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Relationships are rarely simple. When a special someone is close by, that flutter in the chest is an uncomplicated feeling. But what comes next can take a lot of forethought and overthinking: the confession of love. In a world where even confessing can give one member of the couple power over the other, love is war. And no show now streaming explores this concept as deeply or hilariously as Kaguya-sama: Love Is War.
On the surface, Kaguya Shinomiya and Miyuki Shirogane are made to be together. Kaguya is from a notable and wealthy family, Miyuki is a stellar student, and both are on the student council as vice-president and president, respectively. Proper at all times, Kaguya and Miyuki together are the pictures of poise — on the outside. Beneath the surface, Kaguya and Miyuki are in love with each other, but both are too proud to admit it. Kaguya and Miyuki constantly battle their feelings for each other, conscious about what the other is thinking and unwilling to relinquish the relationship’s power.
And so begins a string of schemes as Kaguya and Miyuki try to trick the other into confessing using mind games, overly complicated strategies, and a dose of manipulation. Kaguya-sama: Love Is War encapsulates the raw emotions and power dynamics of a first crush using comic exaggeration, classic misunderstandings, and cartoon-ish humor, creating relatable situations with overly-exaggerated execution and just the right amount of heart. Love is war, and whoever confesses first loses.
Kaguya-sama And Character Dynamics
As told by the excitable narrator initially, the main characters of Kaguya-sama struggle with being on the winning side of a power dichotomy. Pride over being a winner and fear of being a loser prevent Kaguya and Miyuki from outright telling each other about their feelings. The relationships between the main cast of characters create the perfect storm for zany antics.
Kaguya Shinomiya
Kaguya was raised in a powerful family and is insulted by even the notion that someone like her might fall for anyone at all, much less someone from a notably less influential station in life. Nevertheless, Kaguya deeply admires Miyuki’s dedication as a student, as well as his kind nature. Before they met, Kaguya didn’t believe that people could be genuinely good. As she explains to a stranger in season two, however, Miyuki is an exception.
I used to think there weren’t any good people in this world. That’s why whenever the President acted like a good person, I tried to expose the ugly scheme that I assumed was behind his actions.
But I could never find any evidence of that. Eventually, I admitted defeat and acknowledged that people like President really did exist. After that, I started to realize there were also a surprising number of selfless acts in the world. The way I saw things changed a bit.
Kaguya Shinomia (( Season 2, Episode 10. Kaguya-sama: Love Is War? Muse Communication, 2020. ))
Thanks to Miyuki’s kind-hearted behavior and sincerity, Kaguya’s entire worldview shifted. The very fact that Kaguya, an incredibly proud and seemingly invulnerable person, reveals to a stranger that she was forced to “admit defeat” proves that she has already lost to Miyuki in some small way. Falling in love with him could very well be one of the main obstacles to admitting her love for him: she has already “lost” once and refuses to lose again. She has already relinquished as much power in the relationship as she can bear.
Miyuki Shirogane
Miyuki’s point of view presents a stark contrast to Kaguya’s. Coming from a family that is by no means wealthy, he dedicates himself wholly to becoming the perfect student, even to the point of devoting every waking moment to study for tests just so he can achieve the best score above all his classmates — but especially above Kaguya.
Miyuki’s admiration for Kaguya’s honest character grows continuously throughout the series. Though Kaguya comes off as cold sometimes, her brutal honesty and dedication to nobility are large parts of what attracts Miyuki’s interest.
That’s what Shinomiya is like. She doesn’t lie to herself. If she makes a vow, count on it. She has a nobility about her. She’ll keep her word, come what may.
Miyuki Shirogane (( Season 1, Episode 8. Kaguya-sama: Love Is War. Muse Communication, 2019. ))
Miyuki sees his less-prestigious upbringing with a certain sense of embarrassment, especially whenever his blunt but well-meaning father is concerned. This self-conscious nature contributes to misunderstandings between him and Kaguya; whenever Miyuki thinks that he has made a fool of himself in front of her, he does everything he possibly can to avoid her recurring demeaning line, “How cute.” (( Kaguya-sama: Love Is War. Muse Communication, 2019. ))
Despite their differences, however, the similarities between Kaguya and Miyuki — mostly their arrogance — are what keep them apart. At some level, they are both aware that the other is after the same goal. The mind games continue to spiral out of control, often with disastrous consequences and sometimes dragging an innocent bystander or two into the mix.
Chika And Ishigami
An unwillingness to be vulnerable is not the only relatable character trait shown by Kaguya-sama’s cast. For example, Chika, the student council secretary, is a wild card who often introduces an element of chaos into any situation that Kaguya and Miyuki happen to be battling with that day. Her cheerful personality and carefree attitude offset Kaguya and Miyuki’s manipulative natures. Sometimes, however, Chika herself will show some level of scheming, all for some frivolous goal. Nevertheless, a powerful player, Chika, can undermine an entire episode of scheming with a single snap decision, like eating the last steamed bun.
Ishigami, the treasurer, brings his own humor to the student council room. Constantly crippled by anxiety (and when in Kaguya’s presence, outright fear), Ishigami rounds out season one’s cast list with his introverted, negative nature. His recurring joke, continuously coming up with excuses to go home, is among the show’s funniest and most relatable introvert lines.
President, I think I have Stockholm syndrome, so I’m going home.
