Kotoura-san – 08

Kotoura comes down with a  fever, and Manabe takes it upon himself to nurse her back to health. He discovers she can’t read his mind due to her cold, so he’s able to carry on with his fantasies without rousing her ire or embarrassment. When she returns to school she learns the truth, and to make it up to her, Mifune orders Manabe to take her out on a date. They enjoy themselves thoroughly, but at the end, her psychic ability suddenly returns in force, knocking her unconscious.

Well, it happens under some rather unusual circumstances…and under orders, but it finally happened: Manabe and Kotoura go on their first date. And pretty much everything about it is frikkin’ adorable: their surface insistence that it’s not really a date (sorry kiddos; it counts!), their reaction to everyone around them commenting on how first-datey they’re both acting; their little conflict when Manabe goes too far in the clothing store; their quick reconciliation; Kotoura’s little locket. It’s absolute bliss. Early in this date, they’re both extremely nervous, but as it progresses, they loosen up and revel in the fun they’re having.

Neither comes right out and admits they’re dating, but they don’t really need to. Prior to the date, when Manabe takes care of her, it really underlines how much tough he has it, not being able to have any private dirty thoughts about the girl he likes – a luxury all men not dating telepaths take for granted. We also saw that Mifune’s mission is still foremost on her mind: the whole point of the date is to stimulate Kotoura into regaining her psychic ability so she can use her later. And the ploy works, just in time to crash the cute, happy ending. Poor Kotoura-san…can’t even live one measly day as a normal girl unburdened by omniscience.

Rating: 8 (Great)

Kotoura-san – 05

Kotoura returns to school. Moritani is nice to her and she joins the ESP Society, using her Moritani Fighting Style to snuff out candles as proof of “psychokinesis”. They have a sleepover party at Kotoura’s new apartment, and when Kotoura falls off the bed and onto Manabe, Yuriko snaps a pic. Manabe gives Kotoura an embarrassing picture of a young Mori to keep her cheered up, even after she falls while in a class relay that she practiced hard for.

Now that she’s at peace with her main rival, Kotoura slips back into the ideal of a high school girl’s life: friends, joking around, club activities, parties, sleepovers, and, eventually, being cheered on by her entire class on field day. This sounds utterly mundane, but not when you consider the hell Kotoura has been through. We are also still scratching our heads over how Moritani didn’t really face any serious consequences for putting a hit out on Manabe, aside from her own guilt.

After a few very emotionally heavy episodes, this one is a bit on cruise control, with very little in the way of new conflict, aside from Kotoura coming to grips with her feelings for Manabe. But what it has in spades is peppy comedy. The ESP society all know each other well enough to riff off one anothers’ qualities, and they do so consistently, though never with ill intent. Kotoura continues to show patience with Manabe’s perverse daydreams because she can tell at his core he’s a good person.

Rating: 7 (Very Good)

Kotoura-san – 02

Kotoura and Manabe are recruited into the ESP Society by upperclassman Mifune Yuriko and meet its president, Muroto Daichi. Mifune, daughter of a clairvoyant who committed suicide after beoming hated and feared wants to scientifically prove the existence ESP to mankind and protect psychics from their prejudices. Manabe constantly spending time with Kotoura irks Moritani Hiyori, who likes him, so she and her friends start bullying her as payback. Mifune hears of this an informs Manabe, who confronts Hiyori, chastizes her, and admits he likes Kotoura.

Just because Kotoura’s made one, two even three friends up to this point (or one friend and two senpai), things aren’t getting any easier for her, or anyone else with ESP who lives amongst the normals. We meet the rest of the core cast, which includes Hanazawa Kana as Mifune, doing a normal voice. We could see her doing Kotoura with her shy-mode, but she makes a good senpai too, and in any case, after her nicely layered performance as Yui in Kokoro Connect, we have every confidence in Kanemoto Hisako. (As for Daichi, it’s good to see midget representation this season!). Mifune may not have ESP like Kotoura, but her mother did, and it was literally the death of her. Mifune may have a selfish reason for wanting to enlist Kotoura, but it’s an honorable one; trying to clear her mom’s name, and Kotoura stands to gain from the situation too.

As for Moritani, she and her goons are tremendously nasty bitches this week, transmitting so many awful thoughts to Kotoura that the poor thing barfs, making her even more an object of derision and mockery. She’s so used to it, she doesn’t make a peep about it to Manabe, which is where Mifune comes in. Proving her worth, she makes up for putting Kotoura in that position in the first place by making sure Manabe hears about the bullying, and when he brings the hammer down on Moritani – confessing to liking Kotoura for good measure – it’s very satisfying. Manabe may not be psychic, but he’s no fool; he knows there’s no way the bullying wasn’t hurting Kotoura, and wasn’t going to let those responsible get away with it.

That said, both the OP and ED suggest that Moritani won’t remain so vicious, and while her actions this week are inexcusable, they don’t come out of nowhere (another example of characters’ actions having clear origins). She too knows loneliness (though not nearly to Kotoura’s extent), and Manabe was one of the few guys who wasn’t offput by her family running a dojo. Now he’s preoccupied with Kotoura, and she can’t help but feel like she stole him…even if she never officially had him to begin with. In any case, we hope Kotoura has an episode down the road where she doesn’t have to suffer so terribly…though considering all she’s been through, the fact she’s kept on living is proof she’s far tougher than she looks.

Rating: 8 (Great)