A Condition Called Love – 03 – Unlimited Overtime

A commenter in the ANN forum on this show made a very good point that made me want to reassess the show so far: this show is clearly aware that Hananoi’s more obsessive behaviors are problematic. Fortunately, while he does loom over her at the end of last week’s episode, he ends up collapsing due to his fever from waiting in the cold for Hotaru all morning.

Hotaru calls his grandma and goes home, and feels awful for asking Hananoi to do something that means so much to him, just to see if she’d feel anything. I think she’s being a little harsh on herself, but like Hananoi, that’s something she needs to work on. She’s always thought she was just some NPC, but to him, she’s a princess.

A couple of days pass, and the day their trial run ends arrives. It’s Christmas Eve, and they were supposed to go on a date, but Hotaru assumes it’s not going to happen, either because he’s still ill or because he’s sick of her. She recalls a past instance of unintentionally hurting a friend of hers, but missing the opportunity to properly apologize and drifting apart.

When her little sister’s ice skating costume rips and she needs Hotaru to rush to the skating rink with a sewing kit, Hotaru is resigned to having the same Christmas Eve she always has with her family. But then Hananoi arrives there, having remembered her mentioning her sister’s skating. He still wants to take her out on a date, and Hotaru is surprised by how relieved she feels to see him again.

She may not be aware, but the longing she felt those past two days … well, that’s pretty much love, isn’t it? She felt bad about what went down at his place, but she also missed him. After she presents him to her family (whose jaws drop at the hottie she scored) they go out on a cute, fun, low-key date with food, shopping, light viewing, and skating.

When the lights temporarily go out, Hananoi describes all of the reasons he likes Hotaru, and points out that those things aren’t normal. Not everyone is as kind and curious and generous as she is. She’s special, and he wanted her to have a special day, because he managed to find out that Christmas Eve is also her birthday.

When she slips on her skates, she catches her in a princess carry, and the lights come back on. Hotaru is struck by how many new things she’s started to feel since her trial with Hananoi began, and isn’t ready for it to end. So after he escorts her home, she asks if they can keep the trial going. Naturally, he’s fine with her extending it indefinitely.

Hananoi felt notably less creepy this week, even if he still tries way too hard sometimes at the cost of his own well-being. But I think the more time he spends with Hotaru, the more even-keeled he’ll learn to become, just as the more time she spends with him, the more she’ll learn about what it is to love.

It’s just a shame this was not a particularly nice episode to look at. I fear I’ve been so spoiled by the likes of No-holds-barred powerhouses like Dangers in My Heart that I probably won’t be continuing with this one.

A Condition Called Love – 02 – That Boy Ain’t Right

Hmm … Well. That’s what I get for giving this bizarre pairing the benefit of the doubt, I guess! Something is very very off with Hananoi Saki, and someone as inexperienced and oblivious as Hotaru does not possess the tools to see it. That’s a formula for potential disaster, but like a train wreck, I can’t look away … if only because I’m so worried about Hotaru’s well-being!

Hotaru has caring friends who are happy if she’s happy, and have her side no matter what. But to them, and one of Hananoi’s male classmates who is dating one of her friends, Hananoi is a complete mystery man. All they can say is he must have good taste if he chose Hotaru, but what if it’s not a matter of taste, but timing?

Hananoi only became fixated on Hotaru after she showed him a gesture of kindness after his last breakup. Back then, it looked from the outside like the other girl was being too harsh, but now her exasperation makes a lot more sense. Hotaru is indeed experiencing new things like the thrill of waiting for someone in the cold before dawn and holding hands with a boy. But the cost of experiencing those things may be too much to bear.

Not only is Hananoi clear this week he has no intention of being just friends with Hotaru if this dating trial doesn’t work out, but it’s clear he’s hiding from her just how much he wants to do with (or possibly to) her, and also seems miffed that there are parts of her life that don’t involve him. Just look at that shot of him watching her talking to friends—he’s framed and lit like a villain plotting something awful!

Now, to his credit, the weeks go by with Hananoi otherwise acting like a perfect gentleman—Hotaru observes that his requests in their shared notebook of things to do together are always “gentle.” But the mere fact he’s holding back is extremely problematic. So is the fact he essentially lives alone in a huge apartment with photos of his parents with him apparently cut out (are they actually dead), and, most distressingly, a fucking shrine to Hotaru hidden behind a curtain in his room.

Despite all these red flags furiously flapping in her face, Hotaru remains in a firm see-where-this-goes approach, along with constantly assessing her worth as a partner and whether she’s doing enough to be a proper girlfriend. This means she thinks almost nothing of going home with Hananoi, going into his room, and then asking if he’ll kiss her, to test if she’ll feel anything.

By the end of the episode, he’s pushed her down onto the ground and is looming on top of her, telling her that while trying out a kiss may mean little to her, simply touching her makes his whole body ache. Ack! Forget “odd duck.” I fear Hananoi requires medication and therapy, and is getting neither. He’s a loose cannon, and even he knows that Hotaru is being too trusting.

