*Hello everyone. This review was as easy to pen as the previous was difficult. Perhaps because there’s not as much analysis required and at this point of the show most themes will be revisited, not introduced for the first time. Hope you enjoy it! Please don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe. It’s greatly appreciated. *Off now to work on the next one.
Prologue
We’re given a recap of the race’s start, with Prince smiling at Haiji before he leaves him to take his place at the starting line, and the gunning sounding the start of the race.
-Just a note, the episode flows so smoothly that it was difficult to find “Best Scenes” rather, a few lovely moments that were my favorites which I will point out. I wonder if viewers agree or had different moments.
Act One
We jump right into the action seeing the runners take off down their path through the live television feed. The news anchor helpfully tells us that the runners are keeping a slow pace this year at 3.07 kilometers/minute. He adds that in the past few years the starts were high paced, so this is quite unusual. The guest on the “New Years Sports Special” for Hakone says that the teams must be prioritizing strategy than speed.
We see Prince at the very back of the pack. But the rest of his team don’t have our view. Jouji and Nico, watching the live feed, look for him on their phone screens but can’t see him. Nico wonders if Prince is intentionally lagging behind.
This turns out to be true. As he runs Prince recalls Haiji telling him that if he stays in the back the other runners might serve as a windbreak for him. We go back in time to see Haiji helping Prince stretch as he tells him that he should conserve his stamina during the first half and should therefore use anything he can.
-Prince is worried he’ll be so far behind the others that he won’t be able to use them as a windbreak.
Haiji assures him he will.
Back in the present, it played out just like Haiji said.
-Haiji has amazing instincts. He correctly guessed that the race will be slow and that Prince will be therefore be able to keep up with the other runners. But something occurred to me as I was writing this: could it be Haiji told Prince to use the other runners as a windbreak, not for that actual purpose, but because he knows Prince will be the slowest? And rather than have him worry about this when it inevitably happens, he’s telling Prince to intentionally stay behind with the excuse of using the others to protect him from the wind. Why? Because there is a huge difference between falling behind (which could cause him to panic) and choosing to stay behind. Also, by giving him this instruction, he’s essentially telling Prince to not allow a gap to form between him and the others. But he’s using a clever mind hack so as to not pressure Prince.
I may be overthinking it but as a literature major Haiji knows the power of words. Instead of telling Prince, “It’s okay if you fall behind but make sure you’re not too far behind” he tells him, “To conserve your energy for the second half stay behind the other runners and use them as a windbreak.”
I know which one I’d rather hear. Haiji’s a genius.
Meanwhile, Haiji heads up an escalator at Tokyo station. He asks Tazaki on the phone how Prince it doing. The coach tells him he’s almost at 10 kilometers now. And that it’s a “dry affair.” Haiji tells the Coach that if he sees any change in Prince, to relay him a specific message of encouragement.
We don’t get to hear it though because this is when we get the title card, The Moment of Release.
Act One:
Back at the race, we see a young man call out “Kashiwazaki! This kilometer’s exactly three minutes!” Prince looks at him and he adds “Keep your pace!”
-I’d honestly forgotten that this was Prince’s last name. I’m assuming that helper was a volunteer or short distance track member at their university. It’s a tiny detail but him using Prince’s last name (which is completely normal for peers in Japan) is a nice contrast to what everyone at the Aotake calls him and highlights the closeness of our boys.
-Also, seriously! Prince is doing so well if he’s been able to keep that pace.
We skip forward to see the runners at 17 kilometers and going up the incline of Rokugo bridge. Kakeru watches the live feed on his phone worriedly as Musa warms up in preparation. The other team members also watch earnestly as the commentator on the Hakone News reports exposits what everyone is worried about: the incline is tough “If they exhaust themselves here they’ll pay for it later.”
On the track we see that most of the runners have started to pick up the pace, leaving Prince behind. We also see Hana at the station, listening to what’s happening on the radio.
Prince comments that he doesn’t like inclines, but he too speeds up.
-At this point I don’t know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing. He looked pretty tired so I don’t know if it was the right call, especially considering what the commentator said. Surely that was the point of it, to keep viewers in suspense. We get a sky view of the race and see how there is a car in front of the runners (the lead car Yuki mentioned in a previous episode) as well as cars following the runners on a side track.
As he runs desperately Prince recalls Haiji telling him not to panic even if he’s left behind. If he’s able to keep up with them till the Bridge he’ll earn “full marks” from Haiji and that he’ll be able to pass the sash to Musa without too much of a time difference.
