still liked the second season- I wouldn’t have had a problem if they elected to just keep it at 1 season long, I probably would have actually preferred it.
Verdict: Recommended! If you read my Kanon(2006) post you would have already known this would be my conclusion though. 😀
What else I would recommend: As with my Kanon(2006) post I talked about the romance triumvirate (or trio) of Kanon(2006), Clannad and Kimi ni Todoke. My thoughts have not changed since then so if you have not seen the other two, go check those out.