Okitsura (沖縄で好きになった子が方言すぎてツラすぎる) is a 12 episode romantic comedy based on the manga of the same name by Sora Egumi. The anime originally aired during the Winter of 2025.
Nakamura Teruaki has just moved to Okinawa from Tokyo for high school and he is in for a hell of a culture shock. A girl in his class, Kyan Hina, catches his eye and he does whatever he can to spend time with her...however she's so ingrained in the heritage of the island that he has a hard time understanding what she says. As she befriends him and excitedly teaches him about all of the things she loves about Okinawa he has to rely on translation help from another girl in class, Hina's childhood friend Higa Kana. Kana is using her translation services as an excuse to be close to Teru, as she has feelings for him. And thus begins the fish out of water romantic triangle!
As Teru becomes more accustomed to Okinawa, Hina and Kana try to help him integrate. Teaching him unique customs and attitudes. He struggles with the dialect and colloquialisms, leading to some opportune misunderstanding and an unexpected cultural exchange. Both girls have a lot of pride in their heritage and culture, but Hina is glued to her peoples customs and proudly carries it into the future. This endears her to Teru as the months pass by, always eager to learn about Okinawa at every chance. Hina on the other hand hovers on the edge, unsure about how to approach Teru, recognizing that he has feelings for her best friend. Hina...well she acts like an over excited air head, but under neath shes incredibly observant and intelligent. How does she feel about Teru and does she recognize Hina's feelings?
I came out of the first episode a little negative, wondering how much of the series was thinly veiled bigotry towards the residents of Okinawa. As I continued that fear began to recede and I started to recognize the love that was being displayed in the way the show presented their culture. For a quick history lesson, Okinawa was not officially part of Japan until the 17th century after an invasion and forced cession. Prior to that it was the independent Ryukyu kingdom, its self born out of various competing smaller power bases. The people of the Ryukyu islands have maintained a distinctly unique identity, removed from that cultural hegemony of mainland Japan.
My white guilt aside, this ended up being a really cute and fun series that told three stories. Foremost, it worked to teach the viewer about unique things in the Okinawan culture, from misconceptions, local customs and colloquialisms. The second story is the simmering love triangle between Teru, Hina and Kana. Teru is 100% oblivious to everything. Hina plays her cards super close to her chest and Kana...is very easy to read. The third and I feel more enjoyable story is the friendship between Hina and Kana that has existed since they were very little. Over the course of the series you see long segmented flashbacks of their time together, thick as thieves, as their bond grows even stronger. These flashbacks are used as ways to showcase their personalities and friendship in the present, reinforcing their undying loyalty to each other. The series ends in a position where the love triangle question doesn't get answered. It also seems to try to set its self up for a second season with a brief introduction of an unknown girl that could do more in the story. I actually want to see more, or at the least start reading the manga. What started out as something uncomfortable and dubious turned into something that was really sweet and innocent while showcasing a love and admiration for the uniqueness that is Okinawan heritage. There is a really heart warming segment in the final episode where an elderly man talks about the efforts to endure directly following the occupation after the second world war. I am really happy I kept going with this show and would love to see it get a season two.
The series is available on Crunchyroll.
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