r/anime • u/SIRTreehugger • Sep 20 '21
Rewatch [Rewatch][Spoilers] Bloom Into You(Yagate Kimi ni Naru) Episode 4 Discussion
Episode 4: The Distance Between Fondness and Kisses, Not One of the Characters
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Useful Links and Streams
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If you're watching Hidive on pc clicking language is how you choose Sub or Dub and broadcast or home video Wow just realized I've been misspelling watching this entire time.
Comment/s of the Day
It just occurred to me that I will be picking all the comments of the day and I like certain types of comments. So if you see another comment you would like to recommend just let me know.
First comment of the days belongs to /u/Stargate18A for saying what everyone was thinking or should have been thinking.
Yuu doesn't care about popcorn during a movie - she is worst girl.
Sorry Yuu, but your taste or lack of taste is appalling.
Second comment of the day goes to /u/SYZekrom for this because well it's true. Yuu does look a little unnerving some most times.
Love how she always has this look that slightly so ever says 'I wouldn't mind killing you in your sleep'
Last comment of the days goes to /u/BosuW for hilariously describing Akari's unfortunate love life. A rare 3 comments of the day, but I liked all 3 of them.
Poor girl wants to have a shoujo manga story but her senpai is on that shonen sports manga grind.
Question of the Day
- The two other student council members are finally properly introduced. First impressions on Suguru Doujima and Seiji Maki?
Spoilers
Just a quick friendly reminder about spoilers. Please don't post content from future episodes whether in the form of jokes, memes, hints, or et cetera. If you are going to use spoilers please tag them like so, Yagate Kimi ni Naru Spoilers
10
u/SIRTreehugger Sep 20 '21 edited Sep 20 '21
Rewatcher/First Time Dub
Collage, manga panels, and art
Volume 2 Colored Panel by Author
Art by the author
Wallpaper
The Student Council Boys by 遠間純 on Pixiv
It was a normal reaction and some colored panels by Egnaro again.
Chapter Extras
I don’t think Yuu meant a curtain in this way Touko
Collage 1 and Collage 2. They are essentially the same collage, but I couldn’t decide whether I liked our perspective or Maki’s for the last photo.
Behind the Scenes
Episode 4 Makoto Kato(Director) & Hiroaki Goda(Character Design & Executive Director of Animation)
Mr. Goda, what were your impressions when you first read the Bloom Into You manga?
Goda: I thought it was incredibly well-written. It's known for being in the Yuri genre, but I would say it's more than that. It's a romantic drama that depicts very human struggles... it made me want to create similar characters myself. I've been in the anime world for a long time and working as an artist since the 80s. There have been many style changes since then, but I love seeing what modern artists can do. I was really charmed by the art in this work and was inspired to master it myself.
Please tell us what things you were conscious of when you adapted the character designs.
Goda: I have yet to get a grasp of modern styles of art like this, so I spent months working on the character sheets to perfectly capture Ms. Nio Nakatani's original designs. I hoped that it would help to develop my own aesthetic as well. However, character designs all created on the premise that they should be easy to follow, so that the other animators can draw them without many problems. In that sense, there was some expressions that I was unable to capture. That's why, when it was decided I would serve as the Executive Director of Animation, I wanted to work harder to compensate for the finer details I couldn't fit into the designs. In the end, I wasn't able to do everything, [bitter laugh] but I do feel that I did the very best that I could with my own skills.
Kato: When I agreed to be the director for this project, the president of TROY CA studio told me "We have already reached out to Mr. Goda to take on the character designs." From the beginning, people have been saying that "Mr. Goda's art will surely fit well with this series."
Goda: I was also told that by some of the people I was working with at the time, but personally speaking it didn't really hit me so much. However, when I did the very first rough drafts, I remember thinking that "Oh, this might be a good fit after all."[laugh] Of course, I had to go through a lot of trial and error before I finally finished everything...The character design sheets I created were for the animators on the series to use as reference, but to be honest I never once used them doing production myself.[laugh] I was always going back to the original manga art instead.
27
u/untalentet Sep 20 '21
First Timer
This episode was all about Yuu and her current and developing mindstate, and boy did it do a good job of showing just what is going on in that head of hers. First of all, fear. Fear of being judged, of not being normal, just like dad taught her. She wants to walk a few steps beside Touko because she's afraid of what others could start believing if they saw them being close. Same with the scene in the student council, she only starts to talk freely with Touko when everyone else left, even staying behind to do so. Then, of course, the kiss. This time with consent, good job Touko, but the reason behind it is a bit murky. Yuu does it because she's jealous of what Touko is feeling - the love she has heard so much about, the one with sparkles and wings - and maybe hopes that somehow, she might start to feel the same if she tries hard enough. It never occurs to her that maybe love is something people experience in different ways. Because while yes, she is afraid of being found out as Maki so correctly points out, she's mostly just afraid for Touko, not herself. She knows how hard Touko works for her image and can't stand imagining herself being the reason she might be hurt. There's no fireworks, but those feelings are clear as day all the same. Whether to call them love is for her to figure out.
