Who knew making new friends by force could be so much fun?
What They Say:
Episode 6: “How do I look?”
The Review
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Well, this certainly is a clash of cultures. With Satoru and Haru coming to live with Makoto and her dad it’s not unexpected that the girls would start talking. Now I know why Makoto was worried about a boy coming to live with them. She’s really not the sort to revel in the sort of attention the girls are giving her about the situation.
Satoru is stiffly formal, and is still trying to keep out of everyone’s way. Compared to the the way that Mokoto and her dad behave there is bound to be awkwardness. Even Gintaro manages to mess up when he casually knocks Satoru around and Satoru takes the roughhousing as a punishment. It’s clear that it will be awhile before everyone is comfortable in this new living arrangement.
Makoto’s friends decide that the best thing to do is to throw a welcoming party for Satoru. The closed off boy is instantly assaulted by the force of nature that is Yumi, and we find out Hiwako has a tiny crush on Makoto’s dad, which doesn’t go unnoticed or uncommented on. Satoru politely puts up with the unwanted attention of the three girls, although Haru has a harder time of it. The small dinner the group throws for Satoru breaks up into a sleepover for the girls as Satoru heads off alone to his room to study.
Satoru doesn’t seem to know what to make of the situation. Even Haru tries to help him come out of his shell, but it’s a hard thing to ask of a kid who has closed himself off emotionally from others. You know it’s bad when even Haru admits that her human needs to open up more.
I appreciate the earnest way that the show has the girls behave. The girls let Satoru have some space, commenting that they can’t force him to have a good time. At least, that’s what they tell themselves at first. As the hours pass and the pocky runs low, teenagers will be teenagers. The girls descend on him without warning and proceed to unleash all their pestering at once.
It’s the breaking point we were waiting for. Even stoic Satoru can’t retreat when they’re in his room, in his face, in his stuff. Which is only compounded by Yumi’s tactless statements and Makoto’s reaction to the statements. (Really Yumi, you thought it was a good idea to constantly bring up his height?) Haru says it best, ‘those girls are crazy.’ Their craziness works though, and Satoru finally decides to humor them and hang out for awhile. That short while is enough to get him to finally start opening up. Even Haru can’t object, even if it means sharing Satoru.
In Summary:
Even though Gingitsune has spirits walking around and conversing with the leads, the show is grounded in reality when it comes to characters and the way they act. That realism really helps you relate to Makoto and her friends, and to Satoru and his emotional state. It’s that genuine, warm feeling which drives this low key show. This is probably one of the funnest episodes yet, and Makoto is fun to watch as she tries her best to make do with some unusual problems and circumstances.
Episode Grade: B+
Streamed by: Crunchyroll
Review Equipment: 27” iMac running OS 10.8.4, via Safari 6.0.5, FIOS 15/5 Mbps connection. Your milage may vary.