Yu Ishigami (( Season 1, Episode 6. Kaguya-sama: Love Is War. Muse Communication, 2019. ))
The show also makes clever use of the fourth wall breaks in nearly every episode using an excitable narrator, who serves as a helper for the audience to follow along quickly with Kaguya and Miyuki’s schemes. The narrator introduces the characters and their complicated situations with enough enthusiasm to get any viewer wrapped up in the excitement. Just as much a character as Chika or Ishigami, the narrator pumps more energy into the comedy.
Between the conniving protagonists, the cheerful sidekick, and the resident introvert, Kaguya-sama represents many relatable feelings that high schoolers experience. More funny and unique characters appear in season two, opening the show to even more changing character dynamics. Each person carries a certain level of depth, showing that the war of love isn’t as straightforward as one would imagine. There are a million little things that can go wrong, and they usually do.
Plan Of Attack
While Kaguya and Miyuki both have similar levels of pride, their tactics differ greatly from each other. This key difference in the plan of attack both helps and hinders the ultimate goal of becoming a couple. Kaguya is overly organized and tends to meticulously plan ahead of time. Therefore, she is usually the one who attacks first. Due to the confidence she has in her plans, Kaguya often doesn’t have a backup for when her plans go off the rails; while Kaguya’s organization is fool-proof, it is often not Chika-proof, which is just as dangerous.
On the other hand, Miyuki excels in heat-of-the-moment decisions. When he sees an opportunity to strike, he takes it and can often catch Kaguya off guard because of this quick and clever thinking. His lack of planning can lead to a heavy social advantage, as in Episode 4 when students from France visit the academy and Miyuki realizes he is the only one who can’t say more than a few phrases in French. A scathing verbal attack from one of the visiting students doesn’t faze him, and the incident prompts Kaguya to stand up for him.
However, Miyuki lacks her forethought and big picture planning and underestimates the lengths that Kaguya is willing to go to trap him. He can also get distracted by empathy and his own insecurities, leaving him wide open to Kaguya’s tricks. Kaguya and Miyuki’s difference in approach to the battle serves to not only highlight how the two of them contrast each other but also how they provide what the other is lacking.
As opponents, Kaguya and Miyuki are each other’s worst enemy. But as a couple, their strengths and weaknesses fit together like puzzle pieces. If only their pride allowed them to be honest with each other and confess, neither would need to worry about being on the losing side of the power struggle; they would both have equal standing.
Emotional Sneak Attacks
Kaguya-sama: Love Is War is many things, but it is not subtle. The humor that the show presents and thrives on makes effective use of the anime genre’s tropes. The exaggerated style of hand-drawn animation, for example, is stretched and overstated to convey strong emotion, further highlighting the way panicking over a crush can feel in the heat of the moment. To a high school student, one little slip-up feels like the end of the world.
Each wacky and ridiculous thrill of Kaguya and Miyuki battling it out stems from the most mundane of tasks. While situational comedy grounds the story in a sitcom style, the exaggerated animation dramatizes every twist and turn and maximizes laughs. The dramatic art style and relentless comedy serve one other purpose besides humor. Though there are many high-energy and light-hearted beats, they give more weight to some truly emotional moments as well. Kaguya-sama treats these serious moments with respect and plays them straight.
Kaguya’s desperate desire to see the fireworks with her friends prompts Miyuki to lead them in a race to get there before the show ends; when they see the fireworks, all Kaguya can stare at is him. While opposing Miyuki in his run for student council president, Iino is finally able to win her classmates’ respect during a debate. A closer look into Ishigami’s past leads him to truly let go of his shame at the school’s sports festival. The resulting contrast between the loud humor and the quiet emotional beats packs a strong punch.
Moments like these give Kaguya-sama even more layers of depth. Just like high school, you can be laughing one moment and crying the next. No plot point is stagnant, and Kaguya, Miyuki, and the rest of the group are constantly learning and growing.
Is Love War?
Much like how the show’s comedic tone is used as a front for deeply emotional moments, Kaguya and Miyuki gradually begin to let their guards down around each other in between exaggerated slice-of-life hijinks. They are both far from giving in and confessing, but as they continue to surprise and learn more about each other, the real conflict at the heart of their story is revealed to be more than a battle for power in a relationship.
The question is now whether or not they can be sincere with themselves and risk their pride to be with the person they love. This change of perception transforms how Kaguya and Miyuki present themselves to each other, a gradual shift represented by season two: Kaguya-sama: Love Is War? The addition of the question mark calls to attention that Kaguya and Miyuki’s mindsets are changing.
As the two lovesick masterminds get closer to each other, both question whether or not it’s worth it to keep playing this game. Would confessing first really mean defeat? Is it worth it to potentially lose that special someone over a power struggle? Is love really war? The answer comes in those small moments when Kaguya and Miyuki aren’t consciously trying to win.
During a night of stargazing, Miyuki gets too swept up in his love for astronomy to notice that he’s interacting naturally and smoothly with Kaguya. Becoming physically lovesick forces Kaguya to face the fact that she does have real feelings for Miyuki and doesn’t want to let him slip away. These moments, while played up for comedy, present a simple answer to the show’s question.
Building relationships with someone you care about is difficult and scary, and sometimes a certain amount of pride is put at risk. For young adults, love can feel like a matter of life and death. But regardless of age or background, the benefits of being vulnerable with others and honest with yourself outweigh the benefits of letting pride protect you. The only way to be part of a truly loving relationship is to be genuine, even if it hurts.
Yes, love is war sometimes. But it doesn’t have to be.
