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.

If you enjoyed this review, remember to share it with everyone you know. Also, follow me on your social media of choice so you don’t miss out on any future articles — links are in the footer.

Finally, I’d like to thank Roman and JasonHK for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. And I’d like to thank Key Mochi for supporting at the Senpai tier. To learn more about becoming a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

My review of Episode 9 is available now.

Ruka Sarashina’s Birthday

Ruka Sarashina was born on August 26th, 2000. That means that if Rent-a-Girlfriend Season 3 Episode 7 aired a week later, it would have been on her birthday. It’s always disappointing to see missed opportunities like that. Why couldn’t they delay this episode by one week?

Now, some of you geniuses are going to try to “well actually” me. One week from today is Friday, August 25th, not the 26th. Sure, for most of the world, that’s correct. But, new Kanokari episodes air after 1 AM on Saturdays in Japan. So, in Japan, it would be the 26th when the episodes aired.

I’m also pretty sure that Ruka is supposed to have just turned 18 in the series. So, congratulations, she’s legal. In reality, she’d be turning 23 next week, though. That would make Ruka five years younger than me. There’s your DoubleSama lore for the day.

Of course, at the end of Episode 6, Kazuya agreed to do whatever Ruka wanted for her birthday. And, while agreeing to that probably wasn’t a good idea, Ruka didn’t take advantage of him. She could have asked for something Kazuya would normally never do. But, she didn’t.

In fact, Ruka didn’t even ask for Kazuya to kiss her. That’s how much restraint she showed here. Though, there’s an important reason why she held back in this way. She knows that she needs to make Kazuya like her on his own. She can’t force him to like her over Chizuru.

Ruka’s not dumb, even if she acts out at times. She knows that Kazuya’s going to resist if she forces anything on him; she’s tried that before. So, she spends her birthday trying to show Kazuya all her best qualities. You know, like her body in a bikini.

Ruka’s First Bikini

The first thing Ruka wants to do to celebrate her birthday is go to the pool. And why does she want to go to the pool? Is it to swim? Not necessarily. It’s all part of her master plan to seduce Kazuya.

First, Ruka wants to show off her new bikini to Kazuya. And, surprisingly, she claims this is the first bikini she’s bought. I’d like to refute that claim. But, I don’t actually remember if we’ve seen her in one before. Though, I have a feeling we’ve seen her in a swimsuit before now.

I could be confusing all the various art I’ve seen from this series for something from the anime. That’s one problem with the girls all wearing unique outfits in every episode. There are a lot of outfits to keep track of. And then there are all the outfits they wear in official art, figures, etc.

Anyway, Ruka’s new bikini is cute. The polka dots are nice. But, I’m not so sure how I feel about the asymmetrical straps. Either both straps should have frills, or neither of them. I’d prefer neither. However, the frills suit Ruka more.

The second part of Ruka’s plan is to have Kazuya put his hands on her body. And she does this by talking him into putting sunscreen on her back and legs. I thought Kazuya would chicken out after the first touch. But, he proved me wrong and managed to go through with it.

This was definitely the most awkward part of the episode, though. You’d think that a scene of a cute girl getting sunscreen rubbed onto her would be great. But, because Kazuya’s involved, it turns into a cringefest. I wanted that scene to end as soon as it began.

Kazuya and Girlfriend

I was wondering why Episode 7’s title was “Kazuya and Girlfriend.” Every episode title follows this same pattern. It’s always “Something and Girlfriend.” But, why Kazuya this time? Kazuya’s in every episode. Did this mean nothing important happened in the episode?

Well, we found out the answer at the end of the episode. Even though it’s Ruka’s birthday, and Kazuya knew that, he didn’t get her a present. And, as I mentioned earlier, she didn’t end up asking him for a kiss or anything like that. Instead, she asks to call him by his given name.

Okay, but doesn’t everyone already call Kazuya by his given name? I mean, did you even know that his family name is Kinoshita? Well, they do and they don’t. For example, before this point, Ruka always called him Kazuya-kun. So, what she’s asking to do is drop the honorific from his name.

