TSUCHIYA KEI (episode #28)

BD: Tortured boy who falls in love with Miki. Schemes to break up Miki and Yuu, and almost succeeds. Hates Suzu - why we don't know, but it could be because she has accepted the demands generated by her talent and he has been unable to cope with those made upon him. Gifted pianist who hates playing because of trauma inflicted by his piano teacher. Miki re-kindles his love of music.
As times goes by, he matures, VERY rapidly, growing from a self-centered wretch who feels sorry for himself and seems to want everyone else to be miserable also, to someone you'd like very much to have as a friend.

KD: I would describe him as a brooding teenager. While watching him, it's easy to see how lonely and miserable he is and how he "might" need someone like Miki in his life. I liked him, but that doesn't condone a certain stunt he pulled in MB #35. Kei-kun is actually a year younger than Miki.

The addition of Kei to the cast is one that somehow changed the flavor of the show from humorous and cute, to situations that were more sophisticated, in addition to humorous and cute.

By the way, there's an absolutely exquisite piano piece played by him in the second part of the Christmas episode (MB #41). It's one he especially wrote and performed for Miki.

Later: Kei disappears from the series after #44 to pull his life back together and "become the kind of man that Miki would want". He plans to come back for her (even though Miki is completely devoted to Yuu). In #56, he does just that...shows up at her door as a new man and confesses his feelings for Miki, tells her that he wants her to be his girlfriend, and tells her he's going to tell Yuu. Where is he? To his utter pleasure, he finds that Yuu is away in America.

By the way, Kei is a master of well aimed comments. 7/3/95 Kei ends up by the middle 60's (episodes) to be one of the kindest, romantic male characters in the show.

6/30/98 KD additional comment: Over the last couple of years, it’s been found that most men, in particular, can’t stand this character. While he tends to be one of my favorites...once more mature and this sentiment is shared by a certain portion of other women as well. This ended up causing me to notice that the things that men disliked about the younger, less mature Kei was exactly the same things that women disliked about the less mature Arimi. Most men ADORE Arimi for the same reasons that women liked Kei. Very interesting!

KITAHARA ANJU (episode #36)

BD: In love with Yuu since childhood. She has a serious heart condition. As of about episode 42, she has gone to America. An accomplished violinist.
A very sweet girl who is self-effacing.

KD: Anju, is an extremely soft-spoken character (done by the voice actress that does Kasumi in Ranma, Beldandy from Oh, My Goddess). She is gentle and compassionate. So, even though she is in love with Yuu, she really doesn't want to do anything to hurt the relationship between Yuu and Miki. All she asks is to be a second to Miki in Yuu's life. (CHOKE!) Her compassion changes her mind after she actually sees the playful Yuu and Miki out buying Christmas presents (MB #40).

6/30/98 While working on remastering and re-timing the series, there was an occasion to listen to her conversation (episode 59) with Bill about thinking she could be second to Miki-san but when she thought she was going to die, she couldn’t bear it, so she decided to tell Yuu that she loved him. Later she noticed that Yuu was completely focused on Miki-san. (This would imply that she felt that since she was dying, she wanted to be with Yuu at any cost and not second fiddle anymore).

Right afterwards as the subber, I needed to go back to episode 39 where this had actually happened to continue working there. And since timing is a constant affair of listening to the voices over and over and over, etc. I heard her lie to Miki about just letting her spend just one day (tomorrow) with Yuu….after that, she wouldn’t call him or see him again (that was the day she planned on telling Yuu how she felt about him). She used SUCH fervent honesty, looking Miki straight in the eyes…that it gave me the chills! I have never seen anyone lie with such LOVING PASSION! Scary even for me!

Since then I have seen many commentaries on how sweet and perfect the character is. And she is indeed sweet and self-sacrificing; but very few people realized that her honesty on that one occasion wasn’t as honest as her voice implied. Even I took a LONG time to catch it. She is just as human as the rest. (^_^)

SAKUMA SUZU (episode #26)

BD: 13 year old, nationally famous model. Falls for Yuu when they meet while filming a commercial. Schemes, almost successfully, to break up Miki and Yuu.
Later on becomes reconciled to their relationship.

KD: Suzu readily admits that she likes things that are "pretty". And to her, Yuu is "pretty", Miki isn't. She can't understand the combination of Yuu and Miki. Later, Suzu finds out what the charm of Miki is. See episode #43.

TAKASE YAYOI (episode #42)

BD: In this episode ALL the kids are at a temple. Rokutanda prays for a girlfriend 100 times as good as Arimi and shortly runs into this girl. She is sweet and soft-spoken. The exact opposite of Rokutanda. She immediately has a calming effect on him. She reappears in episode #48 where she is jilted by the man she is interested in and meets Rokutanda again. I expect a romance to blossom in time. (With this show, how could it not?)

