Quick Summary • Best Moment • Setup • Delivery • Other Posts
My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 21 – Quick Summary
In My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 21, “Because I Don’t Intend to Sleep Tonight,” Marin asked Sajuna Inui to join in on some group cosplay. Of course, Sajuna hates that kind of thing, so she declined. But her little sister, Shinju Inui, thought Juju had said yes. When she learned otherwise, her face fell. Hard. Can Juju really say no to her sister? Will Marin be able cosplay with Juju again? And what’s up with Akira and Marin?
Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.
Favorite Quote from My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 21
JuJu weighed the impact of a social event against her little sister’s hopes. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.
I’m happy to see JuJu (Sajuna) again! I can really sympathize with her character. She loves what she loves, but she doesn’t want to hang out with other folks. It’s not that she’s arrogant. It’s that she prefers to be alone.
I think I’d probably classify her as having social anxiety, at least based on how exhausted she becomes when faced with socializing. Or, perhaps she’s just intensively introverted. To me, it’s hard to tell the difference between plain introversion and social anxiety.
Regardless of where we draw the line, JuJu can’t hang with people very long. That’s why when Marin called and asked JuJu to participate in a Coffin cosplay party, she said no.
That’s when Shinju bounded up and misunderstood. She thought JuJu had agreed to participate. She went on, with great enthusiasm, about how much she would love such an event. “Ohmigosh! Yay! Wow!” she said (01:57). “I’m so excited!
JuJu had enough courage to tell Shinju she’d declined. But, faced with Shinju’s disappointment, JuJu struggled to stay firm. But she caved. She picked up her phone.
“Hello? Marin Kitagawa?” she said in a monotone (03:25).
That simple greeting not only elated Marin. It thrilled Shinju. I really like how much JuJu is there for her little sister!
Favorite Moment from My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 21
Akira figured it out. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.
Setup: Not As Funny As It Should Have Been
Ordinarily, I’d laugh at the level of misunderstanding on which the episode ended. Misunderstandings are one of the go-to jokes, after all. Wakana intended to buy an energy drink. Why? Because the very thought of sleeping under the same roof as Marin was too much for him.
Emphasis on “very thought.” He figured that if he stayed away with the help of the energy drink, he wasn’t sleeping over. Wakana would just be waiting for the trains to start running again. He would feel less stressed.
But the energy drinks were placed next to the condoms. Gotta give props to the store’s owner. That’s some inspired product placement. But Marin thought that Wakana was buying protection – which made this statement, “I don’t intend to sleep tonight” (21:00), take on a very different meaning.
Seriously – has Marin ever actually met this guy? Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.
Did you see the translation of the product names? “Mandom XXX” made me laugh.
Ordinarily, I’d laugh at that. But damn it, I felt so bad for Marin! She loves the guy. I’m not sure it’s accurate to say she wants to be with him. I think it’s more or less a deep need at this point. She’s not ready to consummate their relationship. But she thinks he is! That’s gotta be tough for her!
I can’t pick that as my favorite moment. It’s too sad!
One aside. Part of me wants to ask Marin if she’s ever met Wakana. Does she really, really think he’s ready to buy a condom? Does she really think he’d spring something like that on her without mentioning it?
Delivery: Shinju Gets the Credit She Deserves
Anyway. On to my favorite moment. I like Akira. I like her level of bluntness; it’s something I would appreciate in a real life relationship. After JuJu and Shinju joined them, Akira sat quietly. But as soon as Marin went to the restroom, Akira opened up. She said that she thought JuJu was very, very cute in real life. She’d always assumed that the photographer or post-processing accentuated the adorability (my approximation of her words). Akira said she could now see most of the look was natural.
That said, she clarified a bit, saying (06:38), “Because when whoever takes your photos loves you, knows all your strengths, and absolutely wants to get the cutest shots of you, you look even cuter.”
JuJu confirmed the identity of her photographer. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.
How far into that little speech did you begin to suspect that Shinju was going to be really embarrassed? We all know that Shinju is JuJu’s photographer. And we know she’s not great with public scrutiny!
What I love about this moment is that as the realization builds, we begin to see steam rising from someone in the lower right of the screen. We finally realize it’s Shinju. Her utterly embarrassed expression, which I have to believe contained a grain of “I’m so glad that came through!,” was absolutely adorable. I’m loving this season’s comedic timing!
What did you think of the energy Suzuka Itou brought when she asked Wakana to share his thoughts about Coffin? What were your favorite moments? Feel free to let me know in the comments!
