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My Love Story With Yamada-kun at Lv999 (TV) (w/ index).


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Edjwald



Joined: 03 Aug 2017
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PostPosted: Mon Apr 10, 2023 8:01 am Reply with quote
smurky turkey wrote:
The question I have is more as to him being a introvert. More than a few anime have a character go from being an introvert to being far more outgoing in order to match their partner and become ''fixed''.

Yikes. Sounds like a pet being neutered. But yeah, or...no? Anyway, I've had people assume I needed to change some pretty basic stuff that I'm fine with too, and I wasn't advocating for anything like that.
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Tony K.
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PostPosted: Mon Apr 10, 2023 12:05 pm Reply with quote
I consider myself an introvert, and usually keep quiet around strangers, unless they strike up a conversation (and especially about stuff I know, which happens to be a decently diverse amount). But the main caveat I have with people (fictional or real) is how much or less dysfunctional they are.

Despite her wishy washy emotions, I think Akane is way less obnoxious than most other tsundere-type girls I've seen in other rom-coms. I wouldn't necessarily say she's "great" at handling herself. But the fact that she was willing enough to trash her junk at the end of the episode shows me she has potential for growth. I feel most other female characters in her position would be overreacting or drawing things out a little more.

Yamada's pragmatism is great, which I'll admit I'm biased for, since I'm much of the same way. However, I'll agree, he could use a little refinement in his delivery. I may be blunt, but I'm also considerate of showing proper social etiquette and not rubbing people the wrong way when I'd rather be doing something else. I don't like being mean. I also think Yamada doing these little things for Akane are signs of his own growth. So, hopefully, we'll see them both progress little by little, even if they don't end up head-over-heels for each other.
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ACxS



Joined: 03 Aug 2019
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PostPosted: Sat Apr 15, 2023 11:05 pm Reply with quote
3:

A surprisingly relatable episode.

The post-credit scenes were actually better than the rest of the episode. The final gag ("I'M GONNA PUKE") might seem abrupt considering how moving the rest of the post-credit scenes were, but I actually liked it. It's a good way to break tension and remind you that this is a rom-com show with dramatic bits, not a sappy melodrama with comedic bit instead.
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Beltane70



Joined: 07 May 2007
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PostPosted: Sat Apr 15, 2023 11:47 pm Reply with quote
I honestly thought that the video froze at the very end of the episode until I exited full screen and saw that it was actually the end.
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Edjwald



Joined: 03 Aug 2017
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PostPosted: Sun Apr 16, 2023 3:50 am Reply with quote
I missed the post credit scenes the first time. Thanks for bringing it up.
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smurky turkey



Joined: 30 Jan 2022
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PostPosted: Sun Apr 16, 2023 4:07 am Reply with quote
A good reminder that you never know who is really behind a character or account and that expectations are sometimes really off the mark.
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DuskyPredator



Joined: 10 Mar 2009
Posts: 15571
Location: Brisbane, Australia
PostPosted: Sun Apr 16, 2023 4:12 am Reply with quote
i think my favourite part of the show is how much of a disaster Akane is, it is like the perfect amount without being obnoxious. Yamada was kind of worse, and gives off the biggest not interest in anything about you vibes, and for a romance he doesn't look like he has the smallest interest. It was hilarious when Akane and her friend turned up at his place, no shame.

The needing to get rid of stuff was very relatable, and can be both very taxing for childhood stuff, but also very liberating.
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Tony K.
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PostPosted: Tue Apr 18, 2023 10:27 pm Reply with quote
Episode 03: I Wanna Have an Offline Meeting

Summary: Akane accidentally eavesdrops on Yamada and Rurihime, leading her to suspect they are dating. Rurihime invites her to a café mixer, but she is embarrassed when the girl is not Rurihime. A flashback to the night she slept drunk at Yamada's apartment shows she was crying over Takuma.

Comments: Out of all the rom-coms from this season, I feel this one is the most exaggerated. But it's a weird kind of exaggeration. Akane is so over-the-top with her mentality and wishy-washy nature. And yet, things calm down so perfectly within the time constraints of the episode, and you end up empathizing. Is this the power of shoujo writing? I can't even remember the last shoujo title I really invested in. Guess I need to watch more to get a real feel for the demographic.

