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This is what a shoujo series is all about, right here! As we learn in the first episode, Rei is Sana's boyfriend, manager, and "pimp." At the beginning of the series, Sana is obsessed with Rei and feels that he's the ONE. Though he's not truly her pimp (Sana doesn't realize exactly what a pimp means), he doesn't mind Sana calling him that because Sana was the one who saved him when he was out of work and homeless. Rei is extremely loyal to Sana and tries his best never to hurt her. Rei's extremely protective of Sana, almost like an older brother. He worries about her a lot of the time and is very soft towards her. While Misako knows that Sana is strong and doesn't let her back down from a tough situation, Rei asks Sana if she'd like to avoid the situation or stay home instead of go to school, where she might hear tabloid rumors. Rei is so loyal to Sana that he's willing to give up his love from high school and be Sana's boyfriend for as long as she wants him to be. He says he'll protect Sana at any cost, even if it means losing his life. It's obvious that Rei cares a lot for Sana, even though he doesn't love her romantically, like Sana would like to think. He's still willing to give up everything for her. When Sana learns the truth about Rei's feelings and the truth about what a pimp really is, she's ashamed of how she acted, but she doesn't feel any animosity towards Rei. She realizes that he has someone he loves, and lets him go. She grows up in a way. Hayama, of course, is very happy with the turn of events. From then on, Rei remains Sana's loyal manager and a part of the Kurata family. Top of page --> Misako and Sana are very close. They are almost like best friends instead of mother and daughter. Misako gives Sana freedom and independence and has a huge imagination, making life for Sana fun and interesting. She believes that Sana is mature and a strong girl. "I didn't raise my daughter to get upset over something so little," she once say to Rei when he worried about Sana possibly overhearing tabloid rumors. She gives Sana the freedom to make her own choice and gives her courage and strength when it's needed. Misako is extremely blunt. She told Sana outright that the love between Sana and Rei is not actual love and Sana's been making it all up in her head. It seems harsh for her to say such a thing, but it was the only way that Sana would've learned and grown from the experience. Misako knows that life is harsh, and doesn't let Sana run from the truth, even if it hurts. Sana's very dense; it's hard for her to pick up on things unless they're said directly to her. Misako once says that Sana is the only person who truly understands and accepts her for her odd personality. The two always ride around in the house on Misako's little red car. They have both a friendship and a mother-daughter family relationship. Misako is there whenever Sana needs the guidance, and brings her down to earth when her problems seem to be piling up around her. Top of page --> Sana and Tsuyoshi are good friends. Tsuyoshi has a huge crush on Sana at the beginning of the series, but she rebukes him by saying, "That's too bad. I already have my boyfriend Rei-kun." Those days Sana is obsessed with Rei; she never sees Tsuyoshi in a romantic light. On the other hand, Tsuyoshi's feelings for her aren't very strong either, because soon he finds someone else. At the beginning of the series, Tsuyoshi is willing to help Sana get Hayama to stop being so sneaky, and he informs her of Hayama's weak spot. Though Tsuyoshi betrays Hayama by doing so, he has the best of intentions; in a way, he is being cruel to be kind. Tsuyoshi also informs Sana of Hayama's family situation. The two are but close friends, and stay that way throughout the series. Top of page --> Aya originally has a crush on Tsuyoshi but the two become a couple when Hayama tells Aya that Tsuyoshi's weakness is material things. Aya bakes Tsuyoshi cookies, and their love-love life begins. Aya and Tsuyoshi are a parody of all overbearing anime couples. They're often found snuggling and cuddling, hearts flying all around them, and the people around them always give them funny looks. In comparison to any of the other Kodocha couplings, Tsuyoshi and Aya's relationship is by far the one that has the least bit of trouble. Though there's an incident where Tsuyoshi gets a present from an anonymous admirer and his feelings get wishy-washy, there don't encounter many other problems. It's somewhat refreshing when the drama between Sana, Hayama and Fuka gets depressing. Tsuyoshi's a fickle and wishy-washy person and Aya understands his nature. She knows that he often has a hard time making up his mind and believes rumors easily. Whenever this happens, she's always there to set him straight. In that manner she takes good care of Tsuyoshi whenever he can't make up his mind. Top of page --> These two are best friends. It's kind of a strange friendship, really. Hayama's extremely non-emotional, so it's hard to tell what he thinks of other people. But Tsuyoshi's