Ahh, what a rollercoaster of emotions! This is the first time that Kotarou and Akane have had an argument in their relationship. I can understand Kotarou’s frustration and Akane’s naivete, but before I get on with the review: No, Akane did nothing wrong.
The episode starts off fine with Akane telling Kotarou that she’s applied to his cram school. She also makes it clear to Kotarou that she’s going to move to Chiba and that she’s going to a school called Koumei after it was made clear that because of her good grades, she’ll be going there on a recommendation. Which is amazing! Akane worries about their relationship, but Kotarou tells her that maybe he’ll go to her school too on regular admission. Maybe. And it’s insane, the school is two hours away. I can’t imagine making a long trip like that. I’ve commuted an hour to school before years ago, but two? It shows how dedicated he is.
The next scene is the day of the Kawagoe Festival. Akane meets up with her track friends and they have fun walking around and eating food together. Kotarou appears on his pedestal and Akane watches in amazement. It gets dark, and Kotarou has a short break. He texts Akane that they can meet up later. Akane and her friends play rock-paper-scissors to decide who throws away the trash and she and Hira lose. How convenient. 😐 They both go off and throw away the trash, and Kotarou asks where she is. She says where but Hira asks if she wants to get imokoi, since she mentioned it. So she goes. This where I’ve seen some people blame Akane in forums, noting how naive she is for being alone with Hira. I can kind of see what they’re saying, especially since she was about to meet up with Kotarou and instead she stuck with Hira. But, she’s not dumb and I don’t blame her. She was tempted with a snack she hasn’t had in awhile, and she doesn’t think of Hira in a romantic way. She maybe never thought Hira liked her that way either. It was obvious, but there are some people that are really naive. You can’t really be mad at her when she’s so new to this. Please, people, she’s a kid! You can say the same about Hira, I guess? But this is just like the whole Chinatsu situation. He knows that Akane is in a relationship, and she made herself very clear (thank goodness), but he still confesses to her anyway. Which, again, why? Get closure, I know, but he’s overstepping his boundaries just like Chinatsu wanted to do. And his attitude towards why she liked Kotarou and not him was pretty bratty, but I can understand his frustration. He was probably more frustrated than Chinatsu because he’s had a crush on Akane for a long time now, and he never had the guts to confess to her before Kotarou did. He lost his chance. But now things between them might be awkward. At least he accepted it.
Unbeknownst to them, Kotarou was watching them. He texts Akane is location and she happily runs over to him with the cutest smile, but is met with a different Kotarou. A very irritated and angry Kotarou, who doesn’t end up talking to Akane much. She notices something is obviously wrong and she tries to get an answer out of him, but it just makes him lash out at her. He abruptly says he has to leave, says he’s not mad (yes he is), and walks away. Akane leaves the festival, crying on the way as she squeezes her potato. WHICH BROKE MY HEART.
I can’t even be mad at Kotarou, either. This is the second time he’s seen Akane alone with Hira, and he knew others looked at them as a couple. And he knows Hira likes her. That’s huge, seeing the guy that you know likes your girl, sweet talking her. It’s annoying, but of course it was wrong of him to take it out on her.
There’s tension between them, but the problem doesn’t stick for too long. Supposedly the next night at cram school, Akane notices there was a request for a Koumei study book is what I’m guessing it was? Akane runs out and finds Kotarou and talks to him, and yes, he admits that he wants to go there. For sure, this time. He tells her that he’s really thought about his future, about his writing, and that he’s serious that he wants to be with her. Which makes Akane cry in joy because she was scared that he hated him after the previous night. He apologizes and things immediately get better when Akane kisses him. Not going to lie, I got a teary eyed in this scene! The love between them is so strong and so pure, it makes me so happy for them. This show is just too good. But Kotarou mentions that his parents, most likely his mother, won’t approve. Kotarou looks like he’s studying harder than ever, so he might be able to get in considering how serious he is.
But now he has to get through the Final Boss: His mother. 😐
I knew that Hira was going to be in the way this episode, but I didn’t think that Kotarou and Akane would argue and cause a little rift in their relationship. It was handled really well, though, and it wasn’t dragged out. What an episode! Looking away from all the emotions this time, the extra this episode cracked me up. We always saw Kotarou alone when he went to the Literature Club, but it turns out that there are actually a lot more people part of the club. Just, that no one goes. Lol.
Well, that happened.
In a way, they both screwed up, definitely Kotarou moreso than Akane, but I kind of feel that it’s okay. They’re young, and they’re bound to screw up. While they may be in a relationship, since it’s their first time (and they’re so innocent), I suppose it’s not entirely obvious to understand the ramifications of actions interacting with other people, especially when interacting with people who tried to make a move on you.
Akane probably should have known better than to hang out with Hira, but I can’t really fault her. I think I’d done the same thing since I don’t really notice things like this. Kotarou was wrong here, especially since Akane explained herself calmly and rationally to him, but in a way, it feels kind of understandable. He’s seeing Hira make moves on Akane, with Akane not doing a thing about it. Jealousy strikes again. Nevertheless, they made up at the end, which was nice. He understood how his actions hurt her, so hopefully they’ll (mainly Kotarou) be better to each other for it. And, who would’ve thought that Akane was a cougar? It’s nice seeing her happy and all like that at the end.