My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 21: Other Posts
Other Anime Sites
- Reddit: Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru Season 2 • My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 – Episode 9 discussion
- Lost in Anime: Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru (My Dress-up Darling) Season 2 – 09
- The Anime Rambler – By Benigmatica: Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru Episode #21
This Site (Crow’s World of Anime!)
- My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 13: Wakana Gojo, 15 Years Old, Teenager
- My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 14: You Can Equip Boobs
- My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 15: I Wuuuuv Slice-of-Life Scenes!
- My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 16: Has All My Measurements Memorized
- My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 17: 800 Million
- My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 18: I’ll Make It Happen, No Matter What with These Two Hands
- My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 19: Capture Those Delicious Memories!
- My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 20: The Only Way I Can Think of to Express That Gratitude Is with Money
- My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 21: Because I Don’t Intend to Sleep Tonight
- My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 22: So We’re Gonna Do It All Right Now?!
- My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 23: I Didn’t Think Anything Good Would Ever Happen to Me
- My Dress-Up Darling Season 2 Episode 24: Dear My Dress-Up Darling
I laughed pretty hard at the product placement. Energy drinks? Condoms? Sure. Put them right next to each other! LOL.
I think one of the Reddit posters called it “inspired.” Can’t say I disagree!
I’m personally not into this season to the same extent that I was into the first one. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the production matter so obviously to me. I almost said production values, but that’s not it. Yeah, it’s cheaper, but I don’t think I mind that. It’s… the direction style, I think. The first one used animation to highlight body language; this one goes more for iconic shots to represent emotion, which you then imagine yourself. This also shows in more chibi-shots, quicker cuts, etc. It’s a coherent style – but one that works better for me when it’s about style-over-substance: action or comedy often.
I think the story’s as good as it ever was, but the scenes feel busier, with less time to take in what matters. On the other hand, the iconicity of the shots also draw out things. A good example is Akira’s bodylanguage: She was sitting around with crossed arms and legs; it was just so obvious that you had to wonder why only one person noticed. And then, when she realises that she might have to cosplay with Marin… we got the anime purple aura of doom to drive the nail in (as if we needed that). And then, when Gojo accidently eavesdropped, we linger on his expression. Then Akira says she’ll explain, and when she’s done saying the obvious, I was surprised to find a quick cut to another scene (when I thought I’d just heared the set-up). They’ll likely leave this for later, but I was left wondering whether that’s all Gojo learned, or whether we’re left in the dark for a later, more thematically relevant reveal-timing.
What’s weird is that director the same as season one. I’m thinking the production committee might want to get more done in less time or something? Season one and two feel like completely different shows to me. I wonder if I’m just misremembering and it’s diminishing returns?
It’s a worse drop-off than between Kimi ni Todoke seasons (which also had the same director for both).
That all sounds probably more negative than I actually feel about it. I still like it – just a significant amount less than season one.
Interesting. I noticed the change but didn’t quantify it to myself. Looking back, I’m just rushing through quickly enough to document my reaction, then moving on. If I felt any less emotional response to any given scene, I chalked it up to my own circumstances.
Thanks for those examples. They really get to the heart of the difference between the two seasons. If I think back to season 1, when Marin and Wakana were on the beach, and contrast that style with Akira’s purple aura, I can really see the difference, too.
I wonder if the greater number of characters makes it feel more rushed? Last season, we had five — the main pair, grandpa, and the sisters. Now we have more school mates and some others from Marin’s professional circle. Plus a few others. More characters means less time to focus on Marin and Wakana.
I’ll have to give that some thought.
Like you, I’m enjoying this season. Time pressure has reduced my enjoyment of pretty much everything, including this show, so I can’t really compare. But I see the differences you pointed out.
I’m unsure. You need a lot less set-up than in season one, and you have Gojo-Marin core to frame every new character. In addition, they find time to add chibi-explantions for cosplay stuff, explaining things that I – a complete novice when it comes to cosplay – found perfectly obvious from just the scenes that came before. This is, I think, a completely different approach the source material. I know I said something like “get more done in less time”, but that’s just a totally uniformed guess of mine, which not even I take all that seriously. I know nothing about the show’s production, nor do I know anything about the manga. And not all changes save time (see the cosplay explanations, for example).
As for enjoyment: it’s about the same drop-off as Kimi ni Todoke for me. Still enjoyable, but significantly less. (I remember feeling nostalgic for Kimi ni Todoke while watching flashbacks to season 1 in season 2…) Second seasons often drop off for me; diminishing returns are a frequent experience for me. I wasn’t expecting to enjoy season 2 of Dress-up Darling as much as season 1, simply because I was completely satisfied by season 1 and didn’t really need a season 2. The new directorial approach is more a curiosity to me than a complaint.