Haiji’s words segway us back to the past where he’d been helping Prince stretch. At Haiji’s words, Prince responds: “I see. The real race is Section 2 onwards.”
-Prince came to the same conclusion I did in the review of the previous episode. He’s just there to complete the numbers. It’s no secret that he’s the only one without any sort of experience in athletics.
Haiji asks him if that makes him unhappy. Prince responds not at all, he knows he’s an amateur. “I’ll finish the race quickly, so I can get back to my comics sooner. That’s all.”
-Prince is amazing. I love how he knows what his limits are and he doesn’t care. He just does what he can.
Prince muses “Things might have gotten a little easier.” I think he means now that he knows Haiji’s expectations of him are realistic, he has less to worry about.
Haiji then looks down, seeming uncharacteristically guilty, and apologizes to Prince.
-We rarely see Haiji show any remorse to his runners. Perhaps he feel’s especially guilty towards Prince because of all the members Prince not had to give up his precious reading time (and possibly his manga club) but he basically had to start from zero. He also arguably worked the hardest due to his slight built and lack of stamina. Which begs the question, why did he do it?
It’s been a while, so I had to go back and see what Prince’s reaction was (and my thoughts to it) when Haiji first talked about Hakone. Prince never said he’d run. But then he also never said he wouldn’t. I always entertained the possibility that, like Nico, maybe he actually wanted in on Haiji’s scheme. Despite all his complaints, he never went against Haiji the way Yuki did. At times it even felt like he’d been on Haiji’s side. One example was when he points out how Haiji made them an expensive meal (almost like he was indirectly guilt tripping the others). Another was that whole speech he said when Sasaki mocked them. Yuki even commented once that Prince was going along with Haiji despite his complaints.
Prince doesn’t tell us yet why he did it, but at Haiji’s apology, he tilts his head in contemplation.
We’re switched back to current Prince, running in Hakone. As is his norm, he encourages himself through self-talk: “If I give up, the race is over.” The scene focuses on his red shoes.
-I will forever associate red shoes with Akane’s courage. Recall, Aka means red in Japanese.
He continues “All those who succeed have worked hard. I am strong.”
-Sniff. Yes, you are, sweet Prince. Even though a gap has formed between him and the other runners, and is widening by the second.
At Tsurumi Relay Station, a television reporter is being filmed as he talks about the athletes who will be running “The ace’s section” section two. He mentions that amongst the participants in the second leg are runners with a time of 28 minutes per 10,000 meters.
-Reminder, Kakeru had previously said Musa’s was 29 minutes.
The reporter goes on to point out that Iwanki from Kofu Academy will be running it.
-This was just in case any of us had forgotten that he’s a star athlete.
Kakeru and Musa are watching the broadcast on Kakeru’s phone when they suddenly see themselves on screen.
They look around. The interviewer has them in his sights as he starts talking about Musa, and how unlike other exchange students, Musa isn’t in Japan on an athletic scholarship, rather he’s on a government sponsored scholarship with no previous running experience.
As soon as Musa realizes he’s on camera, he turns around, stands up straight and bows deeply to the reporter, who returns the bow and thanks him.
-Seriously, Musa, just how respectful, how freaking adorable can you be? I love him.
The reporter goes on to say that the Kansei team is comprised of unique runners and they are taking on the race with just ten runners.
-This is in case any of us weren’t already panicking, knowing that Shindo is sick. Sakaki really did jinx them. And by the way, where is Shindo? Back to the scene.
Iwanki approaches the two. Here, Kakeru who had been too slow (or unconcerned?) to stand up for the camera, immediately gets up and faces his past rival respectfully.
Iwanki tells him that he had enjoyed racing him in the qualifier and that he’s disappointed he won’t get to do so again.
Kakeru tells him with a smile, “Don’t worry. He won’t let you take it easy. Not our ace,” looking at a nervous Musa.
-Guys! I just can’t! See how our baby grew up and learned how to talk! And so nicely, too 🥹
At his words, Musa stands up a little taller. Iwanki is surprised a bit, but acknowledges Musa, then taps Kakeru’s shoulder before he leaves.
-This. This is why I love this show. No excessive drama, no trash talking, even Sasaki is lovable once you understand him. (Did I ever give my analysis on Sakaki? I need to go back and check and I’ll link to it if I find it.)
