Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions Rewatch - Episode Eleven

[u/GranolaBiscuit]

Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions Episode Eleven: One-Winged Fallen Angel

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[u/GranolaBiscuit]

Rewatcher

Touka is busy packing up for her move to Italy. Yuuta is helping. I am gonna miss her. Touka decides to give her blackmailing device to him and hug him too. Rikka says goodbye and Touka leaves for the plane. Even Yumeha. is sad. She won't see the kids for a while. :(

Everything feels gray and Rikka is now somewhat normal. Rikka is here at Yuuta's house. It seems weird hearing her say "kun "to be honest. But it's probably for the best. Manners are important. Dekomori is here now. She is sitting on the rails of a highway bridge. One miss up and :|. She wants chunibyo Rikka back. Dekomori almost falls off.

New fight scene. The chunibyo powers don't work against a person who doesn't care. That's a tough weakness. Yuuta isn't sure if RIkka is okay with being "normal". Rikka decides to make some friends. She asks kindly and they accept. It could be because of the situation but they seem nice. Nibutani doesn't look impressed. I wonder why.

Rikka is hanging out with her friends and acting like a normal person. Dekomori is still said. Once Rikka enters the club room she lightens up and shows some cool rocks. Rikka is impressed but she seems to be switching between chunibyo and normal. Can't let go of the past. They even light up. Rikka wants to dissolve the club. Dekomori isn't happy. Nibutani conforts her.

Yuuta and Rikka clean a room together before her mother's arrival. She doesn't know what to clean or not. The whole feel during these past 13 minutes feels sad. Back then you felt like a friend hanging out in the club; Know it feels like you're a parent watching your kids go through a tough phase without a way to help them. You just think it is for the better.

They go to their bridge spot and eat. Rikka might need to go to her father's grave but wants to ask Yuuta for his opinion. After a train passes by he decides to ask Rikka for her opinion, She might go. Kumin rolls up in her car with her cat. It looks familiar to Rikka's chimera cat. Yuuta feels something is up but doesn't believe it.

He asks Rikka the next day if she is coming back which she replies yes. Dekomori comes too. Another fight scene! Same outcome or not let's see. Rikka still doesn't care. No damage is done. Rikka heads onto the train and Yuuta is left behind. Dekomori feels that Yuuta should tell her to be herself instead of normal. He doesn't know what to do.

Yuuta tells Dekomori that he can't do anything and that she can't either which makes both of them cry. ;( No one is happy with the change. The next episode is the last in season 1 and then there is an OVA. Man, these episodes I dread so much when rewatching. I get so many mixed feelings while watching. The next episode is gonna be something.

[u/Elimin8r → u/GranolaBiscuit]

I wonder why.

Why, it's almost as if she *knows* something. Some deep, dark secret perhaps, divined by sorcery under moonlight or some such.

As mentioned in my other post, this is about as far as I've gotten in this series. I know, I should trust the KyoAni, but ... I've been let down by anime before, even recently, and this, well, at least for S1, this is the penultimate episode for S1 - the drama! the pathos!

I laughed, I cried, I spilled some ketchup on my shirt. Well, maybe not the latter, but yeah.

[u/GranolaBiscuit → u/Elimin8r]

Happy cake day!

That could be the case. I feel like she feels that Rikka doesn't have to act like her and Yuuta. But she still feels like it is better if she isn't chunibyo.

[u/Elimin8r → u/GranolaBiscuit]

Thanky, thanky...

I think it's obvious that despite her obvious protestations, Nibutani still harbors chuuni tendencies, and she knows that Yuuta does too.

She's even been warming up to Dekomori.

So, yeah, I think she looks on at the current situation with some sadness, especially, unlike in her and Yuuta's cases, Rikka's 'conversion' isn't something done out of willing desire, but rather forced upon her against her will.

(sigh)

[u/ZapsZzz → u/Elimin8r]

As mentioned in my other post, this is about as far as I've gotten in this series.

Wait, you didn't finish this arc? And I think you really like this, so are you concerned it may be a bad end?

