Hatsukoi Limited - Kappa Love Happens
Yay for serious Kusuda/Kei screentime! Well it’s mostly Kei to be honest, since we haven’t seen Kusuda’s introspective side yet. I am REALLY looking forward to that though, since Kusuda’s motivations were what touched me most about the manga. Here you have this genuinely happy-go-lucky guy quietly battling a huge undercurrent of self-loathing. We’ve already seen plenty of signs that underneath his front of being the perverted class clown he’s pretty insightful and considerate of the feelings of those around him. But when it comes to Kei, the girl he clearly likes, he just can’t believe that she could ever like him despite his looks so he consciously keeps her at a distance.
Now I’ve heard some people lamenting that Kei and Kusuda are an unrealistic pairing, geared toward Hatsukoi’s predominantly male (and we are to presume, kappa-faced) viewing demographic. I’ve gotta disagree! As a female viewer, I find their relationship the most compelling of all Hatsukoi’s trillion pairings, primarily because it’s something I can see happening in real life. Most women I know can relate to the feeling of at some point or another feeling attracted to a guy they found physically repellant, whether due to his personality, sense of humour or the chemistry they shared. I’ve already pointed out the attractive elements of Kusuda’s personality (and there are quite a few) - and the sparks of wit and chemistry between Kei and Kusuda can’t be denied. Thus, I find it pretty believable that she would lie in bed at night (maybe not naked in a towel, however) agonizing over her attraction to a guy she really shouldn’t like at all. It’s certainly a hell of a lot more probable than all those girls liking that nerd in Love Hina/insert-name-of-harem-show-here. Thumbs up from me.