the only friend that Hayama has at the beginning of the series. He is never one of Hayama's lackeys and never worships the ground Hayama walked on, like the rest of the boys in their class. Tsuyoshi is always more concerned about Hayama and trying to stop his troublemaking ways. After Hayama declares Tsuyoshi his rival in love and steals a kiss from Sana, Tsuyoshi gets upset and angry and stops talking to Hayama for a while. Hayama thinks that it's silly for Tsuyoshi to hold a grudge against him, and probably knows that it's only a phase. Sana, of course, is completely oblivious to it all. Though there are times when Tsuyoshi doesn't approve of what Hayama does, or when Hayama thinks Tsuyoshi is meddling too much in his affairs (Tsuyoshi is a bit of a meddler), their friendship doesn't waver. Tsuyoshi is the one who cares enough about Hayama to try and do the best for Hayama and stop his troublemaking. There are also instances when Tsuyoshi has trouble with his father and Hayama helps him out or cheers him up in his Hayama way. Top of page --> These two are both child experts in acting with similar pasts. Naozumi has followed Sana's career since she was five years old, recording photos, newspaper and magazine clippings, and interviews. At the beginning, Sana never gets the hint that Naozumi is infatuated with her. Being so dense, she thinks he is merely a "big fan," a misconception that Naozumi finds very distressing. At the beginning of the series Naozumi and Sana remain friends, though Naozumi tries to get close to Sana or win her over from Hayama. Naozumi and Sana's relationship picks up later in the series. The two start to star in more commercials together, then they are called to the mountains for a two month shooting of a movie in which they are the two main characters. This is the first time that the two really get close. Naozumi-obsessed fans get jealous of Sana and assault her, breaking her leg. Meanwhile, back at home, rumors are flying wild about Sana and Naozumi. Finally, after so much of the rumors, Hayama and Fuka and the rest of Sana's friends start to believe them. Hayama is heartbroken and ends up going out with Fuka. Little do they realize that the rumors are completely false; Sana has just started to realize her feelings for Hayama. During the New York arc, Hayama and Sana drift apart drastically. Naozumi and Sana go to New York to star in a Broadway production. During the time they spend there, Naozumi goes through some tough stuff. He goes through a time of mentally instability. Sana is always there to help him and cheer him up, being his never-ending support. When they come back to Japan after the whole incident, the reporters all ask, "Is it true that you two are a couple now?!" And for the first time, Naozumi and Sana agree in unison, "Yes!" After coming back home from New York and getting back into the groove of Japan, Naozumi realizes that Sana still has feelings for Hayama. He breaks up with Sana, saying that it's for her own good, and that he'll always love her. Naozumi is mature enough to break up with her and sacrifice his feelings for hers. In the end Naozumi gets ambitious about his career. Due to prodding from his new manager, he decides he wants to stop being in Sana's shadow and their close relationship stops there as the two go their separate ways in life and acting. However, they still remain friends. Top of page --> These two meet on the first day of junior high school. Instantly they hit it off and become best friends, being so similar to one another. Both Sana and Fuka are loud, hot-headed, hyperactive, and have had their first kisses stolen by the same guy. For you see, Fuka's first kiss was stolen by a mischievous Hayama in Kindergarten. Sana is definitely the most hyper out of the two and her head's the most up in the clouds, but Fuka is just as energetic. The two are quite a combination together. Fuka is more focused on studies and more down-to-earth than Sana, so she ends up helping her with schoolwork and corrects the many puns and phrases that Sana misquotes. When Sana misses school because of her acting, Fuka is always eager to help by taking notes for her. There is a time when Sana works on a low-budget self-help Math video. She plays the teacher in the video, but has no idea what the script is saying since she's horrible at math. Fuka, the top student, becomes her math tutor and helps her learn the material. Because of Fuka's help, the video is a success. Though the two go through turbulent times in their friendship, there is no animosity between them. They retain their friendship even though they're torn apart by their feelings for Hayama. Sana is simply too dense to hold a grudge against anyone. Fuka, on the other hand, realizes Sana and Hayama's feelings for each other before they do themselves, and helps resolve the problem without being bitter in the end. Fuka is truly the first girl who never got jealous about Sana missing school or other activities because of her acting career. She accepts that Sana is a busy person, and supports her by keeping her up to