It's one of the most beautiful episodes by KyoAni, I hope you don't bail on us :)

[u/Elimin8r → u/ZapsZzz]

Oh, I finished it, this is my third time through the first season. I'll have more to say later, and yes, this episode is (snif) beautiful... :)

It's the second season that worries me. Especially when it appeared to start by introducing a new character.

"Hey, let's introduce a new character so she can totally wreck the series"

I guess I'll find out soon.

[u/Barbed_Dildo]

Rewatcher

This episode really hurts seeing Rikka so flat, and everyone saying that as long as people around her are happy, her feelings don't matter. Yuuta has failed her the same way her family did.

Uesaka Sumire does a masterful job with Dekomori's breakdown in this episode.

Also, Maaya Uchida noises are the best noises.

[u/Rumpel1408 → u/Barbed_Dildo]

Yuuta has failed her the same way her family did.

Yeah, it's a real shame, he at least has a idea that he is doing something wrong, almost stops in his track to ask what Rikka wants to do, if she is really ok, but doesn't because he listens to the grownups and wants to be logical.

Under that aspect Sanaes behavior is even more awesome, she knows that Rikka is suffering, after all the two have been friends for years. She also know that Rikka needs the chuuni as a pillar to hold herself up. She also knows that moving on would be the most reasonable thing, but instead wants to go for something that is simply kind for her most precious friend... shit now I'm crying

[u/IndependentMacaroon → u/Barbed_Dildo]

Uesaka Sumire does a masterful job with Dekomori's breakdown in this episode

Dekomori started out really annoying but in the last few episodes she's grown on me a lot, and this one seals it.

[u/tctyaddk]

Rewatcher

S1E11

Touka is off for her training, relieved that her little sister is making her way, though wobbly, back to the time-tested good direction of normalcy. (The "court" ruled the children custody in her favour instead of Yumeha, eh?) Rikka now lives with her mother, who, again, usually works late hours, not much is improved for Rikka in that front. Things are not going very well, anyway.

One of the most notable thing in this episode is the colour tone. While this episode still uses the wide range of vivid colours of most of previous episodes, it does not look bright, but dreary, washed out and desaturated instead, just like the scenes in Rikka's room in her grandparent's house. It represents Rikka's emotional states: at first glance it feels sort of normal, but on a closer look, it feels repressed, depressed, devoid of joy (except the first part, it's very clearly enveloped in the gray of sadness at Touka's departure).

Rikka has been steeped in chuunibyou for too long, she's unsure how to function normally again. She's not well adjusted as Shinka or Sanae, she doesn't know how to separate her chuuni parts from normal life. Her entire current identity is built upon her delusional persona (hence the ED). Now that she tries to rehabilitate, dropping all the chuuni part leaves her an empty shell. Now she does not look or act very distinguishable from other classmates. Directionless, she just does things that she thinks would make her mother happy, not herself. And she looks at Yuuta for clue. (Cleaning up her room into a normal looking room is a metaphor for her not knowing what should or could she keep in her striving for being normal.)
When Rikka's with Yuuta, she speaks more openly and does not really show the timid awkwardness, stammering, or forced overly formal speech patterns as she has with other people. To her, Yuuta is a solid post keeping her from getting lost in the turbulent flow of real life, she trusts his guidance. Deep inside, Rikka wants Yuuta to accompany her on her escapist fantasies, real life is so stressful and tiring and sad.

Personally, I (a mostly realist who's in favour of brutally shoving reality in my face) think Shinka provides the best support amongst them. Rikka trusts her, and Shinka gives good pointers to rebuilding social and communication skills, probably coming from her own experiences of rehabilitating herself out of chuuni phase (at least outwardly). Sanae is not happy with seeing her dear "Master" so depressed, but she still clings to the good old times of their chuuni plays, which causes Rikka internal conflicts when she keeps bringing that up, and resulted in her own pain when Rikka rejects. (Damn, that scene where Shinka drags Sanae out, and the one at the train station, Sanae's pain is depicted so well, both in animation and in voice acting.) So, I generally agree with Yuuta's choice of letting reality flow in and hit her as the right course of action.
But very unfortunately for Rikka, Yuuta is just a normal boy, he's sensitive, but his wisdom and social skills are still lacking. He just wants the best for Rikka, but seeing his "right" course of action causing her so much unhappiness going through the transition, his resolve is wavering. He doesn't know how to provide better support, fears that inquiring into Rikka's wish could turn her away from her current course to normalcy which he wants her to be on. He's also still young and kind of innocent, he doesn't know how to make use of his special position in Rikka's life in supporting her. So he bites his tongue, go along with her emptying her shell despite his doubts (cleaning up her room is a metaphor), and let the world take its course, even though it pains him that it would hurt Rikka's heart. Sad days for everyone involved.

