Blue Box

Episode 15

I always consider it a good omen when an episode gives me such a clear and obvious choice for a cover image so early in its runtime. Just look at it: Chinatsu, being surprised with a birthday celebration by her basketball buddies and taking a silly picture in Funny Mustache Glasses, finally gets back on the upswing after her disappointing finals loss. It's just so damned adorable, and more importantly, so humanizing for Chinatsu. Obviously, Blue Box has never portrayed her as some robotic ice queen or anything, but every moment we get to spend with her as something more than just the object of Taiki's affections is another vital piece to go into building the central romance that this entire anime is betting on. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that “August 26th” is the best that this series has ever been at getting me to root for its main couple.

I cannot overstate how heart-stoppingly sweet this entire story is, and all of the work it does is so vital for Taiki and Chinatsu's relationship to evolve into a story that I am actively championing in real time, rather than merely being a fan of it in the abstract. Look, the kids are obviously cute, and the laws of genre convention lead me to be in favor of them getting together, but genre convention can only get you so far. Chemistry is everything in a romance. I say this all of the time, I know, but only because it is so undeniable and obvious, and the fact is that Hina has been running circles around poor Chinatsu for the past couple weeks. This fact is doubly bad for our leading lady considering that a lot of that chemistry is being carried exclusively by Hina, and that it is glaringly obvious that Taiki doesn't return her feelings, despite how much he cares for her.

This week, though, Chinatsu gains an incredible amount of ground simply by allowing herself to let Taiki in a little bit without putting up any of those “artificial barriers.” This simple act of vulnerability gives Taiki the chance to work the preposterous amounts of game that he apparently possesses. Sure, we can't give him credit for a random landslide forcing an overnight stay at the only room left open at the nearest beachside lodge - Taiki can thank the Romance Anime Trope Gods for that one - but the kid is still in damned fine form given that he's also a terminally awkward dork most of the time. The kid managed to bumble his way into the most perfectly romantic beach date imaginable, only to immediately follow it up with a personalized birthday cake and corny “Happy Birthday Song” combo, which is then capped off by an intimate night alone playing card games and looking at the stars.

Are you freaking kidding me!? I spent a lot of my time in high school surrounded by girls (a perk of being one of, like, four straight guys in the entire theatre clique) and I can tell you with utmost confidence that if the story of this impossibly romantic birthday adventure got out to the rest of the kids at their school, Taiki would be chased down and fought over like a rabbit carcass being torn apart by a pack of ravenous wolves. Thankfully, Chinatsu is seeming more open to the idea of letting Taiki be more than just her totes-casual roommate, which is good for her and for us. Happy birthday, girl. Now, go and get your man!

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Blue Box is currently streaming on Netflix.

James is a writer with many thoughts and feelings about anime and other pop-culture, which can also be found on Twitter, his blog, and his podcast.