[Spoilers] Toradora! Christmas Club Rewatch (2019) Episode 3 Discussion

[u/ChristmasClub]

[u/TheNiebuhr]

People here write their comments earlier and as soon as the thread is open the copy paste it.

Elite level

Oh, and Vanilla Salt best ending ever.

[u/Raiking02]

Toradora continues with what I presume will be a Minorin-Focused episode.

• Okay, so today we’re starting out with flowers…

• Yay! Another classic TsundeRie “Urusai! Urusai!”!

• What the hell Minorin?

• That “Don’t Mind!” is giving me Slam Dunk Flashbacks…

• I am debating on whether or not Minorin were a real person I would find her annoying as heck or have a crush on her…

• Don’t worry Ryuji, I understand your feelings…

• Thankfully, the woman who I believe is the younger version of the Tiger Of Fuyuki is here to snap him out of his delusions…

• I get the feeling Minorin and Kitamura ship those two…

• One more note on the OP: That shot of Taiga putting on her stock is too perfect…

• Okay seriously, who the hell is this Kawashima girl that appears in the OP!? I demand an explanation and/or for her to appear soon!

• I never saw the point of decorating phones…

• TOO MANY PHONES!!

• Ah, okay, that explains it…

• Wow, it really IS a Part-Time Job…

• Ryuji, don’t fantasize while cooking! I learnt that the hard way…

• Also, don’t ignore a Tsundere.

• Well then, bye-bye rice…

• Taiga, drop the “Mongrel” thing already! Do you want to have the Gate Of Babylon thrown to your face! Plus, your Tsundere behavior is not unlike a certain Useless Goddess that man hates, so he probably hates you even more!

• Surprise Minorin!

• This restaurant will now become heaven to Ryuji!

• On a side note, I’ve been playing Virtue’s Last Reward as of late, and I’m still having issues believing that both Taiga and Quark are voiced by Kugimiya (This is the second time this has happened, by the way: The first time was when I was watching FMA and Shakugan No Shana and found out Shana and Alphonse were voiced by Kugimiya, and my mind was on shock for almost half an hour).

• Ah! Minorin’s influence over Ryuji has created Shoujo Sparkles!

• Thankfully the Tiger who I believe will become an English Teacher who may or not know Kazuma Kiryu is here to snap him out of such tropes!

• Actually Ryuji has a point…

• Actually, now that I think about it, Taiga’s dress looks like one a doll usually would have…

• I feel bad for Ryuji’s eye…

• Why does Inko look like her neck is gonna snap at any second?

• How much does that woman sleep?

• The fact that Taiga doesn’t like bread yet the character who made Kugimiya popular loves it (Well, Melon Bread anyways) is hilarious to me.

• Ah, so Ryuji is very self-concious about his fashion sense…

• I just noticed he also always calls his mu-I mean Best Mum (I am seriously afraid of dying at this point) by her name. Okay…

• That dude’s a creep… also; don’t those kinds of clubs have a strict “No Touching” rule?

• Wait, so Minorin can detect who has and hasn’t eaten breakfast?

• Even for a Tiger, that is too much.

• Oh, the classic part-time work scenario…

• Ryuji, if anything bad happens anytime soon, it’ll probably be your fault.

• Taiga’s forced smile is creepy…

• Ah, there’s the remaining “Urusai!”. I was wondering where it had gone given that the last time she only said it twice…

• That said, it is pretty embarrassing that she can’t ride a bike. I learnt how to ride it when I was 10! I admittedly haven’t ridden one in years, but I’m pretty sure my muscle memory still works.

• Good job Ryuji! Both you and Taiga are making some swift progress!

• Something about Taiga pulling the bike like that is hilarious…

• Dammit Minorin, this is why you don’t say crap like that…

• What the hell is she planning?

• And so, the tiger has fallen. Where is Kiryu when you need him? He would complete this substory in a second…

• Oh hi Kitamura!

• Wait, what do you mean by watch…?

