And one smile to go, please. Hello and welcome to our weeb. There yet an exploration in education and anime. I'm your anime idiot, patrick dugan.

I am an anime expert, dana hollander.

And I'm brenda mccullough. Your anime. Gender bent bayonetta.

Question mark bayonetto.

Hello. Oh, God. I don't know what that would be. Would it be like a super buff guy? Any, like, super huge penis huge or.

Would it always close up tight shots on it?

Or would it just be like the sexual elegant Bayonetta, but just masculine?

I'd like to imagine everything is the same except just a very buff man. But still, that level of sexuality is brought to it and still has, like, long fabio hair.

Yeah. In the first game. And the second game is cut off.

Excellent.

I don't know enough about Bayonetta to continue with this bit.

Okay. They're very good games. They're extremely over the top and just ridiculous and I love them.

Anyway, my knowledge of her is big boot from Super Smash Brothers.

Unfun fact. The boot's made of hair. All of it's made of hair. It's a hairy game.

Oh, no.

Yeah, sorry, you said super Smash Brothers. I was thinking of the Mario Green boot from Super Mario Brothers Green.

That's also how does that factor in that's koopa hair?

Oh, no. Their shelves are made of hair. That's why if you jump on them, they react. They're not protective at all.

You jump on them, you're ripping the scalp off of them and the shell.

Just caving in their brains, which are on their backs.

Yeah, we have to move on.

It's somehow getting worse. Well, I say that because.

This week I have chosen a show called Haven't You Heard. I'm sakamoto which he looks like. Bayonetta.

Very fancy. lad looks like Bayonetta. And that's all I know about the show. So that's what I'm working with.

Yeah, we have High School Boy Bayonetta. And that's it. Haven't you heard? No, I have not. I am very sorry.

I live under a rock. I'm a social recluse.

I honestly don't even know where I heard about this show. I just heard the title and I was just like, that sounds like some shit, and added it to the list.

It's a bold title. Halfr show.

Exactly. So I've read, like, a one sentence description of it and that's all I know about it. So I thought it sounded good and funny. So I'm ready to give it a go.

Take that plunge, take that risk.

Yeah.

Roll those dice, Kakikurui.

Yeah.

I'm very scared.

Critical failure.

I'm very scared because I'm afraid of unlikable male lead character syndrome and get a hyper cocky, no game, no life sort of things. I'm scared.

Only time will tell.

I can't promise that.

I love being scared. I live on the edge.

That's the thrill of anime.

We're going to watch the first three episodes. Shall we get this ice breaker started? Hi, Sakamoto. Nice to meet you. Let's chat.

Nice.

Let's get to know each other.

Oh, jeez. By college.

Oh, my God. Have you heard the latest rumor about Sakamoto?

Oh, my God, he's so tell me. He's so hot.

He stopped a bus from crashing into a little pomeranian in the road because he tricked the bus driver into stopping so he could apply to college and get his life on track.

Oh, my God. I love that for him. He's so nice, so sweet to strangers.

He's just so motivational. Just turning everyone to where did you.

Go.

So oh, no, never mind.

You're not allowed to play with us anyway. My mom just called us. She said you have to go home.

You got a third play.

Yeah. Let me get that kickball back from you. Sorry. My dad says it's new and he doesn't want me to lose it.

No, I thought we were going to play.

Anyway. That's pretty much what the whole show is. bye, everybody.

Yeah. This is a one premise show, which I shit on all the time, but it works, so it is massively done.

Turns out when good things are good, they're good.

Weird, they're good good, as good as good as good.

Which is weird to say because we all hate the show, right?

Yeah. Totally awful. Let us go.

It was so weird.

It's rare for us to come out so positive about a show right off the bat.

Right. So I want to start off by reading the hulu description, which I feel like is the pivotal. Sakamoto may be a first year in high school, but he has the class grace and skill to rival royalty. Girls love him. Most boys want to be him. Models are upstaged by him, all while he bravely duels wasps and gallantly combats bullies.

Yeah, the wasp part, that's one thing.

That happens description on, but it's definitely.

One of the most striking of, like, yeah, this shit is wild.

It's wild. It's buck wild. And we're going to talk about it. So here we go. I really liked the opening seed. I like everything about it. I don't know why. I just thought it was so fun and casual. It's just these three guys later, they say they're playing volleyball, but they're really just standing in a triangle, just, like, hitting it to each other. Kind of playing, like, keep it up.

What is with Japan and prolonged volleyball sequences for comedic effect?

Oh, no.

As someone who's been watching a lot of High cue recently, japan loves it.

What can they say? And one of them is complaining that he can't get into the game. And his other friends, his two friends are like, oh, well, again, this is always you. You just can't get into it. And then he says that it's about the new guy, it's about Sakamoto. And just everything he does makes him mad.

Pisses me off.

No.

So mad about this guy. And then he goes on to say, like, oh, he's kind of good looking, but all of the girls want him. Like, what's that about? And then his friends compliment him, and then he compliments one of his friends, and then his other friend compliments his other friend, and it's so good. They just all complimenting each other.

This immediately reminded me of the bullies from Kids on the slope that we made. Like, positive bullies. Hey, maybe we just, like, hang out. Like, beat them up and, like, kiss sometimes. Yeah, take his pants off and we'll hang out, like, casually naked. What? That's probably one of my favorite bits we did on the show.

Yes. I mean, yeah, this gave me the.

Same thought, but, like, honestly, it just felt more wholesome of like they're all slightly uncomfortable saying it, but they're like, no, you you got good hair. Yeah, yeah, you're a strong childline.

You're pretty.

Yeah, yeah, you're you're a handsome man.

But, yeah, they get they get uncomfortable about it, and they all start laughing, and then they drop the ball, and they all just kind of go and then we get the opening, and before the opening song, we have, like, a narrator talking about how Sakamoto is stylish and cool in everything that he does. And then the opening song is just about being regal and cool all the time.

This opening was a lot more bumping than I thought it'd be for a very elegant, fancy shit.

I loved the part where he was just doing, like, a broom band.

Yeah, he was just using brooms.

So good. And then these three fellas, they're in the classroom, and they're setting up a prank for Sakamoto that when he opens the door, a dirty eraser from the chalkboard will fall on his head. And the girls are like, classic.

Fucking roasted, demolished.

Come on, don't do that. That's not nice. And they're like, Shut up. And I'm like, gee, I wonder why girls don't like you.