While this looks and sounds like a shoujo romance, it’s quickly feeling much more like psychological horror. My natural protective instinct compels me to keep watching, out of fear of what might happen to Hotaru, or just so that someone is keeping an eye on this dude. Is this the kind of vibes the writers/creators intended?

A Condition Called Love – 01 (First Impressions) – No Normal Person

All romance series this season will have to compete with the all-timer that was Dangers in My Heart, along with the pretty solid Sign of Affection from Winter. Like Sign, a girl who has never fallen in love has the attention of a hottie. Like Dangers, there’s the visual mismatch in terms of height and looks, only with the sexes reversed.

While Kyoutarou is a lot more emo about it, this show’s lead Hinase Hotaru is similar in that she’s content with a life without romance, because like Kyou deep down, she doesn’t think there’s any chance she’ll ever experience it. It’s less a matter of her thinking she’s deficient, just different. Not made for love.

I’ve heard some rumblings about Hananoi Saki being problematic and more than a little pushy when it comes to pursuing Hotaru. That’s fair; after all, Hotaru politely declines and he begins doing everything he can to make her like him, things she never asked for.

But he does, eventually, apologize say he’ll stop bothering her. At that point, he’s cut his hair for her, bought her a delicious pork bun, nearly caught his death of cold looking for her missing hairpin. While in Hananoi’s orbit, Hotaru can’t deny she’s thinking about him more, and feeling new feelings. Heck, she even yells at him out in the snow, and she is not a yeller!

When Hananoi is ready to walk away, Hotaru grabs his sleeve, and says she never thought she didn’t like him, and asks if it’s possible for “someone like her” to learn what it means to love someone special. Hananoi, clearly the bigger romantic of the two, assures her she will, so she takes him up on his offer to go out with each other.

One could say Hananoi “wore down” Hotaru, but I see it more as him piquing her interest in something she doesn’t know anything about but wants to learn. Similarly, Hananoi has a lot to learn too, like about how far is too far for someone else’s sake. His idea of love and hers are very different, but I think the ideal place for both of them is somewhere in the middle.

While visually not as impressive as Danger or Sign, it gets the job done just fine. The OP is a legit bop, the ED is also a nice vibe, and most importantly, the immortal Hanazawa Kana brings her A-game to the effortlessly charming Hotaru’s voice. Even in this Spring of Restraint (we’re trying to focus on no more than 10-11 shows and more concise writeups) this one has a good chance of staying on my list.

Chained Soldier – 03 – The Mistress’s Nemesis

Yuuki joins Kyouko on his first scheduled R-and-R, and gets to see Kyouko in civilian going-out clothes for the first time. A quasi-date ensues, starting with a somber first stop at the memorial dedicated to Kyouko’s village, which was massacred by Shuuki led by one high-level monster she calls Unihorn. She won’t rest until she’s found it and taken it out, properly avenging her village.

Perhaps in part because he wants to cheer her up and in part because he’d rather their “date” last a little longer, Yuuki convinces her to join him at a café that’s supposed to have killer parfaits. Sure enough, they taste as good as they look, and Yuuki experiences another first with Kyouko: he gets to see her smile. It’s a great smile, and I’m glad that we get to see this more joyful version of Kyouko.

Unfortunately an alarm from the 7th’s barracks cuts their day off short. Kyouko saves time getting back by having Yuuki transform and riding him, but later has to give him a reward by having him to remove her stockings. As fortune would have it, the Shuuki that caused the alarm are led by Uniforn, which is being ridden by something even Kyouko hasn’t seen before: a humanoid Shuuki that talks.

And this “Shuuki” (if that’s really what she is) talks abou her dear little brother, “the most handsome boy in the world.” The keen of ear will recognize Kusunoki Tomori voices her, and also voiced Yuuki’s big sister in an earlier flashback. Further, when she gets a good look at Yuuki’s beast form, she reacts as if she recognizes him.

Kyouko slashes through her prehensile hair and arm, causing her and Unihorn to begin to withdraw. Kyouko prepares to chase them, but Yuuki snaps her out of it when he fights off the Shuuki threatening Himari and Shushu.

Himari and Shushu will be fine, but as Kyouko delivers another reward involving stepping on his crotch with her booted, then bare foot. The juxtaposition of this … activity while she talks perfectly soberly about what just went down with that new kind of Shuuki is the best kind of absurdity, and the staff responsible for foley deserves some kind of award for the lingering sound of Kyouko’s boot on Yuuki’s crotch. Yuuki later gets help preparing dinner from Nei, is ambushed in the bath by a naked Shushu, then accidentally walks in on Himari changing. Just a day in the life of the 7th squad’s caretaker.

While Himari chases him around the barracks with a chainsaw arm, their spat is interrupted by the opening of a portal right there in the hallway. From it emerges Izumo Tenka, commander of the 6th squad, and her lieutenant, Azuma Yachiho.

