Karuho Shiina’s Kimi ni Todoke: From Me to You is a refreshing high school love story between two students, Sawako Kuronuma and Shota Kazehaya. It’s a classic shojo romcom series that touched the hearts of many anime fans and paved the way for other popular high school-themed romances such as Say, “I Love You” and Blue Spring Ride.
Kimi ni Todoke is iconic for many reasons. The main protagonists Sawako Kuronuma and Shota Kazehaya became the poster children for the “shy girl” and the “boy-next-door” archetypes, but they provide a unique twist to these archetypes. Their relationship also showcases the cutesy, innocent side of high school love, and last but not least, the show introduces some important thematic messages about friendship.
Kimi ni Todoke's Protagonists Are Us in High School
Sawako Kuronuma is known by audiences for two things: her physical appearance and her feminine personality. Kuronuma’s physical appearance pays homage to the popular horror character Sadako from Koji Suzuki’s The Ring. Her name is just one letter off from Sadako, and like Sadako, Kuronuma’s long black hair covers her entire face, which terrifies Kuronuma’s classmates. Kuronuma’s appearance and inability to communicate have led to many misunderstandings and social isolation from her classmates. However, with the help of Kazehaya, Kuronuma soon makes friends and slowly comes out of her shell.
Kuronuma’s friends Ayane Yano and Chizuru Yoshida discover that Kuronuma is kind-hearted but shy. It takes time for Kuronuma to speak her mind. Throughout the series, Kuronuma learns to be comfortable in her shoes, and her friends are there to support her. Kuronuma’s docile persona is reminiscent of traditional gender norms for women in Japanese society: a woman should be feminine, meek, and dutiful.
However, to break those gender norms, female protagonists in shojo series undergo an internal transformation where they learn to be assertive and strong. Kuronuma is the prime example of the shy girl trope in anime. She can also be considered the prototype for other docile female protagonists like Mei Tachibana from Say, “I Love You” and Shoko Komi from Komi Can’t Communicate.
When this anime was airing, male leads in shojo series were characterized as handsome, wealthy, intelligent and athletic. Some examples of these protagonists include Tamaki Suoh from Ouran High School Host Club and Takumi Usui from Maid Sama!. The male protagonists are glamorized to be an audience’s “ideal” type, which unfortunately isn’t a realistic standard.
However, in Kimi ni Todoke, male protagonist Shota Kazehaya is a more realistic portrayal of the ideal guy that a girl might date in high school. Kazehaya breaks the stereotypical persona of most male leads in shojo series. Kazehaya is popular, but his popularity isn’t because of his wealth or physical looks. Instead, his kindness and optimism make him a likable guy, showcasing that the ideal “high school crush” is someone with a good personality rather than just being rich and good-looking.
A Heartwarming Story About High School Romance & Friendship
The main storyline of Kimi ni Todoke is Kuronuma and Kazehaya’s romantic relationship. They started as friends and soon became lovers. The two experience many cliche romantic experiences, such as Valentine’s Day; however, their relationship takes a more realistic approach by showcasing how high school students react when seeing their crushes.
For instance, Kazehaya got nervous and jealous when he believed that Kuronuma had a crush on Ryuu. In addition, it took a while for Kuronuma and Kazehaya to express their feelings for each other because they couldn’t overcome their shyness. These jealous moments and love confessions are relatable situations for many high school students. The series shows a realistic portrayal of how high schoolers handle romantic emotions, as opposed to other shojo series where there's often a rich guy sweeping a girl off her feet in a Cinderella-like scenario.
Lastly, Kimi ni Todoke conveys the importance of friendship and being your true authentic self. In Episode 6, “Friends,” Kuronuma defends Ayane Yano and Chizuru Yoshida when a few girls insult them in the bathroom. The scene leads to an altercation, where Yano and Yoshida defend and protect Kuronuma. This incident solidifies Yano and Yashida’s friendship with Kuronuma, and their friendship is very heartwarming in general. It’s a friendship built on trust and loyalty, which many viewers would want in their own lives. The scene also illustrates to audiences that true friendship is when someone can defend you against insults and criticism made by others.
Yano, Yoshida and Kazehaya also became a support system to help Kuronuma come out of her shell. In the beginning, Kuronuma had trouble communicating her thoughts to others. However, after befriending a few of her peers, Kuronuma is slowly becoming a social butterfly through her participation in school events like the sports festival. Kimi ni Todoke shows the importance of building strong friendships because it is those relationships that help you discover your most authentic self.
Kimi ni Todoke is a timeless romance anime that perfectly encapsulates high school romance. Not only does the series shows the purity of high school romance and friendships, but it also showcases the high school experiences that teenagers must overcome, making it a relatable series among wide audiences.
