Bae in Review: Aiji Yanagi, Collar x Malice

[not_krys]

Here he is, the ultimate bae of Collar x Malice, the true canon route.

I’m happy to say that I frickin’ loved this route. Like, a lot.

The calm, cool and collected Yanagi.

He’s definitely my favorite of the game, no questions asked.
As always, more in depth review below the cut, because spoilers. Major, major spoilers. I will stick more to the aspects of Yanagi himself rather than specific game spoilers, as that will be gone in more depth in the full game review, thus many more spoilers there.
For previous Baes in Review, here’s the full list.

Let’s go, guys. Last warning before the cut. This will be spoiler territory for the rest of game. This is your final spoiler warning.

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As everyone else in the game like to revel in the humor of, I jokingly referred to Yanagi as a father type figure. He was a quieter figure, one of the older ones of the group (Shiraishi is actually the eldest but his behavior would suggest otherwise), he always had this parental nature about him, even if he wasn’t aware of it at times. He was usually the one to break up fights between Enomoto and Sasazuka, clean up after them and had many more domestic skills than pretty much all of the previous routes, combined. He was also kind to Ichika as well, lending an listening ear, a shoulder to cry on, and hot cocoa should she need it, even in previous routes. I’m glad that none of this really changed once we were on his route. He was still that listening ear and comforting shoulder that he was throughout the rest of game, and much, much more. So, so much more.

We learn this route that he and Ichika had a past together, something that would shape Yanagi for the rest of his life.

Growing up, he was punk kid. He smoked cigarettes, he had piercings, he talked a big game and could back up those words with his fists. Probably rode a motorcycle and carried a metal bat around at one point. The very definition of a juvenile delinquent if there was one.

 

Yet, he couldn’t ignore a scared little girl that had been kidnapped.

That scared little girl?

Ichika Hoshino.

And one moment of brief eye contact was enough to spur teen rebel Yanagi to chase after Ichika and her captor. Because rebel delinquent teen Yanagi he may have been, he wasn’t letting the kidnapping of little girls slide past his radar.

Except this is where things start to go south.

Yanagi loses his hot teenage temper and beats the guy within an inch of his life. Literally. He does not hold back, like at all. Even for a little girl that he didn’t even know at the time.

Yet, that wasn’t the most scarring part of the ordeal. Nope.

As one can expect, young Ichika is scared shitless by pretty much everything happening. She had been kidnapped, her kidnapper was hurting her and the boy that was saving her, and now the boy is on a murderous rampage.

I’m pretty sure anyone would be scared shitless in that kind of situation, no matter their age.

When Yanagi had come back to his senses, he tried to comfort the terrified and likely traumatized for life Ichika, but, as one can expect, she’s horrified, which brings Yanagi back to the reality of the situation. He had beat a man nearly to death and likely caused a little girl a life time trauma.

He didn’t take it well.

He only felt worse when he was barely punished for his heinous act, being let off because he was a minor and having it ruled as self defense.
This really didn’t settle well with him.

He decided to turn his delinquent life around, joining a sort of rehab program for juvies that gave him police training and ultimately becoming a police officer as a result.

The incident had inspired him to do better with his life, to protect all life no matter what; however, he grew incredibly distant from his past relationships, like his family and old friends. Even in current relationships, he still kept everyone at arm’s length, offering his support and good graces to those who needed it, but he could never get close for fear of hurting someone again.

While I am not the biggest fan of the ‘I love you but I must push you away from me to protect you because you’re that precious to me,’ bull, I didn’t mind it as much here with Yanagi. We got over that quickly and I’m glad for that. Ichika actually helped Yanagi regain his confidence and willingness to open up to others, which was a huge step in the right direction for Yanagi and it wasn’t the focus of the entire route.

While Yanagi did have his fumbles with Ichika, he came back stronger each and every time, which is something that I loved about him. It’s such a stark change from the start of the route where he could barely grasp the thought of why Ichika wanting to partner with him of all people, to the very end where we are against a wall and kissing him.

Trust me, pretty much all of the end of his route was a pleasant surprise that I’m still reeling from the adorableness of it all. He was a positive force for those around him, he had maturity and life experience that helped to mold him into the person he is now.

I also love how Ichika is also the one to take charge of this relationship before Yanagi has come back into his own confidence. She will confidently confess her feelings to him, tell him exactly how she likes to be held, and tell him exactly what she thinks of his smoking habits (you won't see me as much if you're smoking all the time, lol).

Overall, Yanagi has become probably one of my favorite baes in terms of otome baes. He starts off as calm, standoffish, maybe a little cold, sad, maybe lonely, but once all of his barriers have come down? He’s willing to punch Enomoto in the face for interrupting a tender moment between him and his fiance.

Pros and Cons

PRO: He will protect you from guys that are creepy and could potentially do bad things to you.
CON: This can also extend to regular guys that might just be teasing you. Especially if he can perceive this guy as competition.

PRO: He’s domestic as hell. Good at cooking, cleaning, and handling children.
CON: The kids he normally deals with are all in their mid to late 20s. Also, he prefers to cook for you than you for him. This might be frustrating to those that like cooking and cleaning. Plus, he’s probably better than you at it.

PRO: He’s loyal as hell to his loved ones and friends, especially once his walls start coming down.
CON: He’s ready and willing to punch his friends when they do something incredibly stupid. Has done so twice this route and threatened it a third time once they come back from prison.

PRO: He has some good calming hobbies, like fishing and doing puzzles.
CON: He will get pissed at you for finishing the puzzle for him, especially if you do it behind his back. He was looking forward to finishing that puzzle, damn it!

PRO:He’s willing to change himself if his partner finds a fixable flaw within him, like cutting down on his smoking.
CON: He’ll still smoke those cigarettes and drink like a sailor, especially if he’s stressed out. Sorry, babe.

PRO: He learns from his mistakes and does whatever he can to correct his past wrongs, including visiting the guy he beat nearly to death.
CON: He nearly beat a man to death and caused trauma to an eight year old.

Bae Rating: 9/10

If anyone has any special requests for baes for me to review, my profile page has the most up-to-date list of games and routes I’ve completed thus far.

Have a good day, lovelies, and remember to touch all the butts.