Whenever we talk about the Bunny Girl Senpai series, we usually talk about adolescence syndrome and how it affects its characters. One certain character the series focuses on is Kaede Asusagawa, Sakuta’s little sister. She's mostly played as the side-goofy, innocent character for the majority of the first season, with a hint of a three-dimensional personality underneath her. She's also a victim of adolescence syndrome, manifested by her symptoms of retrograde amnesia. She had her own major arc from the first season, and it was a truly sad arc that resonated with the majority of viewers who watched the anime and was by far one of the most powerful story arcs from the first season. With that in mind, the overall existence of this movie seemed to be unnecessary because we've already seen her story before, but the film presented itself in a new unique angle that's surprisingly hadn't been explored much in the medium. ***

For context, Kaede Asusagawa has retrograde amnesia, a form of memory loss that makes it difficult to recall old memories before the main trigger of amnesia happens. Kaede Asusagawa had a traumatic past that caused her so much stress that adolescence syndrome took over and literally replaced Kaede as a brand new Kaede, free from the trauma that caused her to switch in the first place. We have seen this arc resolved in the first season of Bunny Girl Senpai, but we never actually got a glimpse of who the first Kaede is. We have seen her a little bit from the series and in the Dreaming Girl movie, but not enough to merit her being a solid character, not to mention that the series treated Kaede as a background character after her major arc from the first season. Amnesia stories aren't mostly being explored well in the media, mostly because it's just hard to tell stories about amnesia in such a short amount of time, but this film managed to prove that you can tell a great amnesia story while also serving a great story overall.

In the film, we are on a journey with the first Kaede. The one who is shy and timid, unlike the more determined yet still shy counterpart. The differences between these personalities are no less the first Kaede than the new Kaede, but the real Kaede doesn't feel the same way. The audiences have mostly been attached to the new Kaede, especially Sakuta, Mai, and other people who are with the new Kaede; however, with the new Kaede being out of the picture, the first Kaede can now live the years she lost due to adolescence syndrome; however, it is not an easy thing to do. The first Kaede has been struggling to adjust to the new environment she was introduced to immediately, a sudden shift from her lifestyle and her brother, who used to be just them and her family; suddenly, some of them aren't even there, and a new couple of people are in the mix. It's also far worse that she has these sets of expectations she has to fulfill, even though she has no exact clue why she's fulfilling them. All she knows is that the other Kaede is doing this, so she had to keep it on. ***

Kaede and their journey is no easy feat; not only does she have to deal with the consequences of losing her memories, whether from the past or the present, but she also has to deal with the sets of expectations she left behind for people when you don't realize she did. The guilt she didn't expect of unexpectedly removing a huge chunk of herself she didn't remember, but it's the cherished memories from the person who she was surrounded with that the other half of yours, yet they're now in grief because the first Kaede decided to come back. The overwhelming feeling of satisfying everyone just so the people who are in grief can get by hurts, and the first Kaede was never really properly seen once she came back.

The opposite also applies. Sakuta is the older brother of Kaede. He had twice seen her sister die (metaphorically), and he had to learn from the tragedies, get over the grief, and embrace the Kaede he was now dealing with, no matter how difficult it was for him. Sakuta must cope with and overcome the loss of both Kaede siblings, who are individuals in and of themselves, at a particular point in history while they are still fully alive. The dynamics of Sakuta and Kaede in this film are cold; there is a huge distance between them despite being close siblings; there is isolation, pressure, and sacrifices made just so the other person feels comfortable around them. It's a sad and tragic journey where no life is at stake, but harm to the relationship is. ***

Rascal Does Not Dream of a Sister Venturing Out might be the awkward volume when looking at a distance, and despite it's lack of adolescence syndrome, new characters, and a heavy weight from the previous arcs and how the story was handled, it's a special case of showcasing the effects in the process of healing through a mental challenge despite the ups and downs, coping with losses, and tiebacks for reconnections while providing more threads to create more memories of the present time. A perfect example of a psychological drama anime that has a lot of heart and care showered into it.