The reason why everyone watches this show.

Yup, this series is as episodic as ever. I think last season we only had three sets of two-part connected episodes. Just meaning episodes where things from the previous episode mattered at all. Usually leaving off with a cliffhanger. For an actual two-parter it was probably just the finale.

But of course I’m fine with that because otherwise the perfect Nogizaka Haruka episodic fluffy formula doesn’t work.

I do want to say that I hope the series tones down this fanservice progression. Last season’s pantyshots and stuff didn’t bother me. Especially with Shiina where it turned out they were for a (ridiculously stupid) plot device. Even last week’s hot spring episode didn’t bother me (in fact I enjoyed the horrible steam somewhat ).

But this week just took it too far with those scenes with Shiina. Poor girl. I couldn’t even pretend that was funny, it just left me feeling all…blech.

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Summary

Yuuto and Haruka go to a doujinishi event (specifically for that anime Haruka’s been watching) to sell doujinishi for a circle whose members can’t make it. They’re allowed to sell something of their own so Haruka wants to make her own illustration book. But for those who remember Haruka’s drawings are…adorably bad. So obviously no one wants to buy them. But Yuuto saves the day as usual and oh my god all the following stuff is so fluffy and cute.

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Thoughts

Starting off the episode of the lacrosse anime pretty similarly, eh? I wonder if that’s how they’re gonna do things. Have the anime somewhat reflect what happened the week before? Or maybe it was just another good excuse to shove fanservice in.

Well, the anime did have an impact on events in the story later on, but that was a different episode. I guess it was a good idea to switch up Haruka’s obsession this season because a sports anime can relate to real life a lot more easily than a magical girl anime can. Though I miss the Aki-chan poses…

lol Misunderstandings. I can imagine getting killed for saying this, but these sorts of commonly-occurring situations always tend to remind me of a show I used to watch when I was younger called Three’s Company. Though thinking back on it more than having nostalgia~ I wonder why the heck my parents were aware of me watching that show and let me watch it. Did they think I didn’t get it? Because I totally did.

Aww, but it looks like Alice-chan doesn’t quite get it. (Have to love the loli maid. She has no purpose but to sit there and look cute.)

No one does epic streaming tears quite like Gentou.

Over-protective fathers…or rather just plain old fathers (like 90% of them are like this in the real world, they just can’t have anime expressions) are awesome in anime. Especially if they carry around a sword.

Oh god I love hearing Akiho’s stern “anata” because it means awesome is on the way. Followed by her theme music setting up her demonic aura. I don’t think I’ve got to say it yet this season, but uh yeah…she’s probably like the best character in the show. Because she doesn’t appear that often it’s what makes her so much more…awesome. You know?

This episode she was especially in top form. Literally dragging Gentou behind her. Akiho-sama~!

And skipping right past everything to loli-Haruka pictures! Yeah!

I miss seeing the shadowy flashback of little Haruka from season one, but clear pictures of a little Haruka is just the thing to cure me. (Though on that note, it feels strange that Yuuto starting up Haruka’s otaku hobby hasn’t been mentioned even once even though he figured it out at the end of last season. Was that just an anime add-in or something so they could give it more closure?)

A flustered Haruka is cute~

You know one of the things I think that always prevented Haruka from seeming annoyingly perfect to me was how she reacted to Mika’s teasing. She loses her shyness and acts very much more like a typical older sister annoyed with her younger sister. But I find that cute all on its own.

You know, people keep justifying Shiina as being the plot device of the series to add in some drama and stuff to get Haruka and Yuuto together, but she’s a pretty bad plot device. Last season aside from one episode she had no impact on the plot and this season seems to be going the same way. Where she has her own little story because Yuuto is oblivious to her advances, but I don’t think that works because…well most people don’t care about Shiina aside from her being the “plot device.” (Though I prefer seeing her as a character in her own right, just not one that keeps going after Yuuto because “they’re not official” )

It’s only episode two, so you have to keep that in mind, but so far she’s been cut off from following Yuuto and Haruka (I still don’t know why she was going to do that when Yuuto was so clearly the one leading Haruka away ) and now she doesn’t see him at all this episode because he’s already off with Haruka.

Admittedly, I have a thing against rather pointless third-wheel characters, but it’s always for the same reason. It’s kind of sad. She could be a decent character, but it seems like she’s only ever there to serve the fanservice role on the side. In the most eye-rolling actually blech way possible.

