TONIKAWA: Over The Moon For You

Episode 7

Last episode, Nasa and Tsukasa set out to meet Nasa's parents in Nara. They will not get there until next episode because this episode winds up entirely being about the bus stop and sightseeing in Kyoto, as well as having to deal with Chitose in both venues. While a fair amount of it is fluff, the episode does accomplish the important purpose of getting Chitose off of Nasa and Tsukasa's case – at least for now, anyway.

After showing Nasa and Tsukasa pleasantly killing time at the rest stop – much to the frustration of Chitose, who is constantly reminded by her maids that things are not falling apart for the two – events move to Kyoto, where the more “live in the moment” Tsukasa humors Nasa's desire to see historical attractions. That is where Chitose intervenes more directly after an initial attempt at the rest stop gets thwarted, resulting in Nasa having to escort Chitose around while trying to convince her that he is the right guy for Tsukasa. The key moment in this is probably Chitose's frustrated admittance that Nasa's personality really is the type that her beloved Tsukasa would fall for, though Nasa revealing to her that he also had his life saved by Tsukasa also made him more relatable and his very Nasa-like roundabout way of explaining why he's in love with Tsukasa finishes the job. Or perhaps Chitose just got frustrated and couldn't take any more; hard to say on that. Meanwhile Tsukasa is also talking to the maids about why she loves Nasa. Frankly, I am starting to wonder if the maids go along with Chitose because that is how they get their entertainment.

Though other episodes have been funnier, this one still has its share of light comedy moments and plenty of blushing to go around. It also spills a couple of interesting little details. One is that Tsukasa is familiar enough with kimonos to be able to don one without assistance, which would not be common for someone of her age. (The woman at the rental place was clearly surprised.) What this implies is unclear but seems significant. I should also probably say apparent age because of the comment Tsukasa gives Chitose about how she's been “a normal 16-year-old girl” from the day she met Chitose. Since Chitose was clearly younger when they first met, this is another indication that Tsukasa may be ageless.

Lastly, we have several academic, cultural, and anime references to bring up once again. (I am skipping “Narita divorce” this time since I brought that up last time.)

• Hirunandesu is either a slight misspelling or a take-off on the actual Nippon TV morning show Hirunandesu, which uses a cast of regulars that rotates daily to feature all sorts of delicacies, fashions, and popular places. I'm not clear if Taki, the “idol” doing the reporting for the show at the rest stop in this episode, is based on an actual show regular or not.
• The Manga Museum in Kyoto is an actual place.
• Renting a kimono for the day is a common activity in Kyoto that is popular among young adults. (I have personally seen both shops where you can do this and people who were doing it.)
• The brief scene where Chitose and the two maids are wearing masks as Tsukasa comments about them reminding her of “a certain villain trio” is a clear reference to the Doronbo Gang, the villain trio from Yatterman and the protagonists from Yatterman Night. (Chitose more resembles Leopard from the latter, though that could be a coincidence.)
• The Drake Equation is a probability argument concerning the likelihood of intelligent life existing in the Milky Way galaxy. Nasa's reference to it being applied to soulmates might trace back to a thesis titled “Why I Don't Have a Girlfriend,” which was published in 2009 and used in modified versions throughout the early 2010s.
• Bernhard Riemann was a 19th-century mathematician who had major contributions in several mathematical fields, including laying the groundwork for Einstein's theory of general relativity (which seems most relevant here, given that Nasa also mentions Einstein
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TONIKAWA: Over The Moon For You is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.