Musa’s phone rings. It’s his best friend, Shindo. We see him sitting on a subway bench, now suited up in the same coat as the others, a mask still covering his feverish face. He tells Musa he just saw him on TV. Musa conveys how surprised he’d been and asks if he looked weird. Shindo assures him he didn’t, then tells him in a slightly muffled voice, “once this is over, let’s go see the snow.” He adds that it snows heavily in his home town. “The world becomes white as far as the eye can see. You’ve never seen that, have you?” Musa says that he hasn’t, and that he’ll imagine them having a snowball fight as he runs.” Shindo likes the image before he tells him that he’ll see him later. Musa replies with the same, and after they hang up, holds the phone to his forehead.
-🥹 These two!!! Shindo was worried about the not-so-meek-anymore Musa and wanted to give him words of encouragement. So he talked to him about something beautiful to look forward to after he finishes his task. Musa’s reaction shows that he understood the intent and was grateful for it. Friendship goals, right there. I love them.
Back at the subway station, Yuki approaches Shindo and tells him, “You can’t afford to be worrying about the others,” as he hands him what looks like a citrus flavored energy drink.
Seeing the cool lawyer-to-be in the role of a worried care-taker is such a treat. I love him. This whole scene, from Kakeru and Musa showing up on the TV, to their interaction with Iwanki, to Musa and Shindo’s phone call, topped with the icing that is Yuki’s concern was written beautifully.
At the 20km point of section one (wait, how long is this section?) Prince is struggling. It’s at this point that coach Tazaki relays Haiji’s message. “There’s something I never got to tell you! Come to Tsurumi even if you have to crawl!”
As the coach speaks, we see that Haiji has now reached the section end point and joined Musa and Kakeru who are waiting for Prince to arrive.
It’s at this moment that we get the continuation of Prince’s earlier memory, of the conversation he had with Haiji and what his response was when Haiji apologized for dragging him into this: “That’s not what I want to hear.”
Prince then goes on to name many iconic sports manga characters, before giving up. “It’s no use. There’s no end to them.” He then tells Haiji, “I like protagonists, but I also like the people who lead them. They’re all tough, but of course they are.”
-This was the ultimate geek moment. I’m sure anime fans were excited to hear names of their favorite characters being called out. It was also an omage to all those talented mangaka.
Prince continues saying that athletes don’t want to be shown kindness.
-So basically, Prince is forgiving Haiji for the Ogre he had to be.
At his words, Haiji’s face breaks into a smile.
– Haiji here realized that Prince was telling him, rather than an apology, he wants him to do everything he can to make sure Prince finishes his section.
Present Prince smiles, not just at the memory, but at the tactic now Hajji employed (through the coach) to encourage him to continue, to not give up.
We see that the other teams’ runners have already arrived, notably Sasaki’s team which is 40 seconds behind first place.
Musa removes his overcoat, Kakeru receives it while Haiji’s eyes are fixed on the finish line, waiting for Prince. Someone calls out for Kanse University to take their place at the relay line. Musa stands ready as Prince makes his final spurt.
He admits that he hates this. He really hates running. “I got dragged into this, and suffered for it. But if I hadn’t run with them, if I hadn’t made it here, I would have hated myself more.”
-This. This ;_; Now we know why Prince came aboard. You just know, all his life, Prince admired those manga heroes. So much that when given a chance to be one, he couldn’t, wouldn’t give it up. And this is why my dear readers, from the very beginning, Prince never said he wouldn’t run. Because deep down inside he wanted to.
As he nears the line, Haiji and the others call out to him.
-I had to listen to this several times to be able to recognize Haiji’s voice since we almost never heard him yell. But he spotted Prince first.
Musa and Kakeru call out as well. And those cries pull him through.
“There’s someone waiting for me there,” Prince thinks as he takes off the sash and prepares to hand it over, “just thinking about that makes me so, so…”
-He never finishes the thought but I’m sure we can guess. Happy? Fulfilled? Elated? Satisfied? Regardless of what it is exactly I know it’s a feeling a bookworm like Prince never felt before. And I’m so happy for him. I love him.
Musa takes the sash from Prince and takes off, but not before giving Prince a pat of the shoulder.
-Musa! Stop being you! You’re too lovable as it is.
Prince collapses but before he hits the ground Haiji catches him and Kakeru envelops him in a…towel? Blanket? Anyway, a large cloth to protect him from the cold which seems to have their University insignia on it. We see his legs shake as Haiji tells him “I take back what I said.”
