The Apothecary Diaries – 20 – The Hidden Spare

Maomao’s fine, everyone! If anything, she looks even more like a chuunibyou from the future with her new face and leg bandages. But there’s no rest for the recently beaten and wounded: she must make a full report to Jinshi, Gaoshun, and Basen about just how she knew that pillar would fall.

Maomao lays out Suiren’s conspiracy, much of which I had already inferred last week. Jinshi & Co. having to catch up, combined with Maomao’s subdued reaction to learning how important Jinshi is, kind of takes the air out of the room and feels recappy, even if we needed verbal confirmation. Basen constantly angrily interrupting was also annoying.

Things pick up a bit when Lihaku, who is apparently Maomao’s police informant now, tells her that Suirei was found dead of poison in her room and is scheduled to be cremated. Before that happens, Maomao asks Jinshi to allow her to inspect the corpse, remembering the “resurrection” medicine Suirei mentioned at her hilltop garden.

Maomao opens up the coffin to reveal the corpse of an entirely different woman. The doctor who examined Suirei, and knew her personally, is shocked, but Maomao indulging her curiosity has blown this case wide open: Suirei, the one with the intellect, courage, and cojones to pull off such an intricate conspiracy, is still at large. Maomao wants to catch her so she can teach her that resurrection medicine.

However, the “Suirei incident” is swept under the rug for now, which is probably for the best considering how many people ended up dead. The episode re-focuses on Jinshi, and the revelations continue to trickle out: He’s not a eunuch, nor is he twenty-four. Rather, he’s the nineteen-year-old brother of the current emperor, and he takes drugs to suppress his manhood.

The Empress Dowager gave birth to him the same time Ah-Duo gave birth to the current emperor’s firstborn son, who died soon thereafter and resulted in Ah-Duo being unable to have any more children. The younger brother’s identity was concealed as “Jinshi the eunuch” to run the Inner Palace and ensure the emperor produced a son to replace him as heir apparent to the throne.

Thus far, the emperor has had a son with Lihua, who passed away, and a daughter with Gyokuyou, who can’t be emperor. That said, things may soon be changing: Jinshi informs Maomao that Gyokuyou’s cycle has halted, a sign she’s pregnant again. Perhaps this time the emperor will get his son and heir and Jinshi can get his own life back…maybe a life with the brilliant and cute apothecary??

Jinshi dispatches Maomao, whom he trusts over any other physician, back to the Inner Palace to tend to Gyokuyou. She’s happy to be back in a place where she doesn’t have to worry about bumping into Lakan, and seeing the emperor play with his daughter, her opinion of him as a lewd lecher is starting to soften.

What with Loulan being the daughter of a high-ranking official who is no doubt trying to ascend the ladders of power, and the loss of his longtime friend and most trusted advisor Ah-Duo, even the emperor’s got his problems, and isn’t just an old dude who loves big bazongas.

The Apothecary Diaries – 15 – In the (Sea)Weeds

Our mysterious monacled official, Lakan, is a good listener. He’s napping on a balcony when he overhears that the warehouse fire case wasn’t actually solved by Lihaku, but an intellectual servant girl under Master Jinshi’s employ. He also learns she was a Verdigris courtesan Jinshi bought out. Now Maomao is on his radar, and that makes me … uneasy.

“MYYYY PRRRRRECIOUSSSS…”

Gaoshun already has a new case lined up for “Xiaomao” that’s right up her twisted alley: a case of food poisoning involving raw pufferfish. When he gives her the broad strokes of the case, she first asks if it’s really okay to be divulging this stuff to her. Gaoshun trusts her to be discreet, but Jinshi sneaks up on her (causing her first Gollumface of the series, an unsettling masterpiece) wanting to be involved in some way.

Gaoshun has his subordinate Basen, escort Maomao to inspect the kitchen of the poisoning victim. I imagine Basen is the official investigator, while Maomao is simply tagging along in an unofficial capacity. She senses Basen has a bad impression of her, but her inner monologue reaction to this is “oh well.” In the kitchen she finds something odd: a supply of seaweed that is fresher than it should be for this region.

Their visit is rudely interrupted by the younger brother of the victim, whose desire for them to wrap up ASAP pretty much puts a “culprit” target on his back. But the proof is in the evidence: the seaweed sample Maomao procures is from the south, and needs to be soaked in limewater to wash out the poison. She attempts to test another sample soaked in regular water, but Jinshi makes her vomit it up immediately.

😊😊😊

After Maomao gives her presentation, Gaoshun sends officers back to the victim’s house, where the brother confesses to providing the seaweed that poisoned his older brother. His motive was pure jealousy and bitterness over being in a less favorable position in the family, so he sought to get his brother out of the picture.

While Maomao is disappointed she didn’t get to eat any poison, she twirls about like a giddy schoolgirl over her weird insect mushrooms. When she bumps into Jinshi and greets him with an adorable blushing face and sweet tone, the man short-circuits so bad he repeatedly smacks his forehead on the nearest wood pillar.

Jinshi is in a heightened state of stress due to the fact Lakan has been camping out in his office. Jinshi describes him as “forty-plus, high-ranking military officer, and weirdo”, and Maomao thinks she’s seen this guy before. He’s a strategist, and his interests are “shogi, go, and rumors.” He’s basically the Imperial Chinese equivalent of the Dos Equis Guy.

He may also be a bad guy; we’ll see. For one thing, I didn’t like his tone when he mentioned wanting to force himself on the smart and aloof courtesan he took a liking to a while back. We only get the image of her from the mouth down, but her Maomao-like green hair set off red flags in my head.

Lakan says he did something to make her “less exquisite” and thus lower her buyout value. Could that “something” have been knocking her up? Was Maomao the child of Lakan and that bright, unusual courtesan? Mind you, this is just blind speculation.

Whoever Lakan is (or isn’t) to Maomao, he wants to borrow her for a case involving the palace metalworker who recently passed away without naming an heir among his three apprentice children. His will may offer a hint about the secret technique none of them knew. Maybe Maomao can learn what it is.