Let me do some calculus.

And then, of course, when he opens the door and the eraser falls, he simply catches it with ease. And the girls and the boys not the bullies, but all the other boys in the class go wild because everybody likes him. And then he goes to the bathroom, and he goes into a stall, and the bullies follow him, and they throw a bucket of water on him. But of course he has an umbrella. He's ready for it.

He's like, oh, I knew the weatherman said it would get wet today.

Yeah, he's a little bit of showers for Sakamoto. It's always wet. Ha ha. He's handsome.

Oh, boy. And then he goes back to class, but they've moved his desk. They've tossed it out the window. And then all of the girls are like, oh, Sakamoto, you can sit next to me. We can share my desk. And then he's like, please let me.

Just sit in your lap. It's fine.

It's fine. I need to feel something. I'm so sorry. But then this was probably my favorite one. I loved this. He opened the window and just sat on the window sill. And all of the cherry blossom petals are floating into the classroom. Oh my god, it's stunning.

We forgot to add, like, desk next to window in classroom on the bingo cards. That's definitely a trope.

Yeah, he has that.

Where else did you sit? By the door.

The criminal.

Ridiculous.

Don't be absurd.

And then we see the bullies smoking, underage smoking. And they make a point of showing the cigarette box that says, like, no underage smoking.

Yeah, I love that. Rather than censoring it, they're just like, hey, this isn't cool. Anyway, continue smoking.

Bullies love it. And they're just being mad about Sakamoto like they do. And they say, like, how could he be so popular? He just got here. Technically.

New student or transfer student?

Transfer student.

Well, didn't we say that? Unless it's like in the show where it's like, hello class, here's your new student.

Yeah, because it's true.

Isn't it? Just beginning of the year, he's already there.

Yeah, he's popular. That's kind of what we decided in kaguya. That because class president had like a reputation and it wasn't being the new kid. Yeah, because Sakamoto's reputation is glowing.

So fine.

So fine. And then the bully that wears a beanie, from now on, I call him Beanie, asks if they want to do him in for real. I was just like, oh boy.

Oh my.

What are they going to do?

What are you going to do?

Murder?

I mean, maybe that I was thinking somewhere else, but oh my goodness. Oh boy, he's real fine.

And then we see Sakamoto stylishly cleaning the classroom. And a boy comes and he's like, hey, teacher needs your help getting ready for tomorrow. Go to the science room. And Sakamoto's like, okay. And then he gets there and he's pulled in by the bullies and they tie him up. So, I mean, who knows what's about to happen? And they ask him where he came from. And he was like, I came from a private school. And they're like, oh, great, so no one's going to come save you sick red. And they talk about what they're going to do to him. They say stuff about chemicals and also stripping him down. And I was just like, boys, I wrote it down.

Strip him down to his socks and send pictures to the girls in class. And it's just like that would just.

Make him more popular.

I was going to say, well, they're in the science lab, so they're like, yeah, let's experiment with some of these, like, acids and chemicals. And then we'll send the picture. So it's like, let's not send sensual nudes to all the people who love him. Let's show his deformed body after we mutilate figures.

Yeah. Wild. And then there's a fire because there's cigarettes caught on fire.

Karma. That's why you don't smoke. Kids. Hi. smokey the Bear here.

Only we can prevent classroom fires.

It's been me the whole time. I have a very specific job in Japan, specifically cigarettes and classroom science rooms.

I would not doubt for a second if Japan had a mascot for that. They got mascots for everything. But no, they don't even show the bullies smoking the cigarettes in the class. They're just like, oh, no, they just caught on fire. Was the spontaneous, like, a busting? What happened?

I don't know, but I love it. And then they rush to get out, but the door is stuck because there's, like, a broom thing on the other side holding the door closed. oops. And then Beanie gets his cell phone out to call somebody, but then his battery dies. Oh, it's also worth mentioning that he did take a picture of Sakamoto before this.

Yeah.

So his battery is dead. They can't call anybody. And then another one turns to the shelf of chemicals, and he's like, maybe we could do something with these. And then Sakamoto is like, no, don't. But he's just like sakamoto is chilling. He's calm.

Sakamoto is also untied now.

Yeah. He's somehow untied himself in this. And they're like, how are you so chill? What are you going to do? And he's, like, buffoons. And he gets up and takes his jacket off, and then he just starts sidestepping back and forth like he's trying to intimidate the fire. And the three boys are like, oh, look at the look at the look in his eyes. He's so determined. Oh, he's, like, picking up a light breeze. The fire is getting smaller. And then the three of them are like, we better join in. So that classroom is apparently above the teacher office, and they're making so much noise that the teacher is like, what the hell is that? And one of them goes up to check it out, and when he opens the door, he sees four idiots dancing around a fire.

And the fire is much, much bigger now.

Yeah. And then he grabs a fire extinguisher from somewhere and puts it out. You would think that they have a fire extinguisher in the classroom if it's that's what I was chemistry classroom, I don't know. But so Sakamoto says, like, the reason I did that was so we could make noise and someone would come up. And then he well, like, I think he says that in his mind. And then he takes, like, full responsibility for the fire. He says that he was teaching them how to use an alcohol lamp. And the teacher is like, well, it's nice to help your classmates, but you still got to write a letter of apology. So that's like, his punishment detention. And then he's like, oh, that's fine. I'll write it in calligraphy.

I am the fanciest lad.

And then sorry, hold on.

One of you is like, I had to learn cursor for so many goddamn years. I'm going to use it whenever I can because that's how I feel now because I never use this shit.

I like cursive. And then the bullies are, like, laying on the floor laughing, and they're like, I haven't worked up a sweat like that in a while. And they're just, like, in a good mood. Yeah. And then the Beanie Kids phone vibrates, so it's working somehow now. And he opens it up, and he sees the picture he took of Sakamoto, and he's just like, oh, boy. And then he keeps it.

It's a pretty boy.

And then we see them playing volleyball again, and they're talking about how Sakamoto played them even though he saved their lives. And they joke because the Beanie Kid, he's not as into it anymore and as into making fun of him. And they're like, oh, ha ha. He stole your heart. And then he's just like, Well, I mean, what if he's pretty cool? Yeah, that's that. And they drop the ball again, and then we get a scene change. It's raining and windy, and we see a bird struggling to fly. And then Sakamoto passes by it, and he's, like, fighting against the wind, and he's chilling. And then the bird tries to fly ahead of him, and they kind of, like, start racing. And then a sign flies by in the wind and hits the bird. But Sakamoto is cool, and he saves it. And there's, like, a whole sequence of him, like, jumping in the river and the bird getting caught up in a tornado.

