Rating: A-
The season’s opening episode is a very busy one, but remarkably, not a rushed-feeling one. It uses a sharp, efficient pace to update the audience on what has happened in the six month interlude since the release of the “Pop In 2” video and lay out the current state of affairs for all the major cast members. Interestingly, it does all of this without giving much sense of direction for where the series is going next, which is very unusual for this franchise; nearly every previous episode has either definitively been part of an arc or else was setting up the next one. Or is a direction being hinted at by the final scene? After all, the episode does end with the long-overdue reappearance of a character who played a big role back in the first season’s episode 1.
Professionally at least, everything is going well for the main cast. The new B Komachi is now a legitimate rising star in the idol community, Akane has just completed her first lead movie role, Ruby is getting attention beyond just B Komachi, and Aqua is getting increased exposure in a variety of fields, including (interestingly) upcoming additional roles with Lala Lai. Of this, how busy Aqua is getting is maybe the most significant detail; that he’s allowing himself to go this far is sure sign that he’s let himself continue to be unfettered by the revenge plan not hanging over his head anymore.
The episode places particular emphasis on how none of this is accomplished without a lot of work. MEM-cho is used to show how much effort actually goes into establishing and maintaining a long-last online presence, while both Akane and B Komachi have packed schedules. Aqua is instead used to show how variety shows like his typically film multiple episodes on the same day. (In the half-hour game show business, too, filming a whole week’s worth of episodes in one day has apparently been a norm for decades.) The surprise here is Ruby fashioning her own pitch deck to give to Kaburagi; she definitely didn’t show this kind of personal initiative before. But she does now have a goal beyond just following in her mother’s footsteps, after all.
What’s going on below the surface is more of a mixed bag. Ruby can still project her cheery attitude when performing, but her switch to black stars in the last episode of last season has caught the attention of more than just the music video producer Anemone, and it’s no surprise she’s become more distant off-camera. Kana’s situation is also easily understandable, as Aqua has not only turned her down romantically but is also keeping his distance. And while Kana has long had romantic interest in Aqua, not being able to stay even friends seems to be hurting her every bit as much as (if not more than) losing out to Akane on the dating front. Yes, preventing any semblance of impropriety is the rational choice, but that doesn’t mean totally avoiding her. Aqua is normally the mature one, but he’s not handling this well because he’s too trapped, still too traumatized, by what happened to Ai.
That brings us to the scene with MEM-cho. She’s ideally positioned to stand between Kana and Aqua, and no hint of romantic entanglement means she can talk to him safely. (And even if she was caught in a semblance of a scandal with a guy, there’s a sense that it would be less damaging to her than to Kana.) The most interesting aspect of their scene is that, while MEM-cho is initially surprised by Aqua pushing her down, she doesn’t seem threatened by it or apprehensive about it. And I think she’s right about her observation about Aqua.
The episode ends with Ruby tracking down Saitou Ichigo, the man who was Ai’s producer but has been MIA since episode 1, but that’s not the only other event of note in the episode. Though the song “B no Revenge” (which featured Ruby and Aqua’s father watching the new B Komachi music video) is positioned as the OP, it’s actually listed as an insert song. The means the proper new opener “Test Me” won’t appear until (presumably) next week.
Overall, this episode did an excellent job of capturing and updating many of the themes which have made the series what it is. It shows quite clearly that these characters aren’t static; like real people, they change as their motivations shift, even if they remain haunted by the past. This leaves me practically giddy about what the series might do next.
USA Anime 