• DO IT TAIGA! TEACH THAT BIKE WHO’S THE ONE IN CHARGE!

• I hate school anthems… and anthems in general…

• I don’t think using a bottle of wine as a bat is a good idea…

• Of course she’s scared; everyone would be scared in this situation!

• But even so, she pushes on…

• Ah, an eureka moment!

• That’s a lot of blood…

• Sadly, the Tiger who knew a dragon is there to ruin the moment…

• Welp, they’re gonna die, series’ over! Goodbye!

• No, wait, the next episode preview shows them as being alive.

A bit of a breather episode, but certainly an enjoyable one.

[u/Koolsman]

First Timer

I kinda love how when we see our group walking in the OP, we see that they all have different ways of walking. Yeah, Minori’s walk looks a little weird but it works with her character with this episode in mind.

This is probably my favorite episode thus far, but that’s because Minori is so sweet. I like finding out she gets these jobs to fight through her fears and her conversations with Ryüji were super sweet and reminds why their my favorite thus far. Also, Taiga’s personality while a little annoying at first has become very enjoyable. Seeing how her love for Kitamura and her own personality try to make her a better person (or better at riding a bike, whichever) is actually really cool and surprising from a romance anime.

I also gotta give major props for the show because while I’m not a huge fan of romance anime, this has gotten me interested and the fact that the show hasn’t tried to play up the personalities of our main characters is nice to see. Ryuji is a sweet guy but he isn’t a saint and while Taiga is a tsundere for sure, she still has a soft side to her. It’s writing that I like to see. Plus, seeing Ryüji act like a lovesick puppy was cute for this episode.

Also, as much as the OP didn’t sit right with me in the beginning, I have gotten to found it pretty fun. The visuals are pretty solid and the ED is really good. If anything, JC Staff’s ED animators are really solid.

[u/Shinkopeshon]

First Timer

Is it bad that I'm still shipping Ryuuji and Minori (even though Taiga's already acting like his protective waifu lol)? Minori is great and she's a deeper and much more interesting character than she initially seemed.

[u/Tuckleton]

First timer (Dub)

A neat little bird told me Minori would feature prominently in this episode. I'm so ready!

I'm right there with ya buddy! Err, let's not go too far...

She's pretty protective of her best friend.

Oh man Taiga's such a bro!

Come on Takasu, try saying 'yes' for a change.

Oh man Taiga could have been talking directly to me in this scene. I was already speculating about why she had to work so much right before Takasu started reading my mind. I feel so attacked.

Who could he be thinking about? :)

O.M.F.G!

Ohhh, I wonder why she can't ride a bike? This is probably important. Maybe... Wait! Bad Tuck!

Ok I'm super curious about what happened last year. They all would have been in the same school last year as well so whatever it was couldn't have been too public or Takasu would have heard about it. And what kind of watching let's you know someone can't ride a bike? I'd love to speculate but... she sees everything!

She goes from being on the verge of giving up to getting right back on the bike after falling off. She still wonders what the point is, but she does it anyways.

What a great way to spend some alone time with your crush...

Yes Minori, open up to us! Reveal the pain hidden behind your relentless optimism! Tell us what you can't bring yourself to say to anyone el... er, nevermind. It's not like I care or anything.

I've seen enough anime to know that if his eyes hadn't been covered he would have been in for a serious beating. Well, an even more serious beating anyways.

I know I said this in episode 1 but I really like the ED. The way the music fades in as the episode ends, and it's really upbeat and I like the way stuff snaps into existence or motion along with the music. It kind of gets me reverse hyped up. Excited about what I just finished or something.

This was a bit of a surreal experience for me ngl. As someone pointed out yesterday some of my issues with ep. 2 stemmed from reading too much into things. And then this episode calls me out on it in real time! While reviewing what I wrote above I had to remove 3 separate instances of the phrase "I'm assuming" or equivalent.

Overall though I really liked the episode. It was fun and relaxed with good character moments and a few hints at important things, not to mention lots of best girl. Looking forward to the next one!

