November 12, 2010
Amagami SS Ep19: You’re Only Stopping Yourself
You want it but you’re afraid to get it. You wish for it but you’re afraid that it might not be what you wished for. You ask for it but you think you want to give it back. Confusing feelings indeed, but there really are people who think that taking it slow and doing maintenance on the status quo is the best approach to get out of the friend zone. A very paradoxical idea, yet human emotion is itself a den of paradoxes, and romance is at the top of the list where people do one thing yet also do the other, thinking that opposites will get you where you want to be, out of both fear and desire.
I’ve done it before, and it seems Rihoko is doing it too.
It could have been a chance dammit!
Slow and steady is, apparently, Rihoko’s battle plan. It’s after Christmas and she really has no plans for her and Junichi. She’s trying to get him involved in the (her) Tea Club more than usual and has asked him to go with her to the traditional New Year’s Eve shrine visit. There is still a lot of talk about her own weight issues that tends to be the cornerstone of a lot of their conversations, but as the episode goes they end up talking more about other things rather than just food or her weight. As the days go by and she goes through her laid back approach to making her feelings known, she can only but ask on New Years Day that someday, her feelings can reach Junichi.
The thing is… she’s not really making it apparent, is she?
Done a millions time before, but still a million time's adorable!
It’s rather surprising that they’ve decided to make this arc extend beyond Christmas, but hey they’ve already made Rihoko the protagonist so I’m not that surprised in a way. I’m not sure when the arc started in the time line, but by extending the duration a bit it would ideally give them more time to flesh out the unrequited feelings that Rihoko is still having for Junichi.
On that note, there really isn’t a lot that happened in this episode other than more of the same, then again more of the same also highlight just where Rihoko’s problems are concerning her approach and probably even her mindset regarding what she really wants.
But he has yet to realize this.
You try to justify it by saying that you’re taking your time and you’re waiting for the right moment to let your friendship take a different course, but you sometimes don’t realize that it’s also because you’re afraid of losing what you already have, and you’re afraid that should you fail, things will never really return to how they were before you tried to take your gamble. They’ve been friends for years, they’ve even studied together and presumably even bathed together (as children duh!). This is something they treasure and share, and you wouldn’t really want to trade anything for it. At the same time, you know that these days might never be the same whether or not you succeed and showing your feelings, so in the back of your head all you can wish for is some sure fire way to get your feelings across without shattering the nice life you have now.
That’s pretty much what Rihoko put on her New Year’s Day wish.
I’m not saying it’s useless, but passivity also doesn’t always get you the results you want. Fear is an understandable emotion, but if you really trusted that person, you’d know that he wouldn’t try to make your friendship awkward just because you confessed. If you’ve really known the person for years, better than anyone else can claim to and enough to share deep secrets with, then I’m sure you can trust them enough to understand what you really feel, even if they can’t reciprocate. True friendship doesn’t end because one tried to take it to the next level.
If you are a man and you find this cute, then you are not alone my friend.
For Rihoko, perhaps all she really needs is a bit of courage. She’s practically getting help from anyone who isn’t a Tachibana, and while it seems that Junichi might be inching his way closer to a realization that he himself might feel similarly about her. Rihoko might not show it, but deep down inside she must have some feelings of sadness and agony. These feelings might really just continue if she insists on taking the chillaxing road towards Junichi’s heart. I really don’t think she’s content with the way things as they are now even if she smiles and jokes around with Junichi. The sad face she showed back then at the start of this arc reveals that.
She’s just friendzoning herself.
If you want it to happen,you need to tell him yourself.
If she really wants it she should really go get it. She has one more episode to tell Junichi what she really feels for better or for worse. Here’s to hoping she does, and honestly at this point they have a great friendship going on, and it is actually acceptable to me if they don’t end up together.
Medical Student vs. Anime 
Leave a comment