date in school. Fuka remains Sana's close friend. Top of page --> It all starts in Kindergarten. The boys bet Hayama to kiss a girl, and he kisses Fuka. This complicates Fuka's relationship with her crush, Takaishi. She doesn't meet Hayama again until junior high, when she comes to Tokyo and attends Hayama and Sana's school. Soon she finds Hayama to interesting and "cool," but her feelings are torn between Hayama and her long-time crush back at Osaka, Takaishi. She isn't sure of Takaishi's feelings. One day, Takaishi and some more of Fuka's friends come to visit Tokyo. Fuka hears that Takaishi had a girlfriend, so she asks Hayama if he'd pretend to be her boyfriend for a day. He refuses all until she bribes him with some sushi. Hayama can't resist sushi, as we all know. After Takaishi leaves, Fuka and Hayama start hearing rumors about Sana and Naozumi dating. This occurs while Sana and Naozumi are in the mountains filming a movie for two months and can't deny the rumors back in Tokyo. There are so many rumors that Hayama, Fuka, and Sana's friends believe them. Hayama is heartbroken. Fuka asks him if he would be her real boyfriend. He says yes. It's clear that Hayama doesn't truly love Fuka; the thought of Sana always looms over their relationship. When Hayama stole Sana's first kiss, she demanded, "Why did you kiss me?!" and he said, "You put your face so close to mine. It's your own fault." The truth is, Hayama stole a kiss from Sana because he likes her; the fact that her face was close simply gave him the chance. Sana tells Fuka this, and once while Fuka and Hayama are walking home together, Fuka falls and hits her nose. Hayama puts his face close to hers to see, giving him a chance to kiss her. Alas, no kiss. That is a distinguishing moment for Hayama's feelings. With Sana, he is always doing something perverted out of the blue. With Fuka, he is simply kind. Not to mention, Fuka's family never accepts Hayama for who he is, seeing him as a dangerous troublemaker. Though Fuka knows that Hayama is a good guy, her parents forbid her to meet with him on a number of occasions. This obviously irritates Hayama. By the end of the series, Fuka understands Hayama's feelings, as well as her own. The two are never truly themselves around each other; there is a sense of threading on thin ice, and there is always the looming thoughts of Sana or Takaishi. Fuka is the first to realize this and breaks up with Hayama, knowing that it is for the better. Top of page --> Takaishi is Fuka's long-time crush living in Osaka. There is always some kind of misunderstanding between these two. Because they live so far away, it's hard to distinguish the truth from their overactive imaginations. For example, when Takaishi comes to Tokyo to meet Fuka, she hears that he has a girlfriend. In return, Fuka asks Hayama to pretend to be her boyfriend for a day. That meeting spawns even more misunderstandings. Fuka thinks that Takaishi truly loves his new girlfriend and has forgotten about her, and vice versa. But the truth is, the two are always thinking of each other. These two never realize their actual feelings about each other until Fuka breaks up with Hayama. When Takaishi learns that Fuka broke up with Hayama, he tells her that he also broke up with his girlfriend, because all he could think of was Fuka. They declare their love and begin a long-distance relationship. Finally they are truly happy. They send each other extra-long tape recordings and talk so long on the phone that the bills skyrocket. Fuka spends a bulk of her time gushing about Takaishi to Sana, who only mumbles bleakly, "It's hard to be patient while listening to other people's love lives, you know." Top of page --> Rei is scared to death of Hayama. At the beginning of the series, Hayama doesn't respect Rei at all because of how he acts as Sana's boyfriend and pimp. Not only is Hayama obviously jealous of Rei, but he believes that Rei is playing with Sana's feelings. Not to mention, since Sana is infatuated with Rei, the means Hayama and Rei are rivals in love. And we all know what Hayama thinks of rivals. Once Sana realizes that Rei's feelings aren't true and lets go of him, however, things between Hayama and Rei aren't so bad. Sana stops talking about Rei as if he were her boyfriend and Hayama doesn't pay that much attention to Rei. When Naozumi tells Hayama just how much money Sana makes, Hayama starts to suck up to Rei. Rei is, needless to say, completely shocked. "Hayama-The-Devil," whom he had feared so, is actually bowing and showing respect! Gasp! Afterwards, they don't interact much, except Rei becomes even more afraid of Hayama once Hayama starts taking karate. Top of page --> Must I even say it? These two are complete enemies because of their rivalry in love. Sana, meanwhile, is oblivious. When Naozumi finds out about Hayama, he instantly goes on a quest to drive away the competition. He tells Hayama that he's not good enough for Sana. "Do you have something you work hard for, like Sana-chan?" he asks Hayama. Naozumi and Sana both have their acting careers, for which they