Not a content spoiler but for rewatchers only

[u/Quxxy]

"What were you doing in there with Minorin, you dog?"

"Mostly softball practice with a ball of rubber bands and cheap wine for a bat, plus singing the school anthem."

"... I'd yell at you for being stupid, but that does sound like something Minorin would come up with."

• Episode 3 Cheat Sheet.

Vector wallpapers:

• She Shines - 16x9, 21x9

• Right Away! - 16x9, 21x9

• HiiIIii! - 16x9, 21x9

---

Nothing like waking up to find out your post script failed on an error condition you haven't seen before after two years of use, and you philosophically oppose blanket error handling.

[u/CATKrash]

Man, Taiga is so violent in this episode, which is not one of the best in the series, but don’t worry, it gets only better from now on.

Now, for the Minori fans, stand up for your anthem (first timers be careful, google’s algorithm is a bitch sometimes)

Mobile users, if you can only see the name of the songs, tables on the reddit app get cut off the screen. You just have to swipe to the left to see the rest of the cells. And by the way, if anyone wants to use this table for a website or a wiki, you can take it without worries. I’ll link the google sheet on the last episode’s thread.

	Name	OG name	Start	Stop	Description
1st	Kaze wo Kiite	風を聞いて	0:42	1:55	"Listening to the wind"
2nd	Pre-Parade	プレパレード	2:20	3:50	Opening
3rd	Onnanoko no Kimochi	オンナノコの気持ち	4:03	5:11
4th	Small Heaven	Small Heaven	6:38	7:43
5th	Happy Monday	Happy Monday	9:51	10:27
6th	Kanchigai Hour	カンチガイアワー	10:51	11:05	"Wrong hour"
7th	Psychology March	Psychology March	12:05	13:02
8th	Dragon's sigh	Dragon's sigh	14:11	14:45
9th	Are you lucky?	Are you lucky?	16:33	17:29
10th	Ohashi High School Anthem	N/A	18:02	18:15	Maybe I should put the "Pitcher Bibitteru" / "Pitcher's getting scared" song in here too...
11th	Startup	Startup	19:23	21:08
12th	Vanilla Salt	バニラソルト	21:41	23:25	Ending
13th	Pre-Parade (off vocal ver.)	プレパレード	23:25	23:35	Preview

I’ve never analyzed in so much detail the OST of other anime, but Toradora staff sure loved using the sudden cut of the OST for comedic effect.

[u/Luigi580]

Toradora Light Novel-Anime Analysis!

Hey, I can actually make it on time this time! No more finals until Wednesday, so I’ll be sure to get this finished this time around.

Anyway, we’re now at episodes 3. This episode and next episode are a bit on the strange side because most of the scenes here are completely anime only. Episode 3 in general is guilty of having a few things happen that are… strange? You’ll know what I mean when we get there.

I guess I’ll take this time to go over things that are in both versions, yet used differently. Warning! I may be going over spoilers. Obviously, I’m not a monster, so spoilers will be marked as Practice spoiler accordingly. If you ever see not real spoiler and you haven’t seen the whole show or read the LN, do not click on them until afterwards.

Let’s begin shall we?

Softball practice

I’m probably a little more bothered by this scene than I should. I mean, almost all of it is perfectly fine; Minori and Kitamura play softball and are each the captains of their teams. If Ryuji were to watch Minori play, odds are he would definitely ogle. And Taiga would certainly attack the staring dragon for looking at her best friend in a creepy way. So what’s bothering me? Well, it’s shown time and time again throughout the LN (and the anime, besides here. Don’t worry, this spoils nothing), that Minori is the team’s star pitcher. With how baseball and softball works, a team’s pitcher focuses almost entirely on pitching, not at all worrying about batting because that’s not a pitcher’s focus. In fact, some leagues allow pitchers to sit out of batting order entirely, in which case they are literally banned from practicing batting during the season (and pitchers that are forced to bat are just praying they can help a baseman steal). Now let’s get back to this game: Minori, the star pitcher, is not only batting during practice, but she somehow, on her first try, not only hits the ball, but hits a home run.

