Kimi ni Todoke

Known for her semblance to the Sadako character of The Ring series, Sawako Kuronuma is given the nickname "Sadako" and misunderstood to be frightening and malicious like her fictional counterpart, despite having a timid and sweet nature. Longing to make friends and live a normal life, Sawako is naturally drawn to the cheerful and friendly Shouta Kazehaya, the most popular boy in her class. From their first meeting, Sawako has admired Kazehaya's ability to be the center of attention and aspires to be like him.

When Kazehaya organizes a test of courage for the entire class and encourages her to attend, Sawako sees this as an opportunity to get along with her classmates, starting with Ayane Yano and Chizuru Yoshida. Through each new encounter and emotion she experiences, Sawako believes that meeting Kazehaya has changed her for the better. Little does Sawako know, her presence has also changed Kazehaya.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Kuronuma, Sawako Main

Noto, Mamiko Japanese

Kazehaya, Shouta Main

Namikawa, Daisuke Japanese

Sanada, Ryuu Main

Nakamura, Yuuichi Japanese

Yoshida, Chizuru Main

Sanpei, Yuuko Japanese

Yano, Ayane Main

Sawashiro, Miyuki Japanese

Kurumizawa, Ume Supporting

Hirano, Aya Japanese

Arai, Kazuichi Supporting

Ono, Yuuki Japanese

Maru Supporting

Jounouchi, Souichi Supporting

Yamanaka, Masahiro Japanese

Sanada, Tooru Supporting

Hatano, Wataru Japanese

Wada, Jouji Producer

Tamura, Manabu Producer

Nakatani, Toshio Producer

Nakatake, Tetsuya Producer

Reviews

Apr 7, 2024

scareads

Recommended

this review will be slightly subjective. i am saying this because (no it is not an exaggeration) this anime saved my life. yes, like literally!
if i was in a slump, i would always opened this anime because it never really gets boring. + i am a HUGE highschool shoujo enthusiast so that's a bonus. i found this anime almost 6 years ago and since then it is my all time favourite shoujo romance anime.

in anime, especially in the season 1, you can't really see it but every. single. charachter. is SO WELL written!
(definitely recommend you to read the manga)
if you love slowburn this anime should ... be your go-to.
yes, sometimes you will be like "omg just get together already!" but i think this is the fun part about this anime.
with sawako's personality, you can't expect them to get together fast.
about other things, openings are catchy & imo art is really good for an old anime.

definitely should watch this anime at least once if you enjoy romance.
overall rating, obviously, 10/10. if i could give it a 100, i would.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Mar 25, 2024

pickyviewer

Mixed Feelings

This review will be for both Season 1 (S1) and Season 2 (S2). S1 was excellent, but S2 was a letdown. My overall rating considering both seasons is between "Fine" and "Good". If you want to give this anime a go, I recommend watching S1 and looking up what happens in the manga afterwards. Although S3 is in the works, I am unlikely to give it a watch if the show does not stop milking the drama at the expense of established character development.

- Story. I enjoyed watching the main character Sawako’s love life and social life blossom at the same time in this slice-of-life ... anime. As a social outcast, Sawako worked hard to improve her communication skills. It was touching to see her friendship with two other classmates deepen to “best friend” status. I didn’t have issues with the pacing of events until the last few episodes of S1. Not much was happening despite the air time being devoted to it. Ironically, the romantic tension between Sawako and Kazehaya (the male lead) was supposed to be at its peak. Unfortunately, the feeling of the show dragging on continued throughout the ENTIRETY of S2! My patience ran so thin that I literally fast forwarded through the last 3 episodes of it.

- Characters. The show had an excellent cast of main and supporting characters. They had distinct personalities and different ways of thinking. S2 did them a disservice thanks to the bad writing. One big change was made to Kazehaya’s personality without much foreshadowing done in S1. It was obvious that the change was manufactured in order to create drama between him and Sawako. A new character was also introduced in S2 to exacerbate this drama. He meddled in their love affairs because of his own motivation, which did not make much sense to me.

- Art. The art is a very pretty and classic shoujo style. I especially love the freeze frames capturing Sawako’s true smile.

- Animation. It's Production IG, which explains why a particularly well-animated sequence sometimes came out of nowhere!

- Music/Sound. I enjoyed the show’s background music. The opening and ending songs were not bad either. Sound design did its job.

- Writing. S1 was mostly well written. There was a small twist to the “unpopular girl meets popular boy” plot. In addition, we watched the object of Sawako’s affection push her towards simultaneous personal growth. In my opinion, the show didn’t stick the landing when it came to their romance. That arc should have been wrapped up by the end of S1 or early in S2. More time could have been devoted to the romance between two supporting characters, which was set up in S1. Instead, S2 starts with an inexplicable falling out between Sawako and Kazehaya despite the fact that they began texting at the end of S1. While grappling with her feelings, Sawako stops confiding in her BFFs to an unrealistic level. S1 spent a lot of time showing us how Sawako eventually came to see herself as an equal to her friends. The trio’s closeness was well established by the time S2 came around. Sawako was apparently not the only one hit with amnesia; Kazehaya got a personality rewrite justified by exposition. As a result, the miscommunication between the main leads felt unnatural and gratuitous.

- Emotional impact. S1 made me laugh and cry (with joy), but S2 greatly frustrated me.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Jun 3, 2024

LevixAckerman

Not Recommended

Titel: Kimi no Todoke

Story

Sawako has extreme social problems and tries to solve them with the help of her new friends. The style, where our main protagonist has more self-conversations than talking to others, irritated me more and more. Even a sleeping pill is more exciting than Sawako. Additionally, the episodes drag on like chewing gum, and there are few progressions. I actually had no fun.

Characters

Apart from Sawako, who absolutely bored me with her absent-minded and unrealistic manner, Shouta was the most likable to me. The other supporting characters were just okay.

... Music

I like the opening.

Animation and Character Design

Sometimes good, sometimes amateurish.

Conclusion

If you're in the mood for a slow, unrealistic, and boring story, this is perfect for you.

Rating: 4/10

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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NIS America announced at their panel at Anime Expo their licenses for Dororon Enma-kun Meeramera and Kimi ni Todoke. No release date for Dororon Enma-kun Meeramera w...read more

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According to Bessatsu Margaret, the second season of Kimi ni Todoke was announced to start in January 2011. Source: Scan of BetsuMa Previous topic: Director Mizushim...read more

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	Poll: Kimi ni Todoke Episode 2 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) HawthorneKitty - Oct 13, 2009	326 replies	by Sandwichartista »» Yesterday, 6:14 PM
	Poll: Kimi ni Todoke Episode 10 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ) HawthorneKitty - Dec 8, 2009	237 replies	by Narity_ »» Jun 1, 8:11 AM
	Poll: Kimi ni Todoke Episode 18 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) Jakeki - Feb 9, 2010	166 replies	by biuberry »» May 31, 9:09 AM
	Poll: Kimi ni Todoke Episode 9 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) maji_saikou - Dec 1, 2009	188 replies	by Narity_ »» May 31, 4:46 AM
	Poll: Kimi ni Todoke Episode 17 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ) Jakeki - Feb 2, 2010	242 replies	by biuberry »» May 30, 7:06 PM

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