Spy x Family – 32 – Bread and Circuses

Due to circumstances outside her control, Yor is forced into a fierce battle with Barnaby, who wields an unusual sickle-and-mace weapon that won’t let her close their distance. Worse still, there’s a crowd forming wondering what the heck is going on. And worst of all: Yor spots Miss Anya in that crowd!

Anya saves the day by playing dumb, applauding the “circus performance,” and the rest of the crowd buys it and becomes a rapt audience. Yor, bless her, actually thinks Anya doesn’t recognize her, and decides to not only end this battle quickly, but put on a show doing it.

The result is Thorn Princess at her absolute best. It’s one thing to dodge that ridiculous weapon, it’s quite another to rush at Barnaby like a missile, causing his arm to shake. She anchors the chain in the floor, deflects the weapon back at him, leaps behind him, then leaps over him while tying him up with the chain. She knocks Barnaby out with some well-placed pressure point hits, and ends up right beside him, giving a curtsy to an impressed and entertained crowd.

With Yor victorious, Anya hurries back to the store just as Loid comes out of the dressing room looking as lame as anyone who draws breath has ever looked. He’s dejected for having come so wide of the mark, but the first day of their cruise ends when a punch-drunk Anya smacks her head into a shelf and falls asleep. Loid carries her to their room, looking determined to do better tomorrow.

After inspecting their new room, Yor advises the “Greys” to get some rest. “Mr. Grey” remains gobsmacked at the sheer extra-ness of the assassins going after them, betraying that at the end of the day he’s a bit of a scaredy-cat. But when Olka asks him why he’s even still with her, he remembers a day sometime after the war when he was starving.

The black market run by the Gretchers provided food for those who had none. A cheerful girl, who was none other than a young Olka, gave him a loaf of bread. She’s the reason he’s still alive in the first place, so there’s nothing he won’t do for her, even if he is scared.

And interacting with people like Yor and the director, he’s plenty scared. He should be! He thought the war was over, but the war has essentially been going on ever since in the shadows, and people like the director and Yor are the soldiers. The director checks in, arms himself, and leaves, warning Yor to stay focused or they’re all going to die.

But as Yor guards the door all night while the Greys sleep, it occurs to her she never did contact Loid and Anya or get to spend any time with them. She believes her legs were heavy in her fight with Barnaby because she was afraid of getting hurt, especially hurt in a way she wouldn’t be able to explain away to Anya and Loid.

Yor tells herself (by name) that she needs to “get her priorities straight” … but before she knew it, her priorities had shifted. Instead of soberly considering Loid and Anya nothing but “camouflage”, she’s questioning what she’s even doing in that dark room, away from them, putting her life at risk for strangers. The scene in her mind’s eye of meeting them topside broke my damn heart, because it’s a scene we may not get.

The next morning, 20 hours from the rendezvous, Franky is cursing the fact that he has to be a “kiddositter” and “doggositter”, right up until a cute young lady compliments Bond, chats with him, and departs hoping they’ll meet again. In response to this Franky considers keeping Bond as his pet. What can you say? Bond’s a ladykiller.

Back on the Lorelei, Loid has a very serious monologue like Yor’s, but the great “unknown” of which he speaks and which tests his training to the hilt is nothing more than being able to be a good dad and ensure Anya has fun on Day Two. For her part, Anya is determined to help Mama by keeping Loid occupied, but she ends up getting frustrated with her mini golf game.

After golf the two have lunch, hit the library, do a puzzle, go roller skating, and attend a magic show. It’s a full, fun day, and Loid can tell Anya was having fun, which makes it doubly inexplicable at dinner when she looks so grumpy. The truth is she’s frustrated she forgot about Mama and enjoyed herself. But when she reads Loids mind and knows she’s worrying him with her looks, she reiterates out loud that she’s having a good time … she just misses Mama.

I just hope she doesn’t end up missing her forever. Night arrives, and as the passengers go topside for an imminent fireworks show, an entirely different kind of fireworks are about to go off. Only four hours remain until the rendezvous, and enemies are closing in on the Greys’ new room, so they have to abandon it again.

As they head out in fresh disguises, all of the assassins are looking for them and ready to strike when they find them. I know Yor is the shit, and she dealt with Barnaby without too much trouble, but I’m still extremely anxious, because while I don’t doubt her physical abilities, her head isn’t 100% in the game. Her legs aren’t going to get any lighter.

The Apothecary Diaries – 06 – Poison, as a Treat

Maomao soon learns the extent to which an imperial garden party consists of a lot of standing around freezing your ass off. Even with the pocket warmers she prepared, it’s still cold out there in the open. The party is also an opportunity for the ladies-in-waiting of the four concubines to engage in petty sniping.

When Maomao sees that one of Lihua’s ladies-in-waiting who is talking shit about her is someone she’d already set straight back in the Crystal Pavilion, so it only takes one extremely unsettling look (while covering her lack of freckles) to cause her to flee in terror. She’s definitely gotten the hang of putting jerks in their place!

Maomao also learns, and is rightfully skeeved out, by the fact that the emperor’s youngest consort, Lishu, was technically his oldest consort Ah-Duo’s mother-in-law, despite being all of nine years old when she was with the previous emperor. Even now she’s still but fourteen—and her ladies-in-waiting don’t seem to be big fans of her.

When Maomao sees Lihua’s ladies freezing, she offers them some stones, but they recoil from her. That’s fine, because plenty of people like Maomao and show it by offering her hairpins. First there was Jinshi last week, then Lihaku, a Golden Retriever of an officer, and then most surprising of all but then again not, Lady Lihua gives her savior a hairpin. That said, I doubt Maomao is in any hurry to be poached from Gyokuyou.

Maomao’s favorite part of the garden party is the food tasting. The first dish is fine, but she notes that the second is odd in that it contains a different ingredient than usual, and when Lishu eats that same dish a table over, not only does she seem thoroughly troubled by having to eat it, but her food taster seems to be getting a kick out of her discomfort.