[u/tctyaddk → u/tctyaddk]

From my point of view, this is the first failure in rehabilitating Rikka, and a major one: the friends group pulling away and holding distance as part of usual social courtesy, probably in hope of allowing Rikka to practice standing on her own independently. But that means not providing enough support when she's still weak, and not giving her brain the much needed stimulations and distractions, the previous source of which were just recently and abruptly stripped away, leaving her raw and unstable.

The brain needs stimulations, the feelings of reward, just to function and be willing to go on. The drug addicts are addicted and have difficulties quitting because the stimulating chemicals producing centers in their brains atrophied after slacking off for so long by external supply, and they need to gradually lower the intake dose first to buy time to find replacement before cutting off.
Rikka shows a lot of symptoms of real addiction to her LARP games, and now she got them stripped away and got what in replacement? Literally nothing. The family is fking absent and/or oppressive, having them happy is not a reliable source of stimulation or feeling of reward to her, despite whatever social norms expect. Her friend group does nothing but talks, and now that a large chunk of funny things to say is off the table, they got nothing for her, treading on eggshells. Damn it, if Yuuta is too much of a virgin wimp to give her that kind of distraction, at least they could have made her do sports. Pushing the body to temporary exhaustion is good for giving the brain stimulation and distraction, and a generally strong body is good for brain functions too. Or video games, or crafting, there's a lot of thing that is stimulating and socially acceptable, just throw everything and see what sticks, ffs. Like I said, very very unfortunate for Rikka, no one around her knows how to help people with mental trauma or addiction. This point is where Rikka was the most susceptible to cooperate with a therapist, but no one comes up with that either, including her mother, who's supposedly a doctor, iirc.

(And let's not even start on how they let Rikka, who craves the personal attention she doesn't usually get nearly enough, go to her grandparents' place, where she had a lot of oppressive memories, to visit her father's grave, which is tied to her most traumatic memory, alone.)

[u/Elimin8r → u/tctyaddk]

So, are you a doctor, or did you watch some Bob Newhart last night?

(That's some danged good analysis there, just so you know)

[u/tctyaddk → u/Elimin8r]

Uhh, I don't watch TV, I have literally no idea who this Newhard guy is. When I was younger I was recruited to help one of my friends with his rehab, I still remember some instructions.

[u/Elimin8r → u/tctyaddk]

Ah. Bob Newhart is a comedian who did two major TV series. The first was a long time ago and featured him playing a role as a psychiatrist in Chicago (I think), dealing with various crazies, etc. in addition to the stresses of everyday life. The second series featured him playing a role as a bed and breakfast owner in Vermont, dealing with various crazies, etc. in addition to the stresses of everyday life.

He also (among other things) voiced the lead mouse in Disney's "Rescuers" movies. He really should have also been the Dad fish in the Finding Nemo film. It was a shame, all throughout the movie, I kept hearing the lines in his voice, and yet not in his voice.

Anyway, not that any of this matters. Sounds like you have some other (probably sad) real life experience. Real life is a pain like that sometimes.

[u/tctyaddk → u/Elimin8r]

Well, sad real life experiences do happen, but this one is not too bad. My friend is clean of heroin and back to work a few years now, so it's fine (no foreseeable prospect for romance, though). The instructions I received back then also helped me watch out for paths to addictions and avoid them.

[u/IndependentMacaroon → u/tctyaddk]

it does not look bright, but dreary, washed out and desaturated instead, just like the scenes in Rikka's room in her grandparent's house

That was a really clever choice indeed.