There's something so subtle, yet so calculating about Yamada's character. Not to imply that he's planning something, but there's this kind of restraint he has that, somehow makes things work out. If not for Akane's silliness to just be upfront about her feelings, I feel we'd get that nice romance. But then, we also wouldn't get the really funny stuff in-between.

What a season for rom-coms.

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Last edited by Tony K. on Wed Apr 26, 2023 10:16 pm; edited 1 time in total
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ACxS



Joined: 03 Aug 2019
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PostPosted: Sun Apr 23, 2023 4:47 am Reply with quote
4:

You know, I wanted to say that Eita having a female avatar is the "oldest trick in the book", but that wouldn't be right. He never intended to trick anyone in the first place. It's just Akane making assumptions. Just the old chestnut: "Never judge a book by its cover". Akane judged a person by looks (that's what she did with Yamada) but not by personality. Eita literally is Rurihime written all over him, but Akane couldn't see that.

Runa being the bitch (ironic) by... asking Akane and deliberately standing her up? It is mean, but... really, that's it? Akane would be disappointed but an average person may think something cropped up for Runa at the last minute. Seems... underwhelming for a bitchy move.

But I guess this is where Yamada will come in to help Akane and maybe diffuse the enmity between her and Runa. Why? Yamada is incredibly aloof but he's not heartless; he understands reciprocity, especially after meeting Akane.
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Tony K.
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PostPosted: Wed Apr 26, 2023 10:16 pm Reply with quote
Episode 04: Are You in Love with Yamada?

Summary: Rurihime, Eita, Takezo, and Runa are friends in FOS. Akane is surprised to discover she has a crush on Yamada, but Yamada worries she is upset. Akane gives Yamada homecooked meals, but Yamada suspects she has plans for Saturday. Runa calls Akane to apologize and invites her to spend Saturday together.

Comments: Looks like we get introduced the beginnings of jealous bitch syndrome from one Runa. For all the rom-com and slice of life titles this season, one of them was bound to have some drama llama. I feel like this already had way more than the others, but this episode definitely sealed it. Oddly enough, I actually don't mind it.

My logic is: the more drama during the journey, the bigger the potential payoff. At this point, Akane can't be truthful to herself. Though to her credit, part of that seems like naive optimism, which is infuriating as it is endearing. And then you have Yamada, who's cold, but seems to be warming up with each episode. He's not leaps and bounds better, but I definitely feel the slow burn thawing him out of the ice.

One of my pet peeves in any kind of story is the presence of children. This is most prevalent in live-action, as I feel most children simply aren't well written. If they have little to no purpose, if the production itself isn't just some really wacky premise, or worst, the children are obnoxious in some way, then it can really grind my gears.

In this episode, Runa is immature, petty, and an all-around [insert synonym for bitch, because I can't think of any others that aren't too mean]. Suffice it to say, I've seen worse characters make some pretty big turnarounds (like Eva Heinemann from Monster, and oh boy was, that a big one). So I'm hopeful Runa actually shows some meaningful progression, later.

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Last edited by Tony K. on Sun Apr 30, 2023 9:34 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Edjwald



Joined: 03 Aug 2017
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PostPosted: Thu Apr 27, 2023 3:38 am Reply with quote
ACxS wrote:
4:Runa being the bitch (ironic) by... asking Akane and deliberately standing her up? It is mean, but... really, that's it? Akane would be disappointed but an average person may think something cropped up for Runa at the last minute. Seems... underwhelming for a bitchy move..


I seriously doubt that the meeting place will turn out to be somewhere that the cops are going to raid, or that a bunch of people in magical girl outfits will be waiting to abduct Akane and throw her into a van, but it does seem like petty harassment otherwise. But I don't really have a full read on Runa yet. That might seem like a complete, soul crushing move to her cos she doesn't handle that kind of thing well.

