I guess it is important to make friends in high places, even if you’re not too sure how to become friends with them to begin with. But dang Takemichi really got lucky in this episode, had Draken and Mikey not shown up it would have been a pretty brutal end to his time traveling quest to save Hina. But! At least he gets to live another day, and we have two new and interesting characters to add into the mix!
It’s not a surprise that Takemichi was getting absolutely destroyed by Kiyomasa. Not only is he much smaller than his opponent, but his nervous and hesitant nature that he brought from the future definitely didn’t help him either. But that absolute persistence ruined the fun for the spectators and also saved his life. So goes to show you that having a strong resolve more than strong muscles is at least worth something. Heck, even if Mikey and Draken didn’t show up, Akkun was ready to stab Kiyomasa so the tide of the match was going to change one way or another. Though, having the commander of the Tokyo Manji gang stop the fight by taking Kiyomasa was probably the better way to go. I’m sure if Kiyomasa was stabbed with a pocketknife, things would have gotten a lot more violent and a few people were probably going to get killed. But hey! At least they’re free from Kiyomasa’s terror!
As excited as I am to learn more about Mikey, Draken, and the rest of the Tokyo Manji gang’s goals, I really hope Takemichi doesn’t lose touch with his current friends. I definitely agree that they are a bit cringeworthy, but at the end of the day they’re just a rambunctious group of Middle Schoolers. They aren’t out there trying to harm people, but they make bad decisions and look to cause a little bit of trouble. But I mean… how are they supposed to know? It’s not like they’ve seen the future or anything (ba dum tsh). Still! I don’t want them to get left behind, they seem like a decent group of kids and it would be kind of a bummer to have Takemichi lose them again. Maybe they’ll join him in his quest, as it seems like he’s turning into the cooler, somehow wiser friend.
And even though Takemichi was really cool in this episode, Hina was definitely a star! Like she’s doing all of this because she really cares about Takemichi and doesn’t know what the future will bring. I loved that she just slapped Mikey to protect her boyfriend. You go Hina!! She’s a keeper and I hope that she can be saved in the end. And I really like how it brought out the protective side in Takemichi as well. He’s really started to grow a pair since going back in time.
I like how they wrapped up this episode, by showing us that Mikey and Draken aren’t necessarily bad guys. Yeah, they’re delinquents and that title in itself has a bad name, but they want to show that you can still have values that come out of it. It’s nice to see the three connect because Takemichi reminds Mikey of his older brother especially considering how that relationship can grow from here. But even with his sentiments, there is still another part we need to consider that will lead to Hina’s death in the future. Because dang, Kisaki Tetta does not seem like the guy you want to mess with. Mikey can take out a guy with one kick, but Tetta looks like he’ll kill a man without a second thought. So, uh good luck taking him on Takemichi.
Since it’s the third episode, I just want to take a moment to say that I’m really happy that I decided to watch this series! It’s been really enjoyable so far and nothing feels particular slow or rushed. They’ve done a good job with pacing these episodes, they end on a cliff hanger, but I still can be satisfied while still being on the edge of my seat for the next episode. And on top of all of this, the Opening and Ending themes are fantastic! They are great ways to both open and end the episode. If things keep on going like this, it’s going to be a really strong anime this season! I’m still rooting for you Takemichi, you got this!