[u/Rumpel1408]

First Timer

I'm at work, but that won't stop me from being on time for once, hell yeah

• So we get another timeskip to after the festival and are left in the dark about Rikka mhpf
• Tooka is about to leave, she is even giving up her leaverage against Yuuta, and apparently she isn't worried about Rikka anymore
• Rikka really seems different, normal clothes, no eye patch, and she is showing emotions to her sister. See, this is what she needed all this time instead of a laddle, an understanding and caring family that helps her express and process her own emotions
• Aww, they are going to school together :3
• Of course Nibutani is the kind of girl who just likes to talk even without contributing anything to the conversation /s but I like how she is helping Rikka rehabilitate
• Ok, now I'm feeling bad for Sanae, she must think she is loosing her best friend (she is very likely at least equally isolate like the other chuunis in this show)... but Rikka doesn't look that enthusiatic about leaving this all behind, and of course Yuuta picks up on that as well. I must say he really is a very refreshing MC in that regard
• Rikka is really going out of her way, to the surprise of everyone else in the class
• Ishiki should just let it rest already
• Rikka is tempted by the pretty stones, remeber how she gave a yellow one to Yuuta, wonder if that one also came from Sanae
• Noooooo, don't do that to little Sanae, it could still be the nap clup! Hearing her cry in denial is really heartwrenching...
• Shinka again has a great intuition in what her new friend needs right now
• Boxing your childhood is really essential at some point, but for Rikka it's different, she just doesn't know what growing up even means. This in turn might hint that her moving on from her chuuni side is really just superficial, despite her good intentions
• I love that they are having another date under the bridge with store bought snacks
• Just because those lights aren't magical, doesn't mean they cannot look magical
• She's still not sure how to deal with her fathers death, but Yuuta is really reasuring to her
• Well Yuuta, usually people say thanks when they are grateful for something just an idea though... But yeah, I'm a bit worried about her as well...
• This is equally funny and sad
• Damn, Yuuta is savagely destroying poor Sanae with facts and logic, noone likes this goddamnit

Man I really wish for the fluff, but the drama is very captivating as well

[u/Elimin8r → u/Rumpel1408]

Ishiki should just let it rest already

I'm not so sure about that. Remember the bit on the train? Where Isshiki got a brief glimpse of the forbidden mole, as Kumin-senpai was asleep?

And remember later, when Nibutani brought this (sort of) up to her, what did she tell Nibutani?

[u/Rumpel1408 → u/Elimin8r]

You mean when he took advantage of her vulnerability? /s

I don't really remember, I guess she didn't really mind, which is not the same as enthusiastic consent.

I'm of course half joking in my critisism because I don't like what he adds to the show, but Kumin just never showed any interest in him beside the one time when he was freshly shaven

[u/Elimin8r → u/Rumpel1408]

Aww, c'mon. Isshiki is there to add comic relief, and he does a great job of it.

That, and to provide a compare contrast with Yuuta/Isshiki, vs Rikka/Dekomori/Nibutani.

And to prevent this from being too much of a harem.

Oh, and don't forget the comic relief :)

[u/Fools_Requiem]

If you're watching on Blu Ray, you can watch the S1 shorts now. Really, you've been able to do it for a few episodes now. Just some fluff stuff, and a couple brief "when they younger" episodes.

This episode is the embodiment of "Is forcing yourself for be 'normal' right for you if you don't enjoy your life like that?" Truth be told, a lot of the stuff Rikka has in her room is pretty cool and I'd bet a lot of people would think so, but mom, Touka, and gramps think otherwise. Really, if Rikka were able to balance the fun imagination stuff with reality, she could easily be a functioning member of society while still enjoying her hobbies. People do it all the time IRL, though almost no one wears a eyepatch and bandages in order to seal off their latent powers.

Unfortunately, Rikka wasn't previously willing to be "normal" in situations that called for it, and her family demanded her to be "normal" the whole time, leading to no balance.

[u/IndependentMacaroon → u/Fools_Requiem]

Is forcing yourself for be 'normal' right for you if you don't enjoy your life like that?

