This review is going to get a counterpoint review tomorrow, so if you disagree with this review or any of the points made here, please consider tuning in tomorrow for a Guest Review by Yurimother, with a different point of view! Today, however I felt it absolutely incumbent upon me to provide you with my view of the anime adaption of Sabuouta’s citrus manga.
I sat down to watch Citrus anime, streaming on Crunchyroll, with my wife. She has never so much as looked at this series, so I felt confident that she would bring a fresh perspective with her, while I was going into watching this anime with already negative opinion of the series as a whole. ^_^;
The anime was moderately well-animated, which was nice. I wouldn’t have paroxysms of ecstasy over the animation or anything, but it looked good.
As a modern version of the traditional dark-haired, emotionally intense classic Japanese beauty and the energetic lighter-haired girl (the same exact couple we’ve seen in many Yuri series throughout the last century,) neither Yuzu nor Mei are original character types nor particularly well-wrought examples of their types.
Yuzu is not overtly clumsy or stupid, but she is presented as critically naive. Every school I have ever even considered applying to sends parents and students a metric ton of “Dos and Don’ts.’ While things have changed, I know for 100% sure from teacher friends that – here in the US, at least – schools communicate more with parents and students, not less. A student arriving at an elite school without the slightest clue of anything at all was irritating in 2007, when Aoi Nagisa did it. In 2017 it is simply, flatly, unbelievable. That said, Yuzu’s obliviousness naivete is an important component of this series.
When Yuzu gets to school, somehow wholly unaware that the school has rules (rules that are commonly deployed as plot complications in every single existent form of entertainment in Japan and could be guessed at, even if she was too lazy to read the documentation,) she is sexually assaulted for not knowing the rules. The search she undergoes has nothing at all to do with “looking for a phone.” No one keeps their phone tucked under or between their butt cheeks.
Mei’s behavior is not sensible…except that nonconsensual, passive-aggressive assaults are wholly consistent with a girl who has endured sexual abuse. Mei’s sexual assault of Yuzu continues, moving from groping to a deep kiss and later forceful undressing, without any of the steps that must come before such behavior – knowing the other person consents, primarily. You know, the the attraction and affection of two people who are looking to learn more about one another. The entirety of the relationship that we cherish in the Kase-san series is completely excised from citrus. The narrative refuses to admit sexual assault or anything Mei does as a consequence of it, and so, it throws the premise of the story into unacceptable implausibility. Even more implausible is the narrative’s assumption that I will somehow root for these two to become a couple. The only thing I am rooting for is for them to both seek therapy.
Mei’s passive-aggression and sexual acting out works in this context because Yuzu is presented in the first few minutes as naive. She knows as much about sex as she does about the school rules. She is the kind of person who lies about her lack of experience rather than admit she has not had sex. Additionally, “having had sex with a boy” is left hanging as the benchmark for “sexually knowledgeable” as if they are one and the same thing. Let me assure you, they are not. Mei even uses this as a weapon against Yuzu. “Someone who has never kissed before can’t know anything.” Patently untrue, and it can only work if the audience as well as the characters believe that sexual experience is equivalent to knowledge is equalivalent to maturity. It is not. Neither is anything in this series indicative of “love” as Yuzu naively (and alarmingly) imagines.
We also meet Yuzu’s mother, whose behavior is likewise implausible. This is when something dawned on me.
About the time we encountered Yuzu’s mother, I recoiled as I gasped, “Oh my god, they are playing this for comedy.” I watched, horrified, as the story demanded that I find a sexual assault amusing. Oh haha, look Yuzu was just sexually assaulted on her first day of school and she gets to live with that person! Hahah. How droll! As we’re dealing with #metoo and the repeated public flagellating of people for being brave enough to talk about their experiences with sexual assault, this is so far beyond insensitive, I am gobsmacked by it. Days after watching, I am still horrified that I was supposed to find it appealing in any way. (Update: I have just watched all I can manage of the third episode and this trend continues. We are repeatedly expected to find sexual assault acceptable, justifiable, romantic and, in some cases, comedic.)
We made it through the first two episodes and then my wife and I debriefed. I offered her the chance to write part of this review. This is what she said. “I felt triggered by it.” Those of you who know my wife will understand that this may be the very first time in her life she has ever uttered this sentence. I have never heard her speak it in 34 years. She agreed with me that the assault was being played as comedy.
Along with the creepy fanservice added in many scenes, citrus anime was, in a word, grotesque.
Ratings:
Art – 7
Story – #metoo
Character – No. Absolutely not. This is not how healthy people behave, speak or deal with things.
Service – Infinity
Yuri – 100% Sexual Assault until Yuzu and we are groomed to believe it’s okay. It is not okay, not ever.
Overall – 1
Feel free to comment, but under no circumstances should you feel free to justify using sexual assault as a replacement for sexual attraction as a plot complication in this anime, or in life. I will not allow those comments.
For those of you who disagree, come back tomorrow for a completely different point of view!
