𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝔸𝕟𝕚𝕞𝕖 ℂ𝕝𝕦𝕓-- a chatroom for anime fans--

First, I need to say that this is a really thoughtful show. People call this a 'yuri' and fetishize it but it's a lot more than that, actually, because the goal is most DEFINITELY not to queerbait, and it's definitely NOT targeted towards a straight male audience like what's expected of the genre. This is a show designed to start a conversation, and particularly to validate its LGBT audience, even more particularly people who are aromantic, demiromantic, sapphic, bisexual/romantic, and asexual. It's a very interesting piece of representation, since those are all orientations that get flak even in some LGBT spaces (though of course, I'm basing this off of my Very American knowledge of LGBT culture). 

One thing I noticed very early on is the writers are NOT trying to bullshit you. It places our LGBT cast in the midst of a world that is very heteronormative, and even homophobic. The interactions with Yuu and her older parents, and the way her sister sees her friendship with Nanami, especially the difference between these, is very telling that the writers are being honest about the world, without trying to make it depressing. The point of the story, of course, isn't homophobia. It's not a message to the world, 'Hey! Stop being homophobic!' (which ofc there wouldn't be anything wrong with that). It's a story made for the people who can relate to its characters.

Speaking of its characters. We've got a cast which can be considered diverse as far as anime goes, at least, when you look at the fact that we're dealing with the Less Represented Orientations. And I can say for certain it's been a joy following their stories. Each character has their own pretty distinct personality, without feeling exaggerated. None of them, at least imo, come across as annoying or even really like rivals or antagonists. They're all just people with their own experiences, feelings, and perspectives.

Ah, that's the word I was looking for, to perfectly sum up what I was feeling. Perspective. It really drives home the point that this was meant to represent, and for you to relate to. We even have TWO separate aromantic characters, not meant to act as foils for each other necessarily, but to advocate that their are multiple aromantic perspectives. To be specific, one character can't fall in love but really wants to, and the other has no interest in romance at all, at least not in being involved in it himself. 

Around halfway through the show, we started reaching a plot point I wasn't entirely comfortable with, and I worried that the message of the show was going to be perverted for the sake of audience's interest (I was wrong, but we'll get to that later). Without going into details and spoiling, I'll just say that the overlying theme here is fear of change, and by result, not wanting the people close to you to change. Obviously this is not something that teenagers in high school are magically going to have figured out, but it gave me the (misguided) foreshadowing that things were going to change, in a way that would undermine the character's already-established orientation. If you get to this point and feel the same sneaking suspicion, don't be afraid. The show is more respectful than that, I promise.

Now, while the 'romance' (if you can even call it that) is what takes up the most screentime, there actually is a lot more to unpack in the plot. The story delves pretty hard into Nanami's personal struggle, which is unrelated to the romance as far as I can tell. It's pretty interesting to follow! However, it doesn't really get a conclusion. This is a big point about the show that I'll bring up again in a bit, if you're still following at this point. lmao.

Now, let's talk about some aspects of this show's direction. There is so much symbolism at play here, guys. It exists in many, MANY scenes and dialogue choices, and don't even get me started on the OP and ED (which, btw, are great listens, just saying). The OP in particular contains the most stunning and artistic depictions of this symbolism. Unfortunately for me, I'm not smart enough to understand a lot of the flashier ones, because they're flowers, and I don't know jack about flower symbolism. But oh boy, there's a lot. And some of this bleeds into the actual episodes too, particularly with the "What's your favorite [hydrangea] color?" line that got repeated 3 times in one episode, all spoken by different characters attempting to understand one another. That line really screams 'THIS. IS. SYMBOLISM!' but I felt like I was missing out on the metaphor. Which FeelsBadMan because I look for that stuff in literally everything, like trying to solve a puzzle and not coming up with an answer.

But to add to that, flowers were not the only object used for symbolism. I noticed in particular coffee being used to represent one's romantic desire, and to look at the coffee meant to consider it, and to drink the coffee meant to indulge or perhaps just accept one's own desire. Though I could just be reading too far into it, which I will say is valid, but the evidence was there. The Evidence Was There.

Moving on.

Okay, now I think I want to talk about the ending. I won't spoil anything, but I will tell you what to expect, or rather, what NOT to expect. Remember that halfway point in the show? The foreshadowing? Have no fear, my dear, because the ending doesn't undermine any of the pre-established orientations of its characters. That, of course, means that if the audience was expecting any kind of Climactic Ending, they're not going to get one. I feel like that may be controversial to some people, because it feels disappointing. There were a lot of plot points that never really got wrapped up in a neat little bow, some not at all. It feels a bit incomplete in a way. 

However, I don't actually consider this a bad thing. Remember, the show's purpose is to represent and relate, not necessarily to tell a complete, thrilling story. The character's problems don't magically become resolved just because we're about to reach that episode 13 mark, no. This way, it's a bit more true to life. Our problems in life are ongoing. Our struggles with identity, with how we feel about other people, they don't just have a climactic end to it all. Those struggles are a journey, and that's precisely what this show is. A journey. The destination may not be all that exciting, but at least we were here, with this amazing cast, and we got to follow them for 13 episodes, and they were interesting. At least, that's how I see it. If this were another type of show, this type of ending would be a Sin and I would agree wholeheartedly if you were disappointed, cause I would be too. But imo, this cast doesn't really need a neat little bow.

(And no, I don't think it'll get a season 2. It didn't feel that way, as odd as that sounds)

So, I think that's enough off my chest for now. Tbh this sounds like a script for a youtube video lol. Damn I think I missed my calling.

Anyway, TL;DR - Bloom Into You is a great conversation about romantic attraction, a lack thereof, and other aspects of LGBT discovery. Not only that, but it's a pleasure to watch and you should definitely give it one.

_{there's still more I have to say about it btw, but I couldn't work it in}