Take a shot every time Dia says “Buu buu desu wa!” You’d die.
More bonding time is definitely what these girls need and this week’s episode was focused on Dia. The episode opens up with the girls nervously crowding around the laptop waiting for the results of the Love Live qualifiers. The only one who isn’t nervous is Chika, because she was given reassurance by Seira/Sarah of Saint Snow that they’ll pass, who for some reason she became close with with no explanation? And it turns out she was right, the girls passed qualifiers with success. And honestly with a performance like MY Mai TONIGHT of course they did. But then the episode shifts quickly to another issue.
It’s pretty amazing how fast the anime has made me like Dia a lot more. I didn’t really like her character much at all in the first season, and while I thought her personality shift was a little funny (during the beach episode), it was still pretty jarring to have a silly Dia come out of nowhere when we had such a rude and bitchy Dia. So in the end I just did not care for her. However, in these four episodes of the second season my views of Dia have changed a lot. Just like Mari and Kanan said, Dia is a very obstinate person and that was the side we saw from her next season. I know they were trying to show us a different and more fun side to her last time but it just didn’t work out for me. However, I was enjoying how much softer and kinder Dia has been so far this season while also still holding up that authoritative trait of hers. But it’s true that this kind of personality can distance oneself from others. I think to Dia she felt like she was the most detached from the group because of her personality. She’s older, puts the group in order, and holds this air of superiority where you have to look up to her because of how she presents herself. However, when she hears the girls call each other with -chan with her being the only one with -san stuck to her name, she realizes how distant she is from the others. And she doesn’t like it one bit.
Funny how Dia was trying so hard to make Kanan and Mari get closer with the others a couple episodes ago, but she didn’t even realize she needed that same bonding moment too! After this episode, I think another reason why I can appreciate and like Dia a lot more is because, to an extent, I can relate to her. It’s not that people thought I was dependable and that I was above them that I need to act that way, but I am a very reserved person and it takes me awhile to warm up to people and act naturally with them. People do tend to say that I can act a little too serious. And there have been times where I tried hard to act “natural” like Dia did this episode and people that didn’t know me were…concerned. I just learned that I shouldn’t try too hard, which I think Dia needed to hear. I know how terrifying and awkward it is to try and put yourself out there and I was really rooting for Dia! We got to see the awkward and sweet side to her, and she had silly scenarios in her head, we got to see her tell. There were plenty of funny moments of this episode, such as the aquarium scenes with Dia calling You “You-chan” and her skipping as she called Yoshiko “Yoshiko-chan” with the most try hard cute voice telling her to work hard. Too bad it wasn’t working out for her and everyone thought something was really wrong with her.
In the end, though, in typical Love Live fashion the girls confronted Dia and told her how much they loved her how she truly is, even if they can’t crack jokes with her often. The Dia they know is the Dia they’ve come to love. And they called her Dia-chan!
N-Not that she wanted to be called that, anyway! I like this cute tsun side to Dia, too. She’s tsundere but in a cute funny way, where it’s just the right amount of tsun and not full-blown tsundere where they’re just mean and annoying and I totally don’t mean a certain someone from the original series. :))))))))
I thought this episode was fun and sweet. It served Dia well to have an episode as it made her a lot more relateable as a character now, and I feel like we’ve really gotten to know her a lot better now and that makes me pretty happy seeing as how I didn’t like her at all before. Her solo for the ED theme was great, too! But I don’t understand why You came out of the bus and not Dia? When this was a Dia episode? And she was the one that sang the song? Is…Is You not getting her own episode this season? Was last season’s episode really the only You episode we’re getting because if that’s true….yikes.
Next week, it looks like it’ll be either a Riko episode or a Yoshiko episode, or maybe a group one. Since it’s about taking in a dog I’m guessing it’ll be about Riko and her getting over her fear of dogs, but if it’s a Riko episode I hope there’s more substance to it. Because…you know…best girl. Sorry, I’m biased, I love her.
