Takako decides to track down the con artist in Tokyo that ran away and took the money with her last effort to save the inn. Ohana also tags along to confront her mother about her future and of course, meeting her crush, Ko.
Following Sui’s announcement of closing the inn after the festival is over, it has darkened the mood of everything. Sadly, things aren’t meant to last forever and eventually everyone has to move on with their lives once it’s over. For Ohana, this makes things interesting as the thought of moving back to Tokyo means that she has to encounter her feelings for Ko that she neglected. Thankfully, her new aunt, Takako accompanies her to Tokyo since she needs to get back at the con artist and take back the money.
In a surprising turn of events, Satsuki takes things into her own hands and reconciles Ko’s relationship with Ohana during lunch. What fascinated me about the discussion is that there was no mention of Igarashi anywhere. You would have thought that he would give up on Ohana since she is having a fun time at her grandmother’s inn, but nope! He was very understanding and knew the circumstances Ohana was facing. This is the reason he never dumped her. Not to mention, he still has feelings for her and believe that she will come back someday. From this, I am glad that he hanged on for so many months as many would have been hopeless at that point.
On the other front, Takako finally redeems herself in her mission to recoup the money that the con artist stolen. In the past, she was a very annoying character because the bad ideas she brought to the table and her overuse of Engrish catchphrases. This all changes when she causes a diversion and eventually using her judo skills to throw the con artist down. Her actions were simply amazing and totally unexpected. It’s definitely one of her redefining moments in the whole show.
Meanwhile, Ohana’s mixed cola/tea mix and Ko’s mention of bland coffee brought an interesting metaphor. It showed their difficulties to express their unrequited love for each other because of distance. Between them, Ohana was tense since she views him as her “selfish, one-sided crush.” On the other hand, Ko felt concerned for Ohana and doesn’t know what she was up to for several months. In addition, the bland coffee he drank from the day he briefly met Ohana also troubled him. Eventually, the movie that Satsuki obtains and shows him helps regain the confidence he needs to get back with Ohana. Coincidently enough, he walks into her after he got revitalized.
This episode was a great turning point for Ohana and Ko as the pressure to express their feelings are gradually going away. While Ko worried about Ohana lately, it’s a good thing that Satsuki cheered him up. In addition, the viewing of the test tape brought a lot of funny moments, especially with Tomoe when she tries to act differently so she can appeal to the audience. Hopefully, he now has enough courage and confesses to Ohana again so she can finally acknowledge his feelings.
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