Sekaiichi Hatsukoi 2: Episode 4 Summary and Review
Episode four! I always seem to catch these episodes right after a hard day at work :D
Summary and review time!
Warning: The usual wall of text.
Sekaiichi Hatsukoi 2: Episode 4
A delay in love is dangerous.
(and how dangerous it is!)
A Not-So-Brief Summary
This episode picks up immediately after the events in the previous one. It opens later at night, with Hatori finishing his shower at Chiaki's place, intending to go home. Chiaki asks why he can't stay over, to which Hatori replies that if he stays over, he won't want to leave in the morning. Chiaki is clueless as to the meaning behind his statement, but it is soon made very clear, as Hatori reaches out and kisses him.
However, no matter how much Hatori might have wanted to stay in the morning, he has left behind a note for Chiaki, reminding him to finish his storyboard the day after tomorrow, as well as some food for him on the coffee table. Chiaki is at first annoyed that he has to work, but finds that he can't completely hate Hatori, because he takes care of him so well and so often even though he's busy.
Chiaki finds himself bored and calling Yuu to hang out, but sadly, Yuu is not free. Yuu once again pressures Chiaki on that trip to Yufuin, to which Chiaki again finds himself unable to refuse him properly. However, Hatori calls immediately afterward, and suggests going to see the movie Panda Warrior the next day, since he will finish work early. Chiaki excitedly agrees and promises not to be late, having wanted to see that movie for a while.
The plans go awry, however, when Hatori calls the next day to tell him he won't be able to make it, due to an emergency at the printers. He apologizes and Chiaki feels upset, but resolves to amuse himself by going out. While he is out, however, he sees Hatori with an ex-girlfriend from high school. He is annoyed by the display of intimacy between them (as the girl was stroking his hair), and goes off on his own once again. Soon after though, he receives a phone call from Hatori, apologizing again for cancelling, and offering to cook dinner for him, since he finishes work earlier than he thought. Chiaki, still irrational from jealousy, tells him not to bother and disconnects the call. Still fuming, Chiaki decides to stay over at Yuu's.
Yuu and Chiaki discuss high school days for a while, fully remembering the relationship between Hatori and his ex-girlfriend. However, Yuu receives a phone call, obviously from Hatori, looking for Chiaki. Yuu declares then and there that has was going to make Chiaki his, and won't let Hatori have him. Things get decidedly awkward, at least for Chiaki, who still refuses to understand the extent of Yuu's feelings for him. Yuu pins him down and kisses him, believing he is better than Hatori and trying to convince Chiaki of this. He confesses that he has loved Chiaki since the first year of middle school, and has hated Hatori ever since because he was always around Chiaki. However, when Yuu slides his hand up his shirt, trying to get Chiaki to sleep with him, Chiaki ends up punching him.
This causes Yuu to break, asking him why only Hatori is the only one good enough for him. Chiaki can only reply with an "I don't know", unable to explain why Hatori seems to be the only one he can be intimate with. Yuu tells him that he should know very well, as Chiaki and Hatori have been "joined at the hip for ages" (read: practically married).
Hatori breaks in on them, snatching up Yuu and attempting to beat him up, but Chiaki prevents him from doing so (having already punched him once) and Yuu tells him to take Hatori away, as he wanted to be alone.
Back at Chiaki's apartment, Hatori ends up berating Chiaki for his actions, since he knew fully well of Yuu's feelings and still went to his house alone despite knowing the risks. Chiaki retorts by accusing him of meeting with his ex-girlfriend under the guise of work. Hatori realizes the situation and understands why Chiaki suddenly ran off to Yuu's house, and can't say anything. As it is, he's surprised Chiaki was able to be honest about it, and is glad for it. Chiaki then finally confeses, though awkwardly, that Hatori remains the only person he wants to kiss, "..and stuff like that". He asks Hatori if that means he loves him more that he'd first realized. Hatori smiles, saying, "Why are you asking me?" then tells him he's happy to hear that Chiaki loves him.
"I love you too, Chiaki."
"I know."
