Amagami SS / First Impressions

「森島はるか 後編 タビダチ」 (Morishima Haruka Kouhen – Tabidachi)
“Morishima Haruka, Second Chapter – Departure”

Sometimes in love, you’ve got to make…a huge leap of faith. *Ba dum tssh*

I can safely say that once again, Haruka and Junichi’s pairing have exceeded expectations. The guts, the subtle conflict, the sneakiness of a twin cousin! At first, I had my doubts that Haruka could pull off the same surprises her first arc executed. I set my expectations low when I began watching the first season (it’ll be another game adaption…), but then episode four came and set the bar higher. However, without the aspect of “fairy unknown series”, would Haruka’s surprises work a second time?

Yes. Although the kinkiness makes Haruka famous, it’s the surprises that actually make the arc good. That precise moment when Junichi stood up (I was in school hallway mind you), I said quite loudly, “Oh shit, he’s not…” before I self-constrained myself to avoid any further dirty looks. However, after calming down from the excitement, I realized it wasn’t just the fact that there was a surprise, but that Junichi was the one to pull it off.

Previously it was observed that Junichi and Haruka had begun to switch roles, but this episode went farther as to actually follow through on this swtich. Yes, the two still retained their original personas, but when it mattered most, their reversal of roles stuck. Although this development style was seen in Rihoko and Kaoru’s arcs, their resolutions were not as grand and unpredictable as the last four minutes of this episode turned out to be.

The end of Haruka’s arc didn’t feel like the end of a series of six episodes, but rather the end of Amagami as a whole. With all the characters present and the cumulative applause, it certainly felt more like a finale for the entire series rather than just Haruka’s story. That’s what makes me happy about this ending in general, is that right here, I can come away feeling—well, that’s for next week ^^.

If you were in my shoes, you’d agree that writing a final impression after this episode would be a fitting end. However, it turns out we have one extra hot springs episode to go (previously it was thought it’d be Blu-Ray only), and it just wouldn’t be fair to leave out one episode that could surprise! Hold your voting urges for best arc until next week!

Full Length: 1, 6, 18

 

Preview

End Card

66 Comments

      2. I wouldn’t go so far as to say it sucked, but I do agree this wasn’t a good concluding episode. Your review kept mentioning surprises, but the ending was obvious once Haruka mentioned the history of proposals and how she always dreamed of it last episode. In that case there needs to be other elements to make up for the lack of suspense, and this episode didn’t do that. There wasn’t much humor, the bath/negligee scene was just infuriating (totally reverted any of Junichi’s character growth), and the Europe thing was completely transparent. Of course cliches get predictable, but when there’s good execution that can still make cliches fun and interesting. The execution of this episode was very lacking in my opinion.

        a42
        Reply

      3. The surprise wasn’t in the inevitable marriage proposal, but in the execution, which I thought was pretty darn good.

        Also, the negligee scene didn’t revert any development he had because honestly, his character wasn’t developed in this arc until the last few minutes. Yes he’d have these random confessions, but overall he was always immature about his relationship with Haruka until he finally goes ALL IN and puts his entire high school life on the line.

        But of course, I thank you for putting basis towards your disagreement rather than rushing to post first :3.

        Zanibas
        Reply

    2. I have to agree I’m not sure I liked this episode. I thought the confession/proposal at the end was nicely done and executed, but I just don’t like the whole “coerce him to propose” theme undergoing the whole episode..

      Then again I’m not a 15 year old kid watching this.. And I’m at the age where I need to start thinking seriously about stuff like this.. La Sigh..

      William
      Reply

      1. There were ups and downs in this episode but then I cant really say its bad. Overall i thought this was a good episode. We do know that Haruka is going to get married to Junichi, so no spoilers there. Its the mere fact that it was executed perfectly that made this episode a gem. I was even giddy about Junichi’s proposal- we expected it.

