Because two people in school uniforms can’t that bad.

Note: contains spoilers in happy bliss

It is old anime (circa 1993) so it was still a time when high school students just go to school unless they live in alternate universes. It’s not like nowadays when high schooler can do every single conceivable plot the studio can throw at them.

I Can Hear The Ocean finally gives me the definition of refreshing. It contains no gimmicks or flights of fancy, unlike the mini-donkey in Tokyo Marble Chocolate (which is still an excellent OVA). The animation is quality, just shows how far having a budget can go. The characters do not conform to any archetype so typical of most characters these days, making them so well-rounded. The story is straightforward, simple and is bordering on boring, but is well-paced that it stops it from becoming slow and uninteresting.

On the surface, I Can Hear The Ocean looks and sounds like a typical shoujo with it’s love triangle of two best friends and one girl. However, it’s actually more mature than the usual fare.

The movie is told from the point-of-view of Morisaki Yutaka, a rare stable guy. He’s intelligent enough to rank 92 in his entire class, but he doesn’t stand out any more than he has to. He has friends but doesn’t have his life revolving around them. Most importantly, he’s just a nice guy who wants to do the right thing but is not above thinking bad of someone who wants to borrow all his hard-earned money or offer a beer to a depressed girl who is crying in his hotel room. I like his character for the simple reason that he is well-rounded enough that is so rare in so many characters nowadays.

Morisaki’s relationship with the best friend Matsuna Taku is respectable. Their friendship is based on mutual respect that they don’t have stupid “Why you with my woman? Never mind, I don’t want to hear it. Our friendship is over”-based misunderstandings. Even if Matsuna did see Muto Rikako first, Morisaki’s feelings for Rikako didn’t change. He still saw her as the girl his best friend likes. He never had a conflict of interest and remained unaware of the feelings he has for Rikako until he becomes older and wiser. They have the kind of friendship where someone is explaining and the other one is listening. There is also punching. Even if it took time away from each other and going off to different cities away from their hometown for college before they patch things up.

They are poster children for “Bros before hoes.”

The only thing that left me a little unsatisfied is how much I didn’t like Rikako with her lying, aloofness and manipulation of Morisaki. And yet, I am almost forced to accept an ending where she and Morisaki end up together. It’s not that I disliked her personality that got to me, it is the lack of showing how much she changes after high school. As an after thought, people in the class reunion talk about how much Rikako changes to be a friendlier, more positive person, but sounds a lot like hearsay. It’s like the person who wrote the story is just telling to take his word for it and believe Rikako’s change because they’re running out of time to elaborate on it.

The ending is something that makes me squee with joy. It gives me the satisfaction that 5 Centimeters Per Second. Dear 5 Centimeters Per Second, the point of thinking you see someone you know is to take a double take. Just let the damn train pass, stupid woman!

Rikako did and Morisaki even ran to the other side of the station and look where that gets him. The way this movie ended leaves me with a satisfied taste in my mouth. This is one of those movies that doesn’t make me want more, I am just content with how it ended that I’m not left wondering what else could happen next.

And I think this is my ideal kind of ending. One where I am thinking about how good it is that I am not agonizing about what more can happen and what a more suitable ending would be.

]]> http://notcliche.com/idontrememberanything/?feed=rss2&p=2896 0 http://notcliche.com/idontrememberanything/?p=2878 http://notcliche.com/idontrememberanything/?p=2878#comments Tue, 22 Dec 2009 09:30:54 +0000 bianki http://notcliche.com/idontrememberanything/?p=2878

Grave of the Fireflies is one of those movies I can watch only once in this lifetime. This movie manages to dethrone Angela’s Ashes (not an anime)  as one of the most depressing movies I’ve ever seen.

Note: Will contain spoilers in a fit of raeg.

Before start with the raging, I think that the movie is excellently done. The pacing is good. I’m not an expert in animation, but I know good when I see it. The animation quality of this movie will simply put a lot of the newer stuff in a STFU shame. The BGM was good too.

I am not going to make some analysis or write about war like I’m some expert on it. I am living in a country that was occupied and oppressed by the Japanese during World War II, but boo, I wasn’t alive then. I can understand what it’s like but I will never know what it’s really like. One thing is true though, war sucks. For everyone. No matter what side. That’s my piece about the setting. I’m moving on to what I think of the story.

