TV-Series
Description
Hiroshi Kido is a high school student and a key supporting character living on the Goto Islands, where he is the son of the village elder. He is a teenager of average height with dyed blonde hair, which is styled in a short, spiky cut typical for a boy his age. His eyes are brown, and his natural hair color is black. A running visual and thematic gag throughout the series is that his dyed hair, combined with a past period of mild rebellion, leads many people on the island to mistakenly label him a delinquent, much to his annoyance.
As a person, Hiroshi is defined by his long-standing struggle with feeling painfully average. During his junior high years, his grades were consistently mediocre, earning him nothing but threes on his report cards. This experience left him feeling depressed and frustrated, as he felt he was already trying his best but still could not excel. This frustration eventually led him into a brief phase of delinquency as a misguided attempt to stand out. Beneath this surface, however, he is a fundamentally responsible, patient, and caring individual. He often serves as the straight man to the island's many eccentric personalities, including the rambunctious children and his own unconventional mother. While he gets annoyed easily and is prone to teasing, he is also protective, as shown when he stands up to older bullies harassing the younger children on the island.
Hiroshi's primary motivation shifts dramatically over the course of the story. Initially, he is resigned to his mediocrity and lacks a clear direction for his future. This changes when he encounters Seishuu Handa, a professional calligrapher who has been sent to the island. Hiroshi discovers the immense effort and piles of discarded practice sheets that fill Handa’s workspace, realizing that the calligrapher's talent is the result of relentless hard work rather than innate genius. This revelation inspires Hiroshi to abandon his half-hearted approach to life. He decides to channel his energy into his passion for cooking, a skill at which he is genuinely talented. His primary goal becomes gaining admission to a culinary school on the mainland, and he begins studying intensely for his entrance exams.
In the story, Hiroshi's most consistent role is delivering homemade meals to Seishuu, who is incapable of cooking for himself. This daily task serves as the foundation for their growing friendship. His relationship with Seishuu Handa is central to his character arc. Where Hiroshi initially resented Handa as a burden, he grows to respect him deeply, seeing him as a role model for dedication. Handa, in turn, recognizes Hiroshi's potential and compliments his cooking, which directly inspires Hiroshi to pursue a culinary career. The relationship is one of mutual influence; while Handa inspires Hiroshi to work hard, Hiroshi's grounded nature and local knowledge often help anchor the more childish and impulsive calligrapher. Another significant, though one-sided, dynamic is with the fujoshi character Tamako, who constantly misinterprets Hiroshi and Handa's close friendship as a romantic "boys' love" scenario.
Hiroshi undergoes considerable development, transforming from a self-described average person with no ambition into a determined young man with a concrete dream. A pivotal symbolic moment in his journey occurs when he dyes his black hair back to its original color in preparation for his culinary school interviews. This act is both a practical concession to traditional Japanese professional expectations and a powerful rejection of his former rebellious, aimless identity. Upon dyeing his hair, the islanders begin calling him Kuroshi, a nickname combining the word for black with his own name, further cementing his changed persona. The formerly depressed student who had given up on himself evolves into someone who takes initiative, studies for his future, and finds a sense of self-fulfillment through his own effort.
Regarding notable abilities, Hiroshi is an excellent cook, a talent that becomes his chosen career path. He is also a skilled fisherman, a practical ability well-suited to his island upbringing. These skills, while not flashy, represent his practical nature and his journey toward finding value and excellence in everyday, tangible crafts.
As a person, Hiroshi is defined by his long-standing struggle with feeling painfully average. During his junior high years, his grades were consistently mediocre, earning him nothing but threes on his report cards. This experience left him feeling depressed and frustrated, as he felt he was already trying his best but still could not excel. This frustration eventually led him into a brief phase of delinquency as a misguided attempt to stand out. Beneath this surface, however, he is a fundamentally responsible, patient, and caring individual. He often serves as the straight man to the island's many eccentric personalities, including the rambunctious children and his own unconventional mother. While he gets annoyed easily and is prone to teasing, he is also protective, as shown when he stands up to older bullies harassing the younger children on the island.
Hiroshi's primary motivation shifts dramatically over the course of the story. Initially, he is resigned to his mediocrity and lacks a clear direction for his future. This changes when he encounters Seishuu Handa, a professional calligrapher who has been sent to the island. Hiroshi discovers the immense effort and piles of discarded practice sheets that fill Handa’s workspace, realizing that the calligrapher's talent is the result of relentless hard work rather than innate genius. This revelation inspires Hiroshi to abandon his half-hearted approach to life. He decides to channel his energy into his passion for cooking, a skill at which he is genuinely talented. His primary goal becomes gaining admission to a culinary school on the mainland, and he begins studying intensely for his entrance exams.
In the story, Hiroshi's most consistent role is delivering homemade meals to Seishuu, who is incapable of cooking for himself. This daily task serves as the foundation for their growing friendship. His relationship with Seishuu Handa is central to his character arc. Where Hiroshi initially resented Handa as a burden, he grows to respect him deeply, seeing him as a role model for dedication. Handa, in turn, recognizes Hiroshi's potential and compliments his cooking, which directly inspires Hiroshi to pursue a culinary career. The relationship is one of mutual influence; while Handa inspires Hiroshi to work hard, Hiroshi's grounded nature and local knowledge often help anchor the more childish and impulsive calligrapher. Another significant, though one-sided, dynamic is with the fujoshi character Tamako, who constantly misinterprets Hiroshi and Handa's close friendship as a romantic "boys' love" scenario.
Hiroshi undergoes considerable development, transforming from a self-described average person with no ambition into a determined young man with a concrete dream. A pivotal symbolic moment in his journey occurs when he dyes his black hair back to its original color in preparation for his culinary school interviews. This act is both a practical concession to traditional Japanese professional expectations and a powerful rejection of his former rebellious, aimless identity. Upon dyeing his hair, the islanders begin calling him Kuroshi, a nickname combining the word for black with his own name, further cementing his changed persona. The formerly depressed student who had given up on himself evolves into someone who takes initiative, studies for his future, and finds a sense of self-fulfillment through his own effort.
Regarding notable abilities, Hiroshi is an excellent cook, a talent that becomes his chosen career path. He is also a skilled fisherman, a practical ability well-suited to his island upbringing. These skills, while not flashy, represent his practical nature and his journey toward finding value and excellence in everyday, tangible crafts.