work hard. Hayama takes Naozumi's words to heart and, wanting to succeed for Sana, starts karate. Eventually, Sana and Hayama drift apart and it seems that Naozumi almost replaces him (almost being the key word here). Hayama begins dating Fuka, while Sana dates Naozumi. However, Naozumi realizes that Sana still has feelings for Hayama. In a very mature gesture, Naozumi sacrifices his own feelings for her by breaking up with her. Naozumi is also the one that gives Hayama a clue that Sana still likes him. Though Hayama was always wary of Naozumi, I think they reach a relative peace by the end of the series. Top of page --> And we save the best for last! These two make up my favorite anime couple because they're so entertaining. Because of their blaringly different traits, they are quite a combination. Hayama, the silent, lone wolf. The seemingly cold and uncaring tough guy. The pessimist with a sarcastic remark for everything. And Sana, the loud, energetic, exclamatory psycho. The seemingly carefree and very open optimist, the only one who can conjure up a retort to every one of Hayama's sarcastic remarks. "Do you have a reply for everything?" Hayama once asks her in exasperation. Yes, they're quite a match. Sana and Hayama know each other through elementary school. They meet in their sixth grade classroom; Hayama is the leader of a gang of boys as they wreak havoc. He has blackmail on the teachers so they can't stop him. No one is courageous enough to take serious action against him except for Sana. She makes it her personal goal in life to bring about his downfall. Hayama recognizes her as a worthy opponent. As Sana tries to stop Hayama and his troublemaking, she starts to learn more about him, his family, and how badly he's been treated all his life. She starts to sympathize with him. She helps bring his family together and solve their distance. Hayama is very thankful to her, though he never shows it. He starts to develop strong feelings for her, and steals a kiss. Soon the two become really close. Hayama supports her through hard times. Sana recognizes him as "her best friend." On Christmas Eve, their middle birthday, Hayama can't decide what present to give Sana. He ends up giving her a kiss. Hayama has many rivals for Sana's love. First Rei, Sana's manager, boyfriend, and pimp. Then Tsuyoshi, Hayama's best friend. Then Naozumi, the bishounen actor with the same past as Sana. Rei and Tsuyoshi are out of the way, but Naozumi is another story. In the first year of junior high, Sana meets Fuka and they become fast friends. Fuka recognizes Hayama as the boy who stole her first kiss from her in Kindergarten. Sana's oblivious towards everything and isn't quite sure about her feelings for Hayama. Soon Fuka develops a crush on Hayama. Sana goes into the mountains for two months to film a movie with Naozumi. Newspapers and magazines go mad with rumors about them dating, and the two aren't in Tokyo to deny them; soon Hayama and Sana's friends start to believe them. Hayama is heartbroken, in his silent and Hayama-like way. Fuka asks Hayama if he'll be her boyfriend. Their relationship starts. Sana comes back, realizing her true feelings for Hayama on her trip to the mountains, and is upset because her friends believed the rumors without asking her first. Hayama is also unnerved to hear they weren't true and is upset at himself for believing them. Hayama confesses to Sana that he has always loved her. Fuka overhears the conversation. Things get complicated. Sana can't stand going to school and seeing them anymore, and she and Naozumi get an offer to go to New York to perform on Broadway. They accept. At New York Sana and Naozumi become close. Naozumi has a hard time with family problems and Sana supports him through his stress. When they come back to Japan, they're officially a couple. Meanwhile, Sana can't say a line in a new television show that will undoubtedly hurt Hayama. In the drama she plays a junior high school girl, who says to a very Hayama-like character, "You devil! You devil child!" Because Hayama has been called "devil child" all his life, Sana can't say the line and asks for the script to be changed; she loses the role. She's misunderstood and involved in a huge scandal. Naozumi realizes that Sana isn't able to say the line because of Hayama. He breaks up with Sana because he knows she still loves him. Hayama finds out the truth. Fuka also realizes that Sana still has feelings for Hayama, and vice versa. Fuka breaks up with Hayama. Sana finds out they've broken up. Things seem to be back to normal. The stress and drama dies down, but Sana and Hayama still haven't confessed to each other and resolved everything. Fuka is frustrated with both of them for being so stupid when their feelings are so obvious. What now, my friends? What now?! I'd personally hope they get over themselves and confess, wouldn't you? After all that scrambling about, they find each other again. All the drama makes the reconciliation all the more satisfying. Top of page --> <-- Index |
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