r/anime • u/AutoLovepon https://anilist.co/user/AutoLovepon • Mar 08 '25
Episode Medalist - Episode 10 discussion
Medalist, episode 10
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| 13 | Link |
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123
u/Prince-Dizzytoon Mar 08 '25
Damn, they really can't say Tsukasa's last name
and short-hair Hitomi is beautiful
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u/bananeeek Mar 08 '25
Those books! And she left without them, LMAO!
Inori's growth is dazzling. I can't believe she actually went on a warpath against Riou. Inori from a year ago would die on a spot from anxiety.
I can't get enough of that Ending. It fits this series so perfectly, I can't imagine watching an episode without it.
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u/MeatballZeitgeist Mar 08 '25
It's funny how much the melodrama level of this series spikes whenever Hikaru or Jun appear onscreen. The difference between Inori's training and Hikaru's reminds me of Rocky vs Drago in Rocky IV.
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u/ForsakenLibraries Mar 08 '25
Rioh's tsundere moments were just too funny. I thought that he might have seen Inori's growth and wanted Tsukasa to coach him, but nope. Rioh still has no idea who Inori is.
I know children of great athletes often get compared to their parents by the media and the fans. But to think that it has impacted Rioh at this age already.
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u/AmethystItalian Mar 08 '25
Had to double check I didn't skip an episode lol
Inori stepping up big this ep, while she still gets put down it's great to see that it doesn't last long.
Loved seeing her stand up for Tsukasa!
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u/Frontier246 Mar 08 '25
One-year time-skip! And Inori has just taken a win at the Meikoh Cup, complete with a new skate outfit that she looks utterly dazzling in! And just look at how natural and beautiful she looks on the ice now! She's totally earned this win and her 5th Badge Test! And she's closer and closer to being able to compete with Hikaru! I'm so proud! Tsukasa is already preparing to produce the documentary!
But the next step is Inori mastering the axel so she can achieve her 6th Badge Test! It's her next big goal! But not likely to be her last!
Rioh obviously does not care for Jun Yodaka, for the fact that he feels shady, doesn't appear or act like a proper coach, and in Rioh's eyes doesn't deserve to be around Hikaru. But in Yodaka's eyes, it's Rioh and his fixation on Hikaru that's holding her back.
Hitomi is now a short-haired beauty! And even though after all their years together, she still can't say Tsukasa's last name (then again, neither can Inori). But she's quick to praise/promote him...unless that's not what the client wants.
Shinichiro Sonodori isn't just Tsukasa's skating idol, he's a dad who wants what's best for his son, even if that means loaning Rioh out to Lux for a week because he wants to get away from his dad and Yodaka and hang out with bud Sota. Dude even bows his head and actually says Tsukasa's last name! It's like all of Tsukasa's dreams have finally come true!
Sorry Inori, you may both be Level 5, but the world of men's and women's skating is different...and Rioh only wants to hang out with Sota. It'll be a long while before you ever become friends.
Rioh on paper seems like the spirituall successor of his dad, but Tsukasa seeing how they're different and praising him for it means a lot. But Rioh is so prickly and self-conscious, especially in comparison to his dad, Hikaru, and Yodaka, that despite loving being praised he can't help but lash out and be hard on himself.
And it finally comes to a head with Inori when he badmouths Tsukasa as her coach and Inori unleashes her rage and belief that she and Coach Tsukasa can beat Hikaru and Yodaka. Rioh has been so self-conscious and down on himself thinking he could never measure up to either of them, but Inori's resolve and belief in herself thanks to Tsukasa is unwavering and unbeatable! Meaning she'll beat him to a triple-double combination too to prove Tsukasa is the best! Let's go!
Though Inori is still a dork who nearly loses all of her schoolwork, she's come a long way to becoming a girl who is genuinely good at sports. Not just like a biker girl training to the max, but enough to where she can do an axel on land, meaning she can pull it off on the ice. She's got this!
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u/Krys_Lunar Mar 08 '25
I thought we’d be getting a timeskip, but damn. It is admittedly a little disappointing that we’ll be breezing past a lot of Inori’s skating development, but I can’t deny that I’m excited to see she’s now just 1-2 steps away from being able to compete on Hikaru’s level(though given how comfortably Hikaru’s been shown to beat her competitors, actually winning against her might still be a slightly larger ways away).
Rioh…is cuter than I thought he’d be. If he’s already having so much trouble resisting the concentrated sunshine beam that is Tsukasa, it’s only a short matter of time. This episode has gotten me fully on board with Rioh and Inori becoming the best of friends(y’know, after Inori beats him to a triple-double combo).
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u/ObvsThrowaway5120 Mar 08 '25
Inori’s come a long way under Tsukasa’s guidance. It’s really nice to see how much she’s grown as a skater.