I don’t actually remember how Chizuru refers to Kazuya. I went back through the previous two episodes to check and didn’t find a single instance of her saying his name. I’m sure she’s said his name at some point. But, I can’t remember if she uses –san or –kun.

Either way, now that Ruka has dropped the honorific from Kazuya’s name, she’s a step ahead of Chizuru. Also, in case you were wondering, Sumi uses –kun when referring to Kazuya. And I believe Mami does, as well. Though, we haven’t seen her in a while.

But, what about how Kazuya refers to Ruka? I don’t think he’s going to drop the –chan from her name. It’s not quite the same as –kun. It’s used to denote that you think someone (usually female) is cute. However, it’s possible that Ruka will insist he drops it.

Conclusion

What do you think of Rent-a-Girlfriend Season 3 Episode 7? Do you think this episode should have aired on Ruka’s birthday next week? What are your thoughts on Ruka’s bikini? And do you think Ruka will insist Kazuya drops the –chan from her name? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoyed this review, remember to click the like button down below. Also, follow me on your social media of choice so you don’t miss out on any future articles — links are in the footer.

Finally, I’d like to thank Roman and JasonHK for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. And I’d like to thank Key Mochi for supporting at the Senpai tier. To learn more about becoming a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

My review of Episode 8 is available now.

Final Scene and Girlfriend

Rent-a-Girlfriend Season 3 Episode 6 wasn’t quite what I expected. Of course, there were some things I got right like Ruka finding out about the trip. Though, she didn’t show up at the inn. Instead, she showed up at the bus stop when they were leaving.

However, I was expecting a bit more to happen between Kazuya and Chizuru. There wasn’t any drama when it came to filming the final scene of the movie. And even sleeping in the same room at the inn went fine. Where’s the spice?

Something I noticed a long time ago about Kanokari might be the problem. The series constantly refers back to previous episodes and even the same episode. Like, more than Naruto, which is infamous for its flashbacks.

To be fair, Episode 6 wasn’t that bad with this. But, we still saw a few scenes from this episode more than once.

There was one episode this season, maybe Episode 5, that showed the same scene at least 3 times. And I don’t mean a flashback to a scene from an earlier episode or season. I mean a scene from that episode that got flashed back to 2 more times in that episode.

It’s no wonder not much happens in this series. There’s not much run time for things to happen. We’re always either seeing a flashback of some sort or Kazuya is freaking out internally. Those two things are what the majority of each episode is dedicated to.

During the filming scene, Chizuru told Kazuya about her promise to her grandfather. So, sure, that’s something. Except, we already knew about that. The majority of that scene was also a flashback to a previous season. And that was one of the big, touching scenes of the episode.

A Night at a Mountain Inn

If you’re like me, you expected some inn shenanigans from this episode. I mean, Kazuya and Chizuru were sharing a room. Something has to come of that, right? Well, nothing did. After getting back from filming, Chizuru went to sleep and Kazuya did the same shortly after.

Sure, Chizuru wasn’t actually sleeping. She was having trouble sleeping because of her feelings for Kazuya. But, that doesn’t actually matter because nothing came of it. I thought Kazuya would do something cliché like say how he loves her, thinking she was asleep.

Nope! We didn’t even get that much. So, what was the point of this whole mountain inn excursion? Was it only included as a scenic backdrop for when Chizuru talks about her grandfather? That’s kind of how it ended up feeling. Did anything else of any importance happen?

There wasn’t even good onsen content. We got one shot of Chizuru relaxing in the bath. But, it wasn’t the best shot. And, as with the room, nothing happened in the bath. At one point Kazuya fantasized about Chizuru being in the bath next door. But, it wasn’t Chizuru and we never saw who it was.

That was another opportunity for something to happen. Maybe when Kazuya exits the bath, he runs into Chizuru in the hallway also exiting the bath. Then, he’d know it was her he heard. Or, it could have gone the comedic route and had him run into an old lady exiting the bath.

