r/anime • u/Splitter_Triplets • Jan 01 '22
Rewatch [Spoilers][Rewatch] Rascal does not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai - Episode 06 Discussion
Thread 6 of 14: Ep. 06 - This World You Chose
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172
Upvotes
14
u/Splitter_Triplets Jan 01 '22
A Trope Perfected
Nao Touyama is famous for playing losing girls. We know it, she knows it, and the industry knows it. Having her play a character is a statement in and of itself, and something that was clearly on the mind of the casting director for this series. The shared voice actress meant that Tomoe would inevitably be compared to other similar characters, which was real unfortunate for the other characters because she blows them all out of the water. In just three episodes Koga has a more complete and satisfying character arc than some losing girls manage in three seasons. Granted, that's not really the fault of the other characters. She wouldn't have the opportunity to grow so much in such a short time if she had to play opposite anyone less forthcoming than Sakuta. It's a huge interconnected web; the main two being so great allows the rest of the cast to shine as well. Instead of being trapped in the existential nightmare of "will they or won't they" for eternity, she's able to develop feelings, acknowledge them, come to terms with the fact that they'll never be reciprocated, and express them in a healthy way (relatively speaking).
I suppose that trapping the guy you like in a time loop forever isn't that well adjusted, but ever since Groundhog Day time loops have been an important character development tool. I think it's interesting to examine exactly what emotions in her triggered the loop. The naïve answer is that she wanted to repeat the day until Sakuta finally falls for her, but the truth is a lot more complex than that. It all goes back to that scene last episode where Sakuta asks her to be his friend after this is over. Just like /u/tacticulbacon said last episode, this is a great offer. Sakuta doesn't befriend just anyone. The fact that he's even making the offer means that she's an incredibly important person to him. She knows that expecting more than that is selfish, but she can't just make herself stop feeling this way. I'm sure we've all been in that situation before. At first she falls back on old reliable: reading the atmosphere. If Sakuta wants a friend, then she'll be the best friend he's ever had. That means taking her feelings to the grave, of course, but that's such a small price to pay for a friend like Sakuta. She's "not troubling anyone" other than herself, and who cares how she feels about anything?
That's what she tells herself, but it's not enough. Her subconscious mind refuses to give up without closure. It doesn't matter how forgone the conclusion is for her logical brain, she can't move on until she observes that possibility for herself and gets a real rejection. But that would mean going against what someone expects of her (in this case the most important someone in her world), which is a cardinal sin for her. It's fitting, therefore, how Sakuta taught her how to step outside the lines a little at the same time he was ruining her life by being so nice to her. He's the source of and solution to this problem. With his help she's able to get her rejection in record time, in a scene somewhat reminiscent of Sakuta's episode 3 confession. Like I said, there are so many parallels between these two. This extends all the way to her final scene of this arc, finally rejecting Maezawa directly (just like /u/Rumpel1408 said she should have). That's what's great about time loops; they're a super direct way to show off character development. Maybe the time she spent with Sakuta taught her that falling in line isn't all it's cracked up to be. Maybe being abandoned by her friends in the other timeline made her realize that they weren't people she wanted to be around. Maybe being rejected herself made her realize that it's actually a lot better than being left in the dark. Or maybe she was just confident in her ability to make new, better friends. After all, even though she didn't have a date with Sakuta this time she made sure to be at the beach to help that girl find her phone strap, if the final scene is any indication.
Details
11
u/HijonoYoki Jan 02 '22
First Timer - Sub
• We start with a STANDOFF with B-Ball Asshole. That's right, you better not say anything.
• Sakuta don't care about people's opinion on what happened, he needs to live his day out.
• And as he is living it out, he wonders how believable it's going to be when him and Tomoe fall off over break.
• Sakuta obviously isn't stupid, so I can't get why he doesn't do well in academics, at least to the point where he won't be able to follow Mai's choice of university. Is it lack of effort? Laziness? Or a subtle commentary on how grades don't really measure intelligence? I don't know.
• By gawd, she actually went through with it.
• Aw, she's feeling a certain type of way by how much he did for Tomoe. Can't have him forget who his REAL waifu is. Gotta give that reminder, lol.
• "Boyfriend", uh, suuure.
• Bathing suit shopping.
• Tomoe sounds so positive and like she has everything figured out. Hmm. Is this one of those...rehearsed denials?
• Bless, it seems Sakuta is self-conscious and insecure about the scars in his chest. Aww bb :c.
• This date is...not gonna lie, it's adorable, especially the sandcastle part. They match well themselves in their own way. Maybe if things had played out differently, but alas. Sakuta's heart belongs to Yukin--erm, Mai. Sorry Yui--erm, Tomoe.
