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Last episode, much of the same. Cute stuff between Shikimori and Izumi. Cool.

My Thoughts

We start with Izumi getting some free movie tickets, and Shikimori, for some reason, is getting jealous as if he would take anyone besides her. I think that would probably be a death sentence for a lot of couples at that stage of life, to be honest. Good job, Izumi. But since they’re still young, cute, and in love, they both worry about how the date will go a lot despite clearly going on them before.

Izumi is much more thoughtful, trying to prepare so nothing goes wrong. Once again, he’s literally the sweetest guy ever and is actually considerate. I don’t see how you couldn’t like him. Boring? I’ll accept that, but he’s still a good character. Shikimori is much more worried about how she looks and acts, reading a book about how to be cute without trying too hard. I hate to tell her, but reading that is a pretty solid start.

Some normal stuff happens, like Izumi being dumbfounded by Shikimori’s cuteness, etc., but the much bigger thing is that this world has an Arnold Schwarzenegger rip-off called Almond Schazganeyer. It’s one of the movies they’re deciding if they want to see together. I just thought that was important information.

Sadly, they don’t choose the Almond film, and Shikimori goes for some It parody. You know, clown guy. Izumi acts cute by wanting to be manly and comfort her and stuff, but you know how this romance goes. He’s not going to be the one doing the comforting. Yeah, Izumi couldn’t take it, but they still got to hold hands.

It’s cool to see how they actually fleshed the movie out more here and made it into some kind of parody because only like one panel of the manga is dedicated to it, and it’s nothing like what was shown. Really cool thing to see, and is something only an anime could do as well, really. We then, somewhat forcibly if you know the material, roll into the next segment, which is when Shikimori has dinner at the Izumi residence.

That they do. Dinner is, in fact, had, and some more cute moments ensue. Particularly we learn why Shikimori loves Izumi because a lot of people don’t get that for some reason. Basically, he’s kind but incredibly unlucky. He gets hurt all the time for no fault of his own but still smiles and thinks about other people first. He’s not upset he loses his wallet or the money in it; he’s sad Shikimori has to pay for him. He’s like that. Shikimori sees him as strong and admirable. It’s not that hard to get it.

It’s a pretty equal relationship, honestly. They both do quite a bit for each other and are always striving to be better and make the other happy. They’re very well-balanced. Also, Izumi’s mother falls in love with Shikimori, too, and there’s also a Wii Sports Boxing tournament. Good times. We end with our couple agreeing to see a buddy movie next time. Preferably so Izumi doesn’t actually puke next time. That would likely ruin their date for real.

Again, I get calling this anime or Izumi boring, but it’s not bad. I honestly just think the internet doesn’t know what a healthy couple looks like. Hell, if I were an anime girl, I’d date Izumi. He’s super sweet. I love the guy. But every romance lately that has had a really good male lead has been hated by a section of the community, so I don’t really know what to say. Opinions are opinions.

Good episode all around. I’m starting to believe that the rest of the series will probably continue to have great pacing. I’m really impressed by how they’re altering things, and the only reason I know that is because I read the manga, so I feel like people like me will get even more enjoyment out of it, while anime-onlies will still get a smooth experience. I’m impressed and looking forward to more.

Thank you very much for reading

Cute couples are cute.