IKIGAI DAYS

I’ll start off saying that this will be one of my shorter anime reviews!

You and I Are Polar Opposites is one of the best rom com’s I have seen in a hot minute and I would put it up there with other older romance series like Kimi ni Todoke, Toradora and some of the newer ones too, Blue Box and The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity

Story

The gist of the story focuses on Suzuki and Tani, who are the main protagonist of this series and the story follows their relationship. Suzuki is a bubbly and an outgoing character, whilst Tani is an introvert and the quiet type! Which makes them total opposites of each other! Just like what the title of the anime is!

SPOILERS AHEAD!

I’m going to share some of my thoughts which will be all over the place!

Romance Development

In terms of most romance anime, the development of the relationship between the two main characters takes some time for them to get into an actual relationship. Some series even take a whole season for them to get into a relationship and some, that marks the end of the series. You and I Are Polar Opposites has taken a different approach in this case, the development of the relationship between Suzuki and Tani is quite quick, where they are already dating in the initial few episodes. Whilst it may seem quick and abrupt, funnily enough the series does not make you feel this way and it feels natural. What sets this series apart from what most romance series suffer from, is that whenever the main characters have a problem, it takes a few episodes to solve. In the case of this series, Tani and Suzuki generally resolve their problems within the episode and it’s not dragged on. This was not the case for In the Clear Moonlit Dusk, another romance anime that aired this Winter season. The drama between Kohaku and Yoi kept going back and forth, with no development at all with the characters

Character Development

In most rom coms, or romance series, they generally focus on the main character’s relationship and the rival’s of each other’s love interest. In this series, it does well in working on the relationships with the side characters we see through the series, whilst not making you feel that the main characters are ignored. You can see this with Yamada and Nishi, also along with Taira and Azuma. Whilst these characters are not dating yet, you can see the development of their relationships from episode 1 all the way to the last episode, which is really rare for a romance series. The series really stays true to its theme of “You and I Are Polar Opposites” as the relationship of the side characters are also totally opposites of each other. Yamada who is like Suzuki, is outgoing and loud, whilst Nishi is similar to Tani, where she is shy and finds it difficult to talk to people in general

Animation and Colour

What’s unique to this series and what I love about it, is the use of vibrant colours, a neon green and pink, which is the main colour palette for this series and surprisingly works well. The series also has a way to make a cute spin on the animation with the somewhat simple cartoonish characters for the non serious moments. Lapin Track, the studio behind this really deserves the praise for doing such a great job on this series

Final thoughts

If you are a fan of rom com, like wholesome moments and good character development for all characters, then I definitely recommend checking out this series and giving it a chance. If you plan to watch it, you better start now as season 2 has been confirmed and will be airing July of this year! If you have already seen this series, you can check out The Ramparts of Ice which is airing this season, and is by the same author