Itazura Na Kiss, Episode 2
Dangerous Cohabitation
When we last left poor Kotoka, the best-worst thing to happen to her in her young life was making things really difficult for her, and she was forced to share the same roof with Naoki Irie, the Makoto-voiced boy who she crushes on hard even though he’s a cold-ass dirtbag. I don’t just mean Jun Isurugi cold… this kid is over the top.
In my younger days as a lonely nerd, as opposed to my college days as a reasonably well-off nerd and current days as a married nerd, I would say “serves her ass right.” After all, girls only go after the jerks, right? Apparently it’s actually true, because a female writer of a female character aimed largely at females holds the same opinion. So remember, guys, don’t blame the girls: it’s a biological imperative, and it takes at least 24 episodes to overcome it.
Well, let’s be fair though. Naoki is really pretty. I mean, Gundam Meister pretty.
Recap
I’m not entirely sure if it’s to impress Naoki or give him the ol’ what for, but Kotoka decides she’s going to get herself onto the top 50 board for midterms. Naoki says that would require divine intervention, but fortunately, she gets some. Mrs. Irie wanted a girl, that much is obvious from the room Kotoka stays in, but she wanted a girl so bad that she put her little dickhead in dresses for the first few years of his life. And took plenty of pictures.
Explains a lot.
Kotoka may not do well in school, but she’s not as dumb as Naoki would like to think, and blackmail is not beyond her realm of comprehension. So it’s a trade: You, asshat, will tutor my sweet underrated ass to the top 50, or I shoot this childhood photo with my cell phone and broadcast it to everyone with a pair of eyes. Good work.
And it pays off. After endless late nights with fuckface, not only does she just push her way to the bottom of the board, she may have put a tiny crack in that male-tsundere heart of his. He even holds the door on the subway for her, and wishes her luck on the test. Big stuff.
But when she returns the picture, bound by her word since he got her into the top 50, he reverts pretty much instantly. Douche.
But there’s another “but.” Camera-happy Mom Irie snapped a picture of the two of them passed out on the coffee table at a late-night study session, and packed it with Kotoka as a good luck charm for the test. Yeah. The woman has premature grandma syndrome really bad. When Kotoka’s slovenly crew of miscreant friends see it, things get bad — and the badness spreads.
Unfortunately, as much as she’d like to, Kotoka can’t seem to change her feelings toward Dick Boy.
What We’ve Learned
I wasn’t sure about this show at first, I just thought it had a little more potential than Special A and I knew it was a successful manga with a weird history. But barring a really awful episode 3, this one has sold me. There are lots of great robots, epics, and even panty-horrors this season, but Itazura Na Kiss promises to be the real “root for the underdog” story. Kotoka may be stupid about someone who doesn’t deserve her, but in the process she becomes a charming character you can really get behind — plus, who hasn’t been there?
It’s a little cartoony in its characterization so far to be a real knockout drama, but you could spend a half hour on something much worse.
Update: For the rest of the season, you’ll get to see what happens to poor Yukan Blog when I come spraying my unwelcome opinions all over the place there. This show as well as Allison & Lillia are going to be moving over there for the duration as of Itazura episode 3 and Allison episode 2. So join me, will yas?
