ANIME REVIEW | A Perfect Pair of Oddballs In "The Dangers in My Heart"
I’ll be real: I wasn’t too sure I would like The Dangers in My Heart. Based on the manga by Norio Sakurai, the first couple of minutes of the show give off a very creepy vibe. We see the main male protagonist Kyotaro Ichikawa (Shun Horie) at school reading a big book about murder, fantasizing about killing every one of his classmates. But his main target is that of the classroom darling Anna Yamada (Hina Yōmiya), whom he sees as the ultimate kill. Just from this alone, I was very much on the verge of shutting it off.
But then, The Dangers of My Heart pulled a big switcheroo! Kyotaro actually has zero interest in murder; he’s only giving off these vibes because he just wants to be left alone. However, the powers that be have other plans, as Anna starts to hang out in the school library that Kyotaro frequents. Despite her good looks and her high-profiled modeling career, it turns out she’s a weirdo in her own sense.
Snacking like crazy, humming like a monkey, and showcasing other strange behaviors, Anna accidentally shows a side of herself to Kyotaro no one has ever seen. Except…she might not be doing this accidentally. In fact, she starts actively hanging out with Kyotaro in the library, as they do average things like school work and not-so-average things like making cat sounds to aid in an ongoing love confession.
As such, Kyotaro begins to wonder why Anna starts to hang with him. Is she doing this as a practical joke? He initially thinks this, seeing as there’d be no way a beautiful woman would want to converse with a weird goth kid. But as The Dangers in My Heart goes on, Kyotaro starts realizing things about himself and — most importantly — how he actually feels about Anna. It’s a shame he can’t read her mind, as those feelings wind up being mutual.
What starts as dark show quickly evolves into a genuinely sweet romantic comedy. Kyotaro’s murderous thought processes vanish the more Anna is in his life, as he figures out that he’s not filled with the urge to kill; he’s just sad, and needs a better outlook on life. And it’s Anna that pulls him not just into the light, but also into each others’ hearts. On top of that, Kyotaro winds up being the most normal guy in the school!
In class, The Dangers in My Heart doesn’t hide the fact that these junior high schoolers are going through puberty. While the girls in class still have a somewhat innocent vibe to them, the guys have a terrible horn-dog mentality that’d make the average person wince. And it disgusts Kyotaro when he sees a student like Haruya (Nobunaga Shimazaki) harassing Anna, with her facial reads showcasing that she’s very uncomfortable with his advances. Thankfully, despite his shy mannerisms, Kyotaro’s comes through in the clutch, providing over-the-top distractions and outright refusing to share Anna’s LINE contact with the creep.
Kyotaro’s kind side is what draws Anna towards him, be it hiding her bad snacking habits in the library or giving her a picture he drew of her in a fantasy manga he’s writing. It’s the latter where Kyotaro’s own feelings start coming out, with him seeing her carrying the drawing after an incident in gym leaves her with an injured nose. Still, at this point, he thinks Anna may have another reason to be hanging with him.
Yet as the show goes on, the wall Kyotaro has built around him slowly crumbles. Going on a trip to a manga publisher, swapping contact info, and even partaking in a Christmas outing (that may or may not be a date) help to bring him and Anna closer to one another. And as the show goes on, viewers will realize that these two are not polar opposites. Quite the contrary, Kyotaro and Anna are both very weird kids; just in different ways. However, no matter the circumstances, weirdness attracts weirdness.
That weirdness is where The Dangers in My Heart is at its sweetest. Anna’s goofy antics like pretending to be Santa or sneaking food are presented in hilarious an adorable fashions. How Kyotaro reacts to her weirdness also aids in him coming out of his shell, with his internal monologuing showing a blunt and funny side to him no one else sees. But it’s in moments where the two are holding hands walking down the sidewalk or giving each other a much-needed hug when the show demonstrates the beauty of human nature.
Said human nature shines in the voice acting performances. It’s funny hearing Horie as Kyotaro, with his performance being the polar opposite of the detestable Kazuya in Rent-A-Girlfriend. Here, he’s awkward, funny, blunt, and even sweet when the time calls for it. One cannot help but feel butterflies every time Yōmiya delivers a line as Anna, with her bubbly personality being a terrific contrast to the internal feelings she has for Kyotaro. Special mention should also go to Yukari Tamura, whose Kana Ichikawa is a hilarious — albeit supportive — tease towards her younger brother.
Considering their great work with Teasing Master Takagi-san, it’s no surprise that Shin-Ei Animation hit this adaptation of The Dangers in My Heart out of the ballpark. Its scenery comes to life thanks to the great detail placed into each frame, ranging from the beauty of books in a library to even the style of Kyotaro’s room. He and Anna’s expressions are always filled with life, with their eyes showing their different-yet-similar personalities to a T. Of course, every piece of food Anna puts in her mouth is showcased with care, be it a sole potato chip or a tasty pancake at a fancy restaurant.
Kensuke Ushio (A Silent Voice, Chainsaw Man) crafts a soundtrack that’s both simplistic and beautiful. His string compositions deliver the same sweetness as the characters on-screen, to a point where a sole violin note can give goosebumps. Opening theme “Shayō” by Yorushika is a strong pop rock song, with suis’s angelic vocals pushing it towards anisong mastery. Ending theme “Sū Sentimental” by Kohana Lam brings whispery vocals to an experimental beat, crafting a melody that blends Japanese and Icelandic pop to great results.
The Dangers in My Heart is funny, sweet, relatable, and heartfelt. Kyotaro and Anna’s relationship is one of this year’s more endearing, with only Taiyou and Nishimura from My Clueless First Friend being their biggest competition. With a second season announced, one hopes that this strange-yet-compatible duo will continue to grow and create new memories. Until then, consider Season One of The Dangers in My Heart one of the best series the anime rom-com genre has offered us in the last five years.
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The Dangers in My Heart can be viewed on HIDIVE, and has been licensed by Sentai Filmworks. Episodes 1-12 were observed in this review.
