Yukan Club - Episode 06
I like this system. YC airs on Tuesday, by Friday I can download the subbed version, then I watch it on Saturday afternoons. Good thing I don't have a life, really...
Yukan Club - Episode 06
Plot: It's another slow day for Yukan Club as Karen resorts to counting love letters to keep herself entertained. Noriko gets more than she does, and that's just not fair because Noriko hates men...until this episode. Saved from the harassment of some badly-dressed jerks by a complete stranger, Noriko is surprised to learn that her savior is none other than Miroku's friend Yuya, and while he's not in her social class, he's not a bad guy. Or is he? Yuya desperately needs money to go home to his sick mother, and reverting to his former life as a mask-wearing getaway driver is the only way to get it. Too bad he doesn't find out until after the deed is done that he's just helped to steal a priceless work of art by Noriko's father. Needless to say, his partners in crime aren't keen on returning the three paintings, and it takes the combined efforts of Miroku's impossibly wide circle of friends, Tokimune and sidekicks, the You Can Cleaning van and a trio of superheroes (plus Bido and Karen) to save Yuya, retrieve the stolen goods, and break Noriko's heart.
In other news: Miroku has seemingly given up crying every episode in favour of spending half his time looking like he's just been crying, and the other half like he's about to burst into tears any minute. (Except when he's being goofy, of course.) Jin mentioned in Duet that he's been crying lately - could we be seeing the results here?
This was another episode which, if I was giving them ratings, I couldn't score better than a six out of ten. (And no, I'm not marking it down because I'm not fond of Koyama. Does he always make guest appearances in dramas as petty crooks? Talk about being typecast! I was half-expecting him to propose to Noriko to get the paintings; Miroku, filling in for Kurosaki, would then have to get him arrested.)
No, I didn't like this one much because although there was a crime, there was no mystery. (There was, however, Otokoyama, so the episode scores points for random cute dog appearances.) Everything was so straightforward, except Noriko's emotions. I'm not exactly keen on rich-girl-meets-boy-from-wrong-side-of-tracks stories, unless they're strictly comedy: I'd say I don't do romance, but this wasn't what you'd call a romance, either.
I like that Noriko is getting more screentime now, and I thought she looked really pretty with the little hat. But because despite being blunt, she's not very good at saying what she feels, it's a bit frustrating to watch her.
I did like the ripples it sent through her relationship with Seishiro, though. He was very good here: protective, a little possessive, more concerned with her welfare than his own. (Like Noriko was last week, not that the events of one episode seem to have any impact on the following ones. Not in this series.)
Bido continues to make me laugh. Clearly, after seducing girls his second favourite hobby is setting up his friends with unsuitable men and generally playing matchmaker. (Can you set Miroku up with someone, please? I hear there's a binge-eating boxer moving into your neighbourhood in January...) Sure, he's a bit on the wimpy side, but he means well, and Taguchi's got the part down so well I'll be shocked when he's no longer blond and blowing kisses at everything (complete with twinkly sound effects).
Yuri was much easier to take this episode, even if her solution to all problems is to offer food! (She'd get along great with my youngest brother, I think.) She and Miroku made an adorable double act when they walked into Yuya's workplace.
It's very unfortunate that I saw (but did not buy) that Kurosawa x Yuya doujinshi. Because now whenever Miroku says Yuya's name, I keep picturing Kame circa Sapuri... (Not that I've watched it yet, but I've skimmed it a little. Good hair.)
Speaking of Miroku...oh dear. Plenty of slapstick today, and it did make me laugh. On the one hand I want to tell him off for spraying his drink everywhere when his dad was on the phone, on the other I'm just sort of..."Oh! *giggles* I wonder how many takes that took?" No clue what was in the drink but he tripped over on his way out and then looked kind of hungover in the next scene...
Then we have the trio of superheroes: Miroku, Seishiro and Yuri! (And special mention for Bido for...um...nobly getting in the way.) Seishiro is obviously a serious student of the practice of Martial Arts Juggling (there must be one in Ranma somewhere), in addition to having a nice slide. (Play baseball much, Yoko?) Yuri, of course, has the Flying Kick of Justice. The less said about Miroku's part in the whole affair, the better, but it did give me an excellent opportunity to admire his pretty boots. He followed it with a great Three Stooges moment, accidentally hitting Bido on the head and giggling cutely about it afterwards. I now want to see Miroku carrying a ladder, because it is inevitable that he will turn round and hit someone by mistake with it...
It was very kind of them all to help out Yuya like that - especially Tokimune, since Yuya had been involved in a crime! But surely Yuri could've just given him the money out of her allowance?
