Love is in the air~

This was such an emotionally-wrought episode (though not that heavy), and the best episode thus far. Apart from the formal development of the Asuka x Kazuki x Eriko love triangle, as Asuka comes into terms with her feelings, other characters in the show grow some balls, particularly Kazuki and Yuumi. The previous episodes were enough to hint Mao’s true feelings, fleshed out even more as she goes through the ordeal of coping with these emotions.

The highlight of this episode would have to be Asuka’s romance awakening, similar to Eriko in the previous episode. In contrast to the “development” of Eriko’s feelings towards Kazuki however, Asuka’s was more fleshed out, IMO, as we really see how the love came about. Kazuki and Asuka developed a solid friendship, after a few hurdles (though it was mostly Kazuki being an ass), and who would’ve thought that Kazuki will become such a dependable man who would always there for her :3

Kazuki and the self-parodied Asuka and Eriko.

In the swimming competition incident, Kazuki was also the one who brought her to the infirmary. He also looks after the injured Asuka in this episode, as he partially blamed himself for what happened to her. This time, Kazuki won in the argument they had, as he lectured Asuka on the importance of her feet for the soccer she loves (and I am reminded of Len Tsukimori of La Corda d’Oro, reminding Hino to take utmost care of her hand). Despite Kazuki’s ecchiness at times, he certainly is not the jerk and cowardly guy as I saw him in the first few episodes.

Lonely Eriko

Eriko is clearly thawing (as if it wasn’t evident in the previous episode x__x). Honestly, I don’t think the kiss from the last episode was necessary. I know Eriko is at a lost with her own feelings, but that scene just came out too abrupt, in my opinion. What matters most is that we see the character development process, which is exactly what was given us in episode 12, with her feelings being fleshed out bit by bit. In this episode especially, she has come to realize that there are things in this world which are unfathomable, whose mystery is something which surprisingly gives her a feeling of delight. The mystery of love~ As the ending scene unfolded with a sad-looking Eriko, I think she will next come into terms with the feeling of loneliness, from being apart from Kazuki.

Up until now, I remain to be an Asuka x Kazuki shipper, despite how the signs are pointing to Kazuki x Eriko, whose love is sort-of mutual. The turning point of this love triangle would be the day Kazuki sees Asuka as a woman and not just a practice-mate who’s one of the guys, or at least learns about the feelings she has for him (through a confession from Asuka, most likely). That will put Asuka and Eriko on some sort of equal standing, and Kazuki will be weighing who it is that he really loves. And boy is that gonna be one tough decision.

I have also mentioned before that Eriko will learn a lot even if she doesn’t get to have a romance ending with Kazuki, which is certainly the case with the current episodes. With my forever bias for Asuka, I’m still crossing my fingers that she will end up with Kazuki. Friends turned couple FTW.

(I think I babbled too much… moving on =| )

Role reversal for Kouichi x Yuumi.

As for Yuumi, it’s but natural for her to become more aggressive, as dilly-dallying is not an option in the current state she’s in. Yes, she’s moving to another place in two months time, hence she wants to make the most out of the little time she have left with Kouichi. She wants to leave Kibina filled with fond memories of the springtime of her youth, a blissful part of her life which will soon be left as simply a fragment of her past. I just hope she won’t go through certain lengths in making these memories, like making love before she moves out or something… I hope not. =[

Given that they showed Yuumi leaving Kouichi’s side halfway through the series, there’s a great chance that Kouichi will be paired up with someone else, unless the producers plan on showing us how a long-distance relationship can work out o__O

In any case, given the inevitable circumstance Yuumi is in, I’m actually open to the possibility of her bidding farewell to Kouichi and the love they had, and leave him in the good hands of Mao. Kouichi x Yuumi would not have been possible if not for Mao anyways. I just hope Yuumi won’t run into an accident or this will be another KimiNozo x__x

The Melancholy of Mao Mizusawa

The very happiness of Kouichi and Yuumi now is the very thing which so torments Mao, who got to realize her feelings after she lost Kouichi. What she used to think was nothing else but a platonic love for a brother, is evidently something else, manifesting in the very actions we’ve been seeing from her. Even Kai took notice of this, in their conversation in the classroom, and how Mao will cope with these feelings will greatly depend on the turn of events with Yuumi leaving, and Kai’s actions in the future.

The horoscopes shows in this episode for both Kouichi and Kazuki are quite significant. For Kouichi, it was said that his love is gonna be gloomy, a foreshadowing of some sort to the storm coming in his relationship with Yuumi. In Kazuki’s case, it was said that his lucky point is a “shelter”, which points to either the “laboratory” for Eriko’s experiments, or the hospital, like the case with Asuka :3

Another love triangle :p

Now for the last [future] couple in the show, we have Mitsuki x Hiiragi! The future for this pairing is still uncertain, with the twists that might come about given the current circumstance they have with another “partner”, Hiiragi with his supposedly girlfriend, and Mitsuki with her fiancé. Anything is possible at this point, and Hiiragi might even turn out to be Mitsuki’s fiancé, given how his family background (and much about everything about him) is still much of a mystery. I’d say an accidental kiss like in the game/manga will spark up the romance between these two, and I’m looking forward to the future developments between these two (having Mitsuki’s dog like Hiiragi is a good start? :3)