If I’m going to be asked why I even bother to pick up this movie so close to a holiday I enjoy a lot, there is a very simple answer: I didn’t know what it was about. I’ve heard the title from several people who love Ghibli and declare that this has to be watched. I knew that it’s a World War II movie not about soldiers. At the back of my mind, I figure that even if it’s bound to have their depressing moments, it is going to be a triumph of the human spirit kind of movies.

It is not.

I am not annoyed with the fact that it’s “one of those depressing movies” and life only turns out worse and worse for Seita and his sister Setsuko.

It is just really awful how it all ended. Not because Seita and Setsuko died. Setsuko’s death was really tragic because she’s a kid at the age where she doesn’t really understand what is really going on around her.

Seita, on the other hand, understands it very well and it is not like they were even deprived of anything.  It wasn’t like they were literally left in the streets with nothing more but the clothes on their backs. Compared to everyone else who lost their home, they’re not bad off. To quote a line from someone in their town at the first couple of scenes in the movie: “It’s not like I’m the only one who lost my house. We’re all on the same boat.”

At the end of the air raid that destroyed their home where their mother died, Seita and Setsuko have a stash that should have been enough to live on until they pick themselves back up again, an emerald? ring from their mother, some things that they were able to salvage like their mother’s kimono, and 7,000 yen.

The aunt they lived with is not some evil troll who is out to terrorize them in her home. It’s just very obvious that compared to the rest of the other characters in that home, Seita was a loafer. If the aunt is an oppressor, she would have attacked Setsuko for not working her share too, but she didn’t.

Yes, they are children, but there are several mentions that Seita is at an age to know what’s going on and to know what he can do about it. I’m not even going to condemn him for becoming an opportunistic thief during air raids. All he wanted to do is to be with his sister and he couldn’t even do that in the end.

Yes, the beginning of the movie, Seita says that he dies. However, while watching, I keep on waiting for that final moment when he would just go swallow his pride and be turned away before he dies in poverty, depression and in rags. He couldn’t even swallow his pride when his sister is having diarrhea just before she dies of malnutrition and hunger. And she is the reason he had for going on.

I have no doubt that Grave of the Fireflies is a good movie, but I prefer not to see it again. However, I think it something that people should watch at least once. Especially those who think that their life is shit. Scratch that first statement. I will probably watch it again when I’m at the pits of depression and I need to see someone else who has it worse off than me.

Now I’ll be off to watch something that will wash of this depressing thing from my mind.

Princess Tutu is probably the gayest title for a show ever. Even my gay friends think so. It’s not exactly the kind of title that demands respect and say SRS BSNS.

But in all seriousness, Princess Tutu is one of the most awesome anime of all time. It really demands and deserves your respect and it’s nothing but SRS BSNS all the way through.

I am always at the receiving end of anime recommendations from a lot of people and experience more hits than misses with the recommendations. Well, I finally find this show which is da shit. But from the title alone, it doesn’t sound like something that will appeal to most of them.

Now just how do you sell the anime with the most off-putting title in the world to a group of people with such diverse tastes in anime?? Then I think, “Wait, this show has mass appeal! It can work.” After one attempt to list them all down, this is what I came up with:

For decultards…

Princess Tutu fights off the enemy and draws out the missing piece of Mytho’s broken heart using dance and a little music. Let’s see your giant robotos do that!

Inner decultard responds:

video uploaded by SailorCallie

Oh.

Well, believe it or not, you need a little culture in your life. And not the de- kind.  If you’re not going to spend money at the ballet, watch this show.

Listening to a little Tchaikovsky is not going to kill you.

For people who enjoy omnipotent characters…

It’s about a duck who turns into a girl who turns into Princess Tutu, a Prince with no heart, a prima ballerina who is really the daughter of a raven but who really isn’t and a knight who fails so he just turns into a writer with omnipotent powers.

If the first three characters didn’t do it for you, the knight part should really catch your attention. L from Death Note has nothing on this guy. L can only make someone die. Fakir can make anyone do whatever he fucking wants.

For yaoi fodder fans…

Fakir is an over-possessive friend in an almost seme-like fashion.

Hell yeah, Fakir hates chicks who dares come near Mytho. He’ll try to kill them when they dance together just to get his point across.

