Common Name: Kaguya-sama Love is War
Alternative Names: Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai: Tensai-tachi no Renai Zunousen, Kaguya Wants to be Confessed To: The Geniuses' War of Love and Brains
Score: 9/10, 4/5
Length: 12 Episodes
Genre: Comedy, Romance, Slice of Life, School Life
Summary: While the students of Shuchiin Academy are already renowned as the cream of the crop, there are two students who stand above all others. Student Council President Shirogane Miyuki, having earned his way into the academy through scholarship and his incredible work ethic, is one of these students. The other, Vice President Shinomiya Kaguya, is the only child of the Shinomiya Conglomerate. Though they are the pride of their school, that very pride has caused them no end of grief. Locked in an eternal struggle to outwit each other, these two are determined to bring the other to heel, forcing them to finally confess their romantic feelings for the victor. Try as they might, though, neither is willing to forsake their pride and let the other gain ground on the battlefield of love.
Review: Upon reading the premise of this show, I'll admit that I was deeply concerned and worried about what Kaguya-sama might end up being. Having seen a few shows take on the toxic mentality often associated with the "incel" mindset--the belief that love and romance is something deserved, rather than earned--I immediately started to fear for the worst. Just as quickly as those irrational fears and expectations of the worst cropped up, though, they all but vanished once I finally got to see what this show was all about. Rather than resolving into some smug, arrogant, entitled mess of a romance, Kaguya-sama is something legitimately special. This is a show that did far more than simply overcome my fears and expectations. It's a show that took those expectations, ran with them, and then subverted them into a comedy full of great jokes, great characters, and a kind of thoughtfulness that speaks to a quality romance title.
Granted, this show's brand of dorky comedy would have been more than enough to win me over.
The thing about Kaguya-sama that makes it so special is the way it uses the issues with that initial premise to simultaneously progresses and interfere's with the ultimate goal of the series: to have either Shirogane or Kaguya confess to one another. Though it is made abundantly clear from the beginning that they both have feelings for one another, the very things that define them as people work to keep them apart. The titular Shinomiya Kaguya, for example, is driven by her pride. Because of her lofty status in life, as the heir to a massive corporation, and the expectations thrust on her because of that status, she works tirelessly to maintain her social image. That means maintaining an aloof and unapproachable facade that causes others to put her on the pedestal her family expects. Yet, despite her desire to maintain that facade, she also wants the same things as any other teenage girl: friends she can have fun with and a special someone who cares about her as much as she cares about them. The first of these she's already found to some degree, thanks to Fujiwara Chika's unique brand of dense but determined friendship that couldn't care less about Kaguya's status. That second is a lot trickier for her, though, since confessing her feelings for someone would mean putting herself in a vulnerable position, which is something her pride would never allow. To make matters worse, though, the person she fell for is someone who actively threatens her superiority.
Not to mention, he's also someone dealing with a similar issue with pride.
Existing as the flip-side to Kaguya's inherited pride, Shirogane Miyuki deals with a kind of pride he has fought tooth and nail to obtain. Born into the lower class, Shirogane has worked tirelessly to give himself and his family the best opportunities possible. From studying enough to not just match but outclass the nation's elites academically to crafting an image of competence and confidence that is guaranteed to impress anyone he meets, he is the definition of a made man. In attaining those things and landing himself a full scholarship to an academy for the elite, though, he's put himself in a precarious position. Now that he's on track for where he wants to be, he has to keep fighting just to maintain that position or else risk losing it all. What all that means for him personally, though, is that he constantly struggles with an inferiority complex that he demands he maintain his current status, thereby reaffirming his own self-worth, and shoving down anyone that might challenge his position. This, of course, includes the same girl that caught his eye and embodies what he wants out of life: Shinomiya Kaguya. Much like with Kaguya's pride, though, confessing his feelings for her would put him in a vulnerable position that would require him to admit that he needs her permission to go out with her and is thus lesser than her.
