First Impressions / K-ON!

「整頓！」 (Seiton!)
“Tidying Up!”

Oh my. Mio with her hair up in a ponytail is like a whole other dimension to her appeal that I never considered before. The whole glasses bit in the opening isn’t too shabby either, but that long ponytail is something else! I’m normally indifferent about ponytails altogether, but Mio doesn’t seem to look bad in any situation, even when she falls face first on stage and flashes some shimapan. Anyway, I can go on and on about Mio, but this episode actually involved the discovery of one of Sawa-chan’s old guitars in the club room.

Despite being somewhat moldy in its case, Sawa-chan suggests that they try to sell it to raise some club funds since she no longer needs it, nor the side of her that comes with it. After a value assessment at the music store, everyone’s shocked to find out that it’s worth 500,000 yen (~$5350 USD), making all the girls but Mugi give into greedy temptations. Now who would’ve thought that even the mighty Mio would fall to such levels, as the thought of upgrading her bass guitar got the best of her. As amusing as that was, it was just as funny seeing Mugi all sparkle-eyed as if she were a kid in a candy store, except she was actually at a home center/renovation store with her fascination over commoners out in full force. I can never get sick of that endearing side to Mugi, which is probably the next best thing about her character after her thick eyebrows.

Back to the greediness, I loved how it got the best of the girls, most notably Ritsu and her decision to tell Sawa-chan that the guitar only sold for 10,000 yen. Her attempt to swallow the transaction receipt before Sawako could see it was absolutely hilarious, but what amazed me was that even Azusa was celebrating over what she thought was a nice save by Ritsu. First Mio, now Azusa as well. The greed corruption spreads further, which is why I rather enjoyed seeing the receipt taken out of Ritsu’s mouth after a bit of convincing. What a let-down by the club leader to say the least, as all Ritsu had to do was swallow! (No perverse meaning intended.) Yui on the other hand is typical Yui for you, as she was merely content with getting lightly slapped by a wad of bills after they were all busted. It wasn’t quite Ui doing it to her, but she didn’t seem to mind much.

All in all, a funnier showing than the first episode, but still not quite “laugh until you cry” funny. This series never quite gets to that point I find, so I can’t really complain when we have all the silliness to compensate. I still feel kind of bad for Azusa though, as her new junior club member is just a turtle. Oh well, at least she seems receptive to Yui’s idea, even though she was way off the mark. Next episode, it looks like we’ll finally see some more of Ui in season two.

 

Update (04/15): Judging by the number of DVD/BD volumes that will be released (9), it looks like this second season of K-ON will be two cour long. i.e. 24-26 episodes plus 1-3 bonus DVD/BD-only episode(s)! Oh snap…

 

Preview

47 Comments

      2. I was certainly distracted, but I don’t know how moe someone can look trying to eat paper. But I guess that’s the undeniable power of K-ON! Let us bask in its glory!

        longtimefirsttime
        Reply

  3. Ah yes my favorite part in the manga! Although it looks like KyoAni will be taking majority of the story from the manga. I wonder if they’ll change the Show Spoiler ▼

    On a Side note SHOSHITSU ROCKS!!! Damn blu-ray release is taking too long. I gotta hand it to KyoAni that was one mighty impressive adaptation! It actually made me watch the damn cam rip even though the shot was like that for people with stiff neck. WILL REWATCH IT once it comes out in blu-ray.

    Enough of that from me since this is a K-ON!! blog
    *Goes to watch RAWS!*

    megalith
    Reply

    1. Just watched it and this definitely had more laughs than the 1st one. Damn I can’t help but laugh at the scene where they were cheering for Ritsu to eat the receipt and also the part where Yui asks here last favor before Sawako takes the money. XD

      megalith
      Reply

  6. Haha, very nice episode. The best part of this episode has to be Mugi’s innocence and the other girls’ greediness.

    And adding to what megalith mentioned, KyoAni has done a great job adapting the manga material (as with any other of their works). I can’t wait until they adapt the part where Show Spoiler ▼

    Phocus
    Reply

  8. Lol Money is the ROOT OF ALL EVIL… except for cute Ojou-sama like MUGI! Amusing episode yet again. I swear they have so many slice of life with girls.. I kinda wish that once in a while, they would do one with an all guy cast.

    Sora no Kaze
    Reply

  9. “K-On!! episode 2, mothersuckers, eat this! Moeeeeeeeeee!”

    *moe comedy explosion ensues*

    “Oh snap!”

    Damn, Mio manages to look good in anything… And non-greedy Mugi is to be expected, being an ojou and all.

    And if there’s a slice-of-life series with an all-guy cast, I’m sure they need to be an estrogen brigade bait with a mix of stupid sexy flanders for insurance. Wait…what about the abridged series of this show? Isn’t that an all-guy cast already?

    As for Show Spoiler ▼

    … Fan overreactions and certain sites adding more fuel to the fire… Ugh… Keep circulating the MST3K mantra, please… (“It’s just a manga/anime series, I should really just relax.”)

    I’ll just wait for the subs though…

    Incognito
    Reply

  11. The paper eating scene was priceless, best move attempted by Ritsu by far, though I find it weird why Mugi was celebrating with everybody during that, isn’t she rich already?