– He means the apology.
-Prince, gasping for air shakily lifts up his head to look at Haiji.
Prince smiles even as he tries to gulp in as much air as possible, and says “I pass.” Meanwhile an organizer orders non-participants (i.e. Haiji and Kakeru) off the course.
– What a ride. What a beginning. Prince’s run, ending in that lovely track we associate with him now, was just incredible. The fact that Haiji and Kakeru were there to receive him, knowing that he’d be half dead, just makes it sweeter. It’s also gratifying that the image Haiji painted for Prince, of him receiving a hero’s welcome came true. This was my Best Moment of the episode.
All the other teammates, watching his arrival through their phones, celebrate at their respective locations. We see King and Jouta (in what looks like a tent?) Nico and Jouji are still en route in the car, while Shindo and Yuki are now riding the subway.
As to Musa, he comments that the pace quickened as soon as his section started. He muses that he has to keep up, to deliver the sash he received from Prince to Totsuka. Suddenly, as he runs, his surroundings change and he sees pink flamingos flying in the air in a wilderness.
-This came a bit out of nowhere, but I think that in order to distract himself from his nerves Musa started reminiscing about his favorite scenery back home.
We next see Coach Tazaki in his car, on the phone with Haiji telling him in a defensive tone: “I told him! I know I did! I told him to restrain himself at the five-kilometer mark! Maybe Musa didn’t hear me.”
At Yokohama Station, a worried Haiji responds, “Tell him again at ten kilometers. He’s going too fast.”
-We always knew who the real coach on this team was.
Kakeru who is with Haiji exposits that Musa is running around 2.48 minutes per kilometer. “He won’t last until the end.”
No wonder Haiji is so worried. I’m not sure but I think the second section is so renowned because it’s the longest. Musa can’t use up all his energy from the very beginning.
Haiji laments that Musa got carried away.
Musa has now reached Gontazaka. He’s worried that he can’t reach the runners in from of him. falling behind the other runners and is panicking that he can’t catch up.
Someone’s voice snaps him out of his panic attack. A young man holding two water bottles tells him he’s 18th now.
-The water gives it away that this is a member of Kansei’s short distance track team; Shindo previously said they’d help them out during the race.
The volunteer hands Musa a bottle telling him that there’s a cluster of seven runners up ahead.
Musa takes a drink then pours the rest of the water on his head. As he does so he recalls something Haiji had told him: “People built it up calling it the Glorious section 2, section of the aces, but don’t listen to them. Plenty of schools think other sections decide the race.”
We ae taken back to where this conversation took place: in the landlord’s bath, in the dark.
-We know Musa likes to do this to confront his fears. As always, Haiji has no problem joining his teammates with whatever it is they are doing; this time to give Musa a little pep talk.
-It’s just like Haiji to play down section 2, considering how nervous the exchange student was when he first learned he’d be running it.
Haiji goes on to tell Musa, “let’s think of section two’s 23 kilometers as one part of a longer race the ten of us build together. Bravely, calmly, without fail. Only you can do it.”
-He’s reminding Musa that he’s part of a group, that he won’t be alone. He primes him with words of what Musa can be (brave calm) as opposed to what he currently is (nervous), before pepping him up by iterating his absolute confidence in him. This power of suggestion can be very effective.
At the memory, Musa regains his composure. He considers what the volunteer told him. “18th. In other words, even I could pass two runners.”
-Oh, Musa. Why are you selling yourself so short? You’re amongst the fastest runners on your team. The volunteer is telling you that there are 7 runners ahead of you because he thinks you can overtake them. Well, his humbleness is part of what makes him so endearing.
Musa recites Haiji’s words to himself with a smile as he eyes the two in front of him, “Bravely, calmly, and without fail.”
Meanwhile news from Broadcast Car 2 tells us that Iwanki’s pace hasn’t changed. It exposits that maybe he exhausted himself competing against another runner from Manaka who caught up to Rikudo to reach first place.
We see that a runner in red (Manaka) is in first place with Rikudo’s runner (in purple). There’s another exchange student wearing yellow in third place, and in fourth is Sasaki’s team in blue. The news car says that Iwanki isn’t able to catch up to them and he’s now in fifth.
-We know this from the qualifier but looks like Sasaki’s team isn’t just all talk. They’re actually good if they’re in fourth place so far. But it is a surprise that Iwanki isn’t doing better, considering his reputation.
