winter 2023 anime

Jun Rolls a Nat 20 On Charming Tomo!

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Anime, Crunchyroll , , , , ,

Tomo-Chan is a Girl! Ep 10 Review

Soon, people. Soon, Tomo and Jun shall step outside the friend zone and become the couple they’re meant to be. And in this week’s episode, which goes back to focusing on Tomo and Jun, we not only see them grow closer, we also learn about how they almost drifted apart in middle school.

Tomo Almost Runs Herself into the Ground.

Interesting tidbit about the word ‘marathon,’ and the meaning behind it. During the Battle of Marathon in which the Greeks bested the invading Persian army, a lone soldier carried the news back to Athens. This soldier ran without rest the entire, 27-mile distance to tell the city of their victory. As soon as he did, though, the man died from exhaustion. 

Why am I mentioning all of this? Because Tomo does something very similiar, albeit not to the point of threatening her life. When their school’s annual marathon comes around, Tomo and Jun compete to see who can make it to the finish line first. Tomo being Tomo, she spent the whole day before training until she passed out in her bathroom. Thanks to that, she got a fever that made her collapse halfway through the race. Lucky for her, Jun carries her on his back to the nurse’s office; the whole way. 

As funny as it is to see how those two are more muscles than brains, it’s an undeniably sweet thing that Jun did. It makes them even closer than they already were, and it prompts Tomo to finally return Jun’s DS. So, why is this not as awesome as it should be?

The answer lies in the second segment, where we learn what happened when Jun, Tomo, and Misuzu entered middle school.

So Both Jun and Misuzu Had their Own Reasons for Dating!

If you’ll recall, it took seeing Tomo in a girl’s uniform when they started middle school for Jun to realize the obvious facts: Tomo is a girl. Mind. Blown.

Jun’s mind was so blown, the boy spent the next year struggling to comprehend this fact and not knowing how to act. It didn’t help that everyone thought they were already dating, making things even more awkward. So, Jun decides the best solution is to find another girl they both like to date. Awkwardness averted. 

As it so happens, Misuzu was looking for the same thing: a boy she could date while they hung out with Tomo. The stars aligned and, without even realizing it, the two were helping the other’s agenda. However, we all know how that turned out. 

In hindsight, it’s sweet but hilarious to learn that Jun and Misuzu dated because they didn’t want to lose Tomo in their lives. As it turns out, though, the problems they thought they had are all in their heads. Once they talk things out with Tomo, their friendship’s stronger than ever.

What Will You Do, Jun?

…is what I would like to say. However, after what happened at the marathon, Jun feels like his friendship with Tomo’s shakier than ever. This time, it’s because of the simple fact that he’s falling for her. If he doesn’t want to lose the best thing that ever happened to her, he needs to figure things out, and soon.

I know I’m sounding like a broken record, but I love this show and the romance. It’s so sweet to see two best friends who want to take the next step but struggle to do so. I’m rooting for them, though. This is one of the best romcoms I’ve seen in years!

I Give “How the Contest Ends” and “To Stay Best Friends…” a 4.5/5 Each

Misuzu Scares Us When She Smiles

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Anime , , , , , , , ,

Tomo-Chan is a Girl Ep. 4 Review

In my teen years, one of my go-to romcom anime was To-Love-Ru from the halls of Shonen Jump. Say what you want about harem anime and the fanservice, but it’s a lot of fun when it does stuff right. And one of the best things To-Love-Ru did at one point was splitting the episodes up into segments, letting them tell more stories in a single episode. Some of them didn’t even revolve around the main character; they could be about the supporting cast. Why am I talking about all of this, though? Because Tomo-Chan has reached the pointed where it can start to break each episode up into more segments and focus on the side characters. And the side characters are still pretty funny. 

Misuzu Gives Me all Kinds of Red Flags

An interesting thing about Misuzu: in the dub, she’s voiced by the talented Jad Saxton. A lot of her roles over the years have a recurring theme of being characters who are

  1. Associated with cats.
  2. Actual cat-girls.
  3. Cold & sassy tsundere’s
  4. All of the above

Going by this criteria, I’d say Misuzu was meant for someone like Jad. She acts prickly to almost everyone, and…she’s one of the best characters on the show.

The thing about Misuzu that the first short drives home is that she’s scary. Jun says that when she smiles, it’s like the Devil’s smiling at him. Even Tomo’s a little scared of her smile. However, Misuzu’s scary in a good way because you know she’s going to do something fun. 

Plus, she does care about her friends.

Misuzu Craves Tomo’s Affection

Misuzu may not say it outright, but as the next short makes clear, she deeply craves Tomo’s affection. They’ve been best friends since they were babies, and they balance each other quite well. Tomo brings out the best in Misuzu, and Misuzu keeps Tomo grounded when she lets her emotions run wild. So, when Tomo decides to become more physically affectionate with her girlfriends and winds up getting glomped by Carol all day, she gets jealous. 

Misuzu’s what we call a tsundere. Someone whose harsh to people at first but warm and affectionate to people once she’s warmed up to them. However, Misuzu’s pride also keeps her from expressing her emotions properly. Thankfully, Tomo and Misuzu’s bond is too strong to be broken by things like that.

As a side note: Jun’s a total hypocrite. When he surprises Tomo with a hug out of nowhere, it’s fine, but when she does it, it’s not cool? Either it’s cool for both of them, or it isn’t, man!

Tomo’s Parents are Just Like Her

The final short, while a bit all over the place, is also my favorite because we get to meet Tomo’s parents for the first time. After seeing them, her personality starts to make a lot more sense.

First, there’s her mom, whose just as fiery and passionate as her daughter is, to the point where she threatens Jun when he doesn’t call her by her first name. Then, we finally meet her dad, the head of the Aizawa Dojo. Despite being as much of a meathead as Tomo and Jun can be, he’s powerless before his wife. It’s clear that she wears the pants in the relationship. 

Despite what Tomo thinks of her Dad, Jun understands Mr. Aizawa a little better. He may not look cool in front of his wife and daughter, but Jun understands that he doesn’t need to put on airs in front of his family. He can be himself with them, and that’s the best thing anyone can ask for. The rest of the segment revolves around Tomo standing up to a group of bullies for her girlfriends. And when they seek revenge, Jun whups them offscreen. 

They may not have been as organized as some of the other episodes so far, but I’m still having fun watching them. Better wait for long-term for Jun to wise up to his best friend’s crush on him, though. 

I Give “The Reason for Her Smile” a 3.5/5, a “I Want to Be Playful Like a Girl” a 3.5/5, & “Heroes Fall a Lot” a 4/5