There can really be no question about it as far as I’m concerned – Yowamushi Pedal may go through many incarnations and permutations, but in the end it has to be about Onoda Sakamichi.  When he’s at the center of the action (including when the action isn’t on the road) the series feels so much more like itself.  Ideally when it is on the road, you’d like to see it come down to Onoda and Manami-kun, but even when he’s involved in other ways in the race and outside it the narrative tires just grip better.

I actually found myself thinking last week, during Onoda’s overdue return to the narrative, that the one thing sadly missing from this season was any mention of Onoda’s mother.  So I give a lot of credit to Watanabe-sensei for knowing just when to bring back “Typhoon Mom”, and boy, she didn’t disappoint.  She earns the nickname Naruko gave her – a clueless but savvy force of nature who blows through and leaves chaos in her wake.  Those “Best Boy” hats, my goodness…  I think Manami actually is going to wear that during the race, unless Izumida has a fit over it.

While Naruko seems to have sucked it up and steeled himself to fight another day, Midousuji-kun has disappeared for the second year in a row.  He’s off on the roads in the dark again, berating himself as “trash” and- well, I’m not sure just what the twisted freak is doing here.  Chimera-kun’s behavior is obviously less than exemplary by default, but this pouting when he doesn’t win is definitely not his best side.  Mizuta may have notions to the contrary but Kyoto Fushimi obviously has no chance without Midousuji.  Fortunately for them he doesn’t seem hell-bent on quitting this time around – just blowing off steam and coming back more psycho than ever.

As for HakoGaku, they have an air about them that befits the side that won all the tags on the first day.  But they do have one obvious question hanging over them, and that’s the status of their main lieutenant, Kuroda.  He says he’s going to race, and it doesn’t seem as if Izumida is going to contradict him – but after pushing himself beyond the limit and then violently crashing, it’s hard to imagine he’s not going to hit the wall at some point.  If any team is deep enough to survive that, though, it would certainly be Hakone.

The one member of HakoGaku who hasn’t gotten much love this season is the younger Shinkai sibling, Yuto.  “Peak Hornet” Yuto-kun finally announces himself on the morning of the second day – helping Onoda collect the otaku swag which has fallen out of his backpack.  Yuto has the same reaction most do when they see Onoda – there’s no way this unassuming little fellow can be the “Mountain King“.  But it’s Onoda that Yuto has come to the Inter-high to challenge, and challenge him he does – a challenge which Onoda carefully avoids accepting.  He’s still a team-first guy, and personal battles will always take second place to that – but sooner or later Onoda has to be the man to carry the banner for Sohoku or this Inter-high will lack a bit of the drama packed by the first.

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