While Nadeshiko is temporarily out of commission, Rin goes on a solo expedition to Nagano. Things turn out a bit differently, however, when Nadeshiko gets better and takes over as her “navigator.” Dogs and hot springs await!
What They Say:
Episode 9: “A Night of Nadeshiko Navigator and Hot Spring Steam”
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Some people want plot. Some people want action. Some people want drama. I want pleasant times with pleasant people. I need not look further than this show every week.
I don’t think anyone is watching Laid-Back Camp for the plot or the action. Maybe someone out there is watching it for the camping knowledge passed on in most episodes. There really isn’t much of the latter this time around as the action, such as it is, centers around Rin and Nadeshiko’s joint camping trip planned for the break being cancelled because Nadeshiko has gotten sick (I guess anime conventional wisdom about the foolish and stupid never catching colds is wrong). So Rin decides to head out on a journey alone as usual, winging it somewhat, following the advice of her grandfather. Nadeshiko does get better, but her older sister prevents her from running out the door to join Rin. Instead, Nadeshiko is forced to remain at home and rest, keeping in contact with Rin through their phones. Nadeshiko declares that she will be Rin’s navigator, picking out tourist sites worth seeing along Rin’s route. Of special note is a temple that’s dedicated to a dog worshipped by the locals for having fought off a ferocious monkey.
We need not linger over the events of the episode, except to mention that Aki comes over to pay Nadeshiko a get well visit (Aoi has to work at her job at the supermarket) and somehow gets roped into making a local noodle specialty for Nadeshiko’s entire family (and unlike so many other anime lead characters, Nadeshiko appears to have an intact family with both parents alive and well).
Towards the end, Rin pays a soothing visit to a hot springs, warming her up from the cold journey across a mountainous area. That is a perfect metaphor for what this show manages to do week after week, providing soothing comfort with occasional dashes of silly comedy, the kind that puts a goofy grin on the viewer’s face. At this point in the season, it feels as if events are slowly building up to the very start of the show, which we can now see was a flash forward (unless you want to count the whole show after the first episode’s opening scene as one very long flashback) to a joint camping trip in the future that will involve all of the girls we’ve met so far. The building blocks are slowly moving into place. If you care about plot and such.
I’ll just take a quiet stroll through the great outdoors.
In Summary:
While Nadeashiko is fighting off a cold, Rin takes a solo trip, as she usually does, but this time she allows her path to be guided a bit by Nadeshiko, who can at least scope out tourists spots on her phone. Aki comes by to pay a get well visit to Nadeshiko and somehow gets roped into making a local noodle specialty for Nadeshiko’s entire family. Rin takes a break at a hot springs on her journey…and doesn’t quite make it beyond that. None of which really matters as we have another episode of cute, sweet, and funny moments, which is all that one should want from this show.
Grade: A
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
Review Equipment:
Apple iMac with 12GB RAM, Mac OS 10.13 High Sierra
