Subculture Anime Blog

Hoshii na…

Summary:

Tamaki views an advertisement for a dvd box set of anime, and is quickly won over by its bonuses. Tamaki is disappointed to find that she does not have enough money for it, but still expresses that she wants it. Elsewhere, Ishida is forced to pay back one of his acquaintances who suddenly shows himself to him. Finding that he is constantly losing, Ishida remembers what Kenzaburo had told him at dinner. He stated that it would be better for Tamaki to take a loss, and from a girl of similar age rather than from an adult. At the kendo club the next day, Ishida tells the boys that they only need to worry about finding a fifth member for the girls. Miyako’s foot is injured, and the girls attempt to convince Ishida that it should be ok for her to rest. When Miyako mentions her wish to take time off from her part time job as well, Tamaki expresses interest. Seeing that Tamaki wants to try the part time job, Miyako and Danjuro simply take off with her.

When Tamaki reaches the store, she is quickly assigned to manage the front. Danjuro gives some encouraging words to Miyako as they leave, causing her to become extremely happy and reckless. As she zooms through the streets with Danjuro, they pass by an orange haired girl with glasses. Tamaki gets a call from Ishida reminding her to contact her guardian about what she is doing, so she contacts her father soon after. Surprisingly, he is perfectly find with this. In reality, he believes that she is doing this in preparation for his birthday in a week. Two girls become Tamaki’s first customers. Tamaki becomes very nervous, but she successfully processes their purchase. Tamaki wishes to go home after making a small mistake, but she changes her mind after receiving an encouraging message from Ishida.

Still nervous, Tamaki comes to the conclusion that it would be better if no customers came. That way, she would haven’t to talk. However, Tamaki’s thoughts are quickly changed when the manager checks on her progress. As more customers come in, Tamaki wonders why she is so nervous doing this compared to kendo. When Tamaki reaches home, she falls asleep from exhaustion. However, after touching her sword, her confidence is soon revived. Ishida receives a package from his mother, but it is full of wakame. Although a touching letter is attached, Ishida wishes she wouldn’t send stuff that she has heard of from the TV all the time. Again at work, Tamaki wonders what she should do if a burglar entered the store. She attempts to find things to use in place of a kendo sword, but the manager interrupts her by letting her off for the day. On the way back, Tamaki recalls all of her experiences up to this point.

Preview: Azuma Satori introduces herself. Isn’t it a bit early for your appearance?

Impression:

Wow, even though this was an episode so focused on Tamaki, all of my attention was drawn to Miyako. Was that the Miya Miya-mobile!? Her reactions to Danjuro’s silly statements are just amazing. I also love how Kirino and Sayako quickly fell to their knees at a mere glimpse of her black form. She seems so innocent when she isn’t talking to herself! As far as Tamaki goes, it was pretty obvious that she was going to want some kind of anime product. By working a part time job for the first time, she pretty much faced a fear that almost all of us face at some point. In my case, it was at a restaurant (not too bad….better than fast food). I love how realistic this was presented, as she regained composure after realizing what she was working for. In reality, Tamaki is just a shy girl with a lot of talent. I could have said this about the last episode too, but when Tamaki lays on her bed at home, she is so Amu! It was so funny to see Tamaki’s delusions in the store, and they even reused the phone joke. Are those little dolls the girls are buying really that cute? On a side note, the art at the end of this week’s episode was really good!