I thought since it was Ritsu Tainaka’s Birthday from K-on that I would do a short Building Character piece on her. I mean K-on is a legendary anime that is still pretty popular even today. Season 3 now please! Anyways I thought it would be nice to give the After School Tea Time’s crazy and quite adorable drummer some spotlight. After all they always hide her in the back, right!
I always found Ritsu to the life of the band. She chose to play the drums after seeing a video of The Who Drummer Keith Moon. This makes her music preference lean towards Rock n Roll more so than other genres. As a Rocker she was always putting out crazy amounts of energy and pushing all the girls to do better. This sometimes comes at a price however, when you gets on Mio’s nerves and she smacks her on the head. I’m pretty sure this is just how Mio shows love. She can certainly be a bit rambunctious at times, but she is usually quick to apologize when things have gone too far. I can certainly relate to her there, since I’ve been guilty of this myself.
Ritsu high energy and great enthusiasm is usually reserved for fun things. This means when it comes to studying and sometimes even practice she would be the first to vote to play instead. When push comes to shove however Ritsu can buckle down and put forth maximum effort towards any task. This includes getting into college or working towards the band’s ultimate goal of playing at Budōkan!
Some would describe Ritsu’s as a bit tomboyish. Her shirt is usually untucked with a button undone and her bangs threw back in a yellow headband exposing her well known forehead. This is not always the case though, she can be very girlish and cute when certain situations arise. The episode where she thought Mio wrote her the love letter is pure gold. I’ve always thought she was one of the prettiest gals in the band, I mean with her hair down she’s simply stunning!
Ritsu is that crazy friend that sometimes drives you up the wall, but in the end is the heart and soul of the group. She brings energy to any room she’s in, and she’s always pushing everyone to be better …once she’s fired up at least. She fills out the group’s dynamic nicely, as she is the good to Mio’s straight man personality. While I think most underrate her in the looks department I would always argue she is one of the prettiest gals in all of anime, and that is only a bonus to all the other greatness she has.
