Kare Kano (カレカノ,
Kare Kano?), or
His and Her Circumstances, or
Kareshi Kanojo no Jijō (彼氏彼女の事情,
Kareshi Kanojo no Jijō?), is a 21 volume
manga series by
Masami Tsuda, and a 26 episode TV
anime series directed by
Hideaki Anno of
Gainax. The
English anime, distributed by
Right Stuf International, is titled
His and Her Circumstances (a direct translation of the Japanese title) and the English manga, published by
TOKYOPOP, is titled
Kare Kano, a popular abbreviation of the Japanese title. The series is licensed by
Enoki Films USA under the title
Tales at North Hills High; however, Right Stuf changed the title to
His and Her Circumstances.
The main character is Yukino Miyazawa, a
Japanese high school freshman who is the envy of her classmates because of her good grades and immaculate appearance. However, this is just a charade she maintains to win praise — at home and in private, she is spoiled, stubborn, and a
slob, and studies relentlessly instead of spending time with her sisters. Her position is threatened by Soichiro Arima, a handsome young man who also gets top grades. Yukino considers his very existence to be a challenge to her class leadership positions and to the praise on which she thrives, and so she vows to destroy him. But after some misunderstandings, they see past each other's facades and fall in love instead. The series follows their relationship as they are tested by school, family problems, and friends.
Masami Tsuda usually does short stories, and did not intend the manga to go as far as it has. Despite this, both Masami and her fans have enjoyed the expansion of the story.
The anime was notable in being the first anime
GAINAX did that was not based on its own
in-house manga. As is to be expected by an anime directed by
Hideaki Anno, the style is vivid, original, and at times unpredictable. For example, the animation style of the characters changes frequently to reflect their mood. In one episode, paper cut-outs replace the usual animation. At the end of each episode, the "next episode" preview is a live-action segment of two of the voice actors reading the script in the recording studio. Several episodes contain lengthy
recap sequences to sum up the plotline of previous episodes. Due to a dispute with Tsuda, who reportedly wanted the anime to be more traditional teen romance and less comedy, Anno left GAINAX roughly halfway through the completion of this anime series.
