First Impressions / Kanon

Summary:
Makoto is sneaking into Yuuichi’s room again, but he’s waiting for her. He notices that she’s got a pair of scissors, but Makoto insists that they are for making paper airplanes with him. She grabs the nearest notebook she sees and cuts out some pages to make airplanes out of, but Yuuichi freaks out when he realizes that the pages are actually part of his homework due tomorrow. The next morning, Makoto has to get up early because of her new job at the nursery. Unfortunately for her, Akiko decides that they should celebrate her job with some special jam. A curious Makoto eats some and immediately starts to feel the effects. On the way to school, Nayuki notices a stray cat and starts to approach it, but Yuuichi stops her and reminds her that she has an allergy to cats. Despite the warning, Nayuki frees herself from his grasp and tries to get the cat that she finds so cute. She feels those allergy effects later during school, but by that time, Yuuichi is off having a brief chat Shiori outside again who reminds him of their promise to make a large snowman. When lunchtime comes around, Yuuichi heads upstairs and eats with Sayuri and Mai. He once again has a hard time getting Mai to talk, so he ends up chatting with Sayuri while Mai eats.
After school ends and he parts ways with Nayuki, who’s feeling better now, Yuuichi finds himself walking through town when he gets tackled from behind by Ayu. She’s still searching for something, but Yuuichi can’t help her today because he wants to get home early. He’s actually quite worried about Makoto, who should have gotten off work by now, and by chance he sees her standing on the sidewalk staring into a game arcade. Specifically, she’s looking at three girls at the purikura machine, which makes Yuuichi wonder if she wants to have her photo taken. Makoto denies it and then heads home with Yuuichi following. Across the street, a girl named Amano Mishio was watching them, but then walks away after they leave. Yuuichi meanwhile asks Makoto about her job, which according to her went fairly easily. After she gets angry at him for not believing her and runs off by herself, Yuuichi turns around and goes the other way to buy a notebook, but he soon realizes that Makoto is still with him, following close behind. When he catches her, she claims have things to do in the same direction that he’s going. Yuuichi finally suggests that they just walk together and so she goes with him.
Right as Yuuichi is raising the topic of Makoto saying Auu whenever she’s troubled, the cat from that morning shows up at her feet. He notices that it has taken a liking to her, but she only takes it into her arms after he promises to buy her meat buns. The cat takes it’s place on Makoto’s head, though it later leaps down and takes the first meat bun that Makoto picks out. Afterwards, while standing on a pedestrian bridge, Yuuichi is wondering what they’re going to do with a cat since they can’t take it home because Nayuki is allergic. Makoto feels that it’s ok not to think about it and notes that if an animal is not needed, then it gets thrown away. She also says that they should return it to the fields before it can understand what peace is. As Yuuichi is trying to understand that last statement, Makoto suddenly drops the cat off the bridge into the traffic below. Luckily, it lands safely on top of a truck, but Yuuichi gets angry at Makoto anyway. She feels that she has no responsibilities or anything towards the cat since it followed her on its own. Yuuichi almost hits her for saying that, but he stops himself and she runs off.
Nayuki worries when Makoto doesn’t show up for dinner that night, but Yuuichi remains pissed off. He eventually goes out and tries to look around for her, but to no success. Realizing that he doesn’t know much about Makoto, he goes to see Mai at school and asks if Makoto has been there. Mai hasn’t seen her, but upon learning that the girl is missing, she suggests Yuuichi go to Monomi Hill. When he asks her why she knows, Mai replies that she merely has a hunch. Following the advice, Yuuichi heads up the hill and does indeed find Makoto there, along with the cat. From a distance, he sees her share a meat bun with it and then sees her then hug it, saying they’re the same because they’re both nuisances with nowhere to go. Makoto is tired from having searched for the cat since that evening, so she falls asleep in the grass. Having heard what she’s been doing all this time, Yuuichi brings the still-sleeping Makoto home, telling her that she’s their family. On the way back down the hill, he notices a kitsune staring at them.
It is later that night, when they’re back home, that Makoto wakes up and gets confused at why she’s there. As Yuuichi tells her, it’s because this is where she belongs. Makoto finds out that he was the one who brought her back and that the cat is now sleeping in her room. She also starts to see the family that she has around her after Akiko cooks them all something to eat and they’re all gathered happily around the dining table. When it’s time to go to bed, Yuuichi tells her that she’ll have to tolerate him, even if she hates him, until her memory comes back. Makoto remembers someone saying something to her when she had just fallen asleep, but she doesn’t know what. Yuuichi takes responsibility for that, but he jokes that he said for her to rest in peace, not revealing what his actual statement was.

Preview:

Well this episode features the appearances of both Piro and Amano Mishio, and so we appear to be well into the Makoto arc now. None of the previous episodes have focused on her as much as this episode, and if the preview – which shows a string of Makoto scenes – is any indication, next episode will have even more of her. *Makoto overload*
Makoto’s attitude towards animals and her comment to the cat about how they’re both nuisances with nowhere to go sounds as if she’s had a first-hand experience being scorned before. I’m still wondering how the kitsune fits into all this, though it seems noteworthy that in comparison, Makoto does look a bit like one with her hair color. Plus there’s all those comments Yuuichi makes about her being like an animal. I guess we’ll find out soon enough…

28 Comments

  8. Ahh, everybody was waiting for Mishio to show up. They’re really buzzing through Makoto’s storyline though. It looks like the focus is going to be on her for awhile at least. Not like I mind but it’s not doing well for the Mai quota I want met.

    Likkun
    Reply

  11. @Rexter
    if you don’t like the character design, why not just don’t watch it. 7 episodes had been aired, and you are still watching it even though you making a fuss over the design?

    Anom-Kia
    Reply

  16. @dac, People are going to kill you off with your forgotten spoiler tag. XD

    @Chi
    You’re talking about how the newer anime compares to the original game right? I actually prefer playing the game then watching the original anime. Only reason is because it’s not animated, as harsh as that may sound. It’s kind of hard to mess up the 5 character models you see throughout the game and the 25 or some CGs for each character as badly as you can with an anime.

    Likkun
    Reply

  19. Good thing it has a weekly dose of uguu~~~!

    I don’t really like Makoto: she’s too mischievous, selfish, and arrogant, though at first site with the fox I knew there was something up. Can’t wait to get into her story arc.

    Pakxenon
    Reply

  22. I don’t really like Makoto: she’s too mischievous, selfish, and arrogant, though at first site with the fox I knew there was something up. Can’t wait to get into her story arc.

    Ironically, a Kitsune is deemed to be mischievous, selfish, and arrogant in Japan (perhaps in some other country as well, but I don’t know any). Her character fits the position really well. 😛

    Rasmiel
    Reply

  28. Er… do you see her sharp canine tooth in the screencaps?

    Due to this Makoto character, this Kanon story is going to take a turn into a cliche fantasy please-don’t-leave-me-I-want-to-stay-with-you-because-this-is-my-home-and-my-family story

    Someone please save me

    appolinaire
    Reply

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