Tenka takes an instant interest in Yuuki, getting right up in his face with the look of a cat that’s just cornered a bird. Methinks Kyouko may need to watch out for servant poachers, but I must say enjoyed the twist of Yuuki’s beloved big sister being the bane of the Demon Defense Force.

Hokkaido Gals Are Super Adorable! – 02 – Trusting in a Smile

In a welcome acknowledgement that she’s neither a MPDG (Manic Pixie Dream Gyaru) nor a figment of Tsubasa’s imagination, we get a slice of Minami’s family life as she shares a meal with her gorgeous mom and adorable little sister Momo. They’re going skating tomorrow, but Minami has to pass, as she’s going to the winter festival with Tsubasa.

Because she hasn’t been to the festival since elementary school, at first Minami is worried about whether she’ll have as much fun as she did back then, and is also worried that a Tokyo kid like Tsubasa would ask “Is this it?” But while the snow sculptures seem smaller (since she’s grown), she had nothing to worry about. Tsubasa’s reaction to the whole festival isn’t  “Is this it?”, but “This is IT!”

After sharing an indirect kiss-via sugared corn dog, snowball fights and snowmen making, and sledding down a hill together, Tsubasa gets them some hot amazake. But Minami doesn’t even need that to be warmed up by Tsubasa’s radiant smile, as he vocalizes how much fun he had and glad he is she came with him.

These vulnerable, blushing moments Tsubasa doesn’t seem to notice may be Minami’s cutest. Tsubasa’s easy to read, but so is she, if he’d just pay closer attention! That said, Minami does admit that being with him makes her appreciate and love her quiet Hokkaido town even more, so she’s glad she came too. Then she slips in the snow and he catches her. Daaaaaaaw.

With the promise of a visit to the bigger Sapporo festival sometime, Tsubasa and Minami are hitting it off splendidly. At school, she suggest they eat lunch together, and inadvertently gives him his very first taste of instant yakisoba. Turns out she remembers the corn dog indirect kiss too.

When he shows her his pristine homemade bento in a lacquered box, and he admits she’s exposing him to so many first times, does Minami dismiss him as a loser or a virgin? My friends, she does not. Instead, it confirms to her that he’s a spoiled rich kid!

Tsubasa doesn’t think his family is particularly rich, but Minami asks to visit his house to confirm, and he can’t say no. On the way, while Tsubasa is worried about his his granny will react to him bringing a girl home, Minami spots a snow cave made by some kids.

She climbs in with no regard to the length of her skirt and pulls Tsubasa in with her so they can escape the chill and get nice and cozy. Many double entendres ensue, culminating in a flustered Tsubasa asking her not to moan like that and climbing out.

As he does, he notices his granny standing there in the road, having overheard all of that misleadingly raunchy dialogue. Minami clings to Tsubasa and jokingly tells him he was “way too quick” and should have “enjoyed his first time [in a snow cave]”, and when she learns the woman is his granny, she enthusiastically introduces herself.

When Granny asks Minami what her relationship is, she starts to say “friends”, but Tsubasa interjects with “we’re just classmates.” Needless to say, this hurts Minami’s feelings, and he hurts them more when he hastily says goodbye and goes off with his Granny, certain that she’ll never accept Minami as a friend of his.

Rather than accept this, Minami sticks around, warning Granny about carrying an umbrella in the snow; turns out it’s dangerous to do so as one must keep their hands free in case one slips and falls. She also shows Tsubasa and his granny an alternate route that avoids black ice.

On the way, Minami makes Tsubasa understand that it wasn’t cool calling her “just a classmate,” and he admits it was hard to tell Granny what he truly considers her to be: a very important friend. When he whispers this in her ear, she blushes once more, and their first little conflict is resolved.

She ends up getting them to their giant palatial home with time to spare before an undisclosed appointment, so Granny invites her in for a cup of tea. While she may feel like she’s “getting soft” with age, Granny considers that Minami, bodacious appearance and untraditional manners aside, may actually be a lovely girl.

When she walks into the parlor to find Minami snapping photos of everything, her opinion of her is again tinged with doubt, but only until she notices how much Tsubasa is laughing and smiling as he interacts with her. She hasn’t seen him smile so brightly since he was a little kid, and she’s willing to trust in that smile, and in his choice to befriend Minami.

With the announcement of an upcoming class skiing trip, Tsubasa is happy to find that Minami is close by on the bus, but also learns he’ll be sitting next to someone named Akino. So after two episodes exclusively with Minami, he’s poised to meet the next adorable Hokkaido girl.

Loving Yamada at Lv999 – 13 (Fin) – If the Shoe Fits

Tsubaki Yukari has been watching Yamada for years. She’s able to provide a detailed list of little reasons she likes him. But she’s also seen the change Akane made in him, well before spotting the little permanent marker doodle on his hand (Akane literally marking her man).