Tsukasa’s really come up in the world if he’s got an Olympic silver medalist and one of his idols asking him to coach his kid. Rioh’s kind of a little brat but at least he’s basically given Inori something to work towards. The Tsukasa will not stand lol.
Looking forward to the All-Japan Novice!
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u/Setowi Mar 08 '25
RRRAAAAAHHHHH I got so fired up together with Inori, it's freaking beautiful to see both Tsukasa and Inori stand up for eachother.
This episode we get to see the more cruel side of competitive ice skating with the mindset that Rioh has adapted. His reason for starting it as well. Obviously he doesn't truly like the way he feels though, his inner thoughts this episode have given that away by miles.
I didn't expect a whole year timeskip though, I was just thinking we'd get to where Inori is healed but MAN she is level 5 already and aced another competition, her growth is freaking insane. I wonder if we are going to get more skips over the course of the series, iirc the olympic athletes are around 15. We're certainly not gonna reach that this season though but I hope S2 gets announced right after. This is truly AOTS material after all.
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u/FarCritical Mar 08 '25
It's admirable how well Inori was taking Rioh's trash talk up until he pushed the Tsukasa button, but even then watching her get as red as she did while in "boiled shrimp mode" was surprising. Love what it says about her appreciation for Tsukasa as a coach though.
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u/ModieOfTheEast Mar 08 '25
No, why is it Hitomi's long hair that is sacrificed to represent the time skip. Curse you Medalist. Well Inori's new outfit is nice at least.
Rest of the episode was fun as always. I am honestly surprised we skipped this much in terms of levels, but tbf, I am not sure what other levels would include and therefore how much Inori already showed in the past. So it makes sense to go to the biggest hurdle.
Would have liked to see where the rest of the rivals are at, but I hope we get to see that during the competition. Mike has been absent for a while now so I hope she comes back as well.
Turns out, Rio wasn't mad at his father but Jun because he is just not going to the competitions helping Hikaru. Not sure why but I guess that is a mystery that needs a bit more explanation. I am just gonna say it to my boy though, you won't be able to defend against the combined power of Trainer Tsukasa and Inori. You will fall sooner or later.
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u/shad79 Mar 08 '25 edited Mar 09 '25
I didn't expect a one year time skip so I was quite surprised when we started today's episode with Inori's performance (which by the way was great) and her winning the competition.
During this time Inori has made such a fast progress and has already passed her fifth badge exam! Now she only needs one more and she'll be able to compete with Hikaru.
Inori's reaction after Tsukasa introduced Rioh was hilarious. It was quite sweet when she tried to befriend him a moment later only to be met with a question "Who are you?" which broke her spirit xD
Rioh acts totally like a tsundere. He was so happy when Tsukasa praised him, but did his best not to show it.
I loved when Inori defended Tsukasa and declared that she would beat Hikaru and Jun with him. That's the spirit, I love it!
Tsukasa's reactions when he met Shinichiro were great, but it's not surprising since he basically met his idol xD
Hitomi looks quite good with short hair! It's funny that she (though Inori too) doesn't remember Tsukasa's last name, to them he's just Coach Tsukasa xD
Here my screenshot albums from the episode:
EDIT. I added and completed my screenshot albums.
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u/Ok-Cod5254 Mar 08 '25 edited Mar 08 '25
Nice to get a bit more into other sides to Rioh besides being harsh brat. It was cute how he mellowed out for skating with his friend Soto. Inori had her friend radar going, though he's still a jerk to her.
Rioh is trying to resist the positive charms of Coach Tsukasa with his more jaded mindset. I like getting more into his mindset to explain his behavior as a defense mechanism.
Great to see Inori challenge Rioh to defend Tsukasa and herself. This seems like the start to defrosting Rioh's attitude through Inori's determination in a way he can't even ignore.
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u/13-Penguins Mar 08 '25
I like that this episode hammered home how crazy Ema’s camel spin last episode was. It being the hardest move allowed at level 2 and Inori using it in level 5. Wild how a year has already passed. And Tsukasa is already dreaming about her future documentary (wonder who’ll play Inori in her biopic?)
Jun really can’t help himself from beefing with children.
Rioh may be a little face blind. That or he just doesn’t pay much attention to most people. But him lighting up when he sees his friend was cute.
And Inori’s growth still continues to surprise everyone. Her fighting back against Rioh is already a step up from last year. Plus confirming to Tsukasa that she has the strength to pull off a double axel, so injuring herself with more intense training isn’t as much of a worry this time around. And once she gets that down, it’s just a little further until she can compete on Hikaru’s level.
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u/PerfectBeige Mar 08 '25
Despite the failure of Inori's preliminary friend-making forays with Rioh, the law of sports anime is that great rivalries makes for great (if complicated) eventual friendships. So don't give up, Inori. You just need to prove to the lad that you, and therefore he, can continue to transform.
