I managed to watch the whole series, Sakurasou no Petto na Kanojo, in a couple of days on my iPad. I brought it along with me when I was on a business trip in April. My first time watching the entire series on such tiny screen. Sakurasou, as most anime fans called it, was an easy series to watch – it has its share of happy moments and then it has its share of sad moments. Typical.
The reason why I decided to write about this series is because of the two categories of characters found in the series. One category being the super talented students and the other category being the not-so-talented-but-very-hardworking students.
If I am to categorize myself within these two groups of people, I’m in the latter group. I by no stretch of imagination am a talented kid. All my life I had to work hard to be where I am. If I don’t put in the effort, I’m average. Or worse, below average. However, if I put forth all my might into something, sometimes I get the results I desire. Of course, there are times I’d be very disappointed.
The main character, Kanda Sorata, had his shares of disappointments. After finally found his goal in life, he was hit by failures upon failures. The worst moment was probably when he was rejected while Shiina Mashiro got an offer even though she didn’t try. Mashiro was on the opposite side of the spectrum. She’s super talented. I suspect she’s the sort who doesn’t need to work hard to achieve ground-breaking results. She worked hard because she loved to. Sorata worked hard because he had to. There’s a huge difference in that.
Similarly, Mitaka Jin suffered inferiority complex when around Kamiigusa Misaki because of the very same difference. Although the romantic feelings between these two characters are mutual, Jin was determined to make a name for himself first before pursuing a relationship with Misaki.
Aoyama Nanami, an aspiring voice actress, sacrificed a lot for her dream. Devoid of parental support, Nanami had to work part-time jobs after school while attending voice acting classes other days. While I don’t have similar experience, I’m sure it’s very taxing to be always on-the-go and hardly ever be able to attend social functions with friends.
What hit home with me is when Sorata was shocked into realization – “you can play catch-up all your life but never even get close (to the talented group)”. The fact that he and Nanami worked so hard but it was for nothing. And that hard work doesn’t pay off.
Growing up, I’m always hanging out with the smart kids. It’s not like I planned it; it just so happened. These friends of mine would score straight As without having to study. They’re natural. Being with them, I didn’t study either. While they passed with flying colors, I merely passed. Back then, I didn’t care too much but there came a point when I’d question myself the huge difference in ability between me and them. Upon realization, it was frustrating.
Having said that, I think I could resonate with Sorata when he became depressed and angry at Mashiro. I’m not saying I agree with his actions. At the same time, I won’t say that’s it’s a pity he feels sorry for himself because being in that position isn’t something easy. Seeing someone close having grand goals and score every single time while he failed repeatedly is hard to take in. I’d say cruel, even. It takes a lot of courage to keep one’s head held high after going through what Nanami and Sorata went through. They worked hard. Really hard. They didn’t just sit and wait for miracles to happen. That’s something I find admiring – the persistence.
Whether hard work pays off, it’s not for me to say. It has too many variables to have an absolute answer. I’d like to believe though that hard work does pay off. What about you?