When Maomao tastes the next dish, a bowl of soup, Lihaku and the other officers watch, transfixed. For a second, I thought from her reaction to the taste of the soup that it contained another aphrodisiac, perhaps meant to embarrass her lady. But no, it’s just straight-up poison. Maomao just gets off being poisoned, or poisoning herself. The more the poison courses through her body, the more excited she gets.

Hey, I ain’t here to kink-shame, but the fact she swallows the poison soup calls into doubt whether it’s actually poison, so a minister tries some and collapses. By that point, Maomao has rushed to the fountain to wash out her mouth, but Jinshi is still concerned.

Maomao gives him her sweetest doe eyes and asks if she can have more poison, but he’s not there to enable her. As he takes her by the hand to the infirmary for a proper purge, she notes that he’s acting more adult while ironically appearing younger; she notes that she “prefers him like this, somewhat,” but when she sees that even he has a hairpin, her mind wanders who gave it to him.

Once Maomao has taken “the good drugs” and purged all traces of the poison from her body, she asks Jinshi to bring Lady Lishu and her taster before her for some questions. Almost immediately upon arriving, Lishu strarts scratching at her sleeve, which Maomao lifts to reveal a nasty rash.

Maomao has seen this before, including with her own body: she doesn’t use the words “allergic reaction”, but she understands what’s happening and that it’s caused by certain foods. In her case, it’s buckwheat, but in Lishu’s case, it’s mackerel.

Maomao goes on to note that Lishu and Gyokuyou’s dishes must have been swapped, and she gives Lishu’s food taster a good long stern look and gives her a list of things to avoid if she wants to keep Lishu alive and happy. Maomao leaves out the “…or else you’ll fell the wrath of the emperor”, because that’s implied.

And so not long after saving Lady Lihua from toxic makeup, she’s saved Lady Lishu from a negligent food taster. She continues to demonstrate her indispensable ability to identify causes of problems and formulating solutions.

She may not know who poisoned the soup, but it’s another instance in an ongoing pattern of incidents Jinshi is keeping a close eye on, and I’m sure he’ll continue to rely on Maomao for council where medicine is concerned, while also ensuring she doesn’t get overexcited and kill herself with that sweet, sweet poison.

The Saint’s Magic Power is Omnipotent – S2 03 – Ballin’ Out

Sei is unexpectedly summoned to the Royal Palace for not one but two official events: her official debut as the Kingdom’s Saint, and the royal ball later that night. It is reiterated that Sei can be rather insecure and unconfident about such things, as she lacks the self esteem she should have.

However, whenever Al takes her hands in his, as he does when he offers to be her escort, Sei feels a lot better. The morning after she spends the night in the palace, the maids don’t hide their excitement at the prospect of dressing her up not once, but twice.

Sei is less enthusiastic, especially when she considers herself unworthy of the intricate white robes of the Holy Saint. But once again, as His Majesty introduces her to his assembled court at the debut ceremony, Sei finds that Al is in attendance, offering her a smile of support, and her spirits are buoyed.

That’s also the case when Liz stops by to see Sei in her Holy Saint vestments. She brings along a friend, Rayne, the second prince of Salutania. He was eager to meet her, and also to apologize on his behalf of his brother. Seeing Liz and Rayne so happy to see her, Sei stops regretting going through with the ceremony.

When they encounter one another other in their ballroom duds, both Al and Sei play a back-and-forth game of who can make the most Shoujo Manga Face. It hurts a bit when Sei tells Al not to say she’s beautiful when she clearly is, and also when she’s not able to tell him how beautful he is. The two simply end up embarrassed when the royal herald and maids loitering in the hallway tell them it’s time to line up for the ball.

If I had a complaint, it’s that Sei and Al don’t actually get to dance for very long. I feel like Bell and Ais got more time. Nevertheless, the pair oozes chemistry and grace, and both Sei’s butter yellow dress and Al’s blue suit reminded me of Belle and the Beast in the Disney film.

Etiquette dictates that Sei not dance with the same partner twice, so with a lot of ball left to go, she is protected by Al and Johan from randos who might want to curry favor or even propose to her. Johan dances with her first, followed by Yuri and Erhart.

While having tea with Liz and Aira the next day, Sei mentions how she had no idea men lead in different ways, since her only partner for a while had been her dance teacher. When Liz asks her who her favorite was, Sei hesitates. She says she’s not sure, but c’mon. It was Al. I know that, you know that, and Liz sure as hell knows that!

The tension builds after the credits as Johan tells Sei that she must have received a number of fresh invitations from members of the court and nobility, but the palace likely politely declined them on her behalf. The herald once again summons her to the palace for an important matter, suggesting perhaps the subject of her future husband will be broached.

Spy x Family – 26 (S2 01) – Burdens of the Butthurt

After a mostly serious encounter between Loid and his target Donovan Desmond closed out its first two-cour season, Spy X Family returns to its spy sitcom roots and shows that Wit Studio x Cloverworks haven’t skipped a beat. The show looks and sounds just as good, and comes with fresh, inventive OP and ED with two suitably bangin’ songs.

It also eases us in with the simplest of premises this week: Yor got shot in the butt on her latest assassin job, and while she (presumably) got the bullet out, it still hurts like hell. When she comes home, Loid mistakenly believes she’s in a bad mood because he made her run an errand, but the next morning her face is even more sour (Yor’s face game is in rare form this week).

As Yor can’t very well tell Loid why she’s making such faces—nor can Anya, who knows because she’s a telepath—Loid believes he needs to improve Yor’s mood in order to shore up their marriage of convenience, and that means a carefully curated date.

He leaves Anya with Franky, but when Anya says she wants to tail her parents, Franky is all for it, as he has nothing better to do. Loid discovers the tail instantly, but pretends not to notice. What he can’t help but notice, however, is that throughout their date, Yor simply won’t sit down. She can’t, because she fears her butt will hurt more than it already does.

