Oreimo 2 – 16 (Fin)

After Kyousuke and Kirino graduate from their respective schools, they are confronted by Manami, who has come to fight Kirino for Kyousuke. She comes right out and calls their romance disgusting and threatens to tell their parents,. After several blows are exchanged between her and Kirino, Manami confesses to Kyousuke, who turns her down, saying Kirino will always come first. She slaps him and leaves. Kyousuke and Kirino get married in a chapel and exchange a kiss, and then go back to being normal siblings, as they decided on Christmas Eve.

We knew Manami was going to be upset when she learned about her betrothed going out with his little sister, but we had no idea she was going to be such a badass in this final episode. She beats Kirino up and pours a big ‘ol glass of cold water all over the pair, telling them all the stuff no one else had up to that point. Her scolding falls on deaf ears, not just because Kyousuke had chosen Kirino, but because unbeknownst to Manami, their romance was always going to be a temporary one, and just wasn’t quite over yet. What Kirino whispered to Kyousuke was that once they graduated, they’d put their romance to an end and continue on as proper siblings.

This begs the question: if that romance was temporary, what purpose was served by having Kyousuke burn his last bridge with another girl? Why break so many hearts to confirm to  Kirino that her brother would destroy his entire love live six times over if it meant just a few fleeting months as her “lover?” Was it really worth ruining so many of his friendships to have a pretend wedding and a chaste kiss, only to drop it all right afterward? The extensive fallout really doesn’t seem worth it, even if the conclusion (they didn’t actually become  lovers) was a foregone conclusion (this isn’t siscon eroge).

So the series ends on a logical, if somewhat awkward note, having backed Kyousuke and Kirino into a corner and callously discarded legitimate love interests for a fling that didn’t and wasn’t even supposed to last. But while Kyousuke’s unwavering devotion to fulfilling his little sister’s selfish whims often frustrated and even maddened us, we won’t deny we were also greatly entertained and at times downright moved by his many exploits over the last two seasons.

Rating:7 (Very Good)

Oreimo 2 – 15

After Kirino accepts Kyousuke’s proposal, they return to their hotel room to discuss what it means and finish the eroge they started. A couple days later they have coffee with Saori and Ruri, announcing they’ve started dating. Kyousuke leaves to attend Kanako’s Meruru concert, which she invited him to and where she confesses to him from the stage; he refuses and moves on. Later, Kyousuke wakes up with Kirino sleeping next to him, testing for his reaction. While exchanging things to put in each others’ rooms, Kirino lets Kyousuke look at a previously forbidden box containing photo albums of the two of them, along with voice recordings of her past self asking her future self for advice.

Our first thought at the end of the last extra episode was ‘Wow, they finally went there’, but our second thought was a question: ‘Wait, how in the hell are they going to do that?’ The answer is, very, very carefully. Kirino is no longer moving abroad after graduation, which definitely affects the course of her life, if track is what she loves and abroad is the place to train. But she also shows she loves Kyousuke more than track, but in accepting his proposal, and by having plans to confess to him if he didn’t. And as those recordings of her past self indicate, she’d been harboring love for him for a long time, and those feelings survived their “cold war” once she grew up and drifted from him. But they’re still unsure of their next steps; what’s commonplace in eroge is uncharted territory in reality.

Now that they find each other in each anothers’ orbits, however, things are very…complicated. Almost ridiculously notable in their absence are their parents. Kyousuke and Kirino may be able to have a lover’s quarrel and proposal in the middle of the busy Akiba streets, and later announce that they’re dating to their closest friends, there’s no good way to break the news to mom and dad – especially the kind of dad they have. How long can they keep so big a secret from them, and is it even right to do so? Kyousuke paid a price for his actions, but scorning Ayase and Ruri (and Kanako!) is child’s play compared to being the one who essentially stole his own father’s daughter. But frankly, we don’t think the last episode will delve into that pandora’s box. Things are weird enough as it is, right?

Rating:7 (Very Good)

Oreimo 2 – 14

Some time after rejecting Ayase, Kyousuke hangs out with Ruri more. But with Christmas approaching, he decides its time to tell her he can’t go out with her either, as he loves someone else. Ruri tears up the Destiny Record, lifts her curse on him, and transforms into the angel of revenge, “Yamineko,” cursing him, all those who love, and the whole world. Kyousuke asks Kirino to go on a Christmas Eve date in Akiba, and she grudingly agrees. Later in the evening, after a failed attempt and a chase (aided by Saori in Kaori’s car), Kyousuke confesses his undying love for Kirino and wants her to stay in Japan and marry him.

