04.13
In other words, bullshit.
Well, bully on me for not watching those chibi specials a few weeks ago, because those were essential to understanding the terminology in this show… except it feels unnecessary. Instead of regular old mana, the magical energy you use is called Psions. And instead of wands, they’re Casting Assistant Devices because that sounds technical enough to make the magic seem more realistic than it actually is. Last episode, we had to deal with clique names like weeds and blooms. Now, there’s all this about how one CAD is primarily specialized in helmet splitting while Miyuki’s CAD has to be handled by Tatsuya’s in order to set her mind at ease.
And that goes further in dependent Miyuki is throughout this episode. She has to get Tatsuya’s nod of approval in order to talk to the student council, or get the signature head pat to remind things are going to be fine. She makes the girl from Sakurasou seem more self-sufficient. At the least, I’m learning to tolerate her “Onii-sama” verbal tic, since that’s not going to go away anytime soon. But still, she’s a doormat. Even among other characters who were touted to be strong but didn’t deliver like Asuna, Miyuki has made all of her contemporaries feel more self-reliant by comparison. It gets to the point where I’m expecting a scene next episode when Tatsuya feeds Miyuki while she wears a bib.
Maybe I’m getting too ahead of myself, but give Miyuki a scene where she can be cool or show off her own magic without her brother for once. But instead, there’s a moment where she sits in awe over people making their own boxed lunches. She’s such a stock damsel at this point in the story, so I’m wondering what’s in store for her character in the next few arcs. Is something cool going to happen? Or will she continue to rely on her godly Onii-sama to turn their magic school upside down? This show can be surprising when it wants to be, just not in a good way.
But what doesn’t surprise was the advent of Gyobu Hattori, the latest of the classmates-of-the-week for Tatsuya to beat in order to show off his perfection. Tatsuya’s so cool, that futuristic academic like Gyobu cannot properly gauge how cool he is. Gyobu has a meticulous plan in order to show this kid what for, except he didn’t realize Tatsuya would pull out super-speed out of nowhere to trounce his rule-abiding ass. While this kid was a douche, I can’t help but feel bad for him because he gets screwed over by fucking Tatsuya. Also, I love the subtle love triangle going on with how Gyobu really wants Miyuki, but Miyuki and Mayumi really want Tatsuya, while Tatsuya doesn’t want anybody because he’s too stoic to comprehend romance. And that’s not even accounting for all of the blushing schoolgirls who accidentally refer to Tatsuya as “Onii-sama” as he unintentionally makes the moves on them. Not even three episodes in, and this show’s already getting to Ranma levels of nebulous relationships.