But when he jumps in the river, he lands on a piece of wood. So he's riding it down the river into the typhoon that now is here. And it's at the scene where I was like, oh, bayonetta was actually a very good comparison from this show. This is very bayonet ask.

And he jumps up to save the bird. And as he does so, the sky breaks, and it is sunny and blue, and he did it. The bird flies away safely. And then we're back in class, and this boy, his name is Sarah, which I knew, but I kept calling him Blonde Boy. So we'll see what happens here. He's showing off to some girls that he's in a magazine for fashion, and he kind of tells them they're definitely not interested, but he's like, oh, I could help you guys with your day to day fashion. And they're like, but we wear uniforms. And then a girl comes into the classroom, and she has a newspaper. And in the newspaper, there's a picture of Sakamoto saving the bird.

Wow.

And they gush all over him. And then Sarah is like, fuck you. What the hell?

That's popular.

And then they're learning about Japanese history. The teacher asks a question, sakamoto gets up to answer, and he has, like, a mnemonic device to remember it. And everybody's like, oh, wow.

So smart.

So smart. And then as he goes to sit back down, sarah grabs the chair out from under him and he just fucking.

Sits in midair post up.

Just the muscles it takes, the precision. Incredible. And then we see them doing pe and they're like, playing against each other. And Sakamoto shows him up again. Sorry. And then he just hates it. Sarah just hates it. And he goes to get a drink of water, but as he presses the button, he gets spurted in the face. And the fountain had a do not use sign on it because it's broken.

This is probably my favorite line of the show. Whereas the guy just walks by casually and goes, hey, guess what? The thing is broken, dumbass. And keeps walking.

You were not helpful, sir.

It feels very like genuine high school.

Yeah, I love it. That was one of my favorite parts.

So he takes the sign off as he sees Sakamoto approaching with a whole bunch of girls. And as he goes to get a drink, the water erupts. But somehow he just knew that was going to happen. So he just lets it fly up and he gets it all over him. And then he turns to the girls and he's like, sorry, ladies. Hope you don't mind. I went first. And they're just like, look at him. He's wet.

He's so wet.

Just so wet. And then they're back in class. The teacher says that they have half an hour to answer a question. And then there's a bee, and everybody.

Starts freaking out, lose their goddamn mind.

And the girls, everyone to the bunker in the panic room. Now.

The girls just leave and they close the door, and the boys are like, stuck in there. And they're like, what the fuck? Hold on. What?

We got to address this. There is a dangerous problem of people locking people into rooms with danger in this school.

Yeah. Do these fires just automatically lock?

It is a safety hazard.

Yeah. And then the teacher is like, wait, take off your clothes. Because bees, they are attracted to things that are black and move.

I'm not falling.

Never heard before.

Me neither. Yeah, teacher, I don't know about this.

Also, maybe don't shout to your classroom of children. Everyone take off your clothes. I'm an old man.

I'm an old man, and you are all young boys.

Take it off. This is why, conveniently, all the girls left the room. Yeah.

At least they had enough sense to be like, okay, let's not use this to get teen titties in here.

Yeah, we're getting teen man titties for sure.

But so they all take off their clothes. But Sakamoto is still just sitting calmly doing his work. And Sarah is upset now that he looks like a coward. And he, like, rolls up a book and the bee lands on Sakamoto's head. So he goes to smack it off of his head. But then Sakamoto dodges and the bee flies off. And then the blonde boy falls down. And it is at this point that I was like, oh, my God, he's fat.

That little punch.

Yeah. sarah's chubby. I love it because he's like he's like, the fashionable guy, you know? Yeah, I love that. But so then Sakamoto attacks the bee with his, like, pencil compass thing, and they get into an intense battle and he can go in for the kill, but instead he grabs it with the compass, like chopsticks, and he makes a pun that is very kindly explained on screen.

Thank you, subtitles.

He says Manner Beans, which is apparently a game that is used to improve chopstick skills. Very good. And then he lets the be go free, and everybody's like, oh, wow, great. And then Sarah is like, oh, I guess I'm a fan of him now. And then people laugh at sarah's boxers because they were striped black and yellow. But he's, like, happy because he thinks he's funny. They're like, oh. He's like, oh, they're laughing at me. That must mean I'm funny. I'm a comedian now.

I pivoted based on this one moment.

That'S going so well for me.

Yes. And then the teacher is like, okay, well, like, back to class. Let's all answer this question, remember? And then Sakamoto is like, oh, I already have the answer. I was answering it while you all were being buffoons and freaking out. And then the blonde boy tries to make a pun, but nobody laughs. This moment was so good. The absolute silence and face to black.

Jarring just enough and he still eats it up. He still rebels in it.

Yes. And then he talks to Sakamoto after class and he says, like, I've decided to be a comedian, and I was hoping that you would be my partner. And then Sakamoto says something. I forget exactly what it was, but he sets him up for, like, a slapstick joke where the punchline is to hit Sakamoto and Sarah misses. So then Sakamoto is like, I decline. And then we get the ending, which is chill. We just see Sakamoto doing some stuff. And then after the ending, we see the bullies playing volleyball again, just at night, at school, in the field. And they're like, how long do we have to play volleyball for? And then they drop it. And then they're like, let's just go home, please.

I'm so tired.

And that's the first episode there's.

Sisafisian punishment. perpetually playing volleyball.

Yeah. So the only way I could describe the tone and the dramatics of the show was, this is jojo with no stakes.

Yes.

And it is perfect because it's sort of that same style of animation as well, of just like, some boys are very beautiful, some are ugly, but very detailed. So it's still, like, good looking artwork, and it has that look. And just like especially with dancing around the fire, that really solidified. It of, like, this is just a dumb high school boy with no power stand. He just dance at this fire and try to put it out.

Yes. His secret techniques will get into dueling with the b.

Really solidified that statement for me. Because it's not just like it's just like big actioning. Like the compass clangs with the bee stinger. You see this big flash of light and it's just like, this is ridiculous. And I'll fully hear for it.

Absolutely.

And luckily for once, they know it's ridiculous and they're going for it.

I mean, Jojo does too, but Jojo started it.