The pro-Haruka team making their usual appearance at an otaku event as cosplayers. I believe Nanami and Mika are cosplaying as their actual characters, but lol at Hazuki-doggy.

Yes! Haruka is unhappy! This means we have encountered the problem of the week and we will now be proceeding into solution and fluffy, fluffy resolution! YEAH~!

Oh Nobunaga. Probably the second best character in the show. He’s a true fan! He also has this fun tendency to know everything. He doesn’t give an indication like usual (especially last week ) but I have the feeling he might know who drew the doujinishi.

Oh! Oh! And then he says something cool like “The most important thing is to enjoy the process of making the book you like.” Which so perfectly relates to the situation because Haruka enjoyed making it so much. And this anime is so fluffy and good and that’s all I’m going to say. Ahaha~

So, so~ Yuuto goes ahead and starts yelling for people to look at the book which is really quite embarrassing I think (I got memories of the Yaoi guy at NYAF XD)

And then he tells Haruka that selling the copies isn’t what’s most important (“Right?”) and Haruka is all touched like the should be. And it’s all so cute~

Then they proceed to shout together. D’aww-ness. (So this is cute too.)

Oh and Haruka does her usual extra-happy because we did this together thing which is just so adorable and really is what makes her the best girlfriend in anime. Everything makes her happiest when they do it together. (Oh god it’s so cute that I can’t stand it)

Also this scene isn’t your usual epic romance, but! It’s so cute! Because someone bought Haruka’s book and if you’re not incredibly happy for Haruka then you have to be evil!

Ah, everyone in the show and watching the show really just wants Haruka to be happy. And that might be why the show works. Instead of being about wish-fulfillment by the guy putting himself in Yuuto’s place with dozens of girls all over him, mostly it’s about Haruka and making her smile. For supreme d’aww-ness.

Also this moment lead to crying and…

Glomp-Hug is up top so have some cuddling instead.

THE BEST GLOMP-HUG I HAVE EVER SEEN!!! (As shown at the top) Or maybe it was more of a flying cuddle?

Either way It was so fucking cute you won’t even believe it until you see it. The images don’t do it justice. Go watch it right now and see how cute it was! Especially with Haruka being so happy and stuff~

Best. Girlfriend. Ever.

That little secret world of white of theirs lasted a while~

Also, poor jealous crying otaku boys. After all of the events they go to, I’m surprised jokes like this haven’t been included sooner.

Though now that I’ve been to a convention, the truth is that a lot of ordinary (maybe even dorky) guys have pretty girlfriends. Though I’m pretty sure Haruka is on a whole different level real girls can’t compete with. She is the anime girlfriend and otaku boys everywhere should be jealous of Yuuto. After all even cats are jealous of him.

Awww, fucking cute you guys!!! The cornier this series gets (with Haruka saying Yuuto’s like a prince!) the better it gets.

I really can’t get over this episode. This has got to be ranking near the top of the adorable fluffy resolutions in this series.

I can’t remember if the series always hit me with this much cuteness last season. But I think I’m especially weak to crying and hugging when they get the mood all right and stuff. Unlike many I enjoy hugging a heck of a lot more than kissing (but both are quite good )

Oh and I love it whenever the two of them walk home together too. After a long day of problems and fluffy situations. This show is so great.

Let’s pretend it ended right here, okay? We don’t need to ruin it. Not at all.

Okay you can choose to ruin it for yourselves since Diomedea did it to us anyway. show

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Preview

It seems that the vocabulary stuff at the end of the episode is a preview because last week was comiket and this week was about doujinishi at a “mini comiket”.

This week was tsundere so…Rie Kugimiya character #2 Tennoji Toka the “blizzard queen” will probably be appearing. As someone pointed out to me last week, Rie Kugimiya was supposed to have a tsundere role. Which I learned early this summer, but just forgot. Who wouldn’t forget when they see how adorable Alice is!

Anyway, I’m still not a fan of tsundere-mode Kugi characters, but as long as Toka isn’t a flat-chested loli-looking girl I won’t complain. (She’s not…right?) After all, I think there’s some merit in Kugi playing the tsundere character in the specifically otaku show. (Also Shana and Taiga, so is the above girl the new one? Because I don’t remember what she looks like.)

In: Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu | tags: ALLCAPS FANGIRLING, aww, do this, DON'T do this, fluff, huggin', uber-fluff, ugh. | #