Firstly, when I saw the ' trailer ' for Koikimo ( It's Too Sick to Call this Love ), I was extremely excited as a die-hard fan of the romance genre, especially since it turned out to be very light and cliché, with an innovative story at first glance. However, during my experience with the anime , I developed a love-hate relationship, which I didn't expect to happen.
The anime Koikimo ( Koi to Yobu ni wa Kimochi ) follows Amakusa Ryo , a 27-year-old single executive who doesn't seem to care much about love and relationships. On the other hand, we have Amari Ichika, a 17-year-old otaku high school girl with no experience with love.
By chance, she ends up saving Ryo from falling down a flight of stairs with her umbrella. Because of this incident, Ryo ends up feeling something he's never felt before, coming to the conclusion that it's love and beginning a journey to win Ichika's heart.
A “different” romance
When we talk about something different, it doesn't automatically mean that it's bad, just something that's never been seen before. And that's what I thought when I first saw the romance between Amakusa Ryo and Amari Ichika. A romance that normalizes obsession.
At first glance, Ryo appears to be a womanizer who doesn't care about relationships and only cares about sexual pleasure. However, after meeting Ichika, he falls in love and begins to develop an obsession with her.
On the other hand, Ichika initially doesn't feel very comfortable with Ryo's attitude, who turns out to be the brother of Amakusa Rio (Ichika's best friend). However, as the episodes go by, she ends up falling in love with Ryo and his obsessive way with her.
During my experience with the anime, I felt uncomfortable at various points with Ryo's actions, especially with Ichika, who would only be happy if she were with him. Their relationship is extremely toxic to the point of normalizing obsession, which is especially evident after the appearance of Tamaru Kai, Ryo's rival for Ichika's heart.
A Cliché Story
Doing something cliché doesn't always mean it's a bad thing; on the contrary, many people, including myself, enjoy clichéd romances. However, when an anime tries to innovate and ends up not adding anything positive to the work, the cliché element becomes a problem.
It's Too Sick to Call This Love Koikimo (Koi to Yobu ni wa Kimochi) suffers from this problem. Because of its disastrous romance, the rest of the anime becomes just another romance among many others. However, even with similar premises, it manages to attract positive attention by having elements that add to the old formula.
Conclusion
Ultimately, as the saying goes, taste is like nose; everyone has their own. My experience wasn't the best; I was extremely disappointed with the anime and its handling of the abusive relationship.
However, I can't tell you not to watch the anime Koikimo . It's not entirely bad. Since it was never my intention to pass judgment, but rather to share my experience, I won't give a final rating. Watch it and draw your own conclusions.
- Genre: Comedy and Romance
- Studio: Nomad
- Release date: March 29, 2021
- Number of episodes: 12