We've seen a lot of other shows that have done shit like this and tried to take it seriously. So it's nice.

Refreshing.

Yeah. So episode two, we see Sakamoto is trying to feed his bird friend. He's climbed up a tree to a bird house. He's trying to bring food to it, but it's not there.

Does this kind of animal sidekick because it's a bird in two episodes now.

Interesting.

We'll see. We'll put a question mark. Yeah.

Well, this is open. We would need to watch more. I feel like. Brendan, you're going to continue with this. So yeah, while he's up in the tree, he overhears some bullying happening below him. This god, my sorry, I'm lost in my notes. It's kubo, nerd or kabota? Yeah, there's a boy, kabota. He's being bullied by two older kids. They're like taking his lunch money. And he's like, boy, what am I.

Going to tell my mom? That I keep running out of money?

Oh, no beans. And so Sakamoto jumps down and he's like, hey, what's all that about? He's like, they just take my money. I don't know what to do. I need help. And he's like, interesting, good luck with that.

And starts to walk a little out kid.

And the kid's like, but you're not going to help. I thought you were so cool. I thought you were so great. What happens? I can't live like this without any money. So naturally, Sakamoto is like, ah, I see. Well, the real answer is we're both going to start working at McDonald's. So you'll have more money?

Way technically, yeah.

Wacdonalds.

That's my favorite anime thing always. whack. donald's yes.

So they both start working at McDonald's. And the manager is like, okay, you're both new. You're both going to start out in the back. And Sakamoto is like, well, how's my hair? It's not too messy for work, right? And she's like, oh, I'm in love with this teenage boy. You're on the register now. You're the face of this company.

Yeah.

So he gets put up front, and kibota is on mop duty, and he's not very good at it. And the manager is kind of giving him shit. So the boy is sort of scheming on like, I didn't really want a job. I got to figure out how to get money fast. But then they get a big lunch rush because everyone is so in love with Sakamoto, they can't not order from him when they see him in the food court. Hands just such a pretty boy. And all the girls are like, I'll have a burger. Can I have a smile on the side?

You would look so much prettier if you smile.

And so they get through the lunch rush. kabuta is like, on the French fry station. He's starting to get the hang of it. And the manager is like, hey, you're really pulling your weight now. You're getting the hang of things. Wow, this is a weird lunch rush. I don't know why. So some time passes, they get to their first payday, and he's dreaming about all the stuff he's going to buy. And Sakamoto comes in and he's like, hey, where are you going to get with your first paycheck? He's like a new protractor nerd. Yeah, big ol to work.

Yeah.

So back out on the floor, the bullies come in, and they see that kabuta is working, and they're like, hey, he's scrounging up some more money for it.

Wait, though. I want to say the part where the three the three vote the three they're not really bullies anymore, just those three boys.

Hooligans.

Oh, yes. Sorry.

Yeah, so good. They come in and the beanie boy orders something, and then he gets nervous, and the other two are like, no, come on, say it. And he's just like, can I also get a smile, please? It's so good.

He's so gay for Sakamoto.

I just want to see him happy.

He's working so hard to earn that money.

Anyways, the formed bullies are there, but then the new bullies come in and they're like, hey, Kabooda, give us your money. We're going to meet you at the park after work.

Just avoid that park. Just don't go to that park.

Yeah, for real? I don't understand. They tell you where he's going to be.

Take the alternate path home.

Go over a block, walk around one block away.

It's not that hard.

Nervous? Yeah.

If you're scared, don't go towards the dangerous thing.

It's why I avoid stables. Oh, my gosh.

Well, luckily you live in Los Angeles, and there aren't a lot of stables to come across.

Hey, he's the closest one of the three of us to the burbank Horse district.

Shit.

That's a thing?

Oh, you didn't know? Keep your ass out of burbank, boy. Yeah, there's a part of burbank that's so equestrian that you can ride horses on the street.

Oh, God, no.

Yeah, don't go there.

I don't need this.

So yeah. Anyway, Brendan avoiding entire city for now. Let's get back to this. So kabuta, of course, walks past the park and the bullies are like, hey, dipshit, give us your money. He's about to give them the money. His first paycheck, he worked so hard for. But then he remembers Sakamoto in the beginning saying, like, hey, if you're not. Going to protect your money. No one will. So he's like, you know what, Bullies? I walked my butt all the way up to you, and I was about to give you money. But now, no. So of course they're like, wow, you are an idiot. And they kick his ass. But as he's getting his ass kicked, sakamoto comes up. And while they are at the park, they're talking about how sakamoto forgot a bunch of items from their order. But sakamoto is here to deliver. He uses their coffee creamer and blinds them, throws it at them. He blows cold air with a straw into their ear.

That feels weird to me.

Yeah, it's not very intimidating and also not super cool.

Kind of sensual.

Vaguely sensual, yeah.

But sakamoto is like, now, kabuta, use your skills you learned in the kitchen. So he picks up sand from it and throws it at him. Like salting, french fries.

Pocket sand.

Pocket.

Sad. It was.

So he uses his burger style to defeat the enemies.

A burger stand. Arnold mclaughl McDonald is his stand.

That Mac sabbath, the McDonald's themed Black sabbath cover band. Is that his music theme?

Oh, my God.

Sorry.

Oh. Do you not know about Max sabbath?

Why would I?

Yes. Everyone stop the episode. Google Mac sabbath real quick. And you'll find there McDonald's themed Black sabbath cover band.

The groom is just like, gritty.

Holy shit.

Mary mc cheese has tough.

Wow. There's a picture of them with ozzy osborne.

Yeah, they're legit.

Yeah.

Amazing.

Weird.

This is a weird episode, guys.

This is a weird episode.

Sorry. We have some weird energy going on here. But yeah. So they fight off the bullies. But of course, Cabooda is all beat up. And he's like, hey, thank you for standing up. And sakamoto is like, hey, you stood up for your pride. It's not about the money. It's about being a man. And sakamoto, of course, is like, but hey, I'm still on the clock. I got to get back to work and just dip. So, yeah, that sort of ends our first half. And we come back in with a girl in class sitting in front of sakamoto, sort of just dreamily looking back at him, trying to catch his eye. But he is looking through her, literally, because he's still writing down the stuff on the board. So she is so mad that she's not catching his attention. So we see. This is ina. This is like the most popular girl in school. All the boys are in love with her, and she's such a flirt. But there's one person that she can't crack, and it's sakamoto, of course. Yes. He's resistant to her wily charms. So she's running us through her process on how to flirt with boys. And she's going to finally crack sakamoto in class. So we see a bunch of boys flirting with her, but she breaks away. She's going to ask sakamoto to tutor her because she's just a dumb little girl that needs a man to teach her.