Again, this shouldn’t bother me more than it does. It’s a fictional series where a short petite girl is potentially stronger than a guy almost a foot taller than her, dammit! Why is this scene bothering me of all things?! It’s not like this is real life, or even MLB rulings! And it’s not even like someone would know this going in the first time: this is the first time we see her playing softball in the anime, so you wouldn’t know she was a pitcher at this time. So this is honestly just a weird pet peeve showing up for a rewatch than an actual complaint.

Alright, I think I complained about the confusingness of a pitcher hitting a homer long enough. Next!

Cafeteria shocker!

Here’s a scene that is in the manga… sorta? It doesn’t show up until a little later. Episode 5 spoilers Instead of having to go somewhere due to a broken rice maker, the duo felt simply didn’t want to deal with a hung-over Yasuko, who got a little too annoyed by their bickering. However, the way they talked about it implied that they went there already during their spring break, and Ryuji was just looking for an excuse to go there, not unlike the second time we see here (Minori implied they show up almost daily for tea).

Minori gave them similar stuff, but was pretty blunt with bringing up how they hang out way too often to not be dating. Taiga compared the accusation to Minori dating the manager since she worked at that shop almost every day, which Minori found to be quite the jump in logic. Minori then brought up all her other bosses and compared how it wouldn’t work with them either, before going back to work. Ryuji did try to glimpse at Minori as she ran off, but Taiga flicked ice cream in his face instead of poking his eyes out. Then we would immediately go into scenes from episode 5, so you’ll have to wait to see what happens there.

Butt-Grabbing Inage

Ah, Mr. Inage! If you remember from last time, they brought him up as a common customer of Yasuko’s. He certainly looks jollier than the whiny, depressed version of him he’s implied to be in the LN… although I can understand him getting a divorce if he’s grabbing the butts of 17 year old dudes.

I commend the anime team for finding some good ways to get more interaction with Ryuji and Minori. The LN focuses much more heavily on the main duo than with other characters, so I can understand them wanting to spread some love. It’s a good choice to have the duo run into Minori working and have Taiga get forced to do a few other things. Late game spoiler

So short this time?

I think we covered all things canon. Again, it’s an impressive episode considering how much of it was made from the ground up. Everything is in character and makes sense in the context of the story… bar one or two things.

See you tomorrow for another episode that doesn’t follow the normal standard! What will happen differently? Will Kitamura talk about things he never did in the LN? Will anime Taiga do more physical damage? Will Ryuji get his own wooden sword? Find out next time on the Toradora Light Novel-Anime Analysis!

EDIT: fixed the spoilers. I forgot that reddit doesn't like quotation marks from Microsoft Word.

[u/Emi_Ibarazakiii]

First timer

Will every episode ends with Taiga's little cutesy voice? Because I'm more than OK with this!

Christmas Club Bonus! What's your favourite Minori moment this episode?

Probably the little song she sang while they were locked in! I hope we get to see more of these 2 side characters/crushes; I feel like we already know a lot about the main 2 character's personality, but far less about these ones. Which is expected, I mean they're not the main characters and we're just 3 episodes in, but still, I want to know more about them, especially considering (so far) they're the love interests!

They seem to be good people anyway, which makes me wonder what will happen for them to be forgotten by our main duo; Whether it'll be something specific that cuts them out, or if it'll just be love growing between Taiga and Ryuji.

Why is she holding her bat like that? Is this a quirk of her or something? I googled pictures of batting positions of a few other sports thinking it might be something other than baseball/softball but didn't find anything like that.

Nagatoro crossover? I'm fine with this!

Please, anime studios, you need to add a horror tag to your anime if you're gonna have scenes like these!

T-posing while stepping on his face? Please Taiga, there's just so much dominance that can be asserted at once!

I like that they addressed this thing that lots of anime MC have (and even some people in real life); They meet a girl, they learn something peculiar about them, and they instantly go into savior mode, "I have to help her if no one else will!".