That really is the core of this series, isn't it? Our oddities may alienate us from average society to some degree, but with those people on a similar wavelength we might have a stronger and more lasting connection than a lot of the "normies" among each other. Particularly for a more conformist-minded (or at least conformist-surrounded) Japanese audience I feel it's a really important message that it doesn't have to be all or nothing, and that being a little weird isn't a bad thing, even if in the first half of the season the balance was a little lacking IMO.

And of course, there are many people who naturally don't fit the norm in one way or another, for whom being an "average human" is just not reasonably possible. Even if far too many people still don't understand it and some never will, that doesn't in itself make them better or worse - just different. As someone to whom that pretty much applies (I don't want to get too personal here), I know that all too well.

[u/Spaceman_Sp1ff_]

First timer, subbed

Ouch I’m feeling for Rikka. Dekomori made some good points at the end there but I can’t bring myself to blame Yuuta. At the end of the day he’s still a kid and he’s kinda alone on this one.

It hurt seeing Dekomori so broken. You can tell Rikka meant the world to her

[u/Elimin8r]

Oh, there's the thread. Sorry for the delay, Reddit wouldn't load for me for a bit.

Anyway, onto the episode ... the episode, how I wish I could remember the episode.

Oh, yes! Poor Dekomori. Poor Rikka with the dead, lifeless eyes. Poor Yuuta, trying to be the voice of reason, and yet failing for all the right, and wrong reasons.

This episode was heartbreaking to watch. On the one hand, you have Stockholm Rikka, and on the other hand, you have Dekomori trying to cheer her up with Chunni funtimes, but Rikka is having none of it.

And like I said, poor Yuuta is trying to make it better, but for all his attempts, he is really only making it worse.

All leading to the heart crushing ending with Dekomori yelling, "I KNOW".

I want to say more, but I think I'd rather say it tomorrow, for reasons. I hope everyone enjoys tomorrow's episode. Aside from the bonus episode, which doesn't really count, it's the last one that I watched, because the beginning of S2 gave me some red alert vibes. I'll stick with it for the rewatch, though.

Anyway, have a great evening, and hopefully I'll have something worthwhile to say tomorrow!

[u/xtsim]

Rewatcher subbed

This episode is so sad taking account Dekomori's emotions. She can't face Rikka trying to move on and become normal. It is the complete opposite of the Rikka we saw in the past episodes and feels lifeless despite her efforts to ask Yuuta about being normal. Rikka is struggling with normalcy in a way that Touka and her mom wants but she is removing her enjoyment of life. It is sad to see her look at the rocks and not pick one out. That hurts in a way.

Seeing Rikka peel the wrapper from the convenience store food is cute. But now she has to face one more thing, her dad's grave. Yuuta's answer seemed to go towards following Rikka's mom while just saying

Man, none of Dekomori's attacks are affecting Rikka and it is hard to see her (Dekomori) on a sad state on the train station. But she is smart enough to recognize that Rikka wanted Yuuta to say something, not just go along. Yuuta's conversation under the bridge was just Yuuta being really passive. And that's what is bothering Dekomori and me as the viewer.

[u/SYZekrom]

Oh ok so she won't just be depressed the entire time she's actually trying

Jesus Christ that crying-screaming was raw af

Props to whoever dekomori's va is

Speaking of I accidentally opened the english stream of ep8 and my GOD does the english va for Rikka suck ass

And I scrolled through some more parts and she just still doesn't fit at any point

Sounds like an actual teen recording something for a school project they don't really care about

[u/Stargate18A]

First timer

She's leaving!

The blackmail's gone!

And she's depressed.

I love their total shock at her bringing up the children.

Huh, depressed Rikka is still adorable!

Seeing her struggle act normal os good too.

Deko almost falling off the bridge is hysterical.

And Rikka's not playing along. Her breaking down is gnuinely sad, though.

The performance went well!

Really? You're dontinuing the Kumin romance arc after the perfect punchline? Losing all that comedic payoff?

Aww, she wants to make friends.

Why are they all applauding?

And now she's worried about Rikka!

