Boku Wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai - 09

When Sena ran out of the house screaming “Universe!!!” I immediately thought of those immortal words Inigo Montoya said to Vizzini – “I do not think it means means what you think it means.”

That was probably my favorite Haganai episode so far, but I’ll freely admit I’m biased – I adore Sena. Along with Miu from Mashiroiro they’re probably my two favorite females of the season though they could hardly be more different. So the long-awaited visit to Sena’s estate definitely had a head start in my esteem, but even objectively speaking I think it was excellent. The humor was spot-on right from the beginning, as Kodaka and Kobato walked in on Yozora in the zebra suit and horse head in the clubroom, and just kept getting better. Pegasus and Stella were an excellent addition to the cast as well, and I loved the scenes at the mansion

Kashiwazaki-san (Okiayu Ryotaro) was quite a bit different than I expected. Okiayu-sensei has a long, long track record in anime and he’s done the eccentric father bit to perfection before (Clannad, for one) and he nailed the part here. I was expecting Sena’s home to be a little more cold and distant, but while the house itself is certainly austere enough, both Pegasus and his household have an agreeably madcap quality to them. Adding to the mayhem is Pegasus’ steward Stella (Yuzuki Ryouka) who probably comes about as close to the dictionary definition of snark as you could imagine. It’s very obvious that Pegasus has a very close relationship with Kodaka’s father, judging from the level of familiarity in his tone when discussing him. We still don’t know all that much about Hasegawa-san but it’s clear that he’s an eccentric sort and that he made a pretty big impact on Pegasus.

More than anything, Pegasus came off as lonely to me. In a series about people with no friends, it was obvious how much he misses Hasegawa-san, who I’m guessing may have been his only friend (at the very least his best, by far). It was plain that he took a great deal of pleasure in having Kodaka in his house, even “drinking” with him though this being all-ages material, he gave Kodaka grape juice. The old man can’t hold his liquor, that’s for sure, as he was soused after the first glass and wound up passed out in the guest room bed. Meanwhile, Sena is in a paradise living out her obsession with Kobato (which should be creepy but I just find incredibly cute and funny). It’s more like a nightmare for Kobato, though, especially when she’s too sleepy to resist Sena’s invitation to take a bath together. Just what Sena did to Kobato is not clear (Kodaka asked her the next morning, with perfect comic timing) but it led to one of the best renditions of the “see the girl naked” trope in a long while, with Kobato running naked and screaming into the living room with Sena on her heels, only to have the world turn into a slow-motion hell when she sees Kodaka. Finally it’s Sena who ends up fleeing into the night, using the catchphrase from Rika’s doujin in a way I don’t think it was intended to be used.

While I don’t expect an official pairing in the anime version of this story, I’m starting to believe that in addition to being my wish, a Kodaka-Sena prospect is not all that far-fetched. Naturally Pegasus wants it – Stella humming Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March” after he asked Kodaka to “take care” of Sena could hardly have been more obvious. And while Kodaka is typically main-character tone deaf when it comes to romantic signals it’s obvious he cares for Sena, though his claim that he was drunk and didn’t remember seeing her naked could be argued to be more a sign of general kindness than romantic interest. Still, pretty much every romance flag has flown for that pairing, while with Yozora it seems much more of a friendship scenario. As Kodaka wished he’d someday have a friendship like the one his father and Pegasus shared the director cut to Yozora, alone in the park where she and Kodaka had played as kids. Unless they’re hinting at something deeper between the two fathers (which does get a few obtuse hints, I admit) it seems to point towards a friendship with Yozora. Given the theme of the series, it doesn’t seem impossible that the nominal female lead might get the friendzone, and Sena the romance end.

12 comments

Fencedude

December 2, 2011 at 7:47 am

I'd be 100% ok with a Yozora Friendship end and a Sena Romance end.

Sena really is a treasure, and I'm interested in meeting her mother. She definitely got her earnestness from her father though. Stella was a riot, she reminds me of someone, though I'm not sure who.

Also, the "Universe" gag ultimately is a reference to Turn-A Gundam. UNIVERSE!

Anonymous

December 2, 2011 at 1:00 pm

Come to think of it , this is the second anime this season (the other is Mashiro Iro) , where the Tsundere looks increasingly likely to be friendzoned. It could be the start of a refreshing trend…

Guthrie

December 2, 2011 at 3:39 pm

One thing I've noticed is that the romance aspect is far more pronounced in the anime while it was very subtle in the manga. It was hardly the main focus as it seems to be framed in the anime.

While I'm an easy fool for harems, I wonder if doing it like this has taken away from the unique charm of the series and made it altogether more generic. Honestly, I'm not sure which approach is better.

Seishun Otoko

December 2, 2011 at 3:41 pm

Being a sucker for childhood friends, I'm still rooting for Yozora, though the probability of that happening has certainly gone lower over the last few episodes. Kodaka hasn't been very nice to Rika huh? Maybe if you push her hard enough, she might just drug the guy and rape him ;P

The Kenosha Kid

December 2, 2011 at 3:50 pm

At the risk of being rather off-topic:
@Fencedude: That clip you linked actually makes me want to watch some Gundam. It looks ridiculous in the best possible way.

On-topic, I'll just say that the "accidentally saw you naked" scenes seem more often than not to be a bit of a romance flag, so hell yes.

admin

December 2, 2011 at 5:23 pm

@Anon, that would indeed be a wondrous trend.

Guthrie,I haven't read the novels but romance doesn't feel like the main focus here, by any means. Just incidental, and frankly only with Sena – there's no harem feel for me.

Seishun, I like childhood friends just fine – just not this one!

Kenosha – let's hope so…

Karmafan

December 2, 2011 at 8:26 pm

I'm sure we won't see a clear cut pairing but I DO want to see him end up with Sena. Yozora is not a very likeable person and there aren't enough episodes left for her to do a 180 and redeem herself.

The glasses girl and the nun were friend zoned immediately and have no chance at all. Gotta give the glasses girl credit for not giving up tho.

Znail

December 2, 2011 at 9:50 pm

I don't even know if Yozora would even mind that outcome. She definitely wants her childhood friend back, but it's less sure that she wants him as more then a friend really.

Sena on the other hand obviously have romantic feelings.

Fencedude

December 2, 2011 at 10:01 pm

Yozora is not a very likeable person and there aren't enough episodes left for her to do a 180 and redeem herself.

Err…its not like there will be a romantic resolution in the anime, its not going to cover all the novels.

belatkuro

December 3, 2011 at 3:09 pm

In the novels Kodaka had wine as well, not grape juice. But he's much tougher than Pegasus. And he definitely remembers, he's just being considerate I guess.

Also, Kodaka's name in Yozora's phone was Taka.
Just pointing out

Oh and UNIIVEERSE!!

admin

December 3, 2011 at 5:32 pm

It's really a funnier gag if the young punk can hold his wine better than the old man. But you can show that in LNs, and not in anime I guess.

He obviously remembers – it's just a question of why he pretended not to. Is it pure kindness, or is there an element of romantic interest too?

belatkuro

December 3, 2011 at 6:04 pm

Yeah but it kinda defeats the sense of Kodaka avoiding Sena's question due to being drunk as he didnt really drink.
As for why he avoided it, that's up to our interpretation I guess.

Boku Wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai – 09

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