Christmas came early this morning, in the form of the extra Oreimo episodes. The last season’s extra eps told an alternate story and changed the ending, but this episode progresses the story past the pleasant status quo by having Kyousuke go against all common sense and decency and destroy all his potential relationships with girls not related to him by blood so he can tell his own little sister he’s in love with her. He knows it’s ridiculous and creepy, but he can’t help it. At the end of the day those are his feelings, and he’d never be able to live lives with the other girls having never acted on those feelings.

Breaking up with Ruri takes just five minutes, but they’re a damned rough five minutes. Hana-Kana knocks it out of the park as usual with her powerful, multi-faceted, scorched-earth response. Though Kyousuke’s rejection didn’t take her by surprise, when the reality of what was happening started to sink in, she got more and more worked up, abandoning all propriety, and screaming and cursing everything and everyone. In the past we’d be booing at the television (we were always rooting for Ruri), we understood that this was the way the plot was progressing, and Kyousuke’s motives made sense, so we went with the flow here.

Which brings us to Kyousuke’s potentially self-destructive decision to finally confess to Kirino. She tries to run from the truth (and she’s a good runner) but Kyousuke’s pals (including the scorned Yamineko) support him in his enterprise by giving him a lift (in an Itasha Nissan Cube) and broadcasting a recording of his rejection speech to Ruri. He puts it all out there, and while Kirino’s initial response is of revulsion and hatred, he presses the issue, proposes, and her armor finally cracks. But there’s just one slight problem: you can’t legally marry your little sister in Japan…or anywhere else, for that matter. Don’t go Yosuga no Sora on us now, Oreimo!

Rating: 8 (Great)

Stray Observations:

• This episode was well-prepared to stick the knife in and twist it during the Kuroneko break-up. Not only was it preceded by some of the most adorable scenes between the two (him teaching her how to swim, her feeding him in full cosplay regalia), but also showed flashes of their entire relationship as she brutally tore her Destiny Record to shreds.
• Hell, they even cut to her little sisters wondering if/when Kyousuke would come back to visit…poor kids! T_T
• Kirino wears the same outfit to her Akiba date with Kyousuke as she did last year, including pink Uggs, which not just anyone can pull off.
• Kyousuke and Kirinos were no doubt both encouraged and a little scared when they saw Akagi in line with his little sister Sena pretending to be a couple to get deals on BL eroge.
• We have no idea where that tiny little “Yes” by Kirino is going to lead them…which is why we’ll have to watch the next episode immediately.

Oreimo 2 – 13 (Fin)

Kirino used to adore her big brother, but as he grew older they grew apart, and as she strived to surpass him, he stopped seeming as amazing as she once deemed him. She suspects Manami’s influence, but Manami tells her the amazing Kyousuke Kirino loved never really existed. Kirino made a friend in Ayase through modeling, and also discovered siscon eroge, which she had to keep a secret, until it grew out of control, and she finally had to ask her average, unremarkable brother for advice, and he performed his brotherly duty admirably, if not as cool and confidently as he once did.

The last episode of Oreimo for some time serves as a prequel to everything we’ve seen thus far, and documents the evolution of Kirino’s feelings for her brother, leading up to their current, cordial relationship. Basically, the younger she and Kyousuke were, the more amazing she thought he was, and the more he was willing to spend time with her. But he eventually outgrew that arrangement before she did, leading her to aim to surpass him. So we can imagine her disappointment when Kyousuke devolved from the driven, talented, cool brother she once knew into a lazy, unmotivated layabout. The person who drove her to become better than she was had gotten worse. Since the very beginning, it’s been clear that Kirino is a big, hopeless otaku, but this episode finally confirms why: she was seeking the ideal brother Kyousuke no longer was.

She shunned her real brother in exchange for the brothers in the games she played, who would always do what she said and be with her no matter what and be just as amazing as she wanted them to be. But they were no more real than that youthful ideal of her real brother. Kyousuke is and always has been Kyousuke, and regardless of how much he disappointed her, he was always going to protect her, as he does when he passionately defends her hobby to their fatheer. Now Kirino is mature enough to realize that Kyousuke may not be perfect or even particularly cool, but he’s her brother; her only brother. He’s all she’s got, and he’s really not all bad, as big brothers go!

