What’s Wrong with My Dress Up Darling? An Honest Analysis of Episodes 1–3

We carefully examine only the first three episodes of this anime and uncover numerous disturbing issues during this short journey of searching for answers to What’s Wrong with My Dress Up Darling.

First, we carefully explore several important Reddit discussions and blogs. While some fans appreciate the anime’s art style, many others heavily criticize its sexual objectification. In particular, many point out the serious issue that the camera frequently focuses on Marin’s chest, buttocks, and underwear, almost as if she were being presented as a sex doll. Likewise, many viewers argue that the anime relies excessively on fanservice to drive its plot.

We also examine another reasonable criticism regarding how Marin Kitagawa’s personality often appears inconsistent. To elaborate, some argue that Marin is portrayed as completely unaware of her physical attractiveness in certain scenes, while in many others she behaves with extreme boldness and confidence. Above all, we will raise several issues that we believe many viewers have overlooked.

Forget About the Story’s Romantic Progression | The Protagonists’ Connection Makes No Sense from the Beginning

Primarily, the interaction between the protagonists is vital for any story to progress and for the audience to understand both the male and female lead characters. A well-written story carefully develops every stage of their relationship: how they first meet, how occasional encounters gradually become regular interactions, and how those interactions eventually lead to romantic feelings.

Otherwise, no matter how hard people try, they will struggle to become emotionally attached to the characters. More importantly, the audience will never truly understand the purpose of the story.

Interestingly, one common criticism is that the romantic progression between Gojo and Marin is too slow.

However, the relationship between these two protagonists fails to make sense from the very beginning.

Remember what I said earlier:

The interaction between protagonists is vital for any story to progress.

Unfortunately, My Dress-Up Darling throws this fundamental principle into the garbage.

Let’s Understand Why This Anime Has No Connection to Common Sense

Surprisingly, My Dress-Up Darling almost completely ignores meaningful character interaction.

At the beginning, Gojo and Marin are classmates, yet they are complete strangers to one another. Logically, the anime first needed to build a convincing scenario that gradually brought these two protagonists together as friends, because the entire story stands upon this foundation.

If such a crucial part is treated carelessly, the audience will struggle to emotionally connect with the plot. Not only that, a story with such a major foundational gap fails to create any real desire to see the relationship between the protagonists progress. As a result, viewers become less invested in questions like whether, how, or when the hero and heroine will eventually end up together.

Ironically, My Dress-Up Darling introduces Marin Kitagawa and Wakana Gojo’s first meeting in a completely illogical and unrealistic manner.

It feels as though the anime simply stitched this entire sequence together and threw it at the audience, saying,

“There you go. That’s their first meeting.”

The First Meeting of Marin Kitagawa and Wakana Gojo: An Illogical, Unexpected, and Unrealistic Scenario

Notice what happens.

Wakana Gojo is sitting quietly at his desk, lost in his usual negative self-talk. He thinks to himself that everyone else is talking with their friends while he alone is the odd one out.

Meanwhile, Marin is chatting with her friends about how she rejected a clingy guy.

Then, out of nowhere, Marin somehow gets caught by the spinning classroom fan, which suddenly throws her toward Gojo’s desk with tremendous force.

Even though Gojo is sitting several meters away from Marin, her head somehow collides directly with his desk.

Surprisingly, Marin immediately gets back on her feet as if nothing had happened.

Concerned, her friends ask if she is alright, and she simply smiles and replies that she is fine.

The Moment My Dress-Up Darling Turns Marin into a Pokémon

Consider this carefully.

Up to this point, the anime never explains how or why Marin, who was standing far away while talking to her friends, suddenly starts flying toward Gojo.

Secondly, how does Marin suddenly fall?

More importantly, she does not even fall naturally. Instead of falling downward, she somehow launches upward like a spring.

Even more absurdly, after flying upward in a completely random direction, her head somehow crashes into Gojo’s desk.