For closet bestials…

Mytho the Prince has no emotions. When he finally gets some, he gets: frustration, sadness, loneliness, affection, curiosity, fear and love. If that doesn’t say endless fun, I don’t know what does. Oh, he also dates an anteater on the second episode.

I’m not even going to talk about what happens to Fakir in the end.

For lolicons…

We has lolis. Lots of them. And they’re in leotards and tights.

And they live in fear that their teacher might get one of them to marry him. Save the lolis!

For seiyuufags…

Mizuki Nana. (It doesn’t really have a ring to it when you say it like that. Nana Mizuki sounds better.) Need I say more?

Okay, Sakurai Takahiro.

For animal lovers…

Cats! Princess Tutu characters include a cat walking upright wanting to marry everyone. However, Neko-sensei dumped the first one who wants to marry him, the goat.

They also have dancing anteaters, chihuahuas, hippos, armadillos and iguanas.

For people who despise open-endings…

It’s one of the biggest mindfuck anime. Just when you think you had the story all figured out, they throw in a curve ball that makes you go “WTF!?” It’s not Sunrise so that curve ball actually comes from somewhere.

Read that? This show actually contains an actual ending. No freaking open endings, no stupid restart buttons. The show has a real ending.

Got that? That’s as far as I can go with this show in the state of mind I’m in. The point is, watch Princess Tutu. Do it for pride that there is no genre too gay for you unless it’s yuri and yaoi which are the gay genres. Most of all, do it because it’s a fricking awesome show.

Thanks to Xephfyre for being my guinea pig for my sales pitch. He is also one of the people who tirelessly make me watch good anime by making recommendations. Cake for you on AFA10 if you actually watch this show start to finish.

Sorry, usagijen, I know you already saw this show. Actually, I’ve seen this too two years ago but that didn’t count because no one in their right mind can properly watch an anime at 6:30 in the morning on TV. Unless you’re one of those morning people.

The winter season looks bleak.

A lot of them good look on paper, but I’m not too excited for any of them. I’ll check out Dance in the Vampire Bund, but only sure thing for me this season is Nodame Cantabile Finale. Durarara!! seems to be very popular with everyone because it was created by the same guy who created Baccano! Just because Baccano!’s reputed to be good doesn’t mean Durarara!! will be too. I still have my hopes on it though. Other than that, everything else seem to be nothing new.

With potentially only 120 minutes a week to devote to anime, including Cross Game and Fullmetal Alchemist, this seems like the perfect season to catch up and re-watch some old shows I dropped/missed. I’ve gotten so many recommendations that I want to get to them already. I already have several of them ready for viewing. I just need to finish all this Christmas nonsense over and done with. Hopefully, this will prove to be more fruitful than struggling to like a show even if I’m only half-heartedly interested in it.

Since it’s December, a lot of bloggers have been writing their 2009 posts and I’m at a loss. I automatically count myself out for being inactive majority of the year. A specific post made by digitalboy about his Forty Fandoms made me realize that I do not belong in any fandom. I’m not so into seiyuus. The farthest I go with music are anime OSTs. I don’t ship a studio. I follow a specific author’s work.

I am but a mere viewer who watches anime every season until the end and may not think of that show ever again. I’m not even inspired to learn the Japanese language.

Fandom Dilemma

I always think of myself as a shoujo romance fan. Candy Candy started it all. I like shoujo and I gravitate towards them. I know many people who love it like I do. Not counting slice-of-life, it’s the genre that’s closest to reality. Japanese reality where genre roles blah, blah. However, since it’s like that, I can pick on the story and the characters for being a certain way. Right now, my current shoujo anime obsession is Kimi ni Todoke. It’s a very nice, uncomplicated show and it’s a breath of fresh air compared to a lot of the other shows I’ve seen in recent history.

I’m 99% sure that after KnT ends, I will move on to the next anime and only think back at KnT with fondness as a nice show. The last time I went crazy over a series was for Toshokan Sensou. Anyway, some can say that there is the manga. However after an anime ends, I shelve the manga until it ends or until I have nothing else better to do. I’m just not manga reader. Unless it’s something I really, really love. Like xxx-HoLiC, which isn’t even shoujo.