Rating:7 (Very Good)

Oreimo 2 – 12

All of the girls in Kyousuke’s life attend his moving-in party and eventually start bickering over who is going to take care of him for the rest of the month he’s living on his own. Kirino breaks up the fight and makes the decision for him: Ayase. She does his cooking, cleaning and laundry. Ruri’s sister Hinata stops by and they must explain it’s not what it looks like. One night, Ayase apologizes for mistreating him for so long, knowing that he’s really a good, kind guy. Kyousuke passes his mock exams, and he moves out of the apartment. Ayase stops by once more to confess her love for him, but he rejects her, saying there’s someone else he loves. Ayase eventually accepts, and after a surprise parting kiss, departs.

We’ve always found Ayase a bit troublesome, due to the way she always insulted, mistreated, and physically abused Kyousuke, when we knew she was doing it out of frustration for not having the balls to tell him how she really feels. As a result, after her transformation from the generic sweet cute girl the first time we met her to the more complex, often unhinged, potentially dangerous cute girl, she grew a bit one-note, though Hayami Saori’s velvety voice  was always a pleasure to listen to. Handcuffs, drop-kick, unreasonable accusations of sexual harassment. This Ayase could do well to visit Academy City – that’s where she’ll find some real harassment (seriously, what is with the roving gangs of would-be rapists? Sorry, wrong show.)

But hey, guess what? After this episode, we like her a hell of a lot more, because she finally did find the courage to say the things she needed to say. There was never anything unreasonable about her fearing rejection, but she took it too far and lashed out at Kyousuke mercilessly, repaying his honey with vinegar every time. No more. She tells him the truth: she loves him, a lot, and wants him to be hers. We both love and hate that Kyousuke is so direct with her; “No”, “Sorry”, “I love someone else”, “I’ve made my decision”...after Ayase’s tearful confession, it’s hard to watch these daggers fly at her one by one, but then, just when you think she’s going to give him one last drop kick, she kisses him. This episode is almost enough for us to wish we hadn’t gotten so invested with just Kyoususke and Kuroneko. Almost.

Rating: 8 (Great)

Stray Observations:

• Wow, that party was some kind of harem nightmare! Even Saori entered the fray. Kyousuke, like us, are like “What? you too? Arrgh!”
• Amazingly, it’s Kirino who breaks everything up, having not participated in trying to tear limbs from Kyousuke. Their exchanges this week are markedly cordial.
• So every Japanese kid requires his own apartment and servant to pass a mock exam? Those must be some tough exams.
• Ruri’s little sister Hinata – what is she, ten, max? – and she’s presumably taken a train (or trains) to Kyousuke’s apartment at night, by herself? What kind of society is this?!

 

 

Oreimo 2 – 11

Kyousuke and Kirino’s mom is suspicious of their sudden closeness. Their father isn’t worried, but he does want Kyousuke to ace his mock exam, and so arranges him to move into his own place to study in peace. The first night, Kanako stops by with food she made, as she wants to set things right with her parents. Early the next morning Ayase stops by with a housewarming gift, a kitchen knife. Kuroneko also pays him a visit, and she and Ayase immediately clash. Kuroneko assures Ayase that whatever her relationship to Kyousuke, his soul is hers and hers alone, and would love him even if he slept with Kirino. After Ayase leaves, Kyousuke tells Kuroneko he needs time to settle things with Kirino before dating anyone; Kuroneko concurs.

It’s perfectly reasonable to see Kyousuke putting his happiness on hold for his little sister’s sake, because that’s what he’s always done, but that oversimplifies matters. The truth is, he himself would never be happy if his happiness comes at the cost of Kirino’s. So he figures he has to find some way of “settling things” with her before deciding to date Kuroneko again. Kuroneko is also very reasonable and patient in this instance, partly because she’s in this for the long haul (her feelings for Kyousuke haven’t changed), and partially because she considers herself Kirino’s very best friend.