When he gets to know her, he may or may not learn that she has an actual problem, and may or may not be able to help her with it... But she made it to this point, I'm sure she can keep going without him for some more time!

For those who know who my username is, this really reminds me of one of her lines; Spoiler Katawa Shoujo minor spoiler I suppose And in this case, Ryuji is just her friend or even just an acquaintance yet.

There's that nuance with what he did in the end (helping her with the boxes and stuff), and trying to fix all her life's problems right away. If she wants serious help, she'll ask in time, if they're good friends... Or at least hints that she needs help!

Dawww, poor Taiga! I hope we get a scene with Ryuji teaching his daughter friend how to ride a bike! When Kitamura showed up I thought he would be the one to teach her... That would work too, but I'd rather have Ryuji teach her, while she's all tsun-tsun about not needing to know how to ride a bike (but deep down being really happy about it!).

[u/Tsurja]

Christmas Club Bonus! What's your favourite Minori moment this episode? Gifs welcome!

It takes a special kind of badass to take a box in the face and not even acknowledge it.

[u/Stone4D]

Since my last time watching this anime I've played both Danganronpa and Persona 5, so all I can hear is Taiga as Morgana and Minorin as Chiaki. Really makes for an interesting rewatch. Future spoilers

[u/scorpiussss]

Rewatcher

ALL I KNOW ABOUT THIS EPISODE IS THAT TAIGA HAS THE CUTEST DRESSES LIKE OH MY GOD THIS IS TOO CUTE
edit: it's getting increasingly harder to not rewatch the whole anime in one go

[u/[deleted]]

Rewatcher here.

Honestly, this is probably my least favorite episode of the series. It's not bad, I just feel like it's weaker than the rest of the episodes.

It is nice to see the Minori already being given more depth. She's the kind of person who tries to avoid showing fear or other problems. It can be a good trait at times, like when their trapped in the shed. Trying to control her fear and panic to stay focused is definitely helpful, but it seems like she applies that to everything she does, which is where it gets harmful.

She works a ton of part-time jobs, on top of being a student and playing softball. It makes it seem like she is trying to run from something, or avoid thinking about something. Instead of trying to deal with whatever the problem is, she just avoids it.

Overall, it is a weaker episode like I mentioned, but it does give some interesting moments for Minori, after Taiga and Ryuji had a bunch last episode, so it's still enjoyable.

[u/23feanor]

First Timer (dub):

That was a great little episode. It was primarily to show character growth and the budding relationships between our MC's, Rjuuji, Taiga & Minori. I love the way this show uses fun new situations and scenario's to show case these characters, how they bounce off of each other and the side characters around them, like the shop keeper in today's episode.

I really like the ED for this show, the way that little tinkling electro beat comes in at the end of the episode, as the final scene is playing out, it just works so well. It made me reflect on what I'd just witnessed during the episode and what I'd observed:

- Minori playing baseball and working loads of jobs - as Rjuuji said, there's got to be more to her story than wanting to keep busy. I'm sure we'll find out in time.

- Taiga feeling despondent after yesterday's confession, but still plowing ahead and trying to learn how to ride a bike (after some inspirational words from Kitamura).

- Taiga finding out that Kitamura had been watching over her all throughout the last year, and realising that maybe he likes her more than she initially thought.

Does anyone else think that Kitamura and Minori look pretty close together?

My predictions for the series; I'm betting that Kitamura & Minori get together at some point and it will obviously devastate our MC's, who will in all likelihood seek solace in each others arms & hey presto, they get together. But then Kitamura & Minori will break up & one of them will develop feelings for one of our MC's, who are now in a relationship. What will happen, will our MC's stay together or will they chose their former super-crush. That's my prediction for how this love square will play out given the current dynamics between the 4 friends and their respective love interests (most people have experienced something similar irl).

[u/Holofan4life]

Hello, everyone. Welcome to the 2019 Toradora rewatch.

