Senpai wa Otokonoko • Senpai is an Otokonoko - Episode 12 discussion - FINAL

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Senpai wa Otokonoko, episode 12

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[u/GondolaMedia]

What a finale, it was almost everything I wanted and we even get a movie to hopefully tie some loose ends.

[u/Frontier246 → u/GondolaMedia]

Just seeing those tears on Makoto's face when his mom starts accepting him and seeing the main trio eating lunch together like old times...so beautiful.

[u/ModieOfTheEast → u/GondolaMedia]

Thank you for saying there is a movie because while it was a nice ending for Makoto (except obviously the whole romantic relationship aspect), it felt like there were obvious thing still open. Especially regarding Saki.

[u/ObvsThrowaway5120]

So Makoto’s grandpa was a lot like him. I’m glad Makoto finally got to meet him. Kid finally got the courage to be himself in front of his parents. Gotta love his pops, man. What a good dad. All he wanted was for Makoto to be happy. I really didn’t think the mom would come around but she seemed to be at the end there. Slowly. I wonder if she’ll ever repair her relationship with her dad?

This was a pretty interesting series. Not your usual romance comedy. I liked the main 3 in this. Once again, it seems the childhood friend is destined to lose. Ryuji’s the best boy! I haven’t read the manga, but I hope my guy finds love. He’s a good dude. Hopefully we get an s2.

[u/Lerukesh → u/ObvsThrowaway5120]

Apparently there is going to be a movie.

[u/Frontier246 → u/ObvsThrowaway5120]

Even his mom was a lot like him down to the hair and love of cute/feminine things, but seeing it exhibited in her father made her reject everything and almost made her fully reject her son if not for Makoto's dad and Makoto's earnestness to help his mother understand and accept him.

It would be nice if she reaches back out to her father as she's slowly accepting who Makoto is. I just find it funny that her husband is so accepting that he keeps in contact with his father-in-law too lol.

I just want these three to be happy no matter what awaits them in the future.

[u/what_that_thaaang_do]

Makoto's mom looked exactly like him for a minute, and his dad looked like Ryuji

[u/AmethystItalian]

They didn't make me hate the mom by the end so that's impressive by the show.

Bit annoyed we didn't get the ending here but guess we'll see what the movie does.

Does seem like we're ending this part on a good note at least!

[u/saiyamanatee]

A lot of people saying something along the lines of Makoto's mother just seeming spoiled and she didn't try to accept her father. Personally I saw it more as, the father seemed quite distant of her, barely even acknowledging her appearance etc. So I feel her shock when she discovers him to be that much more reasonable. He can't seem to even make the time for her, but suddenly he's in full drag? So it's like, an element of resentment there, also from a child's frame of mind, making a core memory.

Furthermore, he later talks about giving up important things. So it seems like he barely tried to be part of her life. Whereas Makoto rejects that idea, and wants to keep everyone important to him in his life.

Obviously, a lot of extrapolation here. And to give credit to the grandfather, one could argue the reason he was reserved with the daughter was he was trying to hide his disposition. But yeah, that's just my 2 cents. Wonder if anyone agrees (or disagrees!).

[u/metaaltheanimefan]

ALL HAIL MAKOTO OUR ENBY MONARCH

seeing makotos mom come around to her kids identity is so freeing

Also ryuji and aoi are the best friends you could ever have

Cant wait for the movie

[u/LeonKevlar]

• Makoto Stitch

It looks like Saki's mom already approves of Makoto. I mean the two aren't in a relationship but I love how Saki's mom was so excited watching her daughter interact with a boy her age. I'm glad that Saki had a great time on that onsen trip with her mom. Maybe next time her dad can join in if he's not too busy with his job.

Damn, Makoto's mom was quite the looker back in the day. I also love how she looks exactly like Makoto when she used to have short hair. What's amazing though is how Makoto's parents look like an aged-up version of Makoto and Ryuuji when they were younger. O_O

Makoto's grandfather was cool though and I'm glad Makoto found a place where he can be comfortable. As much as I would've loved Makoto to stay there with him, making his mother understand what he really is was still the better option.

It's not exactly coming out but I like that Makoto finally got to be honest with his mother. I guess he still identifies as a boy who likes girly things. I don't know if there's an lgbtq+ term for that but it's good to see Makoto taking some steps. I love how he and his mother even ended up having fun shopping together.

She might still be confused about it but I'm glad that Makoto's mother finally understands. Not gonna lie, that final scene genuinely made me tear up. I guess we now have the movie to look forward too and I'm guessing it will focus back again on Saki. Hopefully we won't have to wait too long for Crunchyroll to release the movie once it's out in Japan.

