Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun Episode 9 Discussion

Misiakk said:
I loved it. Mizutani and Asako are so cute :) And Haru's glare at the end? Badass :)

Hybridbloodszak said:
It makes me wonder are they going to have an original anime ending or just leave it open ended. There's a lot of stuff they have to wrap up in 4 episodes if its the former but it also sucks if its the latter because this show will just be another one of the great yet unfinished one cour series.

Spirai said:
As mentioned before, only four episodes, and with all this new development being added, it's making me question why exactly the producer is willing to leave such an original anime with an unfinished ending that will just piss off many fans? Instead of doing that, they should make some subtle, but big changes to get the people to read the manga after watching the last episode but out of intrigue.

I don't exactly know what happens in the manga (plan to read it after series) but they should have Yamaken take back his 'yes I love Shizuku' confession because not only is that dramatically unrealistic and only adds to the ridiculousness of the obvious love triangle forming but it's clearly NOT love. In the next three episodes, Yamaken should realize that he LIKES Shizuku, but doesn't love her, and he should try to fight against himself for it. For example, avoiding her and Haru, focusing on other things, etc. I don't think it's the best time to introduce his past or connection with Haru in this anime series. Then, so fans will be intrigued to read the manga, in the last episode, Yamaken should decide that instead of trying to stop himself, he should go after Shizuku completely. There's no need for a confession or scene with Shizuku, just a statement from Yamaken to himself confirming his new plan of action and this will lead fans to wonder what might happen afterwards and consequently lead them to pick up the manga. This also leaves open a door for a second season.

Now, for this episode, great explanations and progress being shown. However, Haru's progress is still lacking. I know how the producers like having it 'on and off' where they feature Haru's progress then Shizuku's the next episode but it's really taken a toll on some of the fans that can't relate. It's also getting rather annoying to just see developments with the side characters when we want a development with the main characters. We can leave Natsume's possible interaction with Mitsuyoshi to be simply the start of a friendship, or closer friendship than it was before. I really hope Sasayan isn't thrown into any mix in these last four episodes because that would be a disappointing end with the show promoting love by having everyone couple up and love triangles to form. That would shoot down all my expectations and praise so far and just murder all hope seeing that the point of the anime was really to display how Shizuku's thinking isn't wrong, but trying new things without assumptions is important too.

The next episode should show a progress in Shizuku and Haru's relationship and both of them taking a conscious step towards trying it out instead of wondering whether it'll work. Maybe Shizuku stating that she's come to a decision and her and Haru confessing to one another? Then, in the last episode, they could have a cute first moment on a date (Shizuku should have her hair down then, it looks great!) and the producers could again show both of them working on the relationship. Shizuku could consciously attempt to dress up, Haru could consciously attempt to be casual than his usual caring-and-doing-things attitude. They could then learn to just be comfortable and act like themselves on the date and this will also lead to the fans wanting to see how it continues to go in the manga.

Finally, this was an awesome episode! Even though it kind of felt like an appetizer to something better, the moments depicting Yamaken's mind and his obvious raw emotion (as light as it was) was very relate-able and one of those nice moments in the anime where everything seems to be clear and you're pulled into the moment. Haru's one eye looked cool too haha and the jokes between him and Sasayan "did you do it" were hilarious :P I like how the importance of friends is still thrown in, but with four episodes left, it'd be best to just stress on the fact that friends are there for you (like how Natsume was there for Shizuku and etc.) and that'd be nice if it were stated by one of the 'friend' characters in a non-romantic manner. Also, the personality of Shizuku's mom kind of surprised me. I was expecting her to be rather cold and calculated but she almost came off as the type that was flippant and lounged on a couch and didn't care or do anything till she had to. It also confused me a bit, how her values and Shizuku's father's don't really add up (as far as we know..). Are they even in love? And has Shizuku's father even influenced her in any way? Any morals or anything since the mom apparently is almost never around? How did Shizuku just grow up into her own person? Kids usually turn to their peers and teachers at such a young age, it's impossible that Shizuku could just grow up to become 'emotionless' as the father puts it, without any sort of morals or beliefs of even assumptions affecting her perspective on life and people. Anyways, nice graphics, music, and superb portrayal of Shizuku's previous mindset! Can't wait for the next episode =)

ijen said:


Are you blind or someting!that was obviously a eye full of surprise and loneliness! like a afraid of being lonely all over again!

ijen said:
I don't get just one thing!
Why every shoujo romance anime are so good?why can't a shounen anime be like that?(except clannad)
A great episode as always.
The one thing i noticed that shizuku is the most dumb one there.
haru may be a one way traffic but he is still pure.
9.5/10

Hybridbloodszak said:
We got a deeper look at Yamaken this week and his gradual progression to being smitten with Mitty. Sets up some nice conflict for the last couple of episodes with other dangling plot threads. I also have found it pretty odd until this episode why Mitty was so black and white with her lifestyle. At least Yamaken just tells her that she can have a balance in her life since he is successful at it. Having a deadbeat dad who always lets you down would do that to you I guess.

tsubasalover said:
6th time to lose job for Shizuku's father with Yoshida at home.

Studying without Shizuku. Big breast girl is worried about Yoshida x Shizuku relations. She already forgot about what she told Yoshida one month ago.

So there's a painful past for big breast girl, too. It seems like YamaKen is having feeling for Shizuku. At least he admitted about it to Yoshida.

