The synopsis for Watari-kun no ****** ga Houkai Sunzen sounded pretty interesting, so I decided to pick it up! A boy who lives for his little sister faces rumors at school, and a childhood friend who suddenly reappears. It has all the makings of either a good drama or a good comedy. The premise sounded pretty solid, but we all know that execution is just as important as the premise. Did this show execute and deliver a possible sleeper hit for this season?
Let’s go!
First Episode Synopsis
Naoto Watari lives his life for his sister. She’s only ten and just entered the fourth grade, and as her big brother, he feels that he has a certain responsibility to protect and raise her, especially after we learn that both of their parents had passed on. Thankfully, their aunt takes them in, so they at least have a roof over their heads. Of course, that doesn’t make life any easier.
Naoto is trying to move beyond his past; however, there are people at school who only see him as a siscon for always taking care of her. Because he puts his sister first, he doesn’t join any clubs, and turns down offers to help others… especially when one of those offers comes from Ishihara, a girl that he has a crush on, but it’s okay because he knows that she’s out of his league anyway.
One day, just when he thinks things are finally starting to mellow out, an old childhood friend who disappeared six years ago, Satsuki Tachibana, reappears. Apparently, she wrecked his garden when they were younger, and she never apologized for it, and still doesn’t. From here on out, she’s stalking him, harassing him, and refuses to learn what personal boundaries mean.
Worth Watching?
NO – There are some shows that I’ll sit through from beginning to end, and then there is show where I quit about three-quarters of the way through. It’s another one of those shows that I dislike where the comedy is too over-the-top and relies on a lot of yelling to tell its jokes. Plus, after reading the synopsis, I was expecting some actual depth and drama. I wanted to see Naoto struggle with his daily life, with Tachibana possibly making it better/worse as they developed their relationship. None of that took place, nor did that plot get a chance to truly have an impact.
The forced humor and the bullying nature of Tachibana were simply poorly executed. At least in a show like Don’t Toy with Me, Nagatoro-san, the bullying is cute, and there is actual romantic tension there. That’s a great example of doing bullying right. Watari-kun no ****** ga Houkai Sunzen is a great example of how to do it incorrectly. So, not only does Tachibana not respect Naoto’s boundaries, but she can’t even respect Ishihara’s. This is supposed to be some sort of wedge or roadblock to stop Naoto from getting the girl he likes (even if he already thinks Ishihara is out of his league and his only friend told him to forget about her), but it just never came across like that.
From the start to where I ended up, and stopped watching, everything from the plot, the character “development,” the humor, the bullying aspect, and everything else in between was just very sub-par. It’s not unwatchable as I’m sure someone out there will find some joy in this, but I’m not one of them, and it’s easily a show that I can see not many others liking either… especially when there are a lot of other series that does bullying correctly and isn’t an obvious dumpster fire before the end of the first episode.
