Greetings everyone! How have you all been? How is the weather at your end? Here in the north of Japan it’s quite cold! In some places it’s already snowing, and Tokyo saw its first November snow in 54 years! Make sure to dress warm and not catch a cold if you are in a part of the world where the winter has come! While half of the world is entering a state of coldness, snow, and frost, in the world of Udon no Kuni no Kiniro Kemari it is still warm. How I miss summer!

The latest episode was filled with a lot of action. It was so packed, I did not notice how the 20 minutes passed! In a blink of an eye… It was also a very interesting episode because we met almost every character Souta and Poco have encountered in Kagawa. I found this quite interesting, since so far the episodes were centred on Souta’s relationships with a certain person, and how Poco influences those relationships with his presence. But now both of them have gotten quite used to each other, they have developed certain relationships and I think it’s time for us to see how they progress into the future!

Now, without further ado, let’s get into the detailed review of the episode!

Japanese Title: 栗林公園

Plot

As you may remember from the previous episode, Souta resigned from his job in Tokyo to move back to Kagawa where he can leave a relatively easier life while taking care of Poco. You can notice Poco cheering up the moment they get back to Kagawa, and getting more open to people around him. He even visits the grandma living next door, and comes back together with her. She is quite the scary one, I must admit, but you see that she is kind at heart. The grandma had given some self-made food to Souta before, and this time she treats Souta and Poco to a watermelon! And I must tell you, in Japan watermelon is the way to go when the hot summer sun is blazing the earth outdoors!

The episode was mostly centred on Souta taking care of Poco and Nozomi-chan, taking them to a nearby park where Gaogao-chan’s show was scheduled. Both of the kids are extremely fond of Gaogao-chan and seem to enjoy themselves to the moon and back. However, Souta obviously gets exhausted after a day of tagging along with the two kids whose energy does not seem to have an end!

As usual, Poco’s presence brings back Souta’s memories which he seemed to have forgotten or hidden away somewhere deep in his memory. Poco starts drawing on the walls, and those drawings obviously don’t come off. This reminds Souta that he had done something similar when he was a child and his father tried to clean the walls, yet failed.

While talking to the next-door grandma, Souta also realises that he should have been nicer to his father, especially when talking about going to Tokyo. He should have explained it better and tried to come to common terms with his father. Unfortunately, it is too late, since his father has passed away and Souta is unable to do anything to fix the relationship they had.

Souta can see how the kids around him, Poco and Nozomi-chan, are growing up, becoming more mature and responsible. He looks at himself and realises that he himself is changing. He is turning to a father, and all of his worries consist of making food, cleaning the room, and making food again.

I absolutely love this anime, because of the amazing character development we get to witness. They are done so smoothly, they are not forced even a bit. This is a wonderful example of how characters should develop throughout the episodes!

Episode Highlights

There aren’t many things left to talk about this certain episode to be honest, but I want to mention one last thing, or rather highlight one last thing. The episode was pretty much filled with references to tanuki. Everyone Souta meets is talking about stuff that has some sort of a connection with tanuki. For example, the next door grandma keeps complaining about somebody ravaging her garden, and possibly it being a tanuki. The monk we had met before is apparently a tanuki freak and everything around him has a connection to tanuki. I noticed that he was looking at Poco with eyes that were filled with interest and curiosity. Considering that he is a monk, who knows, maybe the dude has noticed that Poco is a tanuki, or maybe even he has some sort of connection to Poco turning into a human. We will find out eventually, or so I hope!

With this I am going to conclude the review for this week’s episode of Udon no Kuni no Kiniro Kemari. I cannot stress enough how lighthearted and warm this anime is. It makes not only Souta but also the people watching it rethink their relationships with the people around them.

What do you think? Do not hesitate to tell us here on Manga.Tokyo what you have on your mind, and don’t forget to check the rest of our episodic reviews!

NEXT TIME: Shodoshima (小豆島)

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