        Hegent
        Reply

      1. Well women don’t get embarrass as much as a men especially when it comes to marriage proposal if they given a choice they probably want the whole world to know on live TV.

        anri
        Reply

  7. 1. I got the feeling Zan is female.
    2. This episode was predictable after Haruka said she would be leaving for England.
    3. I am not sure whether Tachibana or Issei said the more manly speech, but I give issei points for not being cliche.

    deafvader
    Reply

  8. I think 2 shows this season spoil me too much that I find AmagamiSS+ episodes is slightly lacking.
    Nisemonogatari for the kinky erotic scene that pushes the boundary to its limit and had me saying to myself “I just had the weirdest boner”
    and Ano Natsu for the romantic and that “Aww…….. So Sweet!” moments that make my manliness level drop to the level of “I don’t want other people see me acting like this.”
    But in the end, even though I find the last part of this episode a Lil corny and cheesy, I still have this huge smile in my face when he actually confesses and kiss in front of everybody. So balls to you Junichi.

    Jhacks
    Reply

  9. After seeing the whole thing the animation was a noticable improvment over the original series. Consistent and good quality throughout, unfortunately the flashbacks illustrated that in some scenes lol. What a great job they did with each character. It totally feels like you could have played 6 instead of 4 in a row without skipping much of a beat. Great job and worth the wait!

    Breedo
    Reply

    1. Tsk, tsk! You all seem to forget the High Jumps during PE! Obviously, Haruka’s just applying what she’s learned >=D

      But yeah, this episode was incredibly sweet and felt like a ‘true end’ for Amagami. I always expected Haruka’s arc to be awesome but damn!

      And I second Amagami Season 3 Dx Do so want; hopefully one will come but will now focus on the other girls. So need Hibiki-chan and Sensei arc…….

      Kudos again to Junichi; what a man! He’s really stepped up his game this season!

      Beedle
      Reply

    2. Tsk, tsk! You seem to forget high jump practice during PE! Obviously, Haruka’s just applying what she’s learned >=D

      But yeah, this episode was incredibly sweet and felt like a ‘true end’ for Amagami. I always expected Haruka’s arc to be awesome but damn!

      And I second Amagami Season 3 Dx Do so want; hopefully one will come but will now focus on the other girls. So need Hibiki-chan and Sensei arc…….

      Kudos again to Junichi; what a man! He’s really stepped up his game this season!

      Beedle
      Reply

  11. Junichi speech to Haruka was the most sweetest and heartwarming thing i seen. And when he told her he loves her and propose to her on that podium, i went wild, screaming like a fangirl(actually more like a fujoshi who just saw Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner kissing each other! lol).

    And then she ran there, accepted his proposal and kiss him. My heart went “Awwwwww” and i cried seeing that. That was the best scene of this season.

    Now, next week, Miya and the female casts of Amagami are going to the Hot springs!

    MrTerrorist
    Reply

  15. Wow, Kudos to Junichi for pulling off something as ridiculous as that, I gotta admit though he looked pretty cool there.

    That teacher should get her own arc. Seriously.

    Nhelraios
    Reply

  17. Greatest freakin arc in the series. When Junichi confessed it was so climactic. Slamming his hands on the podium, finally calling out Haruka’s first name, confessing his love in front of the whole school, and on top of that proposing. That episode alone just bumped up my rating for this series.

    Nymphetamine2791
    Reply

  20. Zanibas, there is no such thing as too much Morning Rescue. It keeps away despair, witches, and the occasional contract-hungry incubator.

    Kudos to Junichi for that confession in front of the entire student body. Kudos to Haruka for “that leap of faith.” I am now wondering how she bent the laws of physics to jump that high, unless singkingmist’s theory that Haruka has Spartan Blood in her veins is true. XD

    My wishes for Amagami:
    1. Season III! Season III! (Yes, I want more Amagami)

    2. Arcs for Morishima Sexy Jessica, Kurosawa Noriko, Takahashi Maya-sensei, Tanaka Keiko, Kanae Itou (no, not that Kanae Ito), Yuzuri Ruriko, Manaka Hiba, and Tsukahara Hibiki-sempai (I want the last one to come true that badly, and I know the rest her fans do so as well).

    3. Give Umehara Masayoshi some love by pairing him with a suitable girl from the supporting cast. The “Ultimate Love Martyr” and “Bro Of The Year”-awardee deserves it!

    4. Maybe a live-action series/live action movie of Amagami (featuring an original story)? If Thermae Romae (which only had 3 episodes) got a live action movie adaptation, surely Amagami deserves one too?

