In Taoism, there is a symbol known as the "Taijitu." More well-known as the Ying-Yang, it is a symbol of duality. Everything has an opposite which compliments each other. For war, there is peace. For sadness, there is happiness. For every Shishunki Bitter Change, there is Himegoto, a show that is quite awful and very, very creepy.
The plot premise is simple. His parents had a lot of debt and being the assholes they are, they left the debt on the main character Hime Arikawa. Pursued by loan sharks, he's bailed out by the head of the Student Council. Because somehow the Yakuza pales in comparison to a bunch of high school students, am I right? They are also inexplicably able to pay off the debt, but in exchange for Hime becoming their cosmic plaything by passing off as a girl. And thus begins an exercise in masochism as he is forced into many questionable situations.
Traps as they are called are often played up for comedic purposes. Understandable however. After all, comedy is awkward. Finding out that a beautiful girl is actually male can also be awkward with little prior warning as well, and as such it is a natural fit. Comedy is what Himegoto tries, but it instead aims for masochism and downright abuse by the hands of the Student Council as they force Hime into incredibly exploitative situations in which he's downright abused, objectified, and near-rape scenes. Instead of his predicament being played for drama, it is instead played up for comedic purposes. If you're 21, here is a fun (if you like being drunk that is) drinking game: Take a shot every time you see a panty shot of Hime. You won't survive. And he's not exactly being consenting with this either. That's probably one of the big issues I do have with this whole ordeal.
In High School DxD (a harem infamous for copious fanservice) the main character Issei literally wants a harem, and is incredibly perverted. However, he's not exploitive. Rias allows Issei to copiously grope her with her consent, and the same goes for most of the girls in his harem. It wasn't an issue since both parties were fairly comfortable and on board with whatever zany antics Issei wanted to indulge himself in. In Himegoto however, he has no desire to crossdress. Kinda. He's initially on board with him crossdressing so that he can pay off his debt. It goes further when he's also forced into embarassing situations that he is very clearly uncomfortable with, and as such the audience is uncomfortable when the show goes like "Hey, you want to see another panty shot of this guy? No? Too bad! Even if he doesn't like it, he's still cute right?"
I think it would have been interesting if they took the premise seriously. How would the life of a Japanese male teen look like if he continually went to school crossdressing? How would that affect his social life? His relationships? His psychological state? These questions aren't really explored here. I know that the premise is different, but these are still topics that could have been explored. Though even if it would have been explored, it probably wouldn't have mattered considering how everyone else is either a girl, or a guy who crossdresses as a girl.
Sigh.
It's a very cheap series overall. Little substance to it, very creepy and exploitative. Sexual harassment like this is passed off as something arousing. I can't really get the appeal of this show when the cute guy who looks like a girl is treated horribly. I'm not a masochist either. And I doubt even masochists will like this.
