A Step in the Right Direction
What They Say:
Because Minami Kamakura High requires all of its students to join a club, Hiromi and Tomoe go to check them out. When they end up in the nurse’s office with Kamikura Fuyune, they decide to go visit her grandmother, the school principal, Kamikura Ryuko. While visiting, they learn about the cycling club that once existed at the school. Hiromi suggests they start a bicycle club, but…
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Episode Three of “kawaii girls doing random things together” genre piece, Minami Kamakura High School Girls Cycling Club, is finally a step in an interesting direction. A surprising amount is accomplished here, given the pace of the previous two episodes; some clubs are tried, a club is founded, and a club room (a freaking beautiful one by the way) is established. It doesn’t sound like a lot on paper, but watching the episode unfold makes for a relatively pleasing 20 minutes. JC Staff’s art is once again on display here as many lush landscapes and the little corridors one can find in a forest are depicted with a soft beauty that is relatively rare nowadays. I wish, however, that the character art would evolve a little as seeing the girls next to each other for an increasing amount of time reveals just how similar they all look.
School is finally in session on the beautiful campus of Minami Kamakura high school and every student’s favorite time of the year is here! Finding a club to spend your youth in! Woo, early tastes of commitment! After wandering around trying some of the school’s extensive list of clubs such as cosplay, basketball, and light swimming(?), Hiromi and Tomoe can’t seem to find one that fits. Episode three finally grants us a taste of the subject matter the series title promises when tucked away in a peaceful little slice of the forest surrounding Minami Kamakura’s campus, lies a cabin belonging to Fuyune’s grandmother, whom she is visiting. Though not a subtle story telling element, the photos Hiromi stumbles upon at Grandma’s (also the principal, conveniently enough), give the impetus to finally get the gears turning on this series.
Once popular on campus with young Grandma at the helm, the cycling club has since been disbanded, though not for much longer it seems. Fuyune, expressing some surprising determination, takes it upon herself to restart it. I’m glad that not every girl is pigeon-holed into a stereotypical personality, given I took her as the overly prideful and arrogant rich girl at first. Seeing the interest sparked in these young girls inspires Grandma Ryuko to put up her cabin as the club room as it once was, which is bitchin’. The cabin is beautiful and I’m sure will be a big selling point for club prospects in the coming episodes. Now that a base of operations and some early interest is established, all that’s left is finding a few more members and a staff member to coach/supervise…and I think we all know who that will be.
In Summary:
Finally showing a little development in the plot, our group of budding young cyclists decides to take their hobby to the next level. Forming the club that makes up the namesake of this series, Hiromi and her friends inherit a beautiful club room (Thanks, JC Staff!) and support from not only the principal but from a certain teacher we can all surmise as well. This is the first episode that really attempts some story, and could honestly work as the pilot of the show if you wanted an express version of the series.
Grade: B-
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
