Kokoro Connect: Michi Random

Not long after putting the previous supernatural incident behind them, the members of Yamaboshi Academy's Student Cultural Society (StuCS) must deal with Fuusenkazura's newest trial—emotion transmission. This phenomenon allows the club members to hear each others' true thoughts, but with one catch: the timing, sender, and recipient are all completely random. To make matters worse, the club's supervisor, Ryuuzen Gotou, may have to step down due to his responsibilities for the upcoming school year. With emotions running high and Valentine's Day around the corner, the seemingly close bonds of the StuCS will be tested when their true feelings for each other are laid bare.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Inaba, Himeko Main

Sawashiro, Miyuki Japanese

Nagase, Iori Main

Toyosaki, Aki Japanese

Yaegashi, Taichi Main

Mizushima, Daichuu Japanese

Kiriyama, Yui Main

Kanemoto, Hisako Japanese

Aoki, Yoshifumi Main

Terashima, Takuma Japanese

Fuusenkazura Supporting

Fujiwara, Keiji Japanese

Yaegashi, Rina Supporting

Oogame, Asuka Japanese

Fujishima, Maiko Supporting

Itou, Shizuka Japanese

Gotou, Ryuuzen Supporting

Fujiwara, Keiji Japanese

Enjouji, Shino Supporting

Touyama, Nao Japanese

Masaki, Daisuke Assistant Producer

Oonuma, Shin Director

Kawatsura, Shinya Director, Episode Director, Storyboard

Kameyama, Toshiki Sound Director

Reviews

Sep 25, 2025

AnimeExplorer21

Recommended

Watching the whole Kokoro Connect journey including the Michi Random OVAs left me with a lot of mixed feelings. Starting with the main 13 episodes, I remember being drawn in by the body swaps and weird phenomena right from the first episode. It was a refreshing take on the high school anime setting because instead of just focusing on romance or comedy, it really made you think about how people hide behind masks and what it means to truly understand someone else. Watching the club members struggle through Heartseed’s experiments was surprisingly relatable. I found myself thinking back to my own friendships and the moments ... when I never really said what I felt.

Taichi as the main guy grew on me more than I expected. At first I thought he was just your standard nice-guy protagonist, but the way he handled the emotional chaos and tried to keep everyone together made me respect him. Iori, in particular, is amazing. Watching her slowly drop her cheerful mask and confront her insecurities really hit me. It made me pause and think about how easy it is to hide behind a front in real life. Inaba was a whole different vibe. She is bold and blunt, which can be frustrating sometimes, but it also adds a lot of tension and depth. There were moments I wanted to shake her and tell her to chill, but I also appreciated her growth by the end.

The Michi Random OVAs added a whole new layer to the story. The random emotional outburst phenomenon felt like a natural continuation of Heartseed’s games, but it also dug deeper into Iori’s insecurities. Seeing her struggle, and Taichi trying to support her without overstepping, was honestly very touching. There were some awkward, almost hilarious moments too, like when everyone unintentionally blurts out their deepest thoughts. It made me laugh but also feel the weight of how hard it can be to really open up. By the final OVA, seeing the group come together and accept each other fully was really satisfying.

The pacing is a little uneven at times. Some episodes, especially in the OVAs, felt repetitive, and a few of the secondary characters did not get much attention. I would have loved a bit more depth there. Still, the emotional beats mostly landed. There were moments that literally made my chest tighten, where you could feel the vulnerability, the awkwardness, and the struggle of trying to be honest with yourself and others.

Visually it is solid, not flashy but clean and expressive enough to convey the emotions. The soundtrack is quietly excellent, perfect for both tense moments and lighter, fun scenes.