Because she knows Yamada so well, she knows two things out of the gate: he’s going to reject her, but he’s going to be as decent and kind and gentle as possible in doing so. When Tsubaki has said everything she wants to say and receives that gentle rejection, it’s like a lead weight off her shoulders.

It still hurts—her heart is broken now—but she’ll be okay, and she’s much better off than she was, pretending not to love someone she loved. She also has no hard feelings for Akane, whom she knows to be a person both worthy of and good for Yamada.

This entire scene is so packed with emotions and gorgeous visuals. Even in heartbreak, Tsubaki has never looked so beautiful, because she’s allowing her love to rise to the surface; her tears cathartically scattering into tiny droplets in the cool night air.

The next evening, Kamota treats his guildmates to a lavish dinner at a fancy-ass yakiniku restaurant. Everyone is in awe of just how many movers and shakers are deferent to Kamota, and how he treats them all no differently than his guildmates. Kamota is just a Good Guy, and we’d all be better off with people like him in our lives.

Whatever Kamota did for these folks in the past, they feel compelled to provide small tokens of their appreciation for it, as they have attendants bring sake, meat and melon to the table. I’m reminded of how Akane assigns a great deal of her value on what she can materially bring to a relationship.

But while transactions of this type are necessary, they are not what is essential. Why else would Kamota treat everyone the same no matter their age or status? He would most definitely had not minded if his acquaintances had not provided him with tributes for the table, either. Friendships can be their own reward. The only “give and take” is spending time together and having fun.

Yamada is late to the dinner, and by the time he arrives, Kamota made the mistake of leaving Akane alone with the fancy sake too long, and she’s full-on wobbly hiccup-y drunk. This is nothing new to Yamada; the first time they went out she got this way and he had to bring her home to sleep it off. He doesn’t mind it this time either, because we know he likes her.

There’s no standard she had to meet for that other than being who she is. And as drunk as she is, Akane is lucid enough to notice the way Yamada takes her hand throughout the night, gently guiding her home through all the other drunks of the night.

That aura of comfort and safety pervades their journey, even when Akane manages to get her heel really stuck in a crack in the sidewalk. It’s a callback to the first time they met, when her shoe just plain fell off.

It again places Yamada in a Prince Charming position with Akane as her Cinderella. They share a lovely little beat when he’s gazing up at her and she’s gazing down on him and they feel very close and right.

When they reach the door to her apartment and Yamada bids Akane good night, she grabs the corner of his coat. Perhaps in part due to the fact she’s drunk and thus less inhibited, but also because of the way he was holding her hand, but she comes right out and asks Yamada if he likes her.

Yamada cracks his biggest, most playful grin of the season, and says he’s “busted.” When Akane worries that this is just some kind of dream, or she’ll forget what he told her when she wakes up in the morning, he makes it clear: “I like you.” If she forgets, that’s okay; he’ll tell her again tomorrow.

In the end, it wasn’t solely a matter of when and how she’d make clear to Yamada that she liked him, but her realizing that for a while now he’s liked her, but just hasn’t been overt about it. Now that the air is cleared and they know where they stand, they can move forward, either hand-in-hand or, as they end the evening, in each others’ arms.

Back in class, Akane is understandably hung over, but lets her friends know she now has a boyfriend (again). The mood is celebratory, and for her part Momo is not surprised, as she could “smell” that they’d eventually end up a couple. When Akane asks if it looked like she was “throwing herself” at Yamada, Momo says it was the opposite.

While at a café together, perhaps for the first time as an “official” couple, Yamada seems distracted while Akane is talking. He admits he was distracted by Akane’s canines being sharper than usual and also cute. While walking her home, he notices there’s something she wants to say. She takes a breath and says she wants to hold hands when they’re walking.

The point is, Akane is gradually getting to the point where she feels it’s okay to ask for things, just for her, without it having to be transactional. Nor does she have to worry about what kind of girlfriend she should be, whether it’s mature and independent or needy and spoiled.

She can be all or none of those at different times. Because in Yamada she has a kind, understanding, and patient partner…even if he doesn’t get the point of heels. I have the feeling these two are going to be just fine!

Tomo-chan Is a Girl! – 04 – Shooting You Down With a Smile

Tanabe wants to see Misuzu smile, but Jun sees her smile all the time. It’s just her sadistic smile; the pure smile Tanabe imagines doesn’t exist. But true to her acerbic self, Misuzu gets Tanabe stop fooling around and approach her seriously. She then promises to shoot him down with a smile, one of many great lines uttered with sardonic perfection by Hidaka Rina.

Misuzu also isn’t all that into a lot of physical contact with friends, but Tomo watches other female classmates glomping and embracing and wants a piece. Carol offers herself as Tomo’s hugging partner first, and the feel and smell of her has Tomo briefly wondering if she’s a guy after all; Misuzu simply assures her “that one’s made special.”