Preceding this week’s very welcome appearance by Kuroneko (in her new uniform, bearing an impeccable lunch) is a somewhat awkward family meeting in which Kyousuke and Kirino’s mom comes right out and voices her…concern over her kids’ behavior towards one another (Maybe she’s seen Yosuga no Sora?). Kanako’s drop-in was kinda random; fleshing out her story is all well and good, but we’re hardly invested in her this late in the series. As for Ayase, it was good to see her mendacity and facades butt up against Kuroneko’s brutal, divine honesty (the two even come to arms in an excellent fantasy battle scene). She even calls Kuroneko a pervert, but Kuroneko doesn’t care. “What of it, bitch? I’m in love!“

Rating:7 (Very Good)

Oreimo 2 – 10

Kyousuke visits Ayase, who is worried that now that he has a girlfriend, she won’t be able to confide with him about Kirino. When she hears they broke up, she’s worried that she was the reason, but he assures her it isn’t. She invites Kyousuke to Meru-fest where Kanako will be playing. They meet up and hang out with Kanako and Bridget before the show, but Kyousuke gets a call from Kirino saying she’ll be late, and he borrows a pornographic bike to pick her up.

As our favorite character was absent from this episode, we found this episode to be a return to mildly pleasant but comparatively inconsequential events that transpire in the life of Kousaka Kyousuke. Basically, it feels like Kuroneko moved away so that other girls could come in and have arcs: Ayase in the first half and Kirino in the second. Unless there are extra blu-ray episodes like the first season, there are now only three episodes left; not much time to start any fresh romances, but adequate time to touch base with the other women in Kyousuke’s life after the “thieving cat” dominated his summer. We’re not the biggest fans of Ayase because she’s so erratic and unreasonable – often moreso than Kirino.

Sure, she’s cute, but she’s also dishonest about her feelings, and takes it out on Kyousuke. She calls him a criminal and a pervert when in reality it’s her choice to maintain a friendship with him, something she could walk away from if she really felt the way pretends to feel. To his credit, Kyousuke doesn’t really take her seriously anymore. The second half of the episode was Kyousuke picking up his sister in a very inappropriate bike censored by lens flares. Kyousuke in a black suit and tie with Kirino – wearing a torn wedding dress – holding onto him from behind as he peddled up and down steep hills during a particularly beautiful sunset, made for a remarkably bizarre sequence, but we liked it.

Rating: 6 (Good)

Oreimo 2 – 09

On the first day back at school, Kyousuke finds out Kuroneko has transferred to another school. She’s also moved out of her house and won’t answer her phone. That night, Kyousuke wakes Kirino and asks for advice. When Kirino sees how sad he is, she has to help, and they head to a hot spring town to look for Kuroneko. They find her by chance; she makes Kirino admit she never wanted him to have girlfriend, but she also says seeing how sad he was when Kuroneko left was even worse. Before Kyousuke can tell Kuroneko what he’s going to do, she passes out. When she comes to, she says her family’s only moving to Matsudo, which isn’t that far, so while Kyousuke won’t see her at school anymore, he’ll still be able to see her, as will Kirino.

Well…that was odd…and not what we were expecting at all. But it wasn’t bad, either. Things get pretty bad early in the episode, when we learn that not only did last week’s written break-up stand (begging the question how the two separated that night, which is never answered), but she seems to have fallen off the face of the earth. In the end, Kuroneko’s breakup and departure turned out to be a combination of family circumstances she couldn’t control (dad gets a new job, family moving to company housing) and part of a rather sinister plan to make Kirino tell her her true feelings, not accepting that she was fine with her dating Kyousuke. Still, the stunt she pulls on Kyousuke is cruel and awful, and we’d have trouble letting her off the hook completely. Of course, love can make one very forgiving.

For her plan to have worked, Kyousuke and Kirino had to run into Kuroneko just when they did, while she was on vacation, which has less to do with their determination to find her and bring her back, and less pure dumb luck. Then again, Kuroneko has always believed in destiny; she has a whole journal of her life drawn out, so we’ll forgive that. And the plan does work. Kirino finally tells her she wanted to be the most important person in Kyousuke’s life…but, but…not at the cost of his happiness. At first she was happy when Kuroneko dumped him, but that didn’t last, because it left Kyousuke a wreck (understandably). So now, with Kuroneko moving away, albeit not far, it’s logical to assume we’ll see less of her and perhaps less of her and Kyousuke. And that doesn’t make us happy at all. But hey, at least they’re still a couple…sorta…

Rating: 8 (Great)

Stray Observations:

• Anything worse than sending a text you really want answered, and it’s never responded to? This is why you don’t text for these kinds of things!
• Kirino is actually pretty selfless and cool this week, doing everything she can to help Kyousuke, because he helped her so much. 
• She even tells him its no good for Kyousuke not to date anyone until she dates someone, because that would make him unhappy as she’d be if he dated someone. Oroboros!
• While it probably didn’t make sense to believe this, we’d always thought Ruri lived alone with her sisters. She didn’t mention a parent until last week, and we’ve yet to see either of them. 
• More nice symmetry: Kyousuke climbing on Kirino in bed in the night to ask for advice, just like she did to him in the very first episode.