There are no toys I can drool over. Not where I live anyway. I only have one figma and I bought it because I wanted a souvenir from a con I attended. I don’t even know if it counts as a figma because it’s one of those random box things. Anyway, the point is that no matter how much I fangirl a shoujo, after the anime or the manga ends, there is nothing left to fuel my fandom until it dies a slow, natural death. I’m not picking on KnT. It’s just the one shoujo I’m very into right now so I’m using it as an example.

There is no lasting epicness that will leave a lasting impression on me for the next 10 years. It’s like a flavor of the season and nothing else. Truly, the shoujo genre is lacking in staying power. Or maybe I’m growing out off love stories. When I was getting back into anime, I thought I would start watching some old stuff I’ve seen in the past in addition to some shows from this season. Watching back to things that fueled the passion for anime is sure to get me fired up to get back on track. However, I may think it’s incredible the first time I watch it, but when I re-watch it because I want a trip to nostalgia, the experience comes out weh. kthnxbye. Next!

The only true exception is Nodame Cantabile, which is truly awesome in my books. I can and will watch/read it over and over without getting tired of it – anime, manga, j-drama.

Reminiscent Fandom

My upbringing gives me a level of appreciation for the mecha genre. Something in my system automatically thinks that giant robots are made of sunshine and rainbows, i.e. awesomeness. I’ve always had mechaheads for friends, but I never re-developed my childhood fascination and true love for mecha until I watched Macross Frontier. Not even Geass did it for me. Otou-san’s post-analysis on how MF matches up to the rest of the franchise made me want to watch more and Ghostlightning’s convenient proximity help fan the flame. I guess, they’re the ones to blame because  they’re the only ones who tell me to watch it and say what I think about it. It’s not like they forced it on me, but they’re the ones who didn’t end their recommendations with “-but you may not really like it because it might not suit your taste.”

Random screenshot to serve as text wall breaker.

One of my resolutions for 2009 was to watch all the series in the Macross franchise. That didn’t happen. The farthest I’ve come for the year are Do You Remember Love? and halfway through Macross Zero, which is half-assed. So I think I should watch at least one more. So I picked up Macross 7 after re-watching Macross Frontier. Despite thinking that Basara and Fire Bomber are one-hit wonders with Planet Dance, it was one of the most entertaining shows I’ve seen this year. I’ll elaborate on a future post.

I find it strange that I enjoyed re-watching Frontier more than re-watching Lovely Complex, which I watched before MF. I was supposed to re-watch Bokura ga Ita since I need a break in between because I consider mecha as a genre I can only take in small doses, but I jumped right into Macross 7.

The experience of watching mecha makes me feel like a little kid. It has nothing to do with the character design or the hardware or even the storyline. It just makes me feel like a little girl where my most absurd fantasies are fulfilled – being the feet in combining robot games. I was told to be too tall to be the leg, which is traditionally held by the shortest member of the cast.

Because, absurdity is all what mecha anime is all about. The story can go as crazy as it wants, but I’m not going to complain. The concept of humanity-in-peril and how we can only be saved by pilot/s in transforming planes and a muscian/s is already something I accepted from the get-go. Doing that makes just sit back and enjoy the ride as opposed to getting something normal and raeg when it turns absurd.

“Deculture,” “Listen to my song,” “Nyan Nyan” and other choice phrases leave lasting impressions on my mind for as long as I don’t have Alzheimer’s. Seeing an epic scene is epic. I get excited when I see them again and again. In other words, even if the joke gets old, it never turns corny to me. Shows to prove that no one gets too old for the giant robotos.

I don’t think I will venture deeper to the dark side of Gunplas and model kits. Probably not. But it’s nice to know that there are other areas where I can expand my fandom if it develops further.

Future Viewing List

These are not robotos. It’s supposed to be a metaphor of something. I’m not sure. I just like Honey and Clover, okay?

My mecha watch and re-watch list is growing longer with more Macross, Gurren Lagann, and Oh noes! Gundam. My shoujo will come as it happens. I’m still waiting for my favorite shoujo pimp to come up with a recommendation. Am I switching my primary genre of interest? I’m not sure. Apples and oranges. I’m just going to satisfy myself with what I enjoy more at the moment.

My recent experience with mecha makes me think about shows that really sparks up my interest. I realize that my love for the shoujo romance genre has waned. I’m not objecting the fact that some great shoujo anime will remain great. And yes, I will continue to watch shoujo anime or any anime genre for that matter. Because I can. I just find irony at the fact that I feel like I’m growing out of love stories, but not with giant fighting robots.