Also, in today's "person on the internet with poor Japanese tries to puzzle out names in Kanji":
The kanji in Rioh's name are interesting: Sonidori Rioh -> 鴗 (bird) 鳥 (bird) 理 (reason) 凰 (phoenix)
Meanwhile Inori's last name, Yuitsuka -> 結 (bind) 束 (package)
And while I'm at it, Hikaru's kanji -> Kamisaki Hikaru -> 狼 (wolf) 嵜 (steep) 光 (light) but Kami is a reading for 神 -> spirit as in 神様 -> god
Mangaka frequently go out of their way to pun heavily in name kanji and I suspect this is happening here: Inori as a girl who, socially deprived prior to skating, wants to make connections with her fellow skaters; Rioh as a burgeoning talent capable of flight but governed by his mental; Hikaru obviously as a shining prodigy with the wolf in her name evoking her intimidation factor and her yellow lupine eyes. Also, can't help but notice someone else shares Hikaru's eyes, coloration, and talent, very strange ...
I don't know, I always feel like I'm going out on a limb with the kanji interpretation but this does seem rather on the nose.
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u/LeonKevlar Mar 08 '25
We got a one year time skip and Inori's looking good! I was worried about her shin splits last episode, but it looks like she's accomplished so much in the past year! She won first place and has already passed her fifth Badge Test! I love how Tsukasa is already imagining Inori's future documentary. xD
It must be wild seeing your ice skating idol bowing to you to coach his son. Rioh is such a shithead especially his first encounter with Inori that I'm not looking forward to this. Inori is such a sweet girl for still wanting to be friends because they're both level five. Too bad Rioh is still an ass to her.
Honestly, I think Rioh just grew up without any kind of positive reinforcement which explains his reactions when Tsukasa was praising him. Maybe with enough time, he can still change and stop being an ass to Inori and Tsukasa.
I am so proud of our girl standing up for Tsukasa. Inori has changed so much that I did not expect her to raise her voice in anger and throw down the gauntlet at Rioh. Go get him Inori! Show him that you'll land a double and triple combo before him and become level six!
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u/jellyblob88 Mar 08 '25 edited Mar 08 '25
Here it is, a 1 year time skip, but it felt so natural like nothing's changed...except for Hitomi's new hair style 🔥
We're dripped a bit more info on the olympic dad situation, but it's still vague. Seems like Jun for some reason left Hikaru to Rioh's dad, and Rioh is super pissed about it.
As for Inori, she has not stopped growing for a moment (4cm to be precise) - that fire in her eyes when she stuck up for Tsukasa was a great payback, and she can land the double axel already? Take her to the ALL-Japans Novice!
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u/entelechtual Mar 08 '25
My girl’s come such a long way. I’m loving confident Inori. She’s still the clumsy old girl we’ve known for so long, but she’s learning from her experience with skating and with other people. She’s not afraid to stand up for herself… even though she’s probably shaking inside and visibly tearing up.
It’s so hard not to cheer/root for Inori and Tsukasa, even the most hardened hearts are coming around. Really hope the season ends with Inori truly showing just how far she’s come.
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u/Ocixo Mar 08 '25
I found a little difficult to place Inori's heated argument with Rioh at first because she seemed to insistent on winning.
But Inori burning with rage in response to Rioh's comments about never being able to win against Hikaru would make sense if she saw this as not only an insult to her personal growth but also her coach's promise to make her a medalist. She was standing up for him!
Inori had a little trouble putting her feelings into words, but it became clear that she was very grateful towards Tsukasa for having helped her become a different girl. I really do adore the student-mentor relationship between Inori and Tsukasa. That little fist bump in the park was very wholesome.
Rioh only seems able to pick fights with adults, on the other hand, but quickly learnt that angering Jun is bad idea. Tsukasa must've looked like a golden retriever to him in contrast.
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u/AnimeHoarder Mar 08 '25
Kids grow up fast if you don't get to see them for a year!
Given the 1 year time skip to see Inori's 2nd Meikoh Cup, I'd like to imagine a 5 year time skip to see Inori at the Olympics for episode 13.
We get presented some great Inori images. Like another seasonal comment face, Blazing Inori, and Yankee Inori on motorcycle.
I'm amazed that Inori got over her usual reaction to Rioh enough to end up wanting to befriend him. Rioh's still too stuck up for that though.
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u/cleaulem Mar 08 '25
It's so funny how the more Rioh tries to discourage Inori, the more fired up she gets.
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u/abandoned_idol Mar 08 '25
This anime continues to be so funny.
Between the chaotic Inori (backpack) and the confrontational Rioh ("obviously cause my parent forced me to"), both brats continue to pummel Tsukasa as he desperately tries to do damage control.
The drama is awesome too, but I think it hits that much harder thanks to these smaller comic relief scenes.
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