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Impressions:

Wow. The reason I say that isn’t because it was extremely amused with another hilarious episode (which, by the way, it was), but because it was both funny AND immensely grotesque and disturbing. I am referring not to rotting corpses with maggots gnawing away at eyeballs and flesh, nor anything similar, but the SMILES! Goddammit those smiles at the end REALLY put me off! Seriously, they were just disgusting! And the animators did that on purpose, as they definitely know how to draw a good smile. Example: Kayahara-sensei when she’s eating ramen…ah, so heavenly, that smile of hers! But no, not Miki’s or Megumi’s. I guess it was pretty important in showing us how bad the two are at smiling (though Megumi isn’t bad at all really).

Well, there’s one more episode to go, and it doesn’t seem like it’ll be wrapping anything up, as there’s been no plot at all so far. Well, when I mean no plot I mean nothing progresses – nothing get’s done. Sure, fights are fun, but do get boring after a while. I will be looking forward to see what’s gonna get thrown into the last episode of the series, though I do NOT wish for a second season, nor do I think there will be. It’s been fun watching the show to get a few good laughs, but I definitely want more than just that. Doesn’t really matter now, as there’s a long list of upcoming fall seasons soon to air – can’t wait!

Summary:

While this episode might seem like a repeat of some previous ones, with it starting off with Kankuro once again challenging Miki to a duel (my god when will he ever learn…), it is actually spins off to a completely new direction. Just as Kankuro presents his signature challenge letter, Wakana appears down the road riding on Toshiyuki (her dog). She tries to stop to say hi to Miki and the others, but doesn’t know how and continues down the road, screaming for Toshiyuki to stop. With that distraction gone, Kankuro restates his challenge…A short while later, when Kankuro has already been ‘taken care of’, Wakana appears down the road again, seemingly having just gone round in a circle. This time, Ohta instructs her on how to stop Toshiyuki, and this is done by pulling on his collar. She does so and the dog does indeed come to a halt.

As everyone is admiring Wakana and Toshiyuki, Miki comes and asks if she can have a ride on him too. Wakana agrees, but of course Toshiyuki doesn’t, being her mortal enemy and such. The two get into a fight like they always do when they are this close. Ohta (having failed to discern the real reason as to why Toshiyuki won’t allow Miki to ride on him), concludes that he simply hates his master’s friends (never though Ohta would be this thick). However, this assumption has already been disproved earlier in the day, as one of Wakana’s friends has already ridden on Toshiyuki. And so, Kankuro tries to ride on him and succeeds. After his success, Ohta decides to try and is also allowed to ride on Toshiyuki. Of course, Miki is furious that she is the only one who Toshiyuki won’t let on.

As the two start fighting again, Makiko comes out of the restaurant, screaming at Miki for making a ruckus outside her shop. Kayahara-sensei appears and says that animals are far more sensitive than humans and are able to distinguish between good and bad people, and likewise, enemies and friends. She then approaches Toshiyuki and asks him if he’ll let her ride on him. He allows her as well. When Miki’s anger simply rises because of this, Makiko tells her that the reason why Toshiyuki won’t let her ride on him is because she’s always picking on people - a bad person clearly. Because of this, Miki decides to force her mother onto Toshiyuki too and see whether he will let her ride him or not. However, the problem here is not whether Makiko is a good person or not, but her weight…Before she can get on, Toshiyuki leaps out of the way, onto Miki’s head.

Wakana remembers she has to go buy some fish and leaves riding on Toshiyuki. She sees something she likes in a shop window and tells Toshiyuki to stop, which he does (now why didn’t this work before?) Problem is, Wakana goes flying due to the sudden stop and lands in a rubbish truck (or at least some kind of waste dumper). Toshiyuki grunts out in horror, but realises the only way to save Wakana is to…depend on an equally capable person: Miki. He dashes back to the shop and starts tugging Miki’s apron. As she tries to swat him away with her broom, Ohta realises something must have happened to Wakana. Miki realises this too after he says it and asks Toshiyuki to lead the way. The two start sprinting off in Wakana’s direction, but it seems Toshiyuki is too fast, so finally, he decides to let Miki ride him (and this time, not like a horse, but like a skateboard!)

