Posted in Anime Reviews

I Knew I Was Right to Compare Toradora and Karekano

   March 29, 2009  5 Comments on I Knew I Was Right to Compare Toradora and Karekano

As evidenced in this wonderful (though still incomplete) video:

That it really, really fits proves my point. Though I still think Kare Kano is ultimately the more insightful show.

This is making me want to go back and watch Kare Kano again. Or imagine what Toradora! would have been like in the hands of Hideaki Anno…one can only dream.

(HT: bluemist.)

Author: gendomike

Michael lives in the Los Angeles area, and has been into anime since he saw Neon Genesis Evangelion in 1999. Some of his favorite shows include Full Metal Alchemist, Honey and Clover, and Welcome to the NHK!. Since 2003 he has gone to at least one anime convention every year. A public radio junkie, which naturally led to podcasting, he now holds a seminary degree and is looking to become Dr. Rev. Otaku Bible Man any day now. Michael can be reached at mike.huang@animediet.net. You can also find his Twitter account at @gendomike.
Website

5 thoughts on “I Knew I Was Right to Compare Toradora and Karekano”

  1. this reminds me that after many years of being super lazy to get caught up i finally finished the kare kano manga. While i loved the anime the manga blew it out of the water

  2. @DQ: So I’ve been told by more than one person. Then again, considering the final few episodes of the anime and its non-ending, it probably isn’t hard to blow it away in that sense. But what was there amid the no-budget animation, endless recaps, and behind-the-scenes dorama was some of the finest writing I’ve seen about high schoolers in anime.

    I should read the manga too.

  3. KareKano and Toradora! may have some similar elements beyond being set in a high school, but when I watched Toradora!, I didn’t see anything that made me think, “Whoa!  KareKano!”

  4. This makes me want to go back and watch Kare Kano again again. Again.

    Or, more importantly, finish the manga after some ~5 year hiatus.  I think I was on volume 18 or 19?

  5. AstroNerdBoy: their stories aren’t all that similar, it’s true. They are also aimed at different audiences, too; Kare Kano is shoujo. However, I put them together because they are both well-written, character-driven high school romance shows and represent the best of their class, with a similar mix of nostalgia, character insight, and attention to emotional believability.

    kadian1364: You and me both.

Comments are closed.