Literally anything would have been better than what we got. Though, that may be because I feel like this is the second or third time Kazuya’s been in this situation. We know they’ve shared a room before. So, the issue might be that Reiji is running out of ideas.

The Morning After

Chizuru talking about her grandfather may seem like the biggest scene of the episode. But, it wasn’t. The biggest scene of the episode was Chizuru falling asleep on Kazuya’s shoulder on the bus ride home. That’s the thing that brought the two of them closer.

When Kazuya woke Chizuru up, she didn’t say anything about what happened. She gave no indication that she even realized what happened. But, we know from the final scene with her in the bathroom at the end of the episode that she knows. She’s very aware that she fell asleep on Kazuya.

But, here’s the thing. Chizuru can stay calm and collected in situations like that. Kazuya can’t. And there were a few moments in this episode during which I was concerned for Kazuya’s well-being. Considering how much he freaks out when around Chizuru, how does he expect to be with her?

If you really think about it, dating Chizuru would be like torture to Kazuya. He’d never be able to relax. And every time she so much as touched him, he’d have a heart attack. There’s no way he would be able to survive like that.

It’s for that reason that I’ve decided Ruka is the right girl for Kazuya. He’s much more relaxed when in her presence. And she isn’t bad for his heart. Also, that coincidentally frees up Chizuru to date me. Of course, that fact didn’t play into my decision. It’s a coincidence, after all.

But, really, the more I see Kazuya and Ruka interacting, the better they seem for each other. Kazuya’s interactions with Chizuru are always so awkward. Isn’t it better to be with someone you can be yourself around? The back-and-forth between Ruka and Kazuya at the end of Episode 6 is one example.

Conclusion

What do you think of Rent-a-Girlfriend Season 3 Episode 6? Have you noticed how much of each episode is recycled content? Were you expecting something to happen between Kazuya and Chizuru at the inn? And, what do you think Ruka is going to ask for for her birthday? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoyed this review, remember to share it with everyone you know. Also, follow me on your social media of choice so you don’t miss out on any future articles — links are in the footer.

Finally, I’d like to thank Roman and JasonHK for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. And I’d like to thank Key Mochi for supporting at the Senpai tier. To learn more about becoming a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

My review of Episode 7 is available now.

Filming and Girlfriend

Filming on Chizuru’s movie has begun in Rent-a-Girlfriend Season 3 Episode 5. And, almost all of the filming was completed in this one episode. By the end, only the final scene remains. I can’t say I was expecting to get through the filming that fast.

I thought filming the movie was going to take up at least a few episodes. And, I also wasn’t expecting it to happen so soon. My expectation was that the first half of the season set up for filming. And then the second half covered the actual filming itself.

I guess Reiji Miyajima has even better content he wants to get to. He doesn’t have time to waste on this movie arc. Or, at least not on the filming part. At this pace, though, we might get to the screening of the movie before the end of the season.

To me, it would make sense for Chizuru’s grandma to see the movie in the final episode of the season. But, I feel like it’s going to happen much sooner now. So, what’s the rest of the season going to be about? Surely, we’re not going to spend 5 episodes editing the movie.

Anyway, the filming content wasn’t that interesting. Because it was so short, nothing happened. We saw Ruka bossing Kazuya around as she sat on the sidelines. We saw Kazuya fall off a bridge to his death into the river. And we saw Chizuru do an emotional crying scene.

But, the rest of the crew isn’t available to help film the final scene of the movie. They have another short film to work on as part of their club. So, it’s going to be up to Kazuya and Chizuru to film that scene on their own. It should be simple.

Mini Yaemori’s Plan

The director said that Kazuya and Chizuru could film the final scene themselves. But, Kazuya has no intention of being alone with Chizuru. And that’s especially true when considering the filming location. This final scene needs a scenic shot of the stars.

Where are you going to get a good shot of the stars? Not in the city, that’s for sure. So, they’ll have to do the filming at an inn out in the countryside. Now, you can probably see why Kazuya didn’t want to be alone with Chizuru. That setting is ripe for misunderstandings.

