Uh oh! I sense conflict.

Katt: So though I had heard of Crunchyroll grabbing a hold of Hanasakeru Seishounen a while ago, I was (im)patiently waiting for them to post the sub of episode 13 and then follow along from there. Of course, episode 13 is one of the last episodes whose subs they opt to post…damn them! But okay, okay, I am grateful to at least be able to continue following this series. And I hear that only people in the US/Canada region can stream from Crunchyroll? Ah, that sucks so much for everyone else! I’ll do my best to get back into the groove of blogging this series and hope that I can keep writing entries that keep people as engaged as my past ones. To start off my re-immersion into this series with a kick, it’s time to look at the long-anticipated fourth bachelor’s introduction. Yep, you heard me correctly: Carl is now in the game!

I won’t get into the plotline just yet. It is starting to get complicated, and I will save it for my next post to start with the observations and conjecture. For now, I’ll just dedicate this post to Carl’s introduction. It has been so long since I’ve done a bachelor introduction, and–tragically–this will be my last one! Everybody go “awwww” in unison, please. Awwww. I’m admittedly a little worried because lately plot has become more significant than the boys (what, no way?!), and I’ve become pretty accustomed to weighing out the guys’ odds…but okay, I’ll work with this. It’ll be fine. I’ll only worry about it in the next post, anyway. ‘kay so, I’ll stop babbling now, I swear–on to the intro of…

Bachelor number four, Carl Rosenthal! Time for Minnie to cheer solely based on his seiyuu. For me, I’ve been expecting to overlook Carl even after his introduction just because, by episode 13, I have already become so attached to the other boys. Is there really room in my heart for another? Even more importantly, is there any more room in Kajika’s heart? …Probably. She really is all about becoming friends with everyone she meets. Thus far Carl seems to bear some similarities to Li-Ren in terms of personality. He holds a lot of responsibility despite his young age and definitely takes his involvement in his company seriously. Business first, personal relationships later. Pretty unfortunate because it makes him difficult to like based on first impressions, though I’m expecting him to undergo the Eugene character development and become another likeable possible husband. A fan-favourite for hooking up with Kajika? Maybe not, but at least he’ll be liked.

Why the fans would like him: Enemy-to-lover

Starts of sweet and vulnerable, and then gets bitter the second he hears that he’s been associating with Kajika Burnsworth. It’s pretty much sealed that Carl is starting off as a sort of ‘bad guy’ in this series, or maybe not necessarily ‘bad’–just a figure on the side opposing Kajika’s family. While I admittedly don’t like Romeo & Juliet all that much (unless we’re talking about Romeo x Juliet; sorry Shakespeare, I like your works better anime’d), the idea of two people finding love in each other when they are meant to oppose one another has become a sort of romantic vision. While this sure as hell might not be as timeless as the feud between the Montagues and Capulets, the Rosenthals and Burnsworths have a war of their own going on and Kajika and Carl begin to befriend each other in spite of it. That meeting of pure chance, the initial interest that they both show…and then the realization that they are meant to be ‘enemies’. Some fans go for such a starcrossed situation, don’t they?

Why Daddy would like him: Er…good question…

“Business dealings” was always the immediate reason that I could come up with for why Harry would want Kajika to marry any of these guys. With Carl, however…their companies are the ultimate rivals! They hate each other! Is Carl being one of the potential husbands a way to patch up broken ties? A sort of ‘peace offering’? Like, “Here, your son may hook up with my daughter and we can make beautiful money together.” That’s all I got. If the situation with Rumati is any indication, though, Harry has put more thought into these bachelors than it would seem at first glance, so it won’t be any surprise at all to find out that there is more to Carl’s presence than a business tie. Perhaps Carl will hold a significant role in the Raginei drama that Kajika is becoming a central player in…

Why Li-Ren might not like him: They’re alike

‘Kay, this is a little rough since Li-Ren is still back in America. I may have to flip the chessboard a little bit here, to steal some Umineko terminology. I’ll think of it in less of a this-guy-is-bad-for-Kajika way, and more in a this-guy-threatens-my-odds way. It’s perfectly established that Li-Ren likes (even loves?) Kajika, so he will no doubt feel threatened when he learns that Carl, who I’ve observed bears some personality similarities to Li-Ren, comes along as a potential husband. If Kajika does like the Li-Ren type in a romantic sense, maybe she will be more drawn to Carl than Li-Ren himself because she doesn’t have this pre-established notion of him being a ‘brother’ like she does with Li-Ren. She isn’t being distracted by such a long history together; it wouldn’t be weird if she got into a relationship with Carl, while it might with Li-Ren. I don’t think Li-Ren will be pleased to see someone similar to himself on Harry’s list of players in this marriage game.

Why Kajika might choose him: The vulnerability factor

Kajika was drawn to Eugene because of that cloud of misery that followed him everyone, that ‘I don’t know love’ attitude. Methinks Kajika is immediately drawn to guys that she believes she can help and comfort. When she first meets Carl, she does just that when he has a panic attack due to his claustraphobia. The pain she sees on his face while he sleeps, and the trembling that doesn’t stop after he wakes up, leads Kajika to hold his hand and use her inexplicable soothing abilities on him. Everyone is always amazed when Kajika manages to soothe them in just the right manner, and though she never really expresses it, I get the feeling that Kajika gets satisfaction out of this. Not smug satisfaction, but a sort of happiness that she is able to bond with people thanks to her calming demeanour. With Eugene perfectly fine these days, it’s time to move onto another man whose spirits might need fixing, right?

Don’t worry, guys; I know there are more episodes after 14 that have been posted, but I am trying to organize myself after such a long hiatus (at least, it felt like forever) from this series. With Carl’s intro done, it’s just a matter of getting the plot together in my head. Quite a few episode’s worth of plot… Don’t worry; I won’t take too long though! I love this series and just want to get back to blogging it on a regular basis again.

Katt’s love-metre for Hanasakeru Seishounen episodes 13-14 measures: 8.5/10

P.S.: When I talked about this series at a panel at Otakuthon, one of my co-panelists looked at the artwork from this series and said Carl would win. Just a fun fact.