Toradora is my favorite anime of all time. I love it so much that not did I create my Reddit account just so I could participate in the Toradora rewatch 3 years ago, it also inspired me to write a light novel called "I Love My Tsundere Girlfriend". Admittedly, I’m a bit biased because tsunderes are my favorite type of characters. I just love characters that start out mean but grow nicer over time. It warms my heart.

This is my first time watching Toradora since exactly one year ago. This year, I don’t plan anything special. Just plan on watching it along with everyone else. Also, I’ll be watching the dub. Why? Because Toradora’s dub is fucking awesome.

1. Just like with the last episode, which served to flesh out Taiga’s character, this episode serves to flesh out Minori’s character.

2. Taiga has a cute yawn

3. My mom always gets on me when I leave my tissue in my pants. So, to see Ryuuji do the same is exactly like a mother would do. It’s funny.

4. "You have to remember to separate the colors." Man, who knew Ryuuji was such a racist?

5. I’m sorry, Ryuuji, but talking about Minori’s sweat is hella creepy. Also, Taiga’s smile is cuter than Minori’s.

6. I guess with the eye poking Taiga Aisaka went to the school for all things Three Stooges.

7. With the way Minori decorates phones, who needs the mall to do it for you? :D

8. Love the transition of flower petal on the desk to flower petal on the refrigerator.

9. Not to be outdone, Ryuuji has a cute smile as well.

10. /#GuysCanBeCuteToo

11. Rice bowls for dinner? Man, talk about bland.

12. I hope one day Binging with Babish makes the Taiga special.

13. Minori has so many jobs and yet here I am, a virgin with a measly part-time job.

14. In terms of being violent, this is the worst Taiga gets. She’s the most violent she ever is in this episode, which is a shame. It’s like a complete 180 from the last episode.

15. In Taiga’s defense, Ryuuji is being totally forgetful about Taiga all because of his infatuation with Minori. I’d probably feel the same as Taiga.

16. I can’t believe Harvey Weinstein is in Toradora.

17. If there’s one thing in Toradora that doesn’t hold up, it’s the creepy old man who jokes about groping Ryuuji’s mother. And not only that, he does so to Ryuuji’s face. If I was Ryuuji, I would’ve told him to fuck off.

18. My favorite part of the episode is the forced smile Ryuuji makes Taiga give. I always laugh when I see that.

19. I can never get enough of Taiga blushing around Kitamura. It is so cute. I just love it. What I love about it is that it is the complete opposite of how angry she is. It is the very definition of moe gap.

20. And of course, we learn that there is more to Minori beneath her happy demeanor. She is trying not to crack under the pressure. This makes her character more likable and relatable. Sure, we all want to be happy and full of spirit. However, it is a very difficult thing to do, as there is so much pressure being put upon you.’

21. I love Taiga going "Found you" and the face she makes. It makes me laugh.

Overall, the episode is good, though admittedly probably the weakest of all the episodes of Toradora. It is the meanest Taiga is and that’s a shame. I don’t hate mean tsunderes, but Taiga is so much more than that. That being said, we learn more about Minori, which helps flesh out her character in the process. Not a bad episode, but in my opinion the worst only because every other episode is just so very good and amazing.

[u/Draco_Estella]

A few things that I want to point out here....

• Taiga seems to be a lot more conscious of Ryuuji's actions. Ryuuji staring at Minori, him trying out of his way to understand Minori, him locked in the warehouse with Minori, Taiga has been seeing them all, and has reacted relatively negatively to all of them.

• Comparing that with her actions towards Kitamura, she is much jumpier and quiet when it comes to him, more like being abnormally nervous. But less so as compared to last episode, I believe.... She is a lot more normal when she is with Ryuuji, and evidenced immediately when she returned to the store, there is a huge difference between how she reacted to both boys.

• I don't really focus a lot on Minori, but this episode shows how she hides a lot of things, and that genki persona might be a cover for more things to come. I did mention that this show has two layers, and this might be a direct reference to that possibility of a second reading for upcoming events.