After hugging Mifune and Ogawa (and giving them similar feelings as she got hugging Carol) Tomo notices that Misuzu is mad; she knows the very subtle changes in her expression, as well as her change in aura. Carol, who has been constantly clinging to Tomo, suspects she’s to blame, and apologizes by slamming her forehead against Misuzu’s desk. Misuzu then  finally lets the former gather her into her ample bosom, and they make up.

This leads to Misuzu asking Tomo if she’s tried glomping onto Jun; lord knows he isn’t shy about initiating contact. When she tries it, he pulls her off, and I thought for a minute Tomo was going to fall (and need Jun to swoop in and catch her). But she regains her balance, because she’s a jock! I liked that little detail. Jun declaring that he can initiate contact but she can’t earns him a well-deserved right hook!

Jun once again asserts his long-standing familiarity by being in Tomo’s room when she wakes up the next morning (her mom let him in). This leads to a big loud fight that wakes her mom. Tomo then makes breakfast for Jun: rice balls filled with dried sardines for strong bones. Jun’s reaction suggests they taste…interesting, but he still eats every bite.

In the dojo, Tomo’s dad demonstrates how he can still pass out from lovesickness at the sight of his wife. But in a nice scene with Tomo and Jun, she says that her dad has and will always protect her mom no matter what.

Back at school, Carol and Misuzu tell Tomo they are having lunch without her, so she has an awkward lunch alone with Jun. In addition to wanting to supplant Tomo as Misuzu’s #1 best friend, Carol also wants to show Misuzu firsthand what she’s dealing with in regards to the guy she likes.

That guy is Misaki, and Carol’s problem is he doesn’t see her as a girl or potential mate, but as a little sister due to their long history together. Misuzu suggests Carol “take life more seriously” if she wants to succeed with Misaki. Fat chance of that!

In the final segment, Mifune and Ogawa come to Tomo with boy problems. Specifically, like, a Don Juan-type upperclassman has his eyes on Ogawa, and like, won’t take no for an answer? Tomo agrees to be with her when she turns him down. When he fails to act in a gentleman-like fashion, Tomo lays him the fuck out with a thunderous kick to the solar plexus.

The girls warn her that the guy has four equally unsavory buddies, but Tomo coolly promises that she’ll deal with all comers, and won’t hesitate to protect them, before striding away like a badass. Mifune and Ogawa can only swoon.

The five pricks never get a chance to exact any kind of revenge on Tomo, because Jun overhears them plotting to go after her, and delivers a very similar kick to the leader’s chest that Tomo scored. We don’t see him fight the other four, but when all five of them approach Tomo, it’s to prostrate themselves and apologize.

On their walk home together, Tomo wonders why they did that, and why the four she never met were already beat up, and why Jun has a bandage on his cheek. He says he “fell”, but we know he was inspired by what she said about her dad protecting her mom, and wanted to do the same for Tomo. Even if, like Tomo’s mom, she probably didn’t need help!

A Couple of Cuckoos – 14 – Thinking About Pi

Nagi agrees to help Erika study for her make-up exams as long as she stays focused, but let’s be honest: even he knew that wasn’t going to be easy. Erika cosplays in a military uniform (and dresses up Sachi too) and plays lip service to this studying “mission” to hold the “territory” of their house, but …she also just might have undiagnosed ADHD.

There’s also the matter of her previous rich girl’s school not being nearly as academically tough as Nagi’s, and even if it’s not Nagi’s fault her father enrolled her there, the fact it was done because they’re engaged lends him a measure of responsibility, so he tries to help her study, but she keeps getting hung up on things like why the symbol for Pi isn’t a cute emoji.

But after more than three hours of not getting through a single problem, Nagi is fed up, and reiterates that he needs to study too in order to beat Hiro. Hearing her brought up is the last straw for Erika, who gives up and skulks off to her room, apparently resigned to move back in with her parents. Nagi, too annoyed by the lack of progress, doesn’t stop her, and Sachi’s attempt at mediation fails.

Later that evening, Nagi realizes that he’s become accustomed to this place, and isn’t in a hurry to leave it, but that’s what will happen if Erika fails the make-ups. That would feel like moving backwards. When he goes downstairs for some coffee he sees Sachi crashing on the couch. She tells him that Erika is still studying, and he should help her.

When he enters her room (without knocking) Erika is sitting at her little desk lamp fighting back tears as she desperately tries to cram, so while Nagi’s sudden appearance is unexpected, it’s not unwelcome. When she asks why he’s helping her when he’s fine with her going home, he says her problems are his problems, because she’s his fiancée.

While Erika continues to prove a tough toutee, Nagi pulls two straight all-nighters with her, and he’s there in the classroom when she receives the result of their hard work and perseverance: her grade improved, and her dad calls off the summons. Erika and Nagi share both revel in their victory with wide smiles. Her text to her dad with the news, complete with eyelid-pull emoji, actually makes him happy.

