As expected, I had to do episodes 18 and 19 together, but I took notes in order, so hopefully I won’t be spitting out too much stuff about episode 19 in this post. But, I think, even if you haven’t [...]
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とらドラ���Episode 18 SPOILER Summary/Synopsis: Taiga and Yuri-sensei crash into each other, cause Taiga to drop a box of confetti and Yuri-sensei to drop her papers. As Ryuuji helps clean up, Yuri-sensei wants to make sure that their grades don't slip while doing all this prep work for the Christmas party. Taiga and Ryuuji head to the gym where the others, including Ami, are working. The group
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Wow! Look at all these little plot threads flying around! In other words, nothing extremely major happened in this episode. Ami starts spouting insightful yet vague advice at Takasu again, then implies she likes him (again). Taiga continues being a good girl for Santa and also explains her reasons behind this. Minorin keeps on spacing out, [...]
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Toradora! 18 Baby Taiga saw Santa Claus! Her existential philosophy is really quite beautiful - in a world without God (and in her case, without parents) she needs to imagine someone is watching her, to give her life meaning. For Taiga, that somebody is “Santa”. This theme is echoed in Ami’s sentiment that the person each of us knows least is ourself. It’s a fascinating idea that we can only define ourselves under the gaze of the other - and very poignant to the situation of Taiga and Ryuuji, who have really established their senses of selfhood through their relationship with each other. Of course, Ami aptly points out that this relationship is inherently flawed and incomplete, foreshadowing the maelstrom ahead as much as Minorin’s breaking of Taiga’s Christmas ornament does - they’ve all just been playing house and nothing can stay the same. This episode had me thinking that it would have been better if the airing of this show had shifted two months earlier, so we could have had the Christmas arc over Christmas, and the Valentines Day arc right now! (Although that wouldn’t work because the final novel which happens right after Valentines doesn’t come out until March, around the time the anime will end. Hooray for a synchronous ending though!) Not much else to say - all talk no rock this episode since we were mostly just setting things up for the Christmas party next week. I’m so excited about the inclusion of certain scenes in the preview that I can’t say anything at all - my blog will remain spoiler free! I’m shutting up now!
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Taiga is still doing her best to be good for Santa. She sends gifts to family and friends, even orphans. Minori still wallowing in self pity is not so cute, she may have her reasons, but she not coming off so good. Ami is shining brighter and brighter in her quite, observant remarks. When she [...]
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Ever since that scrap between Taiga and Sumire, Toradora! seems to be on an ever-deepening emotional spiral when it comes to the relationships between the major characters, and despite being quite a slow-paced instalment episode eighteen moves things on a little further in this sense. Of course, the main focus is the continuing preparations for the school Christmas party, with Taiga continuing
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I remember mentioning how I hate Ami, or rather Ami-chan. I take that back now as she is not the two-faced person she seems to be. Behind the inexplicable facade lies knowledge of interpersonal relationship, Ami knows even more about someone’s relationship with another than the person simply through observations. She makes use of this [...]
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Still too late for xmas. Summary: While preparing decorations at school, Ryuji and Taiga run into Yuri in the halls. Yuri expresses her worry about the students because of their recent parties, particularly Koji, but the two assure her that they are still doing their best with studies. Ryuji wonders if Yuri would be attending their [...]
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