Oreimo 2 – 08

Kuroneko, now the sacred “Kamineko” goes on her first date with Kyousuke. They go shopping, gaming, and have lunch in the park, and it’s all very pleasant. The next day Kyousuke visits Ruri’s house. After watching an anime, she goes to the bath, and her little sisters meet Kyousuke. The next day Ruri hangs out with Kyousuke at his place. Kirino suspects something’s up and barges in on them, but they’re just playing a game. They also go to see fireworks. With only a few days left of summer, Ruri unveils the last ceremony to perform: breaking up with Kyousuke.

Oreimo giveth, and Oreimo taketh away. Let’s get it out of the way, as surprised as we were that the show did the right thing by making Kyousuke and Kuroneko a couple, we knew, despite our initial excitement, that it probably wouldn’t last that long, so we knew we had to savor the bliss while it lasted. Turns out, barring the first ceremony in Ruri’s Destiny Record to not occur, we were right; this is the only episode in which Kuroneko and Kyousuke are together throughout. And if you’re not a fan of Kuroneko or this new union, then it was a pretty rough and tedious episode to watch. As for us, we loved every last moment.

The couple takes to dating with gusto, with Ruri even changing her cosplay persona and handle to something less sinister. In her mind, she was once a fallen angel, but Kyousuke raised her up, andthey don’t waste their summer together. They go out a ton, have lots of fun, and Kyousuke ends up learning far more about Ruri and liking her much more than before. We love seeing Kyousuke like this, because lord knows he’s earned the right to have an normal relationship with a smart, beautiful girl who isn’t his sister. Too bad it may be that Kuroneko never meant for their relationship to last past the summer.

Kuroneko is still in love with Kyousuke, but she’s also a good and selfless person…maybe too selfless. When she sees how Kirino reacts to her being in Kyousuke’s room as his girlfriend, and Kirino declares her her friend, and can’t stick around hang out with them, we kinda had a feeling this would happen before the hammer falls in the last moments. Kuroneko’s ultimate goal is for both Kyousuke and her friend Kirino to be happy. She can’t see how Kirino could ever be happy with her friend dating Kirino’s brother, so she can’t keep dating him.

Frankly, if we were Ruri, we’d tell Kirino what she told a bruised Kyousuke in their opening scene: “Deal with it.” Sometimes our own happiness comes at the cost of others.

Rating: 8 (Great)

• Kamineko’s get-up is indeed quite audacious, but if we were Kyousuke we really wouldn’t mind either.
• Kyousuke worries about getting a nosebleed from holding Kamineko’s soft, dainty paw, but it’s Kamineko who gets the nosebleed. Kya.
• We lost it just as Kyousuke did when she suddenly went to the bathroom. Surely she doesn’t want to move that fast?!
• Ruri’s sister Hinata is a smart cookie. We hope she’ll scold her big sis for dumping Kyousuke.
• When Kirino put her ear to the wall and heard Kuroneko say things that could definitely be misconstrued…
• Bravo to Hanazawa Kana for a surperb, layered performance. Ruri has many different ways of speaking depending on whom she’s talking to and what role she’s playing.
• Poor Kyousuke. Can he convince Ruri to reconsider? We doubt it.

 

Oreimo 2 – 07

Ruri doubles down on her confession to Kyousuke, telling him she’s sure she loves him more than anyone else. He begs her to let him think about it, and she gives him until tomorrow, after the re-party. Back at home he and Kirino finish making up, and Kirino make shim promise to give serious thought if the “other girl” confesses to him. Manami also tells him to “face Kuroneko sincerely.” After the party, Kyousuke agrees to go out with Ruri. They later plan to meet up in the video game club, where everyone already assumed they’d been going out a long time. After expressing ignorance about what a boyfriend should do, Kyousuke suggests they do what she’s written (and illustrated) in her “Destiny Record”, starting with a first date.

