Welcome, and thanks for stopping by. The Ones Within Episode 11 didn’t contribute much to the over-arching plot, but it was a lot of fun, and good for character development (of Makino Aikawa especially). I never quite know what to write in response to these episodes, though. I suppose a recap is the best way.

The ninth game worked like so. Four of the kids (Makino, Yuzu, Kai, and Himiko) were temporarily put to sleep. The four remaining (Akatsuki, Karin, Anya, and Zakuro) found themselves having to take care of kindergarten-aged versions of the others. They weren’t actually real kindergartners, but advanced Mimicry plants controlled with AI to make them act like the real kids. Each little kid has a tiny green sprout on their head. The game objective is to nurture the little ones enough to make the sprouts blossom into flowers.

It was easy enough to please kindergarten Kai, Himiko, and Yuzu. However, it was much harder to get any response or growth from kindergarten Makino. He won’t respond to anything they try. That’s because the Makino in reality has been having a hard time. A flashback reveals to us that his parents fought a lot — the kind of fighting where people are screaming, not just arguing. His older sister Sumire took care of him, but she didn’t love Makino as much as she later loved her boyfriend. Akatsuki goes and talks to the sleeping Makino, telling him to accept and move on. Even if your love isn’t returned, it’s enough that you can love others, Akki says.

At first, Makino doesn’t believe he can move on from having his heart so badly broken. But then he thinks of his friends in the present, here on this otherworldly island, who care about him. Thinking about that makes the kindergarten version of Makino grow a flower bud. What makes it blossom into a flower is the way Zakuro calls him by his first name, showing close friendship. And of course, the “flower” that blooms is actually an Afro. The real Makino wakes up, and all the kindergarten versions disappear. Everyone is happy to clear the game.

Meanwhile, Paka sits in a dark room watching creepily via camera. He says to himself that the real fun is just beginning. I forgot to mention this, but at the end of the previous episode, the view count for the ones within stream rose to 50 million. At the end of episode 11, it went up to 67 million. (Also note: Akatsuki confirmed that he has no memories of his childhood and his current mom isn’t his biological mother. I’m not sure if that was stated clearly before now.)

Thanks for checking out this little review! Your readership is always appreciated. I know it’s Monday, but Ganbatte! (Good luck/ do your best!)

Previous Posts About The Ones Within (Now Streaming)
The Ones Within Episode 1 Review
The Ones Within Episode 2 Review
The Ones Within Episode 3 Review
The Ones Within Episode 4 Review
The Ones Within Episode 5 Review
The Ones Within Episode 6 Review
The Ones Within Episode 7 Review
The Ones Within Episode 8 Review
The Ones Within Episode 9 Review
The Ones Within Episode 10 Review

PATREON

Images from: Nakanohito Genome (Jikkyouchuu). Dir. S Oonuma. Silver Link. 2019.