「Wanna Be A Gamemaker」

I haven’t wanted to see an opponent lose this badly in a long time. This girl is insufferable.

Too Stiff

I liked the lesson the 5th graders learned early on. To paraphrase a certain princess, the harder you try, the more star systems that will slip through your fingers. (Wait, what? Screw it, better keep going.) It was obvious to me why they were struggling, but that’s only because I learned that lesson a long time ago, and keep having to relearn it as I misjudge my limits and burnout. I’m just glad the 6th graders (and Subaru) knew what was going on and were able to stop it before the 5th graders pulled a Honoka right before the big match.

Keishin’s Growth

We’ve been watching the girls of Keishin grow as players for many episodes now, so it took someone like their old opponent Aida Miyu (Ise Mariya) to show us how much they’ve changed. Airi in particular has improved a lot, and it’s her growth as a player that may be my favorite part of this season. The 6th graders pulled some totally bullshit moves though, including Saki’s bullet time, Tomoka tossing the ball behind her, and Hina’s behind-the-back basket. I swear, that girl is like the Sasha of mini-basketball!

Insufferable Star

It’s a cliche that someone who goes it alone is destined to fail. In many areas of life those who charge ahead fearlessly, even if they alienate everyone else around them, can still do quite well provided they’re skilled enough. Basketball, however, is a team sport, and while a single player can do a lot of damage and even outright defeat weaker teams, there comes a point when opponents will be too strong for selfish play. The question is whether Keishin’s 5th graders are strong enough to exploit the dysfunction in Suzuridani’s B-squad. We’ll find out next time.

As for Rena, all I can say is that she’s an insufferable brat and I can’t wait for her to lose. Not only does she taunt opponents for no reason, but she did it to her own teammates too? Lose dammit! I can see why Miyu wanted her to learn this lesson – it’s one Miyu herself learned last season – but Rena is worse than Miyu ever was. Miyu’s actions I could understand, but Rena… Gah, lose you brat!

Looking Ahead

The major focus of the next episode is liable to be the titanic struggle between the 5th graders and the all-star brat Rena, plus hopefully the Suzuridani B-squad’s meltdown when the 5th graders exploit their poor teamwork (I hope!). Personally, I’m more excited for more of the 6th graders vs Miyu’s squad, simply because I don’t know where the story will swing during that quarter. I’m also not sure where this season will end. Will Keishin advance in the tournament but leave it for a later season? Fade to black as they lose in some unidentified round? What?

I’m not sure. I do have a feeling that whatever Tomoka wants to tell Subaru is going to play hell with my emotions though. Is it a confession!? C’mon, tell me it’s a confession, COME ON!!

tl;dr: @StiltsOutLoud – A good lesson in relaxation, a lot of growth, & an antagonist I very much want to lose #rokyubu 10

Random thoughts:

  • Friendship, smiles, and fair play. Move over everyone, farmer Subaru is coming through with a truckload of corn!
  • I like how they finally have uniforms. It’s nice to see them looking like a real team. Though I do miss Hina’s thigh-highs.

For more from yours truly, check out my blog on writing, art, and the book I’m working on at stiltsoutloud.com.

Full-length images: 06.

 

Preview

12 Comments

  1. The sixth graders did have some rather surprising trick passes and trick shots didn’t they? They’ve been practicing pretty hard for about a month so that’s probably when they perfected them. Still their aggressive game plan is pretty clear, it’s all about building their momentum and denying the other team their’s against an enemy team of this caliber they can’t hold back at all.

    The Green One
  2. I’m hoping for a full-fledged hot-blooded loli basketball.

    Please dun give me a few still screens and poof, the match’s over and back to the lolicon coach.

    It’s the reason why I started watching after all. No, not the lolis, basketball!

    Peanutbutter003
  3. Is it bad that I want to crunch Rena into a ball and dunk her into a volcano? That’s bad, right? I should feel bad about wanting that, right? 😡

    I’d also love it if Tomoka was planning to confess, but I highly doubt it. It’s probably something else fun though, like another party or a trip they all pitched in for to celebrate with. And as far as the rest of the tournament, I wouldn’t be surprised if we got a montage after Keishin wins this match.

    Aex
    1. Yes, you should totally feel bad about Scumbag Sportsman Generic Rival A.
      How dare she become an obstacle for the team to rally together against her!?
      Its strange how conversely I actually prefer such characters after seeing such tropes done to death. Like how someone here likes a certain [Good Loser].

      Giorno Giovanna
      1. It’s the laugh, I tell you. Not only do her lips not move when she laughs, the sound is so weird its like an arrogant fart. It was okay when she had the lollipop, but after she lost it the annoyance factor shot straight the hell up.

        Aex
  4. LOL, I finally got to read Stilts call a loli “insufferable”. Has pigs flown yet?

    Anyway the story had been generic up until now and even then I still manage to enjoy every second of this show. The 6th graders are progressing and they all act maturely infront of the 5th graders. I really like this Senpai-Kouhai interaction.

    TheMoondoggie

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