Ginga e Kickoff - 26 - Lost in Anime

At long last it’s the unveiling of Reika Mark II.

This reveal certainly has to go down as one of the worst-kept secrets in Ginga e Kickoff – along with Aoto and Tagi joining the Predators – as it’s been teased in the OP since the very first episode. Still, it was interesting to wonder how the event itself was going to come about, and without piling on Area no Kishi too much it’s hardly a surprise that the story here was much more believable and interesting than the tale of Araki’s magical weight-loss yo-yo.

What we have here is, I think, effectively a breather episode – certainly the most light-hearted one GeK has done in a few months, but it’s a well-earned break between the heartbreak of the tournament loss to Amarillo and the upcoming Future Cup, which might very well be what takes the anime to the finish line (though I hope it goes well beyond that). The story on Reika comes early on, and interestingly enough it’s only Kouta who recognizes her at first (hmm… Crush?) – Shou and Erika’s reaction is more along the lines of “Who’s the hot babe?” And indeed, the difference is pretty striking – but when you’re as rich as the Sairenji clan (clue: if your family home is on the public transit map, you have a lot of money) you can hire a personal trainer to design a soccer-based training program to help you shed the kilos. It’s not an option that would be about to the 99 (and then some) percent, but kudos to Reika for having the fortitude to stick with it.

The bulk of the episode, in fact, is dedicated to the ongoing drama between Aoto and Kouta, who manage to exhibit some of the most childish behavior in the entire series. It’s not surprise in Kouta’s case (although a bit of a regression) but Aoto’s degree of immaturity is new information, if not surprising. The two of them are at odds from the moment they step onto Reika’s custom-made soccer-obstacle course, where they finish tied (Shou is third, interestingly, and Masaru-san-chan poops out before he’s made it halfway). Frankly, in football strikers very rarely get along to begin with – they always want the ball, and there’s only one to go around – but the two of them were going to have to find a way to coexist, especially on the 8-man side that will compete in the Future Cup. Normally you’d think it would fall to Shou to figure something out, but it’s actually Ryuuji who comes up with the plan to bring his older brother and the diminutive phenom together.

Frankly, that plan is pretty basic anime formula – using a rigged test of courage to scare the pants off the two combatants (again, if your family has its own golf course and shrine, you’re likely pretty well-off) but like everything else in GeK it’s well-executed. Again, maybe the information that Aoto is such a serious scaredy-cat isn’t surprising, but it’s new – as is the confirmation that his father is in fact Spanish, and that Aoto’s hope is to meet him by traveling to Spain. Spain is indeed a big country, and it’s pretty sad that Aoto would have to go to such lengths to try and meet a father who’s apparently so uninterested in him – it’s yet another interesting element that’s going to bring together the themes of sports and growing up that GeK does better than any show since the first season of Major.

Next week Ginga e Kickoff is going to actually be tackling a beach episode believe it or not – which will at least give Erika a chance to see Aoto topless. She seemed a little put off by just how childish he was acting this episode, but judging by the preview she’s finally going to muster up the courage to confess next week – either that or she has something else “only girls worry about” (which seems unlikely for this show). Also of interest will be just what it was the Furuyas came up with using their Dad’s soccer program – might it perhaps be a Murayama Predators version of total football? That would be appropriate for a trip to Spain, where Cruyff’s model is closest to being used today (along with Swansea Swans, maybe) and it was enough to get even Aoto admit he was interested…

9 comments

elianthos

November 6, 2012 at 3:06 pm

'and interestingly enough it’s only Kouta who recognizes her at first (hmm… Crush?)' She's a chibi Yamato Nadeshiko princess! He recognized her soul's unchanging beauty & strength!
<3 I'd love to think so… if Kota hadn't been focusing on Aoto for the rest of the episode *sweats*. My yaoi shota doujin alarm gave a faint ring.
Masaru's lack of stamina made me lol. I was expecting that somehow, but the little info about Kyoko's athletics that came with it was very welcome. As well as the lovey-dovey bits. Aw. This cast, why so lovable?
—
I've met many Spanish blond and blue-eyed people (ditto on Southern Italy… we are a mish-mash), so that's not a very big surprise… but I'm still not 100% sold on Aoto's anime genetics. Unless his mother is a half or a carrier of blond genes. On second thought, focusing on anime genetics is futile. Daddy's factor established Aoto's charcters purpose and motivation. That will suffice. The MomoPreds nakama pouah and Kota's now friendl(ier?) rivalry will make the rest (the chibi can count on our triplet to catch him when he swoons at the very least XD).

I'm looking forward to the beach episode. I rarely do, but with this characters I'd be ready to stomach the tripest trope settings I think.
They did well with the special training + courage test scenarios after all.

admin

November 6, 2012 at 3:33 pm

I wonder about Aoto's Spanish half making him look Swedish too, but what the heck – Ibrahimovich looks Spanish…

Kyoko's status as a pro badminton player was actually established way back in the first cour, though they haven't talked about it much since.

elianthos

November 6, 2012 at 3:52 pm

Well, Ibrahimovich is Swedish by birthplace but by name and parental genetics he's from the Balkan area… in spite of years of ethnic cleansing trying to keep track of specific features there would result in a giant headache.
—
I couldn't remember those at all. For shame! Kyoko, I'll eat your cooking to atone.

Tempest

November 6, 2012 at 3:38 pm

I love how GeK makes even cliché things look fresh, interesting and funny. Even its light-hearted episodes help the characters grow a bit and show a new side of them.

"The story on Reika comes early on, and interestingly enough it’s only Kouta who recognizes her at first (hmm… Crush?)"

Let's pray to see something like that, because it would be much more interesting than Erika's crush on Aoto. I also loved the hint that Reika has a crush on her coach. It's cute and believable because it's childlike. It's great that the creators keep their age in mind.

Beckett

November 7, 2012 at 5:58 am

This was a great episode, I don't think this show has had a bad one yet. But… how long exactly has Reika been away from the group? Depending on that her transformation comes across no more believable than Araki's. I may have missed a minor time skip or something but it doesn't seem like she's been at the villa that long? That said, at least Reika will now probably be a competent team member instead of dragging everyone down (and let's face it, no matter how hard she tried or how much heart she had, it was obvious she was a burden).

elianthos

November 7, 2012 at 8:33 am

@Beckett: from the almighty wikipedia:
'In Japan, school holidays take place from late March to early April, from the late July until early September, and over the Christmas and New Year period from December 24 to January 7.' Provided how next week we have the beach episode, I'd lean towards summer break. A couple of months could be just enough for Reika to slim down without stretching credibility too much. Children's bodies can be pretty plastic… I know at least one child IRL who changed that much after one summer of constant trekking and exercise.
The only stretch charades-wise concerns Reika 1.0's head size imho. It makes her look as not only her face but her whole skull (aka the bone structure)has shrunk now, while in fact it's just the right average at present.

admin

November 7, 2012 at 1:36 pm

Reika also had a "bad cold" and didn't see the team for a while before the whole Future Cup thing happened, so figure they didn't see her for at least a month.

Beckett

November 7, 2012 at 4:03 pm

Well okay, as long as it was at least a month I GUESS I will swallow this without further complaint.

Rita

November 7, 2012 at 8:19 am

I could NOT stop laughing the whole way through the test of courage, even though it was the middle of the night and my roommate's asleep @_@

This show is just so perfect in so many ways and I enjoy it so much every week.

Ginga e Kickoff – 26

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