The reporter thankfully explains that the high pace at the beginning of the section has thrown off even the strongest athletes.
-I guess the takeaway here is that we shouldn’t feel too badly that Musa got caught in the fast pace as well.
Sitting in a tent, King and Jouta are looking at King’s phone. He angrily asks why Musa isn’t showing on the screen. Jouta explains it’s because the race for first in the section is crazy. Out of the blue, Jouta asks King how his job hunting is going, thinking the question would “relieve the tension”. The fourth year isn’t amused at having his most hateful subject broached, but when he sees Jouta’s legs quiver as his turn gets close, he takes pity on the freshman and answers. He admits that he hasn’t been looking because he doesn’t have the time. The admission serves its purpose, distracting Jouta from his fear, as King dramatically laments what his parents will say when they find out. Jouta then tells him he should just run with them again next year.
-I like King here. He’s been growing as a character and therefore growing on me as well.
The scene switches back to Musa who’s reached 19km. He’s pleasantly surprised to see himself catch up to the cluster of runners, despite having slowed down his place. Looks like the earlier spurt had affected the other runners and they’re losing steam. Musa happily takes his chance and speeds up a bit, pondering the uniqueness of the experience. “Speed alone isn’t enough to win. You have opponents and teammates,” and when the crowd cheers him on he adds “someone’s voice gives you strength. That’s how I run.”
At their section’s finish line Iwanki arrives. We learn that while he didn’t win his section, he did well. The senior bows to the road, then hugs his supporting team members who by now are all holding back tears, sad that as a senior this is his last race.
Haiji’s voice overlaps the scene: “Marvelous. You were extremely fortunate to have bee able to run with him.” Scene switches and we see him and Kakeru sitting together en route to their next destination, looking at the Hakone coverage through Kakeru’s phone. The younger runner replies, “Yes. His running is the embodiment of strength.”
-I love how respectful this show is of all the characters. It doesn’t shy away from issues like noxious nationalism which, in all honesty, does exist in Japan as it does everywhere else. But it also rightfully conveys the kindness and humbleness of the culture. It’s just so very heartwarming and one of the many things that makes Kazetsuyoku so very special.
Musa reaches his finish line to a smiling happy Jouta who receives the sash and tells him, “Thanks, Ace.” King runs up to Musa, covers him with the same large cloth and excitedly tells he’s 14th., he passed seven guys.
-This is huge!
Musa is so affected he glomps King in happiness, crying his eyes out.
-This was so sweet and wholesome. Even awkward King can’t help but smile at Musa’s heartfelt emotions.
Musa’s accomplishment seems to have dispelled Jouta’s nerves as he takes off with a spring in his step. He exposits that it makes him want to achieve as well. He also remarks that King is taking the race seriously too. “We even locked eyes.”
-This is continuity to just how introverted King is, even Jouta noticed.
The next line annoys me to no end as it doesn’t make sense and I am 100% sure it’s a mistake in either the writing, or the translation, or both.
Jouta says King “practically told me he’d be running next year, too.”
-No. What King did was ask Jouta if he was serious about running next year too. King had specifically said he’d be job hunting when Jouta asked him to run together. Moving along.
Jouta says that this is probably the end for him.
And this is when we get the mid episode break, though it came much later than usual due to this episode’s unique pace.
Act Two:
We see a baby in a red outfit. We know it’s Jouji because Jouta is narrating that his younger brother is a part of his soul. They did everything together, and people could never tell them apart. People seemed troubled whenever the twins spoke to them, not knowing which was which, so naturally the twins would do things to confuse them even more.
But he points out what should be obvious, that they are two different people. Taro, and Jiro. And that they have plenty of differences, from food they like, location of their moles, and girls they’ve dated. Most importantly, their personalities and their talents. Jouta says that though there’s no difference now, he knows that Jouji is the better runner and will go farther than he. He muses that it’s because of how much Jouji loves to run, that he trains by himself before dawn. He adds to himself that his brother always asks him about how he can improve his running, to be like Kakeru.
Jouta is happy his brother found his own rival, someone to compete against, but doesn’t think he himself will continue running.
-This scene was more thoughtful than I would have expected from either of the twins. I don’t mean to be mean but they just seem a bit more carefree so this was a surprise.
