On balance this was a much better episode of Mix than the premiere of “Sora no Mukou e”.  A better reminder of why this is such a good series, even if it isn’t Adachi at the absolute top of his game (how many 70 year-olds are, if we’re honest – in any creative field?).  Being free of having to bring the audience back up to speed after such a long break certainly helped, and if that was the reason the pacing was slower and more deliberate here, so be it.  That’s the sort of style that works best for an Adachi series this early in the game.

The first thing I have to praise here is Uchida Maaya’s performance, because her line delivery of that “Uwah!” at the start of the ep when Risa’s eraser almost hit her was priceless.  The meat of the episode concerns Nishiki-kun, however.  The ever-observant Touma notes that Nishiki has no bruises on his knuckles, only his face.  And – seconded by his brother – that he certainly felt like punching out that coach himself.  This is a team that needs an influx of talent, period, and that certainly has something to do with their advocacy.  But Touma is the sort of guy that would go to bat (pun intended) for someone who’d been wronged for its own sake.  And he has a personal connection here, too…

Imakawa takes the hint, and concocts a plan to extract Nishiki from the trap he’s currently in.  It involves Nikaidou, who indirectly was the reason why Nishiki punched the coach and got himself in with the wrong crowd to begin with – given that he punched him because he was pissed that Touma wasn’t allowed to pitch.  If Nikaidou blames himself (he should), so does Touma (he shouldn’t, really) for not being the one to punch the coach himself.  That seems to put that whole ugly scenario, which dominated the first season, to rest for good.

With Nishiki in the fold, Meisei at least has one more competent (if rusty) member.  Ooyama-san is testy after their quick exit from the fall tournament, which is further proof that Touma really only gets up for the biggest moments.  He excuses himself with a cold, and there’s some debate inside the squad about whether this is the manager to taken Meisei back to their glory days (his wife would certainly say no).  It’s abundantly clear that he’s going to be the guy, but I wouldn’t blame anyone for having their doubts.

The highlight of the episode, though, is the utterly classic burst of fourth-wall shattering Adachi indulges in when Nagisa Tsukikage (Shinohara Emi) – said wife – shows up at Casa Tachibana to research a story she’s writing about the brothers.  No one does meta like Adachi, and here you have him poking fun at himself for using the same devices and character tropes over and over by using the same device he’s used over and over – poking fun at himself for using the same devices and character tropes over and over.  I hope the day Adachi laughing at himself stops being funny never comes, because at this point it’s like meeting an old friend for a beer.