That's some non-euclidean mental gymnastics right there.
At the end of the day, though, it isn't their pride that gets in the way of their happiness so much as their weaknesses as individuals. Try as they might to constantly one-up each other in this war of romantic attrition, the fact of the matter is just that neither is to risk getting turned down. Shirogane, for all his personal insecurity, simply buys into Kaguya's unapproachable facade more than anyone else and automatically assumes that he'll get mercilessly shot down if he makes the first move. Kaguya, in comparison, fears that putting herself out there might push Shirogane away for reasons ranging from him simply not liking her being so forward to the possibility that she might lose one of the few friends she has. Varied and circuitous are the ways either of them has for not just popping the question but they all ultimately just boil down to the two of them being shy, insecure, and scared of what might happen if they get turned down.
And then, of course, there's also the fear of what might happen if their feelings are reciprocated.
So, around and around these two go, driving each other mad in their game to see who'll break first. Despite their best efforts to keep the game going, though, both Shirogane and Kaguya still end up taking baby steps toward their end goal over the course of the series. Little moments pop in here and there when their honest desires and desperation bleed through the cracks in their prideful facades. And as the series goes on, those moments start to become the center of each episode as more and more cracks develop over time. In this way, we get a story that starts at a slow burn but steadily ramps up into a legitimate romance series, rather than another comedy about romance.
To be clear, that's not to say the comedy is bad. Quite the opposite, actually.
Comedy, in my opinion, is always better when it serves a purpose and this show is all about giving comedy a purpose. From the little gags that ease the romantic/dramatic tension to its use to accurately express what romance is like for people afraid of vulnerability, pretty much every moment in this show works to forward the show's romantic arc. What it also does, though, is make it a lot easier to like a couple of characters that are so serious and full of themselves that they'd be unlikable in nearly any other format. For example, as serious as Shirogane is about maintaining his social image, the comedy works to both showcase and mock that seriousness by having him struggle at sports to great comedic effect. In another instance, Kaguya puts together an insanely detailed plan that she hopes will lead to Shirogane asking her out only for it to fall apart in the end because of the chaos the show's other two characters, Fujiwara Chika and Ishigami Yuu, introduce to every scenario. Yet, rather than just being convenient tools for comedy, both Chika and Ishigami prove to be quality characters in their own right. As mentioned previously, Chika proves herself time and again as Kaguya's best friend by standing by her and even causing some of those previously mentioned cracks. For his part, Ishigami serves much the the same purpose but with a more negative, self-victimizing twist on the formula. As one of Shirogane's few friends, Ishigami is the person he goes to for bad romantic advice. Objectively terrible as his advice is, though, he does still ultimately end up helping Shirogane work through his muddled feelings.
Albeit Shinogane's benefit often comes at the cost of Ishigami's well-being.
There are, of course, a few weaker moments that dot the series that don't really serve any greater purpose. Chika's ramen adventure being the main one that comes to mind but the vast majority of the show is dedicated to showcasing all the characters' various flaws, foibles, and hangups, making it a lot easier to like them and root for their eventual happiness. That said, it should be pretty obvious by now that I absolutely adore Kaguya-sama in all its comedic, romantic glory. It's one of those shows that honestly has a little something for everyone. If you like slapstick, it's hard to beat Ishigami and Shirogane's inept physical comedy. If you like cringe, Ishigami is a god in that respect. If you like quirky moe nonsense or obscure game logic jokes, Chika has no equal. And, of course, if you love absurdism and scenes that are extra to an unreasonable degree, Kaguya and Shirogane's comedic back and forth is gold. On the romantic angle, though, I've already made my point clear that this show easily has one of the best and most satisfying buildups in anime ever. Though I might not have gotten the payoff that I wanted in the end, the journey was well worth some mild disappointment. So, in all honesty, I feel like it'd be a waste not to give Kaguya-sama a blanket recommendation as what'll likely be one of this year's best comedies.