Kimikiss – Worthy relationships

18Feb/0811

Kimikiss – Worthy relationships

I suppose it speaks volumes of what I think of the whole Asuka/Kazuki/Eriko entanglement when Nana has become my choice bishoujo for Kazuki. I guess it helps that Nana's seiyuu is Nogawa Sakura san of Nemu fame from Da Capo.

When assessing any romances, I have 2 key performance indicators - basis of attraction and worthiness of parties involved. The former is related to the latter in that a basis is rooted in the character allure of a bishoujo or male lead. Of course the latter is highly subjective since I have my own checklist of worthiness though I like to think I look for something beyond the superficial. Applying this model to the relationships in Kimikiss, it becomes clear why I see the Kazuki component as deadweight while I cheer myself hoarse for the Kouichi segment weekly.

When Kazuki confessed to Eriko in ep 19, the first thing that came to mind was, "And what are your reasons for liking Eriko? Because you got to kiss her? Or because she was exceptionally beautiful? Maybe it's Eriko's enigma aura that draws you? Or do you pity her because she's lonely?" Examining all 4 potential motivations, I found all of them to be fleeting basis for love. Asuka on the other hand is a great deal more likable. Always looking out for Kazuki, she's a thoughtful friend who brings the best out of Kazuki. Sadly, Kazuki is not in the least attracted to Asuka. I suppose Kazuki see her as 'one of the guys'. Still, it's Asuka or bust for me though at ep 19 the series seem to disagree. It really doesn't help when Kazuki continues to be pathetic as his virtual relationship with Eriko drags thin. Nope, Kazuki and Eriko fails my criteria for a worthy relationship.

There's still a great deal of Mao hate out there. A lot of it stemmed from her supposed callous treatment of Kai and her coming between Kouichi/Yuumi. Personally between Kai and Kouichi, Kouichi is obviously superior with respect to a romance with Mao. As one who is more in-tuned to Mao's needs, probably from years as childhood friends, Kouichi would make the more intuitive lover. Maybe Kai could reach that level of understanding with Mao someday but for now, I support a Kouichi X Mao pairing. Hence, Mao's preference for Kouichi is reasonable and her ditching of Kai is a responsible move that no one should fault her for. As for coming between Yuumi/Kouichi, she has declared that she has no intentions to do so although despite her most honorable motives, the play happened. Mao's intrusion into Yuumi X Kouichi relationship wasn't malicious, it was destiny and the hairline fractures in the Yuumi/Kouichi relationship should not be actively attributed to Mao. She remains a worthy contender for Kouichi's heart as with the wonderful Yuumi whose womanly intuition would serve her well in life. A deserving guy, great gals and strong basis of attraction - a worthy love tussle indeed.

And no, Kai and Mao MUST not get together if Mao is to remain worthy. Don't ruin Kai's life now with a rebound from Kouichi. That would then render you deserving of the hate that you are receiving now. Hoping the bench scene does not reap more than an encouragement from Kai.

Posted by Stripey

Filed under: Kimikiss Leave a comment

Comments (11) Trackbacks (2) ( subscribe to comments on this post )

totali
February 18th, 2008 - 10:26

Kimikiss wa taihen desu ne~

I dunno. As far as Kazuki and Eriko goes, I think they’re kind of building it up where Eriko needs to be saved. Kazuki is like the energetic type that can bring change for her. It’s just too convenient for Asuka to step in for an interesting story.

The most annoying thing about Mao is the childhood friend complex….which we’ve all grown tired of. Sure, growing up together can bring love…but that’s not the only route.

….but talking about Kimikiss almost tires me at this point…lol. xD

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Zzz...
February 18th, 2008 - 11:54

Seeing as that you are obliviously a Mao supporter I will refrain from saying what I feel about her for now…depending on how she and Kouichi act in the upcoming episodes I may not be able to restrain myself though…

…I don’t begrudge her of her feelings…I do think they are completely valid. However I also firmly believe in social conduct…there are codes of behavior that must be followed ESPECIALLY when strong feelings flow…else all is chaos and society cannot function…what is humanity without society…

…well…even chimpanzees have society…

…just saying “she is in love” does not in exempt someone from acting within the the rules…although that is a thesis that these shows typically push forward…but that is not something I buy and is usually my issue with these plots.

