I swear the writers are listening to
me
(This review contains
spoilers!)
Since I’ve been quite vocal in my
dislike of the direction Amaama to Inazuma’s been going post-Episode 3, I made
two decisions prior to watching this week’s episode. One: if it followed the
exact same formula as the last three weeks with minimal differences, I would drop
the show entirely. And two: I wouldn’t write anything for the review while I
watched. I normally write out the review as I watch the episode, and edit it
accordingly when I finish, but this week I decided to try an experiment. Would
I enjoy the episode more if I wasn’t worrying about being critical the whole
time?
Well, this week’s episode was a
roaring success on both fronts. Not only did I enjoy it, but I consider it to
be the best episode we’ve seen from this show so far. The playbook that the
crew’s been relying on so hard for the past three weeks has been tossed out the
window, and I was reminded of what makes this show so unique when it comes to
slice-of-life anime. Next week I’m going to try not writing the review during
the episode again, so we’ll see where that leads us.
This week, Tsumugi’s dad is sick,
prompting her to go to the restaurant by herself to get him some food to make
him feel better. What follows is a delightful sequence, where we see Tsumugi’s
walk in both real life and her imagination, as she pretends to avoid sharks,
see dinosaurs, and travel through dark tunnels on her way to the restaurant.
She even sings an adorable little song that I’m sure will be stuck in my head for
the rest of the day. Everything about it is great; the animation, the music, and
the characters and their voice actors all excel in making this the best scene
the show has produced thus far.
However, it’s the second half of the
episodes where things truly shine. Once Tsumugi and her father are reunited, he
loses his temper at her, and she throws a tantrum, prompting him and
Kurumi/Iida/whatever her name is to take shelter in the restaurant. It was at
this point I was sure I knew what was coming. Kurumi would cook them something,
it would cheer them up, everyone’s happy. They even address in the show that
this might work.
Fortunately, this isn’t the route they
take. Both Tsumugi and her father apologize in another quiet, delightful
father-daughter scene. It’s quite a contrast to last week’s Nichijou-like loud
reactions and expressions. I’m guessing there was a different director for
Episode 6, but I wouldn’t know. Anyways, the scene where they make up and smile
is just delightful, and it only furthers the completely believable bond between
the two.
Surprisingly, the cooking segment this
week lasts less than 5 minutes, and it kind of feels tacked on. I think this episode
would’ve made more of an impression if they didn’t have one entirely, but when
your show is focused around cooking and food, I guess it’s kind of a
requirement. Thankfully the kitchen is nowhere near as crowded as it was last
week, and this week reminded me a lot of the first few episodes, with the trio
making a simple dish and having fun with that.
All in all, this was a fantastic
episode, and it completely reinvigorated my excitement for more episodes to
come. I can’t wait to see what they do next week.
FINAL SCORE
9/10
Amazing
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