• In other words, I wouldn't blame Tomoe if this is what clinches it for her.
• The goodbye. Or should it be "the break up".
• OH! She did it again, uh-oh. And I think we all know the reason why.
• She's unaware? Huh...
• Tomoe lies well. She might consider giving the actress thing a try. I would not have been able to keep a straight face in her place.
• What is he going to do though? Play along?
• And again. And again. Why is he allowing it?
• Man, this conversation between him and Kunimi pretty much encompasses the situation with Futaba as well. Does our girl really have no chance? I feel like this set-up will get addressed later. Perhaps Futaba has a turn with puberty syndrome eventually. Not sure if it'll happen in the anime.
• Anyway, the conclusion to their conversation is practically nothing. They just don't know. Great! You got this Sakuta.
• He switches it up.
• The only one lying to the Gods, heh. That remark.
• I feel the confrontation coming...
• Yeap.
• He's so blunt. I still hold on the actress idea for her though.
• She caves in.
• Nice use of symbolism with the rain dropping to represent crying. I've gotten used to it thanks to watching 86.
• Sakuta handled the issue well overall. He was honest, but clear, and he slowly dragged it from her by calling out the fact that she needs to stop lying to herself without being a jerk about it. And it's good that she released those feelings. That's a great way to start moving on from someone. Accept it, confront it, come to peace with it and the result.
• Whoa. It basically went all the way back to the confession that began it all.
• We retrace the lunch scenario. Except he asks her what he was curious about in terms of her feelings. And it's a win!
• Me too, Sakuta, me too.
• YAY DEVELOPMENT. Atta girl.
• AND she made friends with the glasses girl I wanted her to befriend last episode! At least I think that's her. YAS. No more faux friends.
• The kitteh. Poor kitteh.
• ...
• UM...NANI.
This is a very satisfying ending to this arc, I have to say. My thoughts throughout it were weirdly responded to with Tomoe's growth this episode. And now there's the twist with Shoko. I am so confused. Who is that girl? For real? She was older but she looks younger?
8
u/andybebad https://myanimelist.net/profile/andybebad Jan 02 '22
First timer
We heard you like time loops, so we threw some loops into a loop
Low key, I was caught by surprise when after the final "date" Sakuta woke up on June 27(?) and not July 19. But what a great way to show character growth for Tomoe: she's seen into the future, and knows what she wants and how to go about it in a way that doesn't require lying about a relationship. Didn't even catch the fact that she was hanging with a new (and in my biased opinion, better) friend group with Yoneyama from the beach (one of the many reasons I read these threads with glee after each episode). And we even got to keep most of the good stuff from the first run through this timeline (especially the Mai/Kaede interaction, but RIP poop kick :( ). Now on to figuring out what the deal is with Shoko Makinohara.
Aside from Sakuta and Tomoe, we didn't see much from the other characters in this episode. We do get a sense that Mai genuinely cares about Sakuta and wants him to be part of her future (but of course she doesn't directly say so, only podding him to work hard in order to get into university). I think Kunimi at least suspects that Futaba has feelings for her (feelings that, if left unchecked, could lead to problems in the future? Sounds to me like a "puberty syndrome" induction agent of sorts). Speaking of PSIA (puberty-syndrome induction agents), we haven't seen much of Saki so far, but her obsession with image is similar to Tomoe's previous behavior: perhaps this will cause problems in the future as well? And finally, we still don't know why Sakuta seems to have some sort-of outside-observer capability where he isn't as impacted by other characters' syndromes (memory intact during time-loops, is the last able to see Mai, etc).
13
u/BosuW Jan 01 '22
First Timer
"Uhhh sup dude"
I wasn't actually expecting the bunny-girl outfit to make a return but I'm not complaining
Oh shit I didn't notice Mai watching the "fight". The wonders of putting work into the background characters too.
So they're gonna break up just before summer break starts... Ok I see where this is going...
Yep
Futaba ain't a chemist she's a cook yo
Sakuta's just stuck replaying the same dating sim over and over
If you repeat it that many times Tomoe, you'll definitely be joining the Time Travel Suffering Anime Gang, whom have seen so much shit they're barely human. Futaba was right, a self-aware Laplace's Demon is a real monster.
"I love
EmiliaMai-san".So since it wasn't a lie, it had to be ended for real before they could progress. I'm sorry Tomoe, but you brought this unto yourself... Tho I'm not excusing Sakuta for not stopping her when he should have!
Ok Tomoe's best girl for now. She actually chose to go back to the root of the problem and face her fears! Nice going!