Rants and Raves
In terms of animation quality, I'd probably say this was fair enough. I still see some awkward angles and proportions, and things that could have been animated more smoothly, but overall, it didn't detract much from my enjoyment of the episode. Some perspectives I really found to be intentionally heart-thumping moments, like when Hatori leans in close to Chiaki in the first scene; it looks as though he is leaning more into you. I guess it's what i could call a Chiaki's-eye-view moment? Same goes for the end, where the camera seems to zoom in on Chiaki's embarrassed face, which I assume is a Hatori's-eye-view. XD
I mentioned in my previous review that once Yuu's motives and reasons were revealed, I would probably have better sympathy for the guy, but I'm surprised I have only a little bit more sympathy than I originally had. I'm mildly disappointed at Yuu's background story, though I fear that this might have been pretty watered down just as much as the original situation between Hatori and Chiaki was. In my personal opinion, it felt shallow and predatory, compared to Yokozawa's story. I understand though how one could develop feelings for another after having spent time with them over so many things you get along and have fun over, but for Chiaki, that's all it was: fun. For Yuu, they meant something more, and I do think it must have hurt for him and Chiaki didn't feel the same way, especially with so clear a rival as Hatori.
I find it amusing how helpless Chiaki can be without Hatori. The scene where Chiaki wakes up expecting to go out with Hatori was actually rather sweet, since he woke up early by accident, and even though he tried to go back to sleep, he couldn't get himself to sleep. In order to quell his restlessness, he goes to see what he can cook up in the kitchen, only to find that he can't find most of the things, and when he cuts himself with a knife, he can't even figure out where his bandages would be. So much of his life has been spent around Hatori that he can no longer imagine a life without him around, which makes me wonder: is this good, or bad for Chiaki in the long run? True though, Chiaki wouldn't necessarily die without Hatori, but I'm pretty sure he'd probably end up in some kind of trouble soon enough.
I think this episode emphasizes greatly how special Hatori is to Chiaki in terms of many things, but most of all regarding intimacy. Picking up some information from the original novel and meshing it with what happened in the anime so far, Yuu and Hatori have used similar tactics, and share a similar history with Chiaki. In the novel, Hatori did rape Chiaki, and now Yuu has kind of attempted rape on Chiaki. However, when it came down to the wire, when it came to intimacy, Hatori seems to be the only person that Chiaki is comfortable doing those things with (At least, anime-wise. Things continue despite the rape in the novel, I guess). Chiaki says he doesn't know why, but Yuu has an idea, considering his statement of them being "joined at the hip" for ages.
Overall, I really liked the outcome of this episode. I do feel intensely sorry for Yuu, but not as bad as I felt for Yokozawa. Perhaps it's in the way he told his story, or the way the voice acting carried it, or maybe it was Yuu's character itself--I didn't feel as much sympathy or sadness as I expected to feel, and part of me (guiltily) thinks "finally, that mess is over". I do feel bad, because Yuu in general is a decent character and I would have liked to find more reasons to like him, rather than continue to dislike him. Perhaps his straightforwardness and blatant honesty can be mistaken for pushiness and inconsideration; I've always found it difficult to reconcile certain characteristics in my head.
Oh, and something I noticed! When Yuu brings us to a flashback of Chiaki showing his English textbook in middle school, we are able to read a page of the book, and it says (roughly):
"[...]go to BOOKS MARIMO, too. Becauase bery beautiful man is working at BOOKS MARIMO. So [...] want to meet him and buy many books."
(You can click the picture for a bigger image.)
Does this sound familiar to any of you? XD
Also: "Panda Warrior"?! Seriously? I laughed so hard. I bet it was a parody of Kung Fu Panda.
"A delay in love is dangerous." Yes, this episode is aptly titled, and I think it speaks mostly about Yuu's actions, especially his delay in confessing. It can also refer to Chiaki's delay (or refusal) in recognizing the intensity of Yuu's feelings. Either way, this episode exemplifies the dangers of delays in the ways of love.
I can't wait for the next episode! We are back to our regular programming with Onodera and Takano! This is may be the episode where An-chan appears I think, because we see the scene where Onodera holds on to Takano's arms as he tries to leave. This will also be Onodera's first attempt at participating in a meeting, and the part I personally dread most: the part where Onodera is taught how to convince certain authors to make changes to their storyboard. Remember, the "It's boring" tactic? This makes me wince considerably, actually.