All hail giant robotos.

It was a mistake to watch La Corda d’Oro ~Primo Passo after the best music anime in the world, Nodame Cantabile (shameless plug). I wash my hands. I’ve never heard of La Corda until after I saw Nodame. A fair comparison can never be made since La Corda exists in my world as a bishonen anime, not as a music one.

I don’t think a lot of people even watched this show for the music that much. Some of the selections were nice though. However, I’ve never even heard of a person watch this anime for it’s compelling story on a student’s journey into music appreciation. Or if they did, there is always the follow through of the bishonens. I’ve come to a point where if I hear Ave Maria again, I’ll tear my hair out.

Can’t Hino just choose a guy and have an ending with him? Preferably with Tsukimori. I mean it’s nice that she found purpose for playing her magic violin even after it broke, but can’t she just have it all (preferably with Tsukimori) since she’s a Mary Sue anyway?

Hino and Tsukimori didn’t even have a gratuitous scene together. Then they threw in another bishonen in the mix using a transfer student flag.

Okay, fine. Whatever works then. At long last, someone’s treating Hino like the princess Mary Sue that she is. Finally, she went out on date with a bishonen who took her to generic amusement park date.

Aaaah! You’re not Tsukimori! You cannot let several potential pairings go on for several episodes in the regular season and throw in a new guy for Hino without getting anyone from the original man-harem become aware or jealous.

Then they throw in a random bishie who looked like he was going to torment Hino. He ends up existing to say these words before disappearing from the story forever.

My, that’s encouraging. The new bishie has a violin fetish. Hey, he’s like me! Anyway, at least Aoi isn’t so shallow to be into Hino because of her looks.

Aoi’s just some guy who quit the violin and blames a chibi Tsukimori so screw him! The ickle wittle Tsukimori just that good.

Then it suddenly becomes one of those ‘Hino taught me the joy of reaching people’s hearts with my performance’ shows. The two strongest contenders for Hino merely talks about Hino and their love for the violin. It didn’t even cross their minds that Aoi was a threat. The hint of jealousy is virtually non-existent.

Maybe they didn’t even see Hino as a potential girlfriend. What were those 24+2 OVAs of mindless fangirling for?

New boy gets first dibs on Hino’s… hand.

He cannot just waltz in that school, take Hino and expect to get him. He just did and it annoys me so much. There is something strangely admirable about his way of taking what he wanted. The other guys should learn something from him. I still don’t like him.

Tsukimori, Tsuchiura, you two are pure failures. Pull her away from Aoi even if it breaks her arm! Preferably Tsukimori. Narcoleptic kid does not count.

I’m not saying that the OVA is a complete failure in my books. It’s always a pleasure to watch sixty minutes of pure, unadulterated bishonen bliss. However, the downer is that Hino already developed her love for the violin at the latter part of the regular season and connected with each bishie on the OVA. So, the expectation on the Second Passo is the conclusion that one of those guys from the original series (preferably Tsukimori) would finally make her move on Hino and complete her blissful Mary Sue existence. The Second Passo ended up being a repetition of both love for violin with the lack of connection towards the original cast and put her focus on a newer, much more forward guy.

There is a certain argument that an OVA is a made-for-video story that may not be connected to the original story. When I first read about the Second Passo of La Corda and saw the new bishonens introduced on the website, I thought that one or all of the are nothing more but plot devices to get one of the bishies (preferably Tsukimori) to finally confess to Hino. A Secondo Passo means that it follows the Primo Passo, meaning it connects with the original story. Yes, it gave Hino full circle with a boy. It was like being given a sudden curveball.

Is it justice? It might be. No one makes a move, out comes guy from out of nowhere to sweep Hino away. Hino and Aoi may not have ended up with each other in the end? Not possible. If she didn’t like Aoi romantically, she would have kicked Aoi instead of chasing after that camera girl before pictures of Aoi kissing Hino’s hand go around the school. But damn it, Tsuchiura obviously had the longest crush on Hino and Tsukimori’s too delicious to be ignored even if he’s a tactless tsundere.

Thanks anyway for the weak, overused implied BL joke.

