Sasameki Koto – 7

Well, I got my wish for more Akemiya! And, uh, the poor guy needs some help pretty badly. Yeesh.

Like most Sasameki Koto episodes, this one is a boatload of funny with a few moments of drama that gain a bit more impact because they’re the isolated islands surrounded by an ocean of humor. In this story, the bit of drama I keyed in on most is Akemiya’s chat with Murasame at the clothing store. From the moment Akemiya showed up to their date in women’s clothes, Murasame pieced together that Akemiya’s sister is pulling the strings with the date, and is also butting in on most other aspects of Akemiya’s life. Murasame wonders out loud if Akemiya can tell that his sister is messing around with him. Akemiya’s reply is pretty telling.

Akemiya says he read that siblings grow apart over time. He wants to be as close to his sister as possible before the day comes that she thinks of him as a freak, a creep and a weirdo. Murasame’s self-esteem might be out of whack, but Akemiya’s is positively horrid. He sees it as an inevitability that his sister will abandon him. That his sister will eventually tire of dressing him up like a doll and afterward view him with scorn. That there is no way she can grow to love him as simply Akemiya, instead of “Akemiya, the boy who dresses like cute girls”. To top it off, there is very little chance he will ever get Murasame to like him the way he wishes her to, no matter how hard he tries. Akemiya tries to pass it all off with a smile and by soldiering on, but he probably feels pretty damn lonely.

But, eventually, Akemiya will probably realize he has the whole world — and his whole life — ahead of him. The thought of one true love is something deeply romantic many people desperately cling to throughout their lives, but the fact is there are just too many people in the world for the idea of “one true love” to hold that much merit; plus, people’s feelings are so complex that there cannot possibly be just one match per person. Akemiya will look back fondly on Murasame for the rest of his life, but he’ll also realize that he can’t change who she is. If she likes girls, then she likes girls. That is that. It might be a bit unfair; however, that’s life. He legitimately likes her, so he will stop putting undue pressure on her. Being stuck firmly in the Friend Zone will probably suck, but hey, if that is how he can get closer to Murasame, then he may as well go for it.

Akemiya needs people who will support him and like him for who he is. Who the hell can handle something complicated like love if that person cannot even handle him- or herself? Once Akemiya is a bit more confident in who he is, then he’ll be on the right path to finding a person he loves and who will love him back. But it won’t happen before that, unless he is OMG SAVED by some girl.

Most of the episode isn’t quite that serious, though, haha. Akemiya’s sister, Manaka, made me feel bipolar throughout the story — sometimes she would do something hilarious, and other times she would do things that were terrible or outright creepy. (The whole incest thing is mainly played for laughs because Manaka is really too young to “get” what she’s talking about, but the opening scene plays out almost like a pseudo-rape scene, and it honestly made me a bit uncomfortable.) I’m not sure I like her much at all, but I think the point of her character is an extreme parody of the doting little sister trope. She is not particularly realistic, but she is sort of realistic in the sense that she would be the type of character born were anime character logic taken to its natural conclusion.

The trio of fat, sweaty pedophile otaku at the end of the episode nudged me in the direction of parody as well. They are so incredibly over the top (even though many exaggerations have some basis in reality), and Manaka tempting them with photos of elementary schoolers is a somewhat squicky, though admittedly very funny, moment of dark humor. Murasame kicking their asses and bouncing one of them around like a pinball is hilarious as well.

Next episode appears as though it will jump right back into Ushio and Murasame’s relationship. Ushio is pretty lonely without Murasame; she is on the prowl for cute girls all the time, but when she has some freedom during the weekend, it is Murasame to whom she turns. Poor Murasame is kicking herself at the end when she realizes she missed six (!!!) calls from Ushio during the day.