This anime needs a trigger warning.
I agree. It’s very rape-y.
I bought the manga for awhile, because I found manga-Yuzu to be kind of a cool character. The story, however, was problematic from the start, and instead of getting better it just got worse and worse. Finally, ’round about the time that Yuzu’s precociously mature-beyond-her-years loli friend tries to blackmail her into escorting or somesuch nonsense I said “to hell with this” and dropped it.
Since it’s the only yuri this season, I decided to give the anime a shot, despite my better judgment. So far, it is only a slight variation from the manga. IMO Yuzu is a weaker character here, with less self-posession. Other than that it’s the same story with a few additional vignettes added to fill time.
I agree with pretty much all of your negatives. The worst is, of course, it’s yet another manga/anime series where we’re supposed to believe that assault is a surefire way to get someone to fall in love with you. Not that that is Mei’s goal, but that’s pretty much the fasttrack path Yuzu follows here, because we’re given no other reason why she should like Mei at all. And that does not improve at all, at least in the manga. In order to keep manufacturing drama, Mei is absolutely schizophrenic, alternating between aloof and cruel or manipulative and needy. I think you said “no one is ever happy” about it, which isn’t entirely true – when Yuzu isn’t around Mei or the loli, she’s usually doing well. Take the hint, girl!
I really cannot get past how astoundingly ignorant/naive everyone is, though. In addition to accepting that Yuzu is entering a school that she doesn’t know the rules to, we have to accept that her mother married a man Yuzu’s never met and knows nothing about, that she doesn’t know that she has a new sister or what her name is or that she’s related to the owners of the school, that her mother met, fell in love with, and married a man who is now (and never will be) around at all… and so on… and so on. I think you proffered a rule that each series gets one “handwave.” This series is a drunken stadium doing “YMCA.”
As always, I will say my faint praise that I like seeing series where everything isn’t all “pure” this and “chaste” that. But why do they almost all have to be so *awful?* I’m still waiting for a thoughtful, mature, believable yuri series about something other than first kisses or idiotic raunch.
Agreed.
“This series is a drunken stadium doing “YMCA.”
Brilliantly put.
So, we’re four episodes in and I still can’t stand Mei’s expression. Everytime she appears on the screen I let out a loud groan. I mean, I understand that that pained, emo, “you don’t understand me” look is supposed to mean something (I didn’t read the manga) and act as a foil to Yuzu’s “cheerful” (?) demeanor, but in real life a person who wears that kind of face all the time would really tick me off.
Also, can we talk about the pink-goth-ojou-vice-president? Or, no, you know what, let’s not. Because i’m sick of this “possesive, jealous yandere in love with her bestie” trope (plus, she’s seriously creepy).
Also-also, can someone enlighten me as to who is supposed to find this series appealing?
Also-also-also, and sorry for going off-topic: I was going through josei section amazon.co.jp and found Love to Lie Angle by Merryhachi there. Talk about missing the mark with the target readers.
It’s been consistent that the Comic Yuri Hime series that get animated are the bottom-scrapers. Partially because the decent stories would make kinda crappy anime.
As much as I WANT to agree more with Yurimother, you’re really echoing why I remained firmly away from this anime.
I wouldn’t mind it existing if I didn’t think at the same time that each yuruyuri, each NTR, each Citrus is one actually good yuri hime adaption that’ll never be made. Budget is limited, as is air time.
I just do not understand. Why these? Why not, say, Iono? There, you have plenty of wacky gropy scenes, wacky multi-pairing antics, lots of seduction. Sure would have been a better pick if one wanted to go the service route.
And would have been more visually interesting on top of it.
To be blunt, cheap dramatics and fanservice is what Japanese companies believe sells anime. Its what they want to see, so it is what they make.
i got a bit of backlash on tumblr for calling this series homophobic. people asked me how i could call a series that lesbians loved such. was i to call those lesbians homophobic as well?
well, yeah, kinda.
citrus carries on a trend on gay anime to toxify what could have been a normal, healthy same-sex relationship. this happens occasionally in m/f romance anime as well but rarely as grotesquely as they do in yuri and yaoi (netsuzou trap, junjou romantica, etc). and i think the reason why f/f and m/m relationships as so toxic and abusive and rapey is obvious. that said, if you’re willing to shove such glaring problems with the series aside as well as your head in the sand you are doing yourself a great disservice as a lesbian. accepting yuzu and mei as your otp, your model romance, either stems from or leads to internalized homophobia. please, wlw and especially young wlw, develop some standards! this is not the way to be.
Yup. I’m with you on this.
Well, I think it’s time I bring to light how misinformed this review is. In case you people are unaware, yes, opinions on art can be misinformed and logically unsound. You can’t have sound opinions founded on incorrect claims. Sadly this review is full of them, and I’ll be tackling them accordingly. Citrus is not a problematic work, and it does not idealize toxic relationships.
“Mei’s behavior is not sensible…except that nonconsensual, passive-aggressive assaults are wholly consistent with a girl who has endured sexual abuse.”
