Kare Kano has brought me back to AB

[redalert03]

I haven't posted on AB for quite a while. To make a long story short, I went to college, my anime friends went to different colleges. Schoolwork and parties took priority over anime as well, so I cut down significantly on my anime consumption and stopped posting here.

Then a couple of weeks ago on a whim (much induced by Christmas money), I bought the Kare Kano boxset.

I think it's safe to say that my addiction has been rekindled. I just heard about an anime club being started at my university as well, so that clinches it.

As far as the series goes, I must say that this is probably the best anime I've seen. When I finished the last episode, I almost put the first disc back in; I would have if it hadn't been 8:00AM. I love Anno's stuff, but I tend to prefer realistic animes to ones like Eva (although I still loved Eva, too). Kare Kano fits my tastes perfectly.

In addition, I connect very, very well to most of the characters. By far the most similar character to me, though, is Arima. I don't think I've ever come across another character in anything I've ever watched or read that was as close to me as Arima is. It's kind've scary, actually. I even swordfight with boken - not strict kendo, just my friends and I doing it informally, but still.

I've picked up the manga as well in an attempt to get the rest of the story, but so far I've only gotten volumes 1-7 which cover the parts that are done in the series. I guess I'll just have to wait another 10 years for the other volumes to be released in English (unless I can find them via other means). Does anyone know how long the manga is expected to run, anyway?

I intended to come up with some big question about the anime so this thread would have more of a point, but I can't think of anything at the moment that hasn't already been discussed in this forum... so I'll just end it here.

It's good to be back.

[MrBS]

Good stuff - I have volumes 4-7 coming via amazon (cheapest international postage option - BRUTAL!) after picking up the boxset a while back myself. Of course I'd already seen the series a couple times before picking up the DVD's :D

I agree with you though. KareKano is fantastic and I found myself connecting with just about all the characters. There is something very real about the characters in KareKano.

A minor quibble - I was dissappointed that despite an incredible effort on the part of RightStuf, why oh why didn't Gainax give RightStuf the home video version of the series?

[orochi X]

I too recently finished Kare Kano, after just the first episode I fell in love with the series and couldn't stop watching it. I enjoyed every episode .. almost except for those filler episodes .. I sort of skipped them :heh:

As I said in my previous thread, I like every character in Kare Kano. There isn't one I dislike, all have something unique about them.

[Abyss of Hell]

You guys are just like me, kare kano fit, what I wanted in anime just right, because I like anime in general, but my perfect anime I would lke to see was. A more of a slice of life anime, then anything thing, and kare kano give me that, but I think that, that is not the only reason I like it so much, because when I was watching this series, I started to find some things about myself, and find some problem with the characters that I can really realate to, like with asbsa and his family, arima and with with his parent left him, and other things like that.


Thats why this anime is my all time fav anime, right beside tenchi, and the others

[Newtype05]

I've been avoiding coming of age romance anime like Kare Kano like a plague and pretty much stick with mecha anime genre being a guy and all, but I do like comedy and Urusei Yatsura is my all time favorite manga/anime for comedy, so I checked out Kare Kano for some humor elements, and it's very funny, probably funnier than Azumanga Daioh (although Yukari teacher is by far the most outrageously hilarious character I know). Kare Kano is truly an anime that you can't judge by its cute packaging, it just has so much more to offer than meets the eye. This is a great example of why anime and comedy is a great combo.

[Xerlic]

What a coincidence, I came back to AB for the same reason as redalert. =P Kinda bummed tho that these forums are sorta dead. =/

I hadn't really bought much anime or manga for the past year or so. I've been too preoccupied with school and FFXI to devote time and money to my old passion. For Valentine's Day, my girlfriend asked me what I wanted and I couldn't really think of anything. I told her to buy up some of the manga that I was missing, and she gave me Volumes 8-12 of Kare Kano among some other stuff.