As to how Akane would handle it, I don't claim to have a complete read on her character, but it seems like it would depend on what day it is. She seems to be someone who reacts (or overreacts) dramatically (sometimes hysterically), but also bounces back and switches gears fast. Some people would have been mooning over their ex and the betrayal for years, or scarred for life, but it's only been a few days. She over-reacted, did some stupid things, and now she's moving on.
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smurky turkey



Joined: 30 Jan 2022
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PostPosted: Thu Apr 27, 2023 2:31 pm Reply with quote
Yeah, for better or worse, her rather dynamic mood has high peaks and low depths and seemingly no in between. That said, despite me not being her biggest fan so far she has bounced back pretty fast. No endless pining about her ex or making plans to try and win him back.

As for Runa, I get that she is afraid that Akane will mess up her group of friends, but she is being a rather spiteful bitch at the moment. Though, given how prickly she is, I imagine that they are her only friends, making it a bit more understandable.
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Edjwald



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PostPosted: Sun Apr 30, 2023 4:35 am Reply with quote
Yikes! I was just kidding about a bunch of assailants in magical girl costumes waiting to pounce at the meeting place, but that turned out not to be that far from the truth. What a strange combination of sort of funny and creepily unsettling that encounter turned out to be.

Good episode though. It's not like adolescents with lots of intelligence but not much life experience don't make horrible decisions all of the time.
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter



Joined: 07 Mar 2009
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PostPosted: Sun Apr 30, 2023 8:17 am Reply with quote
Episode 5

I like this show, but I am stubbing my toe on certain aspects of our leads. I guess the first one is that I do not yet care if these two ever get together. Oddly enough, for a rom-com, this isn't necessarily a deal-breaker for me. After all, I thoroughly enjoyed Tomo-chan is a Girl! and I didn't really care if the two leads there got together until extremely late in the game. But it's helpful when you do actually want your leads to get together.

The reason I'm not invested in them as a couple yet is because there are elements of both their characters I find off-putting. Starting with Yamada: look, I get that the emotionally unavailable dude whose cold heart is slowly, slowly melted by the plucky heroine is a staple of not just shoujo, but romance writing all over the world (thanks, Jane Austen - I don't know if Pride & Prejudice started the trope, but it certainly provided an enduring model), but in this instance, it makes me wonder why Akane started crushing on him in the first place other than he's supposedly wildly good-looking.

For me as a viewer, it is especially important to understand why Akane fell for this dufus, given that she's in college and he's in high school. It's not that the age difference would be that dramatic; it wouldn't be, but there is something kind of pathetic about a college student mooning over a high schooler. I'd feel the same if it was a college dude mooning over a high school girl.

Like, moron, would it have KILLED you once you found out that Runa had arranged to meet Akane at a time you KNEW you'd be tutoring her to say to Akane, "Gee, that's weird... you're meeting her, yet I'm supposed to be tutoring that day." Yes. Yes, apparently it would have killed you.

And Akane. Girl is as thick as a brick and too many examples to pick just one. I get how she's supposed to be a hot mess but does she really have to be so feeb that spacing out means she can't even hold onto a glass? Also, there's aspects of her behaviour that aren't too yummy. Case in point: she's at a mixer where a nice guy is trying to make conversation with her and she's too absorbed in her phone to care. Oh, but of course that guy isn't super handsome and emotionally remote, so why would she give him the time of day, right?

Then later same Nice Guy bumps into her and the second she sees Yamayummy, she takes off without so much as a backward glance. Kinda scummy.

...

Come to think of it, I kinda hate these two. Wink

Runa's quite the little cow. Not that I wish huge misfortune on her or anything but I wouldn't be overly sad if she lost a limb or two.

eta: forgot to mention this above, but I am intrigued by that snippet we saw a few episodes back of a young Yamada interacting with a female classmate. Since we saw her washing off the top of her desk, I have to assume she was being bullied. She also seemed to think that Yamada was offering her pity and there was something ominous about her sayonara to him which makes me think that she might have committed suicide. I wonder if this is why Yamada is so closed off? I'm sure this element will get more attention in the future.
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Edjwald



Joined: 03 Aug 2017
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PostPosted: Sun Apr 30, 2023 1:58 pm Reply with quote
Blood- wrote:
Episode 5 Come to think of it, I kinda hate these two. Wink

Maybe your doorway into the show could be hoping they get together so that they can spare the rest of the population <G>.
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