Now please produce the thirdo passo or whatever the hell you’ll be calling it.

The Japanese hates weaboos…

Kohei is a third generation trapeze artist for the circus who hates his co-workers.

At first, I was thinking that it was because he’s xenophobic. He puts the blame on the foreign guy, Ali, and accuses him of wanting to be the top flyer in the trapeze act. Not catching Kohei when he needs to makes Kohei look like he’s the one who’s not doing something right. Being a third generation trapeze artist, he didn’t think the fault could his fault. Then acts cocky throwing in Ali and the other foreigners’ inability to speak proper Japanese. The thought would have never come into my head if the boss didn’t justify hiring them to Kohei.

He starts becoming anxious about performing because he thinks that Ali will just let him fall. Ali tried to tell him before, but Kohei punched him before he finished the sentence. As the episode passes, little clues appear. It ends up Kohei’s inability to find fault in his performance.

It is true anyway. When we’re experts in a certain field, we refuse to be told we’re wrong until indisputable proof is presented to us. It’s hurtful to our e-pen0rs.

As Dr. Irabu continues treatment for Kohei’s Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Kohei traces it all back to his childhood where he developed a fear of strangers. A circus freak boy moves around and never stays at the same place. Wherever he is, he is seen as a freak and never made friends.

This triggered a defense mechanism where he never puts the blame on himself, but on other people. It’s good in a way, it is the only way he could have existed and have confidence in himself with the kind of lifestyle he was living (being a nomad). Faced with new co-workers, he does the same thing. I find that kinda strange since as a circus performer, he should have more empathy for his fellow performers.

I’d be bored too if I go through an inning per episode.

By no means am I a fan of shonen sports anime. It’s not because I hate sports. I do. But, if I can sit through several genres that I wouldn’t be interested in if I never gave it a shot, I cannot fault the genre.

In my opinion, sports anime gets dragging. One game can last several episodes, which is just too much for me to watch out for on a weekly basis. By the time the game ends, I’m several weeks older and the characters are still the same. “What? No character progression?! Wait, they’ve only done one game.” Also, if I follow a sports anime on a weekly basis, I usually forget what happened on the previous episode. Not being a very sporty person, the result is what matters. Not the one defining moment when Character A finally finds his strength.

I didn’t plan to watch Cross Game. I’m not such a big fan of the animation even if it’s one of the last things I tend to overlook for the sake of the story. Of course, that thesis statement prevails and I’m won over by the story.

If anything else, the baseball part of the story is progressing faster than the lives of Kou and Aoba. The build-up to a clffhanger for game episodes is good without having to resort to one inning per episode. It manages to keep me interested in the baseball because it was more about growth rather than that defining moment, and the story even if it’s so slow. Thank you, hazy, for the recommendation.

I watched the first twenty-eight episodes in marathon fashion. Four days is not bad for someone who has to share disk space. While the games last several episodes, I was marathoning it so once one episode’s done, I continue onto the next episode. The shitty part is episode 28 is a game episode that had a really good build-up and I’m left hanging. No such luck. I had to wait Mondays when the subs get out. Yes, I’ve seen succeeding to the current episode. See argument above.

After continuous watching, I had to wait a week for what happens after this.

I like fast-paced stories, where character development happens in a snap. Most recent anime only last 10-12 episodes. A 20+ episode show is a rare thing nowadays.  There are only two sports shows I was able to watch to finish: Slam Dunk for the comedy and Hungry Heart: Wild Striker which I was able to watch daily when it was airing on Animax. Captain Tsubasa had too many episodes that I’m not sure if Animax showed all. The completed sports anime in my list are shows that have been watched from start to end without the thought of “What happened in the previous episode again?” With Hungry Heart, I got a daily dose, which is a lot better than a weekly shot.

I can resort to referencing the manga, which I did, but I hate reading manga that involves movement like fighting and, of course, sports. The satisfaction of seeing movement without really seeing it is non-existent. Also, the Cross Game manga’s not yet finished. Either way, it opens up another can of worms because I’m left wanting to see a certain scene animated. Oh, how I dig my own grave.

Now the problem. I’ve been watching it weekly ever since and it’s a slow and painful. I don’t think I can wait for it for another eighteen episodes to marathon it again. FAIL. Oh, the dilemma. I’ll probably just watch it weekly. It’s not like there’s anything I can do about it.