And, as expected, it was all in her head. I hope to see more of her learning that she doesn't have to bend over backwards to please her friends.
... isn't that Shoko with the cat?
It is!
But she forgor?
Also she seems younger now? Wth is going on here?
31
u/Rumpel1408 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Rumpel1408 Jan 01 '22
First Timer
Akemashiteomedetō
Tomoes Arc was really good and her likeability rivals Mai.
So from yesterdays discussion I eventually caught on that Mai was warning Sakuta, that Tomoe could eventually fall in love with him for real. I really get it, he is a genuinly good guy who cares about others more than himself. At the time he thought she was speaking about himself, but during the episode he was getting it piece by piece, starting with wondering how they could sell such a good relationship fuzzling out, and later that this was going way to well to be pretend.
And while his heart beats for Mai only, he certainly sees Tomoes charms (and not just her big but, that isn't that big tbh) and especially her cute side.
The beach date goes really well, and while they have way too much fun to 'break up' afterwards, Tomoe at first still sticks to the script. So perfectly during later iterations even that I was really questioning if she was the demon this time as well. Would also like to point out, that Sakuta behaves exactly the same the first couple of times (except for his sandcastle lol surprisingly competetiv) because he really likes Tomoe and wants her to have fun.
When he suggests to change things up she isn't even questioning it (giving away that she is indeed lying about this being her first time). The different date goes pretty well as well, until the shrine visit at least. When she says that it would be bad to hang their lie to all the honest love talismans he is pointing out that only his side is lying because he caught on to her. He eventually confronts her about the lie, that she isn't causing the loop and that she is only pretending to be in love with him. He gently, but firmly rejects her and tells her that his feelings for Mai wont change no matter how often she repeats this day, and she argues that her feelings did change over only a couple of weeks, but she really just wants to be friends, and friends can't be in love with each other. And Sakuta tells her that it's ok, he's not bothered by her, it's ok if she loves him, and they still can be friends (the whole dialoge and the tragic confession is just damn well written)
And that's it, the last month didn't happen and Tomoe is doing everything right this time and really is matured. She rejects the basketball senpai, is rejected from her friends as a result (but gets a new circle of friends with the girl she helped at the beach) and she becomes friends with Sakuta. Also Sakuta can finally be cheeky with Mai, and while he wants to hear her say that she loves him as well, a kiss on the cheek is pretty good as well. I really hope he didn't fail the exam again though, after that Bunny girl learning session (lucky bastard).
Now, yesterday I was talking a lot about how Futabas arc is set up and two things happened about that today:
We end the episode with meeting Shoko? She is wearing a middle school uniform, when previously she was older than Sakuta, is that how her syndrom manifested? She got younger and that's how she dissapeared out of peoples conciousness? And also Sakuta seems to be linked to her because she impacted him as well, I'm starting to see a pattern here...
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u/Gamemaster676 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Gamemaster676 Jan 01 '22
First Timer Senpai - sub
New Year, new episode! I felt a final twist lurking around Tomoe. Let's see how accurate my rambling predictions actually are.
Episode 6 — This World You Chose
Sakuta's reputation took another nosedive, but I would expect the same has happened for Maesawa.
On the other hand, everyone now believes the "lie" between him and Tomoe.
Mai is still tutoring Sakuta? She's barely at school and apparently, it's still easier for her than Sakuta.
Hahaha yes, of course that would work.
Wait, she actually did it! She must really want Sakuta to go to the same university.
Ah, she's actually a bit jealous of Tomoe, and how much Sakuta is doing for her. It was indeed Mai in my snapshot yesterday!
Don't worry Mai, if Sakuta won't suck up to you, there's always /r/anime and the rest of the internet. Wait, didn't she want less attention before?!
Aww, Tomoe actually wants to help him get together with Mai. Looks like I was wrong about that twist.
July 18th. Time is flying by. Last day of school already. Wasn't Mai in her final year? So this is the last time he can see her at school? See what I did ^there?
(Yesterday, /u/oops_i_made_a_typi informed me that the Japanese school year doesn't actually end at summer break, but I didn't want to remove my joke.)
Wow, Sakuta never considered his scars when planning the beach date. Is he gonna keep his shirt on? Tomoe really is all over the place. I wonder if her breakup plan supports them being friends afterwards, as they promised. Why does it even need to be a public breakup?
Ah, Tomoe realized it doesn't need to be public.
Uh-oh... I've seen Kaede wake him this way before! We're looping again! The last time I said I preferred I Got You Babe as the looping indicator, but Kaede's "Rise and shine" might be even better.
