High School is an environment unlike any other. It is a place and time of triumph and defeat, of suffering and joy, and of discovery and growth. Part of its uniqueness is the speed at which it goes by, and the speed at which things themselves and the people who experience them can change. Seeing these things through the mind of Hideaki Anno further accentuates the bitter pain and sweet joy of life. The story which Anno presents in His and Her Circumstances once again showcases his deep understanding of human feelings, but does it in a light-hearted and almost childish manner. At least, this is the case for the first six episodes which comprise volume 1 of Right Stuf's domestic release of the series.

Yukino Miyazawa has prided herself on being the model student since middle-school. She feeds on the praise of others as if it were the source of her life energy. And, she's good at what she does, scoring highest in her class in exams and never faltering in preserving her image. At least, until HE appeared. Her rival, Souichirou Arima, no sooner than his first appearance, stole the spotlight that was rightfully hers by getting a higher score on the high school entrance exam. In her place, he became the class representative, and she detests him for it. Yukino is now determined to take back what is rightfully hers, but life is never that simple. He knows her secret, that she puts on a show to feed on the praise of others but leads a completely different life with her family. Furthermore, he has a crush on her!

Throughout this first volume of the series, the story takes some wild turns and chaos ensues, much like the high school experience itself. Knowing the mind of Anno though, there has to be more to this story, and there is. So far, the story has centered around Souichiriou and Yukino. They're quite the handful to deal with, though, as is apparent right from the beginning. The motives of each, and their likenesses and differences, are a treat to experience. Each time they clash either in anger or in friendship, a little more is revealed about each, and we are reminded about how important and desirable understanding is. Though it may seem impossible to achieve at times, even a small gain can teach a valuable lesson. I am hopelessly enthralled with this story at its beginning.

Yukino Miyazawa. Always prim and proper, intelligent, and revered.	Souichirou Arima. The boy who must die.

One of the most important things in a work of art is atmosphere: the ability to draw the attention of others. Kare Kano achieves this primarily through dialogue, but is also accented by gorgeous visuals. The show doesn't make the mistake of going overboard and casting supermodels or bodybuilders (i.e. bishoujo and bishounen, to appease the otaku out there), but the main characters are good-looking and surprisingly easy to relate to. This is partly because their dress and hair colors are relatively normal. These are animated characters, of course, and as such posess unique features. As a male, I find Yukino's deep red eyes to be alluring. I'm sure that the females out there will find something similarly attractive about Souichirou's appearance.

To complement the attractive character designs, the show is put in motion beautifully. Characters are portrayed in chibi mode when something silly is happening (chibi = small and cute), and in full detail when the mood is more serious. As a result, there's never a moment when the show's expression deceives the viewer into thinking his or her response should be different. Due to the constant changes in tone, the viewer gets dragged on a wild rollercoaster of motion. Kare Kano couldn't be boring if it tried.

The only thing about the first volume which isn't outright exceptional is its music. The music does match the progression of the show pretty well, but does little to stand on its own. An exception is the opening theme, Tenshi no Yubikiri (An Angel's Promise). The song not only complements the show beautifully in the opening sequence, but also stands well on its own as an enjoyable piece of music.

The packaging and transfer for the show carry a mixture of pleasures and disappointments. Starting with the disappointment (since it's minor), there is nothing to decorate the inside of the DVD case. Hey, Right Stuf! We want cute pictures and factoids about characters. We want cultural notes explaining little nuances in the story, and song lyrics! A surface which is bare screams incompleteness. Of course, all of those things don't have to be there at once, but the effort is noticed, and it gives the purchase more value. Now, on to the good. The artbox that is available with the first volume does not disappoint. It's good-looking and captures the essense of the show pretty well. The outer packaging of the volume 1 DVD is also very nice, sporting a picture of Yukino and Souichirou on the front and a couple of entertaining sketches on the back.

The transfer has mostly good points. The quality of video and audio are superb, both being crisp and clear. The English track also has its good points. Veronica Taylor does a rather outstanding job in playing Yukino, using a manner befitting a high school student, and capturing the highs and lows of the character pretty well. Unfortunately, Arima's voice doesn't fit him as well in the dub as in the original Japanese track, making it difficult to choose the English track for viewing.

Extras on the first volume's DVD include character bios, storyboards, notes from the producer, notes from the translator, the producer's journal, and credits for the DVD. All of these extras are informative and interesting, giving the viewer a little taste of what goes into a localization.

In closing, suffice to say that this is a series I will follow closely, until the final volume is released. Kare Kano has a lot to offer to any audience, and, like most Gainax works, is a breath of fresh air to those who think they've seen it all.

Distributor: The Right Stuf, Inc.
Creator: Gainax
Released: 1998

Video Quality: A+
Audio Quality: A
Presentation: A-
Content: A+
Overall: A+