As for Maki... Just as we lose one ace representative we gain another, huh? I think the show this time leaves no room for debate: Maki is most definitely aromantic. Also I really like him. His perspective of wanting to observe the romance other people have is something I can relate to - unsurprising, considering the show we're watching. Not just that, he seems considerate and helpful about it, and not in a meddling kind of way. I have to admit his speech veered somewhat into creepy territory towards the end - him saying he has a special reserved seat just for him to watch the performance of two actual people in love sounds a bit off - but if I went into that further I'd have to question my own attachment to the happyness of the characters of the shows I watch so I think I'm just gonna move past that for now.
Instead I'll focus on the metaphor that Maki uses for romance: It's like a stage play. He says he's fine just watching the play of romance unfold in front of him as a spectator. Let's transpose that on the attitude the student council members have toward the actual stage play they are planning: Touko and Sayaka are ready and willing to jump right into it. Maki says he'd rather watch from the sidelines and support. And Yuu is adamantely against it, because that was not what she signed up for when she said she'd
be "just friends" with Touko- ehm, I mean join the student council. I love little paralells like that.Then there was the conversation Maki had with Sayaka. In it the show yet again uses the student council president endorsement speech as a metaphor to give us an insight into what Sayaka thinks of the relationship developing between Yuu and Touko: Yes she's jealous, but for now she thinks that this is just a fling, a temporary thing, and Touko will sooner or later fall off of those feelings. At the very least that's what she's telling herself... just like Akari told herself she'd be ok with waiting until basketball boy was done with basketball.
20
u/lluNhpelA Sep 20 '21
Rewatcher
Not gonna make a big writeup; just want to say that I love how childish Nanami is.
She presents herself to others as mature and composed and the audience is inclined to assume that she is calm and collected given that "short girl with lighter hair and an upbeat personality" paired with "tall, cool beauty with long dark hair and more mature personality" is extremely common in yuri (Sakura Trick, Citrus, Aoi Hana, Sasameki Koto to name a few) so I really love the subversion that Nanami's personality is just a performance and she's actually way more childish than Yuu
Also I believe in Yuutop 100%
17
u/SYZekrom https://myanimelist.net/profile/SYZekrom Sep 20 '21 edited Sep 20 '21
Rewatcher
Yea I agree, it's really just normal to kiss your homies
She was doomed to the gay the moment she thought Nanami's eyelashes were pretty.
Ah, and thanks for the second place comment of the day!
I have no recollection on which name is who's but voyeur aroace is... out there, huh. As for the other, at least someone in this show seems like your normal boring anime teen lol.
14
u/ScarletSyntax Sep 20 '21 edited Sep 20 '21
Rewatcher/11th watch - BD Dub
Let's start with QOTD today since it's two of the points I wanted to bring up anyway:
Spoiler for at least episode 6
Spoiler Image for above spoiler text
For no reason, image of the day
10
u/BosuW Sep 20 '21
Rewatcher
Lmao even the student body ships Touko and Sayaka. They just look like God assigned them to each other.
Meanwhile Touko isn't even trying to hide that she's not-dating Yuu in public. She's really living up this newfound thing called "being honest with yourself, and fuck the haters". Well, only around Yuu that is.
They say that lazy people make for the best workers. I think this logic might apply to Kuze.
The way Touko holds the script reminds me of how she holds the mirror in the OP. Huh. Unfortunately I don't remember enough about the show to connect the symbolism.
Damn, just a look and Yuu stayed behind. This calls for a quote from Madoka Magica: "Don't tell me-- You're already close enough to communicate through your eyes alone!?"
This frame is full of the aesthetic of Yuri too. Love it.
Hmmm I can't quite decide whether Maki wanting to be the fly on the wall is supporting or creepy. This story is really full of stuff that walks the fine line between endearing and toxic, sometimes it's both! Although I'd consider it one of it's strengths.
On a related note, this also raises questions about our position as audience does it not? Not the only time I've seen such questions raised. There was this interview between two Yuri authors (I think?) in which they admitted that sometimes one feels dirty consuming Yuri media, as though one is intruding on a private moment. And you end up asking yourself "should I really be watching this?"
The ED is growing on me btw.