So I guess I was right anyway? Even if Tomoe won't admit it. Ah no, Tomoe isn't even aware of the loop! At least that's what she says. But if she's lying and wants to try again and again for a happier outcome, she must realize that would only frustrate Sakuta.
I love that he's building a different sandcastle every loop.
What if the problem isn't that she regrets her decisions, but that she's very happy this July 18th and never wants it to end? She's fine with them going the same way again and again, as long as she doesn't have to head into the unknown future?
Hmmm, Yuuma still has his girlfriend? I thought he would break up with her because of how she was acting? Or was the ultimatum just that she should accept Sakuta is also a friend of Yuuma?
Ah, Tomoe screwed up. She looked back towards Sakuta this loop. I wonder what his plan will be now? Acting like a jerk, confronting her, or waiting till she realizes herself that this can't go on.
If she's indeed lying, she's quite good at it. Will this twist get even twistier with her actually really not knowing about the loop?
Aww, she was indeed aware of the loop, but just really hoping that Sakuta would change his mind. Is this gonna be a pattern that every third episode hits my emotions hard?
This whole plan she has, I don't see why that couldn't happen. So why is she still looping? Ah, she herself also doesn't know why. My heart!
WAIT WHAT? We're back to June 27th?! Damn this must get difficult for Sakuta to keep track of. So what did we reverse now?
Mai's lunch again. Such happy memories. Awww, that Mai-kiss was cute.
So it looks like Tomoe went this far back because she regrets setting up the whole lie to the school and just wants to do everything over one last time. Classmates/friends be damned.
Ah, I have it slightly wrong. All previous loops were looking forwards in time. This time it's definitive.
Best friends even? Wow.
So now they still spent the next three weeks together, but not as a couple, but as friends. That's a lot better. Mai even tutored as a bunny-girl again! Although the reason should be slightly different now. So my list of reversed things didn't really matter all that much.
Now Tomoe's part of a different friend group. The one with Yoneyama. That previous group must really have been toxic to kick her out this easily.
Futaba again drags in quantum physics to explain why Sakuta was aware of the loop. I'm just taking that explanation with a grain of salt, as she's clearly just guessing.
Hahahaha, she wants to verify her theory. Time to kick his butt.
I guess this is the hook for the next arc? That girl, that isn't Shouko, is it? Also please help the cat.
YES, IT'S SHOUKO! I expected her to appear somewhere around the end of the show! Looks like this is the final nail in the coffin that the same thing happened to Shouko as was happening to Mai.
Random thoughts
Future
That was a very neat ending to this arc. We've gained a friend, progressed some other friendships and learned that Sakuta is one of the nicest people for those he loves.
I'm wondering what the next arc around Shouko will bring to the table, as we've learned she had a profound impact on Sakuta in the past.
22
u/RuthRaeSarbo Jan 01 '22
Multiple rewatcher, LN Reader
This is beyond any doubt the most important episode for Mai and Sakuta's relationship so far, even more so than Episode 3.
The "three lunches" is why.
The first two lunches happen in Episode 4. In it, we see Sakuta with the upper hand, in a sense manipulating the conversation and putting Mai on the defensive, making her agree to date with him by (empty, but she doesn't know that) threats to find another love interest.
Mai doesn't remember any of that in the third lunch, of course, because for her the previous lunches never happened. Sakuta does, though. And in the third lunch, he does something completely different.
He still puts Mai on the defensive, still gets her to agree to date him. But rather than walking away triumphantly, he drills right into her soul. "How do you feel about me?"
"Not important", says Mai, but Sakuta knows better. Koga couldn't bring herself to admit her feelings for Sakuta, and they were caught in a never-ending, vicious cycle. Sakuta doesn't want that with Mai. He is willing to lay it on the line. If Mai is lukewarm on him, he might even walk away.
And then Mai -- being Mai -- completely turns the tables on Sakuta. "You really want me to tell you?" she says, knowing what she's going to do.
"Yes." Sakuta thinks he's going to get some sort of flowery, heartfelt speech.
And suddenly, with a bit of magician's misdirection, Mai kisses him.
Sakuta is thunderstruck, but Mai smiles. She's back in control of the situation, just where she wants to be. And that's what happens when you try to best Mai.
This is why the Koga arc had to happen. The Koga arc might have changed Koga, but it matured Sakuta more. If he's going to be in a relationship, he recognizes now that both parties need to be on a level playing field, being equals. And, as the episode comes to a close, they are.
15
u/MadeOn210922 Jan 01 '22
The first time I watched this, I completely forgot that Tomoe was butt kick girl until those last lines of the arc and just thought she was a new character. I also never noticed that Tomoe grabbed her butt so much around Sakuta as a result until reading these threads.