See you all again next week with another review!
Summary and review time!
Warning: The usual wall of text.
Sekaiichi Hatsukoi 2: Episode 4
A delay in love is dangerous.
(and how dangerous it is!)
A Not-So-Brief Summary
This episode picks up immediately after the events in the previous one. It opens later at night, with Hatori finishing his shower at Chiaki's place, intending to go home. Chiaki asks why he can't stay over, to which Hatori replies that if he stays over, he won't want to leave in the morning. Chiaki is clueless as to the meaning behind his statement, but it is soon made very clear, as Hatori reaches out and kisses him.
However, no matter how much Hatori might have wanted to stay in the morning, he has left behind a note for Chiaki, reminding him to finish his storyboard the day after tomorrow, as well as some food for him on the coffee table. Chiaki is at first annoyed that he has to work, but finds that he can't completely hate Hatori, because he takes care of him so well and so often even though he's busy.
Chiaki finds himself bored and calling Yuu to hang out, but sadly, Yuu is not free. Yuu once again pressures Chiaki on that trip to Yufuin, to which Chiaki again finds himself unable to refuse him properly. However, Hatori calls immediately afterward, and suggests going to see the movie Panda Warrior the next day, since he will finish work early. Chiaki excitedly agrees and promises not to be late, having wanted to see that movie for a while.
The plans go awry, however, when Hatori calls the next day to tell him he won't be able to make it, due to an emergency at the printers. He apologizes and Chiaki feels upset, but resolves to amuse himself by going out. While he is out, however, he sees Hatori with an ex-girlfriend from high school. He is annoyed by the display of intimacy between them (as the girl was stroking his hair), and goes off on his own once again. Soon after though, he receives a phone call from Hatori, apologizing again for cancelling, and offering to cook dinner for him, since he finishes work earlier than he thought. Chiaki, still irrational from jealousy, tells him not to bother and disconnects the call. Still fuming, Chiaki decides to stay over at Yuu's.
Yuu and Chiaki discuss high school days for a while, fully remembering the relationship between Hatori and his ex-girlfriend. However, Yuu receives a phone call, obviously from Hatori, looking for Chiaki. Yuu declares then and there that has was going to make Chiaki his, and won't let Hatori have him. Things get decidedly awkward, at least for Chiaki, who still refuses to understand the extent of Yuu's feelings for him. Yuu pins him down and kisses him, believing he is better than Hatori and trying to convince Chiaki of this. He confesses that he has loved Chiaki since the first year of middle school, and has hated Hatori ever since because he was always around Chiaki. However, when Yuu slides his hand up his shirt, trying to get Chiaki to sleep with him, Chiaki ends up punching him.
This causes Yuu to break, asking him why only Hatori is the only one good enough for him. Chiaki can only reply with an "I don't know", unable to explain why Hatori seems to be the only one he can be intimate with. Yuu tells him that he should know very well, as Chiaki and Hatori have been "joined at the hip for ages" (read: practically married).
Hatori breaks in on them, snatching up Yuu and attempting to beat him up, but Chiaki prevents him from doing so (having already punched him once) and Yuu tells him to take Hatori away, as he wanted to be alone.
Back at Chiaki's apartment, Hatori ends up berating Chiaki for his actions, since he knew fully well of Yuu's feelings and still went to his house alone despite knowing the risks. Chiaki retorts by accusing him of meeting with his ex-girlfriend under the guise of work. Hatori realizes the situation and understands why Chiaki suddenly ran off to Yuu's house, and can't say anything. As it is, he's surprised Chiaki was able to be honest about it, and is glad for it. Chiaki then finally confeses, though awkwardly, that Hatori remains the only person he wants to kiss, "..and stuff like that". He asks Hatori if that means he loves him more that he'd first realized. Hatori smiles, saying, "Why are you asking me?" then tells him he's happy to hear that Chiaki loves him.
"I love you too, Chiaki."
"I know."