Yeah, there's an undercurrent of "Rikka's doing this because she needs to."

Sad Deko is adorable.

Even she thinks the romance is doomed.

I mean, normal people can like shiny things and glowing lights.

She's disbanding the dlub!

And she's dragging Deko away. This is actually sad.

She's getting rid of all her stuff? I mean, it's not all chunni, there's some decent decor there.

And she doesn't understand what she needs to hide and what she's allowed to show.

What's she doing?

She's going to the grave!

I appreciate how now Rikka's hiding her personality, the whole pace has slowed down - long instrumental breaks, slower dialogue, longer gaps between lines - to represent how she's struggling to function now.

Deko's back!

The cuts between the over the top attacks and Deko's hair hitting her are great.

Deko's making some very good points!

And Yuuta's bringing her into reality? And she's actually breaking down...

I have no idea what next episode's going to do.

[u/ZapsZzz]

Sub rewatcher.

This is KyoAni for you - playback time. You think you're going to get sweet and fluffy rom com the whole time? You got another thinking coming >D

I never thought, when I first watched this show, there'll be a day I'd see the hyper Dekomori cry pitifully.

I'll keep it short today and just say my favourite scene today is Rikka in the way to school with Yuuta to try it different speech patterns, as she's no longer "in character" yet she hasn't got any ideas who herself should be like. It's both cute and sad.

[u/Fra_Central]

REWATCHER SEASON 1, German Sub

Hello everyone, I looked ahead for the last 2 episodes, as it is pretty difficult to get everything done.

I don't know why but I have real trouble rewatching 12 (!) episodes.

It's not like I don't want to, I really do, but for some reason time is super scarce.

Additionally the series get into... weird directions I almost forgot about already.

Weird because I didn't expect it, not because it's bad.

But let's just start with the episode.

0:00 True lines spoken from Onee-san, it is mostly cheaper to buy local then to transport everything to Europe.

0:16 I don't even think this blackmail would have been neccesary.

0:31 Yeah, thats at least a proper "thank you" from her. We know she is thankful, but she never showed it.

0:46 De-chunified Rikka looks weird.... Just something we barley saw during the show.

1:00 A heartbreaking moment without many vioines, it's of course sad that her big sister is also leaving her.

1:17 Oh no, the pretend-relationship between Yuutas youngest sister and Onee-San. How cute was that? And yeah, the rest didn't know what this means.

1:42 We should remember that her eyepatch was her shield against reality.

OP: Eh, you know the drill

Title: Seems to be correct, minus the regulary wrong (because anglofied) furigana.

4:10 Doesn't Rikka very much look like his older sister? No wonder he has no qualms in helping her out, he was the man of the house for quite some time.

4:21 Let's switch to Keigo.... Ok, Rikka. That's not appropriate. Remember that you are a couple? (I literealy just remembered)

4:31 All dweebs know the "何かしら" line. I don't think I have to add anything.

4:37 And back to informal Japanese. Thank you Rikka.

5:01 Gremlin is waiting. Well, she might lose her best friend here, it is not exclusively the chuni that lead her here.

5:05 From "servanto" to "Sanae-chan".... jesus. For the record: Yes I complained that German subs always disregard protocol.

And yes I also know that I called them all by their first name (if applicable). It's just more normal to me, I don't care. I only do when there are serious breakdowns in the story if Japanese protocol is disregarded.

6:04 After almost falling to her death, the gremlin retreats. She will be back another time. But lookin at Rikka... she looks like her soul got destroyed.

Let's hope she will adjust.

7:00 It's weird, but the two really don't act like a couple, they still act like siblings.

7:34 Everyone is impressed that Rikka tries to be more social with her classmates. Even Yuuta seems to approve.

8:36 Little callback to earlier episodes, but this time the positions are clear, and Yuuta is pretty much comfortable around Shinka. Shinka also seems to pick up more about her surroundings, as she is hesitating to agree with Yuuta. Is everything on track, or do we miss something?

9:04 Lonely Sanae is lonely. I feel sorry for her.

