Recap

Hashimoto and Aoki are excited about their cakes. Ida interrupts to take Aoki to the rooftop. He tells Aoki that his teammates now know they’re dating. Aoki is upset and Ida is confused and upset. Aoki says they should break up.

Ida is gloomy as the Christmas party starts and has to leave for a volleyball match. He tells his teammates that what he said earlier was just a joke, which they accept easily.

Aoki is at the party and also gloomy. So is Hashimoto. She’s afraid to give Akkun her cake. Then, she sees him reject someone else’s cake because it’s ‘homemade’. In her distress, Hashimoto destroys a plastic drink bottle and leaves.

Akkun finds Hashimoto and explains he turned down the other girl’s cake because he wanted Hashimoto’s.

The Illumination Festival begins and Ida’s game ends. He learns from his teammates that Aoki told them that he pushed Ida into hanging out with him. The teammates were planning to celebrate their relationship though. Aoki was relieved because he was imagining all kinds of horrible things happening to Ida.

They encourage him to make up with Aoki.

Aoki learns things went well for Hashimoto and seeing her with Akkun, deletes a picture of him and Ida on his phone.

But Ida is running! He’s too late! The lights are out and Aoki isn’t there! No, Aoki is there! It takes a moment, but Ida gives Aoki a back hug and the lights come back on. They both apologize.

Ida tells Aoki he really likes him and teased him because his reactions are cute. Aoki is so overwhelmed he covers Ida’s mouth, but Ida removes his hand to say he likes him. He wants to date Aoki again.

We see Hashimoto and Akkun turned the lights on.

Aoki and Ida sit and look at the lights but Aoki doesn’t have any cake. Ida says they don’t have to be like everyone else and feeds Aoki chocolate instead.

The next day they change seats again and end up all sitting near each other again. Ida lends Aoki an eraser that says ‘Aoki ♥️’.

Thoughts

Japanese dramas can’t seem to resist final act break-up OR final act running. But I think this show does a strong job of coming up with a good place to end the drama considering it can’t cover the entire comic book series. The show starts with Aoki and Ida together only because of a big mix-up and ends with both of them liking each other and deciding to date for real. It’s kind of perfect.

Even with this extra angst and a few tears in the last few episodes, the show maintains its light and amusing tone, with many side characters providing absurd humor. Hashimoto and Akkun needed more screen time to really flesh out their relationship, but they were cute and fun.

The final message, that they should pursue the relationship they want, is a perfect one too. Aoki and his fears, both founded and unfounded, and Ida’s inability to articulate his own feelings, and everything else about them will make for their own unique relationship. Throughout the series, we’ve seen people interfere on purpose and on accident, but it’s really for Aoki and Ida to decide.

The drama leaves me with the lovely feeling that whatever Aoki and Ida do next, it will be as interesting and special as they are.

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