This time, I need to do things right…

Damn straight! What do you know, Oreimo actually surprised us this week! We were fully resigned to Kyousuke further stalling or at worst, outright rejecting Ruri so that he can continue his dead-end quasi-romance with his little sister. Instead, after receiving (sorta)best wishes from both Kirino and his long-suffering betrothed Manami, Kyousuke finally makes the right choice: he chooses Kuroneko. And we couldn’t be happier! Interestingly, this doesn’t mean he’s betraying or abandoning Kirino, just that he’s finally realized they’re two different kinds of love. What’s also great is that while there is some building up, his deliberation doesn’t take up the whole episode. She has his answer by the commercial break. And thus, a huge weight is lifted.

What follows is a second-half that just about makes up for all of the will-they-wont-they torture the last one-and-a-half seasons of the series. Both Kyousuke’s sudden excitement and Ruri’s dilating joy is contagious to behold. She looked as surprised as we were when Kyousuke actually said yes, and the scene when her little sisters see her “break” with giddiness is a lovely, adorable moment. We’re as glad as she is that after creating such a compelling love interest and steadily yet naturally building up her attraction to Kyousuke, the series finally pulled the trigger on a Kyou+Ruri path, and as far as we’re concerned, now that it’s a reality, every minute the happy new couple isn’t on the screen together being awesome is a minute wasted. Sorry Kirino.

Rating: 9 (Superior)

Stray Observations:

• Kirino’s fake boyfriend shows up. He’s useless with advice on boob-touching.
• Kyousuke, Kirino, and Ruri apologize to Saori for ruining the previous party. As well they should!
• It sounded an awful lot like Kirino gave Kyousuke her blessing, so we don’t want to hear her complaining next week!
• Here’s hoping Kyousuke and Ruri start calling each other by name. We know, we’re pushing our luck.
• This week’s Aku no Hana was so powerful and Ise Mariya’s performance as Nakamura Sawa was so compelling, that we had a visceral reaction when Akagi Sena (also Ise) started talking.

Oreimo 2 – 06

Kirino introduces Kyousuke, Ruri, and Saori to Mikagami Kouki. Ayase invites Kyousuke to her house and handcuffs him until he explains the photo of him and Kirino on a date. While walking to Kyousuke’s house, Ruri confesses her love to him again. The after-Comiket party turns sour when Kirino forcefully announces she’s dating Mikagami. Ruri leaves in disgust, and Kirino and Kyousuke fight. The next day Kirino brings Mikagami to her house to meet her parents, but her dad retreats to his room to drink.

Kyousuke is hostile towards Mikigami and gets slapped by Kirino. After spending some time with his dad, he returns and apologizes, then lets Kirino know his honest feelings: he doesn’t want her going out with other guys. She and Mikagami reveal they’re not really dating; it ws a ruse to make Kyousuke feel what she feels when he’s flirting with Manami or Ruri. Kyousuke meets with Ruri to invite her to a new party, and learns she and Kirino have made up. Ruri then asks him to go out with her.

Both Kyousuke and Kirino seem to find peace in their bond as it stands, and whenever another variable enters their orbit, one of the other is unsettled, starting off a “commotion.” This time, it’s Kirino who is none to happy about Kyousuke’s inroads with “The Plain One” (Manami) and “The Black One” (Ruri). She cannot hide her contempt about another girl stealing his dear brother away, so she attempts to turn the tables of jealousy on him by pretending she has already replaced him with a rich, talented, attractive Mikagami. Here’s the thing, and we want to be clear on this point: it would have been better if Mikagami were her real boyfriend. If she had someone all her own to lean on.

That would finally free Kyousuke to pursue relationship with another girl who isn’t his sister. Ruri is ready, willing, and able to be that girl, and her moments of barely-restrained overflowing lovesickness are some of the highlights of this episode. But after Kirino laid out her distaste for Kyousuke getting too close to another girl, particularly that girl, we simply can’t see anything other than Ruri getting her heart broken yet again. We hope we’re wrong, but considering the track record of this series, pairing them up seems  unlikely. We’ve always preferred Kuroneko to Kirino, to the point where sometimes we think we’re torturing ourselves watching a show that will always put Kirino first.

