Haha, I knew watching the short film ahead of time would pay off!
So as it turns out, Sorario Utility‘s sixth episode is more or less a remake of the short film. It’s not entirely 1:1. It’s longer and the finer details are quite different. The broad strokes however remain the same. In hindsight, getting to the plot of the short film was inevitable. The show can very easily fit the plot of the short film into its story. Plus, it’s good fanservice for the fans who have actually followed this series since 2021. As for which version is better, I’m handing it over to the newer one. The short film is fine but it is very much a pilot. It can only do so much. This episode meanwhile has the benefit of a longer runtime and a potentially more substantial attachment to the characters thanks to the five previous episodes.
Like the short film, Episode 6 has the main trio playing through their first golf course together. Minami strives to achieve par on at least one of the holes but being the beginner that she is, this is easier said than done. Compared to the past couple of episodes, this episode is much lighter on plot. It’s not that big of a deal though. The story has gone through enough development at this point so fluffing things up is fine. Plus, it’s been a while since we’ve actually seen anyone at a golf course so the show may as well indulge for half an hour.
As I mentioned earlier, the finer details are different than in the short film. I argue that the episode is almost obsessed in mixing things up. Take the first couple of strokes. In the short film, Ayaka slices her shot while Haruka does hers flawlessly. Here in this episode, it’s the other way around. Why? I have no idea. It doesn’t matter but I do wonder why the staff went out of their way to make this scene. Some of the changes do make sense, though. For example, the short film has Haruka advise Minami to imagine the stroke she ideally wants to make her with golf club. This sort of conversation already happened in the show so understandably, the episode doesn’t repeat it all over again.
One repeated scene worth mentioning is Ayaka writing “HAM” on one of the golf balls Minami uses. The intent is to instill the ball with the power of friendship. As for the acronym, it’s derived form each of the girls’ first initial. The show utilizes the ball differently than the short film. In the short film, the plan fails and the balls falls into a ravine. Throughout the short film, you see subsequent golf balls with the acronym written down. Conversely, this episode has a single “HAM” ball last for the remainder of the golf course. On one hand, I really like how “HAM” doesn’t bring the least bit of good luck to Minami and the acronym is continually written down in vain. But on the other, it’s also funny seeing the girls get shocked at the ball’s endurance run. I don’t know if it is intended by the staff but this is a pretty amusing reversal. Curiously, in the short film, the ED is performed by the characters’ actresses and they are in fact credited as “HAM”. You’d think the show would keep that unit going, especially since all three main actresses reprise their roles, but that hasn’t been the case so far. That I find surprising since anime really loves getting the main cast to sing for them.
There are of course some new jokes included in the episode. It may as well since it has a couple more minutes than the short film. My favorite is the one involving the lake in the ninth hole of the golf course. After Minami talks about it, Ayaka and Haruka immediately get worried that Minami might lose a golf ball in the lake and go as far as dive into the lake to retrieve it. Upon getting to the actual lake, Minami’s golf ball is saved by some debris and she’s able to grab it without diving in. I thought the joke was that the show went “sike” on me but then it subverts my expectations again by having Minami lose the ball anyway on her second swing.
I’m actually surprised that Minami doesn’t achieve par at the end of the golf course, just like in the short film. Like, I buy that Minami still isn’t good enough but with how this episode likes to mix things up, I honestly was expecting Minami to succeed instead. That makes me wonder if the show might actually be saving that victory for later, maybe even the finale. Still, I’ve always enjoyed Minami’s takeaway from her experience. Despite failing her goal, she still really enjoyed playing golf so her failure isn’t going to deter her from playing. If anything, she’s just more determined to achieve par the next time she plays at a course.
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