Tsuki ga Kirei – 05 [Kokoro]

This show is so unfair.

Like, after spending 5 episodes of cutely awkwardly topsy turvy Akane – Kotarou first love, how can we even root for poor Chinatsu? Even the show itself seems to know that too, as when Kotarou confessed to Akane few episodes back, we had beautiful full moon in bloom right in front of them (Tsuki ga Kirei!!). Poor Chinatsu, on the other hand, just “deserves” a reflection of a moon, lurking from afar from her and Kotarou. In addition, why add her as the most charming character of the show, whose have such a great, easy chemistry to everyone around her? I actually didn’t think she would fall for Kotarou considering she helps the two out last week, at least not yet. Our couple will have a bit of hardship now as Akane clearly feels insecure whenever Chinatsu’s around Kotarou (her voice changes!), simply because she can make a natural conversation with Kotarou in public while Akane can’t. To top all that Chinatsu and Kotarou will have plenty of time to be together, now that she’s going to the same cram school with him. Takumi, another external threat, is going to make his moves soon since he doesn’t have much time to be running alongside Akane. Not only those potential threats but the couple themselves don’t do too well too, Kotarou is slipping at his grades and Akane performs poorly at practice. There will be trials and tribulations for our duo’s romance but hey, what is love without pain.

Akane and Kotarou now officially become a couple, and this episode details exactly how two young people in their first stage of love would be like. This show never ceases to amaze me how sensitive and relatable they portrait their characters in those situations. They’re dating but they still can’t find a courage to talk to each other at school, so they seek advice from their most reliable sources, first of course, the internet (ask Mr. Google) and then the adults that closed to them. Again, the show excels on emphasizing visual cues from little gestures, facial expressions and their speech patterns instead of relying on obvious expositions. When you know a character enough you can tell his personalities just by the way he moves, and Tsuki ga Kirei is a masterclass regarding that. Kotarou is much more lively and relatable when he performing a traditional dance or exercising his excitement with sit-up and boxing in his room than any monologue could mutters. Akane’s subtle reactions while staying near Kotarou really inform us what she really feels. The show’s awareness for physical space is a highlight as well, just look at the last scene about the positions of the two where Akane seems to be further away from Kotarou. Great stuff.

And then they’re holding hands. Boy, never in my experience (even my own) that such a simple holding-hands moment fills me with so much joy and excitement. I really like the way they tried out the library but failed (again, Chinatsu) and how the bookshop-owner sensei helps the two lovebirds out: give them some time alone together; ya know, just the two of us (what kind of book shop that have no customer by the way? Usually they would fill with patronize who read books free for hours). For the amount of time they been thinking about each other, it’s rather surprising to notice that they have very little real conversations to each other (boy do I look forward for more), and when they do talk, it’s sparkling. But that is so Tsuki ga Kirei: slow, mundane in twenty minutes and then hits you in the gut for the last few minutes. As this episode further demonstrates, sometimes you don’t need too many big plot twists and tear-jerking situations to win over the viewers, you just need one good resolution that hits hard.

ps: Want to mention it but can’t fit it anywhere in the post, but I do really enjoy the shorts this week. The shorts explore the teen-romance in much lighter tone and each story adds something hilarious to the table. Those shorts are not mere extras by any mean, but they help enriching the romance theme of the show. Tsuki ga Kirei, as boring as it might sound, is still going strong.