As a reward for passing, Sachi invites Erika to the festival being held at the shopping district where the Uminos’ diner is. She’s late getting ready, and the folks wander off to mingle, so the family yakisoba stand is run by Nagi and Sachi. You can tell when Nagi catches her after she trips on her laces that Sachi is happy for some quality Onii time.

However, things get awkward with them again when Hiro shows up. Nagi introduces her, she remembers the text on Nagi’s phone about going on a date, and reacts coldly, turning her head and ignoring Nagi when he says she’s being rude. She’s also offended when Nagi so quickly agrees to walk around with Hiro later.

She assumed that Nagi would hang out with her and Erika, especially since this is in part a celebration of Erika passing her exams. It’s kind of cold and oblivious of Nagi too, considering Erika told him to think of Sachi as less of a little sister, and I thought it got through to him. Apparently not!

Naturally, before Nagi is done cleaning up the stand after they sell out of food, Erika arrives resplendent in a yukata lends one to Sachi, and the two head out without him and bump into Hiro, because of course they do! Not only that, Erika introduces Sachi as her sister, when Hiro had already heard that she was Hiro’s.

It’s weird to think that Hiro has never officially met Sachi, but then again she isn’t aware that Erika and Nagi (and Sachi) live in the same house, nor did she even know Nagi’s home was a diner. She and Nagi have been through a lot, but there’s still a lot she doesn’t know about him and Erika, and it looks like she’s going to learn more very soon.

Whether that new knowledge will change how she feels about Nagi “changing her fate”, or makes her feel betrayed and hurt, only time will tell. But I for one believe she’s been in the dark too long as Nagi’s “side girl”. It’s time for things to come to light and let the cards fall where they may.

A Couple of Cuckoos – 13 – It’s a New Morning

After Nagi’s realization sparked by dad that he harbors feelings for all three of Hiro, Erika, and Sachi, he realizes something else: he cannot think about anything else. This realization, combined with the reality that he hasn’t been studying nearly as much as he used to, comes crashing down on him in the middle of midterm exams. He ends up bombing, falling from first to thirteenth.

Nagi shambles home and holes up in his dark room, feeling like trash, since he believes his primary value to be studying and acing tests. Under the pretext of complaining about dinner not being ready (complete with growling stomach), Erika enters his room to tell him that’s simply not the case, and no matter his rank, he’s “just as valuable” to her.

It’s an extremely cute and bold move from Erika coming off her “not yet” amendment, and Nagi can’t help but smile when he realizes she’s both trying and succeeding to cheer him up.

Hiro is a slightly different story. Back at school, she starts blatantly avoiding him, but then leaves one of her signature not-love letters in his shoe locker. Erika suggests that Hiro feels betrayed because Nagi was on his high horse about beating her once only to fall so far on the next exam. But as we learn when Nagi meets Hiro at the beautifully lit basketball court after school, that’s only half of Hiro’s story.

After Nagi apologizes for letting his guard down and commits to doing better, Hiro passes him the rock, giving a playful rhythm to their make-up talk. But it wasn’t just her respect for him as an academic rival that made her upset; it was learning how quickly he cheered up without any input from her. She wanted to be the one to cheer him up first but Erika beat her to the punch.

Watching Hiro make a layup in dazzling slow motion, it occurs to Nagi that while things are a lot more complicated with regard to his romantic life, he still loves Hiro aplenty, and still wants to beat her enough times at exams so he can “change her fate” she’ll process his confession. But as we saw during times when he and Erika were having what amounted to lovers quarrels in earshot of both Hiro and Sachi, everyone coming out of this happy and satisfied is a tall ask.

I’m not surprised Nagi wants to try his best to simplify and work on things he knows he can by getting back to his intense studying regimen and climbing back to the top of the rankings. Even then, Erika makes it known she needs his help studying, or her folks will bring her back home.

A Couple of Cuckoos – 12 – Not Yet

With Nagi and Sachi successfully making up, Erika decides she wants to take Nagi shopping after school…only he already has “something important” to do. That consists of having a study session with Hiro at the library, where they spend most of the time exchanging notes.

After that, Nagi is concerned with where else they can study more, but Hiro wants to show him more about herself, so she takes him to a kickboxing studio. Nagi isn’t completely physically incompetent, and thus impresses with his punch. Erika happens to walk by and see how much fun he and Hiro are having.

The last few episodes, Erika has been pretty okay with Nagi doing his own thing, and even said she’d root for him and Hiro, whom she adores. But actually seeing the two together has an effect she didn’t anticipate. She tries to counter that effect by reasserting their technical status as fiancés by announcing they’re going on a date together.

Just as Hiro did at the theme park, Erika takes the lead, buying Nagi some expensive clothes, taking him to a pet store to hang out with some reptiles, and finally going on an exhausting evening run. After each leg of their date, she stares at Nagi and looks disappointed. She eventually tells him: she saw him smiling like a goofball with Hiro, but he never smiles at her!