KD: Yayoi-chan seems to be totally blind, so far, to any faults that Rokutanda might have. She comes across as a very sweet character at this point (4/95)
She first shows up in the New Years episode (MB #42), then not again until the Valentine’s episode (MB #48) after being turned down by a potential love interest. (Have to admit, even Rokutanda seemed charming, for a change, in the Valentine’s episode.) Yayoi's next appearance is in MB #58 during Kei-kun’s concert...as Rokutanda's date.

Other episodes she shows up in:
In episode #67, she and Rokutanda double date with Ginta and Arimi.
In #68, she and Rokutanda follow a plan set by Miki to get Ginta and Arimi back together.
In #71, she and Rokutanda go on the camping trip with the rest of the gang.
In #76, she attends and helps with Meiko's wedding reception.

MICHAEL GRANT (episode #50)

BD: At first Michael comes across as just another stereotypical, loud mouthed (in a nice way), over-exuberant American. As his character develops, he can be seen to be a scheming low-life who is almost without a shred of decency. Not only that, he has quite a temper - though he rarely lets anyone else see it. One of the characters that you will LOVE to hate.

KD: An American living in Japan sent me a preview of Michael by sending me a tape of just MB #50 and 51. The volume (Vol. 13 - MB #49-52) that included these two episodes hadn't even finished running in Japan yet!! He described him as being an instant idol at Toryo; a gorgeous blond haired, blue eyed boy. I was afraid from that description, that he would be depicted as a arrogant, womanizing American type. But no.

He is, so far, very well done...in my opinion. He can speak Japanese fluently because of ninja/samurai movies. He doesn't hesitate to role play these type of characters (from the Japanese movies he's seen). He's wide-eyed at all the things he considers wonderful in Japan. He loves to be in the kitchen, he's friendly and demonstrative in his affections, even his mannerisms are very American. A FUN character so far! Hope he stays that
way.

Later additional comments: He didn't. By MB episode #52, his mannerisms can only be construed as pesky...BEYOND BELIEF!

Even later: In MB episode #58, Michael is less hyper and is actually thinking a lot! He's crazy about Miki, and jealous of Kei to the point that he hates him and is willing to punch it out with the famous young pianist if necessary. He's torn by his own love, his feeling that Kei has an inside track to Miki (his music), and by the fact that he knows that Miki is madly devoted to her boyfriend, Yuu. But when a call comes in from Michael's brother, who tells him that Yuu has a girlfriend in New York (he doesn't...it just looks that way to Brian), Michael loses it. As far as I can tell (since this episode hasn't been translated yet - 6/1/95), Michael can't bear knowing that Miki's strong love for Yuu is being betrayed. That, combined with his own feelings for her and his hatred of Kei, causes him to barge into her bedroom and grab her up and kiss her very hard and with a lot of passion.

7/28/95 More and more the show is depicting Michael as still too much of a kid to interest Miki. To her, he's a little brother-type...no amount of tuxedos he puts on or how many dozen red roses he buys her will change the fact that he's quite a child.

10/17/95 In the last episode, Miki comments that Michael is acting more like an adult now. The time frame would be after Miki and Yuu's High School graduation.

BD: Host of Lunch Time News, the school news program. Pries into everything, and every time we see him, he embarrasses Miki. In episode #19, we finally see that he has a good side.

KD: Furutachi-kun will broadcast ANYTHING for a good story. It's gotten him into trouble with Miki...enough so, that she clobbered him on the head with a book. After that, in a later episode, I noticed he used the VERY respectful Koishikawa-SAMA when referring to her. (Lunchtime News broadcast, episode #19)

Pictured above: Chigusa, Mari, Keiko (top left), Furutachi (top right)

BD: Vice-principal of the high school. Stereotypical nasty teacher. Makes the wicked witch of the west look like one of the good guys.

KD: Nothing to add. Agreed 100%!

BD: Pig-tailed classmate of Miki's. Seen in cameos in a number of episodes.

KD: Chigusa, is also a member of the tennis club where Miki is a key figure.

BD: Like Chigusa and Keiko, a friend of Miki's and Meiko's who is seen briefly in a number of episodes.

KD: Mari, Chigusa, and Keiko, (though it's never - so far - been said directly in the show), seem to be obvious gossips. If viewers watch carefully you will either hear or see them gossiping periodically. Other times you can see the main character trying not to say "anything" in front of them. Also I might mention that there's a darling script in episode 63 where the 3 side kicks are together in a cute little scene with Miki.

