English Dub Review: Watari-kun’s XX Is About to Collapse “A Story from Another Time”

OVERVIEW (SPOILERS)

Naoto and Satsuki finally face their feelings for each other and make plans for the future.

OUR TAKE

It’s the moment that everyone saw coming! I mean, I don’t know what everyone saw coming since I am too mortified to discuss this series with anyone to get their takes, but I’ve been expecting these two to get together since the first dang episode, and have said as much dozens of times by now. Despite all of the radioactive red flags oozing off of her, Naoto has fully committed to dating Satsuki, and even basically proposing to her, and she has accepted this. Hooray for the happy couple. This is where the story can end now, right? No? We still have three episodes left?! Fuck a duck! Uuuuugh okay, positives, let’s think of some positives. Oh! Well, we don’t have any Umezawa in this episode, so that’s definitely a plus. And Ishihara seems to have just about fully moved on from Naoto, which is probably the healthiest ending she could get. As for Tokui, he proudly declares that he is done meddling in the romantic affairs of others and is ready to pursue romance for himself! And considering he never did much good for anyone when he WAS meddling, that’s probably a good idea for him. Though I am not liking the implications the show seems to be having with that scene between him and Naoto’s sister. Like seriously, can we not go a whole episode without something gross happening?

But I can’t not say that I’m not at least glad that both Naoto and Satsuki have most definitely matured as people over the course of this series, with both facing up to their respective traumas and helping support the other through that process of healing. As much as I think Satsuki’s behavior in the majority of this series REALLY needs further addressing, it’s clear that was connected to her fear of not being needed, which seems to have been mostly resolved and redirected. Naoto, meanwhile…well, I’m not entirely sure what his thing to get over was, but he’s most definitely a more self assured and confident guy now who goes after what he wants instead of thinking he was a burden, so maybe that was it. And honestly, I tend to get a bit annoyed when a romance show ends right after the couple get together, since the most interesting time for that would be while the relationship is happening. And so I would probably be glad that we were getting that in this show…if I hadn’t gotten sick of it all months ago. Still, we must persevere and see these last three episodes through to the end.