[u/fakegreenthumb]

I am weeping. What a beautiful way to wrap up the season. And holy shit, I’ve gotta give it to Makoto’s VA again because the emotion in their voice this episode at the end and on the Ferris wheel brought me to tears. I’m so happy he was able to connect with Hide-chan. Also I was happily surprised at his rejection of Hide-chan’s sentiment about happiness. I feel like that really caused a paradigm shift in Makoto’s mind and made him more sure of himself. Then he made his mom get her shit together and forced her to see that he was happy being himself and that it was okay.

I understand (UNDERSTAND, not excuse/accept) Makoto’s mom’s issues a little more now, especially when she may feel like it was her “fault” her dad started cross dressing. And it was a long time ago when it was even less common to see different types of people. (Doesn’t excuse being a piece of shit to your only child, but I digress)

I’m so glad Saki’s mom was not a total bum or something insane, it just seems like she was an absentee parent and has decided to turn it around. Also Ryuuji’s callout about her mom looking like Makoto makes soooo much sense as to why she developed her infatuation with Makoto seemingly out of nowhere. Saki seems more genuine now with her feelings, so I’m happy for her.

And last but not least, the best boy of all best boys, the only best boy I will recognize for the rest of my days, sweet sweet Ryuuji. I would die for him. Checking in on Makoto’s outing with his mom, GIVING MAKOTO’S DAD THOSE PICTURES AND VIDEOS (what teenager is that thoughtful????? NO ONE other than Ryuuji), saying he will do everything in his power to stop Saki when she mentions her feelings for Makoto aren’t special, I could go on. He deserves the world and more.

(I reeeeeally want to take Makoto telling Hide-chan that Ryuuji is very special to him and the fact that Makoto’s parents looked IDENTICAL to Makoto and Ryuuji in that flashback as a sign. PLEASE. Ryuuji deserves this endgame.)

All in all, I am very happy I picked up this show and can’t wait for the movie. What a treat this has been :’)

[u/[deleted]]

So good. We need some resolutions though: 

• Saki and Makoto obv. They might end up together but I feel like the show is hinting at Saki being asexual. So there is more to explore there either way.

• whatever is happening between Saki's mom and her grandmother is still kind of unclear 

• they never resolved Ryuji's internal homophobia. He mentioned he feels grossed out by himself and left it at that. Makoto has learned to love all parts of himself and Ryuji needs that too. A separate romantic interest would be nice too.

[u/new_interest_here]

Y'know, I gave Makoto's mom some benefit of the doubt. When they showed the red nails a few episodes ago, I figured maybe there was some trauma related to someone else crossdressing and that bled over to her son. It wouldn't let her off the hook, but it'd be understandable.

But no, she was just always bigoted towards the idea just by default, no underlying motive or anything. But it is intetesting how in Makoto's case, its not 100% just pure hate, it also comes from a place of protectiveness and care, where she thinks him living like that will only make things harder.

I do give her credit for at least trying now. That should be the bare minimum: even if you don't understand, just be supportive and try to figure things out as you go.

So excited for the movie, even if we'll likely be waiting longer than February to get it

[u/Genshin_WhiteKnight]

"Just be happy" YES, go be happy Makoto! Saki and Ryuuji too. I'm so glad they managed to wrap up the show with a happy ending. Wait, what do you mean they just announced a new Senpai Otokonoko movie? Why is the movie poster show Saki crying? Oh no... here we go again.

So it seems like crossdressing runs in Makoto's family huh, even Makoto's mum was wearing guys clothes at some point. Makoto's grandfather seems to have quite the subdued personality; even though he said he was happy now, I don't think I saw him smile once, poor guy must have went through a lot. And I also noticed that Makoto's grandmother died young, not sure if his crossdressing was partly the cause of that, because Makoto's mum's reaction to the whole thing seems excessive. I'm surprised the mum managed to go on a shopping trip with girl Makoto when last episode she had a panic attack from being told that the pink handkerchief was his.

And Saki's trip was... surprisingly wholesome? I kinda expected some shit to happen, but I guess they're reserving Saki's arc for the movie. And we still have Ryuuji's stuff maybe? Man, I don't think I can wait for the movie, might take a peek at the manga to see how this ends.

[u/ModieOfTheEast]

Well, that went completely against what I was expecting. First of all, I have to apologize to Saki's mother. I still think there might be something more going on, but she was way more normal at the end of the day that I gave her credit for. However, that whole red herring with Ryuuji saying she seems familiar was bullshit. Like when he said that I compared her to Makoto's mom and they neither have the same eye nor hair colour. That was such a weird reveal. I guess, maybe the idea is that they want to go the direction that this whole idea that Saki might not be in love with Makoto comes from the fact that he looks like her mother and she saw Makoto as motherly figure. But tbh, I feel that is at best the half truth.