I'm, like, so bad at math.

Oh, my God, I just need help. You're just so smart and handsome and good. So her first tip is you want to sit on a boy's left side, especially in class, if he's writing stuff, because most people are right handed. So that arm is a barrier, and you want to be close. But sakamoto is ambidextrous and is writing his mouth with both hands unknown. He's like, writing from the inside out. So she's like, oh, no. With every passing second, the barrier gets wider and wider as his arms stretch out to get to the edges of the paper.

Because he's not writing in, like, a notebook like a normal student. He's writing in, like, a scroll. So it's expanding more and more, stretching it out.

She says her next tip is you have to call a man by his full name. But she can't remember his full name. She only knows sakamoto.

She doesn't know his first name.

She's like, I'm sorry. I don't even know your full name. Let's get to know each other. And as he starts to introduce himself, there are some rival girls on the other side of the classroom who are watching and are antiino, and they scratch the blackboard as she's asking, and she misses his name. Oh, no. No. Intimacy can come. They're on last name basis.

She says it sucks. He's not allowed to say it on air. Just, like, fully calling out that. It's a show, love.

It meta.

She says her next tip is to mimic the person's actions so they build familiarity. So he starts, like, picking up a ruler, and she's doing the same. And then he quickly just starts building, like, papercraft and doing, like origami stuff and moving so fast. She's like, I can't follow at all. Oh, God. Oh, no. What is happening? And he makes a tiny paper wastebasket. He's like, ah, now my pencil shavings can go into proper receptacle.

This is more absurd than fighting the bee.

Yes, it was beautiful. It's just a beautiful, tiny little origami trash can.

Yes.

So she goes to her last resort, and he's like, okay, if you're trying hard and they're giving you nothing, just ignore them. Walk away, and your absence will make the heart grow fonder. So she's like, well, I'm out of here. sakamoto. And walks away. And then sakamoto is like, Holy shit, there's a dog outside.

Most relatable moment of the show and.

Just sees a cute dog walking and is completely oblivious that she left.

He says, we have a guest on the school grounds.

Yeah.

So we go to the next time they're in class. She's like, oh, I want to get to know you a little better. Let's play with this ouija board. Let's talk to some ghosts. I'm scared. Because her point is, if you do something fearful together, that fear is a bond that will bind you forever.

Yes.

And the other rival girls come in and they're like, hey, fuck you. We're going to play too. You're not going to build any intimacy here. And sakamoto is like, we see your games, we see your literal games, your curse games. And sakamoto is like, I think you three have this handled. So, yeah, I'm going to sit this out and just watch. And also, I can't remember if it was here or before. What was the name of the manga he's reading?

Yeah, something of like, charming Men or how to Charm a man and something.

No, I think this was earlier, but he was reading a manga called Crystal Power and lapis lazuli. And I was like, is that a Steven Universe thing? Because I looked it up and it's not anything.

I mean, it could just be like a funny thing that he it's like, oh, he's reading a magical girl manga.

Yeah, it might be that. lapse, lastly, is usually associated with royalty. It's a specific type of gym. Maybe it's that, I don't know, but it could be. I'd be very surprised if it was a Stephen Universe cut.

I wanted it to be. That's all I cared about.

Anyway.

So, yeah, you start playing with the ouija board, all the girls, and they're all fighting each other and they start asking like, insulting questions. I didn't write down what they were specifically asking. Sort of talking about, like, is ina just like a flirting? Is she not hot shit the schemer?

Yeah, because her last name is like it means dark schemer.

Oh, really?

Yeah, but they just keep fighting each other, trying to incriminate ina. And she's too strong and she's forcing it where she needs it to go and she's like, oh, no, it's saying it's. No, I'm such an innocent spirit. Even the ghosts know this.

This is also a jojo's moment of like, as soon as they ask that, her face gets real dark and intense and a lot of detail. And she fights them off by herself.

And then they finally ask one last question and they all push so hard, sort of like, who does sakamoto like the most? And they all try to push it towards the first letter of their names, but they accidentally throw the chip and that means the spirit is loose. What are they going to do? And with the spirit being loose, of course, sakamoto becomes possessed by, like, a cat spirit.

It's a fox spirit or fox spirit. I have to look this one up.

So, yeah, he's possessed and he's like, oh, no, I am a ghost. I have possessed this young boy. The only way I'll leave is if you build me a shrine. But it has to be before the end of the class period. They're like, oh, shit, we have to build a shrine in 20 minutes. Oh, God. Let's use the desks because that'll be the quickest way to do it. We got to save our pretty boy. Because he's like, yes, I will bring this vessel back to the mountains.

And they're like, no, Sacamoto, it'll get spirited away.

So they start using the desk to build a shrine gate. It has to be, like, 6ft tall, so they're stacking them high. And one of the girls is about to have a desk fall on her, but ina saves her and gets in the way. And finally, they build the shrine gate using teamwork. And sakamoto comes back. He climbs up to the top desk, and then he's like, oh, no, where am I? What is happening?

How did I get here?

But finally, at the end, working together through teamwork, they're like, hey, you're not so bad. And sakamoto is like, yeah, if you make quarreling parties work together, it's the fastest way to make sure they'll become friends. hooray hooray. But then he uses some mind powers. He says, like, humans are so easy to get to work together. Yeah, that was a little he uses a power. He's like, classroom reset, and all the deaths fly back to where they are. It's like, okay, maybe sakamoto is an.

Alien, an eldritch being. Who knows?

Odd.

He is now Ghost Man. But that's episode two.

This is how the bitchy trio of girls trope starts, because now we get the three girls bonding together over their love.

I know. Is regina George.

Exactly. Yeah. It's only going to end up for more trouble for people down the line. So episode three starts off with the gang of hooligans beanie and them giving gifts to their mafia don boss their.

High school mafia boss.

