Real Girl

Episode 5

Real Girl wraps up the rumor storyline this week, and good riddance to it. After a couple of aimless arguments between characters, Takanashi is eventually forced to own up to his actions, if only to Tsustui's family and friends. With that out of the way, Tsutsui and Iroha are able to get back to figuring their relationship out, and Tsutsui's lack of self-confidence leads to a falling-out during a festival date. In the meantime, Tsutsui has another dilemma to deal with in the form of Ayado, a nerdy underclassman who shares some of his interests. Ayado seems to have a crush on Tsutsui, though he's too busy patching things up with Iroha to notice at the moment.

Takanashi's story arc is as underwhelming in its conclusion as it was in the buildup, so I suppose it's at least consistent. Real Girl almost manages to do some interesting work by having Takanashi's buddies wonder why he's talking to Tsutsui, but that spark fizzles out pretty quickly. At the end of the day, Takanashi never suffers the full consequences of his actions, nor does he appear to learn any significant lesson. For his part, Tsutsui never really manages to stand up for himself in any meaningful way, instead choosing to view his increased social isolation as an acceptable price to pay for having a girlfriend. As much as the two of them exchange their respective viewpoints, neither Takanashi nor Tsutsui experience any satisfying growth as a result of this conflict. The only character who comes out of this storyline looking much different is Ishino, whose handful of appearances paint her as a thoroughly unreliable friend to Tsutsui and Iroha. We can chalk this storyline up as a loss for Real Girl, but at least it's over now.

Thankfully, the rest of this episode is more promising. The clash between Tsutsui and Iroha at the festival is interesting, especially since the series could have easily used this scene as a harmless palate cleanser after the rumor storyline. Tsutsui's misstep and Iroha's reaction both tell us a lot about how they view their relationship. On Tsutsui's end of things, it's intriguing to see how his perpetual lack of self-confidence can cause problems, even after he gets past the initial hurdle of starting a relationship. In trying to understand why Iroha chose him over someone like Takanashi, he ends up unintentionally questioning her repeated assertions that she likes him. It makes perfect sense for Iroha to be upset by this; after all the trust she's shown in Tsutsui, is he seriously still not convinced that her feelings for him are genuine? This is the kind of conflict that Real Girl would do well to focus on: a nuanced and believable clash resulting from two well-intentioned people trying to understand one another. It's these kinds of interactions, rather than the antagonistic high school drama, that open the door for interesting and insightful character writing.

With this conflict brewing, Ayado steps into the spotlight, and thankfully she appears to be a more tolerable addition to the cast than Takanashi. Although her initial role is similar in that she's a romantic rival with the potential to split up the lead couple, there are a couple of key differences that work in Ayado's favor, starting with her motivations. Where Takanashi was painted as a shameless villain who explicitly intended to “take” Iroha from Tsutsui, Ayado just wants a friend she can talk to about anime (at least for now). That makes her less of a magnet for the audience's disdain, and it also sets her up as a slightly more credible threat to the relationship. Real Girl goes out of its way to show off the similarities between Tsutsui and Ayado; they're both socially isolated otaku who would prefer to steer clear of “normal” people whenever possible. It's not exactly subtle, but the implication is that Tsutsui could have ended up in a relationship with Ayado if he hadn't met Iroha first. That's a far cry from Takanashi, who was shot down in no uncertain terms by Iroha. I doubt we'll see Ayado steal Tsutsui away any time soon, but her presence in the story has the potential to drive a fresh wedge between our main couple.

It's kind of a shame that Real Girl couldn't have crammed Takanashi's introduction into a single episode instead of letting it spill over into this week, as everything that happens after the rumor storyline is fairly encouraging. The series gets back into the more compelling dynamic of Tsutsui and Iroha trying to understand one another, and the resulting conflict feels far more worthwhile. As the latest new face on the stage, Ayado makes a better first impression as a character with the potential to add a fresh layer to the story. It's a step in the right direction, but the pressure is still on Real Girl to make good use of its best pieces.

Rating: B

Real Girl is currently streaming on HIDIVE.