Review of Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms
'Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms' is an interesting romcom, but unfortunately, it has its detractors. Some who have read the manga consider it worse than 'Rent a Girlfriend' because nothing really happens and this is reflected in the negative reviews. I claim that this is the wrong approach. The charm of this anime is rooting for the romance NOT TO HAPPEN. § Overview Kawai Mona has always attracted attention from her groupies. One day, she encounters Kuroiwa Medaka who is not really impressed. Unknown to her, he is training to be a monk, which is why he is not looking for someone to date. Hisindifference, or at least trying to be unaffected by her advances, drives her crazy. The more he tries to go away, the more attracted to Medaka Mona becomes.
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Ladies and gentlemen, Medaka has stumbled on what is known as The Tao of Steve, and this is why I find this anime compelling to watch.
§ The Tao of Steve
The Tao of Steve refers to the movie where the rules of attracting chicks are codified as The Tao of Steve.
See the following clips:
Rule no 1: Be desireless
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWGSEBdyhn4
Rule no 2: Be excellent
https://youtu.be/XeVXdIzDM34?si=kT5cuT8aButzUjAl
Rule no 3: Be gone (The underlying principle behind this rule is that we pursue that which retreats from us. Bait her with Rule no 1 and/or Rule no 2, then apply Rule no 3.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ix52LldhtfQ
Summary of the Rules: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pnsznug-pf8&t=71s
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§ Notes
1. Medaka himself is unimpressive. There's really no reason why girls should be attracted to him. But, at least in Mona's case, he has stumbled upon and has behaved in line with these rules.
He is mostly following Rule no 1 (be desireless) and rule no 3 (be gone), but on certain occasions, he might follow Rule no 2 (be excellent).
2. Mona herself is a shallow and vain character. Her surname kawai sounds too similar to kawaii, the word for cute. Faced with Medaka's behaviour that unknowingly follows these rules, her self-esteem tanks and the only way this can recover is for her to finally attract Medaka.
3. Asahi is the best girl. If one does not like Mona, Asahi or any other supporting character might be sufficient reason to watch this.
4. There's some character development for Medaka in terms of how he treats Mona better but not much. Again, those looking for a cute romance will certainly be disappointed. But for someone like me who loves the fact that the romance won't happen any time soon, this is a great show.
5. I would like to address the comparison to Rent a Girlfriend because both are frustrating the readers of the manga because 'nothing happens.' Rent a Girlfriend rests on the premise of low-value behaviour, the very reason why it's cringe, and people read or watch that as a guilty pleasure. The dude might be relatable on some level.
Medaka, the main male character of this anime, on the other hand, is displaying high-value behaviour. This is the big difference between Medaka and RAG. In the latter, you will be frustrated that nothing ever happens. In the former, you will celebrate that nothing ever happens because once Medaka falls for any of the girls and displays low-value behaviour is the moment this anime/manga loses its charm.
§ A few comparisons with "I'm Getting Married to a Girl I Hate in My Class"
Medaka and "I'm Getting Married to a Girl I Hate in My Class" aka Kurakon are both romcoms that I love this season.
Medaka the anime has mostly dull characters, even my favourite so far, Asahi. Kurakon has more compelling characters, even if they are mostly conforming to a stereotype.
Kurakon has better character design and I find Medaka's character designs dull in comparison. Perhaps this anime is trying to draw characters who are a little bit closer to reality. It can be argued that Medaka's choice of character design is superior on this criterion, even if I prefer Kurakon more.
Another consequence of the character design, I reckon, is that fewer people would goon our characters in Medaka compared with those in Kurakon, even though there's plenty of fanservice in Medaka.
I'm rating Medaka a 6, while Kurakon gets a 7. Even though I am rating Kurakon higher, Medaka has the superior premise.
§ Conclusion
This anime is an atypical romcom. I'm not aware of any other romcoms where it's the female main character who is chasing the male main character. By stumbling upon the behaviour called The Tao of Steve, this anime has earned the right to be called the romcom that's worth watching, the romcom that doesn't feel cringe.
It's unfortunate that one day, Medaka will fall for Mona, who is the likely end game. As a consolation, it seems that multiple volumes and multiple seasons will pass before that happens. For the time being, we can enjoy this as Medaka tries to 'be desireless' and 'be gone' most of the time. But when he falls for Mona or anyone else, it's time to drop this shit.