I learned a few things while watching Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai!, which is the first of my fall anime picks to conclude its run.
First, I learned that about chuunibyou, also known as eight-grade syndrome or adolescent delusion. It turns out that a good number of Japanese adolescents go through this phase, where they find something to obsess over. The most common period this occurs is when the adolescent is in eight grade.
Second, chuunibyou takes on different forms. In certain cases, such as those portrayed in the anime series, these adolescents tend to act differently, sometimes even taking on a different persona that's completely rooted in fantasy.
Third, there are those who wake up from their delusions and become embarrassed by it, usually when they hit high school.
Fourth, on the other end of the spectrum, there are those who refuse to let go of their chuunibyou.
And the fifth and last lesson that I would learn is that patience is indeed a virtue and can be rewarding, especially if the reward involved is getting to watch the great story development of Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai!.
Togashi Yuuta is determined to leave behind his embarrassing past, even going so far as to enroll in a high school where nobody knows him. Yuuta was once afflicted with chuunibyou, taking on the persona of a supposed denizen of darkness called the Dark Flame Master. He begins the new school year hoping that he can live a normal life and hopefully get closer to popular classmate Nibutani Shinka. All of his hopes are dashed when he meets his neighbor and classmate Takanashi Rikka, who never quite got rid of her chuunibyou. Wearing an eye patch on her right eye and bandages on her left arm, she claims that she possesses the "Wicked Eye" and pursues Yuuta to join her in his persona as the Dark Flame Master, so they can both search for the "Ethereal Horizon". Yuuta finds himself constantly embarrassed by Rikka's antics and desperately tries to keep the secret of his former chuunibyou, but this is made all the more difficult when Rikka decides to establish a club at their school. Rikka's "servant" Dekomori Sanae joins the fray, as well as nap enthusiast Tsuyuri Kumin, helping them establish the school circle Far Eastern Magical Nap Society.
I had pegged Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! (translated as Regardless of My Adolescent Delusions of Grandeur, I Want a Date!) to be a straight up comedy that featured plenty of misadventures for its lead characters Yuuta and Rikka. In fact, there was a time when I wondered where the anime series was actually headed, since it seemed that the stories were just made up of an exasperated Yuuta trying to keep a lid on the craziness that Rikka brought to his life.
Don't get me wrong. I appreciated the comedy that the series offered, which came in the form of ridiculous situations and caricature characters, who are varying degrees of crazy but generally endearing. You will laugh at the antics of Rikka and Dekomori, and the wide eyed wonder of Kumin when she manages to keep awake, even as you empathize with Yuuta's feeble attempts to maintain normalcy in his life. While I wondered at the evolution of the story, I was prepared to just laugh my way until the final episode of the series.
Yet, a few episodes in, my thoughts on the series started to change.
For me, it was the introduction of Rikka's sister, Toka, that acted as a catalyst to change my impression. The struggle between the no-nonsense, ladle-wielding Toka and the delusional Rikka was the reason why Yuuta started to find out more about the reason why Rikka was still so immersed in her chuunibyou. Toka, recognizing Yuuta's influence on Rikka, even blackmails him to helping her deal with Rikka in various situations, threatening to release a recording of the Dark Flame Master during Yuuta's chuunibyou years.
What they eventually reveal to be the reason for Rikka's chuunibyou is something that's less rooted in comedy and more rooted in the loss of someone very important. This very reason gives weight to the struggle between the sisters, with one trying to find answers in a world that doesn't exist and the other desperate to bring her sister to face the truth in the real world. This part of the story featured on Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! gave the series more weight than I expected and gave the audiences something to emotionally invest in.
The anime adaptation of the same-titled light novel series by writer Torako and illustrator Osaka Nozumi featured characters that were only introduced in the anime, such as Dekomori, Kumin and Toka. While I don't know how the light novel series tackled the story of Yuuta and Rikka without them, I felt that the anime only benefited from these additional characters, with each one sharing Nibutani and fellow classmate Isshiki Makoto's roles of making the lead characters realize truths about themselves and their relationship.
Aside from the series's deft handling of comedy and drama, there's also another element that I particularly enjoyed. While we all know from the beginning that the fantasy of the series is only a product of the imaginations of those with chuunibyou, elements of the genre does show itself when the characters imagine themselves in battles with one another. The audience is treated to images of how the characters would look like and the powers that they would possess if their delusions were actually real. We get to see how innocuous items like a folding umbrella, ladle and hair in pigtails could be used as weapons by those who are denizens of darkness and their opponents.
The journey of the audience in liking Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! as a series is parallel to the eventual romantic evolution of the relationship between Yuuta and Rikka. As the audience gets to know more about the reasons for Rikka's chuunibyou, Yuuta finds himself increasingly compelled to be there for Rikka in her trying moments. While comical in its beginnings, their relationship features one of the most organic transitions that I've seen in recent anime viewings. The realization may have creeped up on Rikka and quite suddenly for Yuuta, but the audiences can never claim surprise when they finally address how they feel for one another. Even expected, though, it was still a welcome scene to witness.
Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! isn't without its flaws, with certain episodes seemingly weaker than others, yet it features a less than traditional storytelling route that's leads to a hugely satisfying payoff in the end.
Beyond the list of lessons or things learned that I wrote about in the beginning of this post, I was surprised that the ultimate lesson gleaned from the series is that crazy might just be the best thing that could happen to some people. The characters of Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! all live in the
real world, but it's the world borne from the imaginations of those who
still have chuunibyou that made it possible to discover actual truths and find closure.
I guess we all need a little crazy in our lives.
Happy viewing!!Labels: Adaptation, Anime, Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai, Comedy, Drama, Must-Watch, Romance, Slice of Life, TV