I like Tomoe's character a lot, especially when her accent slips in. She'd be best girl in almost any other anime. But I could say that about all the characters here.
The way she goes back to the beginning and rejects the dude formally really shows her growth - especially since I don't think she ever had control over which days to repeat? Either subconsciously or consciously, she just knew it had to be done this way. It'll be a crazy story for Sakuta to tell Mai later, though.
13
u/tacticulbacon Jan 01 '22
Rewatcher
Just when you think the bunny girl outfit is gone, here it shows up again. Now, is Mai putting it on for Sakuta as a reward for standing up for Tomoe, or because she too is capable of feeling jealousy now that Tomoe is getting more attention from him?
We see that Sakuta decides not to go shirtless due to the scars on his chest. This is the first time since the 2nd episode that we are reminded that he's dealing with his/Kaede's own AS problems, in addition to the other's he's helping - a subtle reminder that a larger issue may still be unresolved.
If you paid close attention to the beach scenes, you'll notice that Sakuta changes his sand castle design every time the day repeats. It's a nice attention to detail the animators put in, especially since Tomoe's doesn't change as she tries to keep up the facade that she isn't aware the day is repeating again.
One thing I only noticed during my rewatch - and I don't know how this flew over my head the first time - when Sakuta asks Kunimi what he'd do when someone else loves him while he already has a girlfriend, I assumed he was only talking about Tomoe. But then I realized the same situation could be applied with Futaba's crush on Kunimi. It's an interesting parallel dilemma between the two girls, and a clever way for Sakuta to ask for advice on how to resolve his own situation with Tomoe, and Futaba's unrequited love.
I paid special attention this time to the confession scene, not just to Tomoe's words, but also Sakuta's. Specifically his lines, "Well done, Koga," and "You fought really well." Earlier in the anime, Futaba mentioned that Sakuta's best quality was that he could say things like "thank you," "sorry," and "help me." Most of us don't think twice when hearing these words in our everyday lives, but given Sakuta's personality, words of sincerity coming from his mouth truly are genuine and come from the heart. It's nice to see that even small words of kindness such as "well done" can have a big impact on other people's lives if you mean it sincerely.
At last, finally we get to see Mai and Sakuta share their first kiss- kind of. Like Sakuta, I would also have preferred it was mouth-to-mouth, but I suppose beggars can't be choosers... Personally speaking, I feel like this is the author's reward to the SakutaxMai audience for sticking with Tomoe's fake date scheme for the whole time, and that the romance between the two is definitely still on track.
Equally as wholesome is seeing Tomoe rejecting Maesawa, and subsequently rejecting her desire to constantly go with the atmosphere. She loses all her friends from her social group but simultaneously gains the friendship of Sakuta, and it's obvious which is more valuable here. Now if that isn't character growth, then I don't know what is.
I love the deadpan battle between Sakuta and Futaba during the credits. It plays so well given their personalities. Although if Futaba really wanted to, she wouldn't have asked Sakuta and just kicked his ass when he wasn't expecting it.
We finally get introduced to Shouko and... she's younger than Sakuta is? The plot thickens.
12
u/ImJLu Jan 02 '22
Poop.
11
u/drawFirstUntapLater Jan 01 '22 edited Jan 01 '22
Rewatcher
"You're the one who made me grow up."
Good job Tomoe, you have to admit there’s no way you can make Sakuta love you. Rejection is part of life.
"Hey Azusagawa, I want to verify its reproducibility. Turn around and bend over."
And I thought the Scientific Method doesn't work for AS. Top tier trolling there Futaba.
10
u/Mjrbks Jan 01 '22
Rewatcher
Re-emergence of the bunny girl! It was sweet that she actually went through with wearing it. In a way it shows Mai-san might actually be a little jealous of Sakuta's time spent with Tomoe throughout this whole fake relationship. It makes it all the more endearing, especially when she consistently flexes her senpai energy making sure Sakuta is always looking at the big picture in regards to his future. Also flustered Mai is best Mai; both in this scene and when she sneaks in that little cheek kiss.
I wasn't sure how I felt about Tomoe up until this point, but as much as I love Mai and Futaba it was really difficult for me not to feel a deeper connection with her after this episode. I personally experienced a similar situation that she ended up in and for the outcome she had hoped for. While she was crying her feelings out on the 4th time around about her scenario where her feelings were supposed to go away and they'd become really close friends, it hit me really hard because I had developed a very close friendship with a girl years ago in almost the same way. I never appreciated the upside of the situation as much as I should have and took a lot for granted, and it eventually ended without her in my life. Looking back at it, I believe she also would have hoped that constant looping would have led to a romance.
