Well, that was certainly the strangest start to a Dagashi Kashi yet … I thought for a moment I was tuned into the wrong show! But I liked the reveal of Tou telling a ghost story during a stormy night at Kokonotsu’s place, which only his sister is scared of. Knowing Tou, if he can freak out his sister Saya, that’s at least something, even if Koko and Hotaru don’t react.
Around the time I was wondering what candy, if any, was the focus of this segment, Tou whips out the “Ghost Story Gum.” Hotaru has collected and read all 144 stories, which explains why she’s not scared by any of them.
As for Koko, he gets hung up on the narrative inconsistencies, for which Hotaru has an answer: the people who write the stories are corporate slaves! If there’s a meta-commentary on anime here, it’s too subtle.
From there, we transition to a Tou who is simply unreasonably into cup-and-balls, after watching a YouTube video of people popping off tricks with the thing. He desperately wants to be cool and popular, and thinks— quite absurdly—that an $11 child’s toy is the answer. Say what?
Tou is immediately hostile and dismissive when Saya shows up (wanting to hang out with Koko, not him), but as usual Master Saya shows the boys up with some sick cup-and-ball action that puts the YouTubers to shame, then soaking up Koko’s praise with glee.
Embarrassed by his lack of cup-and-ball progress, Tou runs off to the shore, where Koko follows him. Tou then whips out “Pop-a-Fortune”, a button candy with packaging that tells your fortune. The boys go from health to homework to seeing a girls’ panties, with mixed results.
‘Mixed’ pretty much sums up this episode…along with ‘sparse’. The art is great as usual, and there are a few sporadic chuckles to be had courtesy of Tou’s absurdity, but all in all it’s a quiet, inconsequential week.
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