Kenjo is a strange character but his first story was more entertaining than the previous one’s.

This episode was quite funny. The way Kenjo’s story, about meeting Aya, kept changing based on what book he was reading was hilarious. It was especially funny during the scene where Kyoichi and Chiharu were discussing Kenjo’s story. Neither of them knew that the stories they were told were different so Kyoichi kept thinking Chiharu had a very raunchy fantasy… hahaha. Good stuff.

Looking at the next episode preview, it seems there are more character introductions than I remembered… and I’ll leave it at that. No more guessing or remembering. I’m gonna enjoy this series like it’s brand knew and seeing as how I don’t remember a lot of the stuff I saw on this first volume, that won’t be hard.

The intro stories for these three guys each touched a different aspect of first loves. I might be over-analyzing but… hell… that’s all I ever do.

Kyoichi’s first love is just starting to blossom.
Makoto’s first love can one day begin to blossom.
Kenjo’s first love may never blossom.

Or something like that… heh.

I’m glad the release schedule for the remaining Boys Be… volumes is fast. Anime DVDs tend to go on a bi-monthly or even quarterly release schedule but this one is coming out almost one disc a month. More accurately, it’s around five to six weeks apart.

I can’t wait!

This episode started off well then rushed things a bit towards the end.

Makoto’s introduction story was touching but a bit unrealistic and stretched. The ep did a nice job on developing his character but it was a bit random that Mizuki suddenly fell for him (unless he really was right that she fell for him when they first met). In any case, the last scene of the episode was great. Towards the end, it makes you believe Makoto might have changed into someone more mature but of course, he’s still the same, hehe.

I do have one major complaint. The animation quality dropped off significantly since the first episode. I’d expect that since many series’ spend more of their budget on the earlier episodes to draw people in but not after just one episode. This one looked like it was running on 3 frames per second. I seriously hope it was just a one episode thing cause I’d hate for my opinion of the series to lessen because of poor animation.

Well, one more introduction episode for the last guy then I have to patiently wait for the next volume. I can’t remember when things start getting more serious but hopefully it’ll happen on the next disc. Meh, I should stop trying to remember shit and just enjoy this as a new series. I’ll probably save myself a headache that way.

It’s been four years since I last watched this series. Now that it’s finally out on DVD, I can reacquaint myself with one of the first romantic comedies I watched since I got back into anime. It’s been a long time coming and you could say I’m more than a little ecstatic at this moment.

I recall liking this series in the past and after watching the first episode again, I can definitely say I still like it. The stories don’t drag and the characters feel very alive. You don’t get the same sense of “immature high school romances” as you do with the billions of romantic comedies that get released. In this episode, the title characters, Kyoichi and Chiharu, set the stage for the rest of the series. Things do feel a little rushed and disjointed and there’s a reason behind that.

There is a big difference between this series and the usual of its ilk. It doesn’t focus on just one or two main characters. The Boys Be… manga is a long-running manga that consists of short stories featuring different main characters. The “main story” isn’t about one or two couples but it’s more about the theme of high school romances, drama, and relationships. This anime features a few characters and their relationships. If I recall correctly, Kyoichi and Chiharu’s story moderately continues running throughout the series but doesn’t get refocused on until the end.

I’ll be watching this series with great interest and anticipation since I forget how all the stories unfolded. Plus, the fansubs back then were of poor quality so seeing it in all its unfuzzy glory will be a treat. Oh, don’t think I’m doggin’ the fansubbers back then. Quality wasn’t as high a priority as it is nowadays and the codecs and such back then weren’t as great either. This one had superior fansubbing compared to the other groups at that time.

I’m sure I’ll be enjoying this series again but I’ve seen a lot more anime since I last watched it so it’ll be interesting to see how my views have changed.