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Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 2 Review – Quick Summary
In Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 2, “Say Hello to the New Heroine,” Nozaki introduced Sakura to Mikoto Mikoshiba. Nozaki said that Mikoto had been the model for a manga character, but Sakura didn’t see it. Until she did. And then she was not impressed. Later, Sakura introduced Nozaki to one of her friends: Yuzuki Seo. How did Nozaki react? Was it his turn to be unimpressed? And why does Yuzuki refer to herself as “impeccable?”
Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.
Favorite Quote from Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 2
I can’t blame Sakura for her reaction. I’d be creeped out, too. Capture from the HIDIVE stream.
The contrast between the girls who don’t know Mikoto and Sakura was hilarious. The girls who don’t know him see him from a distance, and his over-the-top romantic statements seem to charm them.
But seen up close, where Sakura can watch as the weight of embarrassment over what he said slowly crushed him? Charmed is not the word for Sakura’s reaction.
Sakura had already witnessed several embarrassment-meltdowns. So when he tried one of his flowery statements on a group of girls who accosted him, it went as you might expect. Sakura, probably trying to turn the conversation in a positive direction because she’s a kind soul, observed that he sure was popular. She asked if he had a girlfriend. He said he didn’t.
“I don’t want one,” he said, flowers blooming all around him (07:57). “I don’t belong to anyone. Because… I’m an eternal love hunter!”
He held his pose as long as he could until Sakura’s silence defeated him. Then he got flustered and deflated. He tried once to redeem himself, even saying he’d give Sakura a cute nickname and sending a metaphorical heart her way. Her disgusted expression as she dodged the heart, pushed him over the edge.
“Don’t get creeped out! Stay with me! Respond to me!” he said, but it was too late (08:44).
Sakura’s reaction faces are a real treat!
Best in Show Moment for Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 2
She can fake sincerity with the best of them! Capture from the HIDIVE stream.
Setup: Once You Can Fake Sincerity…
The way the character bounce off each other in this series is a constant source of delight. My favorite quote is one example of such a collision between Sakura and Mikoto. In the second half of the episode, it was Nozaki’s turn to bounce off a new character: Yuzuki Seo, the self-described “too perfect… impeccable girl.”
Nozaki spent considerable time becoming more and more astounded at her level of obliviousness. One more than one occasion, he had to express amazement that she wasn’t doing it on purpose. Her insults seemed too precise to be accidental. Her intrusions into intimate moments seemed too fundamental to be chance. But no. She was really just that oblivious.
Spontaneous obliviousness is a serious issue. Capture from the HIDIVE stream.
Nozaki knew this. Nozaki had a very clear idea of who she was and how she acted. Yet, he proved something we’ve all seen in real life: if you can fake sincerity, you have it made. And Yuzuki knows how to fake sincerity.
Delivery: …You’ve Got It Made!
The teacher asked Yuzuki to carry a stack of papers to another classroom. Because Nozaki had been standing nearby, the teacher pulled him in to help. As soon as they had walked far enough from the teacher, Yuzuki suggested a contest to see who could walk on their hands the longest. The loser would have to carry all the papers. She went first.
Nozaki’s no fool. He knew instantly what she was up to, and he objected. But Yuzuki was too far away by then. She would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren’t for the meddling teacher she almost ran into! Reversing direction, she ran up to Nozaki, offered him her books, and said he had to protect them for her.
“My life,” she said (16:11). She turned on her full fake sincerity. “I’m putting it into your hands.”
Moved, he could only say, “Seo…”
Yuzuki’s fake sincerity hit Nozaki so hard it changed his color palette. Capture from the HIDIVE stream.
She put her books on top of his, then ran for her “life.” He even saluted her as she ran.
I’ve decided that trying to describe why the humor worked just isn’t funny. I’m trying to celebrate it here. So I’ll try just to describe how I saw it. What do you think? Did it work?
Also, what did you think of Mikoto’s passive/aggressive need for Sakura to ask him for help? What were your favorite moments in the episode? Feel free to let me know in the comments!
Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 2: Other Posts
Other Anime Sites
- Reddit: [Spoilers] Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun – Episode 2 [Discussion]
- The GlorioBlog: Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 2
- Lost in Anime: Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun – 02
This Site (Crow’s World of Anime!)
- Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 1: This Love… Is Being Turned into a Shojo Manga
- Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 2: Say Hello to the New Heroine
- Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 3: Violence vs The Prince
- Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 4: There Are Times When Men Must Fight
- Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 5: The Man Who Envisions Love
- Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 6: I’ll Cast a Spell on You
- Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 7: The Manga Artist’s Brain, Nozaki-kun
- Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 8: The Prince (Girl) of the School’s Problems
- Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 9: Do You Have Enough Excitement?
- Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 10: What’s Strengthened is Our Bond and Our Reins
- Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 11: Let’s Rice
- Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun Episode 12: If This Feeling Isn’t Love, Then There is No Love in the World