At the fancy restaurant where Loid got a reservation for dinner, Yor has to at least pretend to sit at the table while keeping her tookus an inch from the seat. By dumb luck, a new waiter at this restaurant just happens to be the only survivor of Yor’s mission. Anya can sense his intent to kill her from outside, which could lead to her revealing her assassin skills.

The waiter’s first attempt is to use a whole blowfish worth of poison on Yor, but as an assassin she’s built an immunity to most poisons, including this one. But while the poison doesn’t kill her, it does offer extraordinary pain relief. Finally able to sit, focus, and relax, Yor starts to enjoy herself.

His first avenging plot foiled, the waiter is prepared to build a makeshift bomb and blow both Yor and himself to smithereens. Anya, having heard his plans in her mind, dons a new black spy suit, infiltrates the restaurant via the ventilation system, and sets up a Home Alone-style gauntlet of booby traps that defeat him.

Where she got the spy suit so quickly, and how she’s able to follow the bomb making directions so perfectly, hardly matters; we’re dealing with heightened reality here! What matters is that Anya is a complete badass when she warns the waiter to give up trying to kill Yor and get back to his ordinary job and girlfriend.

Of course, if the waiter hadn’t been there, Yor would have never been able to enjoy her dinner, or the walk afterwards which affords a beautiful view of the city and traveling amusement park. The whole reason she sucked it up to go with Loid is that she didn’t want to blow their cover by never going on dates, which would have made her co-workers suspicious.

But now that she’s gone on a date, she had a lot of fun, and wants to do it again if it isn’t too much trouble…when her butt doesn’t hurt. Loid says he’d love to take her on another date soon. Alas, the next morning the blowfish poison has worn off, Yor is back in agony, and Loid once again mistakes her demeanor as being in a bad mood.

Honestly, this episode had me at “shot in the butt”, which is not only an inherently funny situation, but also just funny to say. Hayami Saori’s “butt-hurt voice” is also funny, as are all the date scenes of her standing when she should be sitting. I’m sure things will get more serious again at some point this season, but for now I’m enjoying the silliness.

I’ll close by adding: is Yor’s domestic life starting to adversely affect her assassining? Not only did she get shot in the butt, but the waiter wasn’t the shooter. That means she allowed two people to survive when she thought she was done, both of whom overheard her phone conversation. Seems kinda sloppy for the Thorn Princess!

Oshi no Ko – 05 – My Love With a Star Begins Now

Ruby and Kana are like two cats who for whatever reason just don’t like each other. Yet Kana is Ruby’s best chance to become an idol ASAP, so Aqua agrees to help set up a meet. Kana’s preferred junk food comes in the form of positive online buzz. When she reads a comment that, like her, has all kinds of feelings about the creepy hot guy, she can’t help but blush,

Then she gets a text from that very guy, and it sounds like he wants to confess. Kana’s disappointment over it being a meeting for Ruby’s sake is overcome by her fascination with Ruby. Kana’s been around long enough to know when someone has “It” in the way Ai did, and Ruby has that same “It”. Remember that Kana has no idea Ruby and Aqua are Ai’s kids.

That promise she sees in Ruby, combined with Aqua reading her like an open book and picking the proper method to persuade her, results in Kana signing on the dotted line to become a Strawberry idol beside Ruby. With that settled, Kana at least looks forward to having more opportunities to see and work with Aqua. Then she asks Ruby what Aqua is up to.

Ruby pulls up the reality dating show bearing the title of this article, and features six gorgeous entertainers looking for love. The Aqua who appears and introduces himself bears no resemblance to the boy Ruby and Kana know, but as Miyako points out, he’s putting on the performance he needs to in order to make the show a success.

Ruby and Kana’s reactions to Aqua flirting with other pretty girls are fun, but Miyako snaps them out of their initial resentment and gets them to remember it’s all an act. But even if that’s the case, Kana is disheartened by the prospect of Aqua actually ending up in a relationship with one of those girls…even kissing her.

But as Miyako says, that comes with the territory. Aqua is doing this for vital intel on Ai’s male companions he can’t obtain by any other means, so he’s going to give it his absolute all. Even if the bubbly YouTuber Mem-Cho is a tremendous bore, he’s going to smile feign interest.

It’s when he ends up beside the pretty first-year model Sumi Yuki that a bit of small talk ends up becoming a conversation about the complicated love he’s “trying to get over”. Sumi is intrigued and digs deeper, eventually drawing in close to say they’ll just have to get him over that old love.

It’s just ambiguous enough whether Sumi is putting on a show for the cameras she only later reveals to Aqua (a rare case of not minding his surroundings brought on by her charm), or she’s being genuinely open and friendly. It’s probably a bit of both truth and lies, like so many real interactions! In any case, Aqua scoffs internally at her self-professed timidity.

Back home, Ruby tells Aqua she’ll be choosing the girl he should go out with, and ends up picking Sumi. What a coinky-dink! As for her nascent idol group, they don’t have any songs or even a name, but Miyako jump-starts their notoriety by having them collaborate with Strawberry Productions’ top earner: a muscle man in a chick mask named Pieyon who is super popular with the kids.

I shared Kana’s bewilderment with what young people are into these days and how that reflects on how warped society has become, but when Pieyon tells her how much he rakes in a year, she immediately apologizes for negging him. Pieyon offers pointers on quick ways to gain lots of subscribers, like having him pull a prank on them. But Ruby wants their very first gig to be bereft of lies.

While she’ll soon learn that always being honest in show business is literally impossible, she and Kana do a fine job keeping up with Pieyon’s hour-long workout dance. He was fully prepared to edit the video to make it seem like they danced for the full hour, but between Kana being a regular runner and Kana being full of youth and determination, there’s no need for movie magic.

Then the big moment comes when they get to remove their chick masks and reveal true faces and names. Ruby gives the camera the old Hoshino charm, while Kana is a little more self-conscious, which is actually fine: demonstrating different personalities will help them cast a wider net of fans, the first group of which will come from Pieyon’s followers.

