nbspFew anime go as long between seasons as this one. In the time between season 2 and season 3 the landscape of anime romances has changed a lotpartly due to the influences of this series. The manga came to an end and a lot of the tropes revitalized in this series would showup in other series. I think the big impact is the way male targeted romance series got better over time due to the legacy of this show. Shounen amp seinen romances like Insomniacs After School Call of the Night and possibly the most interesting example for meThe Dangers in My Heart are just some of the series that owe at least a partial debt to this series. And we havent even talked about other shoujo romance series. As much as I could talk about the legacy of Kimi ni Todoke lets get to season 3 itself.nbspWhile the hard work of becoming a couple was resolved in season 2 this season was Shouta and Sawako trying to discover what that means. While they come to terms with that by the end of the season you could argue that the real focus was the deepening ties and relationship reevaluation between Chizuru and Ryuu. We already knew about Ryuus feelings but now Chizuru was made to starkly and painfully reflect over her relationship with him and its evolution over the years. This dynamic is the nearhighlight of the season. And then we get to Ayane. IfnbspGimai Seikatsu thinks that they have animes saddest gyaru Ayane here was trying to give her a runforhermoney. Her ongoing issues with her selfesteem was given muchneeded help by season twos ensemble darkhorse turned male hero of this seasonnbspKento Miura who was the only person capable of getting through to Ayane well...almost the only person. As Shouta was in his feelings for most of the season Kento steppedup as the only sane male character in the show. Shouta was really out of it in this season as he seemed to not understand how to cope with just being the emotional support for Sawako and nearly destroyed their relationship out the gate before he gets some muchneeded wakeup calls from some very unexpected places. This group went on shakyground this season but all came out stronger than before.nbspGetting back almost all of the original voice actors was a miracle and it really put me back into the series. The series music was good and always matched the mood of the show. Having the staff from the first two season work with modern equipment really makes a difference and I was always impressed that the composition of the series did not lose the aesthetic of the first two seasons. They couldve gone for a more contemporary look given they had Netflix money to play with but one always appreciates keeping the original mangas vision. I also noticed that because each episode was an hour the story lines could be told in intersecting ways that we normally dont get in your usual thirty minute episode.Allinall Kimi ni Todoke uses its simple to the point but sincere storytelling to remind everyone why it is still the goldstandard of shoujo romance in the 21st century. Where other series have done too little or too much it gets the recipe perfect. I hope they adapt the whole manga and the sequel but until then I am happy with this.