Along the way, they pass Kankuro, who decides to chase Miki just because he can’t help but do so if she is running. However, Kankuro is no match for Toshiyuki and quickly falls behind. As Wakana is helplessly riding in the truck, she imagines what her fate might be – get buried? Or worse yet, get tossed into the ocean, eaten by a whale and forced to survive by fishing in its stomach…But before she can give up hope, Miki appears behind the truck, tailing it on Toshiyuki. He jumps, giving Miki enough height to leap into the truck. As Miki is calmly explaining to Wakana how Toshiyuki let her ride on him, how she has a beautiful soul and then enjoying a laugh afterwards, both Kankuro and Toshiyuki are seen struggling to keep up with the truck from behind lol…

When they’ve arrived back at the restaurant, Miki tells everyone she rode on Toshiyuki, therefore indicating she has a much more beautiful soul than Makiko’s. However, when Megumi (the most evil, devious, scheming, heartless, untrustworthy, dishonourable person there is…ok, maybe I went a little too far) starts riding on Toshiyuki, Miki sadly concludes that beautiful souls has absolutely nothing to do with whether he will let someone ride on him or not. Worst yet, Megumi starts telling Miki how only people with pure souls like her can ride Toshiyuki, when she has the exact opposite a soul…And after all that, STILL no one has realised the reason why Toshiyuki won’t let Miki ride on him was because their enemies, and the only reason why he DID let her ride on him just before was to save Wakana…

Some time later in the week, Ohta comes to bring Makiko some spring onions just in time to see the horrors which the Getsushin Foods Company have brought!! When a customer complains of a cockroach in his ramen (which he put there himself), both Miki and Makiko respond with…smiles? Yes, that’s right – SMILES!! And not just smiles, but freakish, horrific, disgusting, gruesome curves of the mouth that would kill anyone who sees them! (But not me, since as you can see, I have lived to tell the tale…) Anyway, the reason they are smil- no, trying to smile is because of the photo-of-ramen-girl-with-best-smile contest, sponsored by the Getsushin Foods Company! However, when Ohta reads the flyer describing all this, he discovers that due to the age limit, Makiko cannot enter (there goes her smile! Thank god…) When the cockroach guy from before tries to get her attention again, he gets more than only that…

When Miki decides to continue practicing her smile outside, she sees Megumi doing the exact same thing. And so, the two start headbutting each other like retards while keeping their fake smiles. It seems that Megumi is also entering the contest, but Miki tells her that only ‘ramen girls’ may enter. Megumi explains that the competition isn’t open to just girls who work in ramen shops, but anyone eating ramen (as the photo must be taken of the girls eating ramen – and smiling of course!) The two start taking shots at each other while maintaining their smiles, although Miki does seem to have some trouble with this. The two decide to make this a challenge to see who will win the prize. Suddenly breaking the tension, Megumi asks Miki if she know the secret to winning. As she obviously doesn’t, Megumi explains to her that there are three aspects: the stance, the smile and the walk, though Miki sucks at all of them. It seems Megumi’s plan is to crush Miki’s confidence before the competition.

It is then that Ohta realises the due date for all submissions is today, so Miki and Megumi frantically try to get Ohta to take their pictures. He takes numerous shots, but none of them are good as the two girls try to sabotage each other’s shot. When all photos have been submitted, the judges of competition start evaluating all the pictures. They do manage to find Miki looking cute in one shot, but multiple others depict her being evil and violent to Megumi. In another picture, one of the judges points out Kayahara-sensei in the background of a photo, eating ramen with her usual, blissful ramen-eating smile. They are about to use her, but someone else discovers several other pictures where she is not so friendly looking…The judges are afraid that Kayahara is a ghost – a common misconception – and in the end decide to use…Wakana! Of course, neither Miki nor Megumi are happy about this and start duking it out again…

Preview:

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