This Fall season has, for me, been a bit all over the place, with some shows being delayed and some getting recap episodes way earlier than normal. I don’t quite know the reasons why Azur Lane had to skip last week, or why Kandagawa Jet Girls had to have a recap episode before episode 5. This will either mean that they’ll end up showing 2 episodes in one week, or carry their shows on into 2020, which is a scenario I ideally do not want. I jokingly made a suggestion that I should be picking out the shows I want to watch for the next cour (Winter 2020), but I have actually done that. What they’ll be is something I’ll reveal nearer the time, plus none of us know which streaming service will get what; if Netflix get shows, then that is a bit of a problem for us, as it seems they’re not ones for simulcasting. Violet Evergarden was evidently something of a one-off.
Houkago Saikoro Club Episode 8
I said last week that I’d only just discovered a board game shop recently open near me. I’ve still got to find the chance to go, but I know I’ll end up burning money there. As for Houkago Saikoro Club, we got a big episode, as not only did the girls got to have the board game cafe they have desperately wanted, but Emilia was properly introduced into the show. A bit of a cliche to have a transfer student from Germany in a school slice-of-life show, but I learned that she actually has a really prominent role in the manga.
Heck, Emilia’s even made it into the OP theme now.
We were even treated to two games played this week. The first was Keltis, a very simple but engaging board game with a Celtic theme. The second was a party game that has two names: while it’s called Dobble here in Europe, it has the more simple name of Spot It! in North America.
I’m suddenly curious as to what will happen in this show in forthcoming episodes. We’ve had Miki overcome her social anxiety, Midori introduce her own game (One Room), Emilia brought into the gang, and the board game cafe at the school festival. Everything I’ve seen happen in the OP theme has happened now, so what’s next. Will it just be a series of filler episodes where we see more games played, or will something significant happen? Considering how, sometimes, the focus is more on the games played than the characters, it wouldn’t surprise me if we got a mixture of both.
I’m still working on that list of games featured in this show, by the way. There’s still plenty of episodes to come, but so far I’ve managed to identify at least 70 games. Yeah, I’m that much of a nerd…
We Never Learn s2 Episode 8
I’ve always labelled We Never Learn as what it has been for a while: a no-nonsense harem show, but I’m quite glad that the franchise is beginning to make some progress with the story. This week’s episode is where we go back to Uruka, and in case you didn’t know, she has the biggest crush on Nariyuki out of all the girls…and is really terrible at hiding it.
While we begin the episode by learning that Nariyuki is a really bad swimmer (who needs both Uruka and Kirisu to help him), the main plot point is that Uruka is being lined up by the academy to be a part of an Australian transfer school program, so she can excel at her swimming. Now if you were a good guy like Nariyuki is, this is something you would be supporting. Fumino already knows about Uruka’s crush, and her own feelings kind of prevent her from telling this to Nariyuki.
But we are presented with a dilemma ourselves. Should Uruka tell him, and in turn tell him how she feels? Or should she just let this slide, and enjoy the rest of the third year with him oblivious? It’s like she can’t really win either way, and so by the end of this season, someone’s heart will be broken, that’s for sure.
We also have another dilemma to think about though: is a plot point like this really good for this show? I mean sure, it’s something that’s in the manga, but so far we’ve been enjoying all of this no-brainer harem nonsense, and those of us that are keeping up with the franchise all have a best girl out of all the five. I remember something similar happened when it came to season 2 of New Game!, when they brought in the plot point of Kou getting a new job being a character designer at a big game studio in France…it was something we knew was going to happen, but at the same time, we were happy with all the filler episodes.
I personally think they’ll bring in this story by the end of this show, and some emotions will be running high, on all fronts.
Azur Lane Episode 7
Meanwhile, over in Azur Lane, I was right about Akagi, in that she was about to do something very stupid. That is the one thing I do remember from the last episode. This show was delayed, for reasons unknown, and so I’ve had to think back to what happened 2 weeks ago, and if anything really substantial happened here.
Akagi has decided to stage an offensive against the Eagle Union and the Royal Navy, by using what she has already learned from the Siren. While she doesn’t have the Cube, she seems still able to transport them to an alternate dimension, and have the fight there. And it’s in this alternate dimension where we learn a lot more about what Enterprise is.
I’m still lost though. This week’s episode was a bit all over the place, and with so many ship girls present this week, it was rather hard to keep track of everyone…like it often is every week. I will admit this week that the sooner this show ends, the happier I’ll be. I accept that Azur Lane has its loyal fanbase, and that all these fans know exactly who is who, which ship girl is sided with who, and whether Akagi really is an idiot for using Siren technology or not. I am the last person to know any of this, and so in the episodes that are left, I’m just going to ignore the script, and let all of this run its own course.
Kandagawa Jet Girls Episode 6
Instead I’ll focus on the one show I am enjoying: Kandagawa Jet Girls. Little to no racing this week, as the focus is on Rin and Misa’s relationship, or rather the problems with it.
The next duo is properly introduced this week, in the form of Manatsu and Yuzu, who have actually appeared in this show before, but only in fleeting moments. It is Manatsu and Yuzu who show both Rin and Misa how out of sync they are. In a sport that is dependent on teamwork and being able to read each others’ minds, we see that Rin and Misa aren’t even able to do basic things together, so the thought of them taking on the other duos in this sport and beating them is a no hope. In the past few weeks that Misa has tried to reach out to her, we notice that Rin is easily distracted by other things, may they be watching other duos, or events going on in town, or something at school. We can joke about the power of yuri being strong with these two, and how Misa is a disaster lesbian, but this week we see that before these two can hit that mark, they have to open up to each other first, by actually cooperating and communicating with each other.
Girls’ Last Tour Episode 8
I was told a while back that Girls’ Last Tour only get more and more surreal as time goes on, and episode 8 proves that point. I’m still unsure if this landscape that Chito and Yuuri are driving in is (or rather was) meant to be the real world or not. But where exactly in the world this place is, though, is irrelevant, I think. The question is more of what it is. It could be any number of things, from purgatory to another dimension.
Episode 8 sees Chito and Yuuri visiting what appears to be some kind of graveyard, where they find all sorts of personal possessions (that Chito forces Yuuri to put back where they belong, instead of just stealing them). Later on, they find another tower, along with some beer. How old these girls are meant to be is another question entirely, as we don’t encourage underage drinking.
It’s curious, though, that at one point, the girls mention that they’re travelling to higher places so that their lives can get back to just being good again…which goes back to my theory of this place being some kind of afterlife or purgatory. I have no idea how Girls’ Last Tour will end. They certainly won’t find what they’re searching for, though, and the show will likely end on them travelling through this urban apocalypse/hellscape/surreal world/alternate dimension even further.
I’m already looking forward to what the next season will bring, and so I decided to start the poll early:
I won’t be doing 4 new shows this time; I think I need to cut back a bit. And so have you seen what’s in store for Winter 2020? What shows have caught your eye? Will Disney Plus do the unthinkable, and decide to acquire some licenses? Feel free to hit that like button, and air your opinions in the comments below!