Shugo Chara- Why Ikuto and Amu Make Sense

When I first watched anime, I didn't know what it was. It was manga, particularly the bulk serial collections of Shonen Jump and Shojo Beat that later introduced me to anime, and I fell in love hard. Especially with magical girl anime since I grew up watching Winx Club and W.I.T.C.H.

Remember the good old days where you could find the collections in walmart? I haven't been out in a while so I don't know if they even still sell them.

My favorite animes all share one thing in common, they either have a nice balance of slice of life, romance, or action(magical girl) and romance.

1. Shugo Chara

Ft ship that gives me life: Amu and Ikuto

Shugo Chara is a relatable story about a cool pink-haired anime schoolgirl who is seen as a "cool and spicy" badass(which she is) by her peers(she also likes visual kei clothes which is gothic/punk clothing too, and I remember loving her because most female protagonists are always cutesy) but she is actually a very shy and sweet girl. She wants to get close to others and show her true self but she is also scared of disappointing other people. Similarly, I could relate because I feel people think I'm smart and innocent but I'm actually an airhead, I'd rather be considered smart than let them know.

She makes a wish on a star to give her the courage to show her true self. That star grants her wish and she wakes up with three easter eggs in her bed, that hatch into her "guardian characters" which can also be interpreted as Amu has many things she wants to be. Or a multi-talented girl who has incredible potential.

Ran- The honest, athletic guardian.

She's an athletic guardian chara but her appearance is a cute cheerleader that represents Amu's desire, to be honest, athletic, and confident.

Miki- The cool and fashionable guardian

An artistic tomboy chara that represents Amu's desire to be cool, artistic, disobedient and level-headed.

Su-The Nurturing guardian

A housewife chara that represents Amu's desire to be sweet, nurturing, and "domestic"(more girly)- as in skilled at doing household chores and female skills like cooking, sewing, cleaning etc.

But why are the charas called "guardian characters?" Well, they guard against the X eggs and X characters, the evil versions of guardian characters. Amu can transform into them to fight. Blah blah blah. You can watch the anime or read the manga to know more.

Amu has many love interests in Shugo Chara but there are only two Amu actually has feelings for(Although in the anime it doesn't show when Amu begins to fall for Ikuto). Both are incredible guys that radiate enough chemistry to make you flip flop over who is the best for her. There's the princely and kind Tadase and the Cool and mysterious Ikuto. But as much as I love Tadase... in the end...the couple that gave me the most inspiration is Amu x Ikuto.

First off not only do they have similar fashion styles, their personalities also complement each other, they are both cool types. I feel Amu's true essence of being a cool girl would change were she to fall for Tadase, who is symbolic of the "first crush"/ "good guy"/ "prince" in the long term it's not a picture I see. She's lucky he fell for her in the end though, I feel that it's a relationship that could only last when she's young.

Yes. Amu was mistaken to be cool and spicy by her peers. But... were they wrong? No. Amu is a cool girl she likes visual kei fashion for crying out loud, she will stand out for her fashion no matter what. Also when her boundaries are tested by Ikuto, she responds violently and rudely which is pretty spicy to me.

But that is not all there is to her, she has many different sides to her, Amu is an onion, that's why she's such a gem. That's why I feel like if she were to be with Tadase her cool and sassy sides would never see the light of day.

Yes. Tadase's guardian chara is extremely arrogant and longs for world domination, it's a running gag in the show for the other charas to ignore him but let's not forget the fact he exists means the fact that Tadase desires to be as confident, cool and arrogant like a King. I'm not sure how much he will adopt the traits as he ages, he promised to be with Amu forever but I'm not sure if their paths will allow them to go down the same road or if Amu will give some part of herself up.

Then there's Ikuto who longs to be free like a stray cat. Not to mention he possesses the dumpty key which he stole from Tadase and Amu possesses the humpty lock... so I dunno if the show is hinting that it's Ikuto and Amu who will be end game but I personally feel Ikuto and Amu are free spirits who can grow together. I can totally see Amu and Tadase dating from middle school to high school but then Ikuto swooping over to steal her once she comes of age. Also, it's important to remember that Amu wished she could be a bit disobedient. So... I dunno, Amu x Ikuto just gives me more life than Amu x Tadase.

Every time Amu and Ikuto are in a shot together it's just a chemical reaction between Amu's spicy-sweet combo and Ikuto being a stray cat/troll that fills you with laughter or uwus. Even if they aren't doing anything bad you can sense the cuteness and tension between the two. But most importantly it feels... real, right?

I already know what some of you may be thinking.

"But Ikuto is waaaay older! That's wrong!" (I think he's at least 5 years older than Amu)

Yes. (It doesn't help that my parents were 20 something years apart, as much as I find it gross I made peace with it for my own sanity so maybe I'm not as affected by it but trust me I understand the discomfort) but not only does he never cross the boundary he is comfortable with hanging out with her, and is perfectly conscious of their age gap, he doesn't like her because she's young, he likes her because she's Amu. He even tells her to "Hurry up and grow faster." In his last scene he clearly states that he can't be with her for most of her life(he went out to search the world for his Dad which is probably why he stopped making an appearance in the anime), but no matter the distance once she becomes an adult he will come back for her. Basically a promise to marry her.

This ladies and gentlemen is how you write an older male love interest. He knows his limits and respects the laws of society, more importantly it shows that he has his own dreams, goals and will take care of those priorities first. You can't hate a responsible man! You just can't!

I didn't expect to write this much so if you got this far, thank you and I'm sorry.