First of all, I can’t imagine Ruka being okay with those two going to an inn alone. But, we also have to consider how Kazuya views this situation. He’s still in denial about Chizuru liking him. So, he doesn’t want her to think he intended to get her alone like this.

To avoid any potential misunderstandings, Kazuya invites Mini and Ruka along, too. Though, honestly, that would only make things worse. Both Ruka and Chizuru like Kazuya. Ruka would probably insist on sharing a room with Kazuya. Then, Chizuru would deny that request — or try to. And Mini would back Chizuru up.

But, it didn’t end up coming to that. Mini planned ahead and made sure only Kazuya and Chizuru would make it to the inn. She faked catching the flu as an excuse for why she couldn’t make it at the last minute. And she told Ruka they postponed the trip.

Nice assist, Mini!

However, this plan is going to backfire somehow. It’s likely that the trip is going to bring Kazuya and Chizuru closer. And they know how each other feels thanks to Mini. But, they can’t hide this trip from Ruka forever.

Alone with Chizuru Mizuhara

This trip is the perfect opportunity for Kazuya to make his move on Chizuru. But, we all know he’s not going to take it. Though, regardless, things should end up good for him. There’s no way he comes out of this situation losing.

If he makes his move, Chizuru seems like she’d accept it. She knows she likes Kazuya. The only thing she doesn’t know — or pretends not to know — is that he likes her, too. So, if he were to confess to her again, she should be receptive.

Of course, there’s still the Ruka problem. Technically, Kazuya is dating Ruka. Although, as Kazuya points out in this episode, it’s more of a “trial” than a true relationship. Even so, I could see Chizuru not wanting to be in a relationship with Kazuya because of Ruka.

To not hurt Ruka’s feelings Chizuru would likely reject Kazuya. And that would crush him for a bit. But, in the long-term, things would be better because at least Chizuru would know how he feels. What about the other option, though? What if Kazuya doesn’t make his move? How will that benefit him?

If he doesn’t make a move on Chizuru, she may be a little disappointed. However, at the same time, I can definitely see her respecting his professionalism. He actually wants to make her movie a success and I think she’ll understand that. She’ll see him taking it seriously as a positive character trait.

How soon do you think Ruka will figure out that Kazuya and Chizuru went on the trip alone? Do you think she’ll figure it out while they’re still there? And if so, will she call Kazuya or actually show up at the inn? Or, will their secret last until they return?

Conclusion

What do you think of Kanokari Season 3 Episode 5? Were you expecting the filming to happen so soon and so quickly? How long do you think Kazuya can keep the trip a secret from Ruka? And, are you expecting Kazuya to confess to Chizuru at the inn? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoyed this review, be sure to share it with everyone you know. Also, follow me on your social media of choice so you don’t miss out on any future articles — links are in the footer.

Finally, I’d like to thank Roman and JasonHK for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. And I’d like to thank Key Mochi for supporting at the Senpai tier. To learn more about becoming a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

My review of Episode 6 is available now.

The Biggest Surprise in Anime History

Rent-a-Girlfriend Season 3 Episode 4 had one of the biggest twists in anime history. How could anyone have possibly foreseen that Kazuya has a crush on Chizuru? Honestly, I’m as shocked as Chizuru was when she heard it from Mini.

Like Chizuru, I’m still in denial. There’s no way Kazuya actually has feelings for her. After all, he said he doesn’t. And, it’s not like he’s ever acted in a way that would imply he likes her. There’s no evidence pointing toward what Mini said being true.

So, with that in mind, Chizuru should assume she’s going to be single forever. I mean, it’s clear that she likes Kazuya and so she doesn’t want to be with anyone else. But, since there’s no way he likes her in return, I guess there’s nothing left to do.

Really, though, I don’t understand how Kazuya and Chizuru continue to think this way. Well, actually, I kind of understand why Kazuya does. He’s not the brightest guy and seems to struggle with social cues. So, we shouldn’t be blaming him for not seeing the obvious. But, I can’t say the same about Chizuru.