When Pieyon asks what the name of their unit is, Kana leaves it to Ruby, who goes with the nostalgic choice of B-Komachi. That’s right, from these humble, goofy, swole beginnings, Ruby aims resurrect her mom’s legendary group, for which Strawberry retains the rights.

Tomo-chan Is a Girl! – 09 – Carolization

Kousuke describes himself as a sullen boy in his earlier years, preferring books to the tedium of other people. He was miffed when his mother described Carol as an angel, but then he got his first look at her, and became a believer. There she was, an real-life angel in the flesh. And that was it. He was in love.

After the warehouse incident, Kousuke wants to get stronger. He goes to the right place for that: the Aizawa Dojo. But he soon learns just how out of his league he is, whether it’s Tomo, her dad, or Jun. He also doesn’t realize how much it irks Jun when he talks about wanting Tomo to “acknowledge” him. Of course, Kousuke isn’t after Tomo that way.

Like Jun, Carol gets the wrong idea about Kousuke training at Tomo’s house (and she doesn’t even hear that he was in her bed when Jun knocked him out!). Carol is pissed, and decides to get back at Tomo by claiming Jun for a day, then telling Misuzu in passing that she shouldn’t think she’ll “get her way”. Misuzu always knew Carol concealed an edge, but even she’s taken aback to see that edge fully bared.

Carol comes right out and tells Jun the score: she was mean to Misuzu earlier, and by being with him she’s being mean to Tomo, but right now she just wants to blow off some steam. Jun assures her that Tomo won’t be quick to give up on a friend just because they were mean to her. Then Jun and Carol somehow end up in his room, and she kisses him and jumps on top of him.

She doesn’t take things any further, but when Carol asks him why he’s so scared of women, and how if that doesn’t change he might have problems with Tomo down the road. Partly because he’s terrified of Carol and partly because he wants to prove her wrong, Jun runs next door and gives Tomo a big hug. Carol follows her to apologize to both. She’s let off her steam, and now she’s headed home.

The next day Carol tells Kousuke she hung out with Jun, including in his bedroom, and is treated to a “really weird face”. She reports this to Misuzu, who wonders if Kousuke has ever seen Carol being serious. When she meets with him, she and we get the gist of Kousuke’s deal. He loves Carol, but the thought of getting closer to her terrifies him, because he believes he’s weak, and she’s still so dazzling to him it’s hard to even look at her.

Misuzu rightly deduces that Kousuke needs to see Carol’s vulnerable side, in order to shatter his longstanding ideal of her as an untouchable goddess. But to do so, Misuzu has to be cruel. She tells Carol a lie; that Kousuke doesn’t like her that way, and that when she told him about Jun, it was more like a father giving away her bride than jealousy. Misuzu fully expects Carol not to break that eternal grin, but the face Carol makes is so startling that Misuzu, Tomo, and Jun alike are stunned.

Carol heads home early, and Misuzu quickly gets with Kousuke to tell him to go see Carol immediately to resolve the situation. Once he’s viciously headbutted by Carol’s mom, he enters her room to find neither an angel nor a goddess, but a lonely girl crying her eyes out because she believes the boy she loves doesn’t love her back.

Kousuke steels himself, knowing there’s no going back, and pulls Carol out of the darkness by telling her Misuzu was lying to put her in “a vulnerable state”. Then he tells her, straight up, that he loves her. Carol immediately brightens up and even gleefully shouts banzai before advancing on Kousuke, whereupon her mom blows a whistle and declares that will be enough of that for now.

Carol’s mom later tells Kousuke that she once told Carol she looks cuter when she smiles, only to find she started to smile and never stopped. She constantly worries that someone might take that smile away, but Kousuke assures her he’ll never do that, and that Carol has more friends now who have her back through thick and thin.

That comes through the next day when Carol returns to class wearing a creepy bunny mask, filling a guilty Misuzu with apprehension. She removes the mask to reveal a big goofy smile, and instead of punish or scold Misuzu, she thanks her for pulling the not-always-pleasant but necessary strings to bring her and Kousuke together.

And that, dear readers, is how the chaotic comic relief character absolutely steals Tomo’s show, like snatching candy from a large, muscular baby. All hail Carol Olsten and Sally Amaki, long may they reign!

Tomo-chan Is a Girl! – 08 – The End of Now

This week was a non-stop smorgasbord of excellence, starting with a girl’s sleepover in which Carol perfectly imitates Misuzu when Tomo won’t. That is to say, Sally Amaki perfectly imitates Hidaka Rina, while Takahashi Rie voices Tomo with her usual exquisite blend of haminess and sweetness. Sweet ham!

When Misuzu wins “King”, she orders Tomo to ask Jun to go to the fireworks together—just the two of them. They all go next door, Tomo asks, and Jun agrees easily, but also seems a little out of it to Tomo?

That night, as Carol snuggles with Tomo, Misuzu is almost on the verge of tears as she rues the day she ever set Tomo on a path that would only take her further away from her.

And yet Misuzu also quietly declares there’s “no going back”, and probably wouldn’t even if she could. That morning, she mysteriously wakes up right next to Tomo while Carol is sleeping peacefully in the bed.

Carol also invites Misuzu to join her and Kousuke at the festival, and while Misuzu doesn’t want to be a third wheel, Carol won’t let her be alone. That said, Kousuke demonstrates how easily Carol gets lost in crowds, and how quickly he’s learned how to retrieve her. Misuzu says he must “have it rough”, but Kousuke would never say or think that.

As for Tomo, she shows up looking so damn good in her red yukata, she is briefly too dazzling for Jun’s eyes, and she causes a sensation with the festival workers who can’t believe what a beauty she’s become. She and Jun-bo are notorious for winning every game they can throw at them.

And yet, as tough as Tomo is, she still freezes up when a couple of older guys try to chat her up. She makes the mistake of saying she doesn’t have a boyfriend, which only makes them more interested. But when Jun firmly pulls her away, the guys can just tell that a real Capital-C Couple is walking away.