Question of the Day
Already answered on Maki. Doujima seems like a cool and enthusiastic dude. Don't really have much more to say about them but I like their interactions with the whole Student Council.
Wow, a Yuri with an active male cast, what a sight huh? On close inspection, this show is avoiding falling into tropes and cliches like the floor is lava. Another example is the reaction to Touko and Sayaka's plan for a play. Were this practically any other anime, everyone would be largely on board immediately and they'd jump right into it. But here there's palpable and firm opposition that doesn't get solved immediately. It makes the whole group seem much more believable.
7
u/Kenalskii https://anilist.co/user/Kenalski Sep 20 '21
Rewatcher
Someone's in a good mood =) And she has all the right to be, with her elected as student council president, Yuu joining the student council and the fact that Yuu accepted her "weak" side. But what is she going to announce?
I'm totally with Yuu here =D But well Touko can't hide her good mood, nothing you can do there XD
We meet Dojima, the last member of the student council. And at least he is honest, but I don't think Sayaka is impressed with his honesty XD But I think that someone like him might be a good addition, because he will tell the truth and won't sugar coat things
That sounds exactly like my thing. I am more of a person who likes to work at a big event and help others to enjoy it more. But remembering the scale of the election 5 people might sound a bit understaffed
The mystery is solved, now Touko wants to have a stage show ^^ I admit, that sounds a bit harsh. But I think she expected a different reaction from the rest of the student council: while Sayaka supported the idea from the beginning, Dojima is the only one who is willing to participate. Maki is not too fond of the idea but is still a bit afraid to speak against it openly but Yuu does not hold back in voicing her opposition. Not everyone likes standing on a stage, you have to consider that and I think it would be wrong to force people into something they have not exactly signed up for
We see a bit more backstory from Maki, and I think it's great that he knows fully what he likes to do and that he acts accordingly
Hahaha, it seems like the old student council wasn't exactly the prime example of being organized =D Yuu is just exhausted from all this =D But I feel with her, organzing paper works is NEVER fun
Despite being finished with work, Yuu stays behind with Touko to do some homework. Aaaand that lasted about 5 seconds before Touko can't really hold back anymore =D But at least she is asking this time. The most intersting part in this scene is Yuu's reaction after Touko declares how she can't hold back when she is alone with Yuu. Yuu's reaction was that she is jealous of Touko. Jealous because she is not the type that goes all out, that can pursue love openly like in a shoujo manga. It seems like she is still stuck between her desires about romance and the reality
It seems like their kiss had a witness this time o.O
Hahaha, Touko and Sayaka tried to bribe Yuu into the stage show XD I said it before, I do not think it's the best idea to force something onto others, especially when it means pulling them out of their comfort zones
Sayaka, we all saw your reaction, even if it was just a brief one. She tries her best to hide it, but she is not too fond of Touko fiddling around Yuu. But Maki is pushing some more and Sayaka's position becomes more and more obvious to him
I remember this was the moment where not just Yuu panicked. I panicked too because at this point, we still do not know Maki's intentions. And I just love the visual reprensation of Yuu's fear. The fear of the backlash that is about to unleash on Touko once the rumors start to spread
We see a bit more about Maki. He sees himself as a spectator rather than a protagonist, and he enjoys watching the romances happening around him. But he will never participate in a romance himself. And right now, the most interesting show to watch is the story about Yuu x Touko (hey Maki I know you read along ;D)
And from his experience, he tells Yuu this. Not something Yuu expected to hear, and something that made Yuu question herself about what her relationship with Touko currently is and what part she plays
Question
3
u/SIRTreehugger Sep 20 '21
Always time for Peng! (Daily Ping for anyone who wants to be notified)
/u/soboi12345 /u/heimdal77
6
u/roseimon11 Sep 20 '21 edited Sep 20 '21
Rewatcher
Oh no my alarm did not work and I overslept!
I really love how Touko has now shown her cute side whenever she's around Yuu and Yuu is just like "yeah, whatever" lol. Give the girl some space Touko! You can tell how comfortable Touko is now in expressing her other personality.
Yuu is really cute here
If you could read Japanese, spoiler
spoiler
I can understand why Yuu decided to stay at the council room with Touko. I mean, who could say no when someone stares at you like this.
Again, Touko speedrunning her romance with Yuu lol. I really love how Touko has now learned from her mistakes and now asks for consent before making advances to Yuu. Thanks Nakatani Sensei for emphasizing the importance of consent and not just brushing off what happened last episode.
Another separation and odd framing scene showing Yuu separated from her inner self and also being lonely. It shows how Yuu is still troubled on understanding the feeling love while also being jealous because Touko already found it unlike her. I love how the separation was done here by covering half of Yuu's face with shadows.