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Hinano
February 18th, 2008 - 11:58

*gasp* You stole my naughty camera pan! xD;
But yea, Mao sucks, she should end up as a lonely wench – I don’t even want Kai with her anymore

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maglor
February 18th, 2008 - 12:22

My position is that Kai is too good for Mao, and Kazuki is not worthy of Asuka’s hand.

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Stripey
February 18th, 2008 - 20:56

totali: I guess there is a basis for Eriko to like Kazuki if he is the energetic one to bring change. Still Eriko has little to offer Kazuki except mystic and beautiful. Fundamentally, the Eriko/Kazuki pairing just feels incompatible. They could be friends where Kazuki leads Eriko out of loneliness but for couplehood, they’d need to offer a better basis of attraction.

As for the Mao’s childhood friend turned lover plot device, it’s something I’m unlike to get tired of since all loves have similar basis – friends to lovers. In fact the chidlhood friend love has more to offer since they can a rich history to justify their basis of attraction which Kimikiss did, for example the picture book. But I agree with you on that childhood friends need not develop romantically. But I have a theory that 2 good looking and attractive persons cannot be good friends within one of the parties feeling drawn.

Zzz…: Heh, and these rules are? Not confessing while the boy in question is in a loving relationship? I don’t see Mao breaking social norms of love actually. The confession was an outburst to get Kouichi to get off her back. She needed time away and I was glad she didn’t lie. Of course it triggered something in Kouichi that will be clear only in the coming eps. If there’s anything I’d fault her is discovering her feelings for Kouichi too late which isn’t quite valid either.

Hinano/maglor: Bust! Gomen, gomen didn’t want to reinvent the wheel XD Actually I’m one of those that think Mao is too good for Kai. Kai feels a little too slow on the uptake whereas Mao is effervescent, caring and expressive.

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usagijen
February 18th, 2008 - 22:33

pfft… Asuka’s “third party” status in the Kazuki x Eriko pairing just makes me sad… ;___; the director is unfair… I mean, Eriko already had her “kiss” head start for attracting Kazuki, an immediate “more than a friend” attraction at that. With Asuka, it’s already episode 19 and where is the confession which will supposedly turn the tide (and make Kazuki see Asuka as a girl)!! ;____; Reading the spoilers just makes me even more sad… I don’t think Kazuki will know her feelings till episode 23+. meh T___T

Ever since the beginning, I’ve been saying that Eriko deserves the “friend route”, which will cause her much change nonetheless. Yes perhaps love is something she needed, to accentuate her character development more, but sigh… =/ Mentar made me view Eriko on a much better light, but deep in my heart I still want Asuka. Though that seems impossible right now… *rereads KimiKiss manga volume 2 (Kouichi x Asuka) for solace*

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Stripey
February 18th, 2008 - 23:35

Woah! There’s a Kouichi X Asuka route in the manga? Midsummer’s night dream Kimikiss style? Does Mao get together with Kazuki? This could be hilarious

Personally I think Kazuki is unlikely to make a good boyfriend like Kouichi. He lacks that emotional intuition to understand women. Eriko is way too complex for him given her seriously unbalanced view of the world and relationships. Asuka is his best bet since her personality is a little more forthright and hence easier to grasp. Still, I wouldn’t mind if the Kazuki arc ends with them all remaining as friends. That boy’s just not ready

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usagijen
February 19th, 2008 - 01:39

hehehe, since Kazuki is an anime-original character, Kouichi has all the girls to himself Each volume of the manga concentrates on one pairing, so it’s not all complicated and harem-ish, like the game, or the anime (and not as crazy as Midsummer Night’s dream as well) XD

I posted a bit about the manga here, a few months back, Mao and Asuka’s routes. I only mentioned about Mitsuki x Kouichi’s arc in brief. Eriko’s arc is still ongoing, which reminds me I have to go check the latest chapters out XD