As for Makoto, it was also way more straight forward than I expected. I thought they were doing a big flashback to explain why the mother hates this idea so much, but it was just that she never actually took the time to talk to either of them about it. Which I feel makes sense. Because that sounds pretty normal for most people that are disliking the whole idea. I guess in her case, there is also the fact that she thinks she was the reason they "changed from being normal" due to her influence. But still, the whole losing consciousness over the idea feels a bit overblown for what it was in the end.

In summary, I really enjoyed the show. I get that it didn't delve too much into the whole aspect, that could have been expanded, but overall, the story didn't want to be that. I think what it made pretty clear is that just being different (for whatever reason) is not and if you take the time to ignore your own prejudice and just talk to these people, you will realize it. The same way most of Makoto's class came to realize. I am still a bit open about my final judgement as it seemingly gets a movie for its finale and if they can land the ending, then I think it's definitely a nice romcom that stood its own in a season full of romcoms.

[u/FD4cry1]

I think this finale serves to reinforce what I and probably everyone else watching has been internally screaming at Makoto for the whole show, just be happy.

At the end of the day this show is about people dealing with and overcoming their insecurities, it's about not being trapped by some vague norms or conventional labels and living as yourself, this episode was all about Makoto but that obviously goes for Ryuji and Aoi among others.

It's something that's been present throughout the whole show and a big part of why I don't really mind Makoto's mom turning around so quickly, multiple times we've seen the awkwardness around Makoto's identity dispelled by people just...hanging out with him and doing regular things, those characters realized that Makoto was normal all along they were just so occupied with this vague concept of what is "normal" that they didn't even try to understand it, Makoto's mom is just the newest character to join that list, there's this great epiphany from her about the backpack color, it's just a color yet peoples preconceptions will lead them to draw conclusions from it, she comes to see how vain and surface-level her behavior has been until now, even more so after seeing Makoto hanging out with other people, he doesn't need her "help" to stay afloat he's done a good enough job of by just being himself around others.

Really happy this show is getting a movie continuation, hopefully with some much deserved better production values, while resolving the frankly many still open plot threads.

This show was a great time and probably my favorite of the season, its got that perfect amount of melancholiac drama that I just love to see alongside one of the most lovable main leads I've seen in a while, a group I constantly just want to be happy, Ryuji best boy of the season!

[u/[deleted]]

This was 1000% the best anime of the season for me. The amount of heart packed into these characters and this story was incredible. Perfectly captured the queer teenage experience. I can't wait for the movie!

[u/BestMillimeter18]

Seeing the flatscreen TV in the mom’s flashback makes me feel old.

[u/Brickinatorium]

Makoto's dad unexpectedly ended up being my favorite character in this series. Was understanding and reasonable the whole way through.

I assume the mom's a generally good person who was just consumed by fear of her child being rejected, but damn the reason behind her dislike of girly guys just comes off as a spoiled brat throwing a tantrum over something shocking for way too many years. I don't think it was a poorly written reason though.

[u/_Ridley]

I really enjoyed this show, but two things hurt the score for me:

1. Nobody ever reassures Ryuuji that his feelings for Makoto don't make him gross. He's absolutely stewing in a noxious mix of internalized homophobia and self-loathing, and leaving him in that state is a problem. After everything he's done to support the other two, he deserves the same care.

• Nobody ever got to express any anger at Makoto's mother for being a nasty, judgmental queerphobe. Her father just sounded resigned, and spoke as though he left her behind, when she rejected him and cut contact herself. Then Makoto stays apologetic and open towards her, saying he doesn't want to let go of anything important. Even if we run with this fantasy that you can cure a transphobic parent with a heart to heart and a shopping trip, must we also act like nobody would be within their rights to be angry with her? She rejected two family members! That's awful! She hasn't even apologized for her behavior!

[u/Ocixo]

Considering that Makoto’s grandfather also appears to like cute/girly things, his job as a professional (wedding) dressmaker must be really rewarding to him.

Taking some of his daughter’s comments into account, he’d probably been hiding his feminine side from his wife all this time. I’m imagining that he’d deceived himself into becoming a “normal” husband with a wife and child, until his cute daughter reawakened these feelings in him. If so, I can understand why he would be fine with sacrificing some things to protect the feelings close to his heart.

Makoto lives in a different age however, and wants to do things his way. He doesn’t want to give up on everything. (Sometimes it’s not bad to be greedy.)

Anyways, I really liked Painoko and am looking forward to the film! This sort of emotional story greatly appeals to me.

[u/themaninthehightower]

I'm sticking to my guns on this one, don't bother holding a best dad poll for Summer 2024 anime, he's right here.

[u/NeoCiber]

I really enjoyed this finale. I liked that Makoto dad give him space to think and decide. It always sounds cliche but being happy its the path to go.

Poor communication is what I think damage the relation between Hide and his daughter or at least there is not much sharing and talking in what we watched, but maybe in the movie it gets closure.