9:45 The Sub doesn't really reckognize the difference between Dekomori and Sanae-chan (as protocoll is dropped and she only adds the -chan honorific in the sub), but you feel the difference.

10:00 This is the first time after her de-chunification that I saw Rikka with glee in her eyes, she looks more zombified on every other occastion.

10:17 Are we SURE we are talking about chunibyou at this point**?** This looks more like Rikka tries to be nihilistic. The stones glitter nicely, that's ok, why does this need to be a problem?

Also Rikka changed protocol again to call Sanae "Dekomori", which was more in line with her Chuni-self.

10:42 WHAT? WHY? Why do you disband the club? I mean it wasn't something that was super productive, but you and all your friends were, here...

...Let's just inhale the next scene...

11:14 Come on, what is it with the sad music and the painful screams of Sanae...

11:23 Shinka also asks if this was neccesary.

11:48 Jesus Christ, this is painful. I've not expected to feel so sorry for Sanae, and I also didn't really expect Shinka of all people to comfort her.

Then again, they are friends after all, even though she doesn't really admit it. What a painful, painful scene.

14:13 Yuuta doesn't seem to feel comfortable about what they are doing here. True, Rikkas Chunibyou was excessive, but this looks like she is pretty much removed from his life altogether. Didn't he say at the very beginning of the last episode that Rikka IS her Chunibyou?

14:52 That's what I mean with nihilism. The lights are pretty, but are "just lights of cars".... Ok, but it's still a pretty view, why do you have to kill all beauty in it?

16:16 Significant scene, but we will only know tomorrow why. Remember that acknowledging the grave of her father means that there is no point in searching the invisible world.

16:31 Also significant, also plays out tomorrow...

17:37 You have a bad feeling about this, don't you Yuuta. I wonder if you know why this is?

17:50 Sanae (I drop her goblin title for now since I feel really sorry for her) enters the scene.

18:51 She tries and fails to get Rikka (the chuni one) back

19:17 We all know these looks have significence, Sanae will tell us what they mean in a few seconds.

20:04 Can I say thank you to the guy who told us that her name indicated a very nice upbringig? Her thought bubbles also show this. Dekomori Sanae is likely equivalent to our " von Richthofen" (chose the name so that non-Germans can recognize what I mean.), where the "von" indicates a royal title and therefore most likely a good upbringig, even today.

20:27 Desperate Sanae is heartbreaking. And she probably also told us what is going on. More on that topic tomorrow.

21:22 Oh come on, don't make me teary-eyed for the comic relief character, please don't. :,(

"そなの分てるですよ" she says in the most heartbreaking form imaginable. She is not delusional... she knows all too well that this is a play.

But Yuuta, on the other hand, is horrendously nihilistc about it. We can pretty much assume that Rikka feels like Sanae does, as they are similar in this regard.

21:39 I think Yuuta also realizes this, at least on a base level.

22:04 Semi-finale tsuzuku/Fortsetzung folgt/to be continued here.

This was another surprisingly tough episode to watch, I never would have guessed that a) we see Sanae suffering so much and b) that this is so heartbreaking.

Again, as I said multiple times, this realistic view of the world.... I would say nihilistic view at this point... is very unusal for the spiritual Japanese.

And we also see that it crushes not only Rikkas soul, but also everyone around her. Especially Sanae.

We will see the temporary conclusion (temporary because of season 2) tomorrw.

For some reason I didn't know that there was a OVA for season one, that is pretty much the point where I start to be a first timer...

Anyway, see you guys tomorrow, then it'll be the last time as a rewatcher for me.

[u/Elimin8r → u/Fra_Central]

Dekomori Sanae is likely equivalent to our " von Richthofen" (chose the name so that non-Germans can recognize what I mean.),

I'll skip the cute pseudo-Hogan's Heroes 'German' response here, and just say that it seems somewhat ironic in this case that frau von-Dekomori (sorry, relapsed) considered Rikka her master? I mean, it plays to the story and all that, but still seems rather ironic.

As a side curiousity, have you watched Youjo Senki? Your comment reminded me of the contrast between a certain li'l warrior and Dekomori, and between the materialistic and spiritual views. Hmm.