Shizuku takes back her confession, and Haru says he’s relieved. Sasayan cannot keep Nagoya the Rooster at his house anymore, so a “School Rooster Committee” is formed and plans for a coop are drawn up. Shizuku, Haru, Sasayan and Natsume use the weekend to gather materials. Haru’s former buddies reach out to Shizuku, who recommends they “make peace” with Haru by helping them build the coop, which is finished by evening. Haru reiterates his love for her, and Shizuku caves and re-confesses. Haru gets a text about a guy named Yuzan visiting his house, and begs Shizuku to spend the night at her house.
We can’t tell you how refreshing and satisfying it is to have a female lead who is blunt, direct, and doesn’t keep things bottled up for more than the length of an episode. It took Sawako two bloody seasons to get as far as Shizuku has gotten with Haru – and we’re not talking about bases. Shizuku initially makes an incorrect assumption from Haru’s reaction to her saying she was “lying” about loving him. It eats away at her, so she decides laying everything out is better than continuing on in a frustrating limbo. She is rewarded for her honesty and forthrightness by learning that Haru is happy she loves him, and wants to be with her; he was only scared of losing her if his love was “different” from hers. The touching scene is brought to an rude, abrupt, and amusing close through perfect use of the loud text alert.
The contents of the text rattle him, and he insists on staying at her place, where she cooks him dinner, lets him bathe, and sets up a futon in the guest room. She may be a recovering anti-socialite, but her hosting skills are above reproach…she’s a keeper! But she senses unease in Haru after that text. He’s running away from something and isn’t telling her. He should; as he himself has said, only good things have come from relying on her. A few nice details: the dramatically-scored scene of Nagoya settling into his new coop; we admire how everyone knows immediately what kind of ice cream they want (it takes us forever!); and Shizuku’s conservative “granny-style” going-out clothes are adorable and true to character.
Rating: 8 (Great)
P.S. Natsume Asako’s name is just one letter removed from Brains Base masterpiece Mawaru Penguindrum’s Natsume Masako. To learn more about the rooster’s namesake, Nagoya Cochin chicken, click here.
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