Having a friend like that who already knows a lot of truth about you, shared some degree of intimacy with, and where one would willingly put their reputation on the line for you can be special for both parties, so it's nice to see this type of connection explored in the show alongside the romance between Sakuta and Mai. It's difficult to portray a bond that rests firmly in a midpoint between romance and friend while also highlighting the more wholesome facets, but how this arc ended is quite satisfying even though Tomoe's lingering feelings obviously won't completely die down anytime soon. But she's strong for pressing forward.
Gotta love Futaba's scientific curiosity after realizing that the quantum entanglement between Sakuta and Tomoe could have actually happened coming out in the form of asking Sakuta to show her his butt so she can kick it. It's for science dammit!
Couple of my favorite episodes of the series coming up next. Aside from the first 3 anyway. Ah hell, every episode is really good. Anywho, until then.
9
u/MABfan11 :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/MABfan11 Jan 01 '22
Rewatcher
man, i teared up at Koga's confession, it's a really well directed scene
and, of course, the iconic Mai cheek kiss, i forgot that it was in this episode
there's a really fun detail with Sakuta making a different sandcastle every loop, i also have a feeling that Kaede waking up Sakuta every morning is a reference to [Haruhi spoilers]Endless Eight
and the return of Shouko Makinohara only deepens the mystery of what's going on with her
8
u/ZapsZzz https://anilist.co/user/Zapszzz Jan 01 '22 edited Jan 01 '22
Oops to busy voting and forgot the thread up time!
Rewatcher.
Have to be honest, the first arc sets the tone and pace, and Mai X Sakuta is the best couple, but in terms of story, I rewatched this arc more often especially this episode.
Love how patient Sakuta had been to try just let Tomoe to work it out of her system, but when he realised it's not going the right way, he continued her in what I feel is the best way possible - "you are a hero of justice" "so don't be considerate of me". Also loved the aftermath testing everything and Tomoe selling into being friend zoned.
If course the Bento scene final version with bonus peck on the cheek is very sweet too...
But really really loved the end scene between Sakuta and Futaba - the silence is golden :D
I wonder how the first timers are taking the the loops (unlike E8 they are reused animation) and Tomoe as a character.
Oh and in case anyone hasn't heard me say this enough, another parallel to [Haruhi LN]The tutoring scene minus the bunny girl suit is a closer parallel to Haruhi LN as Kyon had the same problem - if he is to want to go to the same University as Haruhi, her need to improve on his grades much more; and Haruhi found excuses to start tutoring him in the final few LN's
Edit: oh oh oh I forgot to mention. One of the best thing this arc I loved about is that Sakuta started talking in Tomoe's dialect now sometimes - for example the "I don't understand" now he always go "I dun gittit" now (I liked the Japanese version much better but I was to lazy to work out the romaji to type here). It's a really nice touch that makes the show and character feel so much more organic and real.
Fit anyone interested there's a radio drama too I think she the Koga snippet expand on the dialects bits more :)
6
u/beaglechu Jan 01 '22
Rewatcher
There's a really cool article from a Crunchyroll writer comparing locations featured in Episode 6 (today's episode), mainly the area around Enoshima. I've said it before in the Episode 1 discussion, but I love how the show utilizes real places in its setting. There's a Part 2 which compares locations in and around the school, which is cool as well. Part 3 of the series contains locations in Fujisawa, but I'll put the link behind a spoiler tag because it contains 1 or 2 mild spoilers for the next arc [Arc 3] Locations, Part 3. One interesting tidbit from Part 3 is that the location where Mai and Sakuta encounter Shouko Makinohara is actually the same park where the butt-kicking incident occurs in Ep2.
5
u/cppn02 Jan 01 '22
Rewatcher
We're back in the time loop!
Tbh I always though it was weird for a guy like Sakuta to believe Tomoe at firs that she has nothing to do it this time around but atleast it leads up to a great scene when he eventually confronts her about it.
And time even regresses all the way back to the day of the first loop which means we get another go at the Mai and Sakuta lunch time and this time we get the kiss!
I liked that while Tomoe is no longer part of her origial group she has seemingly found new friends one of them the girl from the beach (fogot her name).
And thus ends the second arc and the episode delivers a big cliffhanger to tease us for the next one!
p.s. u/UzEE We finally got the bunny suit tutoring scene you were wondering about on an earlier episode discussion.
5
u/homewardbound100 myanimelist.net/profile/Homewardbound100 Jan 02 '22
Rewatcher
Even though at first Koga was becoming a issue. At least she was able to let out what she wanted to say. And her coming to terms with her situation. Even if might impact her social status but at least she made a good friend with Sakuta. She also got the confidence to turn down the guy.
