Rent-a-Girlfriend Season 3 Episode 8 Review

Rental, Neighbor, and Girlfriend

Rent-a-Girlfriend Season 3 Episode 8 may have come a week late, but it’s here. It could have been worse, though. Jujutsu Kaisen just came back from a 4-week break. And Zom 100 had two breaks in a row. One week off isn’t so bad.

Anyway, in this week’s episode, Ruka did some serious damage to Mizuhara. Sure, she called Chizuru a rental girlfriend and herself his real girlfriend. That’s normal and doesn’t phase Chizuru. But then, she called Kazuya by his given name without the honorific. That’s a power move and shows that Ruka’s the one setting the pace.

Ruka’s not the one playing catch-up. She’s fully in the lead at this point. Though, I would argue that was already the case. After all, Ruka has kissed Kazuya. As far as I can remember, Chizuru hasn’t done that. But, I also don’t believe Chizuru knows that happened.

Something else this episode made me realize is that there aren’t actually four main girls. From the start of the series, we’re led to believe that there’s going to be a battle royale over Kazuya. There’s Chizuru, Ruka, Mami, and Sumi, right? Well, it hasn’t turned out that way.

Chizuru and Ruka have come out on top as the two main girls. And now that Mini’s in the mix, things are a bit awkward for Mami and Sumi. I could be wrong. But, I think Mini has had more screen time this season than Mami and Sumi combined.

Have we even seen Mami at all this season? I remember a scene of her plotting devious things online at the end of one episode. But, that could have been last season, for all I know. I’d like her to be relevant again. Mami brings the spice this series needs.

Chizuru’s Dreams

Does Chizuru actually still want to be an actress? Or is she only putting all her time and effort into acting because she thinks she has to? Did her grandfather’s encouragement to follow her dream turn into pressure to achieve it?

Chizuru’s grandmother seems to think that might be the case. Though, this isn’t something she thought up on her own. Before his death, Chizuru’s grandfather also worried the same thing. He wanted to push Chizuru to chase her dreams. But, he didn’t want those dreams to become a burden.

Now that Granny Sayuri sees how much effort Chizuru is putting into her movie, she has some concerns. But, I’m here to tell you, and Granny Sayuri, that there’s nothing to worry about. Following your dreams is never a bad thing. Even if things don’t work out, at least you tried. There’s no shame in that.

But, is being an actress still Chizuru’s dream? Dreams change over time. At one point, I wanted to be an engineer. I even went to college for that initially. And then I realized that I hate math, so here I am. Anyway, has the same thing happened to Chizuru?

No. It’s pretty obvious that becoming an actress is still Chizuru’s dream. Sure, there’s some added pressure right now because of her grandmother’s health. She wants her grandmother to see her on the big screen. So, there’s a time constraint right now. But, that doesn’t change Chizuru’s ultimate dream.

It’s not as if Chizuru’s going to stop acting once her grandmother dies. I mean, what other hobbies does she have? She goes to school, works, and devotes all her free time to acting. That’s not something you do out of obligation. You have to want it.

Make-or-Break

Toward the end of the episode, Granny Sayuri collapsed. She had to be rushed to the hospital and still hasn’t regained consciousness. According to the doctors, this is the make-or-break moment. So, do you think she’s going to survive to the movie premiere?

In my professional opinion, she’s not. Even if she was still alive by the time of the premiere, she wouldn’t be able to go. It’s clear that she’d be in no condition to leave the hospital. But, I’m going to go even further than that and say she’s going to die in the next episode.

To me, that’s the obvious conclusion. But, I accidentally scrolled down to the comments after watching this episode. And, I took psychic damage from some of the things I read there. Apparently, this isn’t as obvious as I thought. I even saw some people questioning where Kazuya was going.

Alright, so that might have been my fault for assuming Kanokari fans could use their brains. But, we literally saw where Kazuya was going and why. The movie edits are complete — or complete enough. So, he’s going to get the movie so that they can play it in the hospital for Granny Sayuri.

She might not be able to respond right now. But, the doctors said that she could still hear what they’re saying. And that means she’ll be able to hear the movie, even if she can’t watch it. She might manage to watch it, though. We’ll have to wait and see.

Anyway, why is this so obvious? Again, we saw the text Kazuya got about the edits being complete. And if tonight is make-or-break for Granny Sayuri, she has to see (hear) the movie tonight. I’m curious if Kazuya will make it back in time.

Final Thoughts

What do you think of Kanokari Season 3 Episode 8? Is Ruka winning the Kazuya competition? Do you think Chizuru views acting as a burden? And, are you expecting Granny Sayuri to die before she gets to see the movie? Let me know in the comments.

As I said, I think Ruka’s clearly in the lead right now, even if we know Kazuya likes Chizuru more. And, again, I can’t see any situation in which acting isn’t still Chizuru’s dream. But, where I’m not so sure is when it comes to Granny Sayuri.

If she dies before Kazuya gets back, that would be very emotional. And, of course, Chizuru would be thankful for Kazuya trying to get the movie in time. But, I also feel like that may be a bit too dark for this series. So, I’m predicting she’ll die shortly after seeing or hearing the movie.

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My review of Episode 9 is available now.