Rating: 8 (Great)

Stray Observations:

• While one can kinda justify Kyousuke’s meeting with Ayase as providing evidence Kirino was lying about having a boyfriend (Ayase would be the first to know such a thing) the scene took away time better spent on the Kirino and Ruri storylines, and felt extraneous.
• Saori briefly takes off her disguise for Kyousuke! We had hoped she’d do away with it altogether, however.
• It was nice to see the two Kousaka men commisterating, but we like how Daisuke’s pathetic behavior spured Kyousuke into going back downstairs to settle things.
• Kyousuke shows some spine this week, but he still doesn’t pass up any opportunity to grovel before his sister, does he?
• Ruri continues to exude critical levels of cuteness. Though she may be slight in stature, she dominates every scene.

Oreimo 2 – 05

Kyousuke pretends to be Kirino’s boyfriend to convince a modeling agency that she can’t go abroad. It seems to work, but when Kyousuke suggests they go out on a date the next day, they must follow through. After the date, Kirino insinuates she has a real boyfriend, worrying Kyousuke. Ruri tells him she wouldn’t mind if Kirino did. Kyousuke, Kirino and Saori and Ruri go to the Summer Comiket, and they sell out the Maschera doujinshi they made together. While watching a Meruru movie, Kirino is confronted by a young man.

Both Kyousuke and Kirino would prefer to keep everything about their relationship left unsaid between them, whenever possible. The truth is they both care for one another deeply, but neither wants the other to come right out and admit it. When Kirino has said nice things about her brother, it certainly wasn’t when he was present. So when they have to pretend to be a convincing couple (for a pretty flimsy reason, frankly) and they’re asked why they love one another, they’re actually open and honest about it, because they feel they have to be.

That was sweet, and the date is more fun than we thought it would be, but where this episode really shines is pretty much whenever Ruri is on the screen. From her reaction to seeing the “happy couple”, to her unexpected appearance in normal clothes (a Menma-like white dress), to the resumption of talking and having fun with Kyousuke, Ruri proves yet again why she’s our favorite character. That Kirino has a boyfriend neither surprises nor bothers us like it does Kyousuke, because that will just mean he can spend more time with the lovely “Shironeko”.

Rating: 8 (Great)

Stray Observations:

• Both Kirino and Kyousuke clearly have way more fun on their date than either would ever admit.
• It is nice to see Kyousuke and Ruri acting like a normal guy and gal. There are a couple moments when Kirino is watching them and we can’t help but see the same jealousy she mocked Kyousuke for having when she mentioned her boyfriend.
• Those Summer Comiket lines look brutal, but we like the rule about closing the gaps!

Oreimo 2 – 04

Ria, Kirino’s old roommate and track rival from America, comes to visit. She’s very lovey-dovey to Kyousuke, irking Kirino, who constantly calls him a lolicon. They go to Akiba to sight-see and shop, but both Kirino and Ria are dressed to run, and the day ends with a race. Kyousuke cheers Kirino on, but Ria still wins by a nose. Ria admits she not only came to Japan for revenge, but to learn how Kirino summoned the speed to beat her in the first place: her friends, her eroge, and her big brother.

After a couple of episodes focused on Ayase and Saori, we return to the Kyousuke and Kirino dynamic, picking up where the end of the last series left off. Kirino went to America to run, but learned she couldn’t be herself there, and wasn’t willing to throw away everything that made her who she is in the service of running. Her rival Ria, on the other hand, is singularly committed to running, and it shows. Just as Kirino surpassed Kyousuke, Ria surpasses Kirino. Having experienced what Kirino’s going through, Kyousuke can’t help but sympathize and cheer for her when they hold a rematch at the school track.

As is typical of Oreimo, there’s a lot of petty noise from Kirino to get through. One simply has to tune out the scolds and insults lobbed at her brother every time he deigns to interact with Ria. Refreshingly, Ria is very affectionate to Kyousuke, exhibiting a wisdom beyond her years in not taking the horrible things Kirino says about him at face value, seeing through the surface to the love Kirino actually harbors for Kyousuke. As if the first race in America wasn’t enough to convince her, this second race confirms that Kyousuke’s love and support really does make her faster. That, and eroge.

Rating: 7 (Very Good)

Stray Observations:

• Hearing Kirino and Kyousuke’s dad try his hand at English was a highlight of the episode.
• Clearly the Kousaka family’s bathroom could use a lock.
• Kyousuke and Kirino’s exchange about the availability of new anime in America was very meta.