Annotated Anime: Golden Time episode 21


Abandon ship


This episode may be packed full of twists and turns, but it doesn't seem to put us any closer to a happy ending for Linda. This is the only thing that matters! But don't worry, I talk about all that other junk after after the jump.

Even though we had all of that drama in the previous episode, I'm finding it hard to figure out exactly what state Banri's past memories are in. It seemed like he regained them all at once, and while that still seems to be the case, it doesn't look like he's retained them. At least, that's what it seems to be implying when he mentions that they returned "for a moment". This isn't the first time this has happened so Banri shouldn't be too surprised, but then I suppose he wasn't in the middle of a parade last time either. Anyway, the fact that this has happened multiple times should give him plenty of reason to tell Koko. He seemed fine telling her that he regained his feelings for Linda, so he may as well tell her the rest of it, especially as it's nowhere near as terrible news for Koko.

It seems that Banri's moment of panic has had some repercussions, as the Festival Club is now banned from borrowing costumes. You know, this whole situation is the absolute worst. Of course the other dancers would stop momentarily as their friend ran off screaming, anyone would! Why punish them for that when they are dancing for your enjoyment and completely off their own backs? It must be because of the Banri incident, because we can already disprove that it was mistakes from the other dancers. Have you seen their robotic animations? There's no way they messed up. If you don't like your free entertainment, go hire a professional!

Grumble grumble

After talking to Koko about how scared he is of revealing his past, the duo concoct a plan to get everyone, including the weirdly hostile Chinami, over to his place for some delicious Kobe beef. Not a bad incentive by any means. This discussion has obviously been on his mind recently, so it'll do him some good to tell both Mitsuo and Chinami what the deal is. However, before the big reveal is another opportunity for Chinami to get wound up, and over picking up leaves of all things. Banri is generally a nice guy, save for the incident early on in the series and the odd unintentional time when his brain is moving at the speed of sponge, so it's a little disheartening to see Chinami get so angry over what seems like nothing.

Getting angry over nothing? That's as accurate as I can be, as we find out that Chinami is in fact in love with Mitsuo. Her being angry at Banri was because she wants him to get with Linda, leaving Mitsuo for herself, but he didn't do that and now she's annoyed that he might have left Koko for Linda? If that wasn't confusing enough, there's the fact she even likes Mitsuo. Considering the guy tried his best to ignore Chinami after he was rejected, I'm pretty surprised that she wants anything to do with him. It might have seemed obvious that this is where the anime was heading regarding this relationship, but it sure doesn't seem right. 

But let's put all that to one side while we throw in a little more insanity, as Banri regains his memories again right before he can tell Chinami about his past. It almost seems too convenient to happen at this time, so I wonder if there isn't some kind of a trigger that is causing it? He seemed pretty thrilled during the festival when it happened on that occasion, so I can't see any glaringly obvious reasons. Still, I think there's a little more to it. After dragging Linda and Nana into this mess and bolting out of his own home, he's eventually subdued by Mitsuo and 2D-kun, who won't be too happy about missing out on the Kobe beef. To make matters worse, they aren't the only ones unhappy about that night's events. 

Koko has been pretty supportive of Banri lately, and he's certainly had his fair share of issues to pull her into. The problem is that he absolutely sucks at hiding things, so of course Koko, self-proclaimed master stalker, is going to figure it out something is wrong. We know that she hasn't been told about why Banri bolted out of his own house, and it's obvious she's suspicious about what happened during the festival. She also knows about the pills he's been taking, and while this might not matter on its own, Banri hasn't mentioned it to her. For someone trying to find the right time to give his girlfriend a ring, he's doing a pretty shit job of actually having a relationship with her. She wants to help, so let her! Her announcement that she's done with Banri at the end of the episode is hardly surprising, as much as she doesn't mean it. Hopefully Banri will realise what an idiot he's being and sort this out sooner rather than later.

[Meet your Golden Time lover over at Crunchyroll.]

You are logged out. Login | Sign up



Chris Walden
Chris WaldenContributor   gamer profile




Also on Japanator: Golden Time   (13)   From our database:

  • Final Impressions: Golden Time - Chris Walden
  • Annotated Anime: Golden Time episode 23 - Chris Walden
  • Annotated Anime: Golden Time episode 22 - Chris Walden
  • Annotated Anime: Golden Time episode 21 - Chris Walden
  • Annotated Anime: Golden Time episode 20 - Chris Walden
  • Annotated Anime: Golden Time episode 19 - Chris Walden
  • Annotated Anime: Golden Time episode 18 - Chris Walden
  • Annotated Anime: Golden Time episode 17 - Chris Walden
  • Annotated Anime: Golden Time episode 16 - Chris Walden
  • More related stories
    Filed under... #anime #Annotated Anime #feature


