Uma Musume Pretty Derby Season 3

Episode 13

This final episode for Uma Musume Pretty Derby Season 3 serves as a pretty effective demonstration of the gulf between on-paper writing and vibes-based presentation this series has so consistently cleared. Wikipedia's summary of this finale would be short, unremarkable, and unsurprising: Kitasan Black runs in her final race and wins. But as it always has been, Uma Musume is about so much more than cartoon horse girls in funny outfits winning footraces. It is about sports, the stories that can be told within, and the emotions that can make us feel.

Much of the garnish surrounding Kitasan's send-off could have been gleaned from earlier contexts. The presence of "supporting cast" members like Cheval Grand and Sounds of Earth was less about witnessing their stories as B-plots and more about communicating concurrent stories overall. It is questionable how necessary that is three seasons deep into a series that has shifted main characters with each new installment. But as an idea to be communicated by the writing, it serves its purpose.

Kita's status as The Greatest To Ever Do It was loud and clear by last week's episode. Yet even then, the sheer scale of her accomplishments didn't hit me until they were spelled out. With seven G1 wins, she has categorically passed her idol Tokai Teio and virtually every other horse girl of her generation. Kita truly is the center of comparative standard for competition, destined to be mythologized further on account of her retirement. In some ways, her situation rings like a "good end" version of the tale of Rice Shower that was told back in Season 2. Kita's unmatched winning ability only endeared her to her rivals as motivation for them to do better, and she provided a benchmark of drama in which the audience could invest their emotions in. Comparing her to Rice Shower also gestures at the roles played by elements such as "favorites" and "spoilers" in these competitions. But that, too, is sports.

The manner of following her story also crystalizes Kita's status. Watching her grow from a little horse girl to running the entire course of her career turns Season 3 into something of a biopic. All of the Uma Musume entries have been adaptational docudramas to some degree. However, that straight line of focus on Kitasan's life and times makes this entry feel as exemplary as her racing career. I don't mean that regarding raw quality, as this season can still hardly touch Season 2 regarding the full range of affecting emotions. Yet it still gives Season 3 its own identity. It's a powerful example that can be pointed to in an entry chronicling a horse girl to the finish line.

It's still wildly imperfect. As hard-hitting as the emotional thrust is, none of these ideas feel revolutionary by the end of the season. And while I appreciate the stark simplicity of framing most of the episode around this single race, there are places where even its calculated pacing feels drawn out. It certainly says something that this is the place where Uma Musume's infamous idol performances finally make their return. I think this is more lavishly animated than most of the racing scenes this season have been. However, I can appreciate the dance's deployment just as Kitasan has cemented her position as the "idol" of the horse-girl racing world. Like much of the metatext I analyzed this season, that's probably not intentional, but it being there tickled me anyway.

And yes, Kita's last race in this finale delivers. The animation flourishes are increased somewhat, with particular mind paid to those strained, Road to the Top style faces (Look forward to the forthcoming movie from much of that same crew!). But the built-up context is doing the majority of the heavy lifting for a result that's a foregone conclusion. As she has been before, Kitasan is out in front of the pack the whole time. The magic of the moment comes in the character writing's internalization of her thought process and presentation. She can be frozen in time, hearing the festival cheers of the crowd before claiming her victory. And the people in that crowd articulate why audiences love sports. Fictionalized through this absurd anime lens as it has been, the story of Kitasan Black's final win at this point can only be incredible because it really happened this way.

Perhaps that's the magic of Uma Musume's horse girls overall: they can invite so much investment because their stories are "real" to more of a degree than many other anime heroes. Or perhaps that's a justification for enjoying the simple spectacle of an anime girl running really, really fast. After all, sincerity goes a long way, and Uma Musume has it in spades. If Season 3 was technically a thinner, more emotionally plateaued season than its predecessor, it still can't be accused of being cynical. That's pretty remarkable for the third season of a promotion for a gacha game based on real-world gambling. This season may not have surpassed Season 2 like Kitasan Black surpassed Tokai Teio. But as one of those fans in the stands, I had plenty of fun watching it anyway.

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Uma Musume Pretty Derby Season 3 is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Chris is excited to be back for the mane event, and is hoping he won't have to be a neigh-sayer. You can catch him horsing around on his blog, as well as Twitter, though he doesn't expect that to be around furlong.