Enough is enough.

Is Marin Chikorita or Bulbasaur?

Even after receiving what should have been a severe impact, she simply disappears into a Poké Ball and instantly returns completely unharmed.

Clearly, considering the speed, height, distance, and angle from which Marin was launched before her head struck Gojo’s desk, the impact should have been devastating.

Realistically, her skull could have fractured. She could have suffered severe brain trauma, died from internal bleeding, or at the very least fallen into a coma or experienced serious memory loss.

This is Not the End | The Ridicule Still Goes On

Marin’s Strange Concern for a Complete Stranger

Notably, Marin apologizes to Gojo after falling onto his desk. She then notices a small cut on his arm.

According to the anime’s logic, Marin immediately grabs Gojo’s arm, examines the injury, and asks with concern how he got hurt.

Here is the question:

At this point in the story, Marin knows absolutely nothing about Wakana Gojo. So isn’t it strange that a girl who has just slammed herself into a wooden desk becomes more concerned about a tiny cut on the arm of a complete stranger?

What exactly is the anime trying to portray Marin Kitagawa as?

Some kind of magical fairy sent specifically for Gojo?

Think about it.

Marin is neither his mother nor the school nurse.

Is Marin Kitagawa Gojo’s father?

Who exactly is she?

This is how absurd the beginning of the story is.

Fanservice Appears Where the Story Needs an Explanation

Above all, the destruction does not end here.

Gojo’s eyes suddenly fall on Marin’s chest, and out of embarrassment, he quickly pulls his arm back, insisting that he is fine.

Indeed, this is one of those moments where the writers seem to realize that they have left several plot holes and nonsensical scenes unresolved. So instead of addressing those issues, they simply inject fanservice to distract the audience.

Why Do Marin and Gojo Suddenly Become Impressed With Each Other?

Finally, from this point onward, I honestly do not understand why Marin suddenly becomes impressed by Gojo, an extremely awkward boy suffering from obvious social anxiety.

Likewise, Gojo also becomes impressed by Marin.

Why?

There is no believable reason.

Yet somehow, the story simply expects the audience to accept that it happens.

The Story Frequently Prioritizes Fantasy Construction Over Believable Human Interaction

Marin’s Sudden Trust in Gojo Makes Little Sense

Unfortunately, if you think the anime only ruined Marin and Gojo’s first interaction and then got the story back on track, you’re sadly mistaken.

In fact, this is exactly where the real disaster begins.

Within just the first three episodes, My Dress-Up Darling starts a spectacular journey toward self-destruction.

Now, let’s move forward together and examine some more remarkable parts of the story.

My Dress-Up Darling does not stop there.

Instead, right at the beginning of Episode 2, Marin meets Gojo again in the activity room. She sees him sewing clothes for Hina Dolls and becomes extremely happy and impressed by his skill, passion, and, more accurately, his obsession with Hina Dolls.

Marin praises Gojo extensively for his craftsmanship.

Naturally, Gojo becomes very happy because, perhaps for the first time, someone has genuinely appreciated his work.

Marin then asks Gojo whether he knows how to sew clothes.

The moment he answers yes, she does something that perhaps no sensible audience member would ever expect.

Shockingly, Marin starts taking off her clothes right in front of Gojo.

As if that were not enough, Gojo is portrayed as such an unbelievable fool that he neither stops Marin nor even has the basic sense to turn his face away.

By the time Marin has already removed part of her clothing, she suddenly remembers that Gojo has been staring at her the entire time.

Only then does she casually tell him to turn around.

Seriously, how absurd can a story become?

Marin’s Extreme Comfort Comes Far Too Early

This is only Gojo and Marin’s third meeting.

They know virtually nothing about each other.

To put it more clearly, Marin has absolutely no idea whether Gojo is even a good person.

In reality, many people appear isolated, harmless, and innocent on the surface, yet later turn out to be serial killers, kidnappers, or predators.

