Now that Ohana is settled in and the supporting cast has been fleshed out, we’re going back to the more intensive drama of the earlier episodes. And the drama is just as good as it was before. This episode was jam-packed with new developments: the inn gets a bad review, it turns out Ohana’s mother wrote the review (not to mention she moved back home without even telling her daughter!), and Ohana meets up with Ko and meets her new rival.

All of the buildup from Ohana’s time at Kissuisou is really paying off now. This episode was an inversion of the earlier episodes: before, Ohana felt at home in Tokyo and lonely and unwelcome at Kissuiso. Now, everything about Tokyo makes her miserable, and she goes running to Minchi’s bosom for comfort.

Ohana’s mother has some serious issues. I can definitely see why she and the grandmother don’t get along. If I were the grandmother I would have kicked Ohana’s mother out of the house too. The grandmother’s only mistake was that she should have taken it a step further and gotten custody of her granddaughter 15 years earlier.

As for the love triangle with Ohana and Ko: this other girl was just what was needed to push things along, even if she doesn’t stand a chance (although hopefully she will continue to put up a good fight). She’s already managed to make Ohana jealous, now we just have to wait until she figures out why. Ohana is pretty dense, but hopefully it won’t take the entire remainder of the show for her to figure this out.

Now all that Hanasaku Iroha needs is some more Yuina screen time.

Who is this Madoka person? There is no God but Goddess and His name is Ohana.

Does anyone know who the fox and the little girl hiding in the corner are supposed to be? My knowledge of Japanese mythology is unfortunately quite limited…

Ohana spent most of this episode in bed with a fever. It was light on drama, but I still enjoyed the episode immensely. It did an excellent job portraying the mild sense of disorientation you get when you’re sick through some messing around with the chronology of events, and Ohana’s confused decision to go back home.

Ohana’s actions in deciding to work even though she’s sick were right in line with what I would expect her to do. Everyone else’s reactions to her illness were more amusing: from cooking her food, getting jealous, and reading her erotica about her grandmother. The last one probably would have been a pretty awkward situation if she were more awake.

Unfortunately it does look like we’ might get a Minchi —> Tohru —> Ohana love triangle. I’m not really a big fan of this setup, especially when one way is completely hopeless. Tohru has no chance. Nako seems to be the only one who’s missing all the action.

Am I reading too much into it, or will this new girl who made her appearance at Ko’s job become Ohana’s love rival? Considering that she took up the ending splash screen, she’ll likely have a role of some importance.

Ko was kind of pathetic in this episode though. He went all the way there, only to turn around and come home at the train station when the inn was out of rooms. You would think he would call before he went. Or, having arrived, he would at least look for another inn to stay at. It’s partially Ohana’s fault though, since she is pretty oblivious. And Ko just can’t keep up with her pace at all.

Minchi is making progress towards becoming a cook, due to necessity. I think she would be quite jealous of Ohana if she knew everything that happened between her and Tohru.

In the grand scheme of things, I don’t feel like much has changed from this arc though. Minchi has started cooking, and we have a greater appreciation for the manager’s bookkeeping skills. Ohana has gained a boost of confidence (not like she needed one), but otherwise this seemed like a reset ending where everything is back to how it used to be. It was an entertaining set of episodes, to be sure, but I’m most looking forward to the point in this show where the plot gets moving again.

With her grandmother at the hospital, Ohana is the only one who can stand up to Takako’s preferential treatment plans. Even the head cook is cowed by her. Ohana is really starting to become an integral part of the inn, and even her grandmother seems to trust her now.

This episode took a welcome step away from the stand alone comedic episodes and back into the drama of the first few episodes. There were still funny parts (Ohana’s delusions of playing old maid were hilarious, as was Ohana’s Hayate meido dash through the town in a kimono), but with Ko back in the picture, the grandmother falling ill, the sudden burst in business, and something going on with Tohru, it seems that the plot is beginning to move again. This isn’t to say that the earlier episodes were bad or unnecessary. They were necessary, and will make the remainder better of the show better with their character development. But from now on things should get more exciting.

This episode ended on a strange cliffhanger of sorts with Ohana opening the door while looking for Tohru’s wedding. It kind of makes me wonder if something unexpected will be behind the door… like Tohru getting married himself without telling anyone. Poor Minchi.

This episode focused on developing the personality of Tomoe, the head waitress. Her parents want her to go home for a marriage interview, but she decides to stay at the inn to take care of her cute underlings.

I feared that the survival gamers were going to become a corny gimmick, but it actually turned out well and was pretty funny. Tomoe’s decision to scare away the survival gamers and get fired simultaneously was definitely not the most well thought out plan, but somehow worked out. The survival gamers’ biggest problem was a lack of an opponent, and Tomoe was more than willing to provide.

So we’ve gone through episodes about most of the characters by now, I think the only ones left who haven’t had their full time to shine are the grandmother, beanman, head chef, and the girl from the other inn. The past few episodes have been fun, but I do hope we can get back to the drama of the first few episodes soon. A visit from Ko-chan or some rivalry with the other inn would spice things up right about now…

Also, these survival games actually look like a lot of fun (well, if we ignore the stalking and peeking they actually did and consider what they’re supposed to be doing). I actually shared a campground with some of these people a few years ago, but stayed well away from them and didn’t realize what it was all about.