The Dangers in My Heart

Episode 9

OK, about ten minutes into this episode, I was legitimately terrified that The Dangers in My Heart was heading toward character regression to maintain the status quo. We know that Kyotaro has been in denial about Anna liking him in any capacity. We see him seemingly spending the last couple of episodes doing mental gymnastics, trying to justify whether Anna is incredibly stupid or secretly spiteful of him as if getting close to him is part of some elaborate game. This episode takes it a step further by having Kyotaro go so far as to accuse Anna of using him to scare off other people who are trying to get close to her. The funny thing is he's technically not wrong in that Anna did use the situation in this episode to get the fuckboi off her back, but it's also more complicated and simpler than that.

Anna isn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but she is trying to get closer to Kyotaro; she's even starting to show a bit of possessiveness toward him. The whole side story about her trying to get his LINE information so that the two can talk outside of school, especially with the upcoming winter break approaching, highlights several things. It highlights that Anna, as forward as she is trying to be, still struggles with being completely direct with Kyotaro, which makes sense considering that she is still an inexperienced preteen. She also has to deal with many preconceptions from other people, like how they assume she has a boyfriend or experience due to her acting career. She also tries to participate in her friend's activities without outwardly expressing that she might not be as interested in the same things. You might read some situations as her being manipulative and sneaky. But I would argue that none of it is mean-spirited and might be more like her innocently taking advantage of simple situations.

For example, she didn't want to ask other classmates for their LINE information but seemed happy that Kyotaro was bothered by the idea. Moreover, that scene in the library was a clever way for her to ward people off and perhaps indirectly tell Kyotaro that she's only interested in him. After all, it seems like that random classmate seems to have put two and two together that Anna is interested in him. I wonder why more people aren't putting those pieces together because while Anna isn't straight-up announcing it to the world, she isn't exactly hiding it either. I'm curious to know how she would respond if someone approached her and asked, "Hey, do you like that little emo boy who sits in the corner of the class?"

The final five minutes of this episode were perfect, showcasing Anna's fragility in her fear of Kyotaro hating her, while also providing a defining moment for Kyotaro to confront the possibility that this girl might have the same feelings for him. I appreciate that throughout the episode. He's beginning to entertain the notion more and more, making it harder to deny. The only way Kyotaro can justify Anna not being interested in him is by subconsciously painting her as a manipulative person, which deep down he knows is not the case. I love that it plays with the viewer's expectations, tricking us into anticipating a full-on character regression, only for it to springboard into character progression. Kyotaro isn't quite at the point where he's willing to admit that Anna likes him. But he no longer seems in denial of the possibility because Anna wouldn't spend so much time with somebody or cry over them if they didn't at least care deeply about them.

I'm curious about what comes next because not only did Anna somewhat trick Kyotaro into having a date on Christmas Eve—by strong-arming him into meeting up after playing dumb—but I'm also curious if the events of this episode will set off a chain of events once these two return to school. Will students start thinking that these two are dating or, at the very least, be aware that Anna is interested in somebody else to the point where they should back off? How might this affect Kyotaro's social life? It was a great episode, as we're on the cusp of some major romantic development. I hope I'm not wrong about this and that the show continues to exceed my expectations.

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The Dangers in My Heart is currently streaming on HIDIVE.