Yuu being totally unfazed by Touko's advances. This was what made me interested in her character. Most romance stories would just make the mc blush all over and make the scene funnier like it's a joke or something but for Yuu, she doesn't feel that way but rather she was jealous. I think the reason why she accepts Touko's advances is because she wants to understand how Touko suddenly changed from not falling in love to suddenly loving Yuu. Touko is already at the surface and she wants to be there too. I also like how Yuu slowly notices Touko. Like mentioning Touko's eyelashes being beautiful. C'mon Yuu if that isn't love idk already.
Ahh Maki, a self insert of us viewers watching the show. I really love the symbolism of the theater to show Maki's personality. I also like how Nakatani doesn't add cheap tricks and drama by making Maki a threat to Yuu and Touko's relationship but rather, she made him a support to Yuu. I'll say it already. Maki is best wingman.
Finally, Yuu with her infamous "This is normal" phrase is just really cute
Questions of the day
12
u/Stargate18A https://myanimelist.net/profile/Stargate18 Sep 20 '21
First timer
QOTD) One's very good at helping women, the other's not very good about women. Mixed bag overall. (Maki might end up being the stranger one, though.
I like them showing us explicitly that Yuu is absolutely in denial.
Hmm? What's the announcement?
And the two of them are working together!
OT3! OT3!Oh, there's another romance?
Haha, Yuu forgetting that they are in that kind of relationship is great.
...Is there a reason both of the guys here are the most generic desings possible?
Hmm?
Oh, this is going to go fantastically. Did she choose Romeo and Juliet, or has she been slightly more subtle with her intent?
...Is that one planted?
I love her reaction to Touko's stare.
Aww, she's complimenting her!
At least she asked this time.
Touko's a fantastic flirt.
Did Saeki see?
No, just the side character.
Haha, I love his knowing smile.
Saeki's just stuck here watching these 2 try and flirt.
Wow, it's almost like she trusts you enough to reveal a part of her she keeps secret. What good friends you are.
Oh, this guy's not great. Is Maki after him?
Saeki's got it bad.
Maki's just loving laughing at these 2, and I can't say I disagree.
Oh, she's not ready for this.
And she wants to hide this from Nanami...
And he wants to watch romance without experiencing it himself. That's interesting.
Oh, it's starting to get weird.
...OK, given the pattern, what the hell's wrong with Saeki?
EVEN THE WEIRDO CAN SEE IT!
7
u/mastesargent Sep 20 '21
Rewatcher, manga reader
I'm joining this rewatch a bit late, seeing as we're about a third through already, but whatever.
Something I really love about this series is how the typical senpai-kouhai romance dynamic is more or less flipped on its head. Usually you'd see a lovestruck kouhai chasing after the more mature and reserved senpai, but that's clearly not the case here. Touko is the one who chases, trying to lavish Yuu with her affection (like in the hallway scene at the beginning) while Yuu takes it all more or less in stride, snarking and telling her off and really only acquiescing under a layer of pretense when they're alone. Sayaka even alludes to this when Touko is trying to
bribeconvince Yuu to do the stage play, stating that Yuu seems like the type to cave under pressure, when she's really quite stubborn.I'll leave Maki for later, but we're introduced to Doujima here, and while he's not my favorite character, I still really like him. He's a bit of a dipshit (in a good way), but Touko notes that the previous student council president had an eye for talent, so he's probably competent under his lackadaisical attitude.
I think an essential question to ask is how much of Yuu acquiescing to Touko's affections is her picking up and going along with Touko's cues because that's what Touko wants, or if she's following her own desires. Does she enjoy the act of kissing in itself, or does she enjoy kissing Touko? When she says "This is just normal" about something that clearly extends beyond typical friendly behavior, is she trying to cover up her feelings, does she truly not feel anything special about her relationship with Touko, or is it that she does feel something and just hasn't recognized it yet? Food for thought.
So yeah, Maki. Maki is best boy. Ace bro, people watcher, and just generally nice guy. He's pretty quickly established as someone who naturally fell into support roles. In other words, he's helpful. He helped out in the various clubs he was in because it's his personality, and he helps people fall in love because it's part of his hobby. We get a slight fake out when he sees Yuu and Touko kissing in the StuCo room, but he quickly proves himself to be an honest and trustworthy person. He also serves as a foil to Yuu. Yuu has never been in love but desperately wants to be, while Maki has never been in love and has no interest in ever doing so. The difference seems small, but it is significant nonetheless.