– I personally couldn’t tell much of a difference between the twins’ personalities aside from the fact that Jouta, as the older one, seemed to be a bit more self-assured at times. I do recall Jouji insisting that he’s a smidge faster. That could have been a clue that Jouji is more invested in his times and in improving his performance than Jouta.
As he’s running Jouta continues to address his brother in his mind. “It’s time for us to follow different paths. Follow it far, far away, and no matter how many years it takes, win. Beat Kakeru. Become a stronger runner than him.” He tells himself that it’s time to release that precious part of his soul.
-It’s all very fitting of a caring older brother.
An aerial scene takes us out of Jouta’s thoughts and a reporter tells us how he’s performing. He’s re-passed Tokyo Academy and “even passed Shinsei”. We’re then told that he has two more runners in sight.
-Nice.
As he runs Jouta thinks that he’ll overtake two more runners, but when he sees that there’s a third leading the pack in front of him (who happens to be from Sakaki’s school), he decides that he’ll take on three more.
– Not surprising to see him holding a bit of a grudge. Jouta had previously said they have to at least beat Sakaki. Could be said that he and his brother were most affected by the red-head’s venom and that gives him more of an incentive to win against him and his team.
Jouta’s enjoying the rush of the competition when he hears Hana call out to him from the crowds.
He spots her ahead of him where she’s waving and cheering for him.
Jouta is confused. He thought she was watching the starting line at Otemachi. Even after he passes her, he continues looking behind him for a bit as he runs.
This confuses Tazaki who is following him in the car, and annoys Kakeru who is watching him on his phone, wonders, annoyed, “What’s he looking at?”
Jouta then faces forward, red faced and wonders: “Does she like me? Before he screams inwardly in happiness “What? Seriously”
-ROFL oh, this was hilarious. This is more like the Jouta that we know and love. What an idiot. And what a time for this realization. But it gets even better…or worse?
Jouji is waiting for his brother at his finish line. He calls out to him and marvels at how well he’s doing at the actual event, even better than in practice. He has passed all three runners including the one from Sakaki’s school.
It’s big enough that even the news is reporting on it “Kansei’s menacing final spurt”. The reporter says adding that “with the explosive sprint of a short distance runner, he climbed two ranks.”
-Well, yes, he’s high on love at the moment.
Jouta calls out to Jouji in excitement. His brother responds in kind, getting ready to receive the sash. But he is unaware of what Jouta is excited about. As Jouta gets closer he yells out to Jouji “Hana-chan! I think..” then right as he puts the sash in his brothers hands tells him “she likes me” with bewildered eyes.
Shocked, Jouji yells out “seriously!” as he takes off, the sash in his hands.
Conclusion
What a great episode! What a powerful beginning to the race that’s been built up to from the beginning. I loved it from start to finish but just a few more things:
-I’m glad that the episode finished at this point as we are given the time we need to just laugh at these adorably stupid twins. It’s just so hilariously typical of them to be able to have a conversation in the middle of the race. It was definitely one of the funniest moments of the show.
– Pretty sure I mentioned this before but I love how each character’s individual running style is completely different. The animators deserve so much credit. It was very clear in this episode from Musa’s upright style to Prince’s spindly flailing arms, to the twins’ tall physiques and their unique arm movement.
– That line where Prince says how he loves the coaches who help the protagonists felt very layered to me. From a character’s perspective, not only was he guiding Haiji on what he needed to say to encourage him, I think he was also expressing gratitude to him. But from a writer’s perspective, it felt a bit like a fourth wall break. We know that Kakeru’s the protagonist of this show, but I think the writers were making a statement on how important Haiji is (not that we needed a reminder). And I think it was also meant to highlight the importance of those who serve in supporting roles, not just those who take center stage, in the real world. We saw this in the qualifier. Another show that does this fantastically is Diamond no Ace, which I hope to write about in the future.
-Showing us the race through multiple points of view kept everything super interesting and realistic. Whether it was through the team’s phones, the reporter’s cameras on the ground, in the air, or the hearing the opinions of the anchors, it was just a very unique touch.
-I was too exhausted from the last episode’s review and forgot to mention this. If you’re the type to skip through the end credits make sure you go back and out the video of ending theme song. The animation changed from just using stills of previous episodes to gorgeous scenes of all the team members standing atop a mountain cliff. The way their hair and clothes flutter to Mukai Taichi’s voice is really something to see. No expenses were spared animating that.
– Jouta’s realization did wonders for his performance. Next episode we’ll see how well Jouji does. I’ll be back soon!
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