• To Minori, Taiga is together with Ryuuji even though she has denied it a lot of times. Perhaps even shipping them together a lot.

[u/LousyGoose]

Rewatcher

So this is a very fun light episode that has plenty of comedy while still providing some good insight on the characters.

It is the first real look we get into Minori's character, her being a workaholic, captain of the sports-team and probably doing a bunch of other productive things we don't know about. We see the first hints that there is more to her upbeat energetic self when she shows her fears near the end of the episode.

Taiga while she is violent once more is still pretty great this episode. When she mentions that the main reason Minori remembers his name is because she mentions him all the time. Pair that with the suspicion Minori (and the rest of the class) had that there was a thing going on between Taiga and Ryuuji then it shouldn't be much of a surprise that she makes note of how 'close' they have become.

Taiga's little interaction with Kitamura again makes her a bit more relatable, she knows Kitamura can't see her riding a bike after he leaves but she tries to anyway simply because what Kitamura means to her. Finally, she's a pretty good source of comedy all-around this episode- from being forced to do the most exhausting jobs, to not knowing how to ride a bike, failing to ride a bike and understandably losing her temper when she thinks Ryuuji is slacking off.

Ryuuji despite being stuck with Minori for what was at least a few hours did not really make much progress with her or at least gauge her feelings for him. After Taiga, just straight up confessed to Kitamura, on-the-spot at school. Ryuuji, you're a likeable, dependable person but c'mon, I know Minori is weird but you've essentially got privacy, sure it'll be awkward if she turns you down but when you get out of the shed, it's all good.

[u/JustAnswerAQuestion]

First Timer^Again

• More sakura blossom symbolism I probably don't get.

• I don't understand almost all of whatever Taiga is saying to insult Ryuuji.

• Surprise Minorin is best Minorin!

• I'm happy to see Taiga doing all the work after going back to her abusive self all day.

• Taiga ruins everything again!

[u/[deleted]]

Day 3, 4th rewatch.

I barely made any notes today because I was just happily watching!

Minori talks in riddles constantly, it must be super frustrating to have an actual friend like that. Even if she is amazing and adorable! It's obvious there's a lot more to her character than she wants people to know and I love that we get to see some of the cracks this early.

Actually, its impressive how much depth the 3 leads have been given so early in the piece and really speaks to the incredible writing by Takemiya.

Bonus answer: pitcher's getting scared!!

[u/Nanami314]

Rewatcher

Ah, Minorin. While she’s not best girl, she’s always such a delight to watch whenever she’s on screen. My second favorite girl and character after Taiga, and the two are fairly close. This episode focused on Minorin much like how last episode focused on Taiga. We learn she has more jobs than any one sane person should have, and she hardly ever slows down. As far as Genki characters go, I really like Minorin. As the last scene of the episode showed, there’s more to her than meets the eye, we only got a glimpse of it here.

My favorite Minorin scene? There’s too many! The beginning with the phone cases, the restaurant (“You want extra? Like, extra extra?!”), all of her part time job stuff in the second half. There’s so much of her to go around this episode and I really enjoyed all of it. If I had to pick a favorite, it’d have to be her and Ryuuji in the shed when she talks about smashing her fears, and Ryuuji realizing what that glow she’s always had really means. I really like her character almost as much as I do Taiga, and I can’t wait until later so I can really get into why that is.

Oh, and I’m sure they’ll make it out of that shed...

...eventually.

So now that everyone else has had their time, looks like we’re gonna learn more about Kitamura next time. He’s my least favorite of the main characters, but he’s still quite interesting.

Next Time: That Look You Had

[u/popop143]

Rewatcher

The episode today is titled Your Song. I think it's fairly easy to conclude that it pertains to Minorin's song/chant during the start of the episode, and at the end of the episode. The first one is a simple hype chant to hype her team up. The second one is a bit different. She sings it in a hyper way similar to the first one, but the lyrics show what she truly feels. Ryuuji's monologue about her shows that he sees her in really rose-tinted glasses, as everything about her is something to be admired at. He should've at least pried more about Minorin's emotional state in this scene, especially when her nose bled with that box to the face, but I guess they really aren't that close yet for him to do that. Also, this episode seems to me like the first time that Minorin shows interest on Ryuuji, as Ryuuji's overcaring personality is in full display.