BD: Another friend of Miki's and Meiko's. Also seen in several episodes. (So far, I'm not sure which one is Mari and which one is Keiko. I don't think that their names are ever mentioned in the show itself, just the credits.)

KD: Their names are mentioned in the show. Keiko is the one that ran up to Meiko on her first official date with Miwa...let's see...was that episode #37? Not sure. Anyway, it was Keiko that told her she had seen Na-chan. In episode #51, Michael comes into Miki's classroom to ask her for an English dictionary. Mari was the one accused of hogging Michael’s attention.

JINNY GOLDING

BD: A blonde knockout who lives in the dorm where Yuu is staying in New York. Brian has a thing for her and is quite jealous of her interest in Yuu. She acts just like Arimi did toward Ginta when she was trying to make
Miki jealous, but is tougher and tells bigger lies to Miki, thus causing bigger reactions from her. She appears not to be a very nice person, but after a few episodes it seems more that she is a very lonely girl who is fairly desperate for attention. She's not lonely enough to go after just anyone though.

KD: Jinny is after Yuu fully knowing that he's very much in love with a girl in Japan named Miki. This doesn't seem to be a problem for her at all. Different attitude from Arimi in my opinion...but a similar desire.
Jinny has a whole different set of morals than the kids in Japan - particularly referring to her opinion that "just kissing" doesn't mean that Miki's his girlfriend...if you get the drift.
Just so you know, It's difficult to tell from the pronunciation used for Jinny's name in the show that her name is not actually Jeannie . But the pamphlet that goes with the MB CD - The Etude Of Dawn - tells us for sure what the writers intended her name to be. It definitely shows her name to be Jinny. One could presume the seiyuu's problem with the delivery of the name is that in Japan "i" is pronounced as a LONG "e".

6/30/98 Another controversial character with the fans. She’s felt not to deserve a life by some and felt to be misunderstood and needing some help by others.

BD: Michael's big brother. A superb basketball player. Has a fairly short temper. Has a number of girls interested in him, but he has eyes only for Jinny. (Which doesn't help matters when he sees her kissing Yuu!)

KD: Brian is a tall fellow guy with somewhat of an arrogant jock-type attitude...so far. (I've seen up to MB #54 as of this writing.) In Japanese anime, personalities can develop and grow just like in real life. Sometimes, what you think you a character is like in the beginning, is NOT what they're like once you get to know them better.

10/17/95 It's made very clear early on by Doris that Brian is actually a nice person. It's just that he goes haywire about anything concerning Jinny. Once Yuu has proven himself to be COMPLETELY uninterested in Jinny, Brian’s softer side comes forward.

KD: Yuu's roommates. So far, he appears calm and soft spoken. He seems sensible and intelligent.

At first meeting, Yuu gets the impression that Bill is gay. He seems to like him anyway although the thought of Bill being "dangerous" (his way of saying homosexual) makes poor Yuu uncomfortable. I predict these two will become very close friends.

By episode #59, Yuu and Bill have become great friends. Even when they walk they look like a matched set. No, they don't look just alike...but there's a certain "something". They're both soft-spoken, intelligent, and have the same build and height.

BD: Appears to be Jinny's best friend. Quiet girl who seems to be watching everything that is going on around her. No known romantic attachment - yet.

KD: We'll know more about Doris when our translations are complete. Doris isn't flashy like the blond, blue-eyed Jinny. (By the way, our cel buyer is foaming at the mouth waiting for cels of Jinny to be available.) For now, I get the distinct impression that Doris doesn't lack for brains nor for being practical. I think, but won't know for sure until our translations are completed, that she's attracted to Brian but doesn't feel that a relationship is even a possibility. So she doesn't think about pursuing the idea.

So far, Doris has helped Yuu out of some scrapes a couple of times...by protecting him from Brian. She doesn't have any fear of standing up to the big guy (Brian) that's for sure. Right now, I'm of the opinion that she secretly cares for the tall boy.

BD: Kijima's wife. Runs her own import store, selling high end, and one of a kind merchandise. Also a very nice person.

KD: Rei seems to be a very compassionate person. And so far, seems to tune herself into Miki's needs (6/1/95)

BD: Rei's brother. Works in the shop with her (possibly a partner). Apparently a very nice person. Takes an instant liking to Ryoko (and the feeling is obviously reciprocated). However she turns him down when he first asks her for a date - apparently because she isn't over Namura yet.

KD: (Written right after Akira first appeared in the series)Bruce and I sometimes jokingly refer to Akira as Elvis Presley because of his hair style. He's definitely more eye catching that Namura. He seems, so far, to be a nice, gentle spoken guy - we haven't seen much of him yet.