“Thank you for helping me see so much. I’m overjoyed. The words to describe it would be so ephemeral they might just fly away. So, just like the petals falling around us, I want to take my time in letting you know.”
~Kyoko Hori, Horimiya: The Missing Peices episode 13
Thanks for coming to Anime Rants! I’ve been trying to finish covering as many of the Summer ’23 anime series as I can. Today, I complete Horimiya: The Missing Pieces. It’s been really fun. The last episode helps remind us that we’re not alone and that memories are precious. Here are my responses to the last four episodes of the season. Enjoy!
Episode 10: Jealousy
Although I am enjoying this anime overall, I’m still not too happy about the fact that the second season was not a sequel. It’s just stuff that was left out during the first season interactions. By doing this, the anime risks being redundant with a lot of its content. Episode 10 is a good example. We already saw a few different mini-stories about jealousy earlier this season. Bringing it up a second time felt like overusing the same element.
Last time this came up, I complained about anime glorifying and/or making a joke out of jealousy. I still hold the opinion that it’s an unhealthy problem in a relationship IRL – however, jealousy can be humorous in fiction. Hori’s hypervigilant “guarding” of Miyamura leads to some funny lines and expressions. In this episode, she keeps noting the scents on Miyamura’s clothes like some kind of dog. Hori is definitely weird.
Hori’s unusual nature is sometimes just quirky and innocuous. Other times, it’s genuinely concerning. For example, Hori has been known to angrily hit Miyamura during a few of their fights. This is another case where something toxic and serious – domestic abuse – can occasionally be humorous in fiction. However, for me personally, I am not amused by Hori hitting or kicking her boyfriend.
The last thing I’ll say about this episode is that Watabe’s scenes were definitely funny. He’s absolutely obsessed with Miyamura. The nature of humor, like I’ve been saying, is that some negative and toxic traits make for good jokes in the context of certain fiction. Then it’s just a matter of which jokes land for you and which fail. I don’t like it when Hori hits Miyamura, but I am incredibly tickled by Watabe’s creepy worship of Miyamura. It’s different for everyone.
Episode 11: Chocolate
Considering how sick I am of the hugely overused Valentine’s Day trope, I managed to get through this episode without feeling too annoyed. Rom-com anime series are seldom creative. Once you’ve seen one anime Valentine, you’ve basically seen them all. The only way I can tolerate this trope is if a character I like goes through some good development or funny moments. In this case, the character I liked was Sawada.
In the first season, Sawada hugely admired Hori. You can call it respect or whatever, but I think Sawada is probably LGBT+ and Hori is her first love. While she hasn’t stopped loving Hori yet, Sawada is slowly accepting that she’s “taken” by Miyamura. Furthermore, rather than hating Miyamura, Sawada has more or less become friends with him by the time of graduation. She’s can be mature when it really counts.
In this episode, Sawada makes friends with a girl from her own year for the first time. Their scenes together were really cute. I think I can see those two becoming a thing. Maybe this girl can be Sawada’s new crush. Even if Sawada doesn’t like the new girl “in that way,” I think she’ll still be happy to have a friend her age.
Episode 12: The Hori House
The episode began with a flashback to Hori’s parents when they were still in highschool together. Kyosuke was pretty much the way I expected him to be, but maybe slightly calmer than I had imagined. Mrs. Hori (Yuriko) was adorable. Her voice, easygoing attitude and gentle mannerisms are so pretty. I also liked when she stood up for herself after being insulted by the other girl. She can be sassy when it’s needed.
My favorite part of this installment was when Sota played pretend with Hori and Miyamura. The whole scene was absolutely hilarious. Hori was a real tyrant as usual, playing the cruel captain of the space-ship. Sota was a crew member who got pushed out into space by the captain and left to die. (He’s such a cute kid! Hori needs to be nicer to him.) Yep, just another day in the Hori House.
Although it was mostly played for laughs, I found it interesting how Miyamura is basically the mediator for the Hori family. He’s really good at hearing everyone out and being gentle and validating. Maybe Miyamura could become a counselor someday. Speaking of counseling, Hori is probably going to need some if her anger issues persist after highschool. That’s all for this episode.
Episode 13: Graduation
The final episode of Horimiya was entertaining and touching. One part that I thought was interesting was the prolonged scene where Hori’s friend group forms itself. I’m not sure if it was supposed to be a flashback or not. The characters we know all became friends with each other – even Yanagi – before anyone got to know Miyamura. It felt like it was a vision of a world where things happened in a different order – an alternate universe.
At the end of this dreamlike sequence, Hori still ends up meeting Miyamura after dropping her phone near his desk. I think the point was to be super romantic and imply that Hori and Miyamura would have fallen in love in any version of the universe. I don’t really mind this kind of sappiness on occasion – if I did, I would never have kept watching Horimiya. Kyoko Hori and Izumi Miyamura are an adorable anime couple that deserves to have some cheesy romance.
Speaking of sappy, I felt very moved by Hori’s monologue when she and Miyamura were leaving the school with their diplomas. These characters and their lives are so beautiful and heart-warming! Avoiding tears was difficult for a big crybaby like me.
On a final note, I absolutely loved Hori’s new haircut! It’s so fuckin’ adorable – and attractive! Miyamura’s new hair style was also nice, but I think I preferred his former length. With that, we have come to the end of Horimiya: The Missing Pieces. I’ve enjoyed watching this series and responding to the best parts in my episode reviews. I offer my sincere gratitude to those who joined me for the ride.
Thanks for reading~
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