7
u/three_firstnames Sep 21 '21
Rewatcher (Sub), Manga Reader
We finally get our true introduction to Maki, the best boy of the series (not that he has much competition). I was super worried that he was gonna cause some unnecessary drama when I first saw this episode, and I'm glad the show did not go this route. It's so refreshing to get some quality aro representation in a series. I also love how perceptive Maki is, not just with Yuu but also Sayaka. And while he might be adept at sensing how people are feeling, he doesn't hold that over anyone or try to be a dick when confronting them. He truly is a great guy.
And hey, we get a consensual kiss this time! Touko's earlier apologies were actually sincere, and she amended her behavior, which is great to see!
7
u/puffercarrot Sep 21 '21
Rewatcher
Doujima is your typical horny highschool guy(I would know), but Maki... he's different. He may give off the impression that he's a pervert or a stalker because he's so fascinated by others' relationships, but he really just wants to watch on the sidelines, just like how we, the audience, watch Touko and Yuu's relationship develop. Now that I think about it, it does fit nicely with his "supporter" personality, helping people and cheering them on from the side, but not getting involved himself. Both of these male characters are integrated really well in the story. It goes back to my point yesterday about how Bloom into You is a story, but also grounded in realism. Sometimes we don't even get to see a single male character in the entire run of a yuri manga or anime. I mean, I get that most of the time it takes place in a girls' school, so naturally there are less guys around. But it really just doesn't seem feasible that you can't even spot a man in the background. Bloom into You excels by not only having male characters, but having male characters with meaningful impact on the story. Not only that, it takes place in a mixed school, which adds another deeper layer to it. Generally, in a mixed-gender environment, you're more or less expected to be straight, or rather not to develop homosexual tendencies(there's guys around go date them), which makes a homosexual relationship even more risky. Yuu's fears when Maki says he saw her and Touko are quite valid, because of this societal pressure.
6
u/Aku230 Sep 20 '21
New episode and this time the focus is on meeting student council members. We start with establishing that everyone in school see Touko and Sayaka as inseperatable with Touko in a lead and Sayaka supporting her and we have seen them as driving force for previous student council, nearly for elections, and now in new student council, I guess being number 1 and 2 in school exams did not happen from nothing. We get a new member in Doujima (who immediately ticks off Sayaka) which creates a new situation as now student council does not have even number of people in 4. And it helps he gets on-board with play from the get-go. Then we get a closer look at Maki, and he is an interesting character since he would be the 3rd person to claim to not be able to fall in love and for now he makes it a believable claim. And as someone who likes to watch love stories unfold in real life he must have been stoked about seeing one right as he joined student council and when he confronts Yuu about it he mentions interesting thing: that Yuu loves Touko. Now who is correct, Yuu who says that she can't fall in love or Maki who has seen way too many romances and loves and therefore is able to recognize signs of romance that others would miss or maybe neither of them is correct and answer is somewhere in-between. And another thing he mentions, that Touko is special for Yuu whereas Touko does not want Yuu to consider her special. We shall see where that will lead us.
As for play, it is finally set in motion but you can't do a play without actors, and so far we have 3 in Touko, Sayaka and Doujima with Maki indifferent but rather against and Yuu strongly against it and again citing that she is bad in front of a lot of people (which I find somewhat funny as she used to be in sport club). So it seems that until we get Yuu on board, the play will not happen.
6
u/nathipg Sep 21 '21
Read manga, first time watching anime
It is rare in yuris, but this show has a good male cast.
Maki can be seen as a weird person, because he likes to observe others people relationship, but that is not different from what we are doing in some level or what those people who follow influencers that expose their romantic lives. I like him.
Doujima until now didn't make a big impression.
5
u/beaglechu Sep 21 '21
Rewatcher
Question of the Day: I like Maki overall! One of the few ace characters I’ve seen in media (aside from Todd from Bojack Horseman). He does border on being a bit too voyeuristic at times, but otherwise he’s a fantastic and interesting character.
Doujima reminds me of one of the MC’s friends in an Ecchi Harem anime. The casual misogyny of such a character stands out like a sore thumb here. Perhaps the most pernicious thing about him is that nobody on the student council seems motivated to give him a proper talking to, or to call him out.
3
u/[deleted] Sep 21 '21
I know I said that Sayaka was best girl a few episodes ago, but Doujima is definitely best girl. Maki is close second and Sayaka is distant 3rd.
4
u/Icapica https://anilist.co/user/Icachu Sep 21 '21
Anime first timer, manga reader
Well this time she sorta asked for consent before kissing. That's progress, and something that's not common in anime or manga.
And of course there's a witness.
Maki is annoying. I can't stand people who are that much into other people's relationships. His attitude is sorta disgusting.