Tomo starts to think that Jun’s shift in behavior is because he’s finally starting to notice her, but the truth is he hasn’t stopped noticing her since she confessed her love to him. Turns out he assumed she didn’t mean that kind of love. These two…I swear to God…

Tomo decides she’s going to try to confess again before the fireworks, but then realizes that when she does, it will be “the end of now, and the start of something.” That’s pretty damn poetic for Tomo! But it also happens to be true: not being quite sure exactly what “something” means, it’s always easier to settle back into “now”.

But “now” is already long gone for Jun, as after Tomo says goodbye to him, he admits that while he hasn’t quite sorted out all his feelings, he knows for sure that he’ll never be able to punch Tomo in the face again.

The next day at school, Tomo is full of long, restless sighs, as ever since the fireworks, Tomo has seemingly treated her with kid gloves, only grazing her shoulder with his pinky in the morning (which I agree is creepy!) She tells Misuzu and Carol about it, and Carol later tells Misuzu that exactly what she planned is going down…and Misuzu doesn’t want to hear it.

She may have helped facilitate Tomo getting closer to Jun, but she’s starting to regret it, in part since it could mean less Tomo for her down the road. It’s not clear whether Misuzu has romantic feelings for Tomo, but you could definitely interpret it that way.

Needless to say, she’s in a sour mood, which is not improved when the thugs who Tomo and Jun beat up before decide to target her. Her sharp, venomous tone and dark aura momentarily stun them, but alone aren’t enough to keep them at bay.

When Carol shows up, Misuzu tells the thugs that Carol “has nothing to do” with her or Tomo. As they start to escor Misuzu away, Carol whips out a stun gun and zaps the hell out of the thug leader. But when Misuzu takes her hand for them to escape together, Carol twists out of her grip…and faceplants in a mud puddle.

Misuzu and Carol hide out in a warehouse, where Misuzu says she only said she had nothing to do with Carol to protect her, and even says the truth is she considers her like “something of” a friend. That’s enough for Carol to forgive her and try to give her an enormous Carol Olsten bear hug. But it’s also enough to give away their position the thugs.

Fortunately, Misuzu and Carol don’t have to stew in terror for long, as that terror becomes the exclusive property of the thugs once Tomo and Jun arrive. Misuzu actually called Jun and specifically told him not to tell Tomo, but of course Tomo could see the murderous intent in Jun’s face (even Jun has an amazing face game this week!) and insisted on coming along.

When Jun makes it about him and accuses her of not trusting him to handle a few punks, she immediately corrects him. This isn’t about her not thinking he can handle himself. It’s about how completely against her entire being to sit around in safety while her friends are in danger. Her friends, her fight. Jun does smack one of the guys unconscious with withering nonchalance before Tomo yells at him to stand down and let her cook.

I hasten to add that Kousuke also learned that Carol was in danger and followed Tomo and Jun. While those to are fighting, he looks for the girls, and finds Misuzu helping Carol take off her wet muddy clothes. Kousuke assumes the thugs did something indecent to his Carol and Tomo and Jun have to work hard to keep him away from said thugs before Carol clears up the misunderstanding. I see you Ko-chan!

After the fight, Misuzu tells the others to buzz off so she can have a private chat with the defeated thugs. She explains to them that Tomo is the only daughter of the head of the Aizawa Dojo (whom they know to be a famous master delinquent) and promises the thug leader that he’ll be held personally responsible if any of the punks he’s gathered come near her, Tomo, or Carol again. It’s Mizusu at her most hostile, threatening, and scary.

Jun hangs back anyway to walk Mizusu home, citing the fact that scary she may be, she’s still a girl. Mizusu points out that so is Tomo, and immediately regrets it as Jun then starts talking about Tomo in a way Mizusu would rather not hear. She doesn’t want to hear it from him or “that squishy bitch”, which might just be the best nickname ever.

Balancing genuinely funny comedy with genuinely sweet romance and genuinely powerful drama…it’s just Tomo-Chan Is a Girl! and its immensely talented seiyuu firing on all cylinders.

Bocchi the Rock! – 11 – Calm Before the Concert

Thankfully, last week’s “Bocchi’s Gone Missing!” cliffhanger is resolved quickly; she wasn’t anxious about the concert, but embarrassed to be seen in a maid outfit by her bandmates. Thanks to Kita’s cheerfully withering analysis, they’re able to find her in the darkest, moistest place, like where you’d find a slug.

Once the band is together at the festival, Nijika takes the lead and it becomes not just a band wandering around before their next big show, but four friends hanging out and having tons of fun together. It’s Bocchi’s first school event, and the fact she’s with Nijika, Ryou and Kita makes it not just tolerable, but genuinely enjoyable.

Kita eventually realizes Bocchi is stalling so she doesn’t have to work at the maid café, so after several festival detours they head to her class, where she’s posted at the entrance to greet customers. When post-apocalyptic hooligans show up to intimidate her, her lack of reaction and the face she makes immediately cows them; they’re unaware she’s passed out on her feet.

When Bocchi serves her friends in all her maidly glory, they comment how how great she looks in frilly stuff, while Ryou, always the enterprising young woman, conceptualizes ways they can cash in on her cuteness by dressing her up various ways so their videos will get more views.

But while she looks the tops, her maid “deliciousness spell” is more like a curse that actually makes the omurice less appetizing. Kita shows Bocchi how it’s done, blending her usual patented Kit-aura with a borrowed maid outfit. Bocchi’s classmates notice, and before long all of Kessoku Band is working at the cafe (Ryou eventually adopting Boy Style, much to Kita’s glee).

Bocchi takes a break, but that allows her to enter her 3D CGI mind palace where a crude model of her slams into hundreds of cubes. She’s worried that the “reception gap” between her and her bandmaids will carry over to their concert.

Before heading to STARRY to practice, the band heads to the gym where they’ll be playing just to get a sense of the place (Nijika and Ryou having never been there). The size of the place gets them all fired up. At practice, Nijika and Ryou have the kind of mini-spat old friends have over the value of MCing.