Chizuru is smart and has good social skills. So, the fact that she’s still in denial about how Kazuya feels is baffling. Now, I say “in denial” because I’m pretty sure she knows. The thing is, she wants to keep telling herself that it isn’t true for some reason.

I’m not sure why that is, though. It’s not like acknowledging that Kazuya likes her — or that she likes him — is a problem. I guess it would mean Kazuya can’t rent her out anymore. But, it wouldn’t stop Chizuru from being a rental girlfriend or acting. It’s a non-issue.

D-Day and Girlfriend

So, here we are in the final week of the crowdfunding campaign. And do you know what still hasn’t happened? Mini still hasn’t leveraged her online following. But, Chizuru is planning to leverage the online following of her acting friend Umi. How does that work?

Like, yes, Chizuru should ask Umi to post her campaign to his 200,000+ followers. But, considering Mini’s actually involved in the campaign, she should be posting it too. I’m really not sure why nobody’s brought this up yet. Or, at least why Kazuya and Mini haven’t. I don’t know if Chizuru and Ruka know.

At the very least, Chizuru and Ruka know that Mini has experience with crowdfunding. I guess it’s possible that Mini doesn’t want other people to know that she’s a cosplay streamer. But, she didn’t hide it from Kazuya. And it would be a bit hypocritical considering what she knows about Chizuru.

Anyway, in return for sharing her campaign on his social media, Umi asks for a date. Well, not directly. But, when he said he would share her campaign, he also invited her to see a play. So, the implication was there that the social media post and going to see the play were linked.

Chizuru, in all her naivety, doesn’t believe this is a transaction. In her mind, Umi just happened to invite her to the play at the same time. And, he even told her that she wasn’t his first choice. He invited Chizuru because his girlfriend couldn’t make it.

But, Mini sees through all this. She knows there’s a transaction here and she’s not going to let Kazuya stop it. As we’d expect, Kazuya is against Chizuru going on this “date.” But, Mini’s able to convince him to let Chizuru go.

A Date with Umi-kun

So, how did Chizuru’s date with Umi go? At first, it went well. The play was performed by a popular troupe that Chizuru wanted to see. And, she had a great time watching it. But, after the play is when things started going south.

Before the play, Umi was saying things that were a bit flirty. That’s fine, as it seemed that he was only teasing Chizuru. However, the flirting got a little weird as they were leaving the theater. Chizuru had a lot to say about the play. But, Umi was only talking about one thing — Chizuru.

He didn’t mention what he thought of the play a single time. Instead, he said that he was watching Chizuru throughout the play. That’s a red flag right there. That’s borderline stalker behavior. But, Chizuru didn’t react to that much and kept bringing the conversation back to the play.

We then find out that Umi’s girlfriend was never going to come. He broke up with her the week before. So, while the story about Chizuru being the backup wasn’t exactly a lie, it wasn’t the truth. And, this is the point when Chizuru realizes that she’s in a bad situation.

Though, by bad, I don’t mean bad. Chizuru wasn’t in danger by being with Umi or anything. But, she was in a situation that she didn’t want to be in. Sure, Umi’s hot. But, Chizuru doesn’t view him as a potential romantic partner.

And, I have to say, hitting on Chizuru a week after he broke up with his girlfriend is another red flag. Oh, and so is the fact that he kept trying to pressure her into going to dinner with him. At least Chizuru was able to stand her ground and get out of the situation.

Conclusion

What do you think of Kanokari Season 3 Episode 4? Do you think Chizuru knows that Kazuya likes her? Do you expect we’ll ever get a reason why Mini didn’t leverage her followers? And, how do you feel about what Umi did to Chizuru? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoyed this review, share it with everyone you know. Also, follow me on your social media of choice so you don’t miss out on any future content — links are in the footer.

Finally, I’d like to thank Roman and JasonHK for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. And I’d like to thank Key Mochi for supporting at the Senpai tier. To learn more about becoming a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

My review of Episode 5 is available now.