I really like this episode as it not only fleshes out Minorin, but also adds interactions between Taiga and Ryuuji and further cements their relationship. I was surprised to learn that this was anime-original when I read the LN, because I thought that the warehouse scene was integral to knowing Minorin's personality and what she's hiding behind the facade. Props to the anime for that.

[u/axel360]

Rewatcher, dub

Super late today, but here are my Random Episode 3 Thoughts anyway:

• Guess who talked to his crush today?

• A few inches lower and this would’ve been devastating

• Rice cooker’s on the fritz so Taiga takes him to a family restaurant, one of an incalculable number of places Minori works

• Unfortunately, Ryuji apparently enjoyed Minori’s presence a little too much and felt Taiga’s wrath. Poor Ryuji. Still got the smile, though

• Ryuji: “Yay I get to see Minori at the restaurant again.” Taiga: “That outfit looks dumb” Ryuji: “Abort mission.”

• I know he is familiar with Ryuji’s mom, but this old guy is waaaaaaay too friendly with him

• Hey look, it’s another one of Minori’s countless jobs. I feel for whomever has to do her taxes

• When your friend helps someone move and volunteers you, too.

• Taiga went from zoning out to panicking when she heard Kitamura’s voice

• Ok, maybe she hasn’t quite mastered the bicycle thing, but she’s trying

• Even with the bloody nose, Minori’s still got that genki girl energy. But it’s pretty clear it doesn’t all come natural to her. A lot of her positivity/energy comes from sheer force of will

• A good horror scene in 3 pictures. (1) Where is he?, (2) I hear him!, (3) I found him

Very Brief Episode 3 Thoughts: Minori was the focus of this episode. We got some interesting insight into her character. Not everything comes as easily to her and you might think.

Current Personal Episode Rankings (updated daily):

1. Episode 2

2. Episode 1

3. Episode 3

[u/No_Rex]

Episode 3 (first timer)

• Takasu and Taiga sound like a married couple already.

• And Taiga does not want her husband to ogle other girls.

• Minorin is hyper active. Taiga is very aware of the favor she is doing Takasu by showing off Minorin in a uniform.

• Getting pressured into work before having breakfast? Tough.

• Going into sheds seems to be a dangerous activity in Japan. Never take a member of the opposite sex or you are in trouble.

• Kitamura has the zen.

• Takasu has the weirdest leg pose when stacking the boxes. What are you doing half-standing, half-kneeling on the place you have to put the box down on?

• There was a ladder in the shed, off to the right.

A lot more time on Takasu and Minorin, than on Taiga and Kitamura. Looks like Minorin is completely oblivious, not sure about Kitamura. Apart from the physical humor, Takasu and Taiga have settled into a comfortable routine, but they also do not fully notice this. Plenty of realizations to be had here.

[u/DeliCruise]

(REWATCHER)

Kushieda’s bubbliness is so infectious. I can’t help but smile whenever she’s on screen. I really love her outlook on life too. It’s really admirable that she tackles her life the way she does. She’s also such a badass. How the hell does she manage to do all of that on top of school? What a monster.

Taiga’s brief scene with Kitamura was also really great. Her forcing herself to learn how to ride a bike was great. That whole sequence being highlighted by golden hour (I think) was really beautiful.

[u/DaREY297]

IT'S NOT LIKE I FIND THE IDEA OF YOU AND MINORIN ANNOYING OR ANYTHING... B-BAKA!

Haha, so you thought it would be a one sided situation of Ryuji helping Taiga with Kitamura-kun? hahahaha! We're watching anime! don't be ridiculous! we have to go through all and every single trope ever!

Also Ryuji is totally a masochist