    P.S. When Haruka leapt at Junichi, I bet the rest of the student body got a good look at her panties. Hehehehe…

    P.S.S. I’ll imitate Junichi and confess to my love interest at her graduation.

    The_Magus_Killer
    Reply

  21. As Enzo explained how Haruka was able to do that leap of faith:
    “The power of love, Baby…”
    😉

    Junichi has best be prepared after that proposal. Doubt the teachers will let this slide. Let’s not forget Ayatsuji’s wrath hohoho. But if he has balls to propose then he’s fine.
    Great job Junichi. You the man.

    One more episode? Yes.
    Onsen episode? Yes please!
    No Junichi? Me want now!

    Needs a Riza arc too.

    belatkuro
    Reply

  22. お帰りなさい、あなた。ねえ、あなた？いろいろ胃準備できるけど、どうする？ご食んする、お風呂する、それともワーターし？

    never imagined haruka saying that junichi is one lucky guy!

    Rayyy
    Reply

  25. I kinda admit, this is the best ending ever that outmatched every heroine’s ending of Amagami combined!

    Still, I’m feeling that Risa is becoming yandere after Junichi’s epic marriage proposal… Oh, and Queen Tsukasa is getting angry because Junichi made his speech gone too far.

    Benigmatica
    Reply

  26. Random thoughts:

    …Maya spagetti’ing over Junichi and Haruka’s little PDA was comedy gold!

    …I just noticed, why do “Bros of the Year, All Years” all look like? See Umehara and Andy from EVOL, for example. They both look the same, and they even have the same speech patterns. If it weren’t for the fact that they’re on different shows, I would’ve sworn they were brothers.

    Mediafag
    Reply

  27. Favourite alt texts for this episode:

    23: Nice catch!

    34: Dat grin.

    14: What’s with the madoka references, still golden though.

    Captions for 30: Going by her current trajectory she will actually hit the stage with her stomach!

    Best episode out of the 12! 13 might win best arc though it’s going to be a tough one 🙂

    LightnDark
    Reply

  28. For what it was, I think this episode was done well. The ending felt over the top, which is something Amagami SS is though not in a overbearing manner. Easily the best arc of the second series.

    Soiyeruda
    Reply

  31. Junichi YOU ARE THE BOSS! If only you replaced Shu in Guilty Crown and that show would have been saved! I am so glad I watched this after watching the end of Guilty Crown cuz that certainly made me feel better!

    X
    Reply

  34. Jessica is the Remon/Ichigo of Amagami SS now, ufufufufu~ alongside Miya’s Nishishishi~! XD

    Obvious Risa cameo next to Rihoko and Kanae (same class after all).

    Of course, we get trolled in the beginning. Seriously thought that we were getting some flash-forward scene that’d have them suddenly reminiscing about Junichi’s proposal, only for it to turn out to be them just roleplaying again, lol.

    Of course, one of my favorite parts was Juncihi’s head meeting the table during the whole nightgown scene, lol. Every time, right when he gets the guts to peek/look/etc, too late! XD

    HalfDemonInuyasha
    Reply

  35. In the first season, my two favorite arcs were Haruka’s arc followed by Ayatsuji’s arc.. But for this season I think it would be Ayatsuji then Haruka.. Though overall I guess I still like Haruka.. ^_^

    Faint Smile
    Reply

  37. I can only say this was the cutest, sweetest arc of all! Even better than Haruka’s first! She was always my favorite and they really pulled it off as a finale ^o^ Kudos to this ending!

    Kiria
    Reply

  39. I just wonder does scenes like these happen in real life at all?

    I know we all see it in TV, anime, movies and stuff, but does it really actually happen in real life? Has anyone actually done this or experience seening ppl propose like this in front of hundred of ppl?

    I know some ppl do it in a resturant and stuff but in front of a stadium with hundred of ppl in a different matter.

    anri
    Reply

    1. It largely depends on the couple though I’d attribute Junichi’s proposal to something akin to asking someone out to prom, since they’re in high school.

      Having also been to various stadiums to watch sports, I can say I’ve seen a few wedding proposals. It’s not unheard of.

      Soiyeruda
      Reply

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