TV-Series
Description
Kaede Igarashi is a student at Ousai Academy, beginning as a second-year and subsequently advancing to her third year. She holds the position of head of the Disciplinary Committee, a role that reflects her serious and principled nature. Her dedication to maintaining order is not merely a school duty but a core part of her personality, and she often scolds students who violate the school's moral code, even outside of school hours. Despite her stern demeanor, which commonly manifests as a strict expression due to her responsibilities, her face tends to soften considerably when she is in the company of people she knows well.
Kaede has a very distinctive appearance characterized by long, straight light brown hair that is typically styled into two braids reaching down her back, and dark brown eyes. Although her exact height can be inconsistent, she is generally depicted as being about a head shorter than her male classmate Takatoshi Tsuda.
One of Kaede's most prominent and defining traits is her severe androphobia, or an intense fear of men. This condition originated from a comedic past incident; while she was practicing the Japanese word for male, someone asked if she was sexually frustrated, which triggered the phobia. Consequently, she also developed a strong dislike for mushrooms due to their shape resembling male genitalia. Her symptoms are significant, causing her to reflexively distance herself from men, stutter or shake during conversations with them, and even faint upon making physical contact with a male. Crucially, this reaction only occurs if she is consciously aware of the person's gender; if she does not realize she is interacting with a male, her symptoms do not manifest.
Within the student council, Kaede has distinct relationships with each member. She respects President Shino Amakusa for her talent and reliability but disapproves of Shino's perverted personality, so she generally keeps a formal distance and addresses her by title. Similarly, she considers Aria Shichijou a partial role model, though she often finds herself censuring Aria for making obscene observations or for forgetting to wear underwear. In contrast, she considers Suzu Hagimura to be the most reliable and easiest member to talk to, largely because Suzu is neither perverted nor male. Kaede also frequently clashes with Ranko Hata from the newspaper club, as Hata's morally questionable tactics to get scoops often put them at odds. Hata enjoys playing pranks on the serious Kaede, such as pretending a cross-dressing girl was a boy or claiming boys were staring at her. Kaede can get her own back on occasion, but their relationship remains largely antagonistic.
Her most complex and evolving relationship is with Takatoshi Tsuda, the only male student with whom she interacts regularly. Their initial meeting was heavily hampered by her androphobia; she could not even bear to show herself when he opened a door for her. Over time, however, she began to warm up to him. Takatoshi becomes the sole male character she can physically tolerate. She has been shown to hold his hand without hesitation when she thought it was bleeding, and on another occasion, she unconsciously placed her hand on his stomach to demonstrate proper breathing technique during a karaoke session. This unique level of comfort suggests she may hold a mild crush on him, and she relies on him, along with Suzu, to help keep the perversions of Shino and Aria under control.
Kaede's development throughout the story centers on her gradual but noticeable adaptation to her phobia, specifically in her interactions with Tsuda. Capable of holding brief conversations and making physical contact with him without fainting, her improvement is gradual but clear. She also serves a key role as a straight man to the student council's antics, often reacting with shock or outrage to the constant stream of sexual jokes, though she can occasionally find herself pulled into the Boke, or funny man, role as well. Her notable abilities include a powerful sense of justice and a diligent commitment to enforcing rules, which makes her an effective and formidable head of the Disciplinary Committee.
Kaede has a very distinctive appearance characterized by long, straight light brown hair that is typically styled into two braids reaching down her back, and dark brown eyes. Although her exact height can be inconsistent, she is generally depicted as being about a head shorter than her male classmate Takatoshi Tsuda.
One of Kaede's most prominent and defining traits is her severe androphobia, or an intense fear of men. This condition originated from a comedic past incident; while she was practicing the Japanese word for male, someone asked if she was sexually frustrated, which triggered the phobia. Consequently, she also developed a strong dislike for mushrooms due to their shape resembling male genitalia. Her symptoms are significant, causing her to reflexively distance herself from men, stutter or shake during conversations with them, and even faint upon making physical contact with a male. Crucially, this reaction only occurs if she is consciously aware of the person's gender; if she does not realize she is interacting with a male, her symptoms do not manifest.
Within the student council, Kaede has distinct relationships with each member. She respects President Shino Amakusa for her talent and reliability but disapproves of Shino's perverted personality, so she generally keeps a formal distance and addresses her by title. Similarly, she considers Aria Shichijou a partial role model, though she often finds herself censuring Aria for making obscene observations or for forgetting to wear underwear. In contrast, she considers Suzu Hagimura to be the most reliable and easiest member to talk to, largely because Suzu is neither perverted nor male. Kaede also frequently clashes with Ranko Hata from the newspaper club, as Hata's morally questionable tactics to get scoops often put them at odds. Hata enjoys playing pranks on the serious Kaede, such as pretending a cross-dressing girl was a boy or claiming boys were staring at her. Kaede can get her own back on occasion, but their relationship remains largely antagonistic.
Her most complex and evolving relationship is with Takatoshi Tsuda, the only male student with whom she interacts regularly. Their initial meeting was heavily hampered by her androphobia; she could not even bear to show herself when he opened a door for her. Over time, however, she began to warm up to him. Takatoshi becomes the sole male character she can physically tolerate. She has been shown to hold his hand without hesitation when she thought it was bleeding, and on another occasion, she unconsciously placed her hand on his stomach to demonstrate proper breathing technique during a karaoke session. This unique level of comfort suggests she may hold a mild crush on him, and she relies on him, along with Suzu, to help keep the perversions of Shino and Aria under control.
Kaede's development throughout the story centers on her gradual but noticeable adaptation to her phobia, specifically in her interactions with Tsuda. Capable of holding brief conversations and making physical contact with him without fainting, her improvement is gradual but clear. She also serves a key role as a straight man to the student council's antics, often reacting with shock or outrage to the constant stream of sexual jokes, though she can occasionally find herself pulled into the Boke, or funny man, role as well. Her notable abilities include a powerful sense of justice and a diligent commitment to enforcing rules, which makes her an effective and formidable head of the Disciplinary Committee.