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In all honesty, I sort've hated it...I tried to get my self interested in her as a character after finishing both Emi and Hanako's story lines.

But because I don't want to spoil it for anyone, I'd like to see some other peoples thoughts, maybe I just missed something huge. But this is how I feel :

The storyline its self made no sense to me. Hiaso arrives at the school, and is pestered by these two girls to join the Student Council, eventually he gives in and joins, whether It was because of him wanting Misha to shut up, or him actually wanting to spend more time with Shizune, I don't really know, nor can I relate. I feel like in this plot line Hiaso forms into a much...douchey-er character. Going to the extent to learning sign language just so he can communicate with this witch of a controlling, and manipulative ego-maniac.

Through out the whole story, I felt almost bored and didn't even see the point of reading on. The only interesting things about Shizune's story was her father, and Kenji's appearances throughout it. Perhaps it is just personal dislike, but...


In my eyes

Misha was a much more diverse and interesting character, she deserved a story of her own.
Shizune turned out to be an ego-maniac who wanted to be the best at everything, which is a total turn-off, to -most- people. Who really likes one-upers?
Shizune was no where near as 'affectionate' to even call Hiaso her boyfriend, nor was Hiaso affectionate at all. If anything they seemed like butt-buddies who had to deal with a lot of student council work.

Ugh, I sort've had to vent. But, Is anyone else extreamly upset by the end of both of Shizune's paths? I felt almost happier when Hiaso left her on the side of the steps on my second play through from the point I saved where I had to choose between comforting Misha. I just feel like the story its self had no real bulk to it, and it just involved some manipulative deaf chick who always got what she wanted :\

This is my first post on the forums here, and I don't want to look standoffish, but..I can't possibly imagine how anyone could really -like- Shizune or Hiaso as characters in this branch. Any thoughts? >.<

Shizune's storyline is possibly the most disliked, so no, you're not alone.

There's a thread covering this very topic here:
http://ks.renai.us/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=4788

Knock Yourself out.

Read into it more. The route is probably the hardest to 'get' next to RIn's, which might explain why so many people give up on enjoying it. It's also one of the less feely routes, so it tends to wrongfoot those expecting Hanako/Lilly Round 2.

This thread (and the one posted above) may give you something to think about:

http://ks.renai.us/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=5251

There's also scattered bits of discussion on these forums and the KS subreddit about Shizune's route, and they're worth reading IMO. In my view, it's also the path that's best improved by good fanfiction (check out Weekend at Hisao's).

In order to really confirm your feelings on the matter, you must first compartmentalise Shizune from her storyline. If you hate her as a character and hate her path, then there's nothing you can do. Her path is probably disliked for not being a tale of constant romance between you and her, or saving a broken girl from her indelible pain; rather, it's a slice-of-life romp through the trails and tribulations of a high school's student counsel with the occasional sudden sex and teen drama.

As for Shizune as a character, I thought she was... fantastic? She grew competitive as a result of becoming aware that the abilities of those around her had impressed her, inspiring her to want to challenge and best them to vindicate her own existence, and could only feel truly alive when combating a worthy adversary. How can there be anyone among you who can't empathise with that? It's akin to some of us seeing 4LS's completed work and becoming inspired to make a visual novel of our own on the spot, even though we might be completely ignorant of just what it is we would be getting ourselves into.

What stuck me right away as odd was that Shizune was very intelligent, yet she claimed to have no plans for her future. Not very student counsel president-like. Now I realise that becoming enveloped in attempting to defeat everyone else around you would have that effect; what else can you see before you but your next victory?

I'm not sure really.

Looking back at it, I feel like the storyline is to...anti-climactic. You are certainly right about it being based more so around

"it's a slice-of-life romp through the trails and tribulations of a high school's student counsel with the occasional sudden sex and teen drama."

I suppose it just didn't give a good taste after finishing Emi and Hanako's storyline. Regardless, thank you for the input everyone.

Regarding the 'Good End' of Shizune's route.
Just look at the last CG and think of this:
@42sec.

I almost fell out of my chair laughing. Almost.

Shizune's storyline is the best in subtleties.
There's a lot of points, romance, hints, and 'feel' moments that were buried deep within the text. Not many can actually find it, mind you, and not everyone did I believe. It's like Rin's, but a lot more subtle and a lot less confusing.


Unlike most of the other arcs, Shizune's storyline is a haven for over-analyzers (like me). Sometimes reading it twice will get you the idea of what was going on behind the scenes--remember, Shizune is the dominant one in the arc and most decisions are made by her and not by Hisao; the only decision he has to make is when Shizune is not around. You've seen how Hisao's decision affects the other characters in other arcs, now let's see if you can feel the same being put in their shoes while someone else call the shots.

but that's my 2cents

Heh. All I gotta say is...
OK. In all seriousness, I think it's just the somewhat non-romantic ending that got you. It really needs an epilogue to bring the story back full circle.

I've posted this other places, but it's so good I'll attach it for you too. It's a fan made epilogue that really closes the story out nicely. I didn't write it, but I like it so much I keep it handy just for the Shizune dislike threads. It's a .docx file, so you'll need Word 2007 or higher to read it. (I also have a plain text version if you want.) Enjoy!

The color of Shizune's name is a little off. BUT, I laughed. I think that was the major fault of me not enjoying it. It felt more like the storyline was based -just- around Shizune and not much else. Hiaso's personality even changed drastically to accommodate Shizune's story compared to the other plot lines.

He was easier to annoy, and didn't seem all that nice to anyone besides Shizune and Misha.

Regardless, I'm a bit of an over-analyzer my self, and I guess Shizune just slipped between the cracks for me to really find any interest in her. I can't stand people like her in real life. Then again, I'm very passive and submissive about most things, I don't like getting all rilled up and competitive over nothing. -shrug-

Also.

http://i1.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/ori ... 05/40b.gif

Might tickle your humorous!

Huh. I always thought that Hisao develops the most as a character in Shizune's path. Clearly, YMMV.

To the OP: Read Weekend At Hisao's, to have Shizune and Hisao's relationship without constant WAHAHA interference:
http://ks.renai.us/viewtopic.php?f=52&t=5361

Or read the Shizune's epilogue link in ^ signature... :p

It takes place after some years, and does a good job giving closure to those who want it.

Shizune's route probably has the most intricacies to it out of any of the others I've finished (which is to say all of them except Rin's). It's definitely focused on her character more than anything else, but I would agree that Misha is way more awesome and deserved her own story, QQ NO MISHA ROUTE QQ, etc.

When it comes down to it, Shizune's path just doesn't have the "feels" that the others do. Doesn't necessarily mean that it's bad storytelling, it's just not as emotional. Which isn't to say it's not emotional, because it most certainly is at points ("I wasn't thinking that it would be better if Hicchan had never come to this school. I was thinking... wouldn't it be better if I just died?" - OH GOOD GOD NO)... just not as much as, say, Lilly or Hanako's.