This episode is like… 80% Tairazuma, and sadly, it isn’t close to 100% happy. Specifically, Azuma has grown increasingly dissatisfied lately, because she doesn’t just want to spend time with Taira. Nope, she also wants Taira to want to spend time with her. Unfortunately, she’s the only one pushing for them to do things. She’s the only one extending the invitation, never the other way around. After all these years, she should know that Taira is cripplingly insecure. Maybe she doesn’t. Or maybe she thinks he should be able to overcome it, not realizing just how much of an inferiority complex he truly has. And maybe that’s the real problem. It is clear to us in the audience that Azuma is the one who is most compatible with Taira. No one gets him better than she does; no one makes him forget his worries as easily as she can. And yet she doesn’t truly understand him either. This is where earnest communication could bridge the gap between them, but neither of them are brave enough to be vulnerable to each other.
Essentially, Azuma is trapped on a roller coaster ride. During the lulls, i.e. when she and Taira aren’t together, she’s desperately trying to convince herself that she doesn’t have time for love — that she isn’t even sure she wants to date the guy. She hilariously tries to give herself the ick by looking at their middle school pictures — y’know, back when he was still chubby. But it doesn’t help, ’cause when you’re in love, you can overlook almost anything. As a result, even chubby middle schooler Taira is now cute in Azuma’s eyes.
And as soon as they near each other, Azuma’s attitude flips completely. She has permanent shoujo goggles on whenever they talk; her world becomes light and floaty in his presence. Azuma even overcompensates by being overly boisterous and energetic in her speech and mannerisms. It’s as if she’s desperate to elicit any response from Taira that might serve as crumbs to fuel her fantasies. Oh, what’s that? He sees their breaks together as a lifesaver? Oh, I can already hear wedding bells! Jokes aside, even those moments are few and far between, when she finally does get them… hoo boy, Azuma has it bad. Try as she might, she can’t help but read too much into every little thing Taira does.
Unfortunately, Taira is still Taira, so he thinks he’s completely unlovable. And when the realization finally hits him — that Azuma might actually like him — he goes through the various stages of Taira-ism, i.e. being in complete denial before inevitably doom-spiraling hard. And sadly, this all culminates in him avoiding her over the summer. Man, I just can’t imagine doing that to a friend even if things are awkward. Taira tells himself that he doesn’t want their relationship to change, but pushing her away does exactly that. People need to realize that change is inevitable, and sometimes, you don’t even get to pick the outcome of said change. Taira’s lucky enough to still be in control of his own fate, and he’s completely squandering it. Taira thinks he’s maintaining the status quo through inaction, but avoiding Azuma is literally an action.
In the end, after they haven’t met in a while, Azuma almost seems resigned despite having a smile on her face: “We’ll all be going to different schools, and if you go to a college far away, we won’t see each other as much.” The implication here, which Taira also realizes, is that they need to make some memories together before it’s too late. But the problem is he thinks it’s just that. No, you idiot. She still likes you and she wants to make memories. Sadly, Taira loops back to convincing himself that no one could possibly like him. At this point, I think most of us would be like Sato and advise Azuma to move on. Why should she have to put in all the work just for this guy to dismiss her completely? But luckily for Taira, Azuma is experiencing her first love, so this is special to her — so special that she wants to fight for it.
I think the relationship between Suzuki and Tani is sweet but not overly so. On the other hand, the one between Nishi and Yamada is overly saccharine for my taste. Those two need a couple to balance them out, which is why we probably won’t get a proper resolution to Azuma and Taira. Their romance is perhaps the most realistic of the three we’ve seen in this series, and in the real world, not every romance works out. And even if they do end up together, it might not happen for a long, long while, because Taira really needs to sort his own bullshit out. Previous episodes gave us hope that things would work out between these two polar opposites, but their fate is a little more ambiguous by the end of this one. Still, Azuma is convinced she can stick it out and outlast Taira. For her sake, I hope she’s right.
Stray thoughts & observations:
— Azuma and Sato have definitely gotten a lot closer now that they no longer share a class with their friends. Naturally, the former confides in the latter about her romantic troubles. Sato, however, doesn’t strike me as someone who cares about that sort of thing. As such, she can only dispense practical advice. Sato might be aromantic. Or maybe she’s just a late bloomer. There are some who even think she and Nabe would make a great couple, but I think they just have yuri goggles on. Not every friendship has to be romantic.
— At least Sato admits she has her biases, but man, Taira would spiral even harder if he could somehow hear her thoughts.
— Oh man, Yamada without his trademark blond hair.
— Meanwhile, Suzuki’s words keep echoing in Tani’s mind. I guess he’s seriously considering choosing a school that might keep him and Suzuki separated. This is a classic Japanese romance scenario, though: two lovers are forced apart only to be reunited years later. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve encountered this exact thing in romance movies and shows. They always pull this stunt. Japanese writers think this is the height of true love.
— Speaking of which, Taira’s gotta be talking about love here.
— A rare glimpse at the Taira household.
— Taira’s sister is a little harsh here, but she isn’t completely wrong. When Taira saw Nishi and Honda giggling in their direction, he automatically assumed they were laughing at him. When he’s alone in his room, he constantly broods over his troubles. In a way, self-pity is a form of self-indulgence. Sometimes, you need to get out of your mind and just touch some proverbial grass. But as always, he doom-spirals. He’s convincing himself that he doesn’t feel anything for Azuma at all. Rather, her kindness simply makes him feel better about himself, so he reasons that his “attraction” to her is ultimately selfish. Good lord. Taira really, really needs therapy if only to have someone to talk to, because talking to himself certainly isn’t helping.