Bocchi also notices…something about Kita that concerns her. My guess is Kita has been going full speed ahead in preparation for this concert and is exhausted. I worried that the next day she’d be ill. By the same measure, Kita tells Bocchi she’ll do fine because she’s so…but then she trails off without finishing her sentence. I wonder what she was going to say?

After drinking in the autumnal twilight, the girls part ways. I love the little snapshots of their individual home lives we get. The next morning, Bocchi is present and accounted for, and as a welcome change of pace, is not having any kind of meltdown or panic attack.

On the contrary, she actually dives into a positive daydream in which a big producer at the school discovers and signs them on the spot, culminating in subway column posters and  a vision of Mister Guitar driving a Kessoku Band-themed semi truck across America.

Once Bocchi has returned to the real world, the hype and anticipation reaches its peak, as Kessoku Band waits in the darkness for their turn on stage. Bocchi is clear-eyed and determined, and even if her heartbeat is so loud Ryou mistakes it for the other band’s drumming, that’s to be expected considering the magnitude of their undertaking. Nijika brings everyone’s hands together for a final confidence and togetherness-boosting cheer.

Just like that, Kessoku Band is on stage, no surprise mishaps or setbacks. Everyone is healthy, wants to be there, and is ready to go. At first Bocchi feels a little lonely when the only cheers she hears are those from Kita’s fans. But then she hears her family, who will be watching her perform for the first time. Her fans from her street concert are there, as is a sauced Kikuri, being kept in line by Seika.

Family, friends, classmates, mentor, and a whole lot of strangers who are about to find out who she is and what she’s made of … one couldn’t ask for a better setup for a show that should prove to be the culmination of all the ups and downs and all those days, weeks and months alone in her dark cramped closet practicing away. It’s all about to pay off, I hope in the best way. No bombing up there—You all got this!

Bocchi the Rock! – 10 – Getting Psychedelic

In her classroom daydreams, Bocchi is already good to perform in a packed arena with thousands chanting her (real) name. But in reality, the idea of playing in the school festival is still too frightening. Nevertheless, its been an actual dream and goal of hers for so long, she enters a semi-fugue state where she fills out the form and is about to slip it into the box.

Unsure how she got to this point and shocked by what her unconscious self was about to do, she collapses in the hall, and wakes up in the nurse’s with Kita beside her bed (and quotes Shinji). At this point I thought the form had already been submitted, but it’s there on a nearby table, and after being intimidated by videos of school concerts and worried about the “fervor gap” between her and the other band members, Bocchi tosses the form in the trash.

At STARRY, she puts herself in a trash can, but when she talks with Seika and PA-san, they tell her to err on the side of striking while the high school iron is hot (even though Seika didn’t care about high school and PA dropped out). Nijika and Ryou, who performed separately in middle school also think she should go for it, even though Ryou knows that the big crowd will be a challenge.

Despite some encouraging words in favor of doing the festival, Bocchi sleeps on it (or doesn’t sleep on it) and decides she just can’t do it. Unfortunately for her, Kita informs her the next day that she found the form in the trash, thought it was an accident, and turned it in. Bocchi goes full Picasso, and back at STARRY eschews the trash can for a coffin.

The one who ends up causing her to rise again is Kikuri, who has come to give both Bocchi and the rest of the band free tix for her gig that night. Once it comes to light to Seika that both Kikuri and Ryou still owe Bocchi money, and makes them pay her back, the four girls and Kikuri head to Shinjuku FOLT, Kikuri’s “home base”.

While the crowds at the train station and some of the folks in the club initially scare Bocchi into turning tail, she’s also comforted by the atmosphere of the club—not STARRY, but still dark and a little cramped in a good way—and when she meets Kikuri’s bandmates in SICK HACK, she learns they’re three very different people who somehow strike a kind of balance.

That balance becomes even more apparent once SICK HACK starts playing. Bocchi forgets she’s in a packed house with over two hundred strangers and simply gets lost in the precise, inviting psychedelic rock. In addition to the bassist Kikuri is also lead vocals, and Bocchi is pulled in by her charisma.

It might be the first time she’s watched a “grown-up” pro band live, and it’s a seminal experience. It also cements her belief that being a rocker is the finest profession a human can have. It, quite simply, rules. I only wish we had gotten to watch the full show, and the monochrome crowd looks a little muddy, but this isn’t Kikuri the Rock!, so I get it.

At the end of the show, Bocchi chats with Kikuri some more in the green room, and Kikuri, who we know by now is a lot more emotionally intelligent than she looks, knows something’s off. Bocchi loved the show, but it discouraged her a bit, because she lacks Kikuri’s effortless charisma.

That’s when Kikuri tells Bocchi that she used to be just like her in high school—a gloomy, nervous misfit in the corner. She used to daydream about her future, thought it was lame, and joined a band to “pull a 180” in her life, but before her first show she was so anxious she had to drink—a perhaps unwise habit she’s kept at ever since.

It’s important that Bocchi hear this from Kikuri—particularly that doing anything the first time is scary for everyone. But Kikuri has now watched her perform in public twice and did fine without booze. Bocchi is cheered up and encouraged enough that she invites Kikuri to the festival, indirectly endorsing the fact that Kessoku Band will indeed be performing.

Kita, Nijika and Ryou are excited, but there’s a lot to do: their fifteen minute slot means they’ll have to practice for three songs, and they’re ditching the usual seishun theme of school concerts by going with three originals, including a Bocchi solo in the middle so she can shine.

After dinner, Kita confesses to Bocchi that she knew she tossed the form out on purpose, but submitted it anyway, because she wanted the school to see how awesome Bocchi was. She feels terrible about what she did and apologizes profusely, but Bocchi thanks her. She was stuck on the fence, but Kita and Kikuri were there to give her the little push she needed, and now she’s looking forward to the festival.

I’m not going to pay any mind to the last-second cliffhanger where we fast-forward to the festival and Bocchi has freakin’ gone missing, because I simply cannot believe that their festival concert won’t happen! But it was great to see Kikuri shine, demonstrate what a good person she is, and yes, punch a wall in excitement! Rock and Roll!

