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「謎の試験管」 (Nazo no Shikenkan)
“Mysterious Test Tube”
As Urabe keeps producing random items out of nowhere, my belief that Urabe is the ancestor of Senjougahara increases.
Honestly, I’m mighty surprised by the means used to get to the end this episode. It was fairly obvious that Urabe was going to turn down Ogata (Mizushima Takahiro), but the spit used to reach that conclusion was less so. Urabe making both Ogata and Tsubaki wait a day wasn’t the best decision as a girlfriend, but her intentions were definitely honest. It was through this approach that Urabe used to break convention and honestly show her effort in being a good girlfriend. It’s a complex way of going about revealing mutual understanding, but I think that it’s a method that definitely worked out specifically for them. Poor Ogata though…there was a chance that he may have become a victim of another lovesickness…
In the end, much progress was made in terms of their relationship aside from the obvious rejection. Understanding +5. Hand-holding ability semi-acquired! Achievement: first dream kiss! However, as people in a relationship know, this couple is still far from a fully matured relationship. Urabe’s second dodge at an embrace indicates her own hesitance to physical closeness, something that’s both ironic but also understandable. While Urabe may share her spit freely with Tsubaki, it is she who controls when that spit is exchanged. While showing off panties may be alright, any steps farther than that are disagreeable. Although it is possible to view their relationship as being strangely intimate, the fact that their physical closeness is a one-rein intimacy shows that these weird rituals are small park business. The emotional distance between them may get very close in occasional spikes, but overall the distance is wide. Considering how we’ve encountered the the first ‘kiss’ before even the first hug, the progression of their closeness will be anything but linear. Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if the show ended up going through every other single interaction a couple could make before closing with the first hug. It’s something Urabe takes very seriously, possibly even more than the first kiss.
Next episode will most likely focus on continuing the development of the new glasses couple, Arita Haruyuki and Fujibayashi Kyou Ueno (Kaji Yuuki) and Oka (Hirohashi Ryou). It’ll be fascinating to see the dynamics of two couples present in one series and how they interact with one another and whether or not such interactions benefit or hurt each other’s bonds. Given the kinds of people Tsubaki seems to attract and the direction of the show, I’m sure this couple will have weirdness to bring to the table as well.
Preview
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Kaji Yuki gets a girlfriend without having to go through a dramatic love triangle?!
I’m not saying it was aliens, but…
Have a boyfriend… but still test the other one… DROPPED.
It’s easy to misinterpret Urabe’s method as giving the other guy a chance, but honestly it was just a demonstration to physically prove the bond Tsubaki has with Urabe. I mean I’d be a little confused and resentful too as Tsubaki going through this, but in the end I couldn’t hate her myself for proving a bond.
However, if you’re dropping, it’s sad to see you go. *waves* 🙁
Im leaning more on Zali’s side. I love the manga so im not dropping but that whole part made her seem like she would have picked the other if he could respond to her drool. Her romantic talk sounds more like, “well you’re the only one…..for now.”
To be honest, I think a lot of people are making the mistake of equating Urabe testing the drool bond as the same thing as cheating. Urabe doesn’t see it as a qualification to be her boyfriend, but as something to test whether she would even get along with them. She didn’t start going out with Tsubaki until he confessed, but she still shared her drool with him before then. Later episodes will probably make these things clearer as we go.
Also, Urabe herself, despite her attitude, is rather inexperienced in this relationship as well. I am quite sure the only reason she “tested” the bond is because she was curious as to what would happen in her experiment with a “normal” vs Tsubaki. Hence her reaction “I knew it” when Tsubaki got the nosebleed. Heck, she already knows Tsubaki will be her “first time,” so it isn’t like she was doubting their bond.
Show Spoiler ▼
Zanibas: please put explicit references to the future in spoiler tags, especially if they’re hard facts and not speculation ^^
enter curse word and your spoilers.
https://randomc.net/image/Nazo%20no%20Kanojo%20X/Nazo%20no%20Kanojo%20X%20-%2003%20-%20Large%2035.jpg
This scene was my favourite. Pantsu scissors attack! oh right… i’m not wearing any today. Ruffles through bag, finds scissors, performs scissor attack with love.
The way Urabe convinced Tsubaki not to kiss her, does that qualify as inception?
Now that I’ve rewatched the episode…this is something I’m seriously considering now. Could it be that Urabe’s spit actually influenced Tsubaki to reconsider his stance on their first kiss, that the revelation wasn’t his alone, but instead an implanted suggestion? Although it’s hard to prove now, it’s something I’ll have to consider now when watching future episodes O.o
I’m confused and conflicted about this. That, or I’ve gone “conspiracy theorist”. D:
For all we know, the dreams Tsubaki had in the first episode could very well be the same ones Urabe was having when she left all that drool on her desk.
Hmmm… This episode separates the boys from the girls (I haven’t read the Manga).
I think this was a test for both of them. To see how Tsubaki would react (in other words, test his
sincerity in the relationship) and for Urabe, the same. What the writer did, and excellently
confuse their audience, was reverse the roles in this sort of thing.
It’s usually the girl that responds emotionally and the boy who is clinical about this matter –
this was completely switched. It shows that Urabe is not perfect (human) and allowed herself to
be tempted to see if her bond with Tsubaki is genuine. I don’t believe, in her mind, the advance
by Ogata would have gone any further, so yes, she did use him a bit. Or rather, she took advantage
of the opportunity Ogata gave her (he approached her) and tested herself. In the process, she learned
about herself and Tsubaki – the uniqueness of their blosseming bond and how really precious it is.