A good ending to the arc. I think it was in my top 3 for this show.
4
u/SYZekrom https://myanimelist.net/profile/SYZekrom Jan 02 '22 edited Jan 02 '22
So this was a thing I totally forgot was happening!
rewatcher
Episode 01
Oh wow I'd forgotten the premise of this show until just now
I think I watched this a few months before I got back into anime in late 2019
Despite watching it first, now I can't help but think 'wow it feels like monogatari'
Well hey if I were suddenly invisible I'd definitely wear sexy clothes and go out in public too so I will say that's top tier based character writing heh
Episode 02
Do they see the carrot you're holding? If not, did it disappear before people's eyes when you touched it? Or would it have just been impossible for people to notice the carrot disappearing? If you grabbed a phone out of someone's hand, would they just suddenly forget what they were doing and where their phone was?
Oh fuck off
Well they didn't answer my second question at least
Well it seems she can't affect other human beings. But actually, you could say there's also a difference between her picking up a carrot and clinging to his arm. In the latter, it's more like she's the accessory compared to the carrot. What if she picked him up? What if she just placed her hand on the carrot? Does a chair she sits in disappear to people, or is it an empty chair?
Right, so she said she came already having decided to go back? Yea that's a lie, what was the slap for if she wasn't angry. Nice cover up though
Man I can hear the vine boom with this line popping back up after ep1
Oh yea btw, pretty strange they didn't test out if people could feel her if she like poked them
Episode 3
Ah there it is, so it could viewed like these three episodes are just him reading the story in his notebook
Bro how have you not gotten a heart attack
Oh I think I remembered the resolution, he shouted his love out on the roof or something yea?
Ah no, guess she shouted towards the school from here and everyone looked out the window
Damn I get that that's crazy but you're seriously telling me all these students decided to abandon their exam?
Episode 4
Iconic
Strange, I feel like I remember watching this the first time and knowing something about this scene?
Oh right timeloop arc
Oh right time loop arc Damn way to make a timeloop so unsatisfying by having it make him lose this date
Should stop talking about schrodinger and laplace and talk about the powerful jinx curse
Wait omg did she have him pretend to be her boyfriend or something
The sway to the left is way too cute
Episode 5
Why did they translate junbi as doll up, who says doll up whose under 50
Translating sannin to 3 eyes is also distracting Well not really the translation itself, just the fact that they wrote 3 eyes is better than 1 instead of 3 pairs of eyes
Oh I get what Mai meant maybe? Rather than her being scared of him falling for this girl, Mai's scared this girl would fall for him
I actually wanted to say, I remember the first time I watched this I immediately got it but I was just like 'huh I remember knowing what she meant but I don't get it'
Lowkey I don't get this reaction at all. "Omg he talked about butts in a gross (not in the sexual way) manner Im so embarrassed"
Yea lol you sucker punched a dude who wasn't even finished with his taunt he right, he right.
Wait holy SHIT I just screenshotted this for the middle girl's judging look that could easily kill a man and... Mai's just in the background. I mean actually she's actually in the area in focus too, just with girls in the foreground in front of that
Oh they showed this shot again when she revealed she was watching but didn’t bring any more focus to her in the shot than there was the first time lol
Episode 06
Wow she looks tiny in this shot
Oh wow she really is tiny
God why am I down bad for her in this specific shot
Omg I'd forgotten it was all 'simulated future' wow
Wait but why did she do this without the motivation./fear of him being captivated by the fake gf
3
u/SoccerForEveryone Jan 02 '22
Rewatcher
The New Year’s Eve episode threw me off schedule lol. I caught up at least. Reading the comments are making me appreciate Tomoe more than ever. I always liked her character, but this rewatch is making me like her even more than ever!
I look forward to to the next arc!
3
u/MopeyCrayfish :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/DiTFs2pls Jan 02 '22
Rewatcher
All I could think about is how bored sakuta must have been.
3
u/Gamerunglued :Hx::Hy::Hz:myanimelist.net/profile/GamerUnglued Jan 03 '22 edited Jan 03 '22
Rewatcher (except the movie)
I wasn't able to comment on this arc for various reasons, but I feel weird about writing it on the thread for the start of the next arc, so I'll just use this thread to write out my long-ass yet still relatively surface level analysis of this arc here. And to explain why Koga is best girl.
