Fuuka: Season 1/ Episode 1 "Fuuka!" [Series Premiere] – Overview/ Review (with Spoilers)

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Oh11GzrFn8

Overview/ Review (with Spoilers)

As opposed to Seiren, Fuuka delivers what a person would want and desire from a first episode. The boy may still be generic, but the girl more than compensates for that. Making it so when they get close and he notes they aren’t a couple, but she responds with “We don’t know that yet” it’s over. You’re hooked, mark your calendars and let people know once a week you won’t be available for a half hour.

The Introduction

With his parents moving to America, Yuu, and his younger sister Chitose, move in with their two older, adult aged, sisters in Tokyo. There Yuu, a boy from the countryside, obsessed with documenting his life on twitter, meets Fuuka. She is blue haired, doesn’t have a cellphone, is the daughter of a track star, and listens to CDs still. What connects them is the assumption that, on two occasions, Yuu is taking upskirt pictures but what keeps them together is him trying to save her when he thinks some guy is harassing her for a date, and then them going on a date thanks to him getting tickets from his older sister.

Highlights

A Physical Girl in a Electronic World

I can’t remember where I read it, but there was an article about how much technology has changed romance not just in the real world, but media as well. Something you may not think about if you’re my age, because you pretty much grew up on the idea of at least having a phone for calls and texting. Even if your first phone made texting a chore. Yet, Fuuka kind of reminds you of the age before cell phones. When you had to actually make an effort to meet and keep connected with somebody.

With this, you are allowed to experience her personality. Take for example meeting up with someone. With a cellphone, you just call or text them where you are and then bam. However, as we see, with one person not having a cell phone you have to search. Well, as a display of the type of girl she is, Fuuka decides to get to a clear vantage point and yells out Yuu’s name. Which is both cringe-worthy and comical, and makes you fall for this odd character. Mostly because it makes it so she doesn’t simply seem like Yuu’s love interest but a complete person. One who loves this singer named Koyuki, whose dad is a track star, and she likely isn’t too bad herself. Someone who likes being by herself sometimes and just staring out at the world.

Doesn’t Always Feel Like Fan Service/ Catering to Men’s Fantasies

Building on the previous topic, I feel like a lot of anime is built around the heterosexual male fantasy. Hence why in the opening or closing themes, we usually see only the girls in bikinis and being sexualized. Yet this show seems like it isn’t geared toward that, per se. Granted, there are panty shots and we see Yuu’s sisters in their underwear, but it doesn’t have this sexualized vibe. It’s hot so, naturally, you’d be in your underwear at home and the only guy there is your brother. Why would you care if he sees you in your underwear? You used to see him run around in a diaper, might have even changed him.

Then, even with the Fuuka panty shots, as much as you could legitimately argue they are to tantalize the audience, I think it is also made to show that Yuu isn’t that type of guy. He isn’t some kind of horndog or even your usual inexperienced guy. Yes he is shy, probably hasn’t dated much before, or at all, but that doesn’t mean that by default he is a pervert. So with that, you get some normalcy and with him trying to be chivalrous, it crafts the possible romance between him and Fuuka as tangible and something you want to invest in.

Low Points

On The Fence

Going From Assumed Pervert To Possible Boyfriend

While Yuu thinking he was saving Fuuka from a pushy guy who wanted to date her but was trying to recruit her from the track team, was likely the turning point, things before that were murky. Twice Fuuka caught Yuu pointing his camera toward her at an angle which her underwear could be captured. The first time she breaks his phone and the second time she fights with him to get it and it drops off a roof. Now, in my mind, she’d be happy it likely fell a few stories and broke. Yet, instead, she feels bad, accepts his excuse that he meant no harm and helps him look for it.

I don’t know if that is realistic, since I’m not a girl and if I was I’d would probably not be as forgiving, but sort of like with Good Behavior, despite the way things start between our leads, what develops ends up making you forget/ forgive how things started.

Overall: Positive (Watch It)

I was so fearful that I’d have nothing to watch again, like last season, but thankfully I found something I feel I’ll really enjoy and think you certainly will too. It has an actual female lead who isn’t basically there to solely be a love interest. Hell, arguably Yuu is her love interest. Add in that neither are the most experienced with relationships, which leads you to want to squeal like a teenaged girl at a John Green/ Nicholas Sparks movie, and how can you not be sold? Much less, this girl replied to this boy, after he notes they aren’t a couple “We don’t know that yet.” COME ON!