Wotaku ni Koi wa Muzukashii – 10

「光くん登場とネトゲリベンジ」 (Kou-kun Toujou to Netoge Ribenji)
“Introducing Kou-kun and Online Gaming Revenge”

Nao-chan is too pure for this world!

Hello, one and all! As a special punishment treat this week, your Wotakoi needs will be met by me, Stilts-sama, because Takkun is off working or something. Which means I get to prattle on about adorable nerds, and I couldn’t be happier with the episode I was gifted. Or any Wotakoi episode, really. It’s gold all the way down so far.

This week focused mostly on the introduction of Sakuragi Kou (Yuuki Aoi), a shy gamer who Nao meets one day. Who is, unbeknownst to Nao, a girl! Not that that’ll stop Narumi and Hanako from yaoi shipping them, if the past is any indication.

As far as Kou-kun, so far their relationship is what it seems: Nao decided to befriend him her, and she has next to no defenses against a loveable idiot like Nao. Fair ’nuff. That’s in the early stages of any development, though, so there’s not much else to say. What really caught my eye this week was the subtle changes in Narumi’s behavior.

Of the two, Narumi has the most room to grow in their relationship. She’s comfortable with Hirotaka, so comfortable that there’s none of that delightful tension that adds unique spice to a young couple’s life. They really do act like just friends most of the time, and that’s good! A couple ought to be best friends first and foremost. But she’s only slowly catching up to some of the more girlfriend/boyfriend aspects of the relationship with Hirotaka. Such as when she pouted when he didn’t show up to play the game with them, and then was awfully happy when he finally did. Or when she reacted oddly to the idea of other women finding Hirotaka attractive, almost like she was panicking. Or when she started to admit that maybe he was a little hot, just maybe—even as she still tried to deny it. She’s slowly inching toward a more well-rounded relationship with Hirotaka, and it’s a good time watching them bumble their way forward. Adding on some Nao-chan fun was just icing on the cake. I don’t think I could eat another bite!

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