Christmas ep. next ep.

di-roy said:
I liked natsume's little flashback but the anime seems like its taking forever to get to the point for shizuku and haru to date. and now yamaken has feelings for her so its kinda fucking up the situation lol. decent episode.

QuiGonJon said:
Dang it, I want Natsume x Sasayan Dx

Lelouch22 said:
This episode was the most enjoyable since the fourth, but, unfortunately, it was disappointingly inconsistent and flawed as well, faltering into a repetition of predictable, unnecessary contrivances in the latter half of the episode.

Lelouch22 said:
This episode was the most enjoyable since the fourth, but, unfortunately, it was disappointingly inconsistent and flawed as well, faltering into a repetition of predictable, unnecessary contrivances in the latter half of the episode. There's this rather noticeable dichotomy between the numerous elements of the show that work extremely well and those that don't, as the latter have been increasingly filtered into each subsequent episode, consistently failing to impress, illustrating a middling execution of the narrative.

The opening was great and, though largely comedic, quite insightful, as the conversation between Haru and Shizuku's father illuminated an interesting complexity within Shizuku's family, only ever touched upon for a momentary instance in the subtle exploration of Shizuku's diligent, but partially naive aspirations to strictly follow the same path as her mother, which was mentioned once again in this episode, still appearing to be a singularly narrow-minded, but sympathetic, approach to dealing with life's unexpected complications.

Haru and Shizuku's interactions are extremely enjoyable, as the gradual development of their relationship illuminates their considerable chemistry and how significantly worse each episode is that doesn't heavily focus on this particular aspect of the story. As such, their relationship consistently provides the best moments in each episode, so it's quite unfortunate that it hasn't been as prevalent in the past several episodes, instead relying on a partial focus of dynamics that are far less compelling.

However, the slow, methodical development of their relationship is usually understandable, but it's become a bit tiresome as of late, due entirely to the knowledge that triangles are inevitably set to interfere even further with their hopes for a wholly romantic relationship to form. At this point, I'm even wondering if their relationship can, in fact, have a greatly satisfying conclusion, since there are a plethora of potential interruptions that can sabotage the growth that seems to solely be stalled in an increasingly tedious manner. Though Shizuku's stubbornly distracted by schoolwork, it seems rather unrealistic that she wouldn't even remember to consider the full meaning of her love for Haru throughout an entire month, so this is yet another isolated moment that feels artificial in it's construction.

Natsume really is a fantastic character, as she, along with Haru, have, so far, elevated the show above purely unenjoyable mediocrity whenever a particular episode, such as this one, and the last few, for that matter, waste considerable time focusing on poor secondary characters and uninteresting narrative developments, such as the imminent love triangles. As such, I liked the slight elaboration on her difficult past, since more development of her character is terrific, but it was accompanied with a moment that reinforced the possibility that she has feelings for Mitsuyoshi, which, though he's a really likable character, is somewhat disappointing, since a relationship with Sasayan seems thoroughly foreshadowed and quite inevitable, but it's unlikely to be properly concluded by the end of the show, so it feels like a relatively unnecessary addition to her characterization and potential development, except, of course, for the possibility that it compels Sasayan to act on his seemingly evident feelings for her.

Yamaken is a thoroughly unlikable character, devoid of an interesting personality or intriguing characterization. He'd likely be much better if his character development wasn't isolated into the one-dimensional role of a "love rival". His highly contrived interactions with Shizuku aren't engaging at all, since he's far too closely similar to Shizuku, without any of the good aspects that preside within her characterization. As such, I couldn't care less about the development of his superficial feelings for Shizuku, so concluding the episode with an element of this situation only serves to illuminate numerous concerns about the future episodes.

The production values remain one of the strongest aspects of the show, as the beautifully colorful aesthetic complements the nature of the show really well, particularly during the scene in which Haru and Shizuku converse as they walk through the city. Musically, this episode was excellent, especially highlighted by the selection used throughout Natsume's reminiscence to her troubled past. The quality of the narrative has noticeably diminished throughout the last last few episodes, as it has increasingly slipped into the highly predictable conventionality of a typically cliche shoujo, and, save for the excellent characters, it has too often lacked the brilliantly unique atmosphere and immense versatility that permeated the first few episodes. This, in large part, is due to the unfortunate introduction of two dull, completely ancillary characters and the terrible, worthless triangles that accompany them.

All in all, Tonari is quite good, but it's consistently failing to reach the considerably high level of brilliance it once possessed, instead resolving itself to transitioning into an underwhelming near-mediocrity. I'm not particularly confident that the direction the narrative is taking will improve, since the insufferable, monotonous triangles appear likely to receive a heightened focus throughout the following episodes. Hopefully I'm mistaken and all of this predictability is mere misdirection, but it's inevitability certainly seems to be irrevocably foreshadowed. I simply desire a satisfying conclusion, so, hopefully, this mess of trite complications and an increased level of interference will be resolved by then, since, so far, these developments only detract from each episode. Fortunately, the next episode will be centered around Christmas, so I'd like to think that Yamaken and Chizuru won't be involved.

Spirai said:


Wait...he has a deadbeat dad? O.O When did that come up?

Lelouch22 said:
monotonous triangles appear likely to receive a heightened focus throughout the following episodes. .

LEGOF said:
Oh, and tsundere male falling for Shizuku? Why are the male rivals in shoujo always blonde?