You are correct. Mei’s behavior is implicitly stated to be symptomatic of being in a sexually abusive relationship without emotional support, and scenes that focus on her problematic behavior is necessary to characterize her properly. Her perception of relationships is distorted, only knowing physical contact to take control of situations like she controls Yuzu. Is this behavior acceptable? Of course not. Citrus thankfully treats it as a wrongdoing by detailing its effects, thus discouraging it. But somehow that isn’t something you agree with…
“The narrative refuses to admit sexual assault or anything Mei does as a consequence of it, and so, it throws the premise of the story into unacceptable implausibility.”
You are wrong. Sexual assault in Citrus is always portrayed in a negative light and always leads to a negative outcome. The narrative absolutely admits it to being sexual assault. Mei’s first assault turned Yuzu’s pending lust for and curiosity of Mei into a maelstrom of confusion and hysteria. Repetition of these acts behind the scenes gave us Mei Aihara as we know her. A certain character who does this to another results in the victim avoiding that character extensively. Sexual assault damages people, in real life and in Citrus. It’s portrayed exactly like it should be: discomforting and confusing, not as straight up eroticism or comedy.
“About the time we encountered Yuzu’s mother, I recoiled as I gasped, “Oh my god, they are playing this for comedy.” I watched, horrified, as the story demanded that I find a sexual assault amusing. Oh haha, look Yuzu was just sexually assaulted on her first day of school and she gets to live with that person! Hahah. How droll! As we’re dealing with #metoo and the repeated public flagellating of people for being brave enough to talk about their experiences with sexual assault, this is so far beyond insensitive, I am gobsmacked by it. Days after watching, I am still horrified that I was supposed to find it appealing in any way. (Update: I have just watched all I can manage of the third episode and this trend continues. We are repeatedly expected to find sexual assault acceptable, justifiable, romantic and, in some cases, comedic.)”
It’s not.
I’m sorry…in what manner is this played for comedy? What in the world made you think that scenes where Yuzu struggles, resists, and protests against Mei’s predatory acts without a tinge of comedic elements were meant to amuse you? Mei’s first sexual assault on Yuzu depicts Yuzu struggling and writhing as ominous music plays. Following this is a low shot of Mei, spitefully uttering “that’s what it felt like” in response to Yuzu’s innocent curiosity about Mei’s romantic affair. Nothing about this is painted in a positive, approving light. Subsequent events like this are blatantly shown to be a byproduct of Mei’s misconception of how relationships work, or a means to vent her frustration. The sheer discomfort is emphasized through both the cinematography and the expressions of the characters involved.
This part of the paragraph in particular is just utterly baffling:
“(Update: I have just watched all I can manage of the third episode and this trend continues. We are repeatedly expected to find sexual assault acceptable, justifiable, romantic and, in some cases, comedic.)”
I just have to reiterate: why? Why do you think this? Why do you think scenes with Yuzu resisting sexual assault are portrayed as romantic or comedic? Why do you think Mei’s non-consensual acts are portrayed as acceptable or justified? Yuzu saying “you’re terrible” to Mei, then saying “this is all your fault,” and feeling immediately regretful for enacting this sort of behavior on Mei…this was all comedy to you? What world are you living in?
Do you think sexual assault is what awakened Yuzu’s attraction to Mei? If so, you’d be wrong. Yuzu was attracted to Mei the moment she saw her and Amamiya making out. She pondered over this in the bath, wondering if kissing really felt that amazing, then wondering why she couldn’t stop thinking of
“She agreed with me that the assault was being played as comedy.”
“Sexual Assault until Yuzu and we are groomed to believe it’s okay.”
No it isn’t. Stop saying this. You have no logical basis for this conclusion. You are basing your impressions on surface-level reactions and twisting the content of Citrus into something that it isn’t.
Now I’ll conclude all this by saying that I am absolutely for proper LGBT representation in media. Japanese media in particular has a lamentable history of romanticizing or condoning sexual harassment, especially with LGBT characters, and it is indeed unacceptable.
But Citrus does not fall under this category, and the problematic trends of other yuri/yaoi works does not justify criticizing Citrus for something it isn’t guilty of. You are not entitled to your opinion, you are entitled to your informed opinion; no one is entitled to be ignorant. Star Wars does not take place under the sea, Starship Troopers is not war propaganda, and Citrus does not promote or excuse sexual assault.
Are you allowed to dislike Citrus? Of course. However, your opinion is only justified if it’s founded on an accurate basis. And misinformed reviews of Citrus like this one is part of the reason Citrus is undeservedly reinforced as the butt of the joke in circles about LGBT representations. Hopefully you’ll have the good sense to take this write-up of mine to heart and reconsider your own takes. Please understand I mean no ill-will; I’m just firmly against misrepresentation of media I like. Have a good one.
“However, your opinion is only justified if it’s founded on an accurate basis.”
No, that’s not how any of this works. ^_^