Golden Time

Review Time! First year law student Banri Tada is lost in Tokyo, and while trying to find his way, runs into Mitsuo Yanagisawa, another fellow lost first year. They quickly hit it off, but soon a beautiful young woman, armed with a bouquet of flowers, arrives and both congratulates and assaults Mitsuo. This is Koko Kaga, Mitsuo’s childhood friend, who, holding Mitsuo to the promise he made when they were kids, plans to marry him. However, the more that Mitsuo rejects and ignores her over her obsessive, clingy ways, Banri starts spending time with her, and after intially rejecting his confession to her, Koko herself falls for Banri and the two start dating. Banri also meets several other friends at Law School, including the diminutive, film happy Chinami Oka, the reality frustrated Sato Takaya (known to his friends as “2D-kun”, as he is fed up with real girls), and Nana Hayashida or “Linda” as she is more well known, Banri and Koko’s Festival Club senior. But things begin to be difficult, when Banri’s past starts to return. Because a year before the show started, Banri suffered an accident in which he lost his memory, and as it turns out, him and Linda were far closer than he thought. And when his old memories threaten to wipe out his new ones, it will take everything he has and all the love that Koko can summon to keep them together. Golden Time is a hilarious and heartfelt show, one that is not afraid to deliver plenty of emotional moments. Banri himself is an interesting character study, especially in the term of his amnesia, as his discomfort about who he is, especially in relation to what people expect of him, feel very real. There are even moments when he has dissociative episodes, where he flashes back to before the accident, and can’t remember anything after, and in these moments, it is heartbreaking to watch. But Banri also shows a lot of drive and determination, even in the face of something that absolutely terrifies him, that you can’t help but pray he will be ok. Koko herself is also a great character, who starts out as overbearing, clingy, and obsessive, who often lashes out at others who she thinks is getting too close to her beloved, only to hate herself afterwards for acting this way. Throughout the show, Koko tries very hard to improve herself, and by the end she is a much better person, where her obsessive tendencies have been molded into passion and care for her love, and seeing her and Banri grow together is heartwarming, especially in the face of something as daunting as amnesia. There is plenty of comedy, not to worry, that balances out the emotions, especially when riotous Tea Club members start to party! This is a fantastic show, one that easily goes in my top 10, as it has great comedy, lovable characters, a fascinating look at amnesia and a beautiful romance! So check it out, I guarantee, if you give it a chance, you’ll be in for a Golden Time!