In contrast to the previous episode, this installment was much less uncomfortable for me due to the focus on social dynamics rather than sexuality. Of course, Mari’s and Tsunagu’s heavy attraction to each other is still an important part of the plot, but at least there wasn’t any sexual assault this time. 😛 Anyway, let’s discuss this episode.
Episode 3
Episode Rating: 8/10
What interested and impressed me most about this episode was the character writing. Some may think the highschool drama is childish, and in some ways it is, but it’s also well-written and realistic. There’s also the character of Ayano who stood out to me a lot in this episode. It might not actually be the case that she was well-written, but the character still spoke to me due to my similarities to her when I was her age. Despite her prejudice in this episode, I empathized with her deeply in other ways.
Ayano Shitara was born to write. From a young age, she wrote novellas in campus notebooks to express her love and creativity. I was the same way. The main difference between Ayano and me is that her parents were probably even worse than mine. My parents were emotionally abusive at times mostly due to the influence of a religious cult, but they still validated me in a few important ways. They praised my ability to write stories and they were entertained by my wild imagination. Ayano’s parents, on the other hand, only cared about academics, squashing their daughter’s creative passions.
Ayano has a deep need to recognized, which is a very human thing, and very important for girls and young women. For her, the way to be truly “seen” would be to have her loved ones read her work. But Ayano’s parents refused to even look at her stories. They set harsh conditions, telling her they would only approve of her writing novels if she always scored highest in her class. That’s where this ties into the story of Tsunagu and Mari. When Tsunagu scored number one on the midterm exams, Ayano was devastated.
To be clear, it was not okay for Ayano to say “I wish Beastfolk would just disappear.” But I was indoctrinated into being racist and homophobic when I was her age, so there is definitely hope for her to improve and embrace equality as she matures. Plus, she apologized later. (And no, I don’t actually recommend trying to make Beastfolk prejudice an allegory for racism or queerphobia. I only used it for one comparison. The equivalency breaks down with the fact that Beastfolk are a different species from humans. That doesn’t justify prejudice, but it does mean it’s a poor metaphor for intra-species bigotry.)
Anyway, drama unfolded as Ayano went to the school roof to rip and throw her novel-filled notebooks to the wind. Ayano’s best friend, Ritsuka Kawashima, really shone at this point in the episode. She was desperately worried about Ayano and couldn’t find her anywhere. Ritsuka had been friends with Ayano since elementary school, and was always eager to read her stories. Ritsuka confronted Tsunagu and asked him to use his nose to track down Ayano. Once he heard the reasoning – that Ayano was no longer allowed to write – Tsunagu agreed to help find her.
(Side note: Mari and Ritsuka have a powerful friendship. I liked the moment where Mari took Ritsuka’s hands and gazed into her eyes, recognizing that she was upset. Whether it’s romance or other forms of affection, I really do enjoy elements of shoujo ai in anime. I also think it’s good character writing for Mari to have a few strong friendships with others in her own demographic.)
Directed by Tsunagu, Ritsuka rushed to the roof. She was legitimately scared Ayano might throw herself off. Ayano had no such intention, but had already torn and thrown away her notebook containing the novella Ritsuka was still reading. As Ritsuka scolded Ayano, Tsunagu and Mari stood by quietly. They both realized they also wanted to read the story. This was also a good opportunity for Mari to show her friends that Tsunagu was a good person. So, Tsunagu climbed over the fence, went to the ledge, picked up the battered notebook, and brought it back to Ayano.
Ritsuka, Mari, and Tsunagu all started reading Ayano’s stories, and after some discussion, she agreed to keep writing for the sake of her friends. Ritsuka was again awesome in this scene, telling Ayano not to give up or throw away her talent. I definitely now ship Ritsuka x Ayano and it’s clear that they have a deep bond.
In other notes, I loved the voice-acting in this episode, especially since I recognize the voices of Ritsuka and Ayano from other roles. Ritsuka was voiced by Asami Seto, who’s had several big roles in popular anime, such as Raphtalia from Shield Hero and Mai Sakurajima from Bunny-Girl Senpai. I appreciated her recent roles as Nagi from Ruri Rocks and Shisui from Apothecary Diaries Season 2. As for Ayano, she was voiced by Miyuri Shimabukuro, who I know best as the voice of Tuesday from Carole and Tuesday. I also loved her so much as Draka in Orb: On the Movements of the Earth.
Back to the episode at hand, we had a brief scene with Aida and Mari cleaning up after class. This scene reinforced the idea that Aida likes Mari, but has been too shy to ask her outright if she really likes Tsunagu. For her part, Mari doesn’t seem to realize that Aida fancies her, especially after he patted her head and said it was a gesture he used to praise his little brothers. I look forward to seeing how this anime will handle the love polygon that is unfolding. I’m also eager to meet the other character in the intro song, who resembles a cat-girl. I wonder who and what she is?
For the last section of this episode, we saw Mari and Tsunagu walk toward Mari’s home together. Tsunagu told Mari he went to the doctor and was told he was a normal beast-person who does experience true rut. He just needs to control himself better. Mari apologized – as if she needed to – for causing suffering. But Tsunagu said he was not suffering and that he was glad the person he was attracted to was Mari. They had a romantic moment standing close together at the cross-walk. Mari was overjoyed to be so close to Tsunagu as his body blocked the rain from hitting her.
Just then, a nearby woman started to get concerned that Tsunagu was harassing Mari. In response, Mari took Tsunagu’s hand and led him boldly across the street. She was not ashamed to be holding hands with a beastperson, and this way, nobody would assume the worst. During this final scene, Mari finally asked Tsunagu on a date. I’m proud of her for taking action like that, but Tsunagu assumed she meant hanging out with Aida as a trio. He immediately agreed that “the three of us” should hang out. The episode ends here with some comical disappoinment from Mari.
Although I have some reservations about this series, and wish it wasn’t so sexual in nature at times, I will keep watching it. I like the character writing and the wholesome moments and I want to learn more about this world and the beastfolk species. In this episode, I especially liked the character of Ayano and I hope she gets some more time in this series. That’s all for today, so take care until next time!
Thanks for reading~
Written by 7Mononoke at Anime Rants
Anime Rants 