Thanks to Nodoka pulling some strings, Sakuta is able to attend Sweet Bullet’s next concert in Odaiba with Mai. There’s a brief yet fun moment where Mai picks up Sakuta from his shift at the diner, revealing she obtained a driver’s license and a bought a car sometime while Sakuta was studying for his college entrance exams. Sakuta sighing that Mai beat him to the punch with driving the other out on a date and Mai jokingly calling Sakuta out on going on a “date” with Uzuki is the exact kind of banter that makes me enamored with this couple. I kind of hope Sakuta doesn’t actually get his license anytime soon because the possibility of him asking Mai multiple times to take him to places has some comedic potential.
I was curious what Sakuta’s plan is for attending the concert. Knowing him, I can admittedly see him simply wanting to go on a date with Mai but given his concern for Uzuki, I figured he wanted to see up close how her idol career is going. Assuming the latter, he definitely gets some valuable info. During the concert, Uzuki loses her voice and she’s advised by her doctor to take a break from performing. It’s quite conspicuous given what’s been going on with Uzuki lately. After the concert, the other four members of Sweet Bullet learn from their manager that there have been talks of Uzuki branching off into a solo career shortly after she filmed her commercial. Uzuki shot the idea down but the talks have been revived after the commercial released and went viral.
On the way home, Nodoka confides to Sakuta and Mai that right before the concert, Uzuki asked the group if they can make it to Budokan and no one was able to give her any sort of answer. From how Nodoka talks about the group, it sounds like Uzuki was always the one keeping everyone motivated and in hindsight, everyone was relying on her too much and that contributed to predicament Uzuki is in now. Despite being one member short, Nodoka is adamant on having Sweet Bullet perform their next concert in Hakkeijima, hoping that pulling off a good show will make Uzuki feel less uncertain about things. I’m convinced Nodoka is hoping that a successful show will make Uzuki more comfortable about graduating from Sweet Bullet. Given that Uzuki developed Puberty Syndrome shortly after she and Nodoka argued over the group’s future, it’s possible that Nodoka sees herself as the one responsible for the predicament and she wants to make up for it.
The next day, Sakuta attends the Hakkeijima concert with Kaede and and Kotomi (Miho Okasaki). I forgot to mention it last post but I love that Kaede has become a Sweet Bullet fan, with Uzuki being her favorite member. It makes perfect sense after Uzuki helped Kaede a ton in Rascal Does Not Dream of a Sister Venturing Out. Sweet Bullet is able to perform their first song just fine but things go awry during the second song, due to the rain and their speakers short circuiting. As the crowd begins to lose interest, the idols attempt to keep the show going by singing acapella. Around this time, Sakuta spots Uzuki in the crowd, the latter attending the concert in secret.
Seeing Sweet Bullet in disarray and struggling to attract a crowd affirms Uzuki’s assumption that she and her friends won’t make it to the Budokan. Sakuta points out to Uzuki however that Nodoka and the others are aware of their pipe dream and yet, they still want to perform. Uzuki asks why her friends remain motivated, which Sakuta (understandably) finds absurd because the answer is quite obvious: they just love being idols. I really love the irony in this scene. Throughout this whole arc, Uzuki wanted to read the room, to better gauge the situation around her. And yet, she almost fails to do just that in the moment it’d matter the most. Uzuki thought she’s better off with her new perk but all it did was make her lose her way. It’s just as useless as it is helpful. Thanks to Sakuta however, Uzuki does manage to read the room and she regains her spark as an idol, resulting in her joining her friends onstage. Right as Uzuki performs with the rest of Sweet Bullet, the skies clear up and the speakers start to work again. It’s very convenient and cheesy but I can’t deny that it’s fitting for the resolution.
After the concert, Uzuki seemingly reverts back to her old self, indicating that she’s no longer affected by Puberty Syndrome. I’m only now realizing how well Sora Amamiya has voiced this character. She’s done a great job going from Uzuki’s usual airheaded self to the more mindful and more somber version we’ve seen this arc. Uzuki announces to her fans that she will go through with a solo career but she’ll also remain with Sweet Bullet. I found the decision a little surprising. I kind of figured this arc would end with Uzuki declining the offer to go solo again. But the more I think about it, the more it makes sense that Uzuki would refuse to do any comprises and instead pursue both paths. Also surprising is Uzuki’s decision to drop out of university in order to focus on her idol endeavors. It is a realistic tradeoff but it may limit Uzuki’s screentime going forward and I’d be bummed to see her disappear from the story like Shoko has post-Dreaming Girl.
Before leaving campus, there’s a neat little scene where Uzuki thanks Sakuta and parts aways with him. I particularly chuckled over Sakuta congratulating Uzuki for “graduating”. It’s cheeky given that Uzuki didn’t quit Sweet Bullet and she just dropped out of college but it’s an appropriate comment in light of her personal growth. Also neat is Uzuki explaining to Sakuta why she chose to study statistical science, coincidentally the same major as him. That was something the two of them briefly discussed last episode and even back in Episode 1, I was wondering why it’s Uzuki’s major. Apparently, Uzuki had hoped that studying in that field would somehow make it easier for her to understand her friends more objectively. Not sure if it makes complete sense but it is kind of the reasoning I’d expect from Uzuki. Funny how Sakuta insists he chose Statistical Science for pragmatic reasons when it’s a rather fitting path after all the crazy stuff he’s encountered and his various attempts to rationalize it all with Rio and the others.
The episode drops a pretty big tease right as Uzuki leaves, with Sakuta finally meeting “Santa”. Now that we get to see “Santa” in earnest, there’s some peculiar details about her. One, “Santa” is surprised that Sakuta can see her, meaning she’s invisible to everyone else, much like with Mai in Bunny Girl Senpai and Sakuta in Knapsack Kid. Two, “Santa” claims that she’s the one who made Uzuki read the room. As if the costume and the invisibility wasn’t already indicators of Puberty Syndrome, it appears that this girl has a very strong connection to the phenomenon. Last but not least, we also learn the identity of this character: it’s none other than the elusive Touko Kirishima. In hindsight, I should’ve seen that coming. Suffice to say: I’m lot more intrigued about this character now.
So one arc down, a couple more to go. I must admit that it got a little hard to follow at first. It took me a while to understand how Uzuki’s inability to read the room correlates with her idol career. Despite that, I found the arc to be quite compelling and having enjoyed Uzuki’s expanded role in A Sister Venturing Out, it makes me very happy that the show ultimately went even further by giving the character her own arc. Also neat is seeing Nodoka more prominently again; poor girl got shoved to the wayside after her arc so I appreciate her involvement and development this arc.
Watch Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus on Crunchyroll
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