So the question is:

Marin does not know this person at all.

Yet she is not only interacting with him completely alone, but is also taking off her clothes directly in front of him.

How incredibly foolish.

How exactly did this level of trust develop?

Why does Marin already feel so safe and comfortable around Wakana Gojo?

What If Gojo Were Actually Dangerous?

For all she knows, Gojo could have been a blackmailer.

Furthermore, he could even have been part of a criminal network involved in human trafficking or illegal organ trafficking.

The truth is, these are not strange imaginary possibilities.

The internet is filled with real cases like these from all over the world.

Can Fictional Behavior Influence Real-Life Perception?

In fact, we previously shared numerous studies and research papers in our Is Goku a Bad Husband article explaining how media shapes audience perception.

We also discussed how entertainment is not merely fiction.

Many consumers unconsciously apply behaviors they repeatedly observe in entertainment to their real lives.

Now think about it.

The audience of this anime includes children, teenagers, and adults.

For example, imagine a young teenage girl, or even a child, who sees Marin Kitagawa’s behavior as cool, bold, and confident.

Inspired by her, she interacts with an unfamiliar boy in exactly the same way.

Can anyone guarantee that her experience will remain just as safe?

The Anime’s Sexualized Camera Work Creates Another Problem

Of course not.

And remember, I am discussing only one interaction, a few behaviors, and a single event.

This anime contains many more dangerous scenarios just like this.

It is particularly noteworthy that many people have criticized the anime for repeatedly using camera angles that focus on Marin Kitagawa’s buttocks, chest, underwear, and several other highly inappropriate shots.

The reason, in my opinion, is simple.

The anime barely has enough story to carry itself.

As a result, it frequently sells Marin herself to the audience almost like a sex doll.

What Message Does This Send to the Audience?

More importantly, what message does this send, especially to its male audience?

That it is acceptable to capture girls, even teenage girls, from such angles.

Whether she is your classmate, a college student, or even your neighbor, the anime normalizes viewing and photographing girls in this manner.

Likewise, the anime also sends another disturbing message to both boys and girls.

Whether someone is the same gender or the opposite gender, you can place complete trust in a total stranger without giving it much thought.

Shockingly, according to My Dress-Up Darling, none of this will have any consequences.

According to the story, the protagonists show almost no hesitation whatsoever.

Gojo’s Behavior Contradicts His Established Personality

Ironically, the same anime portrays Gojo as an extremely isolated teenager who clearly suffers from severe social anxiety.

Yet the moment Marin asks him for something, he suddenly transforms into Superman.

He immediately becomes deeply involved in all of Marin’s activities.

Interestingly, Gojo can barely hold a conversation with another boy.

Yet somehow, he comfortably interacts with Marin while she is wearing a bikini.

Not only that, he even takes her body measurements.

Even more remarkably, he sits extremely close to her on the same couch while they are completely alone and even watches 18+ reference videos with her.

Furthermore, there is no gradual process of trust-building whatsoever.

Some critics claim that the relationship progression is slow.

No.

The anime completely throws relationship progression out the window and places both protagonists inside a car moving at the speed of a train.

Even worse, that train is racing down a road with no clear direction.

No one knows when the next obstacle will appear or when everything will suddenly crash into pieces.

Conclusion

So, What’s Wrong with My Dress Up Darling? The first three episodes already reveal several serious problems in how the series handles romance, fanservice, sexualization, trust, and the relationship between Marin and Gojo. What makes these issues particularly noticeable is that the anime repeatedly presents questionable situations through comedy, romance, and attractive visuals, making them appear far more harmless and natural than they actually are. The result is a relationship that often feels artificially accelerated rather than genuinely developed through believable human interaction. These observations raise important questions about what the series is actually normalizing beneath its charming surface. If you want to explore more overlooked problems, character writing, and hidden meanings in anime, AnimeDecode goes beyond the surface to examine the details many viewers miss.