It would appear that those who like Suzukis are not weird or possessed of bad taste. They merely suffer from a pathogen that only gets reinforced by criticism and ridicule. Leaving that aside, we also learn a little something about bicycles and get to see what kind of bike Chisame wants to ride.
What They Say:
Episode 11: “Bicycles!!”
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
And it’s like we’re watching a different show… Was there an episode of Yowamushi Pedal that they forgot to air or something? Nah, of course not, just kidding. As this episode is titled “Bicycles!!” it’s only natural that we should see some. But don’t worry, this is still Bakuon!! We have Professor Onsa ride into the frame with Hane, here to provide an explanation for how bike enthusiasts work: it’s apparently all about conspicuous consumption in the form of how expensive one’s bicycle is. We can see that it’s not only Suzukis that come in for some gentle ribbing in this show as bicycle enthusiasts are shown up for their ways, at least in the minds of this show’s motorcycle lovers.
But, that’s all just a minor distraction from the usual antics, especially when Onsa has a colorful reaction to accidentally ingesting some spit that’s not her own. The impact was so powerful…that she seems to have become a Suzuki fanatic (you only get one guess as to whose spit it was). It’s not a life-threatening disease nor is it painful, according to the doctor, who has discovered it to be the work of a new bacteria he named Hondabacillus (yeah, I agree Rin, something’s off about that name…). The continuing gag of covering men’s faces other than Mr. Amano’s continues with the doctor.
Then, we see the result of the seed planted at the episode start, which saw Chisame walking with her brand new license. With a license, it must be time to choose a bike. Such a happy occasion, of course, devolves into war among the older girls, who all vie to push their own favored brand upon the youngest member of the club. The only way to settle matters is through a fight and the girls choose…an unusual method of fighting over who gets to claim that Chisame chose their favored brand. Chisame is having none of it, however, so she goes home and has a talk with Dad, who advises her to just go with what she wants.
And so, Chisame chooses…well, I have to scoot along now.
While I was starting to feel that the “bash Suzuki” gag that has been running throughout the season was getting a little stale, I have to give credit to the original author and the adaptation team for finding another way to do it that was genuinely funny. Seeing Onsa get hysterical about her condition was hilarious. That her cure nearly sent Rin into tears yet again is par for the course. The opening segment on bicycles and the concluding story of Chisame’s bike choice were a bit more in line with the general run of episodes, providing information (from Onsa) and humor (the “tournament” to decide who would get to choose Chisame’s bike for her, before she basically ran off). Again, lots of references, many of which I’m sure I missed (the contestant names in the Chisame contest I’m sure are famous names in that sport; others have already pointed towards Mysterious Girlfriend X for the saliva-induced change in feelings; the X-Files theme appears again, so perhaps that was a minor X-theme running through this episode as well).
With only a couple more weeks left in the season, it will be interesting to see one what note Bakuon!! intends to end.
In Summary:
We get a look at the human-powered side of things as bicycles get some headlining time near the start. That passes quickly onto a strange illness that overtakes Onsa and finally a battle by the girls to determine what bike Chisame should get, now that she has her license. It’s the usual mixture of information and goofiness from Bakuon!! Now that all the girls have their bikes, they’re ready.
Grade: A-
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
Review Equipment:
Apple iMac with 12GB RAM, Mac OS 10.10 Yosemite