Rants and Raves
In terms of animation quality, I'd probably say this was fair enough. I still see some awkward angles and proportions, and things that could have been animated more smoothly, but overall, it didn't detract much from my enjoyment of the episode. Some perspectives I really found to be intentionally heart-thumping moments, like when Hatori leans in close to Chiaki in the first scene; it looks as though he is leaning more into you. I guess it's what i could call a Chiaki's-eye-view moment? Same goes for the end, where the camera seems to zoom in on Chiaki's embarrassed face, which I assume is a Hatori's-eye-view. XD
I mentioned in my previous review that once Yuu's motives and reasons were revealed, I would probably have better sympathy for the guy, but I'm surprised I have only a little bit more sympathy than I originally had. I'm mildly disappointed at Yuu's background story, though I fear that this might have been pretty watered down just as much as the original situation between Hatori and Chiaki was. In my personal opinion, it felt shallow and predatory, compared to Yokozawa's story. I understand though how one could develop feelings for another after having spent time with them over so many things you get along and have fun over, but for Chiaki, that's all it was: fun. For Yuu, they meant something more, and I do think it must have hurt for him and Chiaki didn't feel the same way, especially with so clear a rival as Hatori.
I find it amusing how helpless Chiaki can be without Hatori. The scene where Chiaki wakes up expecting to go out with Hatori was actually rather sweet, since he woke up early by accident, and even though he tried to go back to sleep, he couldn't get himself to sleep. In order to quell his restlessness, he goes to see what he can cook up in the kitchen, only to find that he can't find most of the things, and when he cuts himself with a knife, he can't even figure out where his bandages would be. So much of his life has been spent around Hatori that he can no longer imagine a life without him around, which makes me wonder: is this good, or bad for Chiaki in the long run? True though, Chiaki wouldn't necessarily die without Hatori, but I'm pretty sure he'd probably end up in some kind of trouble soon enough.
I think this episode emphasizes greatly how special Hatori is to Chiaki in terms of many things, but most of all regarding intimacy. Picking up some information from the original novel and meshing it with what happened in the anime so far, Yuu and Hatori have used similar tactics, and share a similar history with Chiaki. In the novel, Hatori did rape Chiaki, and now Yuu has kind of attempted rape on Chiaki. However, when it came down to the wire, when it came to intimacy, Hatori seems to be the only person that Chiaki is comfortable doing those things with (At least, anime-wise. Things continue despite the rape in the novel, I guess). Chiaki says he doesn't know why, but Yuu has an idea, considering his statement of them being "joined at the hip" for ages.
Overall, I really liked the outcome of this episode. I do feel intensely sorry for Yuu, but not as bad as I felt for Yokozawa. Perhaps it's in the way he told his story, or the way the voice acting carried it, or maybe it was Yuu's character itself--I didn't feel as much sympathy or sadness as I expected to feel, and part of me (guiltily) thinks "finally, that mess is over". I do feel bad, because Yuu in general is a decent character and I would have liked to find more reasons to like him, rather than continue to dislike him. Perhaps his straightforwardness and blatant honesty can be mistaken for pushiness and inconsideration; I've always found it difficult to reconcile certain characteristics in my head.
Oh, and something I noticed! When Yuu brings us to a flashback of Chiaki showing his English textbook in middle school, we are able to read a page of the book, and it says (roughly):
"[...]go to BOOKS MARIMO, too. Becauase bery beautiful man is working at BOOKS MARIMO. So [...] want to meet him and buy many books."
(You can click the picture for a bigger image.)
Does this sound familiar to any of you? XD
Also: "Panda Warrior"?! Seriously? I laughed so hard. I bet it was a parody of Kung Fu Panda.
"A delay in love is dangerous." Yes, this episode is aptly titled, and I think it speaks mostly about Yuu's actions, especially his delay in confessing. It can also refer to Chiaki's delay (or refusal) in recognizing the intensity of Yuu's feelings. Either way, this episode exemplifies the dangers of delays in the ways of love.
I can't wait for the next episode! We are back to our regular programming with Onodera and Takano! This is may be the episode where An-chan appears I think, because we see the scene where Onodera holds on to Takano's arms as he tries to leave. This will also be Onodera's first attempt at participating in a meeting, and the part I personally dread most: the part where Onodera is taught how to convince certain authors to make changes to their storyboard. Remember, the "It's boring" tactic? This makes me wince considerably, actually.
See you all again next week with another review!