Summertime Render – 08 – Curry Rhythm

Shinpei finds himself in a similar situation as Akari in Virgin Road—his loops aren’t as repetitive as he expected. New and unexpected things are happening, which means the utility of his foreknowledge (beyond broad strokes) is limited. Rather than meet Ushio the day of the festival by the water, they reunite right there in his kitchen. Not only that, Ushio knows that something terrible will happen on the 24th.

Perhaps whatever of the original Ushio is in this Shadow was drawn to his curry, but the why doesn’t matter; she’s there. At first, Shinpei follows Minakata’s advice, and even prepares to kill “it” when Ushio is wide open. But he can’t, because even though her shadow tickles when he touches it, this Shadow also happens to be Ushio Reincarnate.

There’s no hint of malice in this Ushio…until of course her swimsuit disappears, giving Shinpei a peek of the Full Ushy. Shinpei trusts this Ushio, who also wants to protect their family and friends like the original would. That means keeping her secret from Mio, though how Mio doensn’t hear her hollerin’ from the next prefecture I don’t know.

The first Mio to peek in is the real one, but the second is Shadow Mio, switching up her game by entering the Kofune household for the first time. She goes straight for Shin’s heart, but Ushio comes between them, sacrificing herself to save Shin for the second time in as many encounters. Nezu then manages to blow Shadow Mio’s head off from outside with a sniper rifle.

Shinpei uses that moment to stab Mio’s shadow, but before she vanishes she still tries to convince Shinpei that he killed the real Mio, demonstrating again how one can’t trust a Shadow for a moment, because that moment might be your last. Even so, Ushio is different—Shadow Mio even considers her a traitor—and when Hizuru in Ryunosuke Mode comes in to kill her, Shin shields her.

Hizuru naturally assumed Shinpei has fallen for a Shadow’s tricks, and they have no reason not to. And yet, even she has to admit there’s something different about her. Not only that, she has to credit Ushio in some form with bringing her to the island in the first place. She still has the recording telling her to go back, find Shinpei, and save everyone.

That said, Hizuru still isn’t ready to trust Ushio quite yet—she only just barely trusts Shinpei—lest the evil Shadows either “fix” Ushio (by making her evil like them) or use her like a conduit to foil her plans to rescue the island and kill her. Before they part for the night and possibly longer, Shinpei tells her not to die, like she did the first time they met on the island.

The next day, Shinpei recruits another person he can trust—Sou, whom Ushio surprises by popping up behind him in a disguise. Sou’s reaction is only the latest in a long sequence of excellent contorted faces that are this episode’s specialty. Sou is a self-pitying mess, but Ushio literally kicks him out of it, telling him that they don’t have a use for crybabies in their quest to save everyone from the Shadows.

Whatever he regrets, he can make up for it now. Can these crafty kids, with help from an author and hunter, prevent that future calamity at the festival? Judging from this series’ two-cour run, perhaps not at first. More loops are almost assured, but Shinpei has already made progress. Perhaps he and his friends will make a little more before Return By Death kicks in again.

Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie – 06 – There’s Always This Year

Izumi is still recovering from the sunburn he incurred at the river, but he’s still not missing the fireworks festival for the world. Shikimori says yes before he can even ask her to join him, and to his credit he doesn’t invite their other friends; this is a Capital-D date. Turns out Shikimori gets a little tangled up with her obi, but her brother helps her out. It’s a side of her we don’t often see.

Izumi comes fully prepared for a number of potential mishaps (including three separate wallets!) but nothing goes wrong as he gets to behold Shikimori in all her majestic pink glory. They take in the sights, and Izumi gets some cotton candy. It’s a bit too sweet for Shikimori, but she’s come around on sweet things since she and Izumi started dating.

When Izumi tries and fails to win a wolf plushie for Shikimori, she takes the rifle and vows to give it a try, engendering a chuckle from the attendant. She quickly avails him of his sexist belief by flashing the eyes of a huntress and shooting not only the wolf but everything else on the shelves. Her serious look is followed up by one of her biggest, sweetest smiles.

After spending a bit (but not too much) time with Neko, Inu, and Yui, misfortune strikes, but it’s Shikimori, not Izumi, on the receiving end: the strap of her sandal breaks. Izumi is able to fix it, but her feet end up covered in blisters. Izumi admits he wanted to take her somewhere special to view the fireworks, but it’s a bit of a walk and he doesn’t want her walking anymore. So he stoops down and tells her to hop on his back.

That’s right: Izumi may not look it but he’s pretty strong; certainly strong enough to carry his squeeze the required distance to the secluded spot. Shikimori is initially worried she’ll “snap him in two”, but she’s not as heavy as she thinks, nor is Izumi as weak as she thought. It’s a wonderful reversal for a show that so far has Shikimori providing most of the muscle. Izumi is unlucky, but not inept, and quite capable when it counts.

Sure enough, they’re all alone up at the top of the shrine grounds, and have a seat at a bench perfectly positioned for viewing the remainder of the fireworks. Shikimori has never seen them live, and Izumi admits that last year he was to scared to ask her to see them.

They were just friends at the time, and he was worried it would ruin what they had. Turns out Shikimori was waiting that whole night for him to call and invite her! But it doesn’t matter whether they didn’t go together last year. They’re there now, together, and they’ll be back next year.

As for the long walk back down those steps, Izumi doesn’t get far without slipping and falling with Shikimori on his back. Fortunately, his very stealthy dad swoops in Shikimori-style to save them both. Turns out Izumi’s folks came to the same spot to view the fireworks, and were sitting on a blanket just behind the lovebirds. Izumi’s dad was once strong enough to carry four people according to his mom, so he and Shikimori are no problem.

All in all, it’s another solid, sweet outing for our purple-and-pink-haired power duo. I feel an opportunity was missed for a kiss, or transition to a first-name-basis, but it was otherwise such a lovely time I really didn’t mind.