Level Up! Nishikata gained +1 in Tandem Riding. -1 in… literally everything else that matters.

Karakai Jozu no Takagi-san
Studio: Shin-Ei Animation
Genre: Slice of Life, Romance

EvilBob: Aww! Look! They’re bonding!

CVoyage: Is THAT what you call it?

EvilBob: Yeah. What do you call it?

CVoyage: What else? Training. Same as last time. She even conditioned him not to freak out whenever she touched him.

EvilBob: Can’t say the same for the reverse, though…

CVoyage: Yeah, no, that boy is hopeless.

EvilBob: “Wait! Wouldn’t this be the first time I’ve touched Takagi-san?!”

CVoyage: Yeah, Bulls–t. The boy literally grabbed her by the shoulders earlier in the same episode.

EvilBob: Maybe his mind goes blank whenever he touches her, so every time’s the first time?

CVoyage: Bob…

EvilBob: What?! That’s the only way it makes any sense!

CVoyage: Right. Anyway, question.

EvilBob: What?

CVoyage: So now it’s not just automatic doors that apparently get people all excited. Now typhoons?! Seriously! Why is this a thing?!

CVoyage: No! Stop that!

EvilBob: I guess Dagashi Kashi really is infecting the rest of the anime world.

CVoyage: I mean… is it just a thing in Japan? They get typhoons so often that kids are just like “Hey cool! Scary murder winds! Let’s go play in ’em!”

EvilBob: Maybe it’s just exaggerated for the shows, wanting to be funny about the topic.

CVoyage: And just a freakish coincidence that more than one show decided to do it. Yeah. Sure.

EvilBob: Then there was the marathon.

CVoyage: I swear to god, this boy needs to stop. “If you can catch me, you win!”

EvilBob: “I can’t touch her in front of these people!”

CVoyage: Meanwhile. In the land of common sense…

CVoyage: But as much as I joke, I do like their dynamic. It’s just so endearing. How they’re genuinely friends and just engage in this ceaseless competition. It’s something we didn’t really talk about, but the marathon segment even compares them to the actual confirmed pairing of the show, which just highlights the different kinds of relationships people can have.

EvilBob: Chris.

CVoyage: What?

EvilBob: You’re doing that “deep” thing again.

CVoyage: …Having trouble keeping up?

EvilBob: …

CVoyage: I’ll take that as a yes. Fine. I do genuinely like seeing this relationship develop, however slowly. Nishikata’s denseness can get a bit annoying. As much as I joke, I get the storytelling mechanic. He’s not going to get the picture before the end of the series. It’s just how this works. But at times his obliviousness can push the boundaries of believability. That said, the subtle shifts in their dynamic are pleasant to see. Their spending more time around one another as friends with the tandem riding thing, just talking about nothing in particular, it’s all cute and charming and all those good things. This episode wasn’t the most riotous of them, but I still couldn’t stop myself from smiling throughout it. So what more can be said? It’s still Super Effective.

EvilBob: …Yeah. That. All of that. It’s about as Evil as a Super Villain (10)… show off.

CVoyage: I’unno what you’re talkin’ about.

EvilBob: Yeah. Sure. It’s one of those shows I always look forward to watching as soon as it comes out. Simple, but sweet and funny. Of course, it’s not the only show this season that embodies the simplicity of childhood. For a nonromantic one, why not check out my recaps of Mitsuboshi Colors? It’s all about the innocence and imagination of childhood, really.

CVoyage: Aw. See? You can do it.

EvilBob: Shut up, Chris.

CVoyage: Hm. Anyway, that’s basically everything.

EvilBob: Thanks for letting us waste your time, people.

CVoyage: As always, thanks for reading. Keep up the awesome.

EvilBob: And keep it classy.

CVoyage: Take care.