We’re a week or so from the close of the season, and the returns are starting to come in.  BokuYaba and Tonikawa got their sequels, we were supposed to get news on Insomniacs today (though as of this writing I haven’t seen any), and Tengoku Daimakyou seems like a long shot.  So what of Jijou wo Shiranai Tenkousei ga Guigui Kuru?  I see no reason to be especially hopeful, because this one remains distressingly under the radar on both sides of the linguistic divide as far as I can tell.  I would absolutely love another season of this irresistible gem – it’s been the stealth bomber of this very strong season for sure.

The vibe between Takada and Nishimura at the Xmas party is indeed very strange.  Everyone (well, almost) picks up on it, but it’s Kasahara who seems especially vexed.  Oblivious to all this Dai-chan suggests they start the gift exchange, which Umi and Kasahara seize on as a way to shake up the mood.  But Kasahara’s gift – lip balm – hits a little too close to home when Taiyou chooses it.  Everyone’s gift choice fits them like a bespoke tank top – and Kasahara and Akane have a very tsundere moment when the former chooses a scarf that the latter picked out.

In truth, this whole kiss business has Taiyou seriously off his game.  He heads out to the balcony for a think, and Akane follows him.  The truth of Taiyou seems to fall somewhere between the oblivious naif he plays the role of and the canny chad one suspects he could be.  When he says he knows his “like” for Akane is different than his like for anyone else, but not why or how, I believe him.  Taiyou has no context for these feelings, but that doesn’t make them illegitimate.  And his approach is decidedly Taiyou-esque – he suggests that he and Akane kiss right then and there.

I think Akane is wrong when she writes this off as Takada-kun just being guigui – but that doesn’t necessarily means she was wrong to turn him down.  Her protestations that Taiyou should wait until he’s sure of his feelings fall on deaf ears, because he is sure.  But she can’t handle that because she’s sure too, so her defense mechanism is to dismiss it as just Taiyou being Taiyou.  Maybe she’s just not ready – these kids are really too young for that sort of thing – but I think it’s pretty clear than this is more than a meaningless grade school crush.

Was that chammer actually non-alcoholic??  If so Kasahara was drunk on tsun and envy.  I do know that amazake actually does have some alcohol in it, even if they let kids drink it, though not all that much.  Akane ends up going out for Hatsumode on New Year’s Eve with the Takada clan, and we get another demonstration of where Taiyou gets it from.  Mom has bought him a phone, which gives him the exciting opportunity to swap contact info with Akane – another couples ritual checked off early.  The two of them together is too much for Yukiko (ironically the only one of the kids who opts out of amazake).

Back in school again, a new year means new seats.  And there’s a rumor that if a girl and boy sit next to each other they’re fated to fall in love.  It seems that Taiyou and Akane have missed out but Umi switches seats with and saves the day.  Akane is left to wonder if Taiyou’s offhand references to “twice in a row” are merely guigui, or a tell that he knows the legend.  After the credits he brazenly holds her hand after class (to absorb her power, he says), and she marvels at his ability to turn any teasing into cause for celebration.  “I wish I could be like you” isn’t exactly a confession but it sort of feels like one.  And if Akane can’t be like Taiyou she has the next best thing, him using his ability as a shield on her behalf.