I like Seishiro's business card. Very thoughtful-looking.
Aww...poor Noriko. It pains me that Karen looked so happy for her friend to be in tears, even though I know that's technically not why she was smiling.
Almost every time we see Miroku in the Student Council room, he's posing with a different guitar. Just how many has he got, anyway?
Still fascinated by the amount of gadgetry Yukan Club has at their disposal. Obviously, nothing is out of the reach of superheroes. Bored, rich superheroes with pretty boots. (Well, not Yuri's. I didn't like the style.)
Music: The various different versions of Keep the Faith used as BGM were beautiful, but the prize goes to the gorgeous acoustic one playing when Noriko skipped school to go with Yuya. Actually, all the BGM for this episode was fabulous. It's a bit like watching a live-action Kare Kano in places...
Obligatory Jin commentary: He looked very tired, poor boy, and sometimes a bit distracted when there was nothing for him to do. He did have some very cute facial expressions, though, and I particularly liked the little smile he exchanged with Seishiro when Noriko eschewed the comfort of Bido in favour of Karen. And when he was actually awake, he did the sparkly thing better than everyone else. Hang in there, Jin - you're past the halfway mark now!
Best scene: Noriko standing outside the warehouse while the Akame part of Keep the Faith plays, just as she's trying to decide whether or not to pick up the pipe (?) and go in to help Yuya. I thought that was a great moment for her, because casual slaps aside, Noriko has to be seriously moved by something to contemplate using force. The girl who hates men picking up a weapon to defend a man? (Especially when, realistically, it isn't a fight she can win because she's horribly outnumbered.)
Conclusion: I haven't *hated* any episodes of Yukan Club so far, but this one definitely isn't going to be on my favourites list. C'mon, guys, you lured me in with mystery and comedy, not odd near-romances and random superhero moments! I'd applaud the attempts at character development, except that the series is so episodic that there *is* no character development. They even say it themselves at the end of the episode - there's no change, things are back to normal.
Next week: Karen finally gets some screentime! I'm guessing the guy playing her love interest is someone I should recognise, but I'm clueless. Anyone able to enlighten me? Anyway, I shall be watching primarily for the joy of seeing Miroku looking pretty in various different disguises. And hey, we go from knives in this episode to guns in the next, so I'm guessing that by the final episode they'll be driving round in the You Can Cleaning Tank, with Yuri hanging out the top, hurling grenades at the bad guys...
Yukan Club - Episode 06
Plot: It's another slow day for Yukan Club as Karen resorts to counting love letters to keep herself entertained. Noriko gets more than she does, and that's just not fair because Noriko hates men...until this episode. Saved from the harassment of some badly-dressed jerks by a complete stranger, Noriko is surprised to learn that her savior is none other than Miroku's friend Yuya, and while he's not in her social class, he's not a bad guy. Or is he? Yuya desperately needs money to go home to his sick mother, and reverting to his former life as a mask-wearing getaway driver is the only way to get it. Too bad he doesn't find out until after the deed is done that he's just helped to steal a priceless work of art by Noriko's father. Needless to say, his partners in crime aren't keen on returning the three paintings, and it takes the combined efforts of Miroku's impossibly wide circle of friends, Tokimune and sidekicks, the You Can Cleaning van and a trio of superheroes (plus Bido and Karen) to save Yuya, retrieve the stolen goods, and break Noriko's heart.
In other news: Miroku has seemingly given up crying every episode in favour of spending half his time looking like he's just been crying, and the other half like he's about to burst into tears any minute. (Except when he's being goofy, of course.) Jin mentioned in Duet that he's been crying lately - could we be seeing the results here?
This was another episode which, if I was giving them ratings, I couldn't score better than a six out of ten. (And no, I'm not marking it down because I'm not fond of Koyama. Does he always make guest appearances in dramas as petty crooks? Talk about being typecast! I was half-expecting him to propose to Noriko to get the paintings; Miroku, filling in for Kurosaki, would then have to get him arrested.)
No, I didn't like this one much because although there was a crime, there was no mystery. (There was, however, Otokoyama, so the episode scores points for random cute dog appearances.) Everything was so straightforward, except Noriko's emotions. I'm not exactly keen on rich-girl-meets-boy-from-wrong-side-of-tracks stories, unless they're strictly comedy: I'd say I don't do romance, but this wasn't what you'd call a romance, either.
I like that Noriko is getting more screentime now, and I thought she looked really pretty with the little hat. But because despite being blunt, she's not very good at saying what she feels, it's a bit frustrating to watch her.