Yeah. And he gives them, like, a biscuit or something. And the boss is mad because he's like, I just had this, you know, dry, you know what? Do you have a cake or something? He said, if I get a biscuit now, my mouth is all going to be tried out for next class. Do you want me to have a dry mouth? And, like, the rose back at him, like, kind of pissed off. He got the wrong treat. And we see a few other students there. One of them is just smoking, and he's another pretty boy, and, like, I guess they're in high school. But the boss is definitely just a full grown man. Yeah, he's a full adult.

I think he's supposed to be a second year because he's in charge of the first years, and then the pretty boy is in charge of the second year, so he must be a third year.

Yeah, it's they play it off like they're in high school and, like, all of them could pass. But this guy is just a full adult.

This guy. He's Mario.

Hello, fellow kids.

Yeah, I'll call him orio wane. He says, like, I got some sophomore doing some errands for me. He's pretty good. And he whistles. And right as he whistles, we see sakamoto just sprinting across the schoolyard. There's like, a broom laying over a barrel. And he throws like, a bundle of rocks on the other end of the broom and catapults himself up to, like, the third floor of the school building. And sacramento just, like, rolls in, and he's like, hello, boss. Here are your sandwiches. His boss like, there you go. This is a treat. This is a good treat. And everyone's, like, gushing about the presentation of the sandwiches because they're vending machine sandwiches, but the way sakamoto presented them made them taste better, I guess. And they all love him. Everyone loves sakamoto. He's great. And then we see sakamoto walking away, and he bumps into the McDonald's kid again. And I love that because in the last episode, he talked about with his money, he might get his hair straightened to try and be prettier. And in this episode, his hair is straightened. Now for the rest of us. I know. It's just like, great. You do you McDonald's build that confidence.

Yes.

And McDonald's is basically saying, like, hey, I think they're taking advantage of you. You may not want to just do everything they say. And talking about it is like, no, it's our duty to serve our upper class, man. They've been through stuff, and we have to learn from their experiences, so we have to take care of them. And right as he says that, we hear another whistle. And he's like, the whistle? I'm called to it. I'm compelled to. And he runs off.

What is it?

The ringing of the bell.

Ringing of the bell compels you.

And then when he runs up to Wario, he's like, hey, I'm thirsty. Give me a drink. He's like, what do you want? He's like, whatever socket runs over to vending machine, and I'm presuming it's coffee. And he gets all the bunch of different flavors of, like, canned coffee. And he mixes them all together, shakes it up, and he presents it. And he's like, it's a coffee blend. And the boss drinks, and he's like, oh, shit, this is good.

A really unique blend to this campus.

Yeah, because it's just whatever in the vending machine and all the other thugs are there, it's like, oh, well, give me a peach one. It's like, oh, give me a passion for one. He's like, sure, if you would line up right by the counter over here. And it's just like the sink, like the outside sinks, and all of them line up as if it's like a store.

Oh, my God.

And Wario asks to borrow sakamoto's gym clothes, and sakamoto just starts measuring them. He's like, oh, you won't be able to fit in my gym clothes. But sakamoto runs off to like he has a home EC class or something and gets all the sewing machines and just sews him his own gym clothes with a specific blend of cotton or something so it helps absorb the sweat without releasing a smell. And he's was it mammograms? Was it embroiders?

What? embroidery.

Embroidery.

You're thinking of monograms.

There it is.

Monogram is his whole name.

Monogram is something medical with the boobies.

That's what that is.

He embroidered. Switch the gym clothes and the WarioWares in the class. And everyone's like, oh, wow, that looks so good. How do you get that? I want that. He's like? It's a secret, boys. hank. And I was like, oh, that's weird. It's a weirdly, delicate moment with the boss. And then we just see the sacramento doing a bunch of stuff for him, getting him this food. Can't write to him, massaging him, all this stuff. And one of the other pretty boys that's smoking in the gang says, like, hey, boss, I think you're relying too much on the sakamoto character. He's making you soft. You're getting lazy. You're not doing anything. And boss like, nah, it's good. It's fine. He's like, but now that he mentions it, I do have to start thinking of new stuff to make sakamoto do, because I'm running out of stuff to tell him. And when sakamoto appears next time, he's like, oh, here we go, sakamoto. Serve me as best to your abilities. Your next order is to trust your instincts and do whatever you think would help me the best. And then cuts to the wario in the bathroom, laughing, just kind of like, it's a me iowan, and just saying he got one over on sakamoto. And rezzie reaches for the toilet paper. He sees it's out. He's like damn. sakamoto just appears in front of him.

Drops down from the ceiling.

Yeah, there's a lot of stuff sakamoto done did so far, which is ridiculous. This is the first one I would put as just, like, literal, unrealistic expectation of a literal child, because he just appears. He's like a nerdo teleport fan, and he's got toilet paper there for his after care. Very delicate way of saying wiping your asshole. And he balls gets to leave. And you notice his shoes are missing. He's like, Where are my shoes? He looks over, and sakamoto is warming his shoes over like a little bunson burner. And he's like, I got them to the right temperature. They got a nice medium roast to him. And the fuck is like, Why the fuck are you roasting my shoes? No one does this. He reaches for the shoe, and it burns them. And he's like, ah, yes. The outside of the shoe is at a nice, perfect roast, but the inside is pretty fucking hot. It's like, okay, Sokomoto why did you do this? And Mario starts, like, freaking out. He's like, all right. Get away from me. Just leave me alone. Let me go home. And sakama is like, oh, you want to go home? Perfect. I'll get your carriage. And we just see him fly around the corner, drifting. And he's got, like, the janitor's wash bucket for his mop just like, no, fuck this shit. sakamoto just starts, like, running him down after really intense. So Wario tries to escape, and he goes to the gym equipment room. He starts piling up all these hurdles for gymnastics and stuff in front of the door to try and keep sakamoto out. And he starts getting freaked out. And the boss tries to call one of his underlinks, saying, like, sakamoto has gone nuts. You got to get me out of here. Got to help me out. And while he's on the phone, we just see, like, a school uniform jacket, cover up the only window so it makes the whole room darker. And the parts, like, freaking out, like, oh, God, he's going to kill me in the house. Yeah, I wrote down. I'm like, this is some, like, Jordan peele level shit.

The maniacs in the mailbox.

Oh, no.

This whole episode just had a very, like, horror movie ask, like, slasher feel to it always for me. And I kind of loved it. I was not expecting that.

Me too.

