In the first part of Episode 2, An wants to take pictures and videos with a drone. Because An has no money however, she settles for a makeshift drone in the form of a kite made out of the plastic bag of her favorite snack. Kind of funny that I wrote that this club has money compared to Laid-Back Camp‘s Outclub as the excerpt line for my first episode review and the very next episode proves me wrong. I shouldn’t be surprised considering that this is a story originally created by Afro. They really like making their characters broke.
While testing the kite, the club learns that they will be dissolved due to a lack of members. I chuckled when the girls say they’d be okay with losing the club room, since Haruno’s place has become a go-to place for them. Clearly these girls have never had to do club activities in a long and narrow closest. What does make the club desperate to stay official is the potential loss of their budget provided by the school. This really is an anime adaptation of an Afro manga.
The girls learn that Cinema Club is also getting dissolved. It too is down to two members, Sakurako Shikishima (Hikaru Tono) and Tajima. Tajima is apparently a phantom member who rarely appears to club meetings but Satsuki is already acquainted with Sakurako. She and An invite Sakurako to join the Photography Club, later proposing to instead merge the two clubs. The girls agree to a merger, eventually naming themselves the Cinephoto Club. Probably a more fitting name anyway since Satsuki and An sometimes indulge on the video modes of their cameras. One of the best jokes out of this development is Sakurako adding Tajima’s name without her permission, thereby giving the club enough members to stay official. I wonder if Tajima will ever show up and find out what’s happened.
The episode gets some really good humor with Sakurako. I had a good laugh with how seriously Satsuki and An get about getting Sakurako to join, only for the new girl to completely undercut the tension with how chill and deadpan she is. Also amusing is Sakurako joining in on the kite antics and surprisingly getting really good at it too. While mostly a comical introduction, this episode does pull off an earnest angle to it, with Satsuki and An’s company reminding Sakurako of the good old days with the Cinema Club. Overall, I think the episode does a great job adding the new girl to the group.
After an eyecatch, we move onto the second part of the episode, where Haruno is visited by a high school buddy of hers, Kako Komada (Maki Kawase). Since the two last hung out, Kako has gotten a motorcycle and she’s developed an interest in “motovlogging”, where one records their scenic rides and uploads them to the internet. Also hang on, motorcycling? Turquoise hair? Is Kako a relative of Rin’s? I doubt it unless Afro’s manga are in a shared universe. That said, if Kako goes camping, she isn’t going to beat the allegations.
Kako takes Haruno out on a motorcycle ride out of the town. To my confusion, the motovlogging element is established and then shoved to wayside shortly after. I guess all Kako would do is just slap her camera onto her bike but you know, this is an anime about a photography/movie club. Kind of fair of me there’d be more to it. The half-episode does get some good material in spite of this choice. Kako quickly shows off some solid chemistry with Haruno, her more extroverted character being a nice contrast to Haruno being a shut-in. The motorcycling feels very reminiscent to Laid-Back Camp, with all the scenic sots, pit stops, and the occasional screw ups (see, Rin would make sure to have gas in the tank). I should judge mono as its own thing but I can’t deny that I felt right at home watching this part of the episode.
Having enjoyed seeing the club hang out with Haruno, it is a bummer that we don’t get to see Haruno meet Sakurako or Kako meet everyone. The ending has some fun with Sakurako trying to introduce herself, only for Kako to butt in and realize she doesn’t recognize anyone besides Haruno, but it’s enough. I’m hoping Episode 3 will more than make up for this.
Watch mono on Crunchyroll
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