Free! Episode 8: Team Effort

Impression:
*GROSS SOBBING* BRB I AM DROWNING THE SEA OF EMOTIONS.
THIS EPISODE, DAMNIT!!! ALL THE TEAM FEELS! *SOBS* THEY CARE FOR HARU SO MUCH!
ALSO IT IS A DONE DEAL: I OFFICIALLY HAVE AN OTP.
MAKOTO x HARU, EVERYONE ELSE GO HOME- NOBODY, NOT EVEN RIN CAN COMPETE AGAINST MAKOTO. HE FELL ASLEEP WAITING FOR HARU TO COME UP AND EVEN HELD HIS CELLPHONE BECAUSE HE WAS GOING TO HAVE HARU LISTEN TO THE MESSAGE THE TEAM LEFT HIM AND OH MY GOD THE FEELS. HE KNOWS HIM SO WELL. /SOBS
Rin’s haughty attitude about his victory was quickly dosed out after both Rei and Makoto pointed out that Haru isn’t upset because he lost, it’s because of something else (which was being told he will not being able to swim with Rin again). And it’s hilarious really because one minute Rin is so full of himself about and then next- he guilty and then jealous as hell when he saw Rei, (who he considers pathetic) in his place when the team went in for the relay.
Man going into the relay was just another wave of feels. It was powerful because of the team’s enthusiasm and will to swim together. And that is something (whether Haru realizes or not) that means a lot to him. Haru doesn’t like competitions, but I believe he enjoys swimming as a team because he’s not alone, and it’s a group effort. So I was really happy that Haru found that motivation to do the relay, and I am so proud of him for being able to move forward despite the fact of not knowing the answer to why he swims. This was something he asked himself many times this episode.
Makoto also implied something else has happened during their relay back in grade school. He was cut off by Rin taking a fit saying beating Haru was all that mattered. I decided to go back to skim through episode 1 because I recalled that’s when we last seen the childhood flashbacks. Back then the line: “I’ll show you a sight you’ve never seen before” didn’t stand out to me, but considering the present circumstances, I think this was more important than some of us had anticipated. Although I could wrong, my guess is that ‘sight you’ve never seen before’ refers to his passion for swimming (and why he remarked how it was romantic). Or it could be referring to what they can achieve as a team. Or both, or something else entirely- we don’t know yet (or some do if they have read the light novel about their childhood, but I don’t know how much backstory it has covered since I haven’t read it myself for the sake of avoiding spoilers).
Speaking of passion, I don’t really know if Haru actually aware that he is passionate about swimming. He asks himself, “What was it all for?” , but I think the answer is right in front of him. Rin was a passionate swimmer with the dreams to become an olympic athlete, but he has shown us that because victories are so important to him, he seems to have forgotten that.
Finally last but not least, I am SO proud of the team, especially Rei- GO YOU BEAUTIFUL MAN. I adore his enthusiasm, and his determination to not let the team down despite his lack of experience. it was unfortunate for him to have his goggles slip off his eyes- now that’s tough! It was like icing on the cake to hear that he and Nagisa did some practice rounds for the relay before the arrived to the tournament. *TEARS* Stay perfect you two! And Makoto, baby I am so proud of you! He didn’t make it to finals, but he still placed second and that’s fantastic! Oh and of course, bless Gou for signing them up for the relay!
The only downside is that we didn’t find out what place Nagisa landed when he competed. All we know is that he lost. I wished they had shown us, just so we can understand just how strong of a swimmer he is.
Oh and kudos to the animation team, they did SUCH a great job this week!!! <3