Kaguya truly has gone above and beyond in telling a story worth your time. It's filled with moments of hype, laughter, and gloominess, but in the end, a love story that makes you feel warm.
Kaguya first has impeccable writing for this movie to tie the knot, from where we left off in S3. Most of us fans are happy that they got together, yet this story has so much more to offer. Even more of a suprise is the depth we continue to get from our main couple.
It has great pacing throughout the movie, and side characters are still cleverly written throughout this story. They aren't overbearing to the main couple and add great balance to the more serious tone of this movie. But we still get hints of more relationships to come. (Got me all excited for Ishigami)
The soundtrack is a bop. I cannot complain at all about it. They definitely got me hooked on “Love is Show”. A great OP and it feels just right for the movie.
Its animation is still great, though at times there are some still shots, but its to be expected in a romance genre. Though the quality is never diminished and holds true to the past seasons.
*moderate spoilers*
The story of Kaguya and Miyuki though shine the most, gripping your attention, wanting to see them get to a resolve. We go right back to where Miyuki and Kaguya left in a trance of love. How can you forget the kiss, the kiss, the kiss. One’s thoughts roam when in love, overthinking things and overanalyzing what occurred. Both Shirogane & Shinomiya are filled with emotional instability. Miyuki is filled with a sense of stress to continue to keep this strong attitude he has always had. Wondering whether or not he made a mistake with the kiss, and its meaning. Kaguya is wondering about the kiss, that she committed to going to America, and if she truly loves Miyuki for who he is. These are all general thoughts one would feel after having such a moment. The back and forth of thoughts roaming one's mind and conviction in their relationship is extremely relatable.
We realize though that both Miyuki and Kaguya were masking their true self from one another. For most if not all of us, those moments of building that emotional connection for someone else, makes us hide the parts we don’t want them to see. We want to be perfect in their eyes. The anguish of knowing that they will see flaws in us, our hideous side, or how pathetic we are all valid reasons to hide. Though this story does more than that… It portrays how we continue to overthink our relationships. We fight to keep ourselves in a good light with others and that not only makes our relationship feel empty but rather a mask of what we truly feel. We are scared to hurt others and want the best for them.
Kaguya & Miyuki have continued to dance for these past seasons and seeing them get to this point of emotional strife has made them more relatable than ever. They give power to the viewer in realizing how words can pierce one another in more ways than one. The main idea we see throughout this movie is the idea of being normal. Having a normal relationship. Having normal emotions. Is that so hard? Well for our two protagonists we know the answer. They both live completely different lifestyles. One person lived in high standards with a maid, and the other living in an apartment building with his psychic father. They don’t have an ordinary relationship but yearn for it. Is that so wrong? That’s what is so beautiful about this arc, where we see that ordinary is never the same for each person. If we choose to love someone we give up what was ordinary to us by making it ordinary for them also. Kaguya & Miyuki get over this part of “puppy love” through their pursuit of finding themselves. It takes confidence to tell you're true feelings. It takes realizing people have their flaws to push past compensating for the superficial parts of the relationship. And rather accepting each other. Kaguya-Sama shows that “True love” is different for everyone but one that is especially a two-way street.
Each story of finding one’s self can usually be filled with pity and remorse, yet the movie is probably the most heart-wrenching it has gotten. I cannot recommend this show enough and how much this story has transformed the genre of rom-com.
Love truly is its own war...
Animation: 8.5/10
Sound: 9/10
Story: 9.5/10
Characters: 9.5/10
Enjoyment: 9.5/10