And we see sakamoto is indeed in that room, but he took all the equipment and moved it around and made just a bedroom for the boss to sleep in overnight. And he's like, I'll read you, gentle lullabies, as you fall asleep. And she's like, oh, okay. sakamoto is out of his goddamn eyes. And we see the next day, the hooligans beanie and them getting lunch. And they look over, and they see Wario buying his own lunch for once. Weird. And they find out that sakamoto was relieved of his duties because he was freaking the boss out. And then we had a little intermission break. And then the second part of the episode, it's sakamoto helping McDonald's with his studying because he's been class. So sakamoto is, of course, getting perfect grades in class. He got, like, 120 on his gym exam, which is just not even possible. But he is superhuman, so it makes sense. And while they're studying at McDonald's house, we hear his mom coming upstairs with these big, elaborate cupcake looking things and tea. She's very dressed up. And McDonald's is like, oh, shit. My mom's coming. You got to hide. sakamoto dives under the bed to hide from his mom. She's like, oh, I thought I heard sakamoto. nah, it's just me talking to myself. It's like, okay, she leaves. Then we hear like, all right. My only son, I would just accept talks to himself like a crazy person. And she's disappointed that sakamoto is not there. And when she leaves her here, McDonald's talking to himself in his head like, oh, yeah, my mom is in love with sakamoto. She's like, well, yeah. Who is it? Get on board.

Get to the back of the line.

It's not that surprising. And we find out. Like, no, all the girls at school had a crush on this stuff. Like, she's in love with him to an unhealthy degree. With your son's high school friend. So we get a flashback to McDonald's. First brought sakamoto over. He's like, oh, yeah, here's my friend. He's here to help me study. Sokomoto's there. And he takes his shoes off, and he boughs properly and say, oh, thank you for having me here. I brought you this gift of assorted seashells to show my appreciation. That was one run. I was like, this is such a specific gift, but I'm pretty sure every mom I know would love it because of weirdly, appropriate mom gift.

Ooh, I have a weird glass bowl. I can put it in on a coffee table.

Yeah, we just have a jar of seashells in my bathroom.

There you go. Yeah, it's always the bathroom is, like, beach themed, I guess, because you would think it gets rid of the smell. Or you can have an ocean candle in there. I don't know.

Yeah, I was from a beach town, so I thought that was just, like, a local thing. But no, it's everywhere.

I'd go to the Jersey Shore during the summer. Yeah, it's there seashells everywhere. Cigarette butts and needles. Jersey Shore is disgusting. Don't go anyway. Oh, my God. And we see his mom starts gushing over sakamoto. And she's even, like, coming in with a video camera, like, oh, here the boys studying. Look at sakamoto's like, yo, mom. And she's like, oh, you should stay for dinner. And she cooks like a fully roasted turkey dinner. It's very elaborate. It was weird seeing this, but it was, like, played comedically. It wasn't until the dinner where I saw her husband sitting next to her while she's trying to feed sacramento, where I was like, yo, this is uncomfortable. Now, see, I feel bad.

He just looks so upset. He's just, like, holding his newspaper, like.

Losing my wife to a high schooler. So that's why McDonald's asked him to hide anytime. He's over now. And while they're studying, he realizes, like, shit, I forgot my science book at school. Let me go back and get it. And when he leaves, he goes to leave, and he's like, oh, sakamoto, I'll text you if anything happens. Wait, you don't have a cell phone? Another example of rich, popular kid without the cell phone. And he's like, here, you can borrow one of these. So for some reason, McDonald's has two cell phones. I'm thinking he's a drug dealer. That's my head cannon.

Maybe it's I've seen Breaking Bad. I know how this goes.

No.

Yeah, he's the gus fringe of McDonald.

Oh, my gosh.

And when he leaves, his mom notices the front door with the shoes, and she opens up, like, the little closet by the front door and notices soccer mother shoes were hidden in there. She's like, ha ha. I knew it. I could sense you're here, my lover.

I could smell your feet, boy.

Feet, boy. And she starts looking for sakamoto. And we just see, like, actually, this is where I put the note of, like, this feeling Jordan peele because she walks into the room and sakamoto's up in the corner of the ceiling, and then he grabs the top.

I don't see hereditary, because that's something that happens in hereditary.

Oh, no. Genuinely too scared to see hereditary. I hear it's terrifying. But we see him talking about it, grab the doorframe and whip himself across the hallway into the next room. And he's just hiding in all these places that she's looking for him. And I don't get why he doesn't just hide in one of the spots she already looked instead of finding a new spot every time.

That's a good point.

That's interesting, Brendan.

It'D be really boring to watch. Yeah. So at one point he's just in the washing machine, but you can see him through the glass door on the washing machine. Why? That's when they got me, though. So he keeps running around hiding, and one of the last spots is he's in the bathtub, but there's like a cover to it, like a rolling cover. So his mom rolls over half of it, and then sakamoto is still in the other half that's still covered. She's like, all right, he's not there. And as she's walking away, McDonald's calls him. She's like, hey, sakamoto, I'm going to stop by at Stored. He wants some pudding or some rice cakes. Just like, why did sakamoto answer it? Why is it so loud? There's a lot of questions I have in this moment.

He put it on speaker phone.

Yeah, you can clearly hear him from the other room. And so his mom runs back in, is like, I know you're in here. And ready. She like, dives at the bathtub. sakamoto slides out, turns on the showerhead to spray her with water. And he picks up and he's like, I want rice cakes. And then he dips out of the bathroom.

No mention to the mom attacking or anything?

