I have a few quibbles with this episode, which is a rarity this season.  It was still tremendous, and if I weren’t a manga reader I very much doubt I would have noted anything whatsoever out of place.  What was there was perfect, but there was some stuff that wasn’t there.  As none of this is really spoiler material and seems unlikely to be shifted to later in the anime, I think it’s safe to discuss here.

• First, when Lucifer Nigorikawa makes his appearance (final form achieved at last) and describes himself, in the manga Kyou says “Isn’t that a dick?”
• Then, we had quite a bit cut out from the scene when Yamada arrives at the Ichi household.   In fact there a big chunk of Chapter 90 missing altogether, including one exchange from the walk home which I won’t refer to just in case they recall it later.  But there are a couple of other missing bits here I loved, like Anna and Ichi’s Dad (Ginko in the flesh) having a very awkward moment on the sofa, and his Mom freaking out over how messy the kitchen is.
• When Anna calls home to say she’s staying over, we see her parents on the other end of the line, and her Dad is visibly freaking out over the news.
• When Kana invites Anna to stay over and Ichi freaks out when his mother mentions her using the bath, his first thought is “Should I get a yank in?  Wait, why!?”

None of this is a huge deal, but I do miss those moments – and I think it’s fair to say Norio does too, as she mentioned them on twitter.  Generally speaking I think the anime has played up the drama side and played down the comedy a bit, and this tracks with that.  I also think they’ve toned down the sex stuff a little, which I guess is understandable (but when you think about what makes the air in other series, who knows).  It’s also fascinating that the anime continues to adapt at a faster pace than it nominally has to given the almost-inevitable stopping point for the season.  That leads me to think Akagi-sensei is cooking up something original – and the Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san experience tells us that it would be very much in character for him.

That aside, we got another lucky bag full of signature BokuYaba moments I absolutely love.  That’s pretty much every chapter of the manga at this point, to be honest.  Another brief and hilarious appearance by Aizawa’s mom, putting the bow on that whole cookie fiasco.  The mixup with the letter, Moeko’s reaction, I love all of it.  Adachi (whose best moments are still to come) really isn’t a bad kid – he’s kind of a romantic and innocent in fact (certainly compared to Kanzaki).  And he’s someone Ichi now very clearly considers a friend.

That was another favorite moment for me.  I love how Anna – who has a squad of besties and understands how isolated Kyou has been – takes such heartfelt joy every time she sees him building social connections with other boys.  The final Year 2 classroom scene is sneaky important for what it says about Kyou’s growth as a person.  It’s a huge leap forward for him to be able to reflect back on the year with fondness, and it even prompts a very rare genuine (albeit wistful) smile from him.  Bayashiko’s cockamamie plan to try and get everyone reunited in Year 3 is very funny and a perfect Chi moment (and Yamada getting upset even though it’s all rehearsed a perfect Anna moment).

Then we have the legendary (among readers) basketball scene.  Now, Anna is like 15cm taller and was a basketball player so this is obviously unfair, but it’s not like she gives a flip – as ever, she’s thought this out.  Whether it was a foul or not, that contact was quite electric.  Anna’s putback was elite (she’s a baller as long as she doesn’t have to shoot from outside two feet), and she’s not bothered about the fact that it was her opponent’s shot.  She got what she wanted, and she demands her prize (she decided the stakes herself in the first place) – can she call Ichi “Kyou”?  Interestingly enough she welshes on this at first, but that’s complicated…

Now we’re in Chapter 90, with the walk home and Anna calling Kyou “Ichikawa” much to his confusion.  There’s that skipped bit I won’t detail when he realizes someone is stalking them, and then Ginko Dad appears, carrying a birthday cake (from a bakery in Saitama, oddly – maybe a Norio favorite).  We can make an argument over which one of these two should be protecting the other, but the point is that Ichi’s instinct is that he has to be the one to do it.  He’s always aware of the additional complexity Anna’s celebrity status brings along with it, inarguably more than she is, in fact.

One note about dates here – Kyou’s birthday falling right at the end of the school year means he’s at the very youngest end of his grade, which I don’t think is totally immaterial.  This is classic teen torture here, with his well-meaning family really putting him through the wringer.  Mom sings the wedding march (anime-only) when she brings out the cake (let’s ignore that for now), and then the birthday song – Goc, how I hated that moment as a kid.  Worst of all, though, is Kana (who’s changed into her “party gear” and then changed again when she found out Anna was a pro model) presenting her gift of a bunny girl figure.  To be fair, she did realize that would be embarrassing with Anna there but Mom was having none of it and Ichi did say “hand it over”…

I also think Kana realized what an awkward position she was putting Kyou in by inviting Anna to sleep over, but too late – she was caught up in the euphoria of the moment and the two of them really do hit it off (Kana obviously loves the novelty of having a little sister, never mind a glamorous one).  Kana uses Anna as a fashion sounding board.  Anna asking Kyou if he had a rubber was glorious, and then the whole ordeal of having to follow her into the bath.  He copes by avoiding her bath water and only showering – in Japan draining the tub in such situations simply isn’t done.  In the manga, he also relies on looking at his sister’s “boner-killing panties“.

(Almost) finally, a truly wonderful conversation when Ichi comes downstairs “for a glass of water”.  Anna is reading a script for a shoot two days later (stomach growling as she demurely avoided eating much during dinner).  The script has her playing a girl in a “rebellious phase”, which she’s finding difficult as she’s never had one.  Ichi opens up to her, and she wonders what he’s rebelling against since he has such nice parents.  But he’s basically rebelling against himself – being short with them because he’s so uncomfortable with himself  and worried about “not being a good kid”.

Say what you will, but I found that single line of dialogue possibly the most powerful in the entire manga.  There’s so much truth in this, so much depth of meaning.  Kyou’s fear is so real – all his problems stem from his inability to love himself for who he is.  He’s a truly kind and sweet kid and I think it’s pretty safe to say his parents adore him – they never think he’s a “bad kid”, they just worry about why he seems so unhappy.  Anna immediately pulls him close, and despite his heart racing he feels at ease in her embrace.  This is why the two of them work as a couple – they just get each other.  Not only do they sense what the other needs, they’re the ideal partner to provide it.

Don’t skip the ED, as we get one of our occasional omake segments there.  After Anna has fallen asleep (looks like they talked for about an hour and a half), Kyou goes upstairs and, lying in bed, puts two and two together.  When he emerged from the shower the washing machine was running, and boner-killing panties were still sitting there.  That means…  Let’s just say he and Anna have now both had the experience of going commando at each other’s house, and that realization means Ichi is going to have a long night…