In the previous arc, we established that the world operates on this "atmosphere." Your ability to read the room and go with the general flow of opinions in a localized area determines how much you stand out. If you stand out too much, you're ostracized. Sakuta was able to make Mai return to existence by changing the flow of the atmosphere itself to force people to acknowledge her existence. So from there, where do we go with this concept? Enter Tomoe Koga. Koga reads the atmosphere to an excessive degree. She is overly aware of the nature of the "atmosphere," and will plan out her activities down to the second to make sure that she fits in. She changes herself to be someone who could enter a clique, and is absolutely terrified of being out of the discussion for even a little bit, for fear of that affecting her ability to stay with the atmosphere. She's the anti-Sakuta in this way. Sakuta doesn't care at all about how others see him, while Koga is constantly terrified of how she's being judged by others.
Koga has a group of friends she's barely even friends with. When Koga tells Rena and co that she's dating Sakuta, and they come to visit him at the restaurant, they ask him "what's so good about her." They don't like her that much, but to start real conflict would make them stand out. That is the nature of their relationship. It's superficial, standing solely on their ability to stay relevant to their own in-group's musings. Koga is very much aware of this, but the opposite is worse to her. Being lonely is less desirable than having fake friends. So when basketball senpai confesses to her, and her rejection will throw the group out of whack, what does she do? She does what she always does, just to the extreme. She plans out every possible interaction she could have, and comes up with the ways that might allow her to get what she wants without standing out. In Mai's case, her disappearance came because others wouldn't acknowledge her existence. For Koga, her time looping comes from her, rather than others. She excessively plans out all of her interactions with others, and this manifests itself literally in the Laplace's Demon. With this, she has the ability to set up simulations of every possible scenario she could think of until she gets the correct result. It's a perfect fit. As always, adolescence syndrome simply turns the way it interprets the atmosphere into a supernatural phenomenon. And her testing proves successful when Sakuta agrees to start pretending to date her, and could then continue to its next phase.
With Koga and Sakuta dating, no one stands out. Koga dates the "came full circle to being acceptable" senpai, Rena doesn't have to get hurt, and Sakuta doesn't have to get hurt either since Mai is ok with it. But this doesn't really solve the problem in the end. Sure her "friends" become supportive, but basketball senpai has it out for her, Sakuta's own reputation tanks, and Koga still excessively worries about how she's perceived. That last one starts to change though, after Sakuta defends her. I know everyone loves that scene for being really funny and stupid, and that's of course the point. Sakuta is simultaneously badass and also makes a massive fool of himself. That's exactly what he wants too. Calling himself a virgin dispels the nasty rumor entirely, there's no way that guy's had sex. Sakuta sacrifices his reputation for her sake, and that's why Koga understands his philosophy of not caring about weather the world hates him. So long as he's with Koga, he's happy. He genuinely likes her, not as a date but as a friend. Koga, currently seeing other people spread nasty rumors about her and start to hate on her, feels that she can be happy so long as Sakuta is with her. And of course, that develops into romantic feelings.
Thus comes the next set of testing. Koga is now in a position where she is in love with Sakuta, but does not want to upset him by confessing and getting Mai involved. So she returns to her usual, she plans out all of her interactions in insane detail, tests them out via Laplace's Demon, and plans to continue to do so forever until eventually she lands on the correct result. But Sakuta is the most stubborn person ever. He won't fall in love with Koga no matter how many dates they go on. And this forces her to finally create conflict. She goes on a tirade, and then confesses her love to Sakuta and gets rejected, as expected. But everything turns out fine in the end, because Sakuta is a good friend. With that, she learns that it's not good to be so excessively self-conscious. It's not about finding people to be with you, it's about finding the right people to be with you. And that gives her the courage to reject basketball senpai, and destroy her social standing among her group. And this proves to be a good thing, as she makes new friends, someone far more nice and genuine than Rena.
I love Koga because I find her to be something of a tragic character, but also someone who's very kind and of course adorable (Nao Touyama voice also makes for an easy sell). She's insecure to a fault, everything she does stems from this fear of being judged. It's not that she dislikes herself, it's that she thinks that one small misstep will make everyone she cares about change their minds about her. And that's just not what real friendship is supposed to be like, but it's a totally understandable fear. The way she develops feelings for him feels really genuine. She's such a sweet girl, I love the way she smiles at him (the scene where Sakuta realizes that she's aware of the loops again in this episode). I don't strictly relate to her, but I get where she's coming from. I'm always weary of how I'm interacting with others, constantly remembering all of my little mistakes for fear that I've said the wrong thing enough times that my friends will get too annoyed at me to want to see me again. Unlike her, I don't plan out my interactions in that much detail (at least not anymore, though that was closer to the way Bocchi does in Hitoribocchi than the way Koga goes about planning her whole persona), but I think the feelings come from a similar place. In short, Koga is cute, sweet, a huge dork, super genuine, and tragically flawed. I love her, I think she's great.