The manga has less of the drama and tension as the anime. It’s more ecchi (especially Mao’s x_x) and sappy. The characters are also not as emo as the anime, so you could say that they’re less well-rounded, in that sense. It’s a recommended read nonetheless, especially to see the “alternate routes”, apart from what the anime is planning. Asuka’s arc in the manga is a must read, I must say. Really cute :3

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Sixten
February 19th, 2008 - 10:23

The last time, I predicted that Kouichi would keep his relationship with Yuumi even after she moved away, and grow up enough to push Mao along in her relationship with Eiji. But my predictions for Kimikiss have been crushed like my moe-meter after a Mahoraba marathon followed by the Shiori arc of Kanon 2006.

Kimikiss is shaping up to be a lesson realizing too late. Kazuki said it himself, “You don’t know when or why you fall, you just sort of realize later that you’ve fallen.” Mao after Eiji kissed her, Mao after seeing the Kouichi/Yuumi kiss, Eiji after going out with Mao for months, Yuumi after she helped Kouichi write the script and couldn’t act it out (thus setting up her rival, Mao, for the win), Eriko walking in on the soccer game, and (maybe) Kazuki realizing his love for Asuka after confessing to Eriko – all of these are realizations that come too late.

Either the damage has been done, or you’re in a situation where you can’t get yourself out without hurting someone. Even the audience realizes too late that the Honey and Clover Team wasn’t avoiding the cliche “childhood friends falling in love” route – they were putting the childhood friends in different relationships to show how the “childhood friend power” was stronger in comparison. I think Kimikiss, and Mao in particular, have earned hate because they’ve created situations where someone has to get hurt, and hurt badly. Some have even wondered whether a true happy ending for Kimikiss is possible now.

But I still have hope! Mao may realize that it’ll make Kouichi happier to be with Yuumi. She won’t get back together with Eiji, but she can make up for her breaking of Eiji’s heart by putting Kouichi and Yuumi’s happiness above her own and making the sacrifice. And because of the film, Mao has her one and only kiss with Kouichi before sending him off to happily ever after with Yuumi.

Yuumi for the win! Until the bitter end!

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Zzz...
February 19th, 2008 - 17:53

Mao’s bad behavior started a long time before her little outburst last episode. If anything I’ll describe it as “passive-aggressive attention whoring through the technique of acting like a emo bitch”. And this is done (purposefully???) in front of a male lead who can’t leave well enough alone…I mean what did she think is going to happen?

Maybe I’m just acting out on my instinctive hatred but I can’t shake the feeling that thus far everything that’s happened is just the inevitable setup for Mao and Kouichi…which means Yuumi is going to get the ol’ writer’s shaft (as in she bows out of the relationship and be like “oh I’m just glad I made such good friends before I left”…I mean they already did the initial setup for it with Ms. Shijou and frog girl #1) because without it there is no way they can overcome Kouichi’s initial commitment to the poor welcome mat.

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Stripey
February 20th, 2008 - 09:01

usagijen: Ah thanks for the clarification. Looks like the anime left its harem roots and for the better too For some reason I just can’t picture Kouichi and Eriko together. XD

sixten: Great take on the threading theme. Myself I think Yuumi is a wonderful wonderful girl (seriously she’s the type I tried to find/date in high school but I’m telling you they’re extinct ) but my inclinations to the couple that has the most history/understanding between couple wins out. Well spoken about the hate for Mao. The pain is actually realistic. Love hurts. Even though we may have 5 girls and 4 guys, I hope the series is not going to pair them off like chopsticks but be willing to bring together the best couples at the expense of leaving some out. That would be more believable.

Zzz…: heh, I suspect the bottomline is I tend to be be kinder to 15-18 yr old girls who are inexperienced in love. I expect them to make mistakes. I believe it’s just human for girls to act a little selfish in love (I have more stringent conditions for males though). So yeah, instead of hating Mao, I sympathise with her and Yuumi. I haven’t decided which of the 2 very lovely girls deserve more of my love though

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