_This review contains SPOILERS for Blue Box_
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Blue Box was always a highly anticipated romcom- way before the Fall 2024 season. Youtubers and analysts were seen publishing videos commonly titled "The most underrated romance manga" at every turn. Naturally, this piqued my interest, so when the release date for the adaptation was announced, as a romance fan, I couldn't be happier. Until, I was dissapointed. (Don't leave. I promise it ain't what you think)
#Failure to hookSo, the first episode actually felt good. The animation -both CGI and hand-drawn- for the songs (how tf you get both Eve and Hige Dandism), and the sports sequence actually surprised many of us due to the amount of love put into it. Multiple people performing moves in the background, gorgeous close-up shots of the main characters, and comedy chibi bits were more than enough to convince everyone that this show was gonna go on a roll. However, this assumption was only based on a single episode.
After a couple more episodes aired, I began to feel let down. Although the production was there, the rest just felt subpar. The jokes were too dry to be able to make anybody with decent humour chuckle. The characters included a simp protagonist, the nice girl, the lively childhood friend who is also the losing heroine, and the incredibly observant male friend. Chinatsu came across as a hollow character, simply existing to appeal to the viewers and Taiki. Speaking of Taiki, holy fk he was annoying. Like, we get it little bro. She's pretty.
There we go. Episode 6 giving us the best episode yet for the best character. Whoever you pick as your favourite from the main girls is your choice, as it is your personal preference, but when discussing who was (and probably still is) objectively the best character at this point of the story, it's exceedingly obvious Hina clears. Not only did she have personality, barely managing to pull the viewers back from dropping the show with it, she also came with another package. A tragic package.
Hina was Taiki's long-term best female friend. Their interactions had chemistry because of Hina's personality and because they knew each other for a while. What made it all suddenly so gut-wrenching to watch was how Hina understood her own feelings for Taiki too late. She was in the worst position possible. Taiki was actively in the midst of pursuing a romantic relationship with another girl, who coincidentally lived in the same house as him, making any chances for a comeback steal nearly impossible. I'll get back to this later.
I'm not gonna lie to you, the episodes after 6 were exponentially decreasing in value, so I'm very glad they took a break to present to us:
Yeah. Cour 2 was a banger. We immediately started the fresh serialization off with a stand-alone episode dedicated to Haryuu and Karen, which was unexpectedly emotional. I'll tell you what, Karen and Haryuu's relationship felt so healthy and more on the mature side, to the point where some people might've started favouring them more than Taiki x Whoever, but this is when I understood something. This anime's strength did not merely lie in the enthralling blue box of romance (horrible title drop ik), but in the sports aspects as well.
As something of an athlete myself, whenever they shoved a serious/emotional match in my face, I simply couldn't help but relate to the characters and the emotions they were feeling. The thought of losing, the thought of improving, the thought of not getting over your limitations, the thought of dissapointing others etc. It was real. To me, these moments of Chinatsu, Taiki or Haryuu giving it their all felt more meaningful than the love triangle; at least, before the love triangle got better.
With the addition of episodes 14 and 15, Blue Box was able to peak. Don't get me wrong. There was build-up before them, so I'm not saying only these two episodes were praise-worthy. It's just that 14 and 15 provided so much.
Episode 14 is Blue Box's single best attempt at stellar story-telling. Displaying Chinatsu's intense Inter High Finals match simultaneously alongside Hina's confession, blossoming a rollercoaster of emotions within us. Not many damn anime girls have the balls to confess the way Hina did on that swing. Watching the confession in awe is one thing, but seeing Chinatsu fail to make the clutch shot attempt just when Hina succeeded in verbally confessing her feelings generated a surge of goosebumps that I wouldn't be able to explain now. The pacing of the episode and the conversation taking place during the match felt too right and too refreshing; it's difficult to elaborate. The pinnacle of Blue Box's romance element and its sports element side-by-side. What a day to be alive, huh?
Episode 15 wasn't nothing to scoff at either cuz guess what? Chinatsu is an actual character now! We celebrated Chinatsu's birthday and perceived some quality time between her and Taiki. As a Hina lover, I thought I'd be distraught, but that wasn't the case at all. Why? Simply due to Chinatsu gaining the ability to be vulnerable around Taiki. She felt human. She felt real. Her and Taiki's interactions got a huge boost in chemistry and enjoyability. I couldn't dislike her now. I couldn't hate them being together now, so it started to complicate my feelings on the matter.
Ah yes, very clever; because after all that (insert Karl Anthony-Towns edit), Blue Box finally had the perfect formula for a love triangle that actually works. Two likable heroines with their own stories, own personalities, a non-incel protagonist (not anymore, at least) that actively tries to sort out their romantic feelings by thinking and observing their own actions:
Episode 18, aka the representation of Blue Box's beautiful sports aspect. Taiki's match with Yusa did not dissapoint. Taiki's inner conflicts, Taiki's improvement as a badminton player, Hina and Chinatsu's support. Wouldn't this be considered yet another god-tier episode in Blue Box standards? Yes.
Episode 24. My downfall. Hina squad knew it was coming. Hina squad knew there couldn't be any other way. Hina squad sad. Hina squad cry. The atmosphere felt just right for a serious conversation. Just right for a rejection. Taiki handled it in the best way possible and I respect him for it. There was no point in leading her on or trying to drag things out. He loved Chinatsu and Hina was precious to him....
▶ Video (PS: I'm not gonna go into detail about her, but Ayame was a very refreshing character. Loved her.)As an anime only guy, maybe I failed in covering certain parts of the show. Feel free to msg me and discuss.
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