Nagi takes Erika’s problem to its logical conclusion: she got jealous and pissed seeing him and Hiro together, which means she likes him. Pointing this out doesn’t help matters, but Erika doesn’t outright deny it, simply saying “It’s not that I like you!…Yet!” before storming off.

Nagi, however, remains on the park bench until well after sundown, contemplating how Erika feels and how he in turn feels about that. He can’t deny his heart is racing, which makes him wonder if he likes Erika, and whether what he’s feeling for Hiro is love.

Nagi resorts to googling “love” then going back home for the first time in forever to consult his mega dictionary, but ends up finding a box full of love letters from his dad to his mom. Like, all of them were from his dad.

The letters are dumb, sappy, embarrassing…but his dad kept writing them, and his mom kept accepting them, and eventually accepted and returned his feelings, despite being seemingly out of his league. Sensing his son is questioning his love, he tells him to close his eyes and “ask his heart”—the one he loves should show up in his mind’s eye.

Nagi does this, and for the first time, all three girls appear at the same time, albeit with Erika in the center. Naturally, this is extremely confusing for Nagi, who has operated the entire first half of this series under the impression he loved Hiro and only Hiro. But between Erika and him living together and being pretty goshdarn great together and his realignment of how he sees Sachi, Nagi is finally seeing the full, multi-girl picture.

Of course, this is just the initial awareness stage. It remains to be seen whether he accepts that he has feelings of various levels for Erika, Hiro, and Sachi, or that one day a choice will have to be made that might break two of their hearts (or all three). But it’s a satisfying development nonetheless, and I liked his text response to Erika: he doesn’t like her either…yet. For both of them, “yet” is a shield, but it’s also a kind of invitation.

Birdie Wing: Golf Girls’ Story – 04 – Snakebit

When Aoi missed her putt, Eve confronts her angrily, thinking she let her win. But Aoi admits the miss was “her mistake”—apparently no one noticed Anri flashing a laser into Aoi’s eye before she putted, including Aoi herself. But she wants to have another go at a real game with Eve, so they agree to meet back at the course at 5 AM so they can play until her flight back to Japan.

Normally Eve would be able to keep such an appointment, but Catherine cashes in on Rose’s favor to her for letting Eve into the tournament that very night, and Rose and Anri deliver her to a massive configurable underground golf course. This is just the window-lickin’ craziest shit.

Eve is Catherine’s golfer, while her opponent in a real estate deal, fellow mobster Mr. Nicolas, has hired the thoroughly corny Vipère, a vampy minx in a leather catsuit. In addition to their employers’ bet, Vipère makes it interesting for her and Eve by saying whoever loses becomes the personal property of the other for a day.

Eve is neither amused nor impressed by all this nouveau riche and faux-vampiric posturing, and simply wants to get on with the game. But every other shot she makes is totally off, and she has no idea why…until she notices the same thing most of the audience probably noticed immediately: Vipère stinks. Not at golf, but literally.

Every time Vipère unzipped the front of her catsuit near Eve, she messed up. Turns out her perfume is a sublt poisons that threw her game off just enough to almost lose. Not about to lose to a cheater with fangs and a way too active tongue, Eve uses her Yellow Bullet to drive her ball out of a bunker and straight into the hole, beating Vipère and fulfilling her favor to Rose and Catherine.

What follows is a lot of plot malarkey, unfortunately. First, Eve has Vipère drive her to the course to meet with Aoi…in Vipère’s slow antique car. Aside from it not being Vipère’s style at all (why is it yellow?) Anri was right there in the parking lot with a Jaguar XJS, which if I know Rose had a V12. Combined with the fact the distance from the underground course to the above-ground one wasn’t revealed until it became a problem, and my eyes were rolling like a Titleist on the green.

Just as Anri manufactured Aoi’s loss and Vipère almost manufactured Eve’s, the the plot tomfoolery ends up manufacturing the first major interpersonal conflict between Aoi and Eve, as Aoi waits as long as she can but has to board her flight before Eve gets there. She leaves her Pac-Man ball on the tee, but drew a tear in its eye and “Liar” on the other side.

As her plane takes off, Aoi spots Eve and her Blue Bullet taking flight. So, I guess the airport is right next to the golf course? What with that crazy golf bunker, I half-expected Eve’s golf ball to go into the jet engine, forcing it to land and giving the two a chance to play.

Of course, there’s a good chance that would have ended in fiery tragedy, so maybe it’s best Eve didn’t hit the plane….I just hope their budding friendship hasn’t been shattered irrevocably. After all, Aoi began the episode with a mistake caused by others; now that Eve was late, the two are even par, as they should be.

Birdie Wing: Golf Girls’ Story – 03 – Just Golf, Baby

Eve doesn’t half-ass anything. When given an audience with Rose’s boss, a higher-up in the Nafrece underworld, she offers up her damn body in exchange for the chance to play in the U15 Tournament. Fortunately, the boss lady rejects that offer, but I am worried about the one she accepts, which Rose brings up without Eve knowing what it is.