Tsubaki’s test was jealousy. He wanted to respond physically, but when Urabe asked him to respect her
ability to handle it, he showed his true character and did. On the outside, it looked like she told him to
mind his own business, but this is the real beauty of this story/series that I see so far, in that complex
dynamics are woven into the dialogue that require a deeper read to see.
I especially liked Urabe’s “forgetfulness” in:
1. “Forgetting” that she wore pantsu when reaching for her scissors, and
2. “Forgetting” to ask for them back.
While not a kiss, at this stage getting a pantsu is quite a reward for the small discomfort felt.
I could go on – I’m waiting to watch the series before reading the Manga.
One of the absolute laws in anime: when going commando, the wind always blows harder… 😉
On the outside, tt looks like Urabe is in control of the relationship between her and Tsubaki, but I think deep down, Urabe is as insecure and uncertain as Tsubaki. The only difference is that Tsubaki openly displays his insecurities, whereas Urabe masks them behind her mysterious actions.
I am really liking this unconventional perspective on relationships.
You know, after reading the manga and thinking about it I believe that Urabe is more normal than we think she is. Show Spoiler ▼
As for her “test”, I think the same as you, that she is just as insecure as Tsubaki. It might well be the very first time that she feels a bond with someone and doesn’t know how to deal with it. Her “test” was just to find out if her newfound bond with Tsubaki is indeed as special as she think it is (you can see her getting away from Ogata with a smile on her face, as if relieved). Of course, that doesn’t justify making Tsubaki suffer for it but he got Urabe’s pantsu at the end so I’d say it’s a fair trade.
I would have been pissed like…. “so if did respond to your drool, what would have happened?”
THat kinda rubbed me the wrong way(lets see if you pass the drool test), but i could be just jaded.
I can totally understand that. Normally I would say that was a pretty low move.
However after seeing the first two episodes, I don’t really feel like I can apply common sense to Urabe at all. This is just so out there with the spit addiction, dream reading, ninja scissors and such, that I can only laugh at this hilariously roundabout way of confirming her “compatibility” with her possible boyfriends.
If nothing else, this is one of the most entertaining anime I’ve seen lately.
just kiss her already!!!!!!!!!
I found it somewhat strange and hilarious that Tsubaki decided to put her panties in his pocket and decide to give them back to her later.
Never thought I would find a scene that involved going commando and nose bleeding romantic, but here we are.
Also I’m pretty sure Urabe wouldn’t want her pantsu back.
Nosebleed.
(＞_＜)・°°・。
YES!
Show Spoiler ▼
Yeah, we it work both ways that last episode, though.
Show Spoiler ▼
And yet I have no problems with the pacing. Whatsoever.
This is the only thing I’m ticked off after reading it for so long.
This show tells me about awkward and weirdness can be understood if you have the right bonds. If you can’t understand how others feel then it means that you aren’t meant for each other. I really think that some people can create those bonds not just naturally and “out of curiosity”, just like what Tsubaki did in episode one, but also through hard work.
I guess Ogata wasn’t 100% serious in committing himself to Urabe.
believe me, tsubaki has worked as a donkey and to advance through hell, is slow but it shows that approaches the goal XD, imagine that the relationship Urabe cut at the end XD
Urabe is so picky (or more careful i guess) and defensive
Tsubaki definitely in love with Urabe
Want to try Urabe’s trick LOL
Good posts. A lot to think about.
It’s kind of funny how the whole “spit” thing is turning people off when if you’ve had a make out session with your significant other you’ve probably swapped more spit than Urabe and Tsubaki have.
Overall, I think the interaction between Urabe and Tsubaki is a kind of foreplay. There is a physical part to it, but they are also building trust, respect, etc. The scene in the second episode where Urabe asked Tsubaki to keep his eyes closed convinced me of that. If Tsubaki had opened his eyes, he would have gotten, well, an eye full. However, like Urabe said, she didn’t know what she would have done if he had. I’m guessing it would have been a short term “victory”, but the relationship would have ended. Like others have said, both don’t know what they are doing. They seem unsure of each other and themselves, but they’re figuring the relationship-thing out. True, it’s being done in a “weird” and “odd” way on the surface, but underneath that, it seems they have the start of a good relationship by not doing what is “normal”.
Love short, sweet posts like this! Keep it, Zanibas. 🙂
All in all, it was a good episode. But I feel irritated when Kaji Yuuki’s voice pops up (hmmm…who to blame?).
Love how most of the male readers here feel very threatened with the fact that Urabe could potentially hook up with another boy. A nod to the real world, I suppose, where male competitors are forever at your doorstep.
And also vice versa for females, of course.
1) Unless you happen to actually know the commenters genders, I would refrain from assuming such information, especially to make a jab at half the population.
2) The threat some feel is that Urabe has made a strong statement that Tsubaki will be her first, and that she potentially entertained the possibility of another knowing that. In this situation, I think it’s less a “male complex” issue, and more an issue of the weight of words.
It´s so nice to see a series that actually centers in the interactions of the couple with a degree of seriousness.
For those bothered about the other guy tasting her saliva, it’s much less ambiguous in the manga. She just wanted to confirm for herself and Tsubaki that their “drool bond” was special and couldn’t be duplicated. It wasn’t an issue of her being attracted to the other guy. I think the anime script missed a few lines or so that could’ve set people’s minds at rest.
That’s why in the next episode/chapter Show Spoiler ▼
Besides, there’s that voice in her head saying “you’re totally gonna bang that boy to your left” from episode/chapter 1. Not “that boy in the back”.