Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

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Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by WittyUsername » Sat Sep 01, 2018 2:32 pm

It might seem weird to ask this question now considering that it’s been well over a year since the character made her anime debut, but in light of how different Kale’s manga counterpart is from her anime self, I figured this was a question worth asking.

The manga has made it clear that Kale specifically views Caulifla as an older sister who she greatly respects, but the anime has been more ambiguous on the matter. While Kale’s anime self does refer to Caulifla as “sis”, her fits of jealousy and her tendency to blush in her presence had gotten to the point where many people, myself included, have been led to believe that Kale’s anime self harbors a crush on Caulifla. Was that intentional, though? At this point, I honestly can’t tell one way or the other. Japanese media in general seems really confusing when it comes to stuff like this.

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by RecolorSaiyan » Sat Sep 01, 2018 2:37 pm

WittyUsername wrote:It might seem weird to ask this question now considering that it’s been well over a year since the character made her anime debut, but in light of how different Kale’s manga counterpart is from her anime self, I figured this was a question worth asking.

The manga has made it clear that Kale specifically views Caulifla as an older sister who she greatly respects, but the anime has been more ambiguous on the matter. While Kale’s anime self does refer to Caulifla as “sis”, her fits of jealousy and her tendency to blush in her presence had gotten to the point where many people, myself included, have been led to believe that Kale’s anime self harbors a crush on Caulifla. Was that intentional, though? At this point, I honestly can’t tell one way or the other. Japanese media in general seems really confusing when it comes to stuff like this.
Yes. Toei Kale and Caulifla have romantic undertones to them

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by sintzu » Sat Sep 01, 2018 3:22 pm

I don't think so as not every relationship has to be a romantic one. I think it's just a big/little sister relationship but Kale seems to be overprotective and possibly jealous of anyone also getting close to her.
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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by Saikyo no Senshi » Sat Sep 01, 2018 4:01 pm

Yes! I'm actually glad the anime staff went that route instead of the boring stuff the manga did. Episode #114's climax pretty much made it clear for me that Kale has romantic feelings for Caulifla.

The annoying this they might never address it and will leave it as a subtext. Like in a "wink wink you know it, but we won't outright say it" way and that sucks. It gives some people a reason to bend over backwards to deny it. I hope whenever the anime comes back, they make it explicitly clear.
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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by Marlowe89 » Sat Sep 01, 2018 4:18 pm

I'll be honest: I never had the impression that there were any romantic undertones between Kale and Caulifla. I think someone more intimately familiar with all the subtle nuances of Japanese communication is better equipped to answer a question like this. Seems to me that it was portrayed as more of a sisterly relationship, but that's my take.

The subject of homosexuality in modern Japan (particularly Japanese media) is an interesting one, though, and I'd like to hear if someone more knowledgeable on this stuff has any thoughts to contribute.

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by Cetra » Sat Sep 01, 2018 5:26 pm

No, she's not and I don't know why so many people have this urge that this is a thing. Kale has an incredibly common "appreciation of a sibling-like character" thing going on in anime.
She almost certainly does, but in that annoying anime way you often get, especially with shows aimed at young people and ESPECIALLY especially with same-sex relationships, where it's nothing but a load of implication that will never get addressed or expanded on.

Because its not an actual thing. Dragon Ball addresses gay people when they are gay. Toei has no interest in that being a thing for those characters.
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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by Kataphrut » Sat Sep 01, 2018 5:41 pm

She almost certainly does, but in that annoying anime way you often get, especially with shows aimed at young people and ESPECIALLY especially with same-sex relationships, where it's nothing but a load of implication that will never get addressed or expanded on.

It's shipping bait, plain and simple. The upside to it is that as long as they can work that angle, it means Caulifla and Kale are less likely to suffer the usual DB woman fate of turning into baby-makers.
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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by Simere » Sat Sep 01, 2018 6:15 pm

Regardless of whether they are or not, the thing to take away is what you saw from Kale are the same things you'd frequently see if you watched/read actual yuri.

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by CTAkuma » Sat Sep 01, 2018 6:40 pm

I don't understand this obsession with shipping and thinking friends are couples for having cute dialogue. They have a sisterly relationship that is platonic in nature, nothing romantic to imply there.

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by Dragono » Sat Sep 01, 2018 7:09 pm

Toei does magical girl anime, they have that yuri undertone stuff all the time.

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by Alruneia » Sat Sep 01, 2018 7:18 pm

No, not really. There may be a bit of yuribait scattered around, but honestly, this is more the shipping part of the fandom blowing things out of proportion than anything.
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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by Omniboy » Sat Sep 01, 2018 7:50 pm

The status of Kale's admiration of Caulifla seems like one of those things that is just left up in the air for the viewer decide on what her actual feelings are towards her. It's not wrong to see it as romantic, and it's not wrong to have the opposite view. For me she does seem to have an actual crush.

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by JulieYBM » Sat Sep 01, 2018 8:05 pm

I definitely feel like the staff were going for that but not quite allowed to really be on the nose with it. It's a shame. I'd love to see a one cour series about their relationship fully blooming into romance.
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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by Jackalope89 » Sat Sep 01, 2018 9:17 pm

Kale on Cualifla? Probably borderline. Its a trope you see in certain anime where a girl is so popular, boys and girls both admire her. Kind of like a beloved mascot of sorts.

But Caulifla, she probably sees Kale as something more like a sister to look after and what not.

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by MrTennek » Sat Sep 01, 2018 11:42 pm

:roll: No. Believe it or not, but there's this thing called "platonic love", that doesn't involve sexual attraction. Not that people nowadays seem to be even capable of acknowledging that.

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by Whis » Sun Sep 02, 2018 7:32 am

I think it'd be really awkward to be honest.

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by Lord Beerus » Sun Sep 02, 2018 11:16 am

It's heavily implied that Kale in the anime does have some kind of emotional attachment towards Caulifla that is beyond platonic. But it's just left at subtext and never really explored.

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by TheMikado » Sun Sep 02, 2018 11:41 am

I think the ambiguity is a bit annoying and confusing for casual viewers not used to the modern subtext and undertones of today’s anime trends.

At the very least it’s supposed to be ambiguous and are most obvious attraction by a character attempting to hid her feelings. This is one of my most hated tropes of modern anime as it’s overused, incredibly shallow, and adds nothing to the characters or story because, for the sake of keeping it indefinitely ambiguous it’s never explored, expounded upon, or have any real plot consequences.

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by supersaiyanZero » Sun Sep 02, 2018 4:22 pm

It's a cheap ploy to appeal to a certain demographic and a pathetic attempt at making bland characters more interesting. While the undertones are there, there is nothing of substance worth mentioning.

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Re: Is Toei’s Kale supposed to have a crush on Caulifla?

Post by WittyUsername » Sun Sep 02, 2018 4:45 pm

supersaiyanZero wrote:It's a cheap ploy to appeal to a certain demographic and a pathetic attempt at making bland characters more interesting. While the undertones are there, there is nothing of substance worth mentioning.
Do the people responsible for Japanese entertainment even care about appealing to the LGBT community? The country’s politics are complicated in general, but they seem to be pretty firmly on the Conservative side of things.

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