    Siege
    Reply

  13. When I started watching K-On last year Mugi was just the girl with the weird eyebrows. As time went by I became fascinated with her. She remains a bit of a mystery. I’m glad that all her character traits have remained…maybe even amplified a little. Mio is the girl most likely, but Mugi is the girl most interesting.

    Kalliente
    Reply

  15. Just saw the ep.

    The whole money sitcom shtick was the most entertaining part, and it definitely came to a head when Ritsu ate the paper IN FRONT OF THE PERSON SHE WAS HIDING IT FROM.

    But *I* wanna see more of that tasty once-over of Sawako-sensei!! HOT DAWN!

    starss
    Reply

  18. Loved the Yui gun scene. PEW PEW you guys are dead.

    Also, is it just me, or does Mio seem to have less lines this season than last season? So far at least…

    Thanks again Divine!

    LaN
    Reply

  24. I read (rumor)that the series is scheduled for 24 episodes this time. I think they are going to drag the new member “plot” all the way to the end and then pass the “baton” at the end to whomever becomes “new”. If they can keep this moe overload for so long I’ll surely die. God this series is out of the charts, all the girls are so lovely. Seeing them overtaken by greed made them so real life. Finally if they dress Mio in rags and sweaty and whatever you can think looks bad, she will make it look uber beautiful. Yui sleep hair in the classroom was super moe too!!!!

    Island Esper
    Reply

    1. It is said that volume 9 of the DVD is already on the upcoming list on Amazon Japan.

      Assuming 2-3 episodes per DVD, that could indeed go up to 24-27 episodes. (Perhaps 2 epilogue extras, and 1 DVD only bonus, to make it 21-24 + 3)

      Another rumour is that the main scriptwriters responsible for Kyo-Ani’s more story-intensive series like Kanon and Clannad will be involved in order to beef up the drama to ensure the current moe overload is not too mindless that it gets out of control (or at least not any more out of control than it already is).

      Kinny Riddle
      Reply

      1. If some of the writers from Kanon and Clannad do come help this show, then K-On will suddenly turn into a good show. Right now, it’s pretty lacking. For a light music club, their on screen playing is worse than “light.”

        RaptorJesus
        Reply

    1. Makes you question it though… Why was she given attention that it kicks your curiosity at an all time high? I wonder if she’ll play a significant role sometime.

      On a side note though.. I have no idea what the next episode will be about. Guess it’ll be an anime original.

      megalith
      Reply

  26. For some reason, Mio in ponytail reminds me of Yomi from Ga-Rei Zero. After all, Mio does resemble Yomi a lot to begin with, and Yomi tends to tie her hair in a ponytail when in battle-mode.

    http://img2.gelbooru.com//samples/378/sample_8ba4b95f3b40656804c85168037cffee0d8c6cb3.jpg?487795

    http://blogsuki.com/archives/2009/05/19/2618/

    First LOL at the greed consuming all but Mugi (for obvious reasons). Ritsu even takes the term “swallowing club funds” to a literal level. XD

    Yui is so easy to please, when all she ever does with so much money is to have anyone (preferrably Ui) slap the notes on her face. In a way, she’s actually not much different from Mugi when it comes to money.

    Second LOL at the fact that Sawa-chan’s glasses turns out to be a limiter on her dark nature. XDD

    “Attention to detail” – A term Kyo-Ani is often praised for. Please allow this fanboy to shamelessly indulge a bit on this aspect: Though considerably not as dazzling as last week, there is still a lot of these “detail” at work.

    Like who would have noticed that the club room actually had a sink?
    https://randomc.net/image/K-ON/K-ON!!%20-%2002%20-%20Large%2008.jpg

    Or the girls’ classmates? (Not in this screenshot, but some attention was focused on the girl sitting next to Yui. )
    https://randomc.net/image/K-ON/K-ON!!%20-%2002%20-%20Large%2001.jpg

    Or the visual effects on Mio’s camera?
    https://randomc.net/image/K-ON/K-ON!!%20-%2002%20-%20Large%2039.jpg

    Kinny Riddle
    Reply

  27. This is one of those episodes that makes you want to tell your friends who don’t watch K-On to watch it… if only because the scene where Ritsu ate the receipt was purely awesome & funny. =D

    RasenShun
    Reply

  28. Object lesson: MOE money means MOE problems
    …. sorry couldn’t resist

    Ritsu eating the receipt was just hilarious, I haven’t laughed that much in a while. Also I find it pretty amusing that even in with great wealth, Yui still has simple tastes.

    fragb85
    Reply

  31. So… I think I heard some Eric Clapton, AC/DC and Black Sabbath when the guy in the store explains the value of the guitar. Damn, I couldn’t believe it when I saw the Gibson SG… It’s surprising that nor Sawa-chan nor Azusa couldn’t tell what they had right off the bat!!

    amalek
    Reply

  34. Where the hell are they getting the material for over 20 episodes? They only got 13 out of the first two volumes, and Kakifly’s not through volume 4 yet. And are they gonna drag out the girls’ third year all season, or will they actually take the dive and graduate them?

    Oh, who am I kidding? It’s KyoAni. They’ll just make the trip to the music festival eight episodes long.

    Zeke
    Reply

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