Review - Koi Kaze: The Reunion
Reviewed by Richard Brownell on 10.22.2007.
Score: 6/10
Some anime are difficult to critique because they are very abstract; some because they cater to a very niche audience; some because they challenge the mind more than most viewers are willing to be challenged. But Koi Kaze is different for a unique reason: it's about the romantic relationship between a 27 year old man and his 15 year old sister. It's important for me to get that out of the way in no uncertain terms. Depending on the country and culture you come from, that situation could be immoral and/or illegal and it most certainly would result in a variety of birth defects from inbreeding. But nevertheless, Koi Kaze requires you to either ignore those facts completely or look past them to see the complex relationship story told within.
Don't get me wrong. Koi Kaze is not rife with sexual misconduct. It actually treats its subject matter with great care for the most part. The brother, Koshiro, lived most of his life away from his sister. It's not until now that she's moving to live with him and their father. And they just happen to have a chance encounter after Koshiro breaks up with his (adult) girlfriend. Koshiro has two tickets to go to an amusement park that the two of them are nearby so they decide to go. Clearly their mother didn't teach the girl, Nanoka, not to accept a date from a strange older man. But she does and what ensues is one of the best scenes of the first DVD.
Koshiro ends up baring his soul for Nanoka as he breaks down crying to convince her that even impossible love is worth striving. For love takes pure feelings, one that he thinks he is incapable of feeling. His resolve quickly turns to the steadfast working man that he is for most of the show, but that one short scene is the setup for the rest of story. They soon realize that they share the same parents and will be living together, hardly a good start to what could have been a romantic relationship.
The rest of the show tells the evolving relationship of the family. Nanoka goes to school while Koshiro continues to work his job, at an event planning company. His coworkers and Nanoka's schoolmates provide a nice reprieve from the more tense scenes between the family. One of Koshiro's coworkers in particular somewhat serves as a comic relief, but the execution is not very strong. He is blatant about his love of high school girls, but it's not done in a very funny way, particularly since there's usually the standard piano music going on underneath him.
The music normally fits the show quite well. It's almost entirely solo piano which matches the subdued tone of the show. But from time to time, the mood of the scene doesn't match the mood of the music, which creates a sort of disconnect while watching.
The art of the show is also usually good, but not all the time. It has a very soft look to it, almost like it was intentionally washed out. There are many scenes with beautiful cherry blossoms floating across, but most scenes are very flat. The character designs don't often stick out very often either with Nanoka's cuteness being the best.
The creators of Koi Kaze clearly understood their subject matter. They seemed to try to hold back on almost all aspects of the show to let the story shine through. But some viewers may not be able to get past that Koshiro is considering becoming an incestuous pedophile. He even sniffs her underwear. Would you sniff your sister's underwear? My guess is no. Koi Kaze does have many directions it could take the viewer. Some could attract more viewers, others drive them away. But the first volume is merely a good romance story with a not so great premise.
Dub Quality
The English dub of Koi Kaze is not one of my favorites. Some of the leads such as Nanoka and their father are done quite well. But the comic relief office guy could probably stand to be more over the top considering his character's entire premise is that he wants high school girls. Koshiro's voice is the one that bothers me the most though. He almost always sounds bored with everything he's saying. I know the intent is to portray the character as fairly laid back and perhaps bored with life. But it makes you less interested in his character and the show as a whole.
Special Features
DVD Features
· English Dolby Digital 2.0
· Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0
· English Subtitles
· Run Time 100 Minutes
Special Bonus
· Textless Opening
· Original Japanese Opening
· Geneon Previews
