Oof, Kokone’s family situation was pretty rough to watch. I felt really sad to see how her relationship with her parents had become so estranged over the years through a messy combination of the consequences of her aunt’s words of ‘to not spoil her, and for her not to make things hard for her parents.’ Bitch, please! It’s not your place to comment, and for god’s sake, who are you to judge what they do as a family? But the worst part was the fact Kokone’s mother ended up listening to her sister, and called off eating the doughnut holes– AND THEY NEVER ATE THEM TOGETHER SINCE. WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL? It took them, how many freaking years to have passed before they finally clued in?! Only once they finally had the opportunity to sit down at the table, all eating a uniquely individual meal (or had already eaten separately) and tried to converse with each other did they realize just how fucked up their connection was with each other. It was so awkward you could liken it to eating with complete strangers!
And I’m not going to lie, it made me frustrated for Kokone, especially when they ignored the red flag the moment Kokone became somewhat reserved towards them after that. Like good fucking grief. I don’t think it’s fair that it had to be entirely on Kokone to speak up to her parents about what she wants, even more so when it followed the reinforcement of her aunt’s words. Sure they had to go off and do their business trip overseas, but I have a hard time believing they didn’t have the time after noticing that to try and have a conversation about it. But, I will give Kokone’s parents some credit for at least doing something about their estranged relationship as soon as they realized just how little they know about their daughter, and their inability to communicate comfortably with each other. Kokone’s dad took a bit of a round-about approach, by having Todoroki take him around to some of Kokone’s favourite places, where he finally connected the dots of what she meant by Pretty Holic shop and even went in to purchase something for her. At least it showed that he was listening to her and he was doing what he can to show an interest in that so they can find a way to connect to each other once more.
On the other-hand, Kokone’s mother took a more direct approach after seeking some advice with Mari and Yui’s mother, which was honestly for the best. Sometimes someone just gotta say it straight of the obvious solution to get the other to notice the answer has been in front of them all along. She finally got around to eating the doughnut holes together, and apologized for it which was really important because it showed that she remembered, and it’s something that has been weighing on her mind. And that was also precisely why this week’s battle was very personal for Kokone, as Narcistoru’s actions had stolen her mother’s memories of why the doughnut holes are so special to them.
In the end, Kokone finally realized that it’s not selfish at all to express how she feels to her parents, and the things she wish to share. It was very nice to see them all eating together at the table with the sandwich she had made, but man, it was still sad to see her be alone again. Perhaps not as lonely as before now that she is able to communicate more comfortably with her parents.
Overall, despite my gripes with how things led to the estranged relationship between Kokone and her parents, this was a good episode to follow up on her struggle to write that letter. It was nice that she was able to send it… but man, it was really sad to see that her mother had thought her words of encouragements were not sincere, but forced…
Next week, it looks like there’s going to be a spat between Kome-Kome and Pam-Pam, and our pupper gonna find herself in a pickle with Narcistoru. Until then, see you next time!
