Banri trips and falls on his chin and returns to normal, but still remembers loving Linda. In the morning he wakes up with a fever, and Nana takes him to the hospital. Back home she passes him off to Linda, who takes care of him until Kouko arrives with Mitsuo and 2D. They all plan a trip to the beach as Banri drifts off to sleep. When he awakes in the night, only Kouko remains. She tells him she really wants just the two of them to go to the beach together when he’s better, remarking that “it doesn’t have to be Paris.”
Status Report: Banri and Kouko are still together. We know we shouldn’t be so shocked, but chalk it up to the fragility of romantic relationships—if and when they even happen—in so much recent anime. To be honest, we were a little glum about the consequences of Banri memory’s returning vis–à–vis Kouko, but fortunately Golden Time continues to demonstrate it’s not that kind of show and prone to neither easy outs nor cheap twists. Far from a cop-out, restoring Banri’s memories of Linda—if only for a moment—will have a lasting effect on Banri. In his weakened state, under Linda’s care, he finds himself desperate to see his actual girlfriend’s face, lest his love for her fade away like a dream, leaving the “reality” of Linda.
Kouko indeed arrives in the knick of time, and how about that entrance, mimicking her very first scene in the series when she beats Mitsuo with roses and we thought to ourselves at the time “ehh, we’re not too sure about this one,” only this time it was a joke? Effing priceless. We also like how consistent she is with her behavior while in the presence of the others compared to when she’s just with Banri: the armor comes off and she tells him exactly what’s on her mind. She’s a bit harsh on herself this week, but part of that is because she found that photo of Linda, and then saw Linda the SuperNurse.
Banri does all he can to assure her she’s not a piece of junk and he loves her and wants only her, but this is something he may have to convince himself of first and foremost. Meanwhile Kouko is anxious to take their relationship to the next level, and we love how she puts it—“I want to go to the beach with you”—elegant, cute, and unequivocal. Have we mentioned what a lucky cat Banri is, despite all his past trauma and lingering inner turmoil? Well, he is, and you bet your ass we’re going to be holding him to his promise. Kouko needs—and deserves—a fully-committed boyfriend. If Banri can’t be that, he’s not allowed to perpetuate a charade. Time to make his dream girl his real girl.
Rating: 9 (Superior)
Stray Observations:
- Honestly, we like Nana—at this point merely a surly yet dependable side-character—more than we like some main characters in the other shows we’re watching. She’s just awesome.
- A woozy Banri’s hilariously-detailed “wrong idea” about Nana being an “over-the-top cosplayer from Kawaguchi (wrong hometown!) putting on a brave front so she wouldn’t be taken lightly in the big city until the harsh Tokyo life changed her and she forgot neighborly love for real” was one of the highlights of the episode, as was Nana’s nonchalant “pass” of Banri to Linda.
- We liked—and bought the explanation for Mitsuo and 2D-kun for tagging along with Kouko (to “restrain her if it comes to it”).
- 2D (AKA Satou Takaya) and Linda formally meet. Our takeaway: they could totally become a couple! Make it happen, Golden Time.
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