Overall I would give the entire Kokoro Connect experience including Michi Random a 7 out of 10. It is not perfect, but it is thoughtful and emotionally engaging. It made me laugh, made me cringe, and made me reflect on friendships and honesty in my own life. The story may focus on high school students, but the themes of vulnerability, trust, and growth feel universal. I enjoyed the journey more than I expected and I think it is one of those series that sticks with you quietly after you finish it.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Aug 21, 2023

SenApai07

Mixed Feelings

Glad we got some closure on Tiachi's love triangle. Was pleasantly surprised that he chose Inaba #bestgirl.

Nagase's depression was quite interesting and felt very real and so did everyone else's reaction and interactions. —But that doesn't excuse how poorly executed it was. The show was making a point that Neagase can't be this; always a happy person all the time on the premise that that's not her true self. Yet they contradict themselves by making her do just that. And somehow seemed even faker than when she was pretending in season 1

And why did she forgive the bitch Setouchi so easily after ... all the bullshit she put her through. In my opinion, she should have been arrested, what a bitch. Also, why did Nagase befriend her even Tiachi was confused on why she did that. I know he was glad he chose Inaba, nice dodge ;)

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Sep 28, 2018

Captain_Tomcat

Not Recommended

I've never felt more betrayed by an anime before. I'm sorry but there's simply no way to express just how disappointing this anime is without spoiling the ending. this went from an anime i was about to share with all of my friends to an anime i hope to never hear or talk about ever again.

the producers either needed to make this anime 24 or 12 episodes. either fully transition and develop the relationship between Taichi and Inaba or just leave it at Taichi and Iori. the moments where Taichi and Iori truly connected and had something so special and honest it made my ... heart soar. watching it i was on cloud nine and the 10 episodes were utterly magical. i was prepared to give this a perfect 10. then for no reason the story just kept going and the romance just feel trampled on and tossed into the garbage. the romance between Taichi and Iori was just thrown away so that they could finish developing Iori from being a people pleaser into being her own person. Instead they just destroy the highlight relationship, turn Iori into a weak pain in the ass that you just want to go away for being such a bitch and then sweep it under the rug by ending with her still being a people pleaser popular girl, Taichi and Inaba and now suddenly in love which is totally under developed and just feels forced, and all in all completely underwhelming. i just want to cry for how badly this ending went and on top of that they abandoned all of the perverted jokes so it wasn't even funny any more.

this anime needs a fucking funeral.

ways they could have fixed the anime:

1. end it at 12 episodes with a good romance between Yui <3 Aoki and Taichi <3 Iori right after they just conquered the most significant trials and leave it at that. i would have given it a 10

2. finish it off with a proper 24 episodes. admittedly with more episodes they have room to fill some of the remaining openings in the plot but in the process they destroy the magic of the first half of the anime and in only 17 episodes they don't have enough time to build it back up again. there was no satisfaction when Taichi and Inaba finally became a couple sense the scene was completely charged with the fall of Taichi and Iori's failed relationship with only the excuse that their relationship was a childish love. wtf their relationship was the strongest in the whole damn anime and they are calling it childish love???? they needed to work more development in between these two events to even break even on this travesty. even if they had it still would have only gotten a 7 or 8 out of ten at this point. this ending made sense but it didn't feel right.

Reviewer’s Rating: 1

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	Poll: Kokoro Connect: Michi Random Episode 4 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) Stark700 - Dec 30, 2012	470 replies	by pggrstv »» Aug 27, 10:04 PM
	Poll: Kokoro Connect: Michi Random Episode 3 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Dec 30, 2012	108 replies	by Alvie48xi »» May 15, 6:04 AM
	Poll: Kokoro Connect: Michi Random Episode 2 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Dec 30, 2012	134 replies	by Alvie48xi »» May 15, 3:24 AM
	Poll: Kokoro Connect: Michi Random Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Dec 30, 2012	119 replies	by Alvie48xi »» May 15, 2:35 AM
	Y’all thoughts on ep 4? WannabeWeeb_ - Aug 12, 2021	9 replies	by Lodic »» Aug 18, 2021 7:38 PM