I did like the ripples it sent through her relationship with Seishiro, though. He was very good here: protective, a little possessive, more concerned with her welfare than his own. (Like Noriko was last week, not that the events of one episode seem to have any impact on the following ones. Not in this series.)
Bido continues to make me laugh. Clearly, after seducing girls his second favourite hobby is setting up his friends with unsuitable men and generally playing matchmaker. (Can you set Miroku up with someone, please? I hear there's a binge-eating boxer moving into your neighbourhood in January...) Sure, he's a bit on the wimpy side, but he means well, and Taguchi's got the part down so well I'll be shocked when he's no longer blond and blowing kisses at everything (complete with twinkly sound effects).
Yuri was much easier to take this episode, even if her solution to all problems is to offer food! (She'd get along great with my youngest brother, I think.) She and Miroku made an adorable double act when they walked into Yuya's workplace.
It's very unfortunate that I saw (but did not buy) that Kurosawa x Yuya doujinshi. Because now whenever Miroku says Yuya's name, I keep picturing Kame circa Sapuri... (Not that I've watched it yet, but I've skimmed it a little. Good hair.)
Speaking of Miroku...oh dear. Plenty of slapstick today, and it did make me laugh. On the one hand I want to tell him off for spraying his drink everywhere when his dad was on the phone, on the other I'm just sort of..."Oh! *giggles* I wonder how many takes that took?" No clue what was in the drink but he tripped over on his way out and then looked kind of hungover in the next scene...
Then we have the trio of superheroes: Miroku, Seishiro and Yuri! (And special mention for Bido for...um...nobly getting in the way.) Seishiro is obviously a serious student of the practice of Martial Arts Juggling (there must be one in Ranma somewhere), in addition to having a nice slide. (Play baseball much, Yoko?) Yuri, of course, has the Flying Kick of Justice. The less said about Miroku's part in the whole affair, the better, but it did give me an excellent opportunity to admire his pretty boots. He followed it with a great Three Stooges moment, accidentally hitting Bido on the head and giggling cutely about it afterwards. I now want to see Miroku carrying a ladder, because it is inevitable that he will turn round and hit someone by mistake with it...
It was very kind of them all to help out Yuya like that - especially Tokimune, since Yuya had been involved in a crime! But surely Yuri could've just given him the money out of her allowance?
I like Seishiro's business card. Very thoughtful-looking.
Aww...poor Noriko. It pains me that Karen looked so happy for her friend to be in tears, even though I know that's technically not why she was smiling.
Almost every time we see Miroku in the Student Council room, he's posing with a different guitar. Just how many has he got, anyway?
Still fascinated by the amount of gadgetry Yukan Club has at their disposal. Obviously, nothing is out of the reach of superheroes. Bored, rich superheroes with pretty boots. (Well, not Yuri's. I didn't like the style.)
Music: The various different versions of Keep the Faith used as BGM were beautiful, but the prize goes to the gorgeous acoustic one playing when Noriko skipped school to go with Yuya. Actually, all the BGM for this episode was fabulous. It's a bit like watching a live-action Kare Kano in places...
Obligatory Jin commentary: He looked very tired, poor boy, and sometimes a bit distracted when there was nothing for him to do. He did have some very cute facial expressions, though, and I particularly liked the little smile he exchanged with Seishiro when Noriko eschewed the comfort of Bido in favour of Karen. And when he was actually awake, he did the sparkly thing better than everyone else. Hang in there, Jin - you're past the halfway mark now!
Best scene: Noriko standing outside the warehouse while the Akame part of Keep the Faith plays, just as she's trying to decide whether or not to pick up the pipe (?) and go in to help Yuya. I thought that was a great moment for her, because casual slaps aside, Noriko has to be seriously moved by something to contemplate using force. The girl who hates men picking up a weapon to defend a man? (Especially when, realistically, it isn't a fight she can win because she's horribly outnumbered.)
Conclusion: I haven't *hated* any episodes of Yukan Club so far, but this one definitely isn't going to be on my favourites list. C'mon, guys, you lured me in with mystery and comedy, not odd near-romances and random superhero moments! I'd applaud the attempts at character development, except that the series is so episodic that there *is* no character development. They even say it themselves at the end of the episode - there's no change, things are back to normal.
Next week: Karen finally gets some screentime! I'm guessing the guy playing her love interest is someone I should recognise, but I'm clueless. Anyone able to enlighten me? Anyway, I shall be watching primarily for the joy of seeing Miroku looking pretty in various different disguises. And hey, we go from knives in this episode to guns in the next, so I'm guessing that by the final episode they'll be driving round in the You Can Cleaning Tank, with Yuri hanging out the top, hurling grenades at the bad guys...