Whatever Faustian deal Eve is now tangled up in, all that matters is that she’s able to keep her promise to Aoi to play one round—in this case, the final round of a world tournament. Rose makes sure she looks the part, dressing her in her boss’ brand name attire and giving her a full set of clubs. After a couple episodes in street clothes, it’s great to see Eve all glowed up.

The two other girls in her team unfortunately go through hell, as Rose tells Anri, because Eve is a simple destroyer, concerned only with defeating her one opponent; Aoi, who enters the final round 9 under par. As Rose racks up a -3 in four holes Rose further describes how Eve’s style of golf methodically destroys any opponents in her vicinity, causing them to forget their own styles in a hopeless bid to keep up.

While her group mates are probably going to be feeling the negative aftereffects on their own games for many matches in the future, Aoi is spellbound by Eve’s performance. As the leader, Aoi is in the final group with the latest tee time, but she just can’t wait to get out there and play “in the same air” as Eve, who she can tell is having a blast.

Aoi begins her round knowing Eve’s score, and insists that Amane keep her updated every three holes via hand signals. Amane is fine doing this because 1.) she’ll take whatever motivation for Aoi she can get and 2.) she’s quite certain even Eve can’t hope to beat Aoi. But while Amane knows Aoi’s game like the back of her hand, she’s only seen a little bit of what Eve can do. This time, she sees more, including how accurate she can be even while driving her ball through the same woods where it got lost in her last game with Aoi.

While Eve and Aoi duel, their respective support groups watch; her classmates at the fancy Raiou Girls Academy in Japan (the architecture of which reminds me of a car dealership or auto parts store for some reason), where we meet Haruka, Aoi’s supposed rival in her homeland, and Ichina, who wants to be a caddy for someone like Aoi, not a player, and is training accordingly.

They, like Amane, and even Eve herself, believe it’s a foregone conclusion Aoi will go one point under Eve to take the win on the 18th hole. But on what should be a straightforward birdie putt misses the cup, an error so timely and uncharacteristic it makes me wonder if there’s some kind of chicanery involved. That feeling is amplified watching Rose spreading her arms at the sun like a villain about to cackle.

While I don’t forsee I’ll be the biggest fan of Eve and/or Aoi being pawns to these gangsters, this episode was 99% Eve and Aoi enjoying the absolute goddamn hell out of a match together, and however it ends, they’re going to want to play each other again as soon as possible. After all, until someone shows up who can beat either of them, they’re all they’ve got.

Birdie Wing: Golf Girls’ Story – 02 – Blue Bullet vs. Blue Blood

Amawashi Aoi is the daughter of two pro golfers and has been raised since she was tiny to be one of the world’s finest. But she’s not the slightest bit conceited or unpleasant as a result of this specialized and very exclusive upbringing. She’s pure, sweet, and very excited to meet someone like Eve.

Aoi wants to play a whole round with Eve, but Amane says there’s only time for one hole, so Aoi picks the toughest: a 400+ yard L-shaped Par-4 with the sea on one side and a thick forest on the other. Eve naturally smashes her ball through the woods but doesn’t quite get all the way through.

Aoi keeps her ball out of the forest by unleashing a majestic slice that turns the corner and leaves her with less than 140 yards on her second shot. Eve gets her ball out of the woods, but misses the green and a clear shot at the hole. Aoi hits a perfect strike that places the ball mere inches from the hole and a sure Eagle.

Amane’s narration of this exciting hole of golf lays it on a little thick that Aoi is the “Innocent Tyrant” whose gleaming smile will effortless crush anyone in her way. And even Eve admits that there’s something about Aoi that threw her ever so slightly off her game. That, and Aoi genuinely can’t take her eyes off Eve’s golf.

As for Eve, well, after years of simply using her talent to put food on the table, this one hole with Aoi is the most fun she’s had playing golf. Not that surprising considering how amazing Aoi is. Despite herself, Eve finds herself both charmed and inspired by Aoi, and absolutely hell-bent on beating her when next they play. And they will play again quite soon.

After easily beating a street scammer’s magnet-ridden putting green, Eve gains an audience with a mid-level figure in the mob, who wields a club like a yakuza would wield a katana. This is where I first realized that Eve is still a kid—closer to Aoi’s age than I thought. This is one reason how she’s able to convince the mobster to get her into the U-15 tournament. Another is that Eve’s heart is aching to face off against Aoi again, and while the mobster will make sure Eve owes her big for the privilege, she’s as eager as I am to see a rematch. 

But Aoi’s heart is aching too. Before meeting Eve, she seemed pretty bored by golf—and considering it’s been her whole life, who can blame her? But when you’re at the top of your game, you seek out others at the top of theirs, especially when they take such a fascinatingly different path to that top. Now that these two have found each other, they both have new fires burning in their chests…and they want nothing more than to stoke them.