Now I loved Kare Kano the anime. I'm a sucker for certain types of shoujo, and Kare Kano is at the top of that list. I remember sitting in a state of shock when the last episode ended on the fifth DVD. I was told that the ending sucked, but I wasn't expecting well....that. I was so livid, so I started collecting the manga to find out how the story progresses. I stopped at Volume 7, right where the anime had ended but stopped for the reasons listed above.

I figured that I would space my reading out to enjoy the gift over a period of time. After reading through Volume 8, though, I went straight to 9. Then 10. Then 11 and 12. Then the next day I went out and bought 13. Now I'm waiting for 14 to be released in March.

Echoing what was already said, I love how each character is different. I love the character designs. I love how each relationship progresses. I think Tsuda is a master of character development. I find myself rereading volumes and seeing new things about characters that I missed the first time through.

[MrBS]

I'm up to vol 12 of the manga myself and I think the quality has been getting a bit spotty of late but coming back to the main characters will hopefully bring the quality back up.

Incidentally now being way past the anime and now rewatching at my local anime club I can't say I'm too impressed with Gainax's handling of the 'adaption' or should I say scene for scene rip of the manga? What exactly did Gainax bring to KareKano other than a soundtrack? :lol:

[Xerlic]

When you say quality, did you mean in terms of the artwork or the storyline?

I think Tsuda's art style changes as the volumes progress. A lot of her shots seem kinda flat in the later volumes, but I still like how she makes the characters seem older and more mature as they're in the last stages of high school.

In terms of storyline..hmm. I guess if you're really into the Yukino/Arima relationship, then volumes 10, 11, and 12 are sort of a cop out as they focus mainly on side characters. I didn't like the idea at first when in one of Tsuda's notes she mentiones that she would spend some time working the stories of the other characters, but I have to say that I really liked the Tsubasa/Kazuma arc. For one, Tsubasa is pretty one-dimensional after she accepts runs away from home and then finally accepts stepmother. In a period of two volumes, Tsuda really developed not only Tsubasa's character with regards to how she views romantic relationships, but also Kazuma's dilenma regarding his two passions. It's not the true meat of Kare Kano, so to speak, but I did enjoy it.

The story picks up where it left off back at the end of Volume 10 or so with Arima and Miyazawa in the spotlight. Tsuda does mention that the last few volumes will be more concerned with Arima in terms of the relationship. I always viewed him as much more mysterious and complex than Miyazawa, so I was pleased with Volume 13. ^^ In terms of your comment, I think the quality does pick back up.

[MrBS]

I don't have a problem with the side stories but the manga's 'everyone gets married' mentality with all the side characters has been annoying me lately. I find Yukino/Arima relationship to be just different enough in how it is handled from every other boy/girl story out there that it is interesting not to mention provokative.

As for the other characters adventures in love, I'm finding theses are quite run of the mill, not to mention downright lame. It seems the less important the character is the quicker her/his love problems are resolved.

[Xerlic]

Yeah, I see your point. I guess I'm a sucker for happy endings. =P This is shoujo manga after all.

I'd think that Tsuda wouldn't want her side stories to get too in-depth, so she wraps them up fairly quickly to keep the spotlight on the main couple.

[MrBS]

yeah.... shoujo..... I often wonder what I look like to the average person on the bus going to work/home when I reading my latest pretty pink issue of KK :lol:

[Xerlic]

I get the same feeling when I go up to the counter and buy it from a store. I usually stick it in the middle of a bunch of other stuff and hope the clerk doesn't notice. :heh:

But, there's nothing wrong with liking KK. We shouldn't be ashamed..I think. >.>

[MrBS]

I get the same feeling when I go up to the counter and buy it from a store. I usually stick it in the middle of a bunch of other stuff and hope the clerk doesn't notice. :heh:

The beauty of the internet, that and I'm in Australia and have to import it.

[Zacarias]

Yeah, the other day I re-watched Evangelion... So, now I'm stuck again.

Caught up in the mix.

[xfracture]

Kare Kano is a great anime (and even better manga).
The anime ends with your typical gainax unresolved ending.. but that was to be expected since the manga was still ongoing.