No. He knows what's happening. sucking your mom out of me. I'm dead. She's after me. She's in the house, and she sees his wet footprints, like, running across the floor out to the balcony. So she runs out and sees a bunch of, like, blankets and sheets tied together, like, running off the balcony like a rope. She's like, oh, no, he escaped. I lost him again. And I just see sakamoto in a shirt on the clothing line that's dry, and he's just standing in it. Like, you can see his face and legs sticking out. She's like, so dumb, but so funny. And then we see her go back inside and she starts watching this, like, romance movie. And the main actor and the main love interest is like an exact clone of sakamoto. Like, he looks just like him. So it's like, ah, that's where her obsession comes from. sakamoto is, like, wrapped up in the curtains behind her in the window leading out to the balcony. Like, Why did you come inside, man? Stay out on the balcony. And then she goes to get dinner ready after watching the movie. And sakamoto walks in. He's like, ma'am, I have to tell you something. She's like, I know. And she dives at him like a fucking maniac. She's just gone full feral. And he jumps over her, throws a dvd into the dvd player, and right as the dvd starts playing, he lands behind the TV. And the dvd starts with him jumping from off screen so it just looks seamless as he lands behind the TV, it looks like he lands in the TV. immersive very well done. And she starts watching it, and it's basically sakamoto saying, like, I'm back in my TV, my homeland of the digital landscape. I'm not real. I'm digital now. We can't be together. And she's, like, crying. She's like, because earlier she was saying how it's so much easier to be in love with something you can't be with when it's, like, fictional, like on TV in a movie, but it's harder when it's real and nearby. So he pretends like, I'm in a movie now. You can give up. Hull lusting after me. A horny broad. Jesus, she's fucking feral. Shit. She is so horny on Maine. So she kind of gives up. It's like, my love. He's gone forever. Excluding her husband, she's had a child with and has been married to for presumably at least 18 years. And whatever, McDonald's comes back and sees his mom crying. I was like, oh, man. Well, this is probably for the best. And then after that, sakamoto starts tutoring him at the library, which could have been done in the first place. Just throw that out there. And then as we see his mom walking down the street, still upset, looking down at her seashell necklace, she passes by sakamoto and doesn't even see because her head is so far down and she's not looking like your name, except with a woman who's 20 years older.

Than I'm sorry, did you jump into my TV credit?

What was your name?

Haven't you heard?

Full circle.

And then we get the end slate with the McDonald's narrating saying like, this is the bitter tale of my mom's unrequited love to your high school friend and super not your father. Which is weird. I get this for the comedy.

I want sakamoto to be his dad.

I mean, don't we all? He has such sage lessons and advice.

He didn't, like, beat up in the last episode. He didn't beat up the bullies or give him his own money. He was like, well, just get jobs. Like, yeah, that's a fatherly thing to do. Get a job.

You'll take your money and you'll fight for it. If you earn it, you don't need a handout like the government. Okay, dad.

All right. You had too much to drink. Thanksgiving, that's having you heard I'm sakamoto.

And what a wild, fun ride.

It was just absolutely so good, though.

How are you feeling? Are we there yet? Let's discuss.

Let's crack into this.

Yeah, it definitely won me over. I was scared. I genuinely thought it was going to be, oh, this kid is so cool. And there's no conflict or anything fun about it because he just automatically wins. But they managed to be clever enough to be like, oh, he's so smart. He's not, like, directly attacking all these things. He's like using sideways to, like, solve problems of like, rather than beat up your bullies, I'm going to get you a job at McDonald's so you learn self respect. It's like, okay, that's very out of the box, and I'm very interested. And it just breaks past all the standard, like, high school popularity squabbles in a lot of shows and just go straight into what's the most absurd answer to this problem?

Yeah.

You want to tell the girl that has a crush on you that you don't like her? Let's have you pretend to be possessed by a fox ghost who said he.

Was pretending forced her to make friends.

Yes, true.

I thought because it split up into chunks, like other slice of life anime we've seen, I was kind of like, oh, no. How are they going to keep it interesting? Like, how are they going to keep it snappy? But it really works. And all of the segments were so unique that it was like, I'm interested to see what else they could do here.

Yeah, because they also like, how wild.

Is it going to get?

Yeah. They slowly start to introduce the characters that become recurring. So it's like, okay, you're the star of this one. So next episode, you're gonna be a background character or, like, be a B plot. And it's like it's interesting that they keep building on it but are able to have these standalone episodes.

Yeah, I liked with the last episode, it gave you, like, the preview of the next episode. And it's like, next episode, sakamoto deals with this, this, and this. And then a little portrait of I guess the gym teacher pops up. He's like, yeah, that's right. There's three stories. Next episode. Wow, that's kind of aggressive. It's a weird thing to be, like, bragging about in the preview, but I caught me a card. And it's just like little stuff like that when she says he can't say his name on air, where it's just like it's very self aware and it's subverting all of the tropes of the high school stuff. I mean, it's kind of the same appeal that got one punch, man, so much popularity. But that was, like, for action superhero anime. This is for, like, popular slice of life.

Yeah, go ahead.

Go ahead.

Politeness off Canadians. Yeah. As soon as we got to the fire dance thing, I was like, Brendan is going to love this. This is his sort of dumb humor. It's great oh, yeah.

Because when they were doing the dance, they were saying, like, oh, his hands are making the wind and weakening the fire. I was like, is he really going to put out the fire by dancing around it? I'm like, that's stupid. And then when the teacher comes in and it's just four times bigger because they're just feeding it air and fueling it, I was like, that's hilarious. Good show.

I was going to mention I think it's especially funny to think of it as like, this is like the main character in every anime or no, yeah, he's the main character in every anime. And we hear the perspective of the classmates being like, what makes this guy so special? Yeah, why is he the chosen one?

But then he shows you and you're like, oh, okay. That's why.

And then you love him.

Yeah, I think that's part of why it works so well is everything is justified. Like, all the characters that are like, he ain't shit, slowly see him in action and they're like, oh, no, he's incredible. So there is the conflict of changing everyone's mind rather than just, yeah, he's good and everyone knows it, and that's it.

We don't know why he's so good at everything, but there's no denying he is good at everything.

If you don't believe us, just watch. Yeah, no, I did that so bad. That could have been a reference. Don't believe you. Just watch. fuck.

Oh, God.

Okay, well, believe it. We're ruining things. By which I mean me.

My brain is mush. This show is so good. It also did me in.

It's buckwater.

Strangely enough, we've been on a good streak. I want to sort of keep it rolling because Brendan had happy things to say about this. So next week, we're going to watch Africa salary. Man. Oh, and this is a recommendation from Melissa on Twitter.

Thanks, Melissa.

Thanks. And if there's a show you would like us to watch, you can send your recommendations to us through our email arwibaria@gmail.com or on Twitter and Instagram at arweb there. Yet you can find me on Twitter and Instagram at Mrpatrick. dugan.

You can find me on Instagram at queen. Period weebu and on Twitter at queen underscore weebu and queen underscore weebu art.

You can find me on Twitter aBTS Brendan and check out banetta. They're good. Games one and two and three will be out.

We can only dream. Thank you to camille ruley for our artwork. And thank you to Louis zong for theme song stories off the album Beats. You can find all of Louis music at Louisong dot bandcamp.com. Thank you, and we hope you'll join us next week as we learn to live with anime.

I wish I was as cool as takamoto.

Like those beats.