Note to self: Sports anime are really for marathoning. I should also try to watch One Outs because I heard it’s one game in one episode.

P.S. The Cross Game Quiz has nothing on the Nomo’s Drawing Song. I wish they would have something similar in the future.

Reference Reading on a Similar Topic:

• schneider – Watching Anime: Weekly Watching VS Marathons
• zeroblade – On Appreciable Versus Enjoyable Anime

So it’s Shino’s fault people started calling Sawako, Sadako.

I wonder if Shino’s reason for staying friendly with Sawako all this time had something to do with some inner guilt of hers that the Sadako stuck and was isolated because of it. Wait a minute – What’s a grade schooler doing reading/watching things like Ringu?! I always had to make sure that my TV was unplugged every time I left my bedroom after seeing that movie.

Going back to the issue, even though Shino and Sawako end up in the same school, she never makes a move to be BFFs with Sawako. Is a thing like being in the same classroom too shallow a reason why they’re not friends?

I guess these girls are members of the “Kazehaya belongs to everyone” club and that girl in the center is the president. Oh LOL.

You’d think that people like them wee the ones who are spreading the rumors because of their attitude. But they never admit it. How Kazehaya reacts when they left implied that whatever is going around were nothing but ridiculous rumors. The ringleader’s reaction says she knows something about it. They were ganging up on Sawako to defend the Kazehaya’s reputation by bullying the girl who was responsible for everything.

This girl has been appearing sporadically in past episodes. It’s no question that she’s interested in Kazehaya. If she will become an ally or an adversary is to be known. Ah, to hell with it. Since the clique never admits to be the ones who spread the rumors, she’s probably the one who spread them.

After clearing everything up, the three girls reconcile. They’ll be friends forever.

The only thing I had a problem with that part is that Sawako is left in the dark about how things was just one big misunderstanding. Mary Sue much? Protect the socially isolated girl from the harsh reality of the world because rumors will hurt her.

But they make up, so it’s okay.

Since the episode was spent mostly inside the ladies’ room where most girl fights happen anyway, the big losers of episode were the boys.

Except for Pin. He hates drama and wants to see punches thrown and blood spill.

Poor Ryuu cockblocked by a stick figure with a triangle on the torso area.

Poor Kazehaya. After the girls became tighter, he’s instantly isolated for being a guy.

Sawako’s ronery again.

She’s no longer used to being alone and existing without her friends. But in her mind, she thinks that she was doing a favor to Kazehaya, Yano and Yoshida’s reputations if she just stayed away from them. She can’t stand it and cried during an English test.

The episode was filled with too much drama, mostly on Yano and Yoshida’s part on trying to philosophize Sawako’s reasons for spreading unsavory rumors about them. I won’t say that I wasn’t moved by it. I cried my usual girly tears. I guess the purpose was to emphasize how important the girls were to each other. Too much thinking, not too much happening. Not to mention, everything that Sawako thought about Yano and Yoshida were painfully repetitive.

It was pretty boring if it wasn’t for any of the boys to salvage the girls’ relationship. It’s amazing how it was the guys who shone in this episode.

Kazehaya confronted Sawako. He still actually believed that he and the “all to myself” comment were still the reason why Sawako was still avoiding him. I’m not sure if he was just so consume with his thoughts on that one afternoon that he has turned a deaf ear about what everyone in school has been talking about. I guess being the most popular boy in school doesn’t necessarily mean that he’s up-to-date with everything that goes around.

Strangely enough, it took a freaking guy to get to the source of Sawako’s unhappiness. It was Kazehaya who understood Sawako best because of he took the time to wait until Sawako was comfortable to talk about her true feelings.

Ryuu attempted to shed some logical light on how Sawako may not be the one to spread the rumors about them. It was also logically countered by Chizu, but he still gallantly offered to comfort her if she was sad about the whole thing. Did I not mention how awesome Ryuu was?

There might be an underlying implication that girls are just too emotional that the mans have to step in. However, because of all thinking, logic-finding and philosophizing the girls did, they turned emotional. Some things just happen that way.

The cliffhanger was when Sawako was finally determined to clear things up with